The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1909-09-05

THINK most grown-ups look back
i with real delight to the games lney
used to play at parties, when they
We're children. There was "Old Family
Coach" with its somewhat bOlsterous
frolc and the possibility of finding
yourself without a seat and "COpen-
hagen and Going TO Jerusalem" and
many others. Most of these games in
Volved a large circle of chairs placed
close together, and however full the
room might be, no one ever complained
of being too crowded. ISLANDER" was
sufficiently interesting for the OppOr-
tunity it afforded of whispering softly
into some fair listeners ear; the posi-
bic scientific value of the results OBJ
tanned never seriously interfering with
the enjoyment of the sport, The thing
was to start going some bit Of infor-
nation by speaking conidenually to the
partner on your right. This player
would then convey the information in
similar fashion to the next neighbOr,
and so the game proceeded. The start
ling part of the proceedings came when
the circle had been completed, and the
statement that had first been made was
announced, together with the result af-
ter it had been passed through so many
hands.
A very modest remark referring to the
party, after having been retailed from
one to another with some degree Of mys-
terry. would cause much establishment,
and many bushes when finally re-
peated at the close of the game.
Whether the game was originally pro
posed by some very wise person, who
in the dawn of civilization, feeling i'm
pressed by the dangers resulting from
indiscriminate gossip, took this method
of tnculcatng a lesson under the gulse
of sport, viii probably never be known.
But one might very wisely make use
of this exhibition of the danger Of re-
peating little statements, more or less
true, which have been caught up in
conversation with friends, and which
may not always have a tendency to
work TO our neighbOrs' good. Bad
news travels swiftly" is an old, old
saying, and there is a great deal of
truth in it,
Why we should take delight in re-
peating anything that has an unpleas-
ant SAVIOR is one of those difficult ques-
tons which viii probably never be
satisfactorily answered, but it is GER
tainly a fact that people enjoy listen
ing to gOssipy stories, without regard
TO their truth Many worthy persons,
very sCrupulOus in other respects, seem
TO have no hesitanCy in repeating state
ments as bona fide facts when they
really know nothing about their truth
or falsity. I fancy that this is one of
the evils forbidden by the command
ment, Thou shalt not bear false wit
ness against thy neighbor." Definite,
premeditated lies are certainly the foUn-
dalton of a great deal of harm. If we
know that our neighbOr is addicted to
drawing the long bow" we never can
tell what To depend upon when he
makes a statement, we take all he has
TO say, more or less, with a pinch of
salt, realizing that we have to form
our own conclusions from such prem
ises as ne may present to US, as to
what really are the true facts in any
given case.
But much more insidiOus evil is the
habit of making apparently innocent
statements which in reality reflect upon
our neighboTs. and for which we have
no warrant. What makes the matter
worse is that there is frequently not the
least possible occasion for these rash
remarks, except a desire on our part
to make ourselves appear entertaining