Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-08-11
OCTOBER IS THE TIME

The man with the cold, hard eye. the
sardonic smile and the air OF almost brutal
self-restraint was doing the talking
"Ye-eh," he said. "a good many Of the
folks of my acquaintance are now return
ing from their summer vacations. My Of
fee mates are streeling back from day to
day. They're all more or less tanned up;
most Of 'em are pretty well bit up by mos
quitoes. and the smell Of oil Of citronella
exudes from them like the whiftiness OF
gasoline following a procession OF buzz
buggies; several Of 'em are treating them
selves for more or less malignant cases OF
ivy poisoning; the usual proportion of 'em
have got skinned arms and legs from ly-
ing on the sand close to the verge Of the
whimpering sea: not few of 'em look as
IL they hadn't beel to bed any worth men
tioning during the entire time they were
away; and two or three Of them look so
rundown and seedy from their rest ex-
petitions that they ought to have about
two more weeks on to recuperate at home.
But, one and all, they do the best they
can to talk both Of my fms OF telling me
herd me OF into shadowy corners Of the
corridors and they nudge me against the
walls and they get themselves hectic and
purple in the face informing me OF what
a whole bushei Of fun they had on their
vacationizing trips.
There's no lodging or ducking them.
can't out and tell them that l don't care
been listening to all Of that kind Of south
breeze from returned vacationers for moro
years than woman has got buttons at
the back OF her peek-aIboo waist; that
their hOtly-panted narratives Of bully hours
by the soulful surge or the pellucid lake or
the complaining brook or the grooming river
don't interest or instruct or entertain me
any more than bulletin Issued by the bu-
~ nnyr, fpI, ftak tt,Atr
counts Of the swell queens with whom
they had more or less horrible fiirtations
sound like so much premature escaping or
superheated steam to me: that the delir-
iously happy .souses' that they got on,
without any. fear Of rubbernecks. during
their absence don't make me envious a lit
tie bit; and that wish they'd put 1t in
writing and submit 1t to me so that I could
furtively toss their written accounts Of
their vacations into my waste basket and
get rid OF an annual nuisance in that agree
able and helpful way
Nope" went on the man with the cold.
hard eye, Il haven't gone on my summer
vacation yet. don't take any summer va
cation. I apply for my little thirty days
later on-somewhere along toward October.
by October all of the folks in my Office
are back from their annual leaves. They
begin to scheme and plan and to fret and
worry about their vacations along In April
or May. They all figure on going during
July and August. and they all try to beat
each other to it in putting in their appli-
cations for those months, for fear that so
many Of their mates'n get ahead Of them
that their applications might get turned
down. A few of the later ones are turned
down. for the matter Of that. causing quite
little detachment of those left to go away
for the month Of September But the whole
push get away during July. August and
September - except the humble relator
hereof.
Now, along toward the middle Of Oc-
| tober, when the trees are out in their rich
russell livery and the days are mellow
with the finest quality Of all the years
sunlight and the evenings are cool and
fragrant-by this time most of my office
mates are sort o. wistfully wishing that
they'd deferred taking their annual leaves
for few months. It's long gaze ahead
to them to their next annual leave and the
yoke Of the routine is beginning to chafe
their shoulders bit and they find them
selves gradually slipping back into the old
rut, and they're pretty much down in the
mouth when they reflect that they've had
all of their fun and that there's nothing
much in the way Of foot-loose gayety for
long winter and a slowly developing
spring have come and gone.
''Uh-huh. Well. this is just the time
when I put in my application for my an
nual leave, and get 1t. They've sort Of
overlooked the fact that haven't had my
annual leave. and SO. when on the beauti-
full. cool. sun-streaming morning in October
gently circulate among them With the
my thirty days leave It's fine to observe
| the surprised looks on their maps and to
trace the perfectly manifest expression Of
| resentment that they all put on. By jinks.
but enjoy that when they look resentful
and sore over the way I've saved and
boarded up my vacation!
But the grand enjoyment of It all comes
when.' on the next forenoon I drop around
bidding 'em all goodbye. They all hate me
TO the point OF the most deadly ferocity
when I extend my hand, and. assuming one
of my smuggest and most aggravating
grins. tell that I'm on my way and that
I really hope the office won't drift into
any rush period while I'm gone.
They try to force themselves to say that
they hope I'll have q good time. but the
words choke good many OF them and all
| they can do is to splutter and humble. 1t
Is perfectly obvious that they look upon
me as a miserable, sinking. underhand,
treacherous scoundrel for having saved up
| my vacation in that disgusting way, and
they are perfectly well aware of the fact
that only drop around to shake hands
| with them before departing for the pur-
pose of gloating over them and of breaking
| 1t of in them that during the next rich,
| rollicking month, while they're bowed over
| their desks with nothing doing to rouse
them from their lethargic state Of depres-
| sion, I'll be off kicking up my heels and
| loafng and lolling around at the best vaca-
| tionizing season of the year.
"Hully mackerel. but don't I get hunk
with them for their corralling me in the
shadowy corners and pumping the long
drawn-out narratives of their vacatienizings
into my unwilling system. and don't have
the gal-lorious opportunity to gal-loat when
kiss the tips of my fingers to EN- and sail
out into the whey air, leaving them bent
and shriveled and huddled miserably over
their desks! I'm mean son of Siwash,
l know; but, dad-bing my sneaky hide,
don't just love to get hunk with 'em and
to gal-loat over 'em in the russell month Of
Octobern'