The Washington bee., 1910-10-22
Public Men And ThinDs
(By the Sage of the Potomac.)

! uUIiU IEIUlI HiIu IIllIIpO
(By the Sage of the Potomac.)
Hon. Henry Lincoln Johnson, the
efficient Recorder of Deeds, has been
IsOJOurning in Atlanta, his home, for
la brief spell 1t is surmised that the
Honorable Recorder is looking after
his fences.
We WashingtOnians have been see
ing public men come and go for these
many years. Some we are glad to say
to, Here's your hat; what's your hur-
ry! and to some we say, most re-
grettully, Sorry you have to go so
sOOn."
Speaking about the passing of col
Ored office holders, we must admit
their going is almost tragica1. They
come here, and at once are National
figures. Enjoy the easy life, and muni-
hcent salary, as they do for a few
brief moons, the going is hard, for
the real reason that a colored man
never steps out of public office, but
steps down, and to most of them
visions of the whitewash brush or
some kindred tool of manual labor is
present on the last day they sign the
government pay roll.
Thomas L. Jones, the attorney, IS
perhaps one of the wisest old owls
about these parts. Always neat as
pin, dapper as a college boy, sociable,
complaining always about hard times,
yet this minion of the law, who hales
from "Ole Virginny," is making mon
ey and enjoys a most lucrative prac-
tlce. He goes to the bank as regular
as the ordinary man goes to his meals,
and he always makes a deposit. They
do say that Tom Jones, he who
throws away his cuff when he crates.
has mighty snug bank account. And
he amt no miser, either.
Hon. w. T Vernon, who will soon
write the prefix "Ex" before his erst-
while title of Register of the Treasury,
has matriculated at the Howard Law
School, and proposes to be a lawyer.
In those days when in pleading before
a jury lawyers scaled the mountains
of oratory, what great pleader Mr..
Vernon would have been. To tackle
law now, at his age, shows nerve, and
I heartily praise him for the nerve
he shows, and sincerely wish that he
will make a success at law. In the
language of Jack Bunsby, "If anybody
kin, he kin"
I see my old college chum, Almond
Scott, the attorney, has bought fine
residence on nth street, right in the
famous quality row" When we first
caught a glimpse of this North Caro-
linian racing through the village in
his chu-chu wagon, we began to sur
mise that things were coming pretty
nice for him. Now that he has pur-
chased a residence that looks like a
real house we are prone to exclaim,
That fellows some pumpkin" l can
recall when Almond came to Wash
ington, a little verdant but bright, a
trif1e erratic and insurgent, but bright
and clever as they make them. He is
not near so erratic now An estimable
wife and a cherub of a boy to bright
en- the household has a tendency to
make any OF us more conservative
But, getting back to the main ques-
tion-Armond is breakfasting and din
ing on prosperity now, and we, none
of us, would deny it to him, either.
Bethel Literary has some fine
things, or rather treats, in store for
us this winter. We all can remember
when old Bethel was the forum to
which we repaired weekly with alac-
rity. It then "Split up and deterior-
ated. It promises to again become as
famous as in years gone by, and to
give us a real treat once a week. |
was much impressed with the attend
ance and interest on the opening
night. 1t reminded me of those years
that have ben sent adrift on the sea
OF time.
X X <
There's an awful contest on for the
position of probationary officer, and
most every man whose income is less
than 200 a year IS after it. Nearly
every minister is an applicant, and a
few physicians are not averse to draw
ing the pay Judge Mullowney and
Judge Pugh, who have the making or
the appointment, have heavy mails
these days, the bulk of which are in
dorsements" for this and that appll-
cant. We have a sneaking suspicion
What when the appointment IS made