How Minnie Shadowed it Sylvester Jones
WHAT TO iSEGN OP PROMISE ARE
By MARY E. IIOLIAND
EW TEAR'S DAY has
Nl ever occupied a pecu
I liar relation to the
I .1 V.. ....I..., J .lv.
lUJt'U uuiiuicu aim o
ty-flve days on which
are etched the doings
and history of a whole
calendar year. The Ro
mans observed tho day
as a public holiday, and
on this day all litiga
tion and strife were
suspended, social visits
were exchanged, presents were
given and received, and feasting
throughout tho empire was the or
der of the day. The early Chris
tians at first set themselves against
the usages of the day as observed
by the Romans until tho fixing of
Christmas day on the 25th of De
cember, and Now Year's day came
to be observed as the octavo of the
Nativity and also as tho Festival
of the Circumcision.
The observance and spirit of the
day have not changed very greatly
In the onrush of tho centuries. We
might go back across tho long
stretch of years between the day
we live In and the day when the Romans Inter
changed their social visits and their good wishes
and both gave and received their strenae, and be
tween tho then and the now the Identity of feel
ing, emotion and sentiment concerning this day
Is readily discovered.
So mnny sentiments crowd themselves Into New
Year's day and all nro mostly children In tho
way In which the day appears to thorn and In
the slmplo feelings and emotions by which It Is
observed. Tho greeting: "A Happy New Year!"
pushes up through the hard strata of the year, and
the slmplo emotions, which mako the whole world
kin, bring friend nearer to friend and melt life to
gether Into a richer affection, and good will bo
comes the keynote of life on this day. GrudgeB are
dropped, resentments dissolved, and the average
man with the average endowment of affection for
his fellow b finds It almost Impossible to vttalle
any of his hRtreds through tho emotion-laden mo
ments of New Year'B day. Tho personal life has
many things to any to Itself; It is at once a clos
ing of accounts and tho opening of a new career.
Old things pass away and all things seem to be
come new. Tho things that might have been and
have not become are forgotten In the new hopes
and aspirations and nmhltlons which spring up in
the heart on the first day of the year.
Of course, nobody will ever bo what the hopes
and faith of the day project for the Individual life.
The most ardent believer In the better day, the
(Copyright, Vm, by Dally Story Tub. Co.)
most sanguine architect of the richer fortune yet
to be will fall short of the Ideal that controls bis
Imagination. Hut the very fact that the day stirs
those noble impulses and floods tho prospective
daya with the glow of hope Is In Itself an assur
ance thnt the year shall be rich In the gifts and -the
good will of the gods.
Another year! another yenr!
Tho Increasing ruth of time sweeps on!
Wlielm'd In It (urges, disappear
Man's hopes and fears forever gone!
Oh. no! forhear thnt Idle tnle!
The hour demands another strain,
Pf mnnds high thoughts that runnnt quail,
And strength to conquer and retain.
'TIs midnight from the dark blue sky
The stars, whleh now look down on earll
Have seen ten thounnnd centuries fly.
And given to countless changes birth.
Shine on! shine on! With you I tread
The morch of ages, orbs of light!
A hiht eellpse o'er you may spread
To nie, to me, there comes no night!
The sentiment that phrases Itself In the quite
depressing words:
The world Is very evil.
The times are wearing late,
Is hardly in tune with tho modern spirit when
life Is thought of a a corporate business and this
modern spirit takes account of its own enlarged aud
enlarging kingdom.
DEW THIS
RROLUTION
FOR YOUNO WOMRrT
RMIIIS
FOR.
R EifOLUTrON
YOUNO MEN
iTRIKE up the band, here
comes the good resolution.
l-ot the whistles blow
their heads off, let the bells
ring out, let the fog
horn on tho lako front shatter the at
mosphere to atoms, let tho similar
gladsome noises be let loose upon the
vibrant ozone even In the uttermost
corner of our beautiful city. For the
good resolution Is matching forward.
Only a few days more and we will
bask In Its splendid presence.
