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Show THE NEIGHBORHOOD BORE She Borrows and Gossips All th Time and Gives Nothing In Return for the Friendship of Others, BY MRS. McCUNE. PfH HENT Mrs Moore moved Into her fi new home ono of a number Baal of charming little houses that consiituted a suburban settlement settle-ment she was delighted with tho kindness of her new neighbors. Though perfect strangers to her, they treated her with warmest consideration Mrs. Moore loved wha- she called "neighborly "neigh-borly sociability," and she saw a bright, happy futuie in coming to her now home. She was a pretty womau. with appeal ingly pretty manners. The neighbors liked her at first! Now they do not. Why? Why, simply because Mrs. Moore counted too deeply upon neighbors. There is no class of persons who should be treated with more wise reserve re-serve than one's neighbors. More unpleasantnesses un-pleasantnesses come from a lack ot "neighbor ceremony" than tonguo can tell. And all for the lack of a good clear bit of thought on this subject of neighbors. A neighbor may becomo a good, Intimate Inti-mate friend, but her proximity is no reason for assuming that this must be the cose. Friendship must take root spontaneously of itself. Force it and you will blight It Don't ruin a pl ai ant. formal acquaintance, which meaus so much that is gracious in life, by trying try-ing to push it into Intimacy. Any strain, however slight, with a neighbor becomes a very trying factor fac-tor in life. Proximity won't let you get away from it, "hlch is one reason for "going slow" with neighborly intimacies. in-timacies. When Mrs. Moore "moved in," Mrs Rogers, her immediate neighbor on one side, was kindness itself to her, showing her every courteous, hosplta- ble attention. Mrs. Moore took tho kindness and attentions as signs of friendship rather than of simple niegh-borliness niegh-borliness which was all Mrs. Rogers meant them to be. She felt free to run to Mrs. Rogers' home continually to borrow, ask advice, to rest, to pour forth her trials in the arduous matter of "getting settled" Quick to make confidences, it was not long before Mrs. Rogers had her neighbor's complete com-plete family history. She soon knew that Mrs. Moore's mother had been unkind to her, and lhat certain relatives rela-tives living near, "with all that ono could want in this world," never did a thing for her. Mr. Moore's faults were confided in a cautious "between you and me" tone, also the trouble Mrs. Moore was having with a wayward way-ward child At first, because Mrs. Moore was pretty and had an appealing manner, and because Mrs. Rogers could see thnt she was nervously overtired with tho snain of moving and settling, that lady did not criticise Mrs. Moore. But the moment came when she did. She sighed when her maid announced Mrs. Moore, v hen she heard her new neighbor's neigh-bor's voice over the telephone. She evcu found herself resenting perfectly perfect-ly knidly efforts on Mrs. Moore's part to show appreciation of her attentions to her. Mrs. Moore was "on her nerves " She found herself hoping that in going out or coming into her homo she would not meet Mrs. Moore. A strain crept in between the two women, ending in practical estrangement estrange-ment From Mrs. Rogers. Mrs. Moore turned to Mrs. Day. neighbor on the Other side. At first Mrs. Day felt quite bitterly against Mrs. Rogers for her coldness to Mrs. Moore, and became be-came a warm ampiou of the latter, begging her to come and see her often! But after a bit this championship wilted. wilt-ed. Mrs. Moore leaned too heavily. "I wish I could go out on my veranda without having to chat to Mrs. Moore, who somehow always seems to come out when she sees me," complained Airs. Day. "What riUt has she to ex- pect to be as intimate with mo as my old friends are?" Her home has no independent in-dependent poise. That was just it. Instoad of bring- Into the community a homo in the dignified sense of the world a little Independent fortress of self-sufficiency, ol niver to give because of its Innate strength. Mrs. Moore brought a weak. 1 1 ausparent home ono all tentacle for the life of the homes about it a parasite home. One after another Mrs. Moore "rushed" "rush-ed" her neighbors, was in each case received warmly, then dropped Now ihe wants to move. She complains of iln cold, unfriendly atmosphere of her suburban neighbors. Her husband lghs. He Knows that history would simply repeat itself in a new cuai-ruuidty. |