Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1892-01-07

OF the men she has ruined, ii Is not the
men she has deceived, but IL Is living,
breathing skeleton beside her-it Is her
maid-who knows all her secrets, who
is close to her always, and who, some
day, when somebody pays her better for
1t than does her mistress, will tell all she
knows. just now she is devotion itself
but the maid mistrusts her mistress as
the mistress does her maid, and yet, In
reality the maid is mistress. The mines
are not full enough of diamonds to make
this woman's life happy, and not
enough whisky can be sold to quiet her,
because even the whisbey is handed
to her by her skeleton. She has
taken to smoking opium lately, and
that's telling on her; but take my word
for it, there is no unhappler woman in
New York than the one whose clothes
you admire, who you think must be so
happy, and who is as miserable as only
so wicked woman can be.
HOW BOY GREW.
Then there is another sort. It's q
man who carries this around. les with
him all the time. Years ago, when this
man was younger and stronger, and be-
lieved that he was all-powerful, his only
boy came to him and honestly told him
that he had beea gambling-that he had
lost 5000, and that he hadn't the money
to pay with. Now, if that had been
your boy or mine, we would have gotten
that money somehow and saved him.
But this man, to whom 5000 was a
trifie, turned on his son and asked him
how he dared tell him of such vile
action, and then and there said he would
not give him cent, and that he might
leave his house-that his roof should
not shelter gamblers. Almost crazy,
| the boy went to his mother, but the
father was there before him, took every
| one OF her jewels from her, so she could
raise no money on them, told her that
her son was thief, and there. be-
| fore the mother who bore him,
cursed him and told him to go. And
the boy went-went out In the world
not knowing how to work; got some
poorer people to help him, and when |
say poorer, | mean poorer in purse and
| richer in kindness than his own were,
and then he went to the far west. There
he got a position in railroad office;
out Of his poor little salary he saved
that 5000, though it took two years to
do it, and he sent it back to the people
to whom he owed it. As the years
went on he absolutely grew with the
town and to-day-what do you think
he is to-day? He is either governor or
senator, and you can decide which. He
doesn't bear his fathers name.
HE is KNOWN BY HIS MOTHERS,
name to which he had right by
birth. and which he had the law give
him as we'll. And that father never dare
| speak of his sou. They see each other
constantly, and the sons face grows
harder and colder when he looks at his
father. And the old man, who has
realized that there Is power stronger
than his, would give all the years of his
life if he might tell that this man OF
whom so many speak in praise, is his
boy, but he dare not. How can be
account for the years when that boy
suffered and almost starved when he
first began to workp How can he ever
expect to get his love, or even his toler-
alton, when the man remembers what
the boy endured, and knows that at thai
time his father was living in luxury
and making no effort to discover where
he was. The son is Indifferent; his
mother died years ago, and so there Ii
no gentle feminine tie between him and
his father. And that's the skeleton q
fashionable old man carries. l don't
think anybody cares to exchange skele.
tons with him.
What's the skeleton of milliner's
bill, of lack of pretty clothes or pretty
surroundings, or yearning for gay life
compared with amy of these Just think
them over, and say, after all: "What d
comfortable sort of q person my own
skeleton is" and be satisfied. KeeI
him secluded, and don't show, even by
wrinkle on your brow, that you heal
the rattle of his bones, and in time he
may go where some politicians will
into ''innocuous desuetude." You ques.
ton that, but then there is so many
things you question and want to know
why.
WHY ARE THESE THINGS THUs2
Why is 1t that, when you have got 9
new sealskin coat, the weather is con,
sistently warm?
Why is it that, when you think you
are the best looking man in town, thai
everybody else don't agree with your
Why is IL that, when you know you
can paint a picture better than car
Carolus Duran, that the rest of the
world don't find it out?
4 Why is it that, when you feel that you
can edit a paper as well as "Mr. Dana Of
the New York Sun" that the city editor
hasn't discovered it2
Why is it that when this is the great
est country in the world we have to dig
up the streets three times year to fine
it out?
Why is it that when all good politi
clans will surely go to heaven 30 few
seem to be aimdingfor that direction?
Why is it that when Congress is ii
session most of the men look like
well, what do they look like?
Why is it that you think your dog il
the finest in the world?
Why is 1t when you've got horst
that can go he wont, Just when yoy
want him tor
Why is 1t that your own wife always
wants I'd be kissed at inopportune times
OF course that sort of thing never hap
pens with a widow or some other mans
wife.
Why is it that l am asking all thest
questions? II is because l have laud
able desire for knowledge, which l hopt
Is shared by all the rest Of womankinG
as well as by Bah.