Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-05-02

franchise. He was director In everything.
He was fine gentleman of the old school.
with white side whiskers and very portly
presence.
Mrs. Brown had some Of John P.'s bust
ness instincts-she had helped him make
his money She understood the first princi-
pies OF advertising. She kept her eyes
open and she took quick note OF what the
very SWEETEST of the crowd wore and bought
and did-and she followed in their fooT
steps But she went them just shade
better just enough to be noticeable. Still,
she was Mrs. John p. Brown, and there
were limitations.
Her strong point was her turnout-it was
the most expensive one in the place. She
had the finest pair of horses rugged UP In
the finest set of harness and drawing be-
hind them the finest carriage. This turn
out was always in commission. II she de-
sired to go around the corner she stepped
into the carriage. If it was necessary for
her to go downtown to the department
stores. to her butchers, grocers anywhere
she took her carriage. For months she did
not enter a trolley car-that to her was the
essence OF all that was common.
But Mrs. John p Brown reckoned with
out her host Horses and footmen and
coachmen. no matter how much they cost.
are mere flesh and blood. And though her
horses didn't kick, her coachman and her
footman did. She was forced to do what
everybody else does-use her horses and
her carriage just to the extent permitted
by her servants, and no more. And so she
was driven to the trolley cars, and found
that a fair proportion OF the trolley pa
irons belonged to the elite.
On the first day that she descended from
her lofty perch and began once more to
patronize the vulgar street cars she stepped
ma jestically to the corner of the street and
hailed the first one that came along. She
was not the only one who hailed the car.
One of the society bellies of the place did
the same thing at the same corner. Mrs.
J. Pendleton Brown knew this young lady,
and started in to exhibit evidence of that
fact. But the young lady fixed her glance
upon an invisible point some few feet
higher than Mrs. John P.'s hat, and COM
pletely and Enthusiastically ignored her.
The car approached and stopped. And
what was Mrs J. Pendleton's establishment
to note that this same young lady. who
had refused to speak to her-that this
young lady grasped the conductor of the
car by the hand and whispered in his ear.
And what she whispered sounded like:
'Howdy. Oughty-two!' Mrs. Brown was
startled out of her seven senses.
The Consolidated had many good-looking
conductors on it's line. But none was so
street line. He was tall and boyish looking,
and he looked at everybody and everybody
looked at him. The girls did anyway, and
so did Mrs. ]. Pendleton Brown-but her
chances were fraught with indignation. The
girl who had first made overtures to this
conductor not the only one. On sub
sequent trips Mrs. Brown closely watched
events and found that scores of well-dress-
ed fashionable girls boarded this car-wait-
ed for 1t, probably-and fiirted desperately
with Number 1902. And he returned the
compliment. He paid no attention what
ever TO the more ordinary class of people.
lie aimed high. And whenever a girl be-
longing to the class that Mrs. B. had
striven hard to enter-whenever such a girl
took her place inside the car, the young
conductor. without a blush upon his face,
md n hat 1iay n
his nature, heightened out the process OF
giving and receiving change, with bandi-
mage and slang
The conductor must have been a new
one, for he seemed to be quite young. His
uniform was fresh and new. and the num-
Der on his cap was high-l9O2. 1t did not
seem possible that the Consolidated had
1902 conductors But Mrs Brown as
eumed that the company started its num-
bers at thousand a fifteen hundred-as
some men do their check books-to make a
big impression.
1t Is difficult to determine just what made
Mrs. j. P. SO indignant. 1t may have been
her innate sense of the proprieties or 1t
wouldn't nod their heads to her would
shake hands with a conductor. Whatever
IL was, she was indignant. and she wrote
a letter to the Consolidateds manager.
complaining OF the demeanor of Number
1902. She received a polite note, couched
In official phrases. thanking her and prom
Using 10 correct the frregularity- Therefore.
Number 1902 behaved himself. as a good
conductor should. But the girls did not
and u was hardly Mrs. J. P.'s province to
complain OF them.
Summer came-and with 1t the summer
resorts. John P. acting under the instruc-
tion or his wife, began the erection of a
handsome cottage at the shore. Pending Its
completion Mrs. Brown took UP her quar-
tiers a the SWEETEST hosiery on the beach.
A few of the exclusive set were there. too,