El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1920-07-03
The Lives of Folks.

THERE is lad named James
Stephens who has written some
uncommonly clever books, olt
sometimes he isl that eLasperallIls-
He doesn't end them rlsnt aiw ,,.s-s.
But Il IS part Of the story tel-ef s
art these days 10 tease his readers
Now, when Dickens wrote BOOKS, ne
alvravs brought the hero and heroine
comfortably out OF their qiILlc---les
and left them married ana IN eooa
health and the villain not only nss nla
entire batteries OF vtllainy sllenceoi
but he usually repeuts, and one can
quit the books and characters com
fortably. This business OF leaving
the heroine up in the air Is exzs-
perating. but IL Is the style enc q
Stephens's little books. Nary, Mary,
has a mother and daughter you SIM
ply take 10 your heart instantly, al
though at first you think you Won't
Ike the mother, but you soon IND
she is an artist At living
1 The mother IS a char woman. she
. always having trouble WITH ner
etnployera Mrs O.COunels over the
AMOUNT Of soap she e expected 70 DO
tie cleaning with and she hates MS
OConnelI with a grand hate. hates
the way her teeth are set in hates
the way she puts the turnltura hates
her clothes. Nights when they lie IN
bed, mother and daughter Imagine
what they viii do and what they
will eat and wear when they are
very rich, supposing mothers brother
over in America should die ana leave
them a fortune, and they always
think how very differently they VIII
dress and look and act and eat from
Mrs. O'Conneu and how particular
they viii be not 70 be that stingy
with the soap
Mary. the daughter. has a love az
- N i
whose hand casts shadow ike
hill and whose mustaches bristle Ike
wire, and you get deep into that
Mary does not love him and the story
ends there You can Try as hard as
YOU want to invent what happened
next, but Il cannot be done. This
little Mary. cherished like a flower
by her mother, belongs 10 James
Stephens. and you cannot do any
thing with her. Mary disappears.
But before the book closes there
IS lots OF cleverness in it Lary's
mother is clever in her arguments
about her social position as char
woman. and in her imaginary life
as q rich lady. and most clever IN
the way she turns her love for her
cherished little lady bird daughter
when she discovers the love affair
" it'll the policeman and begins loving
her Mary another way as woman low
ing woman
There IS Irish fun, bsgorrah. from
beginning to end. Mrs. Cafferty. their
neighoor. e a smart one. She has
been analyzlns her new ledger mi
nutely and she goes on 70 talk OF
the management OF husbands Next
70 babies md children the most in
terestilg study in the world for wo-
men, Is husbands Mrs. Caffsrty talks
OF the ridiculous ease with which any
man may be governeds for she had
observed that men were very So
ceptihle TO control II only the con 1hol
were not too apparent. If . nan did
a thing twice. the doing Of that thing
became habit and passion, any
Interference with which provoked
him to an unreasoninE bull-like
wrath wherein both wives and crock I
era were equally shattered. and I
therefore a woman had only 10 OBJ I
serve the personal habits Of her be- /
loved and fashion her restrictions ac- /
cording TO that standard In other /
words. watch what he wants TO do /
and fit around H.
This meant that men made the laws /
and women administered them-a I
wise ALLEGATION OF prerogatives. for ]
she conceived that the executive fs-
male junction. was every whit as i'm
portant as the creative male faculty
which brought these laws into being.
She was quite prepared 10 leave the
creative powers in male hands, II