Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1900-12-27
The Dancing Teacher

THE peculiar thing about Marie
Vanderpool was that she had an
Incorporate appetite for happiness.
She took to dancing slippers as natural
III as other folk take to goloshes or
walking boots. She sang as read
lis as other people sigh. she
discovered a chance for a frolic
with the same enthusiasm that
others found an opportunity for work.
No one ever claimed that she was Of
any use, and she certainly never made
! any such claim herself. 1t never oc-
cured to her that she could be useful.
and she often reflected that to a world
so swarming with useful persons as
this appeared to be-if one judged by
the self-placed estimate of these per
sons-there was plenty Of room for one
blissful creature of the nonutiiitarian
sort.
All of the other members Of her fam
! ily were industrious, and several Of
them were wise. They won distinction
along commercial and intellectual
lines, were noted for their philanthro-
pies. and were solicited to lend their
names to causes" They were associ-
ated with nearly all of the leading
benevolent enterprises of the city.
Now, it is impossible for any seeing
and hearing person to go about Chr
cago without becoming aware of the
fact that large number of the citizens
of this busy town are not having good
time. Even Marie observed it. She
saw children with old faces, and men
with despair looking out of their eyes.
and women nervous and crushed under
burden of toll. She saw homes that
would not keep out the cold, and coats
that hung in rags from the shoulders
that supported them. And, what was
equally pathetic. she noticed that
many persons worked so hard TO
silence "the VOLTS long howl" that
they had no heart for pleasure.
at is as likely as not" said Marie to
herself. that they have never discov-
cred how to be happy" And she felt
a vast commisseration for them. Not
to be happy 1t was fearful-or il was
stupid!
IL CHANGED that on one occasion
there was a certain festiyity at a set
Element house in one of the most
crowded and poverty-stricken parts OF
the city, and that Marie was invited TO
go. 1t was not. perhaps, just the sort
of thing she would have selected, but as
there was nothing else doing that even
ing, for a wonder. and as she had 10
mind to sit down with a book, SIZE con-
cluded to go. She was a good deal puz-
zled to know what to wear, for she was
particular about the proprieties. but
she hit upon a costume at length that
seemed to be neither too plain nor too
fine. She surveyed herself with pleas
ure. II was pleasant TO have large and
brilliant brown eyes, a mass of way
ward golden hair, a snow white neck
and shoulders, nodded with tender
and abundant grace, and a mouth that
smiled with more merriment than the
common run of mouths.
But what Marie saw at the settle
ment was calculated to make her for
get, for once, the appearance of which
she was so proud. She even forgot to
be resentful because some of the peo-
PIE she met were serious. For the first
time she found herself face to face with
the serious problem of life-for the
first time a dim notion that life was
given to be used, struggled up
through her consciousness. She found
women as well born as herself. and
much better educated and trained. de-
voting their lives to others-and there
fore to themselves, since in the ex-
penditure of life in service comes the
best development. This type of WON
anhood was new to her. She had been
acquainted with many who patronized
charities and benevolenees, but here
were women who found it a privile re / o
express life in terms OF love. Moreover.
she found the ''neighbors' who came to
the settlements interesting in the ex-
treme. Here was a whole library Of
human documents, so to speak. await
ing her perusal. She looked in the
faces of the girls, serious before they
should be SO, showing the signs of close
confinement in stores and sweating
shops, and the binderies and tobacco
factories. and il seemed to her as II
she must pour sunlight into their lives
from the abundant source of IL within
her own heart.