Evening star., 1915-01-31

had gone only little way into it when came across
this letter, written in lead pencil piece of paper
apparently torn from the front of memorandum book
The spelling pathetcaly bad. The letter gave
an unhappy start. 1t read in part:
DEAR ED1ToR.-Sence you last yere about paintin
the barn also sent in for apple ters hus
band has took to drink sumthing awful We live the
prayere eighteen miles from the nearest nabors don't
know what to do 1t like the closest friend
got.
And then the poor lonely went for page
and half to tell of her trials her children, her
struggles to keep their home looking like the pretty
pictures published in the magazine and to ask for my
help in saving her husband from drink and her family
from distress.
Ny hep-me raw-boned bachelor, twenty-four
years old! read the letter half dozen times and
sat long while looking out the window. The earth
seemed somehow to have lost the radiance that gowed
round it in the first flush of the morning. Instead of
high buildings and scurryng streetcars, through
the window wide expanse of unbroken prairie and in
the center of it pitifu little slab house wherein
woman struggled with ife-and trusted me. l had
tackled the job with the feeling that it in
teresting kind of joke, and right the outset woke
with jolt to find it everlastngly serious. There were
100000 women who read that magazine and of
them, at least read it gospel shaped their lives by
it, trusted its counsel, trusted mel
PUT on my hat and walked to the office of an
other womans paper edited by amuch older man. who
reputed to "know the woman game well any,
else in the business, if not better had met him
only but was in mood to stop for formalities
told him that had come for advice and showed him
the letter. To my surprise he read it through and
laughed. At the sight of my face he removed his black
briar pipe spat dexterously into cuspdor set some
distance from his desk, and laughed again. remember
wondering myself what his readers would have
thought could they have him then. At the
ment of my entrance he had been engaged-sleeves
rolled up, black pipe blowing furiousy-n writing
of the talks to young girls that had been wonder
fully effective feature in his publication. He finished
his laugh eisurely.
$50 you're worried, are you, my boy?" he chuckled,
sappng me on the back "You thought editing was
good joke, and you're abbergasted to find it's
serious Well, don't you worry. 1t is joke, one of
the funniest little jokes in the world. You want to keep
thinking You don't want to let yourself forget
for minute that women are after all, only bunch of
grown-up kids AS long you treat 'em that way
you're all right"
But, | interrupted; for had some conscience left,
a don't anything very funny in letter like that.
had no idea women would write me things of that
sort. What shall say to her?'
"Say!" he exploded "You don't know what to say?
Why tell her in God and keep on reading your
magazine. Write her nice little letter and invite her
to write you whenever can be of help The oftener
she writes, the better for you. 1t won't do you any
harm, and it will make her think she has friend And
for the things will write to you, let set
your mind at rest right away. Women will write
you liiilS' Pooi'iHeiy Iiioy
wouldn't tell priest things they dared to
mention their husbands. You got make up your
mind get awful lot of curious letters if you stick
this business There isn't thing in the world that
a woman won't write to the editor of her favorite
wornan's paper
sought to interrupt him with another question, but
in vain He well started on his peculiar views
of the nature of women their weaknesses fobles and
their needs. | had to hear him through
"a lot of the young fellows that have broken into the
wornan's game recently making a mistake, he con-
tinued "They treat though they were