, 1874-01-25
Tha Obscprity EnvelopinG Our
Neighbors' Incomes.
Tbs Secret Of Conjugal Congeniality,
Some Of the Unsatisfactory Benefits Of
Self.Knowledge.

4ub lealDe4 -. O.s Ii LIB htuuy, Auoab AAo
ponderous tones, begins to suspect that human
beings bear about the same relation to the Uni
verse that gnats do to this earth; tho Public
Bepefactor wonders bow the world can possibly
get along when he shall be gone, and cannot
understand why 50 useful a creature should
not live here forever the Commonplace
Person is exceedingly troubled at find
ing himself living, and destined 10
live eternally, without being allowed any
voice in the matter, and with an indefinite feel
ing that something groat-he doesn't know e1-
actly what's expected Of him just because he
is living creature. TO all these distressed
querists comes tho Poet twanging his Tyre, and
warbIng about the "Mystery Of Life" and
forthwith they al CRY ''Ah, yes That is it.
sThe Mystery Of Life.' That ia what VIC mean,"
and are all confident and satisfied. People are
rever SO confident and 80 satisfied as when they
1re talking about something OF which they know
nothing
But it ia not the old, unanswerable conun-
drums, 'Why arc We Aere?" - Where arc We
going 7" ETC.. with which this ephemeral article
is to deal. We are talking now OF the little,
everyday mysteries which 60 to make up Lie
itself +; the
SOCIAL PEnrLExT1Es
which puzzle us al. To begin with, there ls
that natural and laudable desire which ne all
poaseaa to know how and whence our neighbor's
money comes; and how mysterious Ii lts
origin in some cases You hatter your
eelf that you are on financial equality With \,
who lives at the corner OF the block; T. VINO
comes down town on the same car with Sou
every morning and q, who sits few seats In
front Of you in church; bnt suddenly 4 gets
seat in the Legislature, and builds big house
on the Avenue; and gets the city or state
printing and dsdalns to noe N st ca 1as
along behind his thousand-donar horses;
and Z, without giving up bis comparatively
obscure position as Treasurer in the
"Aerial Navigation Balloon and Bnb-
bic COMPANY hss moves .ona 3d'o 1nanx .o,s 91o on
speculation in the city and out in tho suburbs;
his wife wears diamonds and sables, and Ills
daughter joins party of European tourists
You look on .enyicazly, and wonder 20" 1t ls AZ
DONE Perhaps you ask some mutual acquaint-
ance how : made his money, and the man
gtares hard At you, aud ahrugs his shoulders,
but givss no more definite answer than that;
There are odd little whispers going around
about 7. Nobody seems to know exactly what 1t
is all about until he becomes again candidate
for public favors and then there ia published an
attack In the papers about the Printing SWlndle.
But still nobody believes it, because every poll
ticiau expects to be DETAINED. As for q, he sud
VIZ
"Aerial Navigation Balloon and Bubble Com
pauv ~ his property seems to melt away (some
people venture to say it went to make up
defiaencies in his Accounts); he goes around
with his eyes on the ground, and looking years
elder. His family have moved into cheap lodg-
ioge, and you hear incidentally that his wife Is
in poor health. Oh! the poor wives Of these
suddenly enriched and IS suddenly ly-impov cr1shed
men The worst Of all the shame, and dis
grace Of social ostracism, falls on their inno-
cent heads. How patiently In wife refurbished
the old party dresses, and devised new coiffures,
and eked ont the money for sashes, aud hou-
quets, and gloves, so long as economy was neces-
sary but. when suddenly the reign OF plenty
began. and the husbands business was SO pros
porous, and the diamonds were her wedding an
uiye1sary present, and the husband went with
her to choose the velvet dress and the point-lace
shawl, and would not let her ask the price, she
reioiced as anv other woman would have re-
io;ced in the sunshine. Then the crash came, and
people shook their headn over the ve1vets, and
lacoa and diamonds, believing those TO be thecause
Of the financial ruin. Not so. When a man be-
gins defaulting, forging, emoezzAng, or
swindling in any way, the first things on the
programme are fast horses, fine houses, ex-
pensive suppers; and then, after those things,
comes the marital command: For heavens
sake, DO get yourself something decent to weat.
never waot to seeyou out again in the evening
in that old green SILK or your wedding-dress.
People will think you've never had anything new
to wear since you we're married
The time is past for laying the burden
OF mans pusiness-failures on wifes
shoulders. Let, justice be done though
the heavens fall Women, as . rule, hate
debt There is not one wife in hundred who
would take any comfort in dress, or house, or
carriage, the payment for which she did not be-
leve vas coming from legitimate sources.
Another vast field for speculation is found in
the difference between
THE WORK AND THE WoRKEn.
You sec al exquisite picture OF statue, and are
I'll anxiety to meet the man in whose brain are
created such forms OF 1oveliness but, when
eonc mutual friend brings you two together,
the master Of the studio has nothing in common
With you He lives in a world Of his own, snd
he tolerates you simply as one OF his
admirers when he chooses to como out into
the everyday world. It will be something un-
usual If he cares two straws for what Tcnnyson,
or Bsrou, or Wordsworth said about storms at
sea- or mountains, or oceans, or trees. Neither
does he care to talk about his art to you, be-
cause be talks an artists jargon which you can
not understand. You wonder, as you part, how
so stupid man can paint such wonderful pic
t1rcs and he allows you to pass out of his con-
sciousnesa as one Of the eyer-chapg|ng crowd 81
pictures, and then come to stare at him.
Then, again, there Was the author OF succesa-
fuI. eocioty-ncyel, and you liked her non-de-
plumc, and quoted her savings, and mnde
Charming mental picture OF her, aud we're aux
ious for her acquaintance, until somebody
pointed her out to you at tho Opera one night.
The brilliant writer Of graceful manners, piquant
fsce, and tasteful dress. existed only in your i'm
Aginatiou and you saw before you an angular
female, with . deficiency of chignon, and .
purple feather rampant on severely defiant
bonnet. You felt very differently when your
wife quoted her next book to you, and what be-
fore was piquancy had changed to acridity, snd
The mvste1ies of personality should never be dis
Sc. it down ss nS TO BE- sdr ntEo
Generally the people best worth knowing arc
the psople who have never done anything worth
mentioning. It is no use attempting to explain
the fact. It is simply one OF the mysteries Of
to-day.
Rut, Of all ife's enigmas, the
coHuspRCMs OF couRTsHR
arc voted on al1 SIDES to be the most fascinating.
The wonder Of being able to write letter to the
same per.on md sav something new, every day,
eeyeu DAYS in week, week in and week out, for
1nonths / The seeming impossibiity- (which low
ers declare they accomplished saying tie same
thing over aud over. and over again, aud yet
having it eternally fresh. The eyer-recurring
Tonderment Of each as to the choice of the 9TH
IN fnfr Ia ar fafa which