The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-09-23
By Mrs. Kate Upsol1 Clark.

(Author Of Bringing UP Boys" Etco
-1ETRTAIN cynics might remark
IVA this title-The Woman Who
lNa Talks-illlstrates the rhetorical
ETEY0I fault known as ''redundancy,
lS&&ae) and that woman" expresses the
s..n.U ,ning.
It may be answered that the Man Who
Talks is to be found in every hotel and
every corner store. In the country town
and IN the city club the n,an-gossip does
as much harm as his loquacious sister.
Men are constantly scuttling across
streets and disappearing into doorways IN
order to escape the Man Who Talks. The
Talker Is the human being without dis
tinctlon OF sex, color or race; ana 1t IS
simply in the interests Of classification
that the woman Is considered IN TINS
essay, instead Of the man.
The Woman Who Talks is not generally
so violently disliked as her brother OF the
same species. Probably this islbecause
weakness Of all sorts is expected IN n
woman, and Is more easily forgiven Yet
nevertheless the failing of talking too
much perhaps lowers a woman IN the es-.
timation Of men more than any other
does short OF downright moral OBJ
liquty.
Altman who had declared himself nsol-
vent was asked by his brother why ne
had not acquainted his wife with the
condition before it came to the worst, and
asked her advice.
.'she was thunderstruck," he remarked
f'She says she supposed you were more
prosperous than you ever were before.
she has q good mind. She might. have
given you valua BILE counsel. ! tell my
wife constantly about my business.
''You can do It," his brother answer
Cd. "Your wife is discreet and knows
how to hold her tongue Mine is q, good
woman, and she is bright, but she can
not keep things to herself. / found that
out before we had been married six
months. She has dozen intimate friends.
She may not mean to tell them, but
she does It before she thinks. ! have
made It a, point for many years to tell
her nothing whatever about my private
affairs"
The case OF this man is that Of thou
sands Of Others Many keep their bust
ness ups and downs from their wives for
fear Of worrying them, but many more
do so for fear Of their ndiscreet tongues.
AS one such man expressed It.: ID
1.-THE three hardest things in the world
are to make good use of leisure, to bear
injustice and to keep secrets. and the
last is the hardest Of all. especially for:
women
Perhaps he was right.
Another woman who had the same in
trinity as had the wife Of the bank
rupt learned early in her married life that
she was in danger Of similarly losing her
husband S confidence. She made the ma &
of prayer. She was of gay and lively
disposition and had acquired in her lit
tie circle reputation as wit. This
often led them to prod her with ques-&
lions, In order to "hear what she would
say" Mr.. Warner has somewhere writ
ten that "the talk is always dull UNI
less somebody dares something" She
made up her mind that though this might
be true. she would. for her part, allow
the talk to be dull II necessary. She
felt that she had dared" enough. She
had committed several ndtscretlons in
the way of disclosing what she knew
Homeland though she had been fun
N.Y. and had, so to speak, made a Ro-S
man holiday, she felt that 1t had been
done a too high a price. She took for
her motto before speaking, Count twenty,
Tattycoram." and acquired q habit $of
caution and repression which not only
restored and strengthened her husbands
faith in her, but which really made her
more interesting in society.
1t Is easy to see how the talking habit
may be formed even by sensible and Gull
t!vated women. Angelina begins In her
school days to attract attention by her
fuency and brightness. Her mates say
to her:
Now. whoever comes or doesn't come,
] must have you, because you talk SO
beautifully"
a few years of similar experiences are
likely TO develop the really talented girl
into an incorrigible. rrepressble, every
where dreaded and ridjculed "Woman
Who Talks"
& One young woman of this sort but who
was luckily humble enough 10 ask ana
take advice, was given a sautary lesson
by the friend to whom she had resorted
for counsel.
You talk too much" said tie friend
promptly. The other evening could see
that you made an excellent impression
upon that fine Mr. T. He Is an influen-
tial man. and l was delighted But then
you went on and on. and could see that
he was bored, though you did not seem
to notice It. oh, II you had only known
enough to stop when you had said
enough!'
N''S An' dtN1SoH w lIldtp COUlcEScu
the orring one. Sometimes after one
has unconsciously monopolized the con-
versatlon, there seems to be nothing TO
do but to keep on. If one stops, there
Is the awkwardest kind OF a pause.
Then take the warning, and don't
get into any such dilemma, = advised the
friend grimly, Remember that all old
writer says It is as greedy to talk allga as
to eat all the FEAST
3 y ~
4 The young girl never forgot her friends
cruel bur kind counsel. Henceforth she
took "close-lipped Patience for her
guide, and never went into society with
out saying to herself: "Take care! Don't
talk too much!" In the corner OF her
toilet glass may be seen to this day q card
on which she has written in a large,
round hand this sentiment from good,
clever old Hannah More: when we are
alone we have our thoughts to watch, In
tho family our tenpers, In company our
tongues" IT would be an improving thing
II several thousand other women would
place similar card where they would
see 1t as often; for though 1t does not by
al, 49, 7I,eao An,