The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1893-07-26
WEDNESDAY,. JULY 26. 1898.
! THE GLOOMY SIDE.
SOME POINTS ON THE WOMEN WHO
DoTE ON THE eREwsoME.


Gloating Over the Things which Caus
Thorn Pain = Gathering Pansies, bu
Looking For Episode Of News
paper woman's Street Car Ride.
The other day was riding in street
car. There were II women and men
in the same quarters. We logged along
our way as people do out Of whose life
. oil interest had been taken by hot day,
as rude nurse snatches playthings from
helpless children. Whether school kept
or not" was matter of not the slightest
moment to any of us. Indeed had rea-
son to hope that should never again be
confronted with bulletins as to the rise
and fall Of that mythical educational
hnreau whence we all draw more or less
Of knowledge fraught with bitter expe-
rience. Its pupils are SO stupid and its
head preceptor SO unrelenting that have
long been a-weary of its curriculum.
Opposite in the car sat young woman
whom often meet and shall continue to
meet, suppose, until the sexton shovels
q few feet of dust between our faces. If
she were man, she would be in the at
titude Of one who is "spoiling for a
fight" What is mere combativeness
in men takes the form of insolence in
women and is harder to bear. This
young person eyes my clothes. She
gloats over my shabbiness. She knows
exactly how many times day my poor
old gown is groomed. She Is cognizant
Of the fact that my off shoe has sprung
leak, and as she losses her head and
smiles the smile that, passed from wom-
an to woman, means more than blow
/ seem to hear her say: "Ha, cumberer,
are you here yet? Last time met you
/ thought stared you down, but such
rubbish seems hard to KILT A trifie
more ridicule, though, slightly yelled,
like poison in capsule, will lay you
low, and shall have the pleasure of
turning my battery upon some other
God forsaken crank who appears to have
more brains than styler'
We were tumbling along in the old
street car, tired and dirty lot of us,
bound for the depot. AS we passed a
certain undertaker's shop on the way we
noticed that big crowd had collected
at its doors-a hushed crowd, with white
faces and bated breath. A police patrol
was drawn up to the curbstone and four
brawny officers were lifting something
out Of the wagon and carrying it within
the undertaker's open gate. The some
thing that lay beneath the old tarpaulin
was very still and outlined itself sharply
beneath the sable folds of the pail that
covered it. l turned away from the
sight, for there is that within me that
revolts from such sights as the butterfly
does from the thistle or the swift run
ming boat from capful Of head wind.
knew well enough what the sssome
thing" was, Ten minutes before per
haps 1t had been man, swinging like
sailor on the uplifted ladder where tn
painter pursues his craft, or careles
vagabond knocked down by passin
vehicleand straightway ushered into til
audience chamber Of the great and onl
King, ora merry hearted boy spurned b
q flying wheel, or O tired old woina
Gifted high as heaven" by the tende
arms Of death. | knew very well tina
the awful something was once breath
ing, laundering mortal like myself an
that q sudden calamity had transferre
1t into clay, how or in what terribl
manner ! did not care to see. But ey
cry woman in the car in which / rod
jumped from her seat to watch tn
grewsome thing turned away from.
"Oh, I wish the cover would fall off s,
"Lift Willie up SO that he can lookl
exclaimed q careful q mother, making
room as she spoke for the nursegirl t,
place the little boy in better position.
No sooner did all these women gain
vantage point from where they coul,
best behold the dreadful burden whicl
the policemen bore without either ten
derness or care into the waiting station
Of the morgue than they began to trem
BILE and TO cry.
"Oh, dear. how dreadfulr' :noane
they In unison, while their fascinate
. gaze was unaverted and their neck
were craned to see it all.
And then because am o philosophe
In my own poor fashion and can no NOR
help philosophizing than a spider car
help spinning webs said to myself
That is the way with all of usi We seel
out our own discomforts and we cul
tivate them with our own tears. w,
gloat over the very things that bring III
pain and take front seat to witness oul
own tragedies Given, the most of us, {
chance to spend an afternoon among tn,
tombs or to go fishing for goldfish ou
Of crystal pond, and we will trot alonl
with the mourners every time. We ar
always in the attitude (most Of us) o
the Peterkin family at the seaside. The,
were continually looking OFF shore 70
whales, and they saw whales and moth
ing but whales from seasons start +
seasons closet What we look for W
ind, what We SOW we reap, what W
dread we draw and what we expec
comes to MS.
Take two girls and send them on
through the divine beauty of these Jun
woods with basket apiece. They ar
after violets, we will say, although tn
purple drapery of the dim spirit fowe
has been almost withdrawn from tn
woods already, like curtain uplifte,
by an eager hand. One Of the girls i
afraid Of snakes and declares the sigh
Of one would kill her on the spot. How
she looks for themi How eagerly sh,
watches every tremor of the under
brushi How she starts at floating tim
othy and shrieks when clover jostlel
IA the windi And she sees snakes
pienty Of 'emi She goes home with al
empty basket and has to take pow
der TO quiet her nerves. The Other
girl keeps her mind on violets and neyel
beee q serpent's trail. She goes HON,
With basketful Of flowers and dreams
that she is setting sail for paradise in
purple boat with the tender green D
violet stems for its oars and o sail tina
bu3el2s Of the wood flowers perfect soul
s-Amber in Chicago Herald.