The Washington herald., 1912-01-07
Servation:
By JAMES FRANK LYMAN.

Ever study shoes? Not from the
show window of "Wastington's
Foremost Footwear Emporium, y
where shoes are characterless, but
on the street. Ever try it? Well,
don't know how much there is in
it until a bull-voiced managing edi-
tor tells you to go and get psyche
logy out of psychoes. MANI, who
draws pictures, baked like an army
mule when he heard about it.
at isn't art, old fellow" he COM
planned with sorrow to the manag-
ing editor, 81 cawn't do it, old fel-
low, you see"
EDITOR NOT ARTISTIC.
The managing editors views on art and
artists are rough.
Either you and Lyman go out and get
a story on Shoes he announced, "Or you
both get fired"
Therefore
A certain eminent pugIIist Of bygone
days-"Elbows'' McFadden, I think-at-
tributed his great success in mutilating
the countenances of various gentlemen to
the fact that he continually watched their
knees and feet.
sDon't look 'em in the eyes" he is
quoted as having said, Took at their
feet Long before they get set TO hit
their feet show it. When they're get
ing ready to crouch for a rush. their
feet tell all about it. Watch them feet
and you kin knock their blocks on"
without wishing to pun any such rough
stun, It may be observed at the begin
ming of this that no man is better or
worse than his shoes Nor woman either
The dear little girl may fake from ankles
to toplznot but the cloven hoof VIII show
alas, too often-in the shoe that Is be-
meath the ankle.
why r street IS Selected.
Manz and hiIzed for street after
the managing editor had chased US into
the cold world. We picked street.
first. because there are lots OF types on
F street-human interest studies, ma
teriaI in the rough and all that sort OF
thing. Also We chose street because
ManZ hates to get too far away from
certain popular 0bar.
With eyes studiously fixed upon the
ground, We fell in with the moving throng
and began to seek types. First we be-
held, coming slowly, heavily, solidly to-
low-heeled. thick-soled shoes, sort of a
cross between an overshoe and a canal
beat.
If ever a determined, hard-headed busi-
ness man was given away by anything,
il was that pair of shoes. Neither Of us
had looked at him. yet we had him pho
tOgraphed in our minds eyes long be-
fore We raised our physical visual Or
Eans. Those thick, elephantine ankles
could belong only to go solid pounds of
weight, with a fifty-hve-inch girth and
wcrn shoes, indicating long walks and
consequent good health. They were the
shoes of a man who habitually had copi-
Gus ham and eggs for breakfast, and
whose loudest complaint was made when
the soup was cold. You could almost
hear him yelling over the stairway:
Jennie, it's 10 o'clock For heavens
sake, send that young man homer
Mann Fears Those shoes.
The shoes approached seIf-hypnotized,
We watched them, and heard the heavy
squeak Of punished leather, which seemed
TO say:
Make way; give me room. I've got my
rights here, and I'm going to see that
they are not curtailed. Remember
Just then Manz smashed plump into the
owner of the shoes. and / hurried on.
Manz passed me at forty-flve miles an
hour, and following his anxious back
ward glance saw the high-browed, gray
haired owner Of the shoes, scowling fero-
ciously after us and smoothing his vest
with both pudgy hands.
I'll never forget those shoes" sighed
MANI. "One nearly got me-"
Pattering behind those heavy shoes