The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1889-07-12

liz u hlNC GubuS II itlloN W hIll 1Ou ultCI
him at the club or ut his own house or at the
office but if you meet him on the street, by
George, he'll look straight through you and
never say rs much as How de do don't
like that sort of man"
Nor !. I've noticed that about him many
time"
| heard that snatch of conversation the
other day, and happened to know rather in
timatey the man they were talking about
He was one of the most genial men ON earth,
but the trouble with him was that he was
painfully short sighted. He couldn't see be-
yODd the end of his nose TO save his life, and
on the street all humanity were alike to him
until one of them spoke to him. Thus it is
that the world makes no allowance for a
shortsighted man. He often gets the reputa-
ton of being uppish when, in fact, he is
nothing of the sort
But besides this physical infrmity there is
sort of mental short sghtedness that is very
embarrassing to the unfortunate possessor-
For instance, find it impossible to remem-
Der faces and names. Isometimes think that
have met too many people in this world
have to be introduced TO person about six
times on the average before can remember
that ever saw that person before and then
1t requires ever SO many meetings before
can venture on the name For the last two
years | have attended The baseball games
with regularity and industry, yet TO this day
cannot distinguish between Hardie Rich
ardson and Jack Rowe, except by their posi-
tons in the field and these two players don't
look so very much alike either. Some folks
who have not been so industrious in their
application to baseball can tell at sight the
name of any player, not only in the Detroit
club but in the whole league.
One day last summer | was driving with
the lady who has the legal right to tell me
what she thinks Of me, when she said:
why didn't you take off your hat to thai
lady,"
"BIess me don't know her"
YES, you do. That was Mrs, Brins
meade"
"Wut it? Well, l did not recogniz,
her"
"You might have recognized her if yor
| had taken the trouble TO. You are awful
careless about such things You are con
tinually bowling to people you don't know
and passing by others that you've been intro
duced to hafa dozen times"
"Well, you know the trouble is that" -
1.-THE trouble is that you are mentally lazy
| The trouble is that YOU don't take the trOu
| BILE. You are continually offending peop
and wish you would be more careful an
sure Mrs. Brinsmeade felt hurt"
"Oh, shall make it all right with her mex
time see her"
"How?"
"WelI, I'll say did not recognize her tina
day"
"She'll like that"
"Then I'll tell her that see 80 many peo
pie that-no, that won't do either, will ity"
81 don't think 1t will"
81 see nothing for it then, but to be extr
genial the next time | meet her. don
quite see how she can resist that"
For the next day or two bowed inds
crimnately 10 everybody, much to the sur
prise of most OF them, but, all the same,
noticed that many of them bowed back a
me and said: "delIo, old man. Whe
coming to think of it | knew that didn
know them and they didn't know me, so
imagine that there are lots more people i
my fix.
A few days after | happened to pass th
Brinsmeadc residence and saw Mrs. B. sea,
cd in wicker rocking chair on the verand
reading magazine. thought would stO
long enough To remove any impression sh
might have that | was an unmannerly sol
of individual, SO | said cheerfully;
Lovely day we're having after the Ion
spell Of wet weather"
She looked at me for moment with cain
disapproval in her eyes, and saw at ono
that she was very much offended with me-
thought | could retrieve lost ground, so
plunged on, feeling very uncomfortable.
III suppose you are reading Mr.. Howell!
story. You always were very fond of How
ellis"
There was more of surprise than disar
proval in her glance this time. After INC
| MI % haait nj shp aaiH
"Yes, l am very fond of Mr.. Howells' wri
ings, but this is The Century Magazine.
believe he writes only for Harper's."
"Oh, that's so. ! had forgotten abor
that. By the way, KEENAN, is writing som
bright articles on Russia just now"
"Yes?"
Yes. He made quite strike on thos
articles"
A solemn pause.
Curious that fashion we have of takin
off our hats-well, to lady, you know, atte
she has-aiter she's gone by, isn't 1t"
II don't know, I'm sure. never notice
it,"
"Wel, naturally you wouldn't because yo
know, you'd have gone by"
knew was talking like simperin
idiot. but couldn't stop myself.
That's what was saying. The lad
never knows you take off your hat becaus
unless she turns round-and they don
generaly-ah-turn round you know. Thel
OF course. how is she TO know you do take o
your hat? think you know. Sometime
they think-they-sometime think that
person doesn't recognize-that is, doesn
take off his hat when he dOes-aiter the
have gone by"
. BY this time Mrs. Brinsmeade was lookin
al me with both fear and establishment. If
could have shaken myself clear of the frOr
i gate think / would have boled dow
: the street, but l chung to it with sort
/ despairiDg helplessness, always hoping to n
: trieve myself and always getting deeper int
the difficulty.
For instance, l recognized you the otht
day on Woodward avenue"
81 am surprised to hear it,"
"Well, yes, | suppose you are. Most pee
pie are surprised when they hear l recogni7
anybody, but liam not very good at know
ing people, but l would always recognis
you. Yes the trouble is that am a veI
poor driver-very poor, indeed-and it TAX,
most Of my attention looking after the hors
and trying to persuade him to go where
want to go. So sometimes pass people q
= the street without knowing who they ar
I've run over some of my best trien(
through trying to recognize somebody els
costs me more every year to pay for those
run over than TO keep the horse"
AT this moment the front door opened ar
" a lady came out. The moment saw her
wondered how could have been 20 stup
as to mistake anybody else for Mrs. BriD
meade.
why, how do you do?' she said vii
that kindly smile of hers. "Let me intr
T. duce you to my sister, Miss Beaconstreet,
J. Boston. Gertrude, this is Mr. Sharp, frier
. of ours. Gerty just arrived to-day on h
4 first visit to roit."-Luke Sharp in .
,e troit Free Press.