Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-03-17
GAVE HIM THE Hal IA!

Dye know" observed the young aiaa
with the pink stock and the ultra wide
extension soied shoes, that I sometimes
think that these western maidens are hull
lot deeper propositions fliaa the girls back
this way? I do. for fact And when you
get in wrong with a western snaiden--when.
I mean, she just doesn't sake a fancy to
the cut of your jib and decides to pass vati
along to the scrap discard you might as
well take notice right away and go M
somewhere Immediately aud iasert your
.head and torso in gunnysaes. made one
of those non-l,ts with a western. maiden
the other afternoon myself. and l sure
ought TO know.
she was locker, too -tkc kesaest and
SWEETEST kind of a locker. i.eguiar howard
Chandler Christy girl. Size, have been a
Gibson girl. too. only she wasn't nine feet
eight inches in height all Gibson girls
have got to be. But she WAS a good i've
feet nine ut that, and as handsome any
thing you'll see out of Il magazine or a
Sunday supplement.
1T happened at the roller rink. ! saw
this lovely vision trying to put on her own
roller skates with a borrowed hey--a1 of
the skate boys were busy at the moment.
That would never do for one-eighth Of a
second, | said to myself. and. as I had n
key. | went right np to her. gave her one
Of those William Fayershan saiaaniA. ard
asked her If she would confer the honor
upon me of permitting me 20 assist Ter to
put on her skates.
She looked up out OF largo. dewey. hazel
eyes, and told that I was Very kind.
and she believed that, since I was so very
kind she'd. etc
I'm something less than trolley flash |
was there on my marrow bones, IL bel ping
her on with her skates l TOOK IL for
granted that she knew how 10 them.
But when 1 had fastened them on End she
stood up straight, noticed that s'se held
out her hands to clutch my arm. 50 that
any infant could see she was :, beginner.
This made it look immense for your old
college chump Reginald. l began to teach
her how to skate. First. 1 sat her down
in one of the chairs bordering on the big
ring, and started in to get graceful myself.
instructins her as to the first moves. oh.
1 was a wi1lowy willow, all light, as |
swayed sinuously back and forth IN front
Of her. meantime keeping UP a r1.nrirx fire
of directions as to how she Should have
confidence. you know. and Just nepend upon
me. She observed me with cheerful in
terest.
"'All you've got to do, observed. as
curly-cued up to her and male the moves
to show her what bully skater 1 was
my self, is to lean on me and have conf
dence In me, and whole lot OF il. Just
turn yourself loose and let yourself go
don't hold yourself rigid-an1, vita me to
hold you up at first. you can't possibly go
down. you know. It's Just like swimming.
only more so. see? If you forget you're in
the water. why, you can't possibly go down.
Now, just permit me to glide you forward.
I-er-er-really. I believe 1 shall wait
till my friend Gertrude comes down. che
replied. I am expecting her every moment.
She knows how to skate beautifully, you
and will be here presently. I-er-really
believe I shall wait to have Gertrude-oi1,
am expecting her almost any time now"
We'll. this wasn't quite good. but I
,,al a. 10 T.
front of her. telling her what dead easy
proposition the skating game Is once you
know how. and sort o rubbering around
to find out more about her. She at length.
while waiting for the Gertrude-whom /
began to fear was mythical Gertrude
told me that she was from Indianapolis.
and that she was visiting her ahrtie-uh-
huh. her ahntie-in Washington. She was
a western girl. all right could tell by
her accent. But, dear me. SUI. felers, what
q lookeri
well, was still going through my little
repertoire of stunts and showing OF. when
the lovely vision from Indianapolis gave
cry Of delight, and. looking up. / saw
Gertrude coming along. Gertrude was a
sawed-off, plain-looSing girl, and she
wasn't SO young as she had been. either.
Gertrude viewed me quite heap disap-
provingly, and then regarded the Jndianapo-
lis girl reproachfulIy. presumably for en-
tering into conversation with a stranger,
and then a crafty little smile began to ap-
pear at the corners OF the Indianapolis
girls features. She helped her friend on
with her skates-the skate boys being still
busy-and as she did SO that foxy smile on
her countenance deepened couldn't ex-
aetly make 1t out. but when she had fin
ished helping her friend on with her
skates and stood up. 1 didn't need to he
hit with any battleax to get wise.
What for? Oh nothing. Only she stood
on her skates as IL she had been bonn
with them on, and then. with one of those
merry. ripping little laughs that we read
about in the works OF laura Lean JIbbey,
she pushed out to that big center space of
the rink, away from the swirl and started
In to making imaginary pictures of swans
and dragons and things like that on the
smooth floor. AS a skater I guess she was
bad. | guess she was perfectly miserable.
| guess she didn't have everything on the
floor beaten q mile In q four furiong dash
when IL came to the fancy stuff. She
looked like professional that's all.
Il think maybe [ didn't know / was In
wrong when / saw all of that. But before
L crawled off somewhere to die all by N.Y.
self I waited for her to whizz by me once
more. and that / said to her with that or
side. up-stage gritting of the teeth for
which / am famous:
:" L thought you couldn't skater"
ct didn't say I couldn't did ~ shs
flashed back with that low. knocking IN
tonation which May Agnes Fleming tells
us all about, and. when I got to thinking
about it, / remember that she hadn't said
she couldn't, IN real words.
'Oh. I guess those western girls with the
antelope eyes and things are no. the deep
people or nothing"