200 OBSERVATIONS OF A RANCHWOMAN 



drops everything and runs to her without a 

 thought of " sets," or her own probably 

 already heavy duties. And ten to one she 

 carries some tempting home-made delicacy 

 with her, if sickness is in the house.' 



That will be a bad day when the fashion- 

 able One Hundred and Fifty of the various 

 large cities succeed in sneering out of 

 existence the above unique feature of true 

 American life, i.e., its simplicity, its lovely 

 and admirable neighbourliness. It is rare, 

 indeed, to hear even the busiest of New 

 York women declare that she has ' no time 

 to spare ' for a sick or otherwise suffering 

 acquaintance, much less for a friend. Her 

 social duties, her philanthropic work, her 

 clubs, call her in every direction ; her 

 domestic duties, compared with those of 

 her English cousin, are appalling ; but her 

 neighbourly duty is seldom neglected, and 

 never grumbled at. No doubt the greater 

 simplicity of social life as it is lived in the 

 best American society and by best I do not 

 necessarily mean the wealthiest and most 

 fashionable encourages the practice of the 

 more kindly virtues. The reins of the social 



