The Wahpeton times., 1889-08-15
sEAux AND THEIR USES.
Womsn Value Thorn az They {
NovA1a or n Comoa.,

NY sAVtAor uooO W Calk ABOUT my
beaux, and perhaps for her sake I am
fond Of the quaint, old-fashioned word.
But let me say in the beginning that
1t has distinct meaning of its own,
and should not be misapplied.
Hood says:
II remember, I remember,
When my little lovers came,
With posy, or cherry,
Or some new invented game"
Well, he does not mean lovers, at all,
he means beaux.
One may have a beaux, q lover an
admirer, an adorer, or q comrade, but
seldom may combine any two of these
In one individual, and never all five in
any one epoch Of her life, for the beau
Is the special attribute OF girlhood,
and seldom develops the exacting ten
derness of the lover, the blind delu-
sions Of the admirer, the infatuation
OF the adorer, or the honest sympathy
and helpfulness of the comrade, who,
however. does often develop camara-
derie into friendship. perhaps after all
the most satisfying relationship be-
tween man and woman.
But the beau! The beau! What is
hep Who is he? What is his origin,
habitat, sphere or action?
Let US describe him first by mega
tives. He need not be young-in fact
''an old beau' is q we'll known char.
acter in fiction, drama and real life.
He need not be handsome. although
he invariably thinks he is.
He need not be intellectual or learn
ed-in fact, never knew beau who
was either. although I have known
some men of whom other men said,
He isn't half such fool as he looks. 81
He need not be brave, for nobody ex-
pect courage or leadership! from him;
nor need he be business man, for he
is usually found spending the money
his father or some one else has accumu-
lated for him. In fact, the beau re-
duced to poverty and real work is the
most forlorn of objects, reminding one
of performing canary bird, or an an
dustrious flea, or a poor little trained
poodle. or any other helpless and harm
less little animal ooerced into unnatural
labor and foreign pursuits.
Not that mean to speak severely Of
the beau, for 1 don't in fact. I like him
and value him, and should be really
sorry to miss him out of the world, but
he has his limitations. poor dear, like
the rest of US, and one hates to see him
pushed up to the wall that defines those
limits.
Moreover, there is positive as we'll
as q negative formula in the recipe for
a beau. He must be good-natured.
and always ready, If not with smile,
at least with simper; he must be
quick at repartee, even though a mild
one; he must have a good memory, and
q certain adhesiveness of touch which
will enable him to'pick up the floating
gossamer threads of society talk, and
carry them to just the right quarter
for repetition. He must never forget
anybody's connections, relationships,
friendships and enmities, and never by
any chance step upon anybody's toes.
or anybody's remotest frills. He must
discover and keep the narrow path be-
tween harmless gossip and perilous
scandal, and while always having
something interesting to say, never say
anything that could be repeated to his
own or anybody else's detriment. He
must be sentimental to the extent of re-
membering the favorite flowers. colors,
and perfumes Of the lady to whom he
Is for the moment attentive, and maxi
ing graceful little offerings in harmony
with those tastes. He must have suffi-
cient tact to be always where he is
wanted. and to skillfully efface himself
in the presence of lover or favored
admirer or adorer; for one of the pecu-
liarities Of the beau is, that he has his
season, like the mushroom, and is not
at all acceptable out of it.
But even as one will sometimes ca
priciously prefer salted, dried or pick
led mushrooms to fresh and tender
vegetables. there will be intervals in
life. perhaps to its very end. when
one turns from grand passion, from
the pedestal whereon ones adorer
places one, even from the solid salts
faction of a comrades honest sympa-
thy, and finds whimsical pleasure in
the conversation, the compliments,
the chit-chat of beau, and finds the
same rest and refreshment in his so.
ciety as in that of the last fashionable
novel or the lightest of society come
dies.
We have spoken of the beau as IN
adjunct Of early girlhood, because 1t
is only an ingenue who could bc
content in the society of a beau, or
who expects anything serious of him,
or dignifies him into an ideal Young
girls never classify the men who sur
round them on their entrance into So
ciety; they are all heroes Of romance.
they are all possible lovers and hus-
bands, and the beau, being the most
obvious and the most demonstrative
figure in this new world, is often
pitched upon by the debutante 10 her
ideal, and she is sometimes . good
deal disappointed in finding how wo-
fully too small he is for the giants
rope" she fain would fit upon his