Like tho village drum mnjor It
comes proudly prancing toward us
through the week. Get a seat early
and avoid the crowd if you would be
hold It In Its glory. Keep your eyea
glued to the splendid spectacle, keep
your ears open for the lofty sounds,
for It will not be long In passing
It's safe to say that If all tho high
resolves that go into effect on New
Year's day had half tho endurance of
a Marathon runner the millennium
would come so fast that we'd have to
enact new spoed laws to keep it from
melting the asphalt.
If good resolutions were salt mac
kerel what a universal thirst would
spread abroad!
Human experience seems to Indi
cate that progress In any line 1s nec
esBarlly gradual. Take tbt flying ma
chine, for Instance. At present the
scientists engaged In the development
of this Interesting device are In a po
sition to assert that many of their
problems are already solved. They
can get up Into the air without the
aid of dynamite and they can come
down again with practically no effort
Of course there are other difficulties
to be overcoino such as the tendency
on the part of tho machine to select
Its own time and place for coming
down. Hut these problums are minor
and doubtless the answer la In ahe
book somewhere If they can ouly find
It.
Tho practice of resolving presents
a similar aspect. It Is not entirely
perfect nt present Rut considering
tho few years Blnce Adam Inaugurated
tho outdoor sleeping fad and became
grandpa to the human race It la not
surprising that some details are still
to be worked out. The forming of the
resolution has been beautifully work
ed out, till almost any one, the merest
novice, can resolve. The date, too,
has been firmly fixed as on tho first
of January. Tho chief difficulty thnt
still remains has to do with keeping
the resolution once It la mado. Some
thing like keeping your aeroplane
right side up once you have estab
lished a neighborly relation with the
stars.
Probably Boveral years will elapse
before the custom of resolving
reaches perfection and In the mean
tlmo It might be well to adopt a
makeshift for the present unattain
able It would seem as If the difficulty
might be minimized by more attention
to the subjects taken for resolving
purposes. It Is well to use care In se
lecting our resolutions, and because
of the proximity of January 1, a few
suggestions may not be out of place.
For a young woman Try this one.
"I hereby resolve with earnestness to
no longer Insist on grandma wearing
French heels." There are several ad
vantageous features to this resolution.
To begin with It Is humane. Just
think of forcing tho poor old lady to
teeter down tho street with little
church steeples under her sole leath
erl Her silver locks bob under her
dignified black bonnet and at every
painful step she whispers "Ouch." Fie
upon you! Shamey! Remember
grandma is not so young as she once'
was ond the penitential efficiency of
a bunion Is greatly enhanced by the
shoving forward of the foot as accom
plished by the French heel. Command
the old lady to do a cake-walk once
an hour nround the dining room table
if you will, but let her do it In com
fortable shoes. Another item In favor
of trying this resolution Is tho fact
that you have probably never asked
grandma to wear any kind of shoes
she didn't like, so It should be that
much easier to keep to your resolu
tion not to do so.
For a young man "I resolve from
this day never again to smoke a pipe
In church. This sample is highly
recommended. The practice against
which you Issue the edict of banish
ment is reprehensible In the highest
degree. Smoking, while of course It
might be a solace to you during the
sermon, could not but annoy your
neighbors and fellow worshipers. The
men envy you, lending to countless
domestic difficulties for thorn. The
preacher is unable to see whether all
the deacons are awake or not by the
haze from your pipe. Moreover, Just
as a distinguished statesman once of
ficially declared that the odor of
cigarettes annoyed him there are
those to whom the smell of a pipe is
a nuisance and the offertory collector
might bo ono of these. Resides, you
would probably be thrown out or ar
rested or something.
For men who ride much In street
cares "henceforth I will not mind the
feathers." This Is ono requiring con
siderable care but If Btrlctly adhered
to will be found of great assistance In
your dally life. When depending from
a strap and resting your toes on some
neighbor's a long stiff quill suddenly
Jabs you In the nose giving to that fea
ture the rich red that whleh another
class of resolvlsis have nlready ac
quired, do not release your temper.
