The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-07-21
Listening In On Foe

"The real homely girl should do this way. Isn't it amusing,' she should seem to ask you by her calm survey when she meets you, that should be such an awful looking Lizzie? Real ly, when I look in the glass and the fact is brought to my attention it hits me as huge joke! Because my face isn't really me and I really am mighty clever and interesting when once you get to know me! Come on! Let's for get what I look like and have a jolly old time You tell me all about your self and I'll tell you all about myself and I'll bet cooky you'll be quiet crazy about me before the evenings over. In the first place, you won't feel that I'm trying to flirt with you and you can be comfortable instead of on guard, and can be interested in you without eter- nally thinking about myself. You know, forget myself just as fast as I can, because I find there are so many beautiful things and persons in the world to look at that it isn't worth while to waste time on myself. You're mighty interesting and I'd really like to get acquainted with you!'
 That may seem a lot to say in a look, but it can be done. Of course the girl has got to have plenty of brains. Any girl has to have 'em if she wants to stick, because man grows tired of just face with nothing back of it, though for the moment he may flutter around it with considerable attention.
 If a girl is downright hOmely and knows it and doesn't do anything more than keep herself perfectly groomed and then casually fOrgets herself and proceeds with life she's apt to walk over the merely pretty girl who is so busy with herself that she hasn't much time for you.
 '"There is a certain penetrating charm to woman who is homely, but well dressed with an air of being somebody, exquisitely grOomed, composedly anus ed, by existence itself, giving the im- precision that if only you can be for tunate enough to get her to talk you'll hear something. I'll let her be as graceful as she chooses, because ease the beauty and no matter how homely she is no girl makes herself ridiculous by adopting them as goals.
 But when the homely girl begins to drop her eyes or look at you through her lashes to twist a button on your coat with an awkward hand because she saw a pretty jirl look cute doing the same thing, to smile beguilingly or coquettishly over her shoulder showing her discouraging profile to curl up like a kitten when her type is the young i hippopotamus, to adopt the baby stare when her expression is distinctly ma ture and settled, and altogether at- tempt being cunning or lovely when she is lowered with the general attractive ness of a freight lighter in a yacht harbor, why she is making an awful mistake and as for me I've no time to waste on her.
 "If your Pansy Hart would just quit acting as though she had set her teeth and said to herself Doggone it, I'm as homely as a mud fence, but believe me I'm going to act just as though I were a raving beauty and I'll dare any one to resist me when I get started, she would be a better and wiser girl"
 "Never mind,' the disappointed sister said haughtily. 'I'll bet you marry a girl not half as nice as Pansy-"
 ''I hope so," said the wary brother, finally completing preparations and heading rapidly for the door. I'm a modest man and don't want more than deserYei>