The Washington herald., 1920-05-07
TELLING THE TRUTH

vi course IL u one OF Ine tnluBb
that isn't done II simply isn't 1t
can't be done. Telling the truth II
we started out in the morning and
attempted to speak the truth for one
, single day, We would end up In the
I hospital by mid-afternoon. and
probably spend the balance of our
lives On crutches. because we had
| been SO MANNED. and so roughly
man handled by those whose vanity
we had offended.
And we would be poor. forlorn
creatures. without q friend on earth
Nobody ever knew even a moderate
ly veracious person, who was pop
ular in society. or one of those
lucky, individuals At whose coming
every eye brightens- and every one
begins TO purr.
Besides which nobody has the
courage to speak the truth. There
have been heroes who have led for
lorn hopes. but nobody was ever
tfooIhardy enough to hope that any
body would ever be grateful for be-
ing told the particular facts in his.
or her, individual case.
Yet. can you think OF any one
| thing that would work such an
immediate and wholesale reforma-
tion as for each of us to be handed
q nice, large, solid chunk OF truth
| about ourselves. and thus have our
attention directed to some particu-
lar weaknesst This would give US
q chance TO correct ii, for most OF
our faults are the faults Of igno-
rance. We are so blinded by our
own egotism that We do not know
that We possess them. and we'd lop
| them on quickly enough II we had
a searchJight turned on them Par
dcularly social sins.
Wouldn't you like to be the truth
teller with q steel helmet and a gas
mask, a coat of chain armor on and
an airplane to make q quick get
away in until the offended parties
had had time to cool down and re-
alize that YOU were going 1t for
their good?
There's a boy I know. Such q
nice young chap. So handsome,
clever and agreeable. and with such
charming manners. Az Cp-and-com-
ling young mrn. too. because he's
just full of energy, and pep, and
fairly eats his work up. Some of
these days he is going to be big
man, but he must have had care
less mother. because she did not
teach him how TO hold his fork
He grabs 1t as IL 1t were q har-
poon, and he was going to make
an attack en- q deep-sea whale. No
body could see this boy eat without
having his stock 60 down 50 per
cent in their estimation
How ] wish had the courage
to tell him the truth. and advise
him to take q few lessons IN table
etiquette It would be worth $780,
600 to him. but shall never dare
even whisper to him that table cut
Iory Is an appliance OF luxury and
not q weapon Of ofiense and de-
tense
There's . young girl I know. Real
lty q pretty. sweet nice girl. with
plenty OF gray matter Just above
the hair mattresses over her ears
This girl greatly desires TO be ad-
mired by men. and to make good
marriage, but somehow she's made
the mistake of thinking the way TO
attract the attention Of men. Is be-
ing loud and brazen and fast-ap-
pearing.
So she dresses herself In the most
extreme style She paints her fresh
young face, shaves and dyes her
eyebrows, pretends to be sport
\ and brags about how much she can
drink and how mitch money she
4 lost on the races. talks about wom-
en- having q right to tive their own
lives ana the slavery OF conven-
tions, and then she wonders why
she seldom has q beau; and when
she does, he is sure to be one OF
the undesirables.
How / would like to tell her the
truth and say, ''ouit being q silly
little goose. pretending to be some
thing you are not Ton are no
sport. You're not even q tin horn
sport and you don't give q life-lfke
Itmpersonation OF one. Besides, they
are not the sort of women that men
marry. anyway. II you would put
on some decent clothes. wash the
paint on your face. and babbls
about the Innocent simple things
you really know. and let men know
that you help mother with the
housework. and make your own
clothes. you'd be as attractive 70
men as you are unattrscttve now.
Rut shall never tell her. and
she will 20 on trying 70 at the
wrong key into the door Of the
hearts Of men, and she viii never
know that her folly did her out of
q good husband.
And there is q woman Such .
nice. good. kind woman and she
has such nice family. Really ex-