A Live Topic
A member of the faculty of the University of Chicago, according to “Harper’s Weekly,” tells of the sad case of a young woman from Indiana who was desirous of attaining social prominence in Chicago.
Soon after her arrival there she made the acquaintance of a student at the university to whom she took a great fancy.
Evidently it was at this time she realized for the first time that her early education had been neglected, for she said to a friend:
“I suppose that, as he is a college man, I’ll have to be awful careful what I say. Whatever will I talk about to him?”
The friend suggested history as a safe topic. To her friend’s astonishment she took the advice seriously, and shortly commenced in earnest to “bone up” in English history.
When the young man called, the girl listened for some time with ill-concealed impatience to his talk of football, outdoor meets, dances, etc., but finally she decided to take the matter in her own hands. She had not done all that reading for nothing; so, a pause in the conversation affording the desired opportunity, she suddenly exclaimed, with considerable vivacity:
“Wasn’t it awful about Mary, Queen of Scots?”
“Why, what’s the matter?” stammered the student, confused.
“My gracious!” almost yelled the girl from Indiana, “didn’t you know? Why, the poor thing had her head cut off!”