The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-08-14
SHE TEACHES WOMEN TO TALK
A Woman From the West Goes East
to Instill Into New Workers the
Art of Conversation

IA ssOAAdh rom the west Goes East
to 1nstiH Into, New Workers. the
Art of Conversation.
Another young woman has come out of
the West with reform up her sleeve. Her
hobby is Conversation as Fine Art" AID
one might think that the reformer would
ind fertile soil in her own native Colo 10:
but she believes that New York needs her
more than any other part of the country,
says the Sun. p
Where do you start with the average
woman asked the prospective pupil The
to talk brilliantly She es said every THAT w0 pe
CURES na intelligence, education. culture; but
d1sagreeably. The first thing I do with a
pupil is to study her faults and show her
nov now to correct them Almost every one
able, but of which the possessor is abso-
lutely unconscious. Just study your inti-
mate friends for a little while and you will
of speech. Some women begin all their
sentences with well sor .now'-sone fiji in
all .pauses with and Some talk altog s h.
quainted with the positive degree. Some do
not finish half their sentences, but leave
t fhem hanging as In air. Those are all II tie
tie things, and they all detract from the
charm of conversation.
The first thing do with a pupil is to
X.
l try to teach her to talk. The American
voice is, as rule, dsagreeable, and, to bs
a success in conversation, one must have
pleasant speaking voice. Care and patie7ce
Will accomplish that, and 1 lay great stress
upon that part Of my work Then msnv
won women seem to think that they cannot use
they abuse the language shamefulIy. Not
one girl in thousand finishes school with
d InsoroGgh understanding and mastery Of the
Molus IN ner vocabulary. I seldom find a
pupil who doesn't need thorough drfI in nra-
cision and choice of words
spent hve hours day with the wife of
one western congressman during one sum-
mef' The reformer's eyes twinkled and
she smiled reminiscently
never had such an opportunity to test
my system as did that summer" she con-
tinued: when went to see that puril the the
hrst time felt that had met nv Water
10 too has She did all the things she ought not
9 %h to have done. in q conversational way.
The case really seemed hopeless: but The
woman woman was good-natured, and sensible and
mirace So we went to work, and worked
eoucation and broad fund Of Information:
but l softened her voice and accent. did
out tb s'en coa ner faults in grammar, struck
corrected her mannerisms, taught her NOT
TO talk about her ailments and children and
Sgbeane sbo You wouldn't have known her
she asked me to make cut a list of dom
ana took 1t with her, for sfser Of lapse from
11a~so+;o, Iohs nEt OF don!s in con-
t1 ana great many things dear to
Inc me o, hesrt OF the average woman should be
Ihat western woman of whom L spoke de-
veiopeu positive genius for telling funny
s ses ana made the most of It, or, "a her
yaugn5 n ner to make the most Of It. It Is
usually very d1flcult to teach woman to tell
than In ANYTHING else. Some persons reilly
can sWb refo abnzt joke when they meet it,
| What ABOUT the men? Are they so enter
don't
80 mn oe that there is use in tackiing
!aIne yong woman shrugged her shoulders
women but I'm sure there is room for con-
versa Enrsation "a, Improvement in all the men l
haven't time to make themselves agTee e
and those who have tine couldn't be con,
vn oan that they are not irresistible already
expect a man to twinkle, twinkle In additio. ),
to paying bills"