Smile and pretend you like It. Oft
times you can malce yourself believe
It, after due practice, of course. Rut
the principal advnntagc to bo cited In
this resolution's favor is that "you
might Just as well." So long as tho
fashion remains the same you will
have your dally communion with tho
tall feathers of an OBtrich or of a
roor.tor and If you resolve not to mind,
how much more placid the temper!
For any one who does not raise
chickens "I hereby resolve and de
termine not to eat any more strictly
fresh eggs for several weeks to
come." This Is In some respects tho
prize resolution. Its advantages are
many, but all the others are over
shadowed by this one you can't get
any to eat.
In spite of all the teacher may do
tho pupil will not learn unless he
himself studies. You cannot mnko
successful use of these sample resolu
tions without effort on your part. Rut
you should find one among them
which can be kept with tho minimum
of struggle. If you have no choice or
you are skeptical as to your ability,
try the last one.
Not the most credulous and believing prophet a
generation rgo could have forecast the world we
know and are perfectly at home with to day. Bui
wer Lytton lu his short book, 'The Coming Race,"
endeavored to tell the story and achievement of
mankind in the day that was shortly to be, but his
seeming Impossible world has been more than re
alized in our own day. Tho half has not been told.
The great note of the day is the large grasp human
life possesses over its own career and destiny, thj
growing confidence that this old yet ever renewing
world Is solving Its own problems, and, under the
guiding of that Providence which Pope's well-known
lines so beautifully express:
All nature Is but art, unknown to thee;
All chance, direction, which thou canst not see:
All discord, harmony, not understood;
All partial evil, universal good,
Is working for the day of a perfectly ordered and
perfectly adjusted civilization. The greater power
man Is accumulating and employing over his own
bodily life, his mastery of the secrets of life which
have been hid from tho foundation of tho world, tho
realization that man hlmselfJs his own providence
in n vastly larger degree than hitherto he has
dreamed of, and that the "greater things" the great
est of all Teachers foretold nges ago that ho should
be endowed with competence to dc
uicso ne is doing in this very
dny with a miraculous confidence
and a mighty faith. He has dlscor
ered that his own commission ovsr
life, over the happiness nnd health
and the fruitage of the life that
now is, as well as of that which Is
to come, Is a vastly larger commis
sion than the world hitherto has
dreamed of. He Is finding out that
Trovldence Is a partnership and
that no man may be a sleeping
partner In the business of living
without the penalty of losing the
very thing that life Is a world of
potencies converted Into achieve
ment.
This Is the note, surely, as civi
lization faces tho year 1910 the
note of competency, the sense of
ndded powers to life, the feeling
that the greater things are coming
on the earth, and that man Is us
ing the key to unlock the treasure
house of his own life with a sure-
ness and a wisdom that give prom
lso of a vastly better, richer, Juster
universe than he has yet known.
A quiet, unobtrusive looking automo
bile drew up before a third floor de
tective agency on a certain side street
of down town New York. A heavily
veiled womnn descended, spoke a few
whispered words to the chauffeur, aud
made her way to the grimed door, on
whose glass panels appeared the
legend: "Sharp & Son, Private Detec
tives." "Do you handle divorce cases?" she
Inquired, bluntly.
The brisk, nervous man before her
swept his eyes over her quietly
gowned figure.
"Thnt depends upon the character
of the case," he rejoined, cautiously.
The veiled w oman took a quick step
toward him. "I wish evidence that
will procure me separation from my
husbaiid. Can you furnish it?"
The brisk man pondered. "Have you
reason to believe that your husband
Is er, unfaithful?"
"On the contrary, I have every rea
son to believe that he is not."
The brisk man pondered again. "You
are setting us a difficult problem, my
dear woman. Such cases, you must
know, Involve heuvy expenditure. I
may say a very heavy expenditure."
He paused as he darted another
shrewd glance toward the veiled client
before him.
'Will you name an estimate of that
expense? she asked, quietly.
"Certainly; we could not conduct
such a case under 15,000."
