Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1910-12-09
Why Women Lie

"What a lovely old brooch?"
Miss Woodward leaned forward to
admire an old cameo brooch which
Mrs. Brooks, her hostess, wore al
the neck of her tea gown.
Eyes, I'm very fond of that, 1T
belonged to a great-aunt."
81 love old jewelry So" Miss Wood
ward said, effusively. "And | have so
many such beautiful pieces from my
mother and grandmother. But liv-
ing as | do in hotels and boarding
houses-they're very apt to be lost,
SO keep them all in safe deposit"
"That seems pity" murmured
Mrs. Brooks, mot to have the pleas
ure of them"
"Well, it's better than losing
them. Last winter / lost the most
exquisite old bracelet. Aside from
it's being and heirloom, its value
was quite considerable-as there
were three large pearls in the clasp"
ooh, that was too bad! One hates
so to lose anything like that
Eyes, was quite distressed. Then
when | lost very valuable diamond
locket that belonged to my great
grandmother, | determined tc put
away all my old jewelry."
And you never found either of
them?"
No, they were never found"
Sometimes those things can be
traced in pawnshops-th are often
found and pawned."
Miss Woodland moved little nerv-
| ously in her chair. Yes, l know,
but l could find no trace of them"
you advertised, l suppose?"
ooh, yes" with a manner of dis
missing the subject. 81 did every
thing" She rose abruptly and some
what nervously and crossed the room
to where an old India shawl hung
| over the back of a chair.
"How very odd! The design in
this is almost exactly like one have
of my mothers. Oh, you are very
fortunate to have all your lovely old
family things about you. All of
mine are in storage. You know, my
mother and grandm other were ia
nous Virginia bellies, and had such
exquisite things!"
She sighed. But that was before
the war. The family lost everything
then-and we've been frightfully
poor ever since" She laughed. Its
lard to have been born of a South
n iaG.liy soon after the war! About
all have is lot of old heirlooms-
| jewelry, laces, shawls, silver
often say | could stock an antique
store with our family relics. And
furniture-such wonderful old pieces
of mahogany, some of it dating back
to my at-grandmother!"
"And it is all in storage?" Mrs.
Brooks asked sympathetically
"Oh, yes; all of it-being ruined,
l suppose"
mot of it is well packed and with
a good house. Is it here in the city?
"Oh, yes," hurriedly, "but l don't
even remember the name of the.
place. My lawyer attends to all
that"
1t was not until months after
ward that Mrs. Brooks happened to
hear some one speak of Miss Wood
ard.
Eyes, she is a charming woman"
was the comment, 'if she didn't tell
such awful lies about her family"
"Her family?" Mrs. Brooks ask
ed, wonderingly.
Eyes. Hasn't she ever told you
about her grandmother being such
society bell, and about all the lovely
old heirlooms she has, and how
wealthy her family was before the
warp
| why, she did say something
about having lot of family things
in storage"
"Yes," laughingly, "she always
says that Well, as matter of fact
her family has always been poor
just as poor before the war as after.
Her grandmother was a seamstress
and her mother a school teacher, and
her father and his father before
him had small grocery store. They
came from my home town and hap
pen to know. Good, honest people.
all of them. Nothing in the family
to be ashamed Of And she would
be liked just as well if she told the
truth, but she persists in telling these
ridiculous fabrications about the
splendor of her family before the
war;
"Well, that's failing of many
Southern women" some one else
ventured. Almost all l have ever
met We're from families of wealth
and distinction before the war;
Some of them were, of course, but
many | know were not"
And what a foolish deception.
People are judged nowadays not by
what their grandmothers might have
been.