Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-05-31
DOROTHY DIX TALKS


and unusual into one small compact
bomb. and having hurled it into the con-
versational midst, beat it away from the
spot. So shall you gain the reputation oil
being entertaining, and be sought for the
dinner parties. And, ut any rate, people
will forgive YOU, even il you do not scintii-
late il YOU are not a slayer and long
winded.
The second precautionary measure
against becoming bore is to avoid the
monologue habit There are none whom
we hate and dread so much as those who get
the floor and keep it, while they listen en-
raptured to the sound Of their own voices,
while all the balance of us sit on pins and
needles waiting for q chance to break IN
and try out our own vocal organs.
Never forget that conversation IL never
a one man, or one woman performance
be the talker ever so learned or have ever
so interesting q thing to relate. Inc
conversation that every one enjoys is
game of give and take in which each has
a share, for his opinion is rs dear to the
dull man, and he likes to mir his views as
well as the brilliant man does his.
If YOU would not be bore do not be q
conversation hog any more than YOU
would be a road hog. Give way TO the
other fellow. And don't forget that in any
| popularity contest tho medal always goes
to the silent. The monologuist hasn't q
| look in.
Finally, If you would avoid being bore
refrain from talking about yourself, and
your family. This takes courage, and an
amount of heroic self-sacritce that few
people are capable Of, but it's the price oil
| keeping out of the class of those whose
society makes us very very tired.
OF course we are so thrillingly interest
ing TO ourselves, and everything that hap
| pens TO us is 80 much more importan
| Than any other earthly happening that we
| never really understand how IL is possible
| for other people not to hang with baiteu
! breath on the details of Johnny's Group
| or the last bullontin from the front IN ou'
| perennial conflict with the cook,
| Still many things exist IN nature thai
we never comprehend, and we may &C
| cept il rs fact that no other human
| being except our mothers takes more thar
casual and lsnguid interest IN our per
| sonal affairs. and that the surest way 70
| become a champion bore Is 10 discourse
| about them TO others.
All of us know people who never see Us
If we see them first, because we'll we know
| that if we meet they will fix US with their
glittering eve while they maunder on and
on about what wonders their children are
| or what paragon Of a car they have got,
or what phenomenal sweet peas they have
grown, or infict upon us every detail
Of whatever business they are IN, and
what they said to the boss and the boss
said 10 them,
And while we writhe in the clutches oi
such bores we marvel that they do not
know how much more wonderful and IN
teresting are our children, and our sweet
peas, and our business, and we just wait
for pause in the talk to chip in with our
story, and qualify in the horrace.
For it takes great wisdom for us 70
realize that Smith is more interesting in
telling about his forty mile railroad trip
TO SQecdunk than he Is in hearing about
our trip around the world.
But when we reach the point where we
put the lid on our own personal expert
ence, and invite others TO tell us the
stories of their lives, we are past all need
of worrying over the danger of being a
bore. We have become a listener. and no
sympathetic listener was ever bore
He, or she, IN the one ahsorbingly interest
ing companion OF whose society We never
get enough,