The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-14
Merely e Matter of Feelings
By IRENE WESTON

A friend of mine-a man who would ings. and who would readily walk mile to do anyone good turn--was placed in very awkward situation the other day. He had been asked out to dinner with some friends who live in little subur- ban house, where the hard times had made a considerable difference in do- mestic economy The lady of the house does the cooking now that her husband s income has shrunk. My friend was warned he might have to put up with things" However, the three of them the lady, her husband and my friend got on quite well till the potatoes came upon the table.
 Hard as bricks" my friend groaned to me. By love! when I tried to stick my fork into the confounded thing 1t rolled about the plate like a marble. and Mrs. G.-you know what sweet creature she is-noticed 1t, and asked me if 1t wasn't quite right. What would you have done? I knew she, poor woman, had cooked 'em. So I said hadn't the slightest doubt the potato was excellent
  Then Mrs. G. bolted to the kitchen to see something she had forgotten, and, a knock coming to the front door, G. went to interview the caller. It seemed to give me just the opportunity I wanted. I grabbed the potato, wrapped 1t up in a letter I had in my pocket, and stuck it away in my pocket. I'd pretend I'd eaten it.''
 Good! Everything went well till about an hour later, when the wretched man was suddenly seized with a fearful sneeze, and hurriedly pulling out his handker- chief, brought out with 1t the potato which he had forgotten-and dropping 1t upon the drawing room floor before the astonished gaze of MT. and Mrs. G. He tells me he never felt so horrible be- fore" He's convinced that they imagined he wanted to take that potato home with him.
 It was hard luck, studying feelings like that and then failing so disastrously. Haven't you noticed yourself that 1t is not always ones lxindliest actions that seem to 'come off best?" An accident like that sometimes leads to the action being misconstrued Sometimes the re- cipient of the kindly deed proves un- worthy of 1t. It's disheartening. Still. one must persevere. Never did we need more kindliness in the world than now.
 ''Kindllness never failed yet-and never will do so, however it's triumph may be disguised from us," declared Charles Kingsley. Tt will bear fruit somehow either in the recipient or in the practicer of it. But some people are strangely elo- quent on its failure"
 They are. Dean Hole knew a man who. though he was the richest man in the district was remarkably mean. Hole tried to awaken him to some generosity. and failed ignominiously for long time. Then at last the obdurate one actually ventured on an experiment ii charity. Hearing tap at his front door one day he went to interview the caller. A beg gar! He was in the middle of his direc- tions as to the shortest cut to the near est workhouse. when he stopped. He suddenly remembered half loaf of bread which had grown too hard for him to eat. Trotting off, he brought 1t and presented 1t to the man at the door. He used to declare ever after that charity was wasted on the poor. Give lem bread and they throw 1t away" Hadn't he tried 1t? After an intellectual attempt to eat the loaf under neighboring hedge the beggar got so excited that he re- turned to his ''benefactor's' house. and