New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-05-29
THE PATHETIC PLAIN GIRL
her Need of Charm in Her Duel with
Fate

How charming you areF' he exclaimed. in {.
fervor Of adnniring love.
Il have TO be charming was her reply be
cause I'm plain
This same young woman used to say frankly
that a bad temper and seldshness were TWO lux
uries that no girl who wasn't a beauty could
AFFORD 70 treat herself TO- E,verything-even down.
right unamiabiity and impudence-were forgiven
TO the girl with an angels face but such things
Were ntolerable in the ordinary girl.
And untidiness-that's another unforgiva Bile,
crime IN the girl whose features are not cut JUST
right and whose complexion isn't up TO the mark.
or her figure what it should be-" was another OF
her personal convictions. The beauty go
round with wisps Of hair hanging in her neck
and oiowzy tendrils blowing into her eyes. with
her shoestrfngs trailing on the pavement and her
oresS 1rayed around the edges. and never be
criticised Tor It. People will call her so unconven-
uonaP and so delightfully."- free and easy and lust
the most artistic person you ever saw Men will
tie up her shOelaces for her and Stop in the middle
or waltz or hand OF bridge for her to patch
up her hair, and consider themselves blessed to
be given the chance. But let the plain girl Try
on-let the girl whom looks at twice so
around looking like that, and IL she doesn't
catch 1t! There is no charm glamour about
tdiness when ii is practised by unprepOssessing
girl let me tell your
TWO MISLEADING PROVERBS
There used to be two old proverbs that were
made 10 do duty whether a girl was pretty or
plain. Sometimes her elders reminded her that
Beauty is deceitfuI and favor is vain and II
she was good looking this supposed to tone
down her satisfaction and IL she was plain the
proverb was supposed to encourage her Some
times the mothers and aunts and elderly friends
changed their remark TO run. Beauty is only skin
deep" This always made the homely girl mad
II she had proper spirit in her. for. OF
being woman, she knew well enough that dim
pie in the chin pair OF fine eyes would be
worth more 10 her in her duel with fate than any
Intellectual gifts spiritual graces she could
quire- Skin deep though It might be, she would
have liked a little beauty. and not unnaturalIy
she looked upon herself badly treated.
over in London. where they discuss all sorts OF
subjects in their papers, when IL IS not their
silly season. they have been discussing
topic which grows out OF the general subject OF
good looks and their value 10 women The
Ladys Pictorial" in editorial entitled Gar
goyles and Graces." says:
Just recently there has been much discussion
over the subject Of good looking nurses for the
a house there has been abundant testimony ths
other side that invaIIds prefer 70 have pretty
woman in attendance on them and are All the bet
TER for looking upon what is sweet and pleasant
in their hours OF suffering IL is to be feared that
II the good looking ones VINO best succeed IN
grateful patients or susceptible doctors. and this
being II IS impossible 10 hide the painful fact
that many most excellent and charming women.
for other fault than that FrOVlCence mas not
bestow ed good looks them, are doomed to the
drudgery and loneliness and drearlnesS that others
never know who start with, perhaps, fewer quail
Ifcatons. but fairer faces
PATHOS IN PLAINNEsS-
None save the sufferers themselves ever. per-
haps. know what Pathos there can De in plainness'