Evening star., 1896-02-22
REMARKABLE RESEMBLANCE

Two estimable citizens of Washington
never meet without having hearty laugh
over an interchange of stories about how
each has been mistaken for the other since
their last meeting. These persons are Mr..
A. Howard Clark. custodian of American
relics in the National Museum, and a prom-
lnent member of the Sons of the Reyolu-
ton and the Society of Colonial Wars. and
Mr. L. o. Howard. en-: n:omologist of the De-
partment of Agriculture.
The Star man met, as he supposed, Mr.
Clark in the street the other day and asked
him If he would send him application
blanks for the Sons of the Revolution
whereupon the supposed Mr.. Clark grinned
amiably and said that he didn't belong to
the organization, and then the whole story
came out.
Why" said Mr.. Howard, "Clark is a
much handsomer man than i am, and the
fact that we are SO constantly taken for
each other shows that myopia must be
enormously on the increase here in Wash
ington. People are all the time stopping
Clark and asking him about bugs, when he
hardly knows a bug from Il hen, and
scarcely week passes without some dis
misunderstanding stranger holding pleas
antly TO me and saying: How do you do
Mr.. Clark My own brother, the last time
he was in Washington, chased Clark a half
block and only found out his mistake
after he had spoken to him. l thank my
lucky stars every day that he is such an
eminently respectable individual for just
imagine the scrapes he might get me into
if he was a scamp! AS it Is, We have a
great deal Of fun over it.
"One night at the Cosmos Club we'll
known lawyer greeted me as Mr.. Clark.
1 protested that 1 was Howard. and not
Clark; whereupon he looked at me closely
and said that the resemblance "as the
most striking one he had ever seen. Then
n11 hfr,, hot hnx bod 'lats sL
while his recollection of my face was
fresh, he had only to step into the other
room, as 1 had seen Clark there q few
moments before. Another man spoke to
him just at that moment, and l passed into
the next room to tell Clark about it; but,
unfortunately, he was not there. While
was looking around for him, in came the
lawyer, and walking up to me greeted me
as Clark. and told me how he had met
Howard in the next room and mistaken
him for me. But he said. now that 1
look at you carefully, Mr. Clark. l am as
tonished that l could ever have been de-
cGfved.' "
Following up this interesting matter, the
> reporter called upon Nh. Clark at the Smith
sonian Institution, and asked for his side
of the story. Mr.. Clark was equally com-
plimentary to Mr.. Howard, and it occurred
to The Star man that there was really
sc omething to admire in the ingenious man
ner In which each praised the others per-
sOnal appearance.
MY middle name is Howard" said Mr.
Clark. ''and my intimate friends have al
ways called me by that name. When / first
came to Washington, ten years or SO ago.,
imagine my establishment to find that had
very large circle of friends. none of
whom 1 had ever seen before in my life,
and who were SO intimate with me as to
call me Howard, old mani 1t was some
time before it dawned on my mind that
had double, and when, after a few
months, l met Mr.. Howard, although l
could see no striking resemblance myself. 1
was pleased to find that l was supposed to
look like so presentabie an individual.
Yes, we do get a good deal of fun cut
OF the mistakes which occur, but when a
man takes me aside at a public reception
and asks me, soto voce, what will kill
fleas. and when a horny-handed Maryland
farmer stops me on the street to ask me
about the worms which are eating his cab
bages. and when small boy in a street car
lugs box out of his pocket and shows me
a lot OF black beetles, then l begin to wish
that Howard was interested in some other
branch of science. When, however, How
ards lady friends smile sweetly on me on
the street taS l have no doubt mine do to
him also), then ! realize that there are posi-
tive advantages in this unusual and unac-
countable likeness