Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-04-06
THEIR MARRIED LIFE

funniest superstition from my wom-
Ian who comes in to clean. We've
| been having trouble with Mahomet
! trying to get out into the corridor.
and l told Mandy to be very care
! ful about leaving the door Open
! on, but Mrs. Atwood she said. that
! cat won't run away. l measured his
tail yesterday with yard stick
20 Frances." said Helen Laughing.
! now funny, / never heard of a fun
nier idea.
! Il know it did seem strange, but
do You know, Helen ever since then
nave been watching people for
superstititons. Do you know that
nearly everyone of US has special
pet superstititon?"
Helen looked incredulous. Not
Warren" she said positively.
! I'd like to wager you that he
mas, Frances returned. I'm writ
ing story on the subject now.
Thought as YOU did, that intelligent
people could not be superstitious. but
they are. Carp is
How is Carp superstltitous?
He believes that it's bad luck to
light three cisarets from the same
match
Il never heard of it,"
Neither had I, and that seems
TO be the only one that Carp be-
lieves in, but he did confess to that"
We'll, l believe in that broken
mirror one. think everybody does
said Helen slowly
Frances nodded. And l believe in
throwing salt over ones shoulder.
after it's been spilled in order to
avoid unpleasantness, she con-
fessed.
Both women laughter over this.
and when Helen finally rose to go,
! FRANCES said, as a last injunction,
Find out about Warren. I'll wager
a matinee treat that he has a pet
superstition just like all of us
Helen thought of this all the way
home, and resolved to ask Warren
! at dinner. But of course she did
just the wrong thing, and began by
asking him bluntly if he were su-
perstitious. The idea seemed so
ridiculous to her that she was GER
tain, anyway, that he would laugh
and deny such a thing.
What's all this?" He asked look
ing up from his steak" some more
tommyrot?"
But, dear, are you superstitious?
! of course. not. Why, who is?"
Frances thinks we all are"
/
ton has done more for Frances than
to make her a disciple of truth.
I Well, I'm not superstitious, not a
! bit, YOU can tell Frances for me
whenever you like" And with that
/ Warren attacked his dinner and ate
with appetite.
Helen did not defend Frances,
she was too eager to discover wheth-
| er or not Warren had a supersti-
ton, and she determined to watch
| him closely in order to find out.
| Half an hour later. Warren, hav-
/ ing finished the paper, returned to
her with yawn. Had a tough
day he remarked; business sim
ply rotten, splitting headache. Do
YOU know / believe there must be
I something in that old adage about
| getting out on the wrong side of
/ the bed"
Helen pricked up her ears. Was
/ it possible? Warren, the scoffer
actually believing in one of the
oldest superstitions?
Why, dear?" she asked softly,
certain that Warren had forgotten
their conversation at dinner, and
batting him correspondingly so that
he would say more.
"Oh. 1 don't know; of course I
don't believe in anything so foolish,
| but | don't get out on the wrong
side if l can help it. This morning
it just happened that my slippers
were over on that side. And every
think went correspondingly wrong"
This was too much, and Helen
went off into a peal of laughter.
Oh, Warren she said when she
could get her breath, "and you said
you weren't superstitious."
Warren flushed, remembering sud-
denly. I'm not" he denied indig-
nantly.
But Helen went off into another
gale of laughter. and Warren
caught fairly, was finally forced to
give n grudging smile. and to listen
while Helen told the whole story.
We'll, If it's true" Warren said
finally. I'VE all ought to be ashamed
of ourselves"
Frances is taking that angle in
her story" Helen returned. Don't
you see, dear, that it's only by
laughing at ourselves for believing
in such things that we can ever
realize just how superstitious we
iare?"
(Another installment i'm this series