OCR Text |
Show AN EDITORIAL BY 1 FLORENCE DAVIES LOS I D mu R VLD. "And would you n.ind." asked Sir Gerald Doak of Mr. Babbit, "if I Ju?t took my boots off'.'" Why r.o. Babbitt. didn't mind a bit In fact, he marvelled at the Increasing Increas-ing wonder of his discovery that this creature, this Fngllsh Lord, this mystc-rlous somebody from overseas w hom he and all his towns-folk ha J thought to be a great personage, was not a personage at all, but Just a pei-j pei-j son like himself. Thus, does Mr Sinclair Lewis In his J book laugh at us all for not having sense enough to know that a personage person-age Js only persons like ourselves who eat and sleep nnd like to go to movies and talk to folks, and. If yoU please, even Lake off their hoots of an evening eve-ning and put on Ihelr .-Uppers. That's a chapter that every woman who ever plays tho role of" hostess ought to read. How many times have vou made a similar dlscovreyf Bach time you make it, you wonder why you could have doubted that (he personage yoU thought lo be an unreal. remote, artificial sort of being, wns in reality lust a person, who wanted to be friends Perhaps the rich cousin from awuy or the lady who has Just moved Into the neighborhood or the wife of your employer who has called upon you. seems to have a great deal more money und social prestlgo than you have. Of perhaps vu fear that vour college degree or your knowledge of French 6r bridge or golf isn't quite up to theirs. And so. foolish person that you are, you set tlurn up on a silly pedestal. Just like ihe folks of. Zenith did wt'h poor Lord Doak. i'.ut poor stupid that yon are, why don't, you stop to think that people who really enjoy or wane to cultivate such splendid isolation aren't very genuine, and that if they aren't genu-In genu-In they aren't worth bothering about But if they are genuine, they won't enjoy your oppressing formality The next time you find yourself Woriy'lng about your dinner menu or the -manners of your awkward i it tic maid or tho fact that you have no maid nt all. when you are going to Invite the van-Somebody or the Ex -N'obodys to dinner, Jusi think of Sir Gerald Doak and the solid satisfaction satisfac-tion he took In discovering blustt r old Babbitt who would take him of I by himself and actually let him sit In bin slippers. Sure enough most of us like to Just alt In our slippers once In a while. Not In public of course, because it isn't exactly in good taste, but Just when wo'ro ourselves. And that goes whether a man's a good honest workman work-man whoso feet acho from carrying bricks up a ladder or whether he's a sir-somebody who gets lonesome for Jut a plain friendliness. An i so Hiion Sir-Somebody comes to dinner why nothing's a tragedy (not even gravy on the tablecloth or a forgotten flngre bowl), except laek of faith In your guest's iiih-rent friendliness and in your own essential lightness. 00 |