The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1909-11-27

Ny Cousin Caroline writes me agar
about her 1S-year- old daughter Ray
Ray is going to smart school II
Baltimore to finish off, as her mama
dubs it, and the same mama is very
much worried about the possible wiles
of the strange young man."
OF course, this school would be par
ticuIar in such matters, but then the
daughter, who has grown so pretty
lately, is going to stay with smart
folk at Christmas.
Il thought it would give her a good
start in the world to let her be with
the Hamiltons," writes Caroline, But
you know, they are very fashionable
and don't want Ray to go on know
ing every Tom, Dick and Harry she
meets, even if they are in the smart
set. l want her to know how to pick
and choose men, how to turn her back
YOU know, on the wrong one. Do write
something"
But. there, enough of my idiotic
cousin. Still l certainly must Thank
her for giving me the idea of a little
talk to all young girls concerning the
taste and wisdom of introductions; and
I must thank her above all, for show
ing every mother, in her foolish let
ter, how vain it is to hope a daughter
will display supreme wisdom when
the mother has next to none.
So to begin at the very beginning of
things, if you decided that your daugh-
ter shall spend aftern )Cn5 or weeks
with friends merely because they are
placed in a way to give her good
start in the world" you must not eX-
pect to have too much to say as to
whom and whom not your daughter
shall meet.
Before entrusting anything so pre-
cious as a young girls future in any
hands. you must make sure that the
1TleHuS she NISIlS VIII nave SuIlicleill
discretion to exclude "any Tom, Dick
and Harry" as Caroline put it, from
making the little guests acquaintance.
In other words, unless you are moral
ly certain that the well-placed friends
possess all the discretion necessary
for the guidance of a young girls
heart and mind, keep her at home with
you to sew on buttons and mend
stockings
For, verify. I say unto you, the
most dangerous person an inexperi-
enced girl can know is the worldly
woman who presents men indiscrimin-
ately and leaves the girl to take care
of herself.
In the Hamilton set, and in other
sets that make no pretensio to nmart-
ness, it seems quite the thing to in
clude men among the visiting list who
are not gentlemen in the incest sense
of the word; men who would think
nothing Of asking a girl to meet them
around the corner, so to speak with
out any talk beforehand with elders.
To say the least of it, such men are
undesirable acquaintance for a girl
not old enough to take care of her
dignity.
There may be social reasons why
the mistress of the house considers
these ineligible men as perfectly ELI
gible for her smart functions, but
she owes it to her young girl guest
to put her on her guard against them
all the same.
"Oh, yes, my dear he is very nice
but, don't you know. not just the per-
son for you to be friendly with"
The thing is done every Gay IN the
smart world, and sometimes Mrs
Jones or Mrs. Brown will say coolly to
the gentleman himself, when he asks
eagerly to be presented at the draw
ing room reception to the pretty gir
over yonder: MY dear man, she is not
for the likes of you to talk to-
1t may seem rough, but a man Of the
world takes the reproof in good part
and if the girl has a grain of sense she
will understand that mot just the per.
son. means somebody entirely toe
smart for a little miss of her age tC
know.
1t can plainly be seen, then, how
much lies in the hands of the person
who accords the casual introduction
And 1 must tell you here, that really
well-bred man never expects to bt
presented off-hand to a young girl az
a matter of course. He expects first t.
make good in society, prove that h,
is a fitting person to meet women o.
any age; and if he hasn't done this, h,
is yet man enough to despise the WON.