The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-01-24
EVENING CHAT
By RUTH CAMERON

An English judge has made a list of
fifteen of the most common mistakes OF
quoted in these letters. Today l want TO
add one which the judge left out My
sixteenth most common mistake IS TINS
ITO think people are barbarlans because
they do not happen to know the partlcu-
lar things which you know
In Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, .
when the little country cousin comes to
live at the great house, her wealthy
cousins are astonished at her Ignorance
and constantly run to their mother say
ing Dear mamma, only think, my cousin
cannot put the map of Europe together
or my cousin cannot tell the principal
rivers in Russia, or she does not know the
differences between water colors and cray
ons. How STRANGE Did you ever hear
anything so stupid
In the end it turn out that Fanny, al
though she may be ignorant of the rivers
in Russia or the distinction between
crayon and water colors, knows a great
many things that her cousins do not, and
is developed along lines in which they
are painfully deficient Incidentally. as
anyone who has ever visited Mansfield
Park will remember, Fanny eventually
wins out" to use slangy but express
sive term.
Now. the attitude of Fanny's little
cusins at the great house is the ATTITUDE
which many much older and shOuld-be
wiser folks are prone to assume when
they find that people are ignorant In any
line in which they themselves are pro-
ficient-
Say that you are well versed in Htera-
ture, and in conversation with a 1fiend
chance to quote from Rossetu, and your
friend lets out the fact that he never
heard of Rossetti- With what holy horror
you regard him, and how promptly you
set him down as impossible ignoram-
GUS All, my friend, suppose he should
begin to talk about the international
peace situation-surely something as vital
and wonderful even Rossettis poetry
and should mention great names and
events that we're all as Greek to you,
wouldn't he have as great a right to set
Won down as impossible and Barbarian.
There are so many thousands of branch
er on the tree of knowledge and so many
millions of twigs on each branch. that If
nine hundred and sixty-nine years, and
aDpIv himself to learning all the days of
his life there is no doubt that he would
still die ignorant on many subjects
Doubtless some young sprlg, VINO was
particularly interested i'm some tiny twig
on the tree of knowledge, might start to
talk TO this suggestions person on this
particular subject, and finding that he
knew nothing about it, set him down as
an ignOramouS
IF YOU look very long and intently at
one object and then shut your eyes you
can still see that object everywhere
great many of us look so long and in
fenf1v at the particular objects that in
terest rs and close our eyes to other in
terests so tightly, that We see our own
interests everywhere and cannot cOmpre-
bend those who do not share with US this
distortion of vision
after an" says David Grayson, that it
will not pay us to go to school TO, Tor
something or other
II we would only remember this truth,
and he willing to go to school to other
neopIe occasionally, instead Of insisting
an always playing teacher ourselves, |
think we should make the sixteenth mis-
take less often.