1937-03-04 — Page 5

THE CHINA MAIL THURSDAY SUPPLEMENT, MARCH 4, 1997

POPULAR YOUNG MATRON

A

Mr. Simpson's daughter only proved the generalization that stupidity is no handicap to a proper woman

But the teacher says Alice stud- ied harder than anyone in the class. She says Alice is really conscientious. It seems that our little girl is simply lacking in mental capabilities.”

"That's true,” Mother said, quietly.

Albert looked up from the re- port card, more hurt than ever.

LBERT SIMPSON, proprieta

tor of the Simpson De- partment Store, sat slumped for- ward turning the little cream- coloured card over.

and over in

his hands.

comfort-

The mildly efficient, ably well-to-do little man tried to assume the severe facial expres- sion which had worked so well so often at the store, and achieved a nervous frown above dulled eyes that kept returning to the cream- coloured card.

He turned almost hopelessly to Mother, standing there beside" Alice. Mother. A tired, timid, colourless woman, he realised and was surprised to find that his. discovery caused him no pain. He glanced again at Alice.

SO

Alice, his last born, spoke. "I don't see why there's much fuss. Lots of kids besides me has flunked. And I never flunked enough to get set back be- fore. And I'm clear up to the seventh grade."

If only she had said it with some show af spirit But he saw that she was making a com- monplace, emotionless, stodgy statement of fact.

"It isn't that you've failed in your seventh grade work," he said. "It's the fact that you've failed, apparently, through: no fault of anyone's What hurts is finding out that you just are- n't??

"Albert!" Mother came to life. "You will not talk to that child that way. Do you hear? You shan't. I don't have it! Go on up to bed, Alice."

"All right," Alice said in the same stolid voice she had used all evening "Good night.” The unhur- 13-year-old girl walked riedly, serenely, up the thick-car- peted stairs.

Mother watched her ascent and then whirled around to Albert.

I know what you were going to say to Alice," she snapped. “You were going to tell her that she wasn't smart enough to pass her school work. You were go- ing to tell her that she's dumb. And you're not going to do any such thing. Understand this, you're not going to do it, no mat- ter what I have to do to keep you from it."

He almost forgot the tired, washed-out feeling that had dull- ed his nerves, looking at this de- termined, desperate, woman. don't know Mother at all," marvelled. “She's positively dy namic. She'd do anything ab solutely anything, have her way in this." He masked his astonishment at his newest dis covery.

“Well," he said, "it's all very well to talk about not telling her she's dumb. But the fact-re- mains. If the teacher had only said Alice hadn't tried, that was too

anything!

"It's true," Mother repeated. "I've known it for a long time. I can't understand your failing to see it. I never mentioned it be- cause I thought it was obvious. She doesn't grasp meanings. Have you ever heard her read aloud? She doesn't do it often. She can scarcely read, and I'm sure she hasn't the slightest idea. of what she's read when she's fin- ished. She hasn't the remotest interest in anything outside of

She got a darned good husband and she has a nice home. Her life is fine. Surely, Alice must not be completely lost "-

"Alice, Miss Bascomb, the tutor, said wearily, "you must try to get some ideas on something anything. Do you understand?”

"Yes, ma'am.”

Miss Bascomb, after a week with the girl, was suspicious “Alice," she asked, "what is an idea?"

Alice tried to think. "I guess I don't know," she admitted.

"An idea,” Miss Bascomb said, "is a picture in your mind. It's a picture or something you're thinking about. Now do you un- derstand??”

"Yes, ma'am.”

“Good. Now, we'll~" Miss Bascomb stopped, still doubtful.

By George B. Anderson

in a sentence so that I'll be sure you know what an idea is.”

“All right.”

her immediate sphere, either. I ~ “First, Alice, use the word "idea" used to think that maybe it was her complete unconcern for the world outside her own range that accounted for her slowness. I've known for quite a while that I was wrong about that."

Albert was incredulous.

"You mean to say,” he de- manded, “that you've known about - this for a long time and haven't

done anything about it?"

“Now that you know,” Mother replied, "what are you going to do?"

"I don't know," he admitted, weakly, "but I'll certainly try to do something. There must be some way to handle her case. After all, she's

Mary's sister.

and Mary graduated from Neb- ́ raska cum laude. Mary was al- ways the smartest girl în her class in high school She wasn't nearly as pretty as Alice, either

“Well, go ahead. Use the word.” her Alice cupped her chin in hands. After what seemed many minutes to Miss Bascomb, the little girl lifted her head.

"The idea," she said, "hung on the wall"

Miss Bascomb stayed in the Simpson home a month before she resigned. "It's no use," she sighed, trying to explain to Mr. Simpson. "And it's ruining my nerves."

III

"Dear Mrs. Simpson," Sister Clemence wrote, "It is painful for me to write this letter to you because I have learned to under- stand and to love your daughter, Alice I write, knowing that what I am writing will hurt you

But because I know it is the only

thing to do, I must sa

what

We have found Alice to

Charming, obedient. girl and we admire her for her many good qualities but we do. "not" feel that she belongs to this school and we cannot honestly say that our educational methods have made any imprint upon her. She is not to be a scholar, it seems. The good Saviour gives many gifts and He has given Alice an abundance of domestic capabilities. Where, some must rely on mental attainments, Alice will achieve her place in the world by virtue of her lovely dis-- position, her household efficiency and her beauty. I hope this let ter has not been unkind, as I have not meant it to be. We think, under the circumstances, that it would be unwise for Alice to re- turn to Ste. Therese next year."

NIV

Word hard

to exire

"Dear Mother. I do not like this trip to France at all I was very sick on the boat. I wish you and Dad would quit trying to make me smart and would let me stay home where I can have fun like I want to. The man and woman that runs this trip or runs us kids who are taking the trip are funny people. I do not like them at all I guess I don't un- derstand them. I saw some pretty hankies in a store yester- day and bought six for you and six for Mary. I hope we get back soon. The French language is very funny. Love, Alice.”

"You're all through experi- menting on the poor child," Mother said. "You've tried every- thing you could think of, and nothing has done any good. This is all you've accomplished: your desperate efforts have made every.... one in town laugh at you. You've given no one a chance to forget that we have a daughter who

considered quite bright. she gets home, she's going to stay here. It's my turn to try. to solve this problem.”

“Oh, God,” Albert Simpson prayed, don't let this go on for- ever. What have I done that I should be constantly humiliated? Please, God, make something happen to lift the burden of sor- row and shame that has weighed me down for five years."

(Continued on Page 8)

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