Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-05-07

speaking of fat men," said hotel clerk
to a Star man yesterday, 1.-THE two latest
men / ever knew were fellow-townsmen of
mine when 1 was living in West Slabbing-
ton. Ark.
They certainly were big men, and they
,were-no fun intended-the stoutest of
friends They never met without shaking
hands II they could find medium of COM
munication; they couldn't shake without
one
what they used to do was to get man
of reasonable thinness to stand between
them and extend his arms and one of the big
men would take one of the intermediary's
hands and the other the other one. and thus
they'd shake by proxy.
''Of course the whole town knew of this
and everybody humored the big men. HUI
nored them? More than that. Everybody
that was eligible used to feel it his duty to
helm these two great friends to shake hands.
More than once 7 have seen q man who
was hurryinR into the post office on Main
street stop short on the steps when he saw
the big men approaching each other and
turn hack and go and stand between them
and raise his arms like two extended wings.
with hands far outstretched Tor the Two
friends to erasr. That was their hand
shake and this duty to his felowmen per-
formed the man who had stood between
them would hurry I'm the post office stems
onca more and this time go in and get his
mail.
1T was common thing for the men of
the town thus to serve the two bulky
friends. and to do them this service came,
in fact to he sort of test of good citizen
shin or at least of the qualities that COM
rerd n man most to his fellow-citiZens.
He was thought to be rather churlish fet-
love and outside the pale of the best people
who was too thoughtless or too selfish TO
han eli
two men shake hands.
''Out of this observance of a common Gus
tom. arising naturally enough from the de-
Law involved in 1t. some curious experiences
GAME to Individual observers. I remember
we'll the case of a man whose great aunt
was sick In a town just over the line in
Missouri.
This man was hurrying to catch train
and there were only two trains day
when he saw the two friends coming to-
gether. His duty was plain. ana ne was a
man of scrupulous punctilousness There
was nothing for him to do but to stop.
which he did. waiting with no outward
trace of his inward feeling. while the two
men exchanged their usual friendly greet
Ing.
..IIe missed his train this man did and
legacy that he otherwise would have got:
for his great aunt was dead when ne did
get there. and by reason OF his delay she
had cut him out of her Will. But on the
other hand
This same man not month later was
stopped again in the same manner, ana
again he halted without moments nest
tation Rut the train he missed this time
was wrecked with loss of life that has
made this accident tradition in that part
of the country. So, while in the one in
stance his politeness had cost him legacy.
In the other. in every probability, 1t had
saved him his life.
and have no doubt whatever that the
lesson of thoughtfulness, courtesy and self
denial taught by the conduct of all these
considerable Intermediates was of benefit
to the whole community
!. x x
Some of the young doctors in local hos
pital are having the laugh at the expense
of a recent recruit who was on house
watch the other night and was awakened
from doze to attend a hurry call In the
reception ROOM He found there a stout.
f1orid-faced woman with her hands clasped
across her stomach as though in pain and
tears coursing down her cheeks. But 1t
was obviously not an emergency case, and
the young doctor was annoyed
Yours is very simple ailment,' he said
TO the woman. land could have been
treated at home. You should have waited
until the morning and not come around
here this hour of the night"
The woman looked at him pityingly.
"Ah gwan" she retorted. There's nathin'
the matter with me. It's me man Jim
that's hurt. an he's outside in the wagon"
Mine men out of ten when you hand
them cigar will roll 1t tenderly between
the fingers and smell ii knowingly before
attempting to smoke it, said an avenue ci-
gar raan today. AFTER putting on it min
ute two. If you ask his opinion he will
tell you all about the cigar, its make.
grade and price, and inform you in a conti-
Dental way that he knows all about to-
b&cco. and cigars in particular In ninety
rine cases out of one hundred his informa
ton will be wrong, as only the tobacco ex-
pert can quickly judge of the intrinsic mer-
its OF a cigar, and frequently he will be at
fault.
For commercial purposes all cigars are
divided into three grades of tobacco. known
as dark, medium and light. but there are
forty or fifty shades, which are grouped
under five subheadiEgs.
The grade of tobacco used in a cigar has
nothing whatsoever to do with its size. and
there is practically no limit to the number
of sizes Any cigar manufacturer may
bring out cigar of special size and give
1t whatever name he pleases. The best
known and most frequently used sizes,
however. in the cigar trade are the CON
chas. which are divided into bouquet
and 'espc cial,'' "reg9lia bouquet and