The Washington weekly post. (Washington, D.C.) 1878-1916, 1900-10-16
Mr.. BOwSsR'S TRIBuLATl0nS.
tie Does n Bit Of Fall Hease-cleanine
While Mrs Haw ser IL Away.

WIS DpNSct Ad4 %Dnt "
In the country for few days for
change OF air. and Mr.. Bowser and the
family cat had been left at home to run
the house and look out for things. Be-
! fore leaving she extracted solemn prom
Use from him that he would not disturb
things while she was absent. bit on the
evening before she was expected home,
and while he sat Just outside the door
| in the back yard, a cigar in his mouth
and the cat seated on another chair be-
side him. a sudden feeling of pity for
! Mrs Bowser came over him. When she
returned from her vacation. she would
| have to go right to work at fall house
! cleaning. and by the time she mad finish
I ed all the benefits OF the country air
would be dissipated.
by George. but I'll go al It tomorrow
morning. exclaimed Mr.. Bowser as he
! recalled that business was a little dull
/ and he could spare a gay or two from
the Office. Yes, I'll pitch In right after
/ breakfast and knock the socks of'n this
I house-cleaning business In lessn forty
Z eight hours That little wife Of mine
shan't come home to break her back
/ hunting the moths and dust out Of this
/ house"
Thare was a sound OF gurgiing and
! chuckling close at hand. and he turned
I to look at the cat. II was she, but she
/ put on such an innocent expression that
| he laid the chueklirg 10 boy on the
other side of the fence. He went TO bed
early to get a good start in the morn
! ing. He was alone in the house, and as
| he slept he dreamed that a big cat sat
on his breast and grinned into his face.
! At s o'clock next morning he had coat,
vest. collar and tie of and vas ready
| for the fray. The first thing 10 be done,
as he fgured II. was to rush all the par
Tor furniture into the back yard and give
| him some room 10 spread himself. He
/ had decided that the woodwork ought to
| he gone over with a light coat OF paint,
/ and after getting the furniture out ne
| went looking around for old paint cans.
/ lie had painted the veranda and the flow
erpots in the spring. ard he found some
| Of the mixture left. II " as a tender pink.
which would have looked too lovely for
anything on the cheeks Of a bride, but 1t
needed thinning down. He knew that
practical painters never used water, vine
! gar cold tea, or coffee to thin out paint,
but hia knowledge stopped short there. Il
( was when his eye rested on the kerosene
| car that he solved the puzzle.
! When the paint had been duly repaired
| for use. a little oil was 2dded from the
sewing machine can to give il gloss, an
Mr. BoWser went 10 work. II takes some
men years to become an artist with the
/ brush. II didn't take him over ten min
utes. The peach blown color not only
stood out over the white groundwork. but
/ the oil brought out a real bloom on the
peaches. AS he stood back and surveyed
/ his first door he could almost imagine that
/ he saw rare ripe peaches hanging to trees
out in the country. The odor wasn't ex-
sctly agreeable. but he decided TO throw
that in free gratis. 1t was a job tina.
would have taken an average painter
/ full day, with his going back 10 the shop
/ for putty, sandpaper, and around the cor
ner for beer. but at noon MIR. Bowser
stood in the middle of the room and ran
out his tongue and looked around and saw
that his work was finished In addition
to the bloom on the peachblow color. the
oil had brought out thousands of bubbles,
but he did not regard them as drawbacks
On the contrary, he rather prided himself
on having struck something new in the
line of high art painting.
Mrs. Bowser had complained of moths
Yes. he remembered that she had been
lighting moths fer years. and that il
had been hard work TO keep them down
Whether she had used the ak, the crow
bar. or hot water he could not remember
but she had slaughtered them without
pity and left their corpses unburied. Be
fore he went out TO a restaurant for his
lunch he made hunt for moths, and his
search was ably seconded by the cat IL
was the cat who finally found one bur-
rowed in a dark corner, and Mr.. Bowssr's
resolution WIS taken. The moths or the
carpets or something must be exterminat-
ed. He didn't go to a drug store when
he went out and ask for a remedy. Re
lieving that a walter ia a restaurant
ought to know all about moths he con-
fided his troubles 10 the man and was
answered:
YES. sir. | can tell you what TO do,
I've known oil about moths ever since
was knee high 10 Tom Thumb. You want
TO sprinkle that carpet with a compound
made of water lime. and kerosene. Make
up about six gallons of it and don't be
stiney about putting it on; the idea is 10
kill the moths all at once and have no
long drawn out suffering around the
house"
Mr.. Bowser got the ingredients and
made a six-gallon crock full and then,
taking a flower sprinkler. he went over
the carpet and started every moth on the
fly out of the Tenth ward. After the eat
had walked across the carpet once she
also started. and il was late in the after
noon before she returned with sore feet
and a reproachful look. When the sprink-
ling had been finished ana Just as the
back pariOr was to be attacked. tramp
rang the dOor6ell and asked for some
thing to eat Mr.. Bowser felt complacen,
and liberal hearted. In place OF food he
gave the man a dime. and Their said
Il don't claim 10 be a professional! ar
list. but I've just finished a little Job here
I'd like you TO look at In travelling
around you must see more or less artictic
work"
Il do sir" replied the tramp az he fol-
lowed him into the parlor and looked al
the freshly painted woodwork. This Il
what / calls a beauty. sir. a real beauty.
You've used kerosene and oh with the
paint, and the neighbors viii all be jeal-
Gus OF you. You should have been an ar
list. sir"
There was a tinge Of sarcasm In his
tones, but Mr.. Bowser added another dimg
and bowed him out. II was now noticed
I that The blue and red IN the Garnet pczau
investigate The furniture OF the 7Ia-T
room was rushed Into the back yard. and
the work OF putting on the peachbl0w be-
gan.
Mr.. BOHser had been paindng and ad-
miring for an hour when he heard the
dull rumble OF thunder. His artistic soul
vas nos disturbed by Il. nor did he heed
the rain which presently began 10 pour
down and continued for two hours. When
he had finished his painting. he made an
other mixture OF moth killer and drenehed
the carpet 81 the room as wei. and be
chuckied with salts action a. he imagined
the mob Of moths fleeing with terror Ike
the Boxers before the sliied army. Tie
had just gone through and was conten.
plating nis work with the satisfaction Of
I a good husband when Mrs. BOgser aFriy-
ed snd walked IN on him
Welcome home. Try dear" he said as
he extended his panty arms.