Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-11-28
Around the City


| persuaded another woman into visit
to a clairvoyant who came to town re-
Gently, hung out a sign and afterWaro
| failed and disappeared.
DR. Zamiel, king of the stars hao
| what he enthusiastically called his consult
ing parlors in cuddy at tie top OF
| some dirt-caked stairs. There was
mangey black rug on the bare floor
and the table was covered with oiacs
paper cambria left over from the royal
| yelled an inner door.
! On wall hung daub of the king
| of the stars rising from lumpy clouds
with a bunch of forked lightning In one
| hand and in the other a haii moon
The royal expression suggested that ne
had swallowed the other half.
| And q wreck of a black cat whose
| lob must have been to furnish mysticism
| eyed the woman mournfully, from
| chair that was draped with blood-reo
| cheese cloth messed all over with gilt
paper stars.
Poor old kitty cat
THAT Is no cat explained the seer
THAT is Belzeebub, prince of darkness
He seems fond of you
The woman who likes experiences took
the evil one in her lap and stroked his
gaunt back. The other woman follow
ed the seer under the curtain.
And when the seance for two was
over and the women were going down
the steps one of them was carrying a
half-starved cat for which she had paid
10 cents. The invited woman protested
against the purchase.
I'm no more superstitious than other
folks. but why did you buy that thing?
The woman who likes to have ex-
periences had her reason pat.
I'm going to set Belzeebub to catching
mice instead Of sinners. And I'm going
to make him comfortable for doing it.
believe in giving the devil his due"
And that seemed to settle the matter.
He was a man who felt that he ought
to be chivalrous, but was too busy to
live up to his ideals. Unhapplly for ap-
pearances, he had no newspaper to be
| reading when the first woman entered
the car and caught the strap In front
| of his seat. So he pretended to be deeply
immersed in something inward that made
| him obIivious to things around.
When the second woman came In and
caught at strap. the man looked Out
of the window. When the third woman
got in he went through q really trying
ordeal, and finally got up and offered his
seat to the first woman who had come
in.
She refused The second woman re-
IL
Then the first woman said to the other
two:
1T was too great an effort"
And the man who felt that he ought
| to be chivalrous had to pretend mat
he didn't hear.
A man had fallen on the street and the
usual crowd was swarming. 1t happened
on that last foggy day of Indian sum-
mer, when the mist was SO nearly ram
that the trees dripped and the streets
were wet and slippery and everybody
had a cold.
But the crowd didn't mind. 1t nudged
and elbowed itself into a packed jam
of morbid curiosity, and its composite
eye was bulged on the PROSTATE man
and on the policeman, who had lifted
the poor head and was resting 1t against
his fine blue chest.
Presently another policeman came ur
and waved the crowd back with his bill
let This added sinister interest to the
refuse to bulge and get himself arrested
AS this fascinating possibility began
to impress itself on the composite face
an ambulance was driven up, the door
was opened, the injured man got In, the
wagon whirled away and the crowd
cheated of its sensation, broke up into
ordinary human bits and drifted into all
directions.
Two youngish women who had occu-
pied superior locations right next to the
accident, fingered to watch the ambu-
lance fade into the mist that was al
most rain While they looked they pu,
their emotions in words.
well, if that don't beat all! The way
he got up and got in without stretch
er, And not even a drop of blood!'
And we, standing here wasting oul
good time over nothing Say, come
along. Blanche. 1 gotter hustle
| In the voices of both OF these We
wide, deep streaks of disappointment ane
| on each face was the righteous wratt
that comes from being wronged. Ano
yet both women looked to be good
wholesome, honest-hearted souls who toof
! good care Of their home folks. and who,
| individually wouldn't harm fly for the
mere cruelty of seeing it suffer.
1t was tiny incident, of course. Bu
| It helped to show that De Maupassan
| knew what he was about when he wrote
| his essay on crowds
She was SO busy reading what Togo
| calls the Homely Ladies Journal tina
she entirely ignored tho conductor unit
he had called fare" three times. Ihen
without taking her eyes from the paper
she fumbled in her bag and handed ou
| a ticket good for one turkish bath.
The conductor, spruce youngster II
a uniform of fresh blue and shiny but
tons, refused the ticket with Cheerful
Excuse me, madam. but 1 belong to the
| great unwashed.
Then the woman took notice.
| Two chummy sort of women went int
| n cafe The one who WAS treating askee
| the other what she would have, mention
ing ham by way of suggestion.
| Ham possessed no glamour for the guest
Furthermore, she knew exactly what sh'
NO meat for me! I never take any
thing for lunch but cup or conee ane
bunion."
The waiter girl looked a bit startled
| In, she returned with coffee and curran
| INNS 1t seemed to fill the bill.
A tumble of cheap furniture lay In {
shabby heap on a curb. More furniture
| was being hustled out of house that haC
| FURNISHED rooms" card In window
and another tackled on the wall by the
door. In the hall OF the house neal
| the door a woman was CRYING as II hel
heart would break On the pavement
watching the eviction. was man.
| A passing woman loifered. to look a
him. He was tall ana gaunt and thin
iaYad HIS hair was tho gray of his suit
ha and overcoat. His eyes had greedy
intentness and every time he gave al
order RI the movers. who were putting thu
things in the street. nc showed the sharl
white of his teeth
/ And the passing woman, shivering will
sympathy for the woman inside. said t.
/ herself:
Tire wolf at the door"
A reunion Of the Wells family was hel(
at the home of John c. Wells. in the
i all <,FL S<e,