Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1884-02-15
THE TARANTULA's BITE.

----f -
THE TARANTULA'S BITE.
Among all my, acquaintance. none
seemed happier than Eugene F. L
named him Fortune s Favorite. He had n
beautiful and highly accomplished wife;
his children were the prettiest and the
best hammered | have ever met. All the
women considered Mrs. F. rs near per-
fection as mortals can achieve; all the
men voted Eugene F-as clever n man
MS one could desire to claim fellowship
with. He was rich in associations, in
the integrity of name that commanded
the respect of four generations. How
few aspiring Americans can say rs
muchp He possessed the advantages
of liberal education; his place was
assured rs well as it is possible to as
sure anything in country where the
wheel Of fortune obliterates the accumu-
lations and regulations of generations,
and lifts men and women out of obscur-
ity in day. That is to say, the COM
pany that employed him was the Oldest,
most reliable, and the richest organiza-
tion of its kind in the country. Final
ly, in addition to salary of three
thousand year, Eugene had good rea-
son to count upon an inheritance in the
near future that would render him in
dependent
The noteworthy trait fellowship with
Eugene F. revealed was his equable
spirits, born, as he asserted, of content
ment. He was satisfied with his place,
his belongings and enjoyments. No
man had more to make him happy, he
.coi1 No a,,tnx,n1 1,fa ,Nttln
sophically, or fretted himself less over
the big or little things beyond his con-
trol. 1t was this equipoise, and,
doubtless, his ignorance of the trials
and bitter experiences of less favored
people. that rendered Eugene F. in
different when the misfortunes and
temptations of the poor were discussed.
Generous to fault, he was unable to
comprehend the dire necessities that
drive the unfortunate to desperation
and death. He was severe-could with
difficulty find language strong enough
toeXpress his contempt of the average
suicide.
A poor man who sought employment
and failed to find it, weary with fruit
less effort, despairing under the world S
rebuffs, plunged recklessly into the un-
known. The means employed empha-
sized the poverty of the wretched Great.
ure. The newspapers made much of it,
1t was the item of the day, and proved
a base for columns. / dropped in or
Eugene one day when his hours work
was dore. He had n newspaper in his
hand. He threw it down impatiently
angyily, as he handed me cigar and
pushed me into a.seat, saying:
~ am disgusted with you newspaper
men. Why do you give SO much prom
inence and space to that horrible sui
eide. BY all accounts, the fellow die
all that was left him to do. If he hat
only displayed common sense, when he
was about it, and adopted easier means
If man must kill himself, why does h,
dis6gure himself, or impose unnecessar,
an2 horrible agonies such as this poo
wretch inflicted upon himselfP''
Aside from the fact that l have n,
patience with the speculation and theo
ry that cuts ground from under ever,
Christians feet, was tired. Eugen
worked an hour every day. l worked
ON an average, twelve at least, and di,
more in one hour than Eugene did il
three. Since it was clear to me that h
received at least ten times more for hi
mental toll than did, could afford t.
permit him to indulge himself in pre-
longed dissertation of the "survival @
the tittest." 1t pleased him and amuse
ME.
'Now," he said, at the end of char
TER, ''tell Inc why man who chooses t
kill himself, let us say with rat poison
should be regarded as much above
rat. Here is another account, in thi
mornings paper, of woman who hel
her head in a tub of water until sh
drowned. Tell me woman who doe
that is entitled to the benefits of TIL
nineteenth century! Why, if such pee
pie were fairly balanced on the feno
round Heaven, they would hang wit
their heads downward of choice, HI
ma.n tadpoles, all of themr'
Eugene had a horror of death; Gem,
teries were his special aversion. II
was never known TO attend funera
He could not bring himself to witne
the ceremonies in the house or at ii
grave. He had a prejudice again
burial.
'Why can't everybody have vault
with nice. pleasing colors on the wal
have the interior as well as the ext
Tior ornamented, and made SO attra
tive that people going into them woul
feel as they do when they enter an a
tractiye chamber with a bed in it?'
do you mean the deadp"
"You know well enough / refer
visitors--to the living"
II am afraid" i could not help sa
ing, grayely, ''you have yet TO lear
Eugene, that not all the religion,
the learning and all the philosophy
the world can never make death 9th
than death"
"But that is no reason why ever
body should make death SO horrible al
grisly. They make it ghastly, and
the same breath tell you il is the way
Heaven. The way to Heaven ought
be beautiful"
''Haye you forgotten Pilgrims Pro
resspn ~.
"a piece of rank plagiarism. L
idea Is thousands of years DID,"
"Why do we introduce discords
musicPn
Nonsense! I'll name you the
sand pieces = famous compositions
without discord." Eugene answer,
"The fact Is. tho world doesn't belle
what II processes"
why don't you advocate cren
tionr' retortod. ''If your theory
oolyeOh burn 'pm all upi burn !