The Topeka state journal., 1922-03-07
ON SECOND THOUGHT
By JAY z. HOUSE
from Philadelphia Public Ledger.l
Some Reactions of n Vicarious Wild
over.


To Adelaide CASTOR. Somewhere
Out-We
Dear Adelaide-Your brief note
from Chicago received and contents
noted. Considered purely in the alb
| stract, the incident to which you re-
ferFed was a dirty trick. But 1 wish
| to be perfectly fair; / don't see that
you could have done differently. You
were in a JAM That I suffered in
cidentally was no fault of yours OF
one thing 1 am resolved: Ill never
start another violet argument with
you in front of a Pullman ticket win
dow. 1t cramps my style. No man
can properly lay out a woman with
ticket clerk looking on. Hereafter
I'll wait until we get home. Vicarious
''widowing. summer or winter, is
curious thing. 1 think every married
man who retains his zest for life
hears. from time to time, the clank of
his chains. 1t is likely that a woman
also feels their weight. But when the
chains are removed he doesn't know
what to do with himself. He is rud-
| derless in an open sea and inconti-
nently sinks into the only harbor he
knows and stays there 1 may not be
able to get that over with you; I never
have been able to get anything over.
But nobody can say 1 didn't try.
think the iron barb which wom-
an sinks most deeply into the heart
of her lord and master is her occa-
ence to the fact that he is not as young
as he once was. Apparently, it is
casual. In point of fact, 1T is carefully
calculated. 1t is the outcry of wom-
ans heart. 1t is an expression of
her fear that she may not be able to
hold him as they mount the crest of
the hill and start down the other side
toward the twilight. But it pierces
the weakest joint in a mans armor.
While man does not resort to so
many articles to conceal it, he hates
advancing age with a deeper hatred
than woman; his fear in its presence
is more violent. But the barb with
which a woman hopes to transfix her
husband to the quiet and uneventful
routine of domeSticity is a two-edged
tool and cuts both ways. 1t IS much
more than likely to stir him to a
fiercer activity. He feels that he must
give the lie to his wife's assumption
and his own conviction that he is get
ting on. And so he goes and starts a
conflagration somewhere and burns
himself to a crisp. Man is ALWAYS slls-
cePtible to the Establishments of your
sex. After he arrives at a certain
age-an age which L shall not men
ton in print-his dearest hope and
fondest ambition is that some woman
woman permits her husband to dream
on. She kindles no vague ambition in
his quiescent breast.
OF course, as you know, the fore
going paragraph in which 1 lost my
self in philosophical consideration of
certain aspects of the marital relation
was plant" 1 needed a peg on
which TO hang certain "reminiscences
of recent activities. I wish to refute
your assumption that am slowing up !
and so set down here a skeleton rec
ord of some recent doings. On Satur- |
day night went to the Barstow dance, !
arriving about O'clock. If I do say !
1t myself, I was going good. But for |
one extremely plea SAINT contretemps, |
If that is the word for it, I should |
nave quit in as good condition as I |
began. But you know the Ingham |
sprite-the one who is always pretend /
ing she wants to dance a waltz with |
me? And how that sprite can dance, !
Well, had booked the first subse- |
quent waltz with her somewhat earlier |
the orchestra began playing it. That |
waltz lasted thousand years if it |
lasted a minute. After the first twen-
ty minutes L was a physical wreck, but I
1 struggled on to the end and almost |
collapsed leading her to her seat. Then
/ changed my habilimentS very hur-
riedly, caught car downtown and ap-
peared at the Public Ledger staff din /
ner. The dinner lasted until o'clock
in the morning, and when the end
finally came was leading the singing.
1t could not have been later than z !
D clock when 1 went to bed, and<I was
up at noon 10 eat nEnL breakfast Oh
grape fruit, cereal. bacon and eggs,
-oast and coffee After that I devoted
an hour or two to making myself
beautiful, and at o'clock 1 presented
myself at a studio tea, \where l lin
yered for an hour or two and heard
many Establishments. At o'clock
got into the Blue Swallow and drove
nto the suburbs, whittier I had been
invited to dinner. There 1 ate raven
1usly of a most excellent meal and at
90 rolr hoo hnT !
where, shortly after midnight, I re-
ired. I do not recall ever having been
n finer fettle than was when awoke
IN Monday morning. Now, the point
make is that a man who can nego-
late that saturnalia of diversion and
amusement within the space OF thirty
hours hasn't slowed up, and you can
70 ahead and sink your barb whenever
Tou feel like it. I shan't mind it in
he least.
I have It in mind to write book
bout Casey Park, but probably shall
never get around to it. I contend.
that the story is there and
hat all Casey needs is a historian.
Tou remember the Parks, of course,
md you remember Mrs Park. She
vas beautiful woman and always
made me think of a hollyhock beside
rivers brinn; she was that gorgeous.
You remember, too, that it was al
Ways talked about that her folks in :
Cleveland had money. I guess it is
rue, and I expect it would be interest
ng to know how they got it. Well,
|asey was in town yesterday and went
o lunch with me. I hadn't seen him
ince 1915. So far as his history in
he elapsed period was concerned, 1T
vas all a blank to me. But 1 know |
IL the details now. You take a man
Who has been thru trouble and he
lever tries to make a secret of II. 1t !
GEMS when the war broke out Casey I
cit it his duty to go. So he made all
f the property over to his wife, in
ase anything happened. and sought a
raining camp. He was old for that
ort of thing over forty@and he
lad to creep in surreptitiouslyi but /
e crept in, emerging a captain and
Ventualiy attaining his majority.