Macon beacon., 1917-03-09
Teach Girls Less Culture"
and More OF the Cr1ces.
BY DOROTHY DIX

wish that somebody would start
Ia school where they would teach
Ia girl:
First Toread. Not to elocute.
Not to recite Little M-a-a-ble
with Her F-a-ace Against the
Window P.a-aaane" or "Curfew
Shall Not Ring Tonight" but
to read intelligently, sympathet
ically, delightfully."-, in the re-
fined, cultivated speaking voice
that is the most beautiful music
in the world.
The art Of reading has become
a lost art, and not one person in
a thousand can read even a para
graph from the daily paper with
out it being an afliction so great
that it is not to be borne with
patience.
Most Of us are aware that
neither we nor our friends know
how to read, and so we would
no more think Of asking casual
acquaintances to read aloud to
US than we would ask for an
air from grand opera. Yet there
is no other accomplishment in
the world more to be desired
tdan the ability to read aloud.
Second-Where she would be
taught to spell. There may be
no credit, as has been said, in
spelling well, but it is certainly
disgraceful for a lady to spell
badly.
Third - To write. The hall
mark of a cultivated lady-the
supreme test of sayoir faire-is
knowing how to write a charm
ing letter and graceful note.
Half Of the time when we send a
little gift to a girl, or when some
sorrow or joy comes to us, we
are treated by her with unpar-
donable rudeness. No lire of
thanks, no word of congratula-
ton or sympathy reaches us from
her, and the reason Of it is not
that she is lacking in politeness
or good feeling, bet simply that
she doesn't know how to write
letter.
The time that girls spend in
school composing laborious es-
says could be 50 much better en-
/ ployed if they were only taught
how to write letters, No girl
should be given a diploma unless
she can satisfactorily prove that
she has acquired the gentle art
of writing the various notes de-
manded by the eXigencies of civ
ilized society.
Fourth - How to talk. The
idea of teaching girl how to
talk may sound like carrying
Goals to Newcastle, but if | could
only teach a girl one thing on
earth | would have her acquire
q conversational repertoire that
would be sufficient to meet all
of the ordinary emergencies of
life.
A girl should be just as much
ashamed Of making a blunder in
what she says to people as she
would be Of making grammati-
cal blunder in the way she says
it. Yet the majority of girls
were aptly described by the
Irishmn who said Of a woman
that she never opened her mouth
without putting her foot in it.
A girl should be taught the
art of gracious speech-how to
, be Aatteringly deferential to old
, people, and sweet and gentle
} to children; how to pay a
! compliment delicateIy without
wholesale laying on of dattery;
and above all, how to receive a
compliment with modest apkre-
t citation.
$ | have heard girls who, when
4 any one made nice speech to
a them, say brusquely and insult
. ingly: How much do you want
A for that?' a remark that should
e have sent them back to the kin
1 derqarten class in a feeble
E minded institute, or else rele-
5 gated them to the Home for In
S curable Doors.
/ Fifth-How to be graceful in
+ their department. For a man tc
/, clump into a room like a bull in q
g china shop is bad enough, but
n for a woman it is unforgivable
c A woman who cannot walk with.
y out knocking things down, who
= cannot touch your bric-a -brat
!, without smashing it, who does
II not handle old china as if it were
c a newborn babe. or touch fine
y books as if she loved them, is {
t monStroSity.
c A woman should be able tt
:. walk without making a noise, tt