The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1915-01-21

Eco. right, 1914, by tho News
PAPER Enterprise AAsociatioE.l
] went over to Dicks mothers
this morning and found things
all at skies and sevens.
Mother Waverly was fairly
storming at Aunt Mary when J.
came In.
II am glad you have come ct
last. Margie. to see your hus-
bands poor widowed mother"
she said. I'm my young days II
thought had to pay at least a
little courtesy to the mother OF
my husband and when Richards
father died | went over to the
home and stayed with Mother
Waverly for a couple of weeks. "
IL thought Aunt Mary would
be Of greater comfort to you than
l." said. but II you wish me
to stay with you for while Ill
do SO"
ooh. - could not think Of
taking you away from your
pleasures to stay In this sorrow
ridden house. You must have
time to call on your friends and
to dance and be merry even II
the stricken mother of your hus-
band is sobbing out her grief
alone"
| / looked at Aunt Mary. She
shook her head rs II to say: II
can do nothing"
ooh, heard of you being over
to your friend Eliene Symone's
house the other night singing
and dancing. II you do not grieve
for your husbands father or do
not care for me, at least | would
think you would have some re-
gard for the speech of people"
THE speech of peoplel" Why,
loh, why, little book, should we
care SO much for the speech of
people?
] care very much what those 1
love say of me, but l have never
been prone to do anything be-.
cause was afraid that someone
unknown might have something
to say about 1t. x
This was what was thinking,
little book, as l said to Mother
Waverly: II am sorry II my lit
tie visit to Eliene made you feel
that I did not grieve with you
over dear Dads death. was at
Mrs. Selwin's when Harry tele-
lphoned for me and asked me to
come over and spend the night
with them. l did not know there
was to be anyone else there,
although, to be perfectly truthful
Il probably should have gone
Just the same.
81 was glad to go as you know
Dick is away. When l got there
| found a number of their friends
had just dropped in. l expect
they do this every night as you
know the Symone house has the
finest ballroom In the city.
Naturally, being there, 1
danced. Surely you cannot ex-
|pect me to foist my grief on
strangers. Mother, dear Mother
of Dick. won't you try to under
stand we are alive and we must
act as those that live-Dad is
dead"
Don't say thar, Margie," al
most shrieked Mother Waverly.
Don't say dead when you
speak of your father; say he
passed out or he went away
cant bear to think of him as
dead"
i There II is, little book, we lie
to ourselves; we cheat ourselves,
l wonder II ! dislike this kind of
self-deception more than most
people.
Dad is dead! He did not go
away, for going away" means
that you voluntarily go, and l do
not think that many of us push
aside the portal that opens to us
the great unknown at our own
kvolition.
j l believe would say of the
one i loved best: ''He is dead"
These words contain all the ir-
revocableness of the tragedy.
They are fraught with all the
meaning of humanity's despair
when it comes up against the in
evitable. No juggling of softer
words can make the blow less
hard.
Mother Waverly is perfectly
unhappy because we all do not
wear mourning and consider
that to use one entire months
income in the following of the
lsilfy fashion of wearing mourn
| ing Is almost criminal.
There l go, little book, that
sounds hard l know, for poor
Mother Waverly has had a ter
rible grief, but that should not
make one lose all ones common
sense. Poor mother! She never
did have much sense, guess.
She has not awakened to the fact
that women must nowadays have
more than chastity and great
respect for social traditions and
conventions to be Of any worth
| In the world.
CONTINUED Tomorrow