Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-08-24
THE PASSING OF POTTER,
His Was Natural Enough MfscOncep
lion, hut 1t Was Fatal.

His Was a Natural Enough Misconcep-
ton, but 1t Was Fatal.
From the Chicago Tribune.
Algernon Potter made mistake when he
tried 10 climb a tree Algy in his school
boy days was the best climber on the North
Side He could "shin" up trees and flag
poles with an easy grace which won the ad-
miration of his mates, and they dubbed him
'champeen." But this was when Algy was
young, and slim, and wiry, and trees in
that part of the city were but saplings.
| NOW Algy is stout in form and soft in wind
and muscle, while the same trees about
the trunks of which he was wont to Irvine
his timber legs with ease are now grown to
stalwart proportions.
Potter, his inamorata, Bessie, and a girl
confidante. May. who was to be bridesmaid
| at the wedding, We're lounging in the shade
under the trees in Lincoln Park on Sunday
| last, when a strong gust of wind caught
| Bessie's fflmy kerchief and sent 1t whirling
| up into the air to lodge In the branches Of
big tree, Aigy saw the delicate bit of
| lace-webbed muslin float by and recognized
| 1t as one he had given Bessie a few weeks
| before. He was bound to get It back, and
was ready for action even before Bessie, on
| missing the spidery creation, called out:
| "Oh. Algy. get it back for me, won't YOU
dear? I would not lose 1t for anything
| 1 have"
This settled 1t and Algy tackled the tree
| 1t was a hot day, and he had a new S65
suit of clothes on. The tree was a big pop-
lar, and the kerchief was caught fast in
| the first fork, twenty-five feet from the
| ground. The first ten feet convinced him
| of several important things, viz, his mus
Giles were soft, the tree seemed to grow
| bigger In circumference and har Ter to hold
| to the further up he got, and whether he
ever got the kerchief or not his good clothes
were ruined. At twelve feet from the
| ground he stuck tired out. l,np and dis
consulate, .ready to slide down TO mother
heard Bessie say:
Hes doing splendldly, isn't he. May7
| He'll get it. ] know he will. Oh, Algy
| you're ever SO much better climber than
you claimed to be-"
For the first time during the engagement
Algy wavered in devotion to his sweetheart
He had doubts as to whether she had sud
| denly gone crazy or was simply chatting
him. In either case 1t would never do to
| give up at this juncture, so he valiantly
| wiggled up five feet more. His hands were
barked ard torn, his chin rasped where it
had brushed against the tree, his collar
wet as a bathing sponge with perspiration
and all his clothing clinging to his damp
body SO closely that every effort to advance
himself up the tree threatened to separate
Algy from some useful portion of his
wardrobe. But he wigsled and Skinned up
| ward until only five feet Of space was be-
tween him and the coveted kerchief, the
girls meanwhile keeping up running COM.
this day unable to satisfy himself.
ITS just perfectly splendid to be a man
and climb like that, isn't it, May?"
And May not only said yes, but ADDED a
| wish to the effect that she were a man. so
she could shin UP tree and sit In the shade
| of the upper branches on hot day. Algy
| heard all this idle chatter, and 1t drove him
| to desperation. He went on with his climb
ing until he got one leg and one arm around
| the first outspreading branch, and there he
| hung utterly unable to advance or retreat.
| x-nr g1zn hoe a1AA1
| knows what a sudden oozing out of courage
| and vim follows the moment of getting
| into the position Algy found himself in.
Thoughts of getting the kerchief had van
| how he was to get back to terra firma
| without smashing himself to jelly. In his
agony of despair he was every moment be-
coming weaker and drawing nearer and
| nearer the time when he would have to let
go and drop to the ground and death. Algy
| began to struggle to place himself away
from the danger point In doing this he
| split his coat up the back and burst his
suspenders. Then Algy got some relief by
| swearing. The moment came when the
climber could hold no longer He slid and
| of the tree, Just how he never will be able
| to tell A second later there was a wild
rush and .scraping. followed by a loud
thump, and Algy was sitting on the ground
| at the foot of the tree. He was too tired
and sore to move. His coat was held to-
gether only by the collar, his trousers part
not in condition to rise and salute Bessie
and May. To add to his bad luck both girls
| roared with laughter when they saw him.
| "He-he-he. He looks too funny for any,
thing, doesn't he, Bessie. with his clothes
| all torn that way?"
This from May. It was followed by an
equally exasperating remark from Bessie,
| who, between laughs, wanted to know il
Algy had got her kerchief, and the mis-
guided man began to brace himself for an
other outburst of expletives when a small
49,,
| In the lake and had fish line with a hook
| and sinker on it. When May suggested
that the boy could earn a quarter by get
ting the handkerchief the urchtn grinned
| and said:
Oats dead easy, see? All I does is to
trow me line up like dat and yank de wipe
The boy got his quarter and Bessie got
| her kerchief, which was badly torn where
| the youngster had slung his fishing kit into
| it. AS she spread out the mangled bit of
| lace and linen Algy saw it was not the one
he had given her. and he felt bad. He felt
| worse when she said, crying bitterly, a mo-
ment later:
81 would rather have lost all the other
| pretty handkerchiefs 1 own than had this
one torn. prize 1t more than all the rest
| because Bob gave 1t to me-"
And then Algy said words louder and
| more fercely than ever He rayed and
ranted and wanted to know IL Bessie
| thought he was a double-blanked idiot to
ruin his clothes and lacerate his flesh
| d tree 10 rescue d IneaSiy Ol0 rag
| some cheap skate had given her Bessie
said he was too awfully horrible" for any
self-respect!ng young lady to associate
| with. Besides she couldn't think of mar
| rying an untruthful man, and Algy had
| travelled far from the paths of veracity
| when he said he could climb tree. Thus
| was the engagement dislocated. and the
| girls ffounced off, leaving Aigy to be minis
| tered to by q sparrow cop who had been
| watching the fun from clump OF trees
| across the road.
She Had Been There.
Fiom the Adams Freeman.
| The house had been aroused hy a hnrelar