Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-10-09

about the size of the usual apartment
Kitchen -
The other woman runs a streak of
her eyes. to the piled-up and unwashed din
ner dishes In the sink as soon as she enters
the kltchen. AS a matter of fact y'see
you haven't had that maid your wife
mas spoken or for considerably more than
Two uays' on, Tor many, many more days
than any two days, yes, yes, And so
there are the heaped-up dinner dishes
ana there's the just-looking-around lady
looking right square at 'em with a sort of
olsoaih1ul little screened grin around the
corners OF her quite pretty mouth; and
you know that your wife is quite con-
slo able bubbling internally
81. az course the acknowledgement pair
w.; Mnl come to dead halt and gaze stead
n.y. ana, as you naturally suppose,
lnlaieVolently into the storeroom of the
nat; the one room that you don't want
EN- 10 look into at all. But there they
stand, stock-still. gazing into the store
Iooh' gazing particularly at that awful
portrait. s14 for the frame thereon Of
your Uncle Zebulon in his uniform of
the Northern Liberty Volunteer Fire De-
partment, with the horrible helmet and
an, ana the bunch of spinach on his chin
ana all tnat. You see the Pickering grins
on the countenances Of the pair Of look
ers-around as they study that terrific
crayon with sardonic glances. and Won
wish they were somewhere over on the
eastern branch begged in a quick mire.
Il 4
Then they come to the main bedroom.
why. what dark little room it isr'
sort O. Kisses the look around lady. ITS
on a court. isn't it?''
We haven't found it dark" answers
Heart of Gold. stiffening. ''Of course,
we don't sleep in the daytime: and I
QOn the
HOW bout air? Dye get enough air
IN this bedroom?' the male party of the
looking -around sketch inquiries, shifting at
something.
You feel quite a lot like taking him bv
the throat. But you reply with sort of
a wan. gray grin:
Get all the air there is or need be.
Course ours we're not fresh-air bugs"
snlHs, and so does his wife, and then
they come to what your wife somewhat
room'
=. It's not fixed up at all now" Heart
V! wonder what the dickens she's apollo
g1zing to these counterfeits for?" you say
to yourself. Its about ninety-eight to
one that neither Of 'em ever heard of a
gdestroom in their lives. Huh! Tell
with all this apologizing stuff! I don't
care dang whether they take the fiat
or not. and all I want 'em to do is to
beat 1T away from here and gimme a
chance to get that deferred smoke into
me and to read my paper"
X
And SO the mooching-along procession
through the fiat continues. The looking
arounders stop to take sort of sniffy
peek at all Of the little pictures hanging
on the walls. Huh! Got their pictures
at the ten-cent store!' you know they're
saying to themselves. Moreover, you
know they're right. It's the truth that
hurts. neighbors!
And. when it's all over, why, the Just
iooking-around couple sort O. hang around
before leaving. standing on one limb and
then the other before the exit door,
It's too bad they don't keep the
downstairs entrance more tidy, isn't it?"
inquiries the dolled-up lady Of the duo.
driving final one home.
There's no answer to that. There's no
answer to anything from then on. And
hnaily they go, with a little bunch of
getaway phrases. and
when you're alone again you look at
your wife and say, The gall Of 'em"
and your wife says, why her father
used to keep a little shoe store over in
SWampoodle-I know her we'll, but she
doesn't remember me. and the idea of
her coming around here putting on Tugs
the very idee!'
CLARENCE L. CULLEN.