The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-03-20

never have any sense when IN talking over
the phone, and just blunder into anything.
When 1 get that receiver up to my ear it
crowds all my ideas out of my head
me, too" assented Polly, ungrammatical-
ly but sympathetic. Il can wriggle out of
anything L don't want to do in a note or in
a face-to-face conversation so gently that
the asker doesn't dream but that I'm heart
broken that have to refuse. But when I'm
talking over the telephone 1 will accept any
| thing and everything unless L have genu-
inc previous engagement. 1 think the rea-
son is that telephone silence is so CHASTITY
| that l will say anything rather than let one
occur, and you know you do have to pause
a second or two to make up suitable lie.
So 1 always rush right in and say yes be-
cause l don't dare to take that second to
think up some excuse to go with my no.
Telephones are funny things, any way.
You'd think that common they are
everybody would be so used to them by this
time that they wouldn't do fool things with
them and at them. but they're not. The
other morning the telephone bell rang when
there was nobody near it but mother. Now.
mother uses the phone fifteen or twenty
times a day-its getting to be quite a fad
knew all there was to know about it, but
she doesn't always. 1 heard her go to the
| phone and say 'Hello-hello' knew that il
| must be the morning test call. and lots of
! times the operator can't answer at once, so
| | wasn't surprised when | heard mother re-
! peat her hello several times. In second or
/ two the bell rang again and / heard mother
| say 'Hello-hello in sharp impatient tone.
Then she called up to me. That girl won't
| answer me at all Well give her a minute
| or two L called back. She's probably
making lot of calls at once A third time
| the bell rang sharply and imperatively and
| mother responded, and this time there was
wrath in her tone. So l skipped downstairs
| to see what / could do with the phone.
| There stood mother in the hall clinging to
| the edges of the telephone shelf with both
hands, her mouth close to the transmitter.
| Here 1 stand and say hello right into this
| thing, and that girl never answers me al
| ALL. she sputtered. l looked at her hands
| Just like that?' l said. We'll, why don't
| you take down the receiver And even
mother. mad as she was wilted.
| well, / know one just as bad on Aunt
Marietta" said Julietta. Aunt Marietta
| for all she lives in town, hasn't telephone,
| and has great awe OF the things. She
spent few days with us last summer, and
| one day Uncle Jim called her up from down
| town, and mother answered the phone
! Aunt Marietta was upstairs, so mother set
| the receiver down on the table beneath the
| phone and went up to call her. 1t hap
pened that mother didn't go down again all
| afternoon, and nobody else was near the
! phone. and when father came in he hap
pened to hear curious rafting in the hall.
| so he went to the phone. He found the re-
| ceiver on the table. and when he picked il
| up and answered the telephone operator
| gave him the dreadfulest rating for keep
| ing the receiver down all afternoon. OF
| course, father asked mother how it hap
| pened, and mother carried the news &c
Aunt Marietta. Why, you shouldn't have
| left the receiver on the table she said
| That should be hung up, you know, when
| you are through talking. Aunt Marietta
| f1ared up at once. Well put ii back just
| exactly where L found it, anyway, she said
| Indignantly
There is a moral in the tale told by one
Indianapolis woman of her small son which
| he who runs may read if he doesn't run toe
| fast. The Indianapolis woman spends the
greater part of the summer at the sea-
shore, where her cottage, with all the COM
forts of home. makes summer life delight
Son naturally spends his summers there
| too, and as he has an inclination to wander
| whenever he can from his own fireside there
has been high fence built around the back
yard of the cottage, to which place he is
| restricted at times when older members OF
| the household are too busy to take him or
| the beach. One morning mother sat at hel
| window upstairs overlooking the back yard
| where Johnny was digging away content
| eddy. Presently she saw him lay down his
spade and steal to the gate. which was Sc
curely fastened. He looked through the
palipgs for a moment or two, his eyes OIL
| a group of older boys far down the beach
| Then he went back to his spade and hi:
sand castle.
A quarter of an hour later mother saw
Johnny stop again. After a, glance at the
back door he scampered to the gate anC
unfastened it and set it slightly ajar Their,
to his digging. Thoroughly curious now
mother laid down her sewing and devoted
her whole attention to the maneuvers o.
the small boy. Presently, for the third
time, he went 10 the gate. and this time h,
set it wide open returning at once to hi.
sand pile, where for five or ten minutes h,
worked like a little beaver, whistling mer
rly all the time. Then all of sudden h,
gathered himself together and fast as hi
small fat legs and his hamperng kits would
let him. he flew out of the open gate ant
down the beach to join the "other fel
lows"
After Katy, hot and breathless, ha,
dragged him back to the confines of tn
fence and the now fastened gate, mothe
had little interview with him concerning
his sins.
what did you mean by going to the gait
three times and each time setting IL wide
| open, johnny" she asked
| Johnny regarded her with the wide eye
of childhood. How did you know that
did? he asked.
Because l was at the upstairs window
and saw you, Johnny" said mother
gravely.
did you see me ever time, mother? Well
now, mother. why couldn't you a-knocke'
on the window an helped a fellow"
And it's that knocking on the window
an helping a fellow that comes to me nov
every time | see somebody preparing TO d,
something that know he shouldn't do. an,
that / might keep him from doing If tool
the trouble to try" is mothers common
at the end of the story.
The girl with the dreamy eyes was dowl
| town shopping the other afternoon. Sum
mer gowns are the main subject of interes
at her house just now. and her shopping
was chiefly quest for ribbons to adorn tn
gowns. She went into one shop, and Their
purchased ten yards of bright red ribbon
an inch or so wide. When the package an
the change came back they were hande
over the counter by the clerk and the gin
| with the dreamy eyes dropped the chang
| into her wristbag and tucked the paper par
| eel of ribbon into the blouse front of he
shirtwaist In that easy way that girls wit
| dreamy eyes possess. Then she went
| another store 10 get some scarlet baby
| ribbon which she couldn't find at the frs
| store. The baby ribbon doesn't cost much
| and the dreamy-eyed girl figured up IL
/ price herself and handed over the exaC