Show Women Who Fail By Nixola Smith Greeley Copyright 1916 by Press Publishing Co Co The The New ew York Evening World THE GIRL WITH TOO MUCH DIGNITY HE successful life is not a series T THE of pitched battles it is a succession succession succession sion of carefully planned cam cam- The woman who lives from days day's work to days day's work from weeks week's wages to weeks week's wages with no po thought beyond them must fail A life with without ut plan is a body without without without with with- out bones Perhaps the hardest thing to learn in business is not to give battle when you are in an unfavorable unfavorable able situation strategically In business business busi busl ness it is foolish ever to make a re request request request re- re quest which cannot be transformed Into a demand If a business woman is in one of those moods where she believes she is not appreciated is being discriminated against or exploited exploited- half the time she may bo be right the right the only thing for tor her to consider Js a whether or not conditions are favorable favorable favorable favor favor- able to d do battle for her rights In Inthe Inthe Inthe the great war France fought and lost the battle of Charleroi contrary to the tho judgment of ot her generals and against overwhelming numbers because the Belgians were were- ch clamoring clamoring- for help The plan of General Joffres Joffre's campaign was to retreat and to retreat and to re retreat retreat re- re treat until his numbers and position became such as would turn the tide of ot battle in his favor When the time came he fought the masterly battle of the Marne Now the hardest thing for a human being to learn is Just this lesson of masterly retreat When weare we weare weare are young and ardent and undisciplined we want to fight for tor Justice for tor our rights no matter what our strategic position may be It Is a It long long time before we can learn to take attack and injustice with a smile and to retreat swiftly silently till tm we reach the Marne and and turn upon the foe toe Every successful successful successful suc suc- career has its battle of the Marne Mame I use the word successful as worldly m opinion uses it because the greatest of human successes is failure when compared with the the- pattern we set for ourselves The hardest lesson of my own life has been just this lesson of retreat retreat perhaps perhaps it is an ignoble lesson Youth wants its I battles as it wants its pleasures pleasures- NOW but it Is seldom we can win the battle NOW The successful person person 1 endures NOW in silence retreating t to o i the more favorable occasion which 1 is s I sure to come to those who watch for it I Shortly after the European conflict t broke out a a. talented young woman who belongs to a profession where the war r lessened the demand for womans woman's wor work k came to tell me that she was now re receiving receiving receiving re- re in her office the recognition due e to her talents and that she had had a arow arow row with hr br employer about it She wanted to consult me about the way to get another Job I I said eald to her There IS NO OTHER JOB Dont Don't waste your energy trying to look for tor one At this time you are lucky to have a Job at all nU Is this breach with your employer final Have you any occasion for seeIng seeIng see- see seeing Ing him again Oh yes replied the belligerent reluctantly Oh yes but but you are not talking the way all aU my other friends talk They tell ten me meto meto meto to stand on my dignity But will they support you and your dignity two months from now If it you are out of employment employment employment em em- I asked She made of course the obvious answer that they would not And because she sho was I intel- intel inteli ent i ent and really reany had bad come to mo me mete to find out what I thought and not to have me pat her on the back and tell her to go and hang herself she followed followed followed fol fol- lowed my advice pocketed her dignity and went back to th the Job she had Her worries passed as worries have hae the habit of doing Today she has no complaint complaint com corn plaint to make of lack of ot recognition Sho She Is getting nearer an and nearer to the Marne fame But she Is wiser and not so BO ready to give battle for tor a fancied grievance There is a sort of ot dignity which belongs belongs belongs be be- longs only to millionaires Yet millionaires millionaires mil mil- strongly enough rarely feel that they can afford atford it Like a yacht or ora ora ora a string of polo ponies dignity pays no dividends It is purely and simply I an expense to the owner A girl makIng making making mak mak- ing 8 or 10 a week or even a week cannot afford these luxuries I dont don't use the word dignity In the sense of a. a womans woman's Just and proper resentment resentment resent resent- ment meat of personal familiarity but to de describe describe describe de- de scribe that seething state of mind which prompts certain employers to Incessant tales of the injustice of their employers tales employers tales of what he said to tome tome me and what I said to him yes Idid I did too There Thero Is nothing in this Men put up tip with a lot of It from women women women wo wo- men to be sure because they are trained to endure feminine tantrums anyhow most employers being married men But the motives of ot their endurance endurance endurance endur endur- ance are not flattering The woman who wants to succeed must learn not to waste her energies in wordy battles In which not a trench is taken on either side side She must learn to endure in silence what she cannot change and to retreat to the Marne never doubting that the Marne Mame will wll b be there if she has the elements and the equipment of generalship |