Daily Kennebec journal., 1901-12-20
a NJ w WITEDl Il A SOIL.

one I've just put him on a ira in a nd sent
him back to toTunkhannock Centre. Idon't
| mean 'so,llIess' N any sense. eNcept ihe
literal one-human being without 4
soul. | don't apply t to nv uncle
because he is stingy oi miselly or Innan
Or anything ike that hccnusc Ia. isn't
ana there nothing hes got that
want, anyhow; ! simply niear that he
was born, and has come right along
through life. without the thing known
as 4 soul. This was his first visit to
W ashinSton. 1t was up to me to take
MN around the city and show him the
sights | was glad to do this. |
regard Washington as the lorliest city
on earth. and | was ticllled to have Il
chance to show il off to a relative
VINO never seen il before. | pictured
the way his eyes would stick out over
the SURPRISING beauty and grandeur OF
some OF our show points. and ! worked
up quite Il proprietary interest in the
layout. took three days off for the
purpose of guiding my uncle about. ana
| was prepared to listen to super
latives from him during the entire
three days.
We'll, I hadn't been showing him
certaincd that | had my charts mixed.
Washington didn't make even little bit
of hit with him. / wanted to grad
| ually lead him up to fine climaxes of
enthusiasm on his part. and so | first
took him through the patent office.
thought that the exhibition of this
country's swift progress III inventive
ingenuity would let him III easy. He
4, h.,.
took him through the model room. |
yaWned behind his hand and looked
sleepy. Then | whirled him in an
automobile to the National Museum |
Inquired that the strange and wonder
iul things shown in this layout would
wake him up. but WAS mistaken
again. He passed from case to ease
of exhibits with scarcely a word. and
If | hadn't known different I'd have
come away from the National Museum
thinking that the outfit wasn't any
thing TO brag over. after all.
! From there | had him fooled in the
automobile to the Washington monu-
ment. and We Went to the top | was
/ confident that this mighty, massive
| pile. clear-cut against the turquoise
sky etc. would raralyZe a man from
| Tunkhannock Centre who'd never seen
II before. and l calculated that the
sublime view from the top Of it would
+, just about take away his breath. But
nix. it never feazed him. He didn't
even say that it was tol'able. on the
contrary, he looked bored.
Il was still trying TO figure out this
hlaSe manner of the country Individual
when | concluded 70 wheel him up to
! the capitol To see if that noble pile
would get Il word If commendation
out OF him. Took him all through the
| building. from the crypt to the dome
had the guide point ON all the historic
nools and talked myself hoarSe en-
| deaVoring 70 present the thing tu him
in an eloquent light All he gave me
was the bored 'Ch-huh. He tidgeted
around so that | could see that he
would rather be SomeW here else
was determined. if possible. however.
to screw at least a word or 50 of praise
out Of him over the beauties Of the
Capitol ana 50 | persisted in pointing
out the noble interior and exterior
features Of the ediiice with all uf the
enthusia SIN at my command. He only
regarded me stolidly. as if marveline
over !he state Of mind Of anybody
who could take delight in such a taW-
dry affair as the United States Capitol
building.
" However, said | To myself. just
wait till | take him over to the library.
He may not warm up over the capitol
or the monument or any little things
like those but Ill bet he'll 60 right W
in the air and make Rube show Gf
himself and me when we set foot
within the library.
Fact is / felt quite, a heap Of antici-
patory triumph over the gappy way |
knew he would exhibit when | got him
over to the sumptuOus library build
ing.
ON our way over there | called his
attention to the fine. impressive sum
| plicity Of the exterior Of the library
building. He only gIuntcd in reply.
This disappointed m" triro. but
knew that when he got inside he'd bc
! elevated i'm spit" of himSel: over the
| grandeur IF III" entrance The scene
! that bursts upon the vicW as Won enter
the Congressional Library is enough
| take il, to give almost any normal
human being Il Sulp-thatis tosay. any
normal human being with 2 soul,
! which | repeat. most decidedly and un-
! cquivocally. that my uncle has not.
I H. stepped into the Library Of Con
Grees with me. ana he glanced around
, him as if he We're in the kitchen Of his
plant in Tunkhannock Centre. II
didn't soften him up or mellow him a
little teenchy bit. paraded him
through the surerhly decorated cor
/ ridOrS.
Glorious. ch? said !. with difficult
| ty restraining the heat that was
| mounting beneath my collar.
| " 'Uh- hum he replied
Beautiful color scheme that. CHI |
| said |, pointing to the famous peacock !
girl on the wall.
'Uh-huh, said he.
There's a room for more than |
| 100000 volumes in this library, said |, |
seeing that mere beauty didn't i'm |
| press him and thinking that perhaps |
| big round numbers would rouse him.
Z" 'Um.' answered this soulless uncle |
| of mine