THE ABUSE OF A SOCIAL CUSTOM.
By The Housekeeper
WHEN one's real friends get married, or celebrate a birthday or a wedding anniversary, it is a natural desire to want to mark the date with a souvenir or gift. True regard prompts the giving of something which will cause the recipient a pleasure. Such gifts are accompanied by genuine good wishes. Alas for the solicited gift, wrung from a donor who gives in response to an invitation to a wedding or social anniversary, because gifts are in order! Alas, that gifts are ever made by those who give reluctantly, and to recipients who prize them for their value or utility! A popular young man, boarding in a home-like boarding-house in a Western city, found on the breakfast table an invitation. "Wedding cards?" some one suggested. "No, oh, no! I am slightly acquainted with the bride to be. I go out with Aunt Reba's girls; I gave two or three nice presents to Kate's friends when they were married; my taste was admired, and since then there has been no lack of invitations to weddings. I have reduced my price, seldom pay more than five dollars, and am likely to buy yet cheaper gifts, of necessity. A fellow shouldn't be miserly. I like to go out and meet pleasant people, and benefits shouldn't be all one way, but my salary hasn't been increased, and expenses do increase. Father and mother need my aid now, and Brother Jim's books and board must be paid for. I mean the boy shall have the education I didn't get. I do not use tobacco or drinks. If the call for presents wasn't so frequent, I wouldn't mind as I do." "It is the bargaining spirit in a girl that is so distasteful to me. I can't admire the swell wedding if I know the display is a severe strain on finances, and the wedding presents are all on display, their cost discussed. A common bank teller realizes he is out of place when display is the principal feature of a wedding." While calling at a home newly purchased and fitted, a box of sweet and beautifully-arranged flowers came from a florist's. "The flowers only cost twenty-five cents, and I bought them to send to a lady who is celebrating her husband's birthday and making it known that the invited guests may select china for souvenirs. She has a new china closet, and desires to fill it with pretty china. The fruit and cream served costs her little, as it comes from her mother's farm. I shall send flowers and my regrets, as I have another engagement. We are paying for our home by monthly payments. I resolved to be honest, and defy popular custom by sending these flowers when a pretty china article is solicited. Why not consult purse and convenience when presents are boldly solicited?"