The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-04-08
FRIENDSHIP AND LOVE.
(By Tom Mason.)

(By Tom Mason)
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Il have often longed, oh. so much, y
she said, for real man friend
Il am sure you have lot of them.
, Why. could name Dozen
oh, no. They are no friends in the
| sense l mean. They
You mean that they make more or less
love to YOU
We'll, that sounds rather vain. / dom
mean ii in that sense, you know, and
yet in way it is the truth. I don't want
TO imply that I am so awfully attractive
that no one could help falling in love
with me, even il he preferred to be my
friend"
Yes, I know what you mean. 1t
isn't so much that you are to blame as it
is the foolish men,
Yes. that's il"
well, now, how about me?'
She turned and looked at him gravely.
I'VE haven't known each other long
enough to be friends in the sense mean.
she said; that is. real. true. lasting
friends, who have been tried and tested !;
and I-well, to be candid, l don't know
but L should be afraid to try the expert
ment."
What you mean is that If We should
both try hard to make our acquaintance
ship ripen into friendship the result might
be wholly different-one or the other of
US might fall in love-
Yes" parenthetically. .or both"
That's so. Perhaps both of us might
fall in love. each with the other"
Maybe"
''Well, if that should happen. might it
not be better than friendship? You know
love. if it is the right kind of love, does
all that friendship does and much more
L. = III
cal, can survive long silences, but, better
than all, it can survive misunderstanding
and pettiness, and much that is small and
mean, which might kill a mere friend
ship"
True, but there is this difference; true
friendship is likely to be more unmistak-
able than true love. Friendship is very
much less dsinterested, less selfish than
love- or perhaps / should say that the
right kind of friendship is, compared
with the wrong kind of love. The real
true love that you speak of is so rare
that one is apt to get it confused with
the spurious kind. This isn't so likely
to be the case with friendship. So that
it is better to accept a friendship that
you know is genuine, rather than love
which. though it may seem to have the
true ring, is the wrong kind, after ALL
You are cynical he said.
and truthful. You are young and rather
good loking and enthusiastic and amb-
tious. / am, we will say, the same. We
meet and look into each others eyes, and
something stirs within our hearts. Is
that love? Only the years can tell. Ten
years from now you and / will be wholly
different creatures. Our ideals will be
changed. Hidden springs of heredity.
hitherto unknown, may rise to the surface
of hay or vi
recognizable from the selves of today.
You may outgrow me. / may outgrow
you. Can we truthfuliy say that those
entirely different beings of decade hence
will bear the same relationship to each
other that we do today? Such prediction
would be foolish and unwarranted by the
commonest experiences of life
Nevertheless he replied, "such is
often the case Men and women live to-
gether all their lives in the closest bonds
of love. They become necessary to each
other. Such instances are not so rare as
we sometimes think
She smiled.
You misunderstood me slightly" she
said gently. II know all that. of course
After two people have lived together ten
years they have outgrown much of their
tendency to change. Indeed. they may
grow more like each other. This. as you
say, often happens. But in the first ten
years-nay, it may be in the first two
that is the period when they may easily
grow apart; that is the matrimonial
wrecking period"
Then, you prefer the safer friendship,
with its more limited scope. TO the lot
terry of love, with its illimitable sway?
You don't want to run too much risk"
Il haven't said So"
But you have implied it."
well, you tell me what you think first;
then I'll tell you what l think
He turned instantly and decidedly, and
faced her.
For me-" he answered, there is abso-
lutely no question about it at all. Give
me love, with all it's chances. every time,
no matter what the risk. l would rather
have an hour of true love, with its white
heat of passion, than a decade of friend
ship"
He drew nearer.
Yes he continued. words mean
nothing here. Logic fails. Systems
break down. Give me love. irresponsible
If you will unreasoning and passionate,
the full tide of love. that never stops TO
the consequences. And now.
what do you say?
She looked at him. Her eyes shone
with a new light.
Don't you know" she replied.