The Family Circle

New Zealand Tablet, 6 July 1911, Page 1269

The Family Circle

THE GIRL WHO SMILES The wind was east, and the chimney smoked. And the old brown house seemed dreary. For nobody smiled and nobody joked. The young folks grumbled, the old folks croaked. And they come home chilled an weary. Then opened the door and a girl came in; Oh, she was homely—very; Her face was plain, and her cheek was thin. There wasn’t a dimple from brow to chin. But her smile was bright and cheery. She spoke not a word of the cold or damp, Nor yet of the gloom about her, But she mended the fire, and lighted the lamp And she put on the place a different stamp ■ From that it had without her. They forgot that the house was a dull old place, And smoky from base to rafter. And gloom departed from every face, As they felt the charm of her mirthful grace, And the cheer of her happy laughter. Oh, give me the girl who will smile and sing, And make all glad together! To bo plain or fair is a lesser thing, But a kind, unselfish heart can bring Good cheer in the darkest weather. MARJORIE’S MISTAKE Marjorie cast an appreciative glance in the direction of the stranger. It was Judge Elwell’s granddaughter, of course. There was no other new girl in town. Marjorie had heard a great deal about this young lady who had beeneducated abroad, and who spoke " French like her mother tongue, and she wondered timidly how one would make advances to so accomplished a person. .As it proved, it was not necessary for her to make the advances. The strange girl turned in her direction with the air of being about to make a remark, and Marjorie’s heart came into her throat. But it was a very ordinary remark after all. ‘ I wonder when the next car goes down?’ ‘ I’m afraid we’ll have to wait half an hour. We just missed that other car.’ The other girl laughed. ‘ I wish I hadn’t hurried so,’ she said. ‘lt seems rather funny to run till you haven’t any breath, and then stand half an hour on the corner waiting.’ Her laughter was infectious, and Marjorie joined in with all her heart. ‘ What a nice girl,’ she thought. ‘ I know I should like her.’ In two minutes they were chatting pleasantly. Marjorie asked the new girl how she liked Appleby, and the new girl answered that she thought it a very pretty place. Of course,’ she explained, ‘ I don’t know anybody vet, so sometimes I’m a little lonely.’ ' ’ [ It won’t take you long to get acquainted, though,’ Marjorie said. Mentally she added that a girLso vivacious and agreeable, even if she didn’t have the advantage of being Judge Elwell’s granddaughter, would not wait long for friends. The other looked away, and did not reply for a moment. ‘Perhaps so,’ she said at last. ‘lt’s different here from the other places I’ve lived.’ ‘ I suppose so,’ Marjorie said, humbly, reflecting that the other girl had seen Paris. It was quite surprising to find, as they talked on, that they had many tastes in common. More and more Marjorie’s heart warmed to the stranger. _ She told herself that never before had she so liked a girl on so short an acquaintance. When the car came swinging around the curve, they boarded it together, and took the same seat. And then it was that Marjorie found courage to say: ‘ I wish I could see more of you this'snmmer.’ ‘Really?’ asked the other girl, and there was wistfulness as well as incredulity in her tone. ‘Of course,’ Marjorie replied. ‘I suppose,’ she added, that your grandfather hates to spare you?’ ‘My grandfather!’ the girl repeated, and looked puzzled. _ Why, I haven’t any; or any father either,’ she added, f sadly. ... - ’ ' i Marjorie’s lips parted and closed again without a word. The, astonishment on her face was nnmistakeable. The other girl looked at her sharply, and then sat up a little straighter. ‘Perhaps I should have told you who I was in the first place,’ she said, with a change in her voice that Marjorie could not help noticing. ‘ I came down here with Prof. Larkin and his wife. I’m working my way through school and I pay for my board by helping Mrs. ‘Larkin with the baby. This summer they pay me something beside. I’m their nurse maid.’

