Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-06-02
AROUND THE CITY

1here Is paved road that begins at q
car line and staggers along, as If it were
not quite sober, until it comes to black
iron gate. On the left is a sunken stretch of
dump heaps and across the road to the
right is the green of country commons
broken out with a rash of signboards an
nouncing lots for sale.
Over the dump and the commons was the
quiet of Memorial day. but the staggering
little street was tramped on by a ceaseless
march of men, women and children, and
crowded along Its weed-grown edges We're
ice cream stands and fruit carts. with many
old people and children who tried to sell
withered field daisies and limp ferns, and
lamentably failed.
The Way of the Sorrowfuf Is one name
for the staggering street, but in the direc-
tory 1T is called the Bladensburg road. The
regular pilgrims who know every brick of
the way take the long. cherries walk as
a matter of course, but the hundreds of
people who were making their one annual
visit to the cemetery last Thursday were
clamorous with their complainings.
why don't the cars run out to this
blanked, forsaken hble!" gasped stout,
middle-aSed man, who was Juggling bas-
ket in one hand and rake in the other.
Il never come out here but what It's
crowded.
That's because you only come on Deco
ration days" interrupted the small woman,
who must have been his wife: I've been
here when L didn't meet two people the
whole way. Besides, there are always car
riages waiting at the cars"
And let them gouge 10 cents out of me
each way? Not much l don't give con-
tinental for a dime or two. but won [
had had the gumption to run a dayton, at
a nickel head, he'd made Zig money to-
day. Gee, this baskets weight. Say. the
wagon held twelve people. Twelve times
,rrht two
skies are twelve-he'd made dolsar-twen-
ty each round trip. You better believe it s
the last time you'll ever get me out here -
mo it isn't dear" interrupted the small
meaning Let me have the basket awhile
and why don't you get yourself bottle OF
that pop it looks nice and cold and sweaty.
You are just tired out You'll be all right
once you are in the cemetery
Her care for him was really beautiful.
and though the big fellow handed over the
basket and drained the pop bottle from a
roadside stand, it seemed to be less IKE
selfshness than it did the obedience of
child to a mother who knows what is good
for him.
Another pilgrim was a very small old
woman who wavered in her walk. she
was loaded down with basket of garden
flowers and used her umbrella for a cane
Her wrinkled face was prayerful and from
her fingers dangied a rosary of coarse
black beads.
Wont you let me take your basket"
asked Younger woman-for there is the
comradeship of grief among all those who
walk the way of the sorrowfu-''It is a
long distance from the cars to the gate
and l know you must be tired
Yes, ma'am, It's a good piece, and
don't seem to get over it like | used to.
tried cab once, but it was like going to
the funeral all over again. see you
haven't any flowers; can't l give you a
sprig or two?'
eli no ha 81, of
over her arm, and explained that she
would buy some field blossoms outside the
gate.
My dear one used always to buy her
Christmas greens from poor old people
who had few customers, and 1 feel that
she would rather 1 bought her flowers
today from the country children who have
gathered daisies and cannot sell them"
Il grow my own roses, said the old
woman. MY husband was dear lover
Of pink buds. and always wore one in his
coat when they were in bloom. Oh, Fam.
amt it heartbreaking!-but Gods holy will
be done-he was such handsome young
man; with light hair that had wave to
1t. and beautiful teeth and blue eyes. He
wasn't but just past twenty-one when he
was killed In the army. and haven't miss
ed visiting his grave a single Sunday, eX
cepting when 1 was sick, since August
ii, 1892
If the man who figured up big money for
the fellow who didn't have the gumption
d
overheard the old woman he would doubt
less have calculated now much ffty-two
trips year at a mile a trip for twenty
five years would amount to in a straight
line. But he had passed ahead and the
woman with the basket possibly couldn't
do the sum.
A stylish girl and brisk young man
were coming from the cemetery, and as
they brushed by the two women the young
man was saying:
''Oh, yes, she made great to do cleaning
of her own graves and covering them with
flowers. but when she was through she
didn't do thing but roll her trash and
paper In ball and toss it on a grave
that had no one to care for it. Why
wouldn't marry woman like that if every
hair on her head was a diamond
And what do you suppose a woman who
had diamonds would want with your"
Tipped back the girl.
Truly, in the midst of life we are in
death-and vice versa,
AS one couple hurried toward the gate
the one with a huge bunch of fern leaves
dropping over her shoulders like a tired
child was saying:
Il can't tell you what turn it gave
me. You see. all the graves had been deco
rated that year except one. all to Itself,
near our lot. 1t looked so desolate that
l couldn't get it off my mind. 1t kept com
Ing to me that 1 ought to have dropped
one mower on It, anyhow. so, please good
ness, l jumped on the car first thing in
the morning with a bunch of sweet peas.
but when l got to the cemetery, 10 and be-
hold! a wind had swept my graves bare
and landed the flowers on that lone one
until 1t was buried almost under mass of
bloom. What do you think of that?"
A crumpled up old woman, toothless. and
with wool as gray chinchila, was sitting
on the weedy roadside with her lap piled
with string strangled punches Of field fiow-
ers as withered as herself.
"Heahs yoh nice daisies an sparrer-
grass; cents a bunch, three punches fob
a Quartah-'
This business proposition captured wide
spread attention, but found no takers until
a big. fresh-looking man in f1ower-laden
automobile made his chauffeur slow up
for business. The old woman had a pathet
ic faith in the high-grade quality of her
stock. and the man smiled his amusement
as he leaned over. and after a moments
careful consideration selected a bunch of
"sparrergrass and dropped dollar bill
in her lap. Before she could gasp out her
eternal blessings on his head the machine
was whizzing toward Mount Olivet
Perhaps he, too, had a memory of some
one who used to buy wilted weeds at erratic
prices
Perhaps. again, he was merely good ma
tured
At any rate. there was one poor old soul
on Memorial day to whom the way of the