St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-11-01
tom.


informal adieu then and there. he says
with reprOying pOliteneSs. ''Oh, shall
call around about : and say sgoOd-by.'
HOu thank him tor his kindness. at
the same time wishing he would not
come. If he is friend You dearly prize.
1t TObs the parting OF all sentiment TO
have it take place in the fuss and hurry
Of departure. and this final adieu but
renders the agony Of parting more lin
gering. If he is mere acquaintance.
il compeIs you 10 hear and to reiterate
some w0rn-Out phrases which amount
to nothing when said:
80 glad to have met YOU" Hope we
shall meet again" Trust you will
have pleasant journey" Thank you:
you are very kind."
And yet l hear people every day ex-
pressing the most profound regret when
they have missed an opportunity of
Saying gOOd-Uy" to some one. / met
a lady at the house of a mutual &C
quaintance one day, and the hostess
mentioned her probable departure with
in the week. The lady then expressed
all due regret at the thought of losing
her society. and ali necessary pleasure
at having made her acquaintance. A
day or two later l CHANGED 10 refer TO
the fact that she had gone. in the pres
ence of the lady.
Gone. so soon! and l never called
to say goOd-by." cried the poor Great
ure in accents OF heartfelt grief.
Now, what possible pleasure could
have resulted to either party in formal
adieu? All had been said in the previ-
Gus case that was necessary.
Imbued with the ridiculous idea that
this form was necessary and expected
of me, | waited half an hour ITO say
goOd-by' TO lady recently. 1t was
NY dinner hour. but as the lady was
completing her final preparations for
travel and the carriage was az the door,
| was obliged u wait. When she de-
scended. preOccupied and fiurried. she
was obliged 10 shift her travelling wraps
and paraSOl from her right TO the left
hand before giving me the final hand
clasp. Then we both smiled. and she
said. 80 kind of you to call 1 said
Not at ali; / hope YOU will have a
pleasant Journey She said. Thank
yOu-sO Kind-good-bye. 1 said Good
by" Then she entered the carriage
and said ''GOOd-by' from the door, and
l walked away and looked over my
shoulder and said "Good-by,' and she
drove of and l went home to a cold din
ner. Could anything be more ridieu
lous? And yet we are doing it daily.
\ lady l know visits twice year in a
lauliA OF nine people. Inc ordeal OF
saving goodbye to all these persons
separately stares me in the face for two
/ or three days before | leave" she once
said to me. - | am expected TO kiss
seven women and children and thank
! each one separately for her kindness TO
/ me: then | shake two masculine hands
! and say som ething agreeable, and then
| each Of the nine people says good-bve
/ three times before 1 get of. 1t really
/ eXhausts me. | wish I could walk out
/ of the door and say, We'll. good morn
/ ing ana have them take the rest for
! granted. or let me write to them what
was TO be said"
The last kiss between the dearest of
! friends is liable to be a very automatic
/ affair if taken at the hour OF departure,
/ in the midst of anxiety over trunks,
! satchels, umbrellas and tickets.
As for our American system of paying
/ our respects TO the hostess before leav-
/ ing a large entertainment. nothing
/ could be more awkward or embarrassing
and 1 rejoice 70 see it giving way 10 the
more graceful old world fashion OF
! quiet exit.
Very few people know how to make
their adieuX after q formal call. Many
/ a delightful visit has been spoiled BY
tedious leaye-taking.
l have seen callers rise TO go and felt
/ genuine regret. so keen had been the
! pleasure OF the visit; but before the
door closed upon them / have felt
tempted 10 give them a gentle push. so
laborious and lingering have been their
adieuX. ELLA WHEELER WILCOX.