Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-05-19

not make any more conversation effort,
Meantime the raczng man In the next
chair was Golng ahead telling what q per-
feet pipe he thought Roseben had 70 win
the Metropolitan handicap at Belmont PARK.
and a. he talked away IA this strain / no
sieed my Puritanslooking man cooking up
horse gossip from TIM other chair was get
ting on his nerves.
That race-spinnirK chap said to my
good ana hard a about two minutes Rs If he
doesn't cut this Understanding stun out
but the man with the horse bug went right
ahead talking about noseben's swell chance
to win tbs big event hands down
- hear . lot cf boaebeads around
Washington this morning saying that Rose
ben hasn't got a charice In the world to go
the mile the racing man was saying. but
noticed that none of them was willing to
lay any price against that proposition.
Just wish one of 'en, wonld come to the
against Roseben right now, and IL
wouldn't eat all Of 1t up that I could snag.
'.soh. y'wcuid, hey7' observed my Puri-
tanical-lookins customer, suddenly sitting
up In his chair. Well. I'm there with that
price. How much dye want of TT You
gotta show me that this Rosebsn mutt'n
ever 30 out and do anything with good
horses at mile. and I'll lay you $3.50
against your 800 that he doesn't cop this
race. and be slad to find mark to mark
the bet with me-
There was a roar from all over the shop
and ! was SO full of astonishment and
chuckles that could hardly go ahead with
my business OF shaving him; The racing
man who'd been yelling for the two-and-a-
haifrto-one price wriggled out of the op-
portunity presented him as best he knew
now It was the naost surprising thing
that ever happened In a chair of mine. Be-
fore that man who looked like seven
teenth century parson from the Berkshire
niiIs got out OF my chair he'd unreeied a
punch OF horse talk that made anything In
the doperlne line I ever listened to sound
ike business meeting of the wmodaugh-
sis.
Thought He Was CLAM"
THE barber who's covering that third
chair from here called It wrong too. a
couple Of weeks ago. A young fellow or
thirty-flye or so that none of us had ever
seen before came In, and all of us said to
ourselves as soon as we got the lamps
him, Ham. He was a corking locker.
with one OF those tragedian maps. and with
q fine mass of wavy, prematurely gray hair
He was all the candy so far as his toys
were concerned. and he had the stride and
spotlight and yels, L am heah tub save
this womon's honuh with muh life.
Well, he climbed into No 3s chair there.
said he wanted to be shaved about three
days under the skin. and We all fell to
wondering what company ne might be with
at this season OF the year.
Well. sir, kind o. the fas end OF the
season sir, I s'pose? said No. g. thinking
to get the ham wound up. for the actor per-
sons like the music OF their own pipes when
they're in the barber chair
Season. What season. said the man
with the tragedians face.
"'Why, said No. 8, the professional sea-
son-theatrical season.
Hey. back up!' grunted the cookbook
Ing duck. Don't you get to mixin' me UP
with them people. I can stand for anything
i a
1t becomes tiresome. I'm plumber and
gasf1tter in business for meself and !
couldn't swing a spear as supe without
faliin' over me feet IL me life depended upon
It, Profesh me eye-cut that outp
But to get back where I started the
talkfest in the barber shop. there a few
men who utilize the BARRIERS chair for
thinking purposes. and who therefore don't
want to engage In any conversation with
the barber. I've got a number of customers
who tell me that they often figure out their
BARRIERS chair The BARRIERS understand the
desire of these men for quiet while they're
being barhered. and they therefore make
no attempt to lead them into talk.
Silent Customer Unmasked
And then there are some naturally silent
men who don't care particularly to talk to
anybody. much less barber. / had a few
years ago customer who actually let on
that he was deaf and dumb. so that he
wouldn't have to talk or be talked at while
being shaved. addressed some little re-
mark to him when he first made his ap-
pearance In the shop, and he pointed to his
mouth and ears, as IL to indicate that there
was nothing transpiring In the way of talk
Ing or listening. 80 far as he was concerned
Then he passed his hand over his face to
indicate that he wanted a shave. II was
before I'd employed my dummy barber OF
I'd have passed this customer over to him.
well. he came In every day regularly for
shave after that About six months after
he first turned UP he pranced in one Sat-
urday afternoon with a whooping jag on,
and the way he did converse during that
sitting was sure g. lesson for a steam cal
Hope. didn't remind him of his half
years skillful imitation Of mute, but he
must have got to thinking of the way he'd
given himself away when he came to, for
he never came back to the shop and lost
one OF my steadiest customers just because
OF the bun that oiled up his conversational
machinery" c. Ii