The woman drew a roomy purse
I wwr Voir To ar
Another note of our time Is the
fact that life mirrors Itself In such
a wonderful way and tho things
and forces that make for tho bet
ter day to be are known and rend
of all men. We live In the open,
and no man may become champion
of nny cause and keep tho world In
Ignorance of the character of the
cause and the nature of his cham
pionship. No man to day may hide
his light under a bushel. It Is a
tell tale world, and, more than any
past time, tne world to-dny tins a
juster senso of values and knows
both tho things that are saving It
nnd tho things also that threaten
nnd endanger It. Public sorvlce
was never so responsible as It Is
today, because civilization never
had tho almost miraculous power
of analyzing and testing the value
of public service as In this present
year. Public life la an open book,
and the most Impossible of all Im
possible things today Is that any
national or international movement
should be misunderstood or mlsln
terprcted by tho world's best mind.
And what Is true of public move
ments Is true of public men. No
public man can deceive his constit
uents to-day, for his constituents
nre tho world. And the strong man
today Is the man who frankly reo-
ognlzes this.
Startling Figures.
The lives of all tho 85,500,000
residents of the United States are
worth $250,000,000,000.
unnecessary aeatns every year
cost In capitalized earnlugs, $1,000,-
OOO.noo.
Workmen's Illness annually costs
In wages 1500,000,000.
Care of the sick and dead every
year costs Jt60.000.000.
Tuberculosis taxes tho nation
11.000,000,000, annually.
Typhoid fever costs $150,000,000
Malaria costs S.'eo.ooa nun
from her clonk and counted out ten
yellow-backed bills.
"Here is $1,000. If you will bring
me evidence that will secure a dl
vorce, I will increase It to $10,000."
The brisk man smoothed the bills
caressingly. "And who is your hus
band, madam?"
The veiled woman hesitated and
then pronounced a name that brought
a low, Involuntary whistle from the
other's lips. It was that of one of
the best known men of Wall street.
The detective gazed after the de
parting figure of his client, with puck
ered brows. But he did not realize
until a week's "shadowing" of H. Syl
vester Jones had proved Ineffectual,
just how difficult was the problem she
had left him. To all intents and pur
poses, H. Sylvester Jones was a
model husband In the eyes of the law.
On the eighth day a bright idea came
to the head of "Sharp & Son." For a
moment be sat with a broad grin on
his face. Then he pushed a bell and
a young woman in a plain dress and
with a careworn face, entered from an
Inner room.
The man spoke a dozen curt sen
tences, straight to the point.
"I want you to get acquainted,
Minnie, with H. Sylvester Jones."
Minnie opened her tired eyes very
wide.
"I fancy that your best method of
approaching blm Is at the theater,"
continued her employer, briskly. "I
happen to know that he Is a continu
ous, not to say an enthusiastic patron
of the drama."
"You menn the show girls?"
"Not he. That Is where I need your
services. At the psychological mo
ment, we will secure you a seat. That
sent will be directly next to our dis
tinguished gentleman. You will oc
cupy It for the better part of three
hours. Do you catch the point? If
you will manage your cards right,
when you leave the theater, you will
bo acquainted with him, very well ac
quainted. After thnt point you wlr
make your own plans. What Mrs.
H. Sylvester Jones want3 is an affi
davit of Infidelity."
The detective paused.
Minnie stiffened her shoulders and
a quick flush sprang Into her pale
cheeks. A keen observer might have
seen that under certain conditions she
might be beautiful. Gradually tho
tired eyes dropped and the bent shoul
ders relaxed. Minnie had conquered
herself. She was thinking of sick
mother and little Bister.
"And what do I get?" she asked.
The detective held up the ten yellow-backed
bills. "These are yours
for the affidavit. You know where tc
go for the clothes. I will telephone
you If we make arrangements for to
night. If not, we'll try for to-morrow
night. We are bound to succeed some,
time and then it Is up to you."
