The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-07-29
EVENING CHAT
BIZ RUTH CAMERON.

"And how old is your daughter ?" I
inquired when an old school friend
called on me the other day, bringing
his little daughter who is making her
first visit to her fathers boyhood
home.
At the question fathers proud smile
vanished. He looked blank, then puz-
zled, then hopeless, all in ten seconds,
and finally gave it up and appealed
to the lady in question.
Il declare, I've forgotten which it
is, six or seven. How old are you.
/, Jean?"
why, papa" most reproachfulIy.
Il m not six or seven at all. I'm eight,
eight and quarter, too. I'm s'prised
at you for not knowing"
1 wasn't, though. I've seen too
many fathers like that before.
And I'll wager right now that a
this couldn't do much better offhand
than he
Perhaps twenty-five or thirty faith
| ers out of hundred are fairly well
acquainted with their sons. but don't
| believe ten out of hundred have
more than a speaking acquaintance
with their daughters.
I was in a college girls room the
other day where a group of girls were
gathered, talking, studying and other
wise occupying themselves. One girl
was writing letter.
who you writing to, Marie?" called
one of the idlers.
| (No, that who is not an error of
quotation. 1 don't know one college
girl in ten who uses any better gram
mar than that.)
MY father said Marie.
"Well, I'd like to know what you
want to write to him for. I saw q
purse just stuffed with bills on your
81 didn't say I was writing for mon
dresser yesterday"
ey. I'm just writing an ordinary let
| ter to father. Don't you suppose he
when L write for money?''
Listen to that. girls. She's writing
to her father and she isn't writing
for money. What do yon know about
/ that? ''
81 know that's more than I've done
for some time" volunteered one OF
the girls, rather soberly.
Then, just for fun, we took coun
and only one of the eight girls hai
written to her father except for mon
ely that year.
One hadn't written at all becaus,
she had her own check book.
The one who had written did
because mother was going away TO
a month and thought father would b.
lonesome and asked me to write an,
cheer him UP. And father wrote bacl
the jolliest letter and sent me a ten
: dollar bill and said 1t was worth NOR
than that to get real letter from m
with no business in it,
Maybe that was an exceptions
reckoning but I'm inclined to thin
. it was fairly typical of an ordinar
group of girls away from home.
OF course it is inevitable that mos
of the letter writing should be don
h to mother because father hardly ha
I time for a regular correspondence, an
of course father gets the news throug
mother. but that doesn't mean tina
it would do any harm to surprise faith
4 er once in a while with a jolly lette
n all his own.
Nor am I writing this wholly q
girls away from home.
It's just the same with girls at hom,
Most of your family companionshi
must. of course. be with mother, BIT
I that doesn't mean that you can't hav
& a good, confidential, jolly talk or
lark or tramp with father once in
i while.
II you haven't been in the habit {
q / it, why. not try making your fathe
your friend as well as your excheque
occasionally and see which one of yo
a enjoys the novel experience the mos