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Elia W. Peattie: Memory of a Visit

By Irene C. Byrne.

A FINE personality is composed of
such intangible elusive qualities
that like a delicate flavor or a
subtle odor is difficult to
analyze. It is hard to tell just what
constitutes an interesting woman's charm
but when a large circle of friends of
diverse sorts if not colors unite in recognizing
that charm we know that it is
even though it is not named. So in
speaking of the people who know her
best we can gain perhaps some idea of
Mrs. Peattie whose latest book 'The Beleaguered
Forest, has recently been
highly praised for the beauty of its literary
[?].

To her home, marked by the refinedment
and individually distinguishing every
thing that is an expression of her that
[?] come men and women who are of
the best, intellectually, to be found in
Chicago, that great, gray city which
seems to be a gigantic maelstrom drawing
to itself the talent which has birth in
smaller and more secluded places.

My visit with her was a short one but
so much was crowded into it that in
[?] seems that it must have
been longer. One day we devoted to the
clubs. We took luncheon at the Woman's
club in a quiet, homelike dining from to
which only members and their friends are
admitted in a city of magnificent distances
like Chicago it is a great boon
to the women to have this cozy retired
place of their own. Here was served a
dainty palatable but essentially 'womanish'
lunch for the very modest sum of
25 cents. There was no public meeting
of the club but in the spacious parlors
there was an exhibit of paintings. Most
of these were like the lunch, 'womanish'
-- that is dainty and delicate rather than
strong and forceful. But one or two were
discussing the advisability of buying one.
Miss Ada L Sweet well known throughout
the west as a pension agent who is
at once [?] and succesful was while
talking to us, asked if she would contribute
to pay for it.

Elia W. Peattie: Memory of a Visit

By Irene C. Byrne.

A FINE personality is composed of such intangible elusive qualities that like a delicate flavor or a subtle odor is difficult to analyze. It is hard to tell just what constitutes an interesting woman's charm but when a large circle of friends of diverse sorts if not colors unite in recognizing that charm we know that it is even though it is not named. So in speaking of the people who know her best we can gain perhaps some idea of Mrs. Peattie whose latest book 'The [?] Forest, has recently [?] highly praised for the beauty of its literary [?].