The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-08-15
People on Trains
Are Human Beings
Why Forget That7
~ SOPHIE IRENE Loss.

~ SOPHIE IRENE loEe.
Copyright, 1914 by the Press Pub. Co,
(The New York Evening WORLDLY
A few days ago. I was on a subur-
ban train. There were many COM
mnters and the train was crowded. III
was before the hot spell came and
many Of the windows were closed.
In front of me sat a middle aEed
woman who had asked the conductor
to close the window when she took
her seat. and beside her was the only
vacant sent in the car.
Pretty som d young woman came
down the aisle and took the vacant
place. After she had been seated
there Q few minutes, as the conduc-
toresvas passing by. she called to him
and asked him to raise the window.
4, Rhsuma&lsm Nothing TO Her.
The woman by her side explained
that she had just had it lowered. as
she had % little rheumatism in her
shoulder However. the girl very
hotly said: This is MY seat and
am sitting next TO the window and
want 1t raised" Whereupon the con-
ductor raised the window and the
roor little woman succumbed.
was astonished. The girl was
nice looking..sSs. The woman gazed
around helplessly to see II there was
any other seat in the train. There
vas none and there she had to r.
main In the draught, because Of the
GIRLS selfishness who sat back read
ing a novel. totally oblivious to the
discomfort she had created.
4 Few 1winues Mioht Helm.
I could not help wishing that the
girl would get rheumatism so tina.
SHE would feel the same pain the lit
people never appreciate the pain Of
selves.
It was a long time before the train
emptied sufficiently for the little
woman to change her seat and when
she did do SO the look OF scorn that
was cast ut her by the young woman
would have done credit to a moving
picture villainess.
4 girl like that will mature into a
hald-hearted woman who will make
everybody around her miserable and
unhappy, because her supreme law is
self.
The Better Method.
In direct contrast to this was an in
cident of yesterday. Again the train
on which I was travelling was crowd
cd. This time was returning from
the country to the city. The woman
behind me had with her two little
children Another woman came by,
looking for seat; but there was none
vacant.
The little mother took one of the
children on her lap. moved the other
close to her. and asked the woman to
share the seat. could not help hear
ing the conversation that ensued
They talked of the hot weather and
how much better it was to be in the
country. etc.
Offered to Hold Babies.
baby on her lap. The mother ex-
planned that she was not tired having
boarded the train an hour before and
that 1t was no trouble at all to hold
the little one.
She also had beautiful bunch of
wild flowers which she had gathered
to bring to town because of the
lovely flowers in bloom now" And
to make a long story short, before the
journey was ended. the little mother
shared some OF her flowers with the
traveller who sat beside her.
could not help rejecting on the
contrast to that other trip. when the
girl had so utterly disregarded the
discomfort Of her fellow traveller. II
know she did not have the glow of
gladness that this little mother felt
by being bit gracious. l know that
such a girl misses great deal.
And when all is said and done.
there is nothing that SO warns the
cookies OF the heart as to feel at the
end of the day that you have done
one unselfish little act.
The People Worth While.
The people worth while are those
who give their bit not only in stress
Or need but every day; people who do
not play to the gallery in being kind
but rather to their own conscience.
1t is the finest kind of unselfishness.
For it Is done without a thought of
return SINCE they may never meet the
person again. 1t is the milk of human
kindness that flows freely among
strangers as well as friends.
! see strong men on trains who sit
quietly by. totally Obvious to the
poor tired working woman hanging to
a strap in front OF them, and let a
matinee Gill acquaintance come In
and they arise to give her the seat.
Such an act of So called kindness is
done only for appreciation and exacts
return; while the gracious. impersonal
act is spontaneous and disinterested
Consideration is the keynote pnd a
little bit OF 1t in the direction Of the
passerby may be widely cultivated
with profit to all,