Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1910-12-21
CULTURED
CLARICE

Dotty Wilk had gone visiting in Chi
cago and when she returned home
with bunch Of puffs on the back of
her head which she hadn't taken away
with her and ghost book and a pig
book excitement spread through the
village.
Dotty had attended party while
she was in the city and the hostess
mad made everybody do a page in her
ghost book. 1t was bound volume Of
blank pages folded through the mid
ole and the process was to open a
page, splatter lot of ink blots on it,
Told it back and press it down hard.
Then you signed your name and some
body else cried ,"Oh, now let me try
It'll"
In the pig book you drew a pig with
your eyes shut and you couldn't take
the pencil from the paper after you
had started.
Everybody went crazy over these
fads and Peterson, the druggist, who
also sold stationery and magazines.
had to order second consignment of
the popular volumes
Nearly all the girls owned either
one book or the other. But when
somebody asked Clarice Emerson how
many pages in hers she had filled the
quest1oner ran up against a stone
wall. Clarice elevated her delicate
eyebrows a trifle and said family that
she was interested neither in ghosts
nor in pigs. II have a sentiment
book, however, which will show you,"
she said.
Thereupon she laid in the hands of
the 'abashed young person who had in
troduced the subject a book which
Clarice herself had made of pale
blue linen paper and water-color pa
per covers, laced together with blue
ribbon to match. Clarice had painted
a spray Of wild roses on the cover. It
was, indeed, chaste volu1-o.
Whats it for?" stammered the puz-
zled holder of the sentiment book.
Clarice looked gently panied. II
am going to have my friends write
beautiful quotations of noble senti-
ments of their own in it." she said
softly.
Everybody said that it was exactly
like Clarice Emerson and that she
was a ridiculous stuck-up thing, and
who cared, anyhow? Clarice always
sat with her eyes looking upward, like
st. Cecilia at the organ, and her
clothes were always limp and draped.
She held things with the tips of her
fingers and she talked about your soul.
So she was not exactly popular but
her father was prominent and she
could not be snubbed.
When she started out sharing peo-
pie with her sentiment book people
broke into cold perspiration and twis-
ted their feet anguishedly around
chair legs and bit their tongues and
gripped the pen hard trying to remem-
Der something noble. They turned the
pages to see who had written what
and they murmured, "How lovely!"
or How true!"
After stock sentiments, like "Art[is
long and time is feeting," BE good
and you will be happy" and Count
that day lost whose low descending
sun views from thy hand no worthy
action DONE" had all been used up in
Clarice's book late corners had terri
BILE times. Secretly they thought the
pig books lots more fun. In fact,
whenever Clarice appeared in the dis
lance, with a limp volume adorned
with wild roses in her hand, there
was a stampede.
Artie Kline made a great hit at
party which Clarice did not attend by
going around asking every one in
dying-swan tone, Wont you write
noble sentiment in my little book?
Oh, do write gem of thought in my
book"