Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-08-19
Tells Why It is So Hard to Give Up
Government Job.
UNCLE sam NEVER MISSES PAY DAY
Philosophic Musing on a Mighty
Clear Basis.
STORY OF TWO RESIG ATOMS

|
the little lingering spots of ink between his
| middle and forefingers. Il am an M. D. 1
| passed pretty high an NJ. D. fifteen years
| ago right here in Washington. am getting
on toward forty. I work at desk for the
| government, and I get $1,000 per annum.
| I'm conspicuous type of the Washington
| sundowner, and yet l don't take the alleys
and side streets for that reason. I'm not
particularly ashamed of myself L nave
! lots of companion sundowners. None OF us
| seeks to avoid letting anybody and every
| body lat wants to find out know that we
| each have bit of parchment that author
| ICES us to practice one or other of the pro-
fessions. l don't call that anything to
grieye over. We're called landowners be-
cause, Notwithstanding the fact that we re
| in possession of these bits of parchment,
| we go right on working for the government
| There's a mistaken impression that most
| of us practice professions after 4
| o'clock when we pull the lids down on our
| government desks, and that's why were
| contemptuously referred to as sundown-
ers. The name worries some of the younger
sundowners, and it used to bother me bit,
/ but it doesn't any more. I've been sun
| downer too long. I've got used to it.
Am l always going TO be a sundoWner!
Well, III tell you, son, that nara one.
| I'm still making up my mind. That par
amount characteristic OF US sundowners-
| we go right on, year in and year out, max
| ing up our minds. The trouble with US sun
| downers in the government departments Is
that we're almighty acknowledgements
| ly too comfortable to listen to the syren
voice of ambition. We do listen to that
voice, though, by fits and starts, spasmodi-
cally, and when we're passing through
these periods we waste whole lot OF SLOW
| music sympathy over ourselves on account
of our wasted lives, blasted hopes,
| bighted Dreams and all that sort of
thing. We become 50 chesty over the con-
temptation of the way We are permitting
our requirements, not to say our genius, To
go to seed, that numbers of US have been
known to affirm, generally late at night, in
conversation over it all among ourselves
with tobacco accompaniment, that We were
going to resign our government jobs the
first thing in the morning, and strike out
into the great, WIDE mysterious world. Oh,
yes, lots of have done that frequently.
Then we'd wake up in the morning, eat
good breakfasts, read the morning papers
until $40, jump on street cars and ride
through beautiful, fragrant streets to our
offices, and just work right along until 4
o'clock, with never a thought on earth OF
haughtiy asking for our passports and the
pay coming to US. | remember that during
the year 1893 | had worked myself up to
| the resigning point quite fifteen times But,
every time, the contemplation of the game
ahead, of the possibly craggy road. of the
don't mind confessing it-hard work
ahead, of the inevitable lack of comfort
perhaps for a long time, of the possible
fiZzle-these things, put alongside the calm,
PEACEFUL Qe;iG-eaSy existence IndI Uncle
Samuel permits me to lead here lassoed me
every time when the quitting fever was
strong upon me.
Takes Nerve to Do 1t.
My boy, it's a hard thing, NJ. D. no
NJ. D., lawyer or no lawyer, to chuck up
good government job. It's thing to test
a mans nerve, especially a man who
has mad it pretty easy all of his life. I've
known slathers of young men and middle
aged men to do it. Some of them succeed
ed and come along here every year wearing
diamonds and Growing over me; but the
considerable majority applied for renstate-
ment You see, this plant that Uncle Sam
runs here in Washington is what you
might call an air-tight, copper plated cinch;
it's the snuggest of all harbors. In
Gustrial cyclones and hard times may
sweep over the land, driving men of mod
crate ability to desperation, but this little
old Washington outfit Of Uncle Sans never
feel much as a zephyr of the storm.
Panic no panic, on the list and 10Th of
the month the man or woman who is root
ed over by one of Uncle Sans big, gloomy
buildings. as the people who sympathize
with US call them, just walks to the dis
bursting clerk and gets his or her new.
crisp bills his or her bright shiny yell
low coin. That's of the things that
gives the landowners pause. It's the old,
old proposition A bird in the hand, etc.
We here in Washington, sheltered from
the distress and misery that stalks abroad
III the Eiiu at lHttTSdlS, TSdI ol tIicSe
things and just doff our bonrets to the sta
bility and the pGnctuality of Uncle sam.
To break loose voluntarily from such a
noorng and to put out on the tenpestu-
Gus sea and mix it Up with men just as
well fitted for navigation i'll heavy waters
as is the thing that causes us sun
Gowners to scratch our heads and think 1t
over.
Others Want the Places.
Another thing that gives Us material
uron which to ponder is the fact that the
applications of slews of seemi ngly quite
talented doctors and lawyers from other
cities-and a great majority of sun
Gowners in the departments here . ,e doc
tors and lawyers-are pretty constantly on
file for Jobs in the government service. The
question that we ask ourselves in con-
sidering this is pretty natural: If these fell
lows apparently well-equipped with the
very professions of which we think we have
a pretty capable mastery can't make it
stick 'on the outside as we are accus-
toned to calling the demesnes that lie I'M
protected by the government mantle what
chance have got? Isn't it reasonable to
suppose that if these professional men from
all over the country, who pull wires and
cool their heels il corridors with their
caps IN their hands, as the saying runs,
could make success of it with their SHIN
g.es tackled up. they wouldn't be exhaust
ing every effort to break into the very haV-
en- from which we sundoWners nave reSu-
larly recurring fits to break away? l
think so. There are scores of men whose
rames arc quite eminent in scientific circles
who are perpetually endeavorinS to project
themselves into moderately well-paying bill
lets in Uncle Sans scientific service. and
weeping tears that are none the less salty
because unseen on account of their failure.
II am perfectly familiar with all of the
arguments that people who don't precisely
know what they talking about employ
to arouse the ambition of us SundoWners.
It's better to be a big toad in small
puddle than a tadpole In a big puddle, is
one of the stock variety. Why, of course,
it's better. Any inlbeciie knows that. But
where is a sundoWner going to find a pud-
die that hasn't already got plenty of big
leads bossing things around in it? Once in
a while you hear or read pipe dream
about a Washington slindowner who has
taken map of the United States. spread II
out on a table, closed his eyes, and stuck
a pin into any cid spot that his hand first
guided the pin to, and then abandoned his
government job and gone out to that place
ard located 1t is to laugh. 1t is to laugh over
the whole toad and puddle proposition
Is it exactly reasonable to imagine that we
in The government departments of Wash
ington. who have studied and got diplomas
in some profession, are deucedly Clever
that we could catapult ourselves out to
some new and rising town., the toad
and puddle people put It, and Immediately
proceed to be 1t, with a capital l. over all