Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-11-25
AROUND THE CITY

/ A1xOOlND nc Nj ]
| A brisk-stepping woman and an oldish
man came face to face on the III street side
of Lafayette Park. The man would have
passed without giving the woman glance
| If she had not stopped him with an excited
| outbreak of exciama tons with no stops
| between.
why, Ben. is this you, 1 hardly know
| you, you've changed so for the better! Poor
| little sister always said you'd be man to
| be proud Of II you would only stop drink
! ing-if she were living she would be so
giad-never mind. don't mean to upbraid
you. May be she knows.-anyho
certainly can't complain Of growing old
You are heaps manlier looking with that
gray hair, and with that dissipated red out
of your face you are downright handsome.
/ declare It's like miracle"
II am sorry. madam. but am not Ben"
The man had waited with beautiful con-
sideration until he got a chance to edge In
his interruption. Then he touched his hat
and went on. leaving the woman so dunn
founded and so altogether frustrated that
second woman who had seen the incident
stopped long enough in passing to say en-
couragingly: IAN of us make mistakes,
now and then
why. never saw such likeness in all
my born, days! 1 might have known it was
too good to be true. I'm trembling all over
see! I'm glad. now. it wasn't Ben. It
wouldn't be fair for man to pull himself
up and be decent after breaking his wife's
heart and putting her in her grave. 1t
would be unjust, wouldn't it?'
This problem was too wide ditch for the
second woman to jump, so she just an
swered, in parting:
Il reckon everything will even up some
day"
But the woman who had made the mis-
take was paying no attention to this wise
0h0 had frrv-v ,a1 70 rryaf nIr fh0
man who wasn't Ben.
Two prosperous looking men were talking
| at the corner Of Pennsylvania avenue and
18th street, when one directed the attention
of the other to a -half-grown boy who was
studying the want page of a newspaper
posted on the building just by.
Eve been watching that youngster hunt
ing job, and I'll be bound he gets one be-
fore he's through
Great scheme, that! Wish my Frank
had to hustle for himself. instead Of wait
ing for me to land him in a berth. I'm
through a friend who's got pull. but con-
sulships are mighty scarce these days.
Been fitting him for the diplomatic serv
ice. eh?'
ITO tell you the truth. Bob, it's the old
case Of the coon dog; he's fit for nothing
else"
Both men chuckled the one ruefully and
the other in sympathy And while they were
about it the boy whose only pull was
Star ad. copied an address and started up
18th street If he were following where
Victory led the way.
'Pvll."
A sightseeing couple stood before the
ponderous door leading from the reading
room of the Library Of Congress.
That's a pretty way to spell pull '" said
the man, with sarcastic glare at the in
scription cut in the brass below the knob.
The woman laughed with the airy conf
dapcn nj who knows oyarvfbip0
Why. you stupid boy. that's old Eng
lish."
yes. and I'm young America. I'll pvn
And he pulled the ponderous door open
with a suddenness that made the suave
attendant in the chair outside sit up and
take notice.
The farmer man had the loud voice Of
one used to calling across the open. and
his companion on the end seat was plainly
mortified and wished the other would keep
quiet until they were out of the car But
the farmer man preferred to talk.
Eyes, sir: I know that hogs can see wind.
know it, because whenever severe blow
comes along every porker in my fields runs
squealing to cover. And, by the Sam Ham
mer sir, I can tell by the scare in their
eyes that they have seen the wind and
that she's a terror to look at
The other man turned nervously to see il
any of the passengers were listening. and
as everybody in the car was paying deep
dtteutlOU, ne HuUSeu the ldTtilcT Ildl anu
said in a half-whisper:
Lets talk of something else"
"All right. There's sheep. If people tell
you sheep have no sense. don't believe 'em.
Sheep are wise, know, Because I've been
raising 'em year In and out since the civil
war, and haven't come to the end of their
knowingness yet. I've got 200 head Of
sheep down on that long hill lot where
you bagged those cartridges last time you
were down. Well. sir me and my hand.
Tom. can cross that hill lot a dozen times
a day and the sheep will flock around us
and poke their noses in our pockets for
salt; but just YOU let me and Tom go In
that field to pick out one to be killed and
they'll turn tail and tear to the farthest
fence line and huddle there like banked
snow.
1t isn't the words say when tell Tom
which one I've picked out for mutton. be-
cause, just to try their sheep sense, I've
planned with him not to say anything I've
ever said before. And 1t isn't the motion
I make. either; because instead of pointing
I'll look up at the sky and just describe
to him where our fellow Is standing but
they always know.
Its my opinion. sir. they understand
the English language like a book. and
what's more, they can read the pity in
my eyes; because, ever since l found out
how knowing they be. hate like the Sam
Hammer to turn EN- over to Tom. On the
other hand. sir, when I'm not after NUT
ton, can go on that hill lot and threaten
to kill the whole caboodle Of EN-. but them
sheep show by their tricks that they know
I'm only joking.
Yes, sir. sheep have got more sense
than some humans. and SO has turkeys to
q certain extent only you've got to live
with turkey from egg to chopping BLOCK
to get at the wisdom that's In him. 1 had
big bronze gobbler last year that"
But the other man had pressed button
and. to the great deprivation OF the pas
sengers the farmer-looking man had to CO.
He was a young man Of the Greek-god
pattern, and this Is the wall he made to
another man. less fortunate In looks. as
they passed down F street yesterday after
noon:
II sometimes wish were an old maid, so
I could walk the streets In peace and not
have the girls annoy me so.''