The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-09-23
ABOUT nTHB WOMAN Who TALKS

saying: will get we'll" cures ones self
Y OF almost any rnalady, but this Is almost
/ too deep dip into the occult sciences
for the average, un- Eddy.fled layn,an to
| make.
Yet there must be a good deal Of talk
in the world In order to make progress.
| Tourgenieff truly says that the age OF
takers must prccede that OF practical
reformers." And Wendell Phillips used
to deplore any sighting mention Of "agt-
! tation"
"Agltationr' he would cloquenty ex-
claim why, all the advancement In the
world has been brought about, BY agita-,
ton Agitate! Agitate Mems minds must
be accustomed to new images BY tank
ing Of them before the things themselves
can be introduced And In the less SO.
rious departments of social life, talking
! Is Just as necessary.
4 brilliant young woman. who fully
realized this fact was much laughed at
| for saying when a certain topic was
preached at the breakfast table: THAT
will be capital subject to discuss at the
Browns dinner this evening
"Oh-h-h!'' hooted her eighteen-year-old
70 make at the 4dinnerl Aren't you
ashamed Of yourself!''
His sister a college girl, not unused to
debate, defended herself stoutly.
should be ashamed" she declared, TO go
| to the dinner without thinking beforehPnd
| of something or other that might say
! If am needed to help out the conVersa-
| ton My hostess has prepared at consld.
| cradle expense Of time ana thought anu
| money food for the dinner. But It's main
success lies with the guests. II the talk
| is not good we might almost n s well be SO
many well-fed dogs. And certain sub.
jects which would be suitable for some
companies are quite cavaire to others,
while some will be sure TO interest," al.
| 1Einslst that before one goes 70 any hort
OF an entertainment one should tninK u
should not say. ForewainGd Is fore.
armed There may be no rause ana no
need Of direction, and again there may
DO both. Z
! The impairment young brother was 81
lenced,-and, as most critics VIII thlnK,
wisely. 5
Al a. recent dinner the hostess turned
pal when one Of her friends introduced
the subject OF politics, and in such way
that she knew another guest would I'M
mediately take up heavy cudgels on the
OF her side. An awful vision OF an ut
terly wrecked dinner flashed before her,
when suddenly the deep voice OF the
,most influential man present was heard
asking: %.
"Eet me see-before we leave that other
matter-how many trout old YOU say S YOU
caught last week?''
sha could have embraced him for graft
tude. Tho evening was saved1for quick
Wits having had the danger indicated
steered the bark Of conversation FAR
afieId Of the dangerous sunken reefs Of
politics. It is worth while ut such time
to know how to talk. and to have a gooo
topic "up ones sleeve.
Who does not shudder8 at the recollec-
ton Of the dinner at which the relns felI
sunluckily and unintentionally5 into the
hands OF some prosy old gentleman whose
stories had all been heard q s hundred
times. Or Of another, when some young
sporting man or woman introduced
the exhaustless theme of the horse and
his rider at a table full of purely 1T
erary or artistic folk who knew little and
cared less about horses !! Too much DIR &C.
ton is the death of tion-but 1t
suffers quite as often from too little
and the conduct Of the whole business,
like that OF nearly all social life IN TINS
day, is supposed to know the pecullarl-
ties Of every person present and to 50
order matters that each shan nave
chance to be heard. and yet so that nos
body shall be bored. It Is a hard task
and seldom perfectly accomplished.
80 4
A young man once proposed 70 a girl
who unexpectedly refused him.
Now, Electa,.'' he demonstrated. YOU,
have seemed to think q good deal OF me- ne
You certainly appear to enjoy my socie-
ty. very much like yours. Why should
we not have happy life together?".
mo" sighed Electa, reducing the mat
ter 10 its lowest terms in a truly French
spirit, II have discovered that I like to
talk only about myself. while you Ike to
talk about yourself. We have endured this
fairly we'll for a few weeks-but you can
see how nsufferable we should soon De-
come to each other.
on the other hand, clever woman
once remarked lightly, THE strongest ar
gument that i know in favor of5marrlage
is that the interests Of husband and wife
soon become so far Identical that each
can talk about the other with as much
satisfaction as though each were. talking
Of him or herself! -
EIecta had not forcseen so far as this
land, as!-it Is not always true
The almost universal human bias ind.
Gated by that young woman should, how
ever, be early considered by the judlclous
narent. One mother who had only vague
IL thought Of 1t before, had her atten-
ton roughly called to It by hearing her
shrewd young daughter Of nine say to
her brother of twelve:
..You shouldn't have told those stories
Mt dinner last night, when the Joneses
were here
..Why not !" demanded the boy cross
ly.
because every one was about your
self" retorted the little sister, "and the
tea cher says that we mustn't ever speak
of ourselves when there Is company
The mother felt condemned The boy
had tod the stories arnuslngly, and the
MORE She thought Of 1t the gladder she 4
was that she had overheard this little
colioouy for she could see that her son
had a natural tendency toward egotlsm.
!, , inch vas likely II not checked, to crys-
talize into prominent and repulslve
trait. It became "a diversion, N mat lam
~, 40 oh nna n dinner Oitn1l.