The Wahpeton times. [volume] (Wahpeton, Richland County, Dakota [N.D.]) 1879-1919, 1917-03-22
"EnfhuSiaSm'

As one grows older sometimes In
animate things, because of an unusua
experience, inspire feeling of love OF
antipathy as acute as one may have
for human being. A certain color
a perfume, phrase, will bring bach
a vivid memory, and one relives, in ar
instant, past sorrows or joys.
Now there is that word, "enthusi
asm." 1t used to mean nothing to me
except something once possessed anG
lost with the years, but hereafter II
will give me SILVER whenever I see
1t. You see it was the enthusiasm Of
q friend that led me into 1t.
New York women are divided, fash.
ionably, into two classes: Those who
put on spring styles in midwinter and
those who know nothing about clothes
save as protection, but who lead In
altruistic schemes and reforms. The
former are never interesting. The lat.
ter are interesting, sometimes ridicu.
lous, and always human. My friend of
the enthusiasm belonged to the latter
class.
She was the first woman in America
to make kit for soldier In the Eu.
ropean war, and as her acquaintance
with mans needs is meager we hoped
the man who got it had sense Of hu.
NOR. She was the first woman in New
York to adopt Belgian baby, and
when she gave 1t up because it failed
to thrive under her devoted care she
took to psychic analysis to find out
what allied her soul. Then she adopt
ed convict!
'You must adopt one, too" she said,
brimming over with enthusiasm. Il
will write to Washington and get a
convict for you, one who needs spe.
cial cheering up. Then you must write
a weekly letter to him, putting sun.
shine into every word"
"But suppose"
II will find one who will take you
out of yourself; one who needs the
sunshine and encouragement of kind
words. Think what it means to spend
ones days and nights in dark, lonely
cell, eating out ones heart and coarse
bread and no flowers and never dolly
mr. a piot,,ro mr. a ROW NJ c,,pc4,ipo RI
brighten the midnight hours? Oh, it
makes my heart ache"
'But suppose"
Suppose nothing! Think of his i'm.
mortal soul. Think of his hungry
heart. Why" growing more enthusi-
astic "You could send him a box of
your cooking It might help some"
Then, as if trying to get away from
dubious thought. she added, "Think
01 his lonesomeness!
Tc one who returns annually from
the West that one may learn few
more games of solitaire. the appeal to
make life less lonely for fellow
sufferer is irresistible. l had resisted
all her other altruistic schemes; fell
for the convict. and desirable one
was ut once applied for
had insisted that he he located a
long way off. She found him in cell
In Texas. I had also insisted that he
be sent up for life. If had to adopt
a man, 1 wanted him safely behind
bars. She found man serving life
term for killing his wife.
"But you mustn't refer to that" said
my friend "After all, that doesn't
concern YOU"
I agreed with her. If it had been
one of my kin he had killed might
have the right Casually, of course, and
In an offhand manner) to mention it,
or l might hint ut it delicately in a
postscript, but as she was no kin to
me, and the superabundance of women
Is going to be the worlds next big
problem, 1 had no right to remind him
of his ignorant attempt to solve it. He
was Russian, age thirty-one, and had
served ten years. He had killed his
wife because she was untrue to him.
This, at least, was more human than
If he had killed her because she re-
fused to he content with the backbone
of the chicken, or had failed to sew
on his buttons. It showed that he had
q heart.
For many weeks the correspondence
was conducted with great difficulty on
my part, and Indifference on his. There
was so much I could not say.
couldn't talk of the past; he had no
more future than rabbit in snOwtime,
and the present is never interesting. l
tried the weather, but after had cen