As It happened, on the third even
ing H. Sylvester Jones stepped out ol
his automobile and entered the Fifth
avenue theater. Five minutes latet
a stylishly dressed young woman fol
lowed him down the aisle and slipped
Into the next seat. It was Minnie
but a very different Minnie In evening
dress and rouge, an altogether charm
ing and fascinating Minnie. Two min
utes before the orchestra began, she
dropped her handkerchief. H. Syl
vester Jones extended it to her po
litely. She smiled and he looked at
her again. She was a girl to no
tice. Before the close of the first act, he
had made a hesitating remark, and
she had answered it, and he had made
another, and before the close of ths
second act, they were chatting ge
nially. When the final curtain de
scended, they left the theater together.
An agent of "Sharp & Son," loitering
in the corner, noticed the circum
stance and reported it to his chief.
The latter smiled broadly and the next
morning engeriy awaited Minnie's ar
rival. When noon came and she did
not appear, he looked worried. When
evening came without her, he sent fot
his agent and the two conferred to
gether. The next day he received a
note. It was a remarkable note, and
under it was the scrawling signaturs
of Minnie:
"I do not want your $1,000, and I
hereby resign my position."
The detective swore and called fot
his agent again. The latter looked
glum and started on a search for th
missing girl. Ho found her the next
week at a fashionable suite of apart
ments, with two servants, a pearl
necklace and an array of diamond
rings that dazzled him.
"The chief wants your affidavit," h
began, curtly.
"He can't have it, and I don't wanl
him to bother me any more."
The detective bounded from his
chair and Minnie tossed her head. "Mr.
Jones has asked me to become hit
wife and I have accepted his offer!"
The statement was true. The schema
of "Sharp & Son" had indeed proven
a boomerang. The millionaire had
fallen In love with the girl who had
been sent to trap him, nnd had ten
dered her not only his wealth, but his
name. The fortunes of the detectlvf
agency, however, were only under i
temporary cloud. H. Sylvester Jonei
bluntly told his wife that either he oi
she could go to South Dakota and re
turn single. Mrs. Jones took the west
ern trip and a few weeks ago the de
cree of divorce was granted.
II. Sylvester Jones married Minnie,
and everybody Is satisfied, with the
exception of "Sharp & Sons." They
haven't got their remaining $9,000 yet
and there doesn't seem to be any rea
sonable prospect of their ever being
called to receipt the bill.
Too Much Idealism In China.
Reviewing "China." by Mortlmet
Menpes and Sir Henry Arthur Blake,
a writer says: "The root fallacy ol
the Chineso political idea, which alon
is responsible for the low place to
which the country has sunk in ths
scale of nations, is the disrepute ol
the soldier. The gradations of the so
cial fabric are: (1) The literati, foi
mind ia superoir to matter; (2) tin
agriculturist, for he produces from th
soil; (3) the artisan, for he Is a cre
ator from the raw material; (4) tba
merchant, for he is a distributor; (5)
the soldier, for ho Is but a destroyer.
So China Is a sad example of what
excessive Idealism may do for the na
tion. Her armies have been, for tlx
most part, mere hordes of undisci
plined men, sometimes commanded by
robbers reprieved for thnt purpose on
account of their supposed courage
Yet a 10 per cent, levy on the popu
lotion of China would furnish an army
of forty millions."
Furious Fun In English Society.
Now for the game the most populat
at country houses this autumn. Yoi
may call It a variation on the old gam
of consequences. Each fuest has a
strip of paper and pencil. Kacfc
writes:
"Why Is " (choosing the nam
of Borne well known person, or a
friend or acquaintance known to th
general company), and then turni
down his strip of pnper and passes II
on to the next guest.
Now each writes: "Like a
(choosing what simile ho will). Agalr
tho strips are passed on. The thlrf
time each guest writes the answer:
"Because he or she ." Thus'
"Why la Winston Churchill like e
piano organ? Because he flies from
pillar to post." The Geatlewoman.
Fog.
Admiral Seymour, discussing fog nl
one of the Hudson-Fulton banquets,
said, with a laugh:
"Off tho Newfoundland Ranks, yoi
know, the fog is often ho thick thai
the captain baa to get out and lead tb
ship."