The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1893-09-23
WOMEN WHO CAN TALH.

Are pretty nonentities played out il
these days of higher education, when
to be versatile is profession, aud TO
g smart labor which even the stupid
attempt with energetic ld1ocy? Inc
pretty little woman ussd TO relIn over
the minds as well as over the hearts
of men. She led argument with
moue, and overcame reasoning with
pout. With look she laid opposition
low. snd with smile Won her way to
triumph "over the bodies Of PROSTATE
;ntellects." There was no need TO her
to talk. She had only to bs charmingly
dressed and she could command her
empire. Is not change com ng Ger
the s, irit of the dream? We are in.
clined to think 30. Demand creates
supply, and the supply Of women who
| can talk is certainly on the increase,
while the merely pretty creature with
out word to say. dos not seem to at:
tract nearly so muon attention as OF
old. Most of oar famous beauties are
women who can lead CON- ersation as
we'll as cotillon; who can utter 6o11
mot and elso appreciate cne: who eau
be epigramma ic in addition to BENG
sentimental, and who are capable OF
saving ditto to q brilliant man rs OF
murmuring the necessary "Boo! tc
to the necessary goose. The Silly beau
ty is, in fine, on the wane. She Is less
appreciated than of oil. Men tire
more quickly OF her little ways thar
| was their wont, and are far from de-
lighted when they have to take her
Gown to dinner. There is DO doubt
that at one time the average man
| looked for silliuess IN apretty woman
as expectantly the fortune hunter
looks f r gold in the mine, anil, whom
he has found it, found some ethlng to
rest upon, and was thankful. lie
loved doll, and was read7 to think Ii
"the retliest doll il the wor d" if IT
| had enough adaptability to laugh IN the
right place when he clumsily gave the
cue for lighter by attempting trans
parent 1hou.h not pellucid, joke.
Nowadays men look on women so very
differently from the way IN which t"ey
used to. The. think OF them as c"m-
panions and IN compan on one wants
pretty wit as we'll as pretty nose.
Tie consequence is that even hand
some women ere learning to ta K, and
that the woman who can talk best Is
the most thoroughly popular woman
so long as she is not too Ill -1atured,
There are various ways o. talking, and
learning is not required in ord.uarg
conversation. Some of the most bril-
liant men of our day are hopeless bo1es
at a dinner table. The art of CON- er-
sation is to be thoroughly bright, quick
adroit, turning easily IN any given
direction, an adept at llstenlng-tor
half of conversation should be listen
ing-witty without labor, and occa-
sionally epigrammatic without upheav-
al. The woman who brings out an
epicram with the air of an earthquake
IS a woman to be avoided. The easily
amusing ta!ker Is far more popular
with men than the laboriously brilliant
speechifer-the female Samson who
brings the poor Fhiiistlnes to tie
ground with every secon remark.
Yes, the woman who can talk is begin
niug to rule the world. To have q
really wide empire, no doubt she
should be good to look upon, too, but
if she can talk really we'll she Will a.
ways command an audience of admir-
ers. It is often supposed that stupid,
dense men dislike exceedingly women
the reverse Of themselves, but this Is
as rule, fallacy They dislike such
q woman if she is sarcastic, and, instead
| of shooting her arrows into me ar,
tak~s them as target, and scores q
bullseye every time she fires Nobody
enjoys trying to pull out the darts that
are quivering ID him all through the
course of long dinner. The sarcastic
woman is not q perfect conVersationa!lst.
She repels others instead OF drawing
insidiously out their mental jnc-s
She reduces what should be duet to
an ill-natured monoiogue, and mcI
either fight with ner or discreetly avoid
her. But the dull man usually admires
wildly and without limit the good.
natured clever woman, the woman who
shows of her mental PAGES and bids
him silently try to initiate them.
She is so bright that he begins t.
feel clever, too, and almost bell We.
that the power of appreciation is the
same thing as the power OF action, and
that because he can listen he can talk.
So as he follows, or tries to follow, the
brilliant woman through tho wlndin:
maze OF her wit, he catches something
| of the delicious feeling Of the leader
walking at the head Of procession,
! with a handsome banner flying above
his head. and good lively brass ban't
bringing up the rear. He beats the
tune, and the clever woman plays the
tune. He is III, blower, and she the
organist. For without his ear-inll
: though it be-to listen. she must per-
force be silent. Dense men arc often
positively foolish in their alteration OF
kindly clever women. a great many
women can talk we'll nowadays, and al.
ways take the trouble to do so. Amer
ic4n women have certainly had an in
fuence upon English Women IN this
matter.
The charm Of tho woman who cat
tax is potent one, aud one which
lasts over thirty, and which defes time
nearly as long SIS life does. The mind,
fortunately, does not need rouge. AMI
can do it's de7oir without the biz :cl-
ing aid of the powder-pnf. Pretty
folly has ceased to hold It's owa aSain-t
pretty wit. and the doll is w0rste hv
the Diana The woman who gisnes =
rule must nowadays know how to tax,
purchase her slaves with epigrams, and
bind adorers to her with chains Of 10"
mots. Instead of looking into too
mirror she must dive into the mind,
and for every pearl taa: she can bring
to light she may chance 20 wiz heart
The loss to the farme.s Of MicEigsa
in 1899 from smut OF osTs q estimate!
at over 81 ,000,ICp.