Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1894-01-27

| human family and almost always of n
! disagreeable nature. We are told that
| Samson, by way of making things pleas
ant during his wedding festivities, asked
/ a riddle of his ''best man" and ushers,
with a sort of wager attached to it. If
| they guessed il within the week the bride
| groom was to give each Of them new suit
of clothes, and if they did not each Of
/ them was to give him one. 1t is very
entertaining story throughout, but not
in place just here except as it is the ear
/ lest recorded inst ance of conundrum.
1t was not fairly guessed. and the result
was good deal of family unpleasant
ness, divorce and the deaths Of several
hundred persons, including the bride
and all her family.
Then comes the sphinx with her stupid
| little riddle about the animal that in the
morning walks on four legs. at noon ON
/ two and in the evening on three. 1t is a
very poor affair looked at as Il riddle,
but pretty serious when one remembers
| that Madam Sphinx was in the habit of
devouring those who gave it up" What
an advance the world has made. to be
sure, since the days Of d1dipus and the
| sphinx! Nowadays instead of being de-
youred if you do not guess Il conundrum
some one kindly explains it to you, and
you have the opportunity TO smile satir-
ically and blandly while saying: "Oh,
reallyl Is hatall?'
For my part | never try to guess CO.
nundrums. the other course is 50 much
] more amusing.
| But as in most other things, nature
excels man in this sort Of puzzle MAX
ing, and the best Of it is from her point
/ of view that she can infict her own pen
alties for the failure to give a correct an
swer. and we are quito 1,owerless 10 re-
sist her DEGREES. Perhaps the completest
/ puzzle of all those in the dear old lady's
abundant store, and one that has never,
so far as | know. been successfully an
swered by any son Of Adam or daughter
of Eve, is series of questions relating
to the due relation Of the sexes to each
( other, with minor queries as to the ma
ture Of woman and the nature Of man
asked in each case Of some member Of
the opposite sex. The beauty Of it Is,
that the questions are SO fascinating that
both man and woman insist upon study
ing them. and unwarned By tho example
of others they put so much Of their time
and life and interest into the matter that
when the time comes that they must
''giye it up" they are too weary Of all
life's problems to care to take up another
Oh, the mistakes that men and WON
en- make with regard to each otherl Oh,
the fatal shipwreck they encounter in
trying to personally test their theories
as to the true solution Of the puzzle
upon which all their forefathers and
foremothers have broken their teeth and
yet never come at the kernel Of the mutt
And with what gallant confidence each
new aspirant comes before the sphinx
and says: II can guess your charming
riddle, although these others have failed.
understand the nature Of at least one
woman or one man, and / viii stake my
whole life upon giving the correct an
swer."
The sphinx smiles. and that cold, sa-
trio, incomprehensible smile was caught
most eleverly long since by the Egyptian
sculptors and fixed upon the immortal
stone which after the lapse Of ages tells
its story more clearly than words can
put it.
The sphinx. as those great artists
knew, is the prototype Of nature in her
conundrum asking mood - the subtle
amusement, the bitter satire. the yelled
and conscious power Of the great mother
as she plays with her children like a IL
gress with her cubs is all there. She is
but sportiye mother at the best, that
old naturel She filings her children into
the water to teach them to swim for
their lives. If they have nerve anil
strength to strike out vigorously they
are safe. but if they are weak OF timid
or make mistakes, why. she let's them
drown as not worth saving. In the cid
story Of Saturn and Ops the children
were deyoured by the parents, and earth
and nature are but one. And 80 the
poor little wretches go On century after
century sinking or swimming. a. the
case may be, always trying 70 get the
better Of nature and very seldom sue
eeeding even when they plume them
selves upon having done 80.
LoDG at TIE itidt4utE ID winch ffiefi AM
women practically reply to the query az
to which member of the opposite sex is
the one best adapted for life long COM
panionsbip, this being, as We all know,
one Of the most important Of natures
conundrums. Every enc Of us at some
period or other has found it propounded
to Us, and probably every one Of as has
decided it in manner differing from
that we should have selected had we bet
ter understood the matter.
A man sees a woman at some social
gathering, it matters Ept if it Is at the
reception OF duchess or a queen q
society in our own country or if it Is at
..sociable" or dance in some little
country town Nature IS pre-eininently
mo respecter Of persons, and works in
the one case precisely as she does in the
other. Ths girl is well dressed, gar,
smiling and evidently pleased with the
young mans ate sions. They pass an
honr together part with naatuaI
I eona Will. a dozen III ~ Il such i1szars