• Marjorie was doing some quick thinking. This was not Judge Elwells granddaughter at all. The girl beside her was no heiress, with European languages at her tongue’s end. It cannot be denied that her first sentiment was dismay, not unmixed with resentment. She tried to remember what she had said, just what offers of friendliness she had made, and with her effort at recollection was mingled a vague wonder if the other girl would understand that she had spoken under a misunderstanding. Then it came to her with a sense of shock that Marjorie Saunders was nearer to being that unlovely thing called a snob than any one would have supposed. She had thought the stranger most attractive while she took her for a rich man’s granddaughter. She had admired her vivacity and charm • she had been anxious for her friendship; she had been proud tnat her new acquaintance had seemed to find her agreeable! And now the discovery that she was not an heiress, educated in exclusive European schools, but a poor girl dependent upon her own exertions, had changed her ]Te°rself C ° niP ete y ' Marjorie had the grace to blush for , But the silence had been too long protracted. The other girl drew’ away, her color rising. ‘There s another thing perhaps I should have explained,’ she said, but she did not get any further. Marjorie’s hand on hers interrupted her. , T p ‘ Never mind explaining now,’ Marjorie said, softly. If we see as much of each other as I hope we may, there will be plenty of time for that.’ J LANGUAGES SPOKEN IN SWITZERLAND There are some curious facts in the reports of the census which was taken in Switzerland last December. It appears that of the languages spoken in the republic, German heads the list, with 2,699,149 persons; French comes next, oon 1 ,0' 96 ’ 2^G kalian, with 301,323. and Romanche, with 39,912. All four languages are ‘ official,’ and may be employed by deputies in the Swiss Parliament. On the western .frontier French is gradually ousting German, while Italian is gaining over German in parts of the Canton of \ alais, especially at Brieg. There are 565,025 strangers in the land, of whom at least 23,000, as far as can be judged, ll „ v ® m hotels the greater part of the year. In the village of Waffihwil, Canton of Zug, with a population of 1044, 508 villagers possess 'the name of Hurlimann, and' as many of the Christian names are the same comic opera situations frequently happen. THAT PASSWORD , r The following story is told by an American Senator, Mr. Tillman. ’ One of his most influential constituents, an elderly farmer named ate, had come up to Washington on the opening day of the Senate Senator Tillman had piloted him round the Capitol, and then, haying some work to do in the Chamber, he led him to a special gallery, found a place for him, and left him there. After a while Swate got tired of listening to the apparently eternal: speech of a senator, and rose to go outside for a walk. . ' , o ¥-- y ” a .™ e Swate,’ he said to the gallery doorkeeper. Senator Tillman brought me here and asked me to wait for him, but 1 want to go out and look round a bit. I thought I d better tell you so that I can get back right here when I want to. b - . ‘That’s all right,’ said the doorkeeper; ‘but as I may not be here when you return I’ll give you the password so that you can get your seat again. complication maU S eyes ratlier P°PPed out at this fresh What’s the word ?’ he asked. ‘ Idiosyncrasy,” said the doorkeeper. W licit i ‘ Idiosyncrasy.’ ‘ Spell it.’ ‘ I-d-i-o-s-y-n-c-r-a-s-y. ’ eo ‘ lf ’ T m ! ’ commented the old farmer, returning to hia seat. ‘ I guess I’ll stay in.’ s WITH THE TIDE It had been raining for twenty-four hours, and the ground was more like a lake than a football field; but the referee could not see his way to postpone the match. i i Purely . you arn’t going to make us play in this?’ asked the visiting captain. wlll 12 f c ™ rse yu «™st Play,’ declared the man with the whistle. Now, don’t hang about. You’ve won the toss. >» Inch end are you taking?’ , T ‘Oh, well ’ came the reply 5 with a sigh of resignation; I reckon we d better kick with the tide.’ s ’ SERVED HIM RIGHT ‘ Will you allow me to ask you a question?’ inter"" a man in the audience. * y ‘Certainly, sir,’ said the lecturer on political economy You have given us a lot of figures about immigration increase of wealth, the unearned increment, and all that ’

said the man. ‘ Let’s see what you know about figures yourself. ir How do you find the greatest common divisor?’ Slowly and deliberately the orator took a glass of WSltei* Then ho pointed his finger straight at the questioner. Lightning flashed from his eyes, and he replied, in a voice that made the gas-jets quiver: ‘ Advertise for it, you ignoramus 1’ The audience cheered and yelled, and the wretched man who had asked the question left the hall a total wreck. SOME BULLS During a debate'upon the second reading of the Irish Land Bill in 1896 Lord Londonderry concluded a period with; ‘This is the keystone of the Bill are you going to kill it?’ , . , „ , Sir Frederick Milner, speaking on the Budget, said: ‘A cow may be drained dry; and, if Chancellors of the Exchequer persist in meeting every deficiency that occurs by taxing the brewing and distilling industry, they will inevitably kill the cow that lays the golden milk!’ Lord Curzon: The interests of the employers and employed are the same nine times out of ten — will even say ninety-nine times out of ten! ’ _ . Discussing Mr. Asquith’s Licensing Bill at a meeting at Shoreditch last year, a member of Parliament roused the great audience to a frenzy of enthusiasm by declaring that ‘the time had come to strip to the waist and tuck up our shirt-sleeves!’ A FRIEND IN NEED Telephone young ladies are used to being called up to give the correct time of day; to being called down by the man in a hurry for reporting that the number he calls does not answer when he is- ‘ sure ’ some one is awaiting beside the ’phone at the other end for his signal, but a Sydney telephone attendant has one on them all when it comes to being a bureau of information. This call came to the Sydney switchboard: Say, operator, my wife has gone away and left me to cook the Sunday dinner. I have got along all right exceptfor the spinach, but that’s got beyond me and I can’t even find a recipe book. How do you cook the stuff?’ It wasn’t exactly telephone business, but he got the directions. In the suburbs of Sydney there is some woman who is extolling the virtues of her husband as cook, and the recipient of the praise isn’t saying much. WHEN HE ’D GET HOME A certain boy was taking home his father’s empty can, when a bigger boy came along and gave the can a kick. This was not resented. ‘Hoi You don’t care if I kick it?’ ‘ No, I don’t.’ ‘ Do you care now ?’ giving it another. ‘ No, I don’t mind.’ ‘ I’ll make you,’ and the can was kicked along the gutter till the bottom came out. How do you feel now?’ ‘ All right. My mother borrowed it from your mother this morning, and you’ll know what she says when you get home.’ FAMILY FUN The Resistance of Inertia.—Fix a needle in each end of a broomstick, rest the needles on two glasses placed on chairs, with the needles alone in contact with the glasses (says Popular Science). If you strike the broomstick violently with another stick the former will be broken, but the glasses will remain intact. The impulse given by the blow has not time to pass on through the particles of the broomstick to the particles in the glass. The particles of the broomstick separate before the movement can be transmitted to the glasses. This explains how you can with a flat wooden rule strike one of a tall column of coins or checkers and displace it without toppling over the column. To Make a Hole in Metal. —On the end of a block of hard wood, the fibre being in a vertical position, lay the medal or other metal. Take an ordinary bottle cork and put a fine but straight sewing needle lengthwise through the cork from the top and far enough so the point is just visible underneath and no farther. Give the needle a slight kink at the top, thus snapping it off even with the surface of the cork. Stand the cork on the metal to be punctured, with the point of the needle downward, and strike a moderate blow with a hammer squarely on the upper end of the cork, and the needle will be driven through the metal.