Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-09-22
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american 1aSS are very SSdiSo ~ -e--N'
parts of Europe. and strange as 1t may
eppear American consuls, vice consuls ana
Diplomatic commercial agents do not al
ways have Them remarked a prominent
citizen who recently returned from sew
eraI years tour abroad TO Star reporter
'I happened to be in small place in Ger
MANY ON the last Fourth of July he con-
tinued, land with three other Americans
we got M a feast in a small way to cele-
brate the glorious Fourth. Much of our
pleasure was in erfered with by the 1act
that we could not get an American flag,
though we endeavored to get one from
several vice consuls. They admitted that
thev did not have any and had never had,
though some of them had represented TINS
country for a number of years Inc VICE
consuls were natives of the places Where
they held their offices. On the fourth Oh
JuIv the previous wear | was in Egypt, and
| found that some of our commercial agents
In that country not only did not nave an
American flag but in two instances admit
ted that they had never seen one, though
they had pictures of them. / was particu-
larry pleased with the way Mr. A IT, BY
ington a Connecticut newspaper man, well
known in this city, who is the American
consul at Naples, Italy, was prepared IN
the way of flags He not only had hand
some large flag floating over the consulate,
but he had smaller one in each room, ana
kept on hand a full supply to loan out TO
Americans who desired them for special
occasions His rule Is also to present to
every American who visits his office pref
ty little metallic flag to wear in the but
tonhole This appears small in itself, but l
assure You it is about the incest thing That
happened me while l was abroad. l am
sure all other Americans also appreciate 1t.
Visitors to Naples are, of course, very nu-
merous and Mr.. ByingtOn has to deal out
a very large number of his buttonhole
hint bar f1il 70 do CO a o.
suit these Byington flags. as they are call
ed. all over Europe and are the
means of Americans forming pleasant ac-
quaintances for Mr.. Byington never fails
to remind them that all who receive them
from him are first-class people and he
therefore indorses each one to the others.
Decorations count considerably in Europe,
and American who is even semi-official-
ly decorated with a miniature American
flag is particularly proud
x X
THE echoes of the Galveston flood are
distinguishable in many parts of the south
Just now" explained a commercial traveller
to Star reporter and they are very
painful. l ran across a case a few days
since in Virginia which was particularly
sad. l had some business in mountain
town where there is girls college, the
students coming from various parts of the
south. On the Sunday night of the flood
there arrived at this school three girls. sis
tiers. from Galveston The following day
rewS came of the flood, and in couple of
days details. telling them that their father
mother, two uncles and two aunts, and a
number of cousins, seventeen in all. had
been drowned, and the two girls We're sud
denly thrown upon the world without one
living relative. Even If this not horri-
BILE enough. on the following day news
reached them that their home had been
washed away and everything in connection
with II destroyed. and that the girls who
the day they left Galveston for the school
We're exceedingly we'll provided for far
as a home was concerned, We're absolutely
paupers on the world The land on which
their home and farm was located was SO
washed away that 1t is practically. value
less being only couple of feet above tide
water. and liable to overflow in even the
hghtest storms blowing in from the gulf
y x
THE bOotjack, as far as cities are con-
cerned. has gone to the place where the old
fashioned shoe scraper reposes," volun-
teered a shoe dealer to a Star reporter.
land viii never return. Time was when
no house was considered furnished unless
there was a mud scraper fixed at the door
step portico. and examples of this can be
seen at many of the very old houses
throughout the city, and particularly in
Georgetown For a number Of years. the
use for them having disappeared, the
scraper no longer used and the iron
foundres destroyed their patterns of them.
The boOtjack went on the same errand a
few years later. when boots were no longer
worn, though many of them are sleeping in
old garrets and attics. for some people do
not have the heart to destroy these re-
minders Of the past. / had an order for a
bootjack a few days ago from an old gen.
tleman who came up from southern Mary
land a visit and who. when night
reached him. had no way to pull off his
boots. This was the first reminder | had
had of bootjacks for some years. OF course,
l could not supply him. / learn from a rep
resentatiye of a shoe concern that through
out the south and southwest and in other
farming sections of the country the demand
FOR boots is still quite extensive. and that
the sale of bootjacks is much more frequent
than city people suppose"
There were little red SIreakS in her face
and blaze in her eyes as she came into
the country telegraph office, not thousand
miles from Washington.
Il want 10 telegraph to my husband" she
said with a snap of her large and shapely
Jaws.
Yes madame" responded the operator,
handing her some blanks.
How much VIII 1t be?' she inquired.
II don't know. madame" replied the op-