Attempt > Volume 1 and Select writings

THE ATTEMPT.
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It may be asked, “ If all gossip is to cease, what is to become of conversation 1
what are old ladies round their tea tables, and gentlemen in their clubs, to talk about 1”
Let them find other topics of conversation. Surely, in this wide universe, so full of
wonderful objects, so replete in all that is beautiful and mystifying, there must remain
matter enough on which to converse, even after extracting all gossip 1
A sister fault of Gossip is exaggeration, from which it is almost inseparable, and it
is so from the very obvious reason, that if people kept to facts, there would be very
little gossip. When you hear an ill-natured story of any one of your acquaintance,
there are only two courses open to you,—either thoroughly to discredit it, or else to
investigate it, in which case you will probably find that gossip and exaggeration have
done their work in making “ Much ado about nothing. ” We sometimes hear gossip
without in any way seeking it; in such a case, if we cannot refute it, at least we need
not retail it, thus closing one channel of publication.
That Gossip is not only a disagreeable foible, but a great fault, is proved by the
frequent warnings which are given in the Bible to avoid it. Thus Paul says of those
that lead a wandering life, that they become “not only idle, but tattlers also, and
busybodies, speaking things which they ought not.” The Apostle Peter ranks this
habit of gossiping with the greatest crimes of which man is capable. Thus he says,
“ Let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as thief, or as an evil-doer, or as a busybody
in other men’s matters.”
Gossip appears under different phases, according to the places and persons amongst
whom it spreads. Thus, in a country village, though it is very rife, it seldom exceeds
that silly gossip which treats of such subjects as what one’s neighbours are having for
dinner, or how many servants they keep; whereas, in a town, we have not time to
speak of such small subjects, and so we gossip of much more serious affairs, and repeat
many very ill-natured things. It is difficult to say what class of people deserve the
odium of being the most gossipy, but I think that we may safely say that it is pretty
equally shared by men and women.
There is a very disagreeable practice closely allied to Gossip, which is that of
repeating what one hears said in a disagreeable manner. Something is said of one’s self
by some ill-natured person, and that something is repeated and repeated until some
kind friend thinks fit to tell one of it, at the same time adding, that she would not on
any account have her name mentioned in the matter, making one believe that the
whole world is maligning one. And thus it is that we live in an atmosphere of mis¬
understandings and petty quarrels, scarcely able to distinguish our true friends from our
shallow acquaintances. There is but one way by which we can avoid being tormented
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