Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-03-01
The Influence of Things.

From HarIeI's Mag1zIne.
There was once lady. sober in mind and Sc
date IN manner, whose plain dress exactly rep
resented her desire to be inconspicaous 20 do
good, to improve every day OF her life in ac-
( tons that should benefit her kind She was q
serious person, inclined to improving CONVEX
satlon. TO the reading of bound books that cost
| at least dollar and half us cents of which
! she gladly contributed TO the author) and she
| had distaste for the gay society which was
mainly futter of ribbons and talk aud pretty
| faces; and when she meditated, as she did in
her spare moments. her heart was sore over
the frlyoty Of life and the emptiness of fashion.
She longed TO make the world better, and
without any priggishness she set il an example
OF simplicity and sobriety, of cheerful acaui-
escence IN plainness and inconspicuOusness
One day-it was in the autumn-this lady had
occasion to buy new hat. From a great num-
Der offered to her she selected red one with a
dull-red plume. 1t did not agree with the rest
OF her apparel; IL did not fit her apparent char
acter. What impulse led 10 this selection she
could not explain. She was not tired of being
good, but something in the jauntiness of the
hat and the color pleased her. II it were .
temptation. she did not intend 10 yield to il,
but she thought she would take the hat home
and try II. Perhaps her nature felt the need Of
a little warmth. The hat pleased her still more
when she got 1t nome and put il on and sur
veyed herself in the mirror. Indeed there was
new expression IN her face that corresponded
10 the hat She put il off and looked AT IN
There was something almost humanity winning
and temptations in il. In short she kent IN
and when she wore IL abroad she was not CON-
scIous OF Its incongruity to herself or 20 her
dress, but of the incongruity of the rest of her
apparel to the hat, which seemed to have a sort
OF intelligence OF Its own, at least a power
OF changing and conforming things 20
itself. Dy degrees one article after another in
the ladys wardrobe was laid aside and another
substituted for II that answered to the demand
ing spirit OF the hat. In little while this plain
lRdy was not plain any more. but most COR
geously dressed, and possessed with the desire
10 be IN the height of the fashion. IL came to1
this that she had tea gown made out of =
window curtain with a ramboyant pattern.
Solomon la all his glory would have been
ashamed OF himself IN her presence
But TINS was not ALL Her disposition. her
ideas, her whole life were changed She did NOT
any more think OF going about doing good, but
OF amusing herself. She read nothing but
stories IN paper covers. In place of being Sc
date and sober-mnded she was frivolous 70 ex-
cess; she spent most of her time with women
VINO hkedto ''frivol" She kept Lent in the
most expensive way, so as to make the impres-
sion upon everybody that she better than
the extremist kind of Lent. From liking the
sedatest company she passed TO liking the gay
est society and the most fashionable method OF
getting rid of her time. Nothing whatever has
happened TO her, and she is now an ornament
TO society