Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-10-04


Indeed" said I.
And why, pray?"
Because" said /. knocking the ashes
from my pipe, because the more think
about her the more incomprehensible she
becomes"
Have you known many women?"
Very few" / confessed, 'but--"
"But7"
81 am not altogether unfamiliar with
the sex-for have known a great num-
berlin books"
our blacksmith" said Chairman. ad-
dressing the moon again, has known
many women-in booksl His knowledge
is. therefore, profound" and she laughed,
May I ask why you laugh at me?"
"OhP' said she, don't you know that
women In books and women out OF books
are no more the same than day and
night, or summer and winter?"
And vet there are thousands OF women
who exist for us In books only Laura.
Beatrice, Trojan Helen, Aspasia, the
glorious Phryne, and hosts of Others" 1
demurred.
Yes; but they exist for us only as their
historians permit them, as their biograph-
ers saw. or imagined them. Would
Petrarch ever have permitted Laura to
do an ungracious acS or anything which,
to his masculine understanding, seemed
unfeminine; and would Dante have men
TONED II had Beatrice been guilty of one?
A man can no more understand a woman
from the reading of books than he can
learn Latin or Greek from staring at the
sky"
"Of that" said I. shaking my head, "of
that I am not so sure"
'Then-personally-you know very little
concerning women?" she inquired.
'I have always been too busy" said l.
Here CHAIRMAN turned to look at me
again.
TOO busy?" she repeated. as though
she had not heard Alright; too busy?"
Much too busy" Now, when I said
this, she laughed, and then she frowned
and then she laughed again.
You would much rather make a
horseshoe than talk with a woman, per-
haps?"
Yes, I think 1 would"
OH said Chairman, frowning again,
but this time she did not look at me.
you see." 1 explained, turning my
empty pipe over and over, rather aim
lessly, when 1 make a horseshoe 1 take
piece Of iron and. having heated It.
/ bend and shape II, and with every
hammer-stroke see II growing into what
| would have It'll am sure of it, from
start to finish; now, with a woman it is
different"
You mean that you cannot bend, and
shape her, like your horseshoe?'' still
without looking towards me.
Il mean that-that 1 fear 1 should
never be quite sure of a-woman, as am
of my horseshoe"
why. you see." said Charmfan. begin
ming to braid the tress of hair, "a woman
cannon at any time, be said to resemble
a horseshoe-very much can she?"
surely said l. surely you know
what / mean-?"
There are Laura and Beatrice and
Helen and Aspasia and Phryne. and hosts
OF others" said Chairman, nodding to the
moon again. "Oh. yes-our blacksmith
mas read of so many women in books
that he has no more idea of women out
of books than I of Sanscrit"
And, in a little while, seeing l was
silent, she condescended to glance to-
wards me:
Then ! suppose, under the circum-
stances, you have never benin love?"
pipe.
In love"
THE Lord forbid"
why, pray?"
Because love is disease-a madness.
coming between a man and his life's
work. Love" said I, "it is a caIamitvr'
Never having been in love himself, our
blacksmith, very naturally, knows all
about it!'' said CHAIRMAN to the moon.
speak only of such things as l have
read" began.
More books!" she sighed.
words of men. much wiser than =
poets and philosophers. written"
when they were old and gray-headed.
Charmian broke in; when thew we're
quite Incapable of judging the matter
tnough many grave philosopher loved;
now didn't he?"
TO TO be sure" said l. rather hipped,
''DlOnVgi1q To NH
somewhere that a woman with a HE
mouth is infinitely sweeter in the kissing
and"
DO you suppose he read that in a
ways.
Why, as to that" I answered, "a
mere sake of loving'
For whose sake then. / wonder?"
a man who esteems trifies for their
own sake Is trifter. but one who values
them. rather. for the deductions that NAV
De oraWn from them-he is a philosopher"
Charhlan rose and stood looking down
at me very strangely.
So" said she, throwing hack bar had
so. throned in lofty might, superior Mr.
Smlth thinks Love a trihe does he?"
My name is Wharf, as l think vou
KNOW said l, stung by her look or her
tone, or both "0'
, ieS' she answered. seeming TO look
down at me from an immeasurable atti-
tude, but l prefer to know him. iust
now as Superior Mr.. Smith"
AS you WILL" said /, and rose also.
but even then, though she had to look
up to me, l had the same inward con-
viction that her eyes were regarding me
from a great height; wherefore / at
tempted-quite unsuccessfully-to light
my pipe.
And after l had struck flint and steel
Nalnly, perhaps dozen times, CHAIRMAN
TOOK the box from me, and, igniting the
tinder. held 1t for me while / lighted nv
tobacco.
THANK you! said l. as she returned
the box, and then | saw that she was
smiling. Talking OF CHAIRMAN Brown"
/ began
But we are not"
Then suppose you begin?"
DO you really wish to hear about that
humble person?"
Very mueh!
"Then you must know, in the first
place. that she is old, sir. dreadfully
oldl"
But" said I. "she really cannot be
more than-twenty-tAree- four at the
most"
"she is just twenty-one! returned
CHAIRMAN, rather hastily, / thought.
quite a ehildT
mo. indeed-it IL experience that ages
one-and by experience she Is quite-two
hundred!"