The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-01-11
Hdve You q New Year Optimist, q Sort of "Blue-Bird- -for-Hdppiness'
 Relative On Your Family Tree?
By DOLLY pALRYMPLn

kk we cOulu onlS SHoo d blue-Diiu-
 for Happiness sort of relative of
 A my wifes off of our family tree, D Jimmy Angelface told the pink-headed man yesterday, "Id ask you to dinner with us"
 Blue Bird for -Happiness?" repeated the P. H. NJ Got an aviary out at your house, old man?'i
 Not on your life." the other said, dolefully Worse than that; it's a maiden aunt%
 "Disagreeably unpleasant, easily peeved variety,' surmsed the P. H. M.
 Quite the contrary" said Jimmy An gelface. Shes the pleasant kind; too d-d pleasant. She's the cultivated optim- ist, you know
 "The kind of optimist that is described cleverly when we say that one cocktail constitutes the only difference between that kind and pessimist?" suggested the pink headed man knowingly.
 Exactly; the canned good will-toward- men kind;" replied Jimmy Angelface; the sort with the unrooted determination to make the best of things; the Nothing
 
 Christmas motto-y," suggested the other.
 Yes, quite so,' he replied, which lasts in their minds just so long a S nothing happens to them. The kind that bore you until you want to die. In my youth ful days I recall that I used to think that a steady diet of candy-al sorts of sweets-would make a nice sort of life long menu. Just try it for two days run ming, and believe me, the sight of a chocolate caramel, the whiff of a mince pie and the very aroma of fruit cake Will put your commissary department out of business. Same way with canned op- timism.' I used to be able to get up a hrst-class row with my wife at least once a day, but since this blue bird for -happi- ness aunt has arrived, she, too, has caught the optimistic spirit and meekly agrees with me about everything
 on, that's just good little Angelina S way of tactful'y pleasing the blood rela- tive,' the pink headed man said, glibly T guess if you'd probe deep enough you'd find stored in her little head the same choice collection of Tt isn't so,' and You've got another guess coming to you that she's always had. We don't change the spots in our dispositions that quickly"
 But man alive, maybe this thing is permanent Suppose Angelina has made some fool New Year resolution influenced by our 'Blue-Brd- For Happiness aunt. Maybe this Maertelinck Blue Bird craze has struck her. he cried hope.ess.y
 I'm afraid you are rather pessimistic on the subject of optimism' said the P. H. M., paradoxically
 "Well-at least I've told the truth" said Jimmy Angelface, "and an Eastern Pro- verb says that Truth is a moon re- flected in many waters Pretty idea -eh?'
 And truth, too, perhaps like beauty. lies in the eyes of the beholder-nay deeper-in the heart" came the soft reply.
 What I want you to understand Is that I'm not down on optimism as optim- ism Jimmy Angelface said quickly Peace is lovely and most lovable bird to have round the house. but what want, is for my home to be as it used to be, and for my wife to be just her. self She is the only person in the world have ever really enjoyed a row with. She hits so fair and square and fights like man. You see you've never seen Angelina when she's in action and we are pulling off one of our household box ing matches, with-words--no swords"
 T know,' said the Pink-Headed man, Yours is the ideal household that mo- body ought to disturb. That canned 'peace-on -earth-good will-toward men performance needn't be injected hyper dermically into your home. A person can't size up the value of peace at peace conference; not even the optimistic MT. Henry Ford-like a husband and wife, once it has taken wings and flown You and Angelina. knew Jimmy, signed up happy 'until-death- us depart gov ernment long, long ago, when Angelina confessed to me on the quiet that you were the only person in all the wide world that she could enjoy a real quar-