The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1910-12-18
VITALITY OF WORDS.


Words. How few OF us realize how VI
tally important in the matter Of right
living words are. And what a world of
difference there is between the spoken
and the written word Given a moderate
amount Of education. superimposed upon
a certain degree OF intellect, and a man
can make out fairly well to follow the
mind OF a genius who has expressed his
thoughts ON paper. Yet much depends
upon the readers knowledge Of words,
and in literature one misses something
is bound to-of The subtlety OF thought
One can only imagine. and that some
what lamely. what the expression Of a
mans countenance was as he penned his
sentence. r. l.. Stevenson indicates the
difficulty admirably when he writes:
iii is really most delicate affair .
suppose we held our converse, not in
words, but music; those who have a bad
ear would ind themselves cut of from
any near commerce and no better than
foreigners in this big world But we do
not consider how many have a bad ear
for words, nor how often the most elO-
quent find nothing TO reply 1 hate ques-
tons and quesuoncrsi there are so few
that can be spoken 10 without a lie. DO
YOU forgive me-? Madame. and sweet
heart. so far as / have gone in life
have never yet been able TO discover what
forgiveness means. is it still the same
between usg Why. how can it be? II is
eternally different: and yet-yet. you are
stiu the friend of my heart. DO YOU un-
deTstand meT God knows; 1 should think
it highly improbable"
1t was not all cynic who declared that
words are given as to conceal our
thoughts; tile man who uttered that say
ing gave vent TO a truth that it required
some degree of courage to speak. Nor is
IL only the dishonest man who keeps
silence for fear of betraying himself.
There come times into the lives of an OF
us when the waves OF emotion within
our souls are SO nightly stirred that we
find words quite inadequate 10 articulate
what We would like TO express and. like
chatterins monkeys. We fall TO grimaces
and gestures which speak TO those who
are our witnesses with infinitely more
eloquence than our tongues possess. Mrs.
Brownings tine sonnet is right TO this
point
IL ten you. hopeless grief is plssionlcss;
That only men incFeluous Of DESPAIR.
Half iausht in anguish, through the midnight air
Beat upward 10 Gods throne is loud access
OF shncking and rcruach Full desertness,
In souls as countries. lieth silent bare
Under the blanchiBg vertical sycglare
OF the absolute hClTtas. DCaphcarted man, express
Grief fe hy dead in silence Ike 10 death
Mere like monumental statue ser
Ia everlasting watch and moreea wee
Till itself cnGmbio 70 The dust beneath.
TCueh t.: the marble eyeids are not wet:
II il could weep, IL Foud arise and &C."
1t viii be found. if we consider this
matter, that words have ever caused
more troubles than they have healed.
Words lead to words. and one single
misunderstanding of a clumsily turned
phrase. a stupid construction Of a broken
sentence, and 10, a quarrel, breach. a
severance or friendship, Words may
sometimes heal the wound, but the writ
ten word will seldom do SO. and if it
comes TO the spoken word, it will be
helped nightly in it's Office by the ex-
precision OF The speakers face, by a liquid
eye or Quivering lip. And, after all, in
such a case silence is often the most
eloquent pleader. and look, a hand
clasp d thought of klndliness flashing
from mind TO heart. ana there is once
more perfect understanding. and not a
word spoken.
Hawthorne had something Of this idea
when he wrote:
"Articulatc words are harsh cIamol
and disoord. when man arrives al hi.
highest perfection he will again be dumb
For / suppose that he was dumb 1T ere
alton, and must so around an entire cir.
Gle in order to return TO that blessed
state"
In this life individuals can never ap-
proach each others souls so closely as
when they arc in love. whether it be tho
love OF Damon for Pythias or that OF
Romeo for Juliet: and it Is too we'll
known fact TO need comment that with
rapt lovers there is never so perfect an
understanding and harmony as wher
silence falls Ike a benediction between
them. Il love you" is indeed sweet
snusic; bat the thrill that follows silene,
is a symphony that partakes Of the dl
vine
Yes; words are good to use. but il is
greater blessing 10 know when not te
use them
Fer there are moments in life when lie heart i
So fun q emotion
That if by chance it be shaken. or into its depth
Ike a pebble
D1on some careless word il oyeroHs and its secret
Split on the ground ike water can never be gath
cred tocotheT
1t would seem that Congressman Hob
son had some help this time in unpack
ing his properties for The melodrama
The japanese Peril"