Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-05-03
LESSON II MANNERS

Oh. how everybody on the car hated him!
And how glad-glad they all were when it
happened!
He belonged to the widely-diffused type
scientifically known as Juvenilius Squirtus,
and he looked the part all over. He was
piece of animated tapidity about nineteen
years of age. His countenance had about
as much expression in 1t as a porcelain
preserves jaE HeC was spiderishly built,
and his spider frame was ornamented with
the extreme exaggeration of the new-style
dinky sack suit. with fappy, ante-bellum
trousers and such outstanding flares to the
suddenly chopped-of coat that they looked
as II there might be whalebones in EN-.
His ram s-horn-rimmed soft hat was
tipped back on his tallowy head to reveal
the beauties of two lovely. wavy spit-locks
plastered down on his forehead.
There was just enough down his up
per lip to give it that hopeless, wood-ash
look.
But it wasn't essentially on account of
his looks that the other passengers on the
car-most of whom happened to be elderly
men and Women--hated him from the min
ute that he boarded the downtown avenue
car at Washington Circle. 1t was on &C.
count of the little performance that he pro-
ceeded to go through.
He pumped himself into the only vacant
seat between couple of mfddle-aged men,
dampened the ends of his right hand fingers
with his tongue and applied the fingers to
the splt-locRs, adjusted his crocheted four
n-hand with his left hand pulled down his
cuffs with great solicitude for their proper
showing, and then gazed around at the
other passengers with as much haughtiness
as was possible considering the Nervousness
of his countenance.
Then he had a sudden idea. He dug his
hand into the breast pocket of his suddenly
ending coat, and pulled out stack of let
vel oil Of 10
variety, and they were Of all tints-pale
blue, honest-and-truly blue, pink. lavender,
henotrope, pale green, cream-hued-the
whole repertoire of envelope colors used by
young women in their correspondence. All
the envelopes were addressed in feminine
chirography ,.as the passengers alongside of
and across the way from the Juvenilius
Squirtus couldn't help but see. for the
youth sorted them over as one would
whist hand, grinning complacently the
while.
Then he began to read the letters. He
picked one of the pale green ones out of the
stack, depositing the others in his lap,
opened it up wide so that all hands across
the way couldn't help but see the big super
scription at the flag end of the letter.
yours, as ever, Dottie" and holding it out
before him. began to peruse it with self
satisfied grin that was nothing short of
loathsome With his loose hand he kept
right on smoothing down the spit-locks.
He held the outspread letters at arms
passengers across the way, fascinated with
the hypnosis of hatred. couldn't help but
glance at the superscriptions-"Alw
your Agsie," Your sorrowful Susie"
Roberta and all that sort of rubbish, to
which young women who are not wise in
their day and generation give utterance in
their correspondence with members of the
genus Sauirrus.
1t happened that all of the men left the
car at the 18th street corner, and only wo-
men got on at that corner. There were so
many of them that they crowded the aisle,
but the young man did not leave off his
perusal of his correspondence. He leaned
back easllydin his seat and continued his
engaging performance. while the women
exchanged ,glances- with each other and
gaZed at him darkly,
Two more Passengers boarded the car at
7th street, Transferring from the South
Washingtonhcar Ode of them was a very
old and very little lady, with delicate, re-
fined face and snowy hair.
The other looked like a piano mover or
prize fighter He was rough-looking six
footer of tht 200-pound class. with black
sweater beneath hfsf sack coat He had
bulldog face, but a kindly eye and he
looked powerful enough to pick up a prize
heifer and hurl it into the next lot.
The youth with the tinted letters glanced
superciiousiy al him, as we'll as at the old
lady, and went on reading his letters. The
piano mover or prize fighter pushed a strap
within the reachr of the tottering old lady,
which she clutched as best she could before
the car started again. But when the car
started with:a jolt and the old lady almost
fell down the large individual in the sweater
reached over a vast paw and touched the
Juvenilius Squirtus on the shoulder.
Hey" he inquired, "wot's de matter wit
givn de OF lady a sit-down FIR her'n?"
The youth with the correspondence gazed
with great hauteur at the big man from
South Washington and nestled a little more
snugiy in his seat. When the car started
suddenly again at 9th street. once more
nearly throwing the old lady to the AISLE
the big man reached the same huge paw
over. got a firm clutch on the two lapels
of the youths coat. and before yanking
him ont of his seat, said to him:
"Egmont, it's you t read tn rest O. them
billy ducks some time when they amt no
trembly OF ladies a-tryin' t frame up
balancn' stunt in tn middle of jolt trap
You t. y'r peds!' and with a sudden yank
he pulled the youth out of the seat, scat
tering his letters all over the floor. The
youth picked up the letters, looking real
vindictive, but saying nothing and then he
hustled off the car, while the old lady sat
down, and the faces Of the other passen-
gers were wreathed in smiles