The Cairo bulletin., 1908-02-13
OUR POOR RELATIONS.


Some the Prosperous Need to fun
After and Beg Them to Accept
Kindnesscs--The Other Is Mere
~ the Common Garden Variety
Poor relations belong to
two extremely different types; one
common in fiction and scare In real
life; the other seldom encountered
In the printed page, but aboundinG
In the flesh throughout the length
and breadth of the world.
The first type includes all the
good but despised poor relations
that well known family OF sanity
and talented persons; the misun-
derstood genius OF father; the
worm sweet mother; the pretty
gentle, modest daughters; and the
Woodworking. admirable, stalwart
sons.
They are dear creatures and | al
ways rejoice when | .nees any OF
them in the first chapters of new
novel. | know a. once that | am
going to enjoy myself, that | shall
shed tears by the death bed OF
Mamma or little Florrie, and
chuckle delightedly over the last
chapter, when tho purHe-prond In
solent rich relations are humbled
to the dust and the poor relations
acquire wealth and fame, and sit
down round the Christmas log-fire
In the splendid new home, to tell
each other what lot OF good they
are going to do with their income
and their influence
This kind of poor relation does
exist, though few and far beteween;
| have met one or two of them my
self $50 far none have attained to
the fortune of that final chapter,
thoughi) but these are not the kind
that worry any woman's husband.
because their honorable pride and
their noble independence spur them
on to do their utmost to conceal
their straits. So that In real life.
1t Is you who have to run after
them, and persuade them to come
to youl parties, and beg them to
acknowledge you as their cousin,
and coax them to accept checks and
clothes and SO forth.
1t Is the Other type of poor rela-
tion-the common or garden va
riety--which IL frequently bore
and sometimes trial, and has al
WAYS to be the mast tactfully dealt
with. IL one wishes to avoid the
reputation of being a snoobish ici-
Gle on the one hand-or being drag
gel down and yictimized on the
other.
1t consists of all these people
WHO, whether they are Peers or
organgrinders by birth, sink In
stead OF rising on the. way through
life, and SINK through their own
fault.
For whatever may have happen
ed centuries ago, when the rich had
most things their own way, and
only the very talented and deter
mined persons could be certain of
rising in spite of circumstances,
and at some risk of being burnt as
wizard, or popped in prison by a
rival; it is very certain that in
modern England no man and no
woman who has average health and
sense need sink below the level In
which he or sale was bora. He may
not make a fortune, but he need not
become a poor relation.
When he or she does, however,
they will tell you, and honestly be-
lieve 1t is the truth, too, that it's
because they are SO unlucky, or
someone had a down on them or
circumstances were agains. them, or
they were put into some uncongen-
i'll business at the start-or all
these things together.
1t is this, they eagerly explain,
never their own slacknes and love
of taking things easy, their rooted
objection TO doins what successful
men have to do in the way of put
ting up with" jisaGreoable things.
NEW STYLE UMBRELLA