Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-09-03
A SOCIAL VERDICT.

/ be considered possible lover for the clever
Edith Losing, TO whom he had lost his
heart ON first acquaintance.
The dinner was one of those dainty ag-
| gregations of silver and cut glass and dec
orative china which give bizarre effect
| to our meals at the present time, even
when ones feelings must be tied with
blue ribbon or kept out of sight, and when
1t is social crime to eat anything with a
| spoon. But Royal Mathews was accus-
toned TO modern luxury and would have
died before he would have admitted that
he did not know the whole social shibbo-
leth. That Edith LOSING would attempt
| to judge of mans morals by his man
ners never occurred TO him.
Before the dinner was well begun Ma
thews was aware that in some way he had
offended Miss Losing
| Edith Lossing's friends were much
afraid that she would end her days in sin
gle blessedness, or else go through tho
woods and pick up the figurative crooked
stick as last opportunity. So many eli
| glble men had sought her hand and been
refused that it was currently reported that
she had been disappointed in love and was
| determined to liveSand die an old maid.
Her friends had on several occasions an
nounced themselves satisfied with the can
didate only to be told that Miss Edith had
refused him
The trouble was that Edith was hyper
critical. 1t was so with other things be-
sides the affections. She took all the
sweetness out of life by finding its sugar
was adulterated with chalk. She left the
sky out of her landscapes and mutilated
her friends by petty criticism. She had
heard or read somewhere that manners
were the shadows of morals, and by this
| half inch rule she measured men.
| The day after dinner she went to lunch
with her best friend, who boarded at a
| stately hotel and was a person of common
sense, the scarcest commodity on earth
| She was fond of Edith while bcwailing the
| positive virtues which made her SO dis
agreeable.
81 met Allen Holbrook in the lobby
and he stood and talked with mo without
removing his hat" she announced to her
best friend after they had lunched and
were seated in the parlor of the hotel
| "Then l suppose you will disallow him
a single good quality" remarked the B. f.
But it was such want of respect, -
complained Edith
| "Put it on another basis Perhaps,
new woman, he was treating you with tho
| freedom of good comradeship. Could he
| pay you n greater compliment
"The new woman will demand every ac-
| acknowledgement of social form, answered
| Edith. sit was unbearable rudeness."
| "Let us think that he was so glad to see
| you that he never once thought of his hat
| 1t will be more charitable, But, tell me-
for am dying to know, is Royal Mathews
to be the happy man?"
| Royal Mathews is an insufferable
boor, rctorted Edith with good deal of
| asperity, showing that she was secretly
hurt.
"What did he do? You told me he was
to dine with you yesterday. Did he eat
with his knifc?'
| "Worse, a Thousand times worse
did he do as Emerson did when Mar
| garet Fuller was his guest-eat in his shirt
| slceves?"
| mo and he is not an Emerson"
81 insist upon you telling me the depth
and breadth of his transgression. If you
! do not, | shall ask him myself when he
calls at 5, as he promised"
VERY well, l will tell you, and the
| consequences be on your own head. You
| know that l pride myself on my house
| keeping, and that all the glass and silver
is taken care of by myself. j think l can
claim spotlcss brilliancy for the tableware,
| yet when that man sat down at the table
what do you think he did? But you would
never gUcss-no, not in Il lifetime The
| wretch picked up corner of the table
| cloth and deliberately polished first his
| glass, then the plate and finally the silver
at his plate. 1t was done in a moment,
| but with no attempt at conccalmcnt
was so thankful that no one else saw him
| tho affair would have been talked over
| in the Kitchen
| Edith waited for burst of indignation
| from her Il. f. and was surprised at u
| peal of laughter. This was followed by u
| grave thoughtfulnGss, and then the Best
| Friend said:
| my dear, Royal Mathews was uncon-
| sciously following II habit acquired mt the
| hotels of our country, where food is served
| in haste and often by incompetent help. /
| do not imagine the poor fellow was for q
| moment conscious of what he was really
| doing, and | admit that the habit is a very
| careless one. But it rates several degrees
| less than crime"
81 don't know about that" said Edith,
| but with relieved look. Il have always
| looked upon q mans manners as his Gre
dentials; they either uplift him or degrade
| him.
| YES, my Edith, but you must not for
| get the 'awfal soul that dwells in clay
| You make mach of the accomplishments
of the clay, bat there is the deeper life that
is its sanitation. And now may l ask
what is that object on which you have been
| wreaking your viii ever since we came in
| from the tablo?'
Edith looked and was aghast.
ut is table napkin" she said
Where did / get it?''
Carried it off with you unconsciously,
| o woman of cruel Judgment Suppose
were to accuse you of appropriation? You
| see how easy 1t is to forget ourselves and
become in moment objects of condemna-
ton or suspicion. Charity, my dear will
| even condono the swallowing of knives
and the abstraction of napkins"
The Best Friend rang the bell and gave
| a waiter the suspicious object. Then Royal
| Mathews was announced and was aston
| ished beyond measure to find his lady Of
| the ice of the preceding day as warm and
glowing as Hsbe,-Detroit Free Press.
Elevator Knees.