Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-05-11
Pittsburg Mans Amazing Exhibition
of Moral Courage.
PLEASANT WORDS FOR ALL
But No Crossing Of Palms With Real
Coin Of the Realm-Always
Escapes.

For four days last week." said bust
ness man. II trained with the most daring
| human being in Pittsburg, or out of it, for
the matter of that. It's only matter OF
| time, think. when I'll be reading of his
assassination. He's almost bound to be re-
moved. Some waiter. or barber, or porter,
or somebody win take him away from here
with q bomb, or a knife, or coal maui or
| something.
Hes a large. fat. good-natured, wealthy
person of Pittsburg. Far from being a
| tight-wad. he is exceedingly generous in his
disbursements for himself and his friends.
But he has one bug bigger than a Beloohi-
| stan spider. / didn't know it till he came
1 on here to visit me on business. He's the
champeen antt-tipper Of the civilized globe,
| and the grindingest.
| He stopped at my house. On the morn
| ing after he got In We stopped at a barber
| shop-a real onyxy. toppy kind OF barber
| shop-to be shaved before going into busi-
| ness conference down town.
| l couldn't help but notice, from my
| chair, how very genial my Pittsburg friend
was with the barber he picked out to give
| him scrape. He entered into a cordial,
| open-hearted conversation with the barber
| as soon as he climbed into the chair
| Smiled at the Barber.
"'Not close shave-just Clean he said
| to the barber as he settled back. BE lit
| &c soft on this face of mine-lt's tender
| and-well, I guess things'n come out all
right and he smiled up at the barber be-
| nevolently.
1.-THE barber-I could tell by the way he
| hustled around picking out his best razor
and all that-could see the four bits just
as plainly as II the money was already In.
the middle of his palm.
!" Neat shop you've got here went on my
Pittsburg friend when the lathering part
| of the job was under way. Guess you don't
have any kick coming over working In
plant like this. EN-?
1.-THE pleased barber murmured something
about liking his job pretty well.
Um--you We got the right end OF It,.
went on the Pittsburg man, rather to my
| surprise, for I'd observed him to be some
| what reserved In his ordinary commerce
with folks. II was a barber I'd work in
swell place or none at all-in some place
thing. OF course, there are plenty Of men
who can't afford lowell, to slip out any
thing extra for their shayes or haircuts. or
whatever other tonsorial attention they
get, but there's nothing to compel men Of
that kind to visit the swell shops, is there?
They can go to the shops where nothing Of
that sort Is expected, can't they?
out Of the corner OF my eye l watched
that BARRIERS countenance. never saw con-
fdence- SO clearly imprinted on human
face.
said the man from Pittsburg to the barber
after pause. Funny I never can get hold
of a razor like that. What's the makef I
go camping in the mountains for month
or SO every year, and of course / have to
shave myself then, but 1t seems as II.
somehow, can't get hold Of a razor that
doesn't yank hunks out of my hide. This
is a shave as il a shave-its nothing but
fun getting scraped with tool like that
one you've got.
"The barber edged in then with story
OF how he'd bought that particular razor
at an auction sale Of the gear Of a busted.
barber shop.
well, IT'S a dandy, wherever you
picked 1t up" put in my friend from Pitts
a. razor like that passing over his face.
Figuring on a Big Fee.
''From the expression on the BARRIERS
face then. I think he was figuring that his
fat. good-natured customer would likely
make him an offer of eight or ten dollars
for the razor, in addition to the tip.
1.-THE barber spread all of the sweet
smelling perfumes, unguents and ointments
he had on his shelf over his promising
customers broad face. and prettied him
up with powder, and fooled around him
with the usual patron, SO that I was al
ready through and had given my barber
the usual lucent pourboire and was dom
ming my coat by the time the Pfttsburg
man, smiling pleasantly, stepped out of his
chair
"'Well. we'll, that sure was the pleas
ATTEST shave ever he said, cheerlly, as he
put on his collar and necktie- There's as
much difference between barber shops and
barbers'-this addressed to meas there is
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. isn't there? Yes.
trousers pocket and jingled a lot of silver
in that pocket. while the brush-Off boy
brushed furiously at the Pittsburg mans
overcoat before helping him IN with IT.
were wearing those things that don't come
of, and the expression on the surface of
their grins speit Expectancy with great
big . E; shave. observed
the Pittsburg man when he'd been helped
on with his overcoat by the brush-on boy.
Really enjoyable and then he took the
brass check from the. hands Of the barber.
It was lucent check. My Pittsburg
friend placed dime and a nickel in the
extended palm of the barber. beamed upon
him, beamed also upon the brush,on boy.
pleasant, loud tone to all hands. as he
picked his cane out of the rack.
'sThen. with a final benevolent smile for
his shoulders back, cleared his throat
rumblingly and walked out of the shop
ahead of me- My shoulders weren't thrown
back any. On the contrary. l am sure
hind him. was stunned. AS for the
barber and the brush-off boy, caught
sight of them as I turned to close the door
after me. They were standing transfixed,
in Just the places they had stood when
they were waiting for my Pittsburg friend
to show them. But, in place of the grins,
an expression of almost imbecile chagrin
was frozen on the faces of the pair of
them.
Paragon Of Courage.
"My friend from, Pittsburg didn't say a
word about 1t when We got into the street.
but went right on talking about the bus-
ness matter that was occupying our minds.
So I didn't feel like saying anything about
it to him. even jestihgly. All the same, I
couldn't help but regard him as a wonder
and a paragon Of moral courage.
"'Let's go get something good to eat he
said to me after wed finished the days
business down town, and he wouldn't listen
to my protestation that he was my guest
and that I was doing the inviting In fact
throughout his stay here he insisted upon ]
regarding my money as counterfeit, and
would insist upon spending his own with |
a most lavish hand, reversing our relative |
positions of guest and hosf-a habit, un-
derstand which Is characteristic of Pitts |
burg men wherever they go. |
$50 we went for dinner to one OF the very |
best hotel cafes in town. The Pittsburg |
man knew how to order dinner all right |
Our waiter was a clipperish. smooth-faced |
young Austrian, star in his profession, as |
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