Evening star., 1925-03-17
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

Speaking behind ones back is
frowned upon, as general thing,
yet there is much to commend the
practice.
Dispassionately considered, pam
ming the other fellow when he is not
around has the decided merit of be-
ing kind.
After all. kindness is a great vir-
tue, and any variation of kindness has
something heaven-lIke about it.
When you speak behind mans
back" at least you do not hurt his
feelings. You save him the mental
harm of worrying over what you
called him, because the chances are
10 to that he never will hear.
A tattle-tale, of course. may carry
him your mean words, but men are
more and more learning the boomerang
contained in this sort of business
1t is simple truth that if you tell
some one that so-and-so said some
thing evil about him, he will not
hold it against that man-but against
you!
That was what Isaiah meant when
he said, blessed upon the mountains
are the feet of those who bring glad
tidings."
The reverse also is true Cursed
anywhere are the feet of those who
tell us what some one else has said
against us.
Unhappy bearer, thus think to
curry favor with me, but through
some strange kink in human nature
l hold a grudge against thee.
Perhaps this comes about through
the inner recognition of every one
that the man who talks about YOU
behind your back has acted not so
i'll, after all.
At least he has not hurt your feel
ings.
Suppose, instead Of talking about
people behind their backs, we went
to them face to face and gave them
exactly the same sort of talk we
would have used in the knocking
process.
What world this. would be!
Some have commended such a
course Yet they have done so, 1 feel
sure, without calmly considering Just
the pretty state of things which
would arise.
If we took out our spleen on man
kind to its face, brother would be
arrayed against brother and husbands
and wives would sQuabble more con-
tinuously than they do in the funny
pictures"
Know ye that every person in the
world has certain amount of rancor
in his soul. This is not to be held
against him. Rather it is in his
favor. 1t bespeaks his humanity.
Every one of us. as the result of
our complex living. has certain ideas
about men and things, ideas which it
is not always wise-or kind-to
speak out too freely.
This is one OF the very hardest of
life's lessons, 1t is so tempting to
SAY our say" on everything the
minute the ideas pop into the mind.
The tongue is the original Self
starter.
The slightest sort of an idea re-
leases the spring that keeps the
tongue from wagging. Unless we
control the unruly member with the
trusty old brain, our tongue is apt
to oscillate worse than Ffdo's tail.
Most of US, luckily enough. have
learned in some measure to control
our oral thoughts. Our mind is more
or less secret. Even those closest to
us cannot read ii.
1t is when we talk that We need
to be guarded. There are so many
ideas we all have that are not worth
whoop that it is the rashest sort
of business to cast them upon the
general waters of discourse.
Wherefore it comes about that
generally the next best thing to
saying our say in public is to say
1t in private.
Every successful man knows what a
wonderful safety valve his wife has