Evening star., 1907-08-24
sIs,exz@sE EHkNGS
.A,,|S&kkk}E1%$ ,,!1l(;2t 81 >zz"~
Mk4SfaR faRSss:5h "

days ahead. and I had the cheerful alter
native of staying there or taking my
chances on a crowded boat. so l chose the
latter.
While ] was waiting on the wharf a
| very pretty and popular Washington girl
well known In society here. came up to
! speak to me. We were old friends and
after chatting few minutes l told her that
| I expected to spend the night on deck and
! would count myself very lucky IL l got a
mattress to sleep on. She sympathized
with me: and then after some further con-
versation bade me goodbye and went on
| with her friends.
During our talk I had. noticed a tall.
good-iooking fellow standing near us. and
/ was very much surprised to have him
come up to me- after the girls departure
and say:
:" Pardon me. sir: I overheard some of
your conversation just now. You were
talking with the prettiest girl l have ever
seen. Now. if you will tell me her name
III give up my state'oom on the boat to-
night to YOU
.'TG say the breath was knocked out OF
NE is putting it mildly. / looked at the
man and he returned nay glance cheerful
and s1ilingly he didn't appear to be tresh.
bu- was evidently in earnest to find out
about that girl.
Nov. l wanted that berth badly. for
needed good nights Sic and tha SOFT
side of the deck did not appeal to me in the
, least. The girl had left the wharf about
FIVE minutes before and thinking things
Over. concluded the man couldn't annoy
her II he wanted to. which | very much
doubted as he seemed to be the right sort
So | ohligingly told him the pretty girls
name.
you don't say he exclaimed thor
oughiy surprised. Why. know her eldest
sister well. but I've never met the other
mamhers of the family
"!:y that time l was quite Interested and
asked lis NAM. When he told me l nearly
sat on the wharf. The last time l had seen
were kids together in the little old Virginia
| town where W. wsre both reared ihlnk
of that boys talk about your coincidences.
can YOU beat Il?
We'll had very comfortable trip up;
| after all" tn. Virginan laughed, and
stretched himself ITS dollars to dough
nuts that my friend has already met that
pretty girl. and bet he won't let the grass
! grow under his feet. Anyway, the next
time I'm up against it I hope that same
| pretty girls will show up, for hers is evil
IDENTIFY name to conjure with.
! This is the season of the year when the
! small boys who are not away from the city
| delight in going to the river and ponds
about the city to swim and catch fish.
Scores of them are to he seen every morn
! ing vending their way to the water with
| their fishing outfits, having rods and lines
OF every description. With many of the
| boys WHO live near the river 1t Is just as
| natural for them to go fishing after break
fast as it is for them to get out of bed and
eat their morning meal. One little boy. a
former resident of South Washington, had
heen in the habit of paying almost daily
visits to the river and keeping the fami y
supplied with fish. and when his parents
moved to the vicinity of Soldiers Home he
felt that there was a great change to take
place In his method of enjoyment.
Il believe I'll go fishing. he said to his
mother one morning last week. not knowing
in what other way he was going to enjoy
himself.
His mother laughed. made a pleasant re-
mark about his being far from the river
and went about her household duties. The
boy felt somewhat disheartened. but he got
his lines together and started out in scare
| Of stream where he could make an effort
to feed bait to the small fish. He had gone
1 but short distance before he came across
| pond and the fact that the pond was
| really the lake in the grounds at the Sol
diers' Home made no difference to the dis
cip,e of Sir Izaak Walton.
| Seating himself upon the grass. the young
angler baited his hook and 1t was not long
before he the cork disappear beneath
the surface of the water. Three fish had
been landed before one of the inmates ot
| the institution came along and routed the
angler. His fish were taken from him. his
paraphernalia confScated and in q few
minutes he was over the fence and on his
way home.
But 1 didn't get scared" he said when
| he got home. "and I'm going to find another
place to fish.
The next day he found himself fishing In
| Rock creek. He happened to be within the
f, boundaries of the Zoo. however. and he was
| soon informed that he violating the
] law. but not until after he had caught an
I eel
| Il thought you could fish anywhere" said
! the disappointed boy after his second expe-
| rience. and he asked his father to buy him
gun If he would not move back near the
J river.