Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-03-03
BOB" WYNNE'SG CATERS

He Is now Robert J. wynne. United
States consul general to Lon1on. and for
mef member of the cabinet hut he was
just Bob Wynne for good many years,
makes no bones about 1t, and still likes TO
be when In the company of his infimates-
Mr. Wynne began to hustle Tor his living
when he was about ten years old lie
doesn't try to keep that fact under cover.
either. He began as sweep-up boy and
message delirerer in the Office In Phiia-
deiphia of the old United States Telegraph
Company, He got the mansfcent .sahiry OF
s. week at that job for the first year or
SO, but when he graduated into the position
of head boy around the plant his pay was
raised to $5 the lunar week. Later on he
became one OF the most skillful telegraph
operators In the world. and from this be
graduated into the ranks OF Journalism, at
which work his career is well known to
folks who live In Washington. where Mr..
Wynne has lived during the most OF his
manhood. Mr.. Wynne unreeled little
"Reminiscences of his So week period of ex-
istence the other day.
In street car this morning. he said.
there was a very old lady wearing pair
CATERS reminded me Of something. never,
In fact, see a pair of those oid-time cloth
CATERS for old ladies that I'm not reminded
Of this thing.
when my pay was raised from two to
Eve a week In that old Philadelphia tele-
graph Office. felt SO blamed auriferous, as
It were. that honest didn't know what to
around up to the time OF that raise. but.
when saw the five per week. hunted
around and found me boarding house
ing back to It now. feel assured that the
accommodations OF that boarding house
must have been pretty bad. But felt like
a bloated bondholder. all the same. with
<,f ,,3 ftta< ,1,ar >f av~ W
appetite surely atoned for any lack of con-
noisseurship on my part as to the quality
Of the food.
After paying for my board on pay day
mathematical calculation. $1,50 a week left.
This at first seemed shockingly large
amount of spending money to me. | was
really put to It as to what l was going TO
do to get rid of that large sum. But fell
into the way OF rioting in gum drops horse
cakes, chewing gum. and once week, and
sometimes even twice, I invested two bits
for a gallery seat at the theater. I will
say here that I have never enjoyed the
theater since with anything even approx
mating the keen, not to say ecstatic de-
light, that 1 took in the shows of that day.
The answer to this is not. suppose. wholly
ASSOCIATED from the difference between the
points of view OF boy and a man.
But there came day when found. to
wealth, 1 was overplaying myself In the
expenditure of that munificent five-a-week.
income. You see. had quite left out Of the
calculation any idea that I'd be called upon.
sooner or later, to replenish my wardrobe.
For example, It struck me all OF sud
den one day that was sorely In need OF a
pair of shoes. The onss l was wearing be-
gan to break down ali OF a sudden. Now.
the idea OF laying out about $50 for so
foolish a proposition a pair Of shoes
seemed a grisly sort of a hardship to me.
Moreover. I didn't have the price. I'd been
particularly festive for some time with
that $3.50 weekly residue after paying my
board, and on the day that I discovered
my need for shoes l had only N.6O in my
pocket. It 1rked me even to think OF having
to lay out any part of this on any old kind
of a pair OF shoes, but there was nothing
else for It,. My feet were the ground.
and had to walk many miles OF the Phil
adelphia pavement In delivering messages
every day, and shoes l just had to have.
II knew very well. of course. that
couldn't get any kind of pair of youth S
shoes for any $3.50. But, In gazing re-
flectfvely into the window of shoe estab-
lishment 1 saw a great heap of those old
ladies' cloth CATERS marked sacrificed at
$1.5O.'
well. that let me out The cloth CATERS,
although meant for old women, were shoes.
weren't they7 And / knew, from looking
at them. that I'd be able to get a pair to
fit me.
$50 iimped into the shoe store. wasn't
lame, and there wasn't any reason for my
limping, but I desired to preserve my
amour propre In the eyes of the shoe sales
man. So 1 framed UP the assumed limp
for the purpose of trying to make him think
that I had reason for purchasing a pair
of old ladies' cloth CATERS.
" want pair of those cloth CATERS for
ladies, large size. like you've got in the win
dow said to the salesman. who advanced
to wait upon me. My feet are sore, and
can't wear regular shoes till they get bet
ter.
II can remember yet the shrewd and
slightly amused glance that that shoe
salesman bestowed upon me. But, boy
like, thought then that I was fooling him.
He knew as well as know that I'm alive
that I wasn't there with the price of a
regular pair Of youths shoes and that I
was only adopting boyish subterfuge to
save my conceit, but he didn't say any
thing and fixed me out with pair of the
cloth CATERS.
'"Tlrose CATERS lasted me all of four
days, when they fell apart from the hard
usage my job compelled me to give them.
Moreover, ! was numerically guyed by the
other youngsters I knew for wearing a
pair of old ladies' shoes. 1t wasn't a bad
sort Of lesson to me. I had to get some
advance money on my salary to At my
self out with a regular pair of shoes, but
the next time I was In need of shoes I
had the price of them jingling in my
clothes"