Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-04-21
UNIVERSAL LONGING
OF HUMAN HEART
Speaking of the Universal
Longing of the Heart For
Sympathy and Understand
ing
BY MRS. WILSON WOODROW


The prelate, the gray-haired wom--
an, the man who goes on crutches ana
myself were all talking together. we
had been speaking of the universal
longing of the human heart for sym
pathy and understanding.
THE longer l live said the pre-
late, 1.-The more l realize that in deal
ing with other people, especially |
those who turn to us in trouble, there |
is something more needed than Just |
the will to help. There is very much |!
kindness in the world, you know, ana
very little tact"
He smiled reminiscently as he
spoke, and then told this experience: |
downtown the other day l hap |
pened to be hard-pressed for time and
stopped in at restaurant TO get
something to eat. Soon afterWard |
bright-faced boy, thirteen or fourteen, |
still wearing knee-trousers, but with
something alert and self-reliant in his
bearing and expression, entered and
took a seat next to me. Obviously, he
was new to the place and was making
an effort to conceal it under pose
of man-of-the-world sophistication.
LAS he affected to study the bill OF
fare, he was carefully noting the man.
ners and behavior of those about him,
so as to make no mistakes He or
dered a plate of soup, and ate 1t
frowning as If the cares of major
general were on his shoulders.
just From School
II placed him without the slightest
difficulty. He was an ottice-boy en-
tering that day upon his first job.
School days were behind him. He was
a business man, facing the sober
practical questions of life.
"A man who sat across the table
from the boy and myself ordered a
piece of custard pie. l saw the boy
glance at 1t q moment out of the cor
ner of his eye; then\he hurriedly con-
suited the menu and fingered the
money in his pocket, One gathered
from the gleam of satisfaction which
momentarily eclipsed his weighty
frown that he felt he could afford the
same top-ofr to his luncheon.
But before he could give his or
der the man with the pie finished and
rose, leaving beside his plate five
cent piece as u tip for the waitress.
She brushed 1t into her apron pocket
and began to clear away the dishes,
The boy hesitated a moment, again
fingered the money in his pocket, then
with an involuntary sigh of renuncia-
tion also placed flve-cent piece on
the table and started for the door.
The busy waitress paused at the
sight of the coin, and, holding 1t out
between her thumb and forehnger'
called after him.
IL
come back here and buy yourself
piece of pie or cake with this. l
don't want it,
The lad flushed miserably. oh, |
that's all right" he muttered; keep |
lit" But the waitress persisted, draw |
ing to him the attention of half a |
dozen tables, and practically forcing
him to take back the money.
by George! there's a girl with |
heart approved a man near me.
II couldn't help answering him.
sYes, she has a heart 1 said, but
gave that boy back his nickel. and
robbed him of about a thousand dol |
lars worth of self respect. That
wasn't merely a tip he gave her. 1t
was his initiation fee into the Order of
American Business Men. He would
rather have had her slap him in the
face than subject him to the indig-
nifty she did. He crawled out of here
with his pride humbled, looking as If
he had been caught stealing sheep
Il spoke with considerable ferVor,
concluded the prelate, perhaps the
more, because / had a sneaking con-
sciousness that had l been the wait
ress l would probably have done the
same thing. Indeed. it had been my
impulse when l saw the boy lay down
his tip to lean over and whisper to
him that the gratuity was unneces-
sary. He was such an earnest, little
chap, and he did so want that Gus
tard pie
IT think" said the gray-haired
woman, that we women are more in
clined 10 sin against tact than men,
simply because of that heart you
speak of-in other words, our ma
ternal instinct"
so do l." cried the man on
crutches bitterly. 1T is women who
are entirely responsible for the ap--
palling size of my taNcab bills.
can't board a crowded street car with
out having some motherly-looking old
lady get up and offer me her seat. And
they won't be put off with polite re-
fusaL They persist until they have
the whole car staring at me, and
feel as If I were some sort of picked
specimen in museum.
'I remember once" he went on, Il
was sandwiched in one of those out
RACES against decency which the B.
r. T. operates during rush hours
had. however, managed to get hold of
a strap and was doing pretty well,
thank you. except for the fact that a
woman next to me, too short to grasp
the support, was treading on my toes
and tostling me with every jolt of the
car. AS we rounded curve she
catapulted into me with such force
that spun around like a teetotum:
That unloosed her tongue. She
turned on the men seated in the car,
and what she said to them about their
moral delinquency in letting me stand
would have made the Prophet Jere-
miah pale with envy. You can
Imagine my sufferings.
'~The next day r boarded a car
equally crowded, and again found my
self swaying at the end of strap.
A charming girl who had happened to
secure a seat gave me one glance and
then appeared perfectly oblivious of
me. Presently. though. as we ap-
preached a station. she got up, and
still without a look in my direction
started down the car toward the door.
Thankfully I slid into the vacant
place. and 1t was only after several
stations had been passed that dis
covered the girl still on the train and
standing. She had, you see, given
me her seat. but had done 1T so grace
fully and unostentatiously that l had
never suspected her purpose.
II you stop to think about 1t, you
will see that her impulse was no more
kindly than that of the first woman:
but oh, what world of difference in
their methods. One woman l could
cheerfully have strangled. The. other
evoked my admiring gratitude"