The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1896-11-15
DUTIES OF A VICE-CONSUL.
SoME OF THE DEMANDS MADE ny
AMERICANS IN PARIS.

to He Strengthened Out-Meettng with
an American Girl In Trousers.
Now doth the little busy political worker in
various parts OF the country try TO make up his
mind which particular plum he is going to ask
for. Ever and .vor so many OF them have an
eye single TO Consulships. They probably think
that a Consul's path is one of roses, or spa
ghettl, or ~pretzels, or Russian violets, accord
Ing to locality.
People who have travelled, Just ordinary peo-
pie with no prestige OF wealth. fame, or rela-
tives, generally get the impression that q Con-
sui is one of those things which are remarkable
for their absence. He makes one think of that
pathetic wall, Oh. why do you say you are
somewhere when you are somewhere else 2"
The average Consul has a fatal gift OF being
eomcwhere else. At least this is the way 1t al
ways seems to the Common. everyday traveller.
Consequently, the traveller comes back TO his
native land having q fixed idea TINT the bird of
the air is not more FREQ to fit and fy than tho
American Consul is. And deep in his heart he
cherishes an idea that Il Consulship Is the OFF,
cial name OF a scheme for seeing Europe with
your expenses paid. 1t is. SO he thinks, a sort of
political scholarship, such as the colleges give
to deserving students. six months in Ger.
many" and that sort OF thing. The post OF
Consul Is also considered n good thing for a lit
erary man who needs leisure and an income to
enable him to really get a FREQ start. Naturally.
there is no lack Of applicants. Some OF them
want to be Minister to the Court OF st. James.
or pine for the snug berth Mt Liverpool. Others
have more modest pretentions. yet well defined.
And some there arc who will take any old thing
In the Consulship line.
Perhaps there is some truth in these popular
superstitions about Consuls. but IL they are the
unknown quantities. the y. y. and u OF the
foreign service, there are certain other mem
bers who are fixed and Get-at-able. They are
the ~Vice-Consuls. The ce-Cous has gem
orally been there a long time, He knows the
ropes. He understands the language as sho is
spoke. No matter what sort OF scrape you get
into he's been there many a time before with
some other unlucky fellow countryman. But
his path is not q path OF roses. He takes the
brunt of all attacks and they are not few.
The Vice-Consul at Paris told the writer that
II he should give something to every American
who comes into his office to ask for help he
wouldn't have y penny OF his salary left. These
pleas for money come from both men and
women. In Paris a good many appeals are from
young women who are there studying art or
music and whose funds run short. But these
are only q trile compared with the men who
so broke " through various causes and try to
get the consulates to pull them through.
Occasionally something amusing comes along.
For instance. one day q very swell woman drove
to the consulate and entered in hot h~aste-that
is. in as hot q haste as she could ACQUIRE after
the deliberate elevator landed her at the consul
late floor. Oh, she was in a terrible stated They
were swindlinE her at her hotel! And she
wasn't going to stand it. Would the Vice-Con-
sul come with her?
Certainly the Vice-Consul would. He put on
his hat. told his subordinates that he was going
out, got into tho cab with the woman. and OF
they went. Then he asked her to tell him about
nnurR1 forth her grieyAnCe Thpy had charged
her six francs for her washing. a dollar and
twenty cents. and all she had was,
The blushinE stopped her at that
point. Then he explained that he had a good
deal to do that day a, the Office, and, he didn't
her laundry bill was a franc or two more than it
Ought to be-. He got out and walked back to
IN the cab for which she had paid surely as
much as the overcharge. on her laundry, pro-
Most of the Paris vice-Consul's visits from
ladies are from those who nre having trouble
Shropshire that is the Vice-Consul's name) and
they want him to 20 with them to the offending
and pronounce on the III. Mr.. Shropshire claims
that he does not think that his duty to his coun-
men come to the consulate, however. he cannot
deny them the right OF entry. SO his life Is
marred by many uncomfortable scenes.
Not the least frequent OF the roles which his
countrymen try to make him play is that OF u
pGatneSns sri m n Fof . .ad al 3 a ne sh tn niin a
The letter was from a married man who wanted
to telegraph an appointment With a woman.
He wanted the consulate 70 send his telegram
and receive the reply for him. The consulate
did not accommodats him.
Another cheerful little duty of tho Nice.Con-
sui Is to assist at domestic tragedies. When
ever a- he puts i, "a foolish American woman
goes and fails ia love with some freckle-faced
Interpreter I'm hauled into IT,. And it's the
same way when some IDIOT of an American man
Is wheedled into nonsense BY one Of these
Erench-cats."
The American girl, too, tho girl on whose in
dependence and good sense and ability to take
| rare of herself the whole country brides itself.
owes a good deal TO the kindly offices of tho
~ shall never forget one American girl whom
I met under rather peculiar circumstances"
said the representative Of his country. 1t was
a year ago last Fourth OF July. or rather. the
fifth. for 1t was along toward morning. We
had been at the American banquet, and had
ward. As we sat down / noticed a young man
and two girls near us. and l at once saw that
made up my mind to another thing, and that
was that they were three girls instead of two!
/ said to my companion. an American man:
DO you see that group thereF
DO You notice that young MANI
"'Yes. What about him2'
Don't you see anything peculiar about
No he said after taking a good look.
Well / said, III swear that's a girl
He laughed at me-. Then he studied the
finally he offered to bet me that it WAS a man. I
took the bet and told him I'd show him. | got
up and walked over to the table. lifted my hat
and asked their pardon for speaking, but said
that we were all Americans, and | wondered II
we could not take our coffee together. They were
cordial, and asked us to come to their table.
which we did. sat down by the young man
and began taking To him. Almost immcdi-
ately. he said In a low tone:
"'You have recognized me. ! knew you at
once, and j saw that you knew me-
We'll. wasn't prepared for this. but ]
wasn't going to show that | was pnzzlrd. 80 |
took the dilemma by the horns and by judicious
questions loon made out who she was and all
about 1t. She was the daughter of a we'll known
Washington family, and was in the habit Of
/ nnIfInu IN man l'n IA nII Fnlnu "a hnII IN Fla
with perfect freedom. She had formed the nc
Quaintance of the other two girls, art students,
and had been going around with them II good
deal. showing them the sights OF Paris. And
the s%trangest thing Vt it. all was that those girls
never once suspected that she was not n man.
OF course. ! impiored her never to adopt the
disguise again, hut | don't know whether she
fnlln,vaJ N a. nd vipn Shn uaapaI : think it