The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1915-05-30
MR.. BOWSER LAUGHS
And So Does Mrs. Bouser and the Cat.
Mr.. Bowser is not a humorist.

| Mr.. Bowser is not a humorst.
! AT long intervals he had been known
. to utter a ha, ha. ha. but there was
, nothing very hearty about it and he
| took care not to repeat it until some
, weeks had gone by and he had a good
. excuse
! He was not d hu,norist as Young
man when he was counting Mrs. Bowser.
She realized :. with a sigh but married
him nevertheless. perhaps hoping she
might train him to hook upon the comic
: side of life. The training thus far, how
. ever. has all been the other way
/ The other night as Mr.. Bowser settled
down to his newspaper and cigar the
; cat leaped up on his lap and Mrs. Bowser
! noticed that he didn't knock her head
! off at once. He is not exactly down on
! cats and the Bowser cat had been an in
mate of the family for many years. But
Mr.. Bowser Is rather erratic. Some times
, he seems to love them and again his
glare of malevolence sends them hustlins
! for life.
Mrs. Bowser sat reading a book and
all was quiet and content within the
house. Even the cook had broken her
The cricket on the hearth was getting
! ready to chirp when there came a sound
! like n human chuckle.
; What was it and who was 1t?
The sounds were repeated and Mrs.
Bowscr looked up. Mr.. Bowser was the
guilty party: He chuckled again as he
finally stroked the cat. Indeed his
chuckle became a cackle and the cackle
finally reached the ha! ha! stage.
What on earth Is the matter with
of establishment.
Notwithstanding tall
But there must be. You are looking
red in the face and trying your hardest
to laugh"
"T was thinking of-of the cat-ha"
What about the cat? She seems to
,, be all right
Yes she seems to be a-l-right-ha.
ha."
Mrs. Bowser stood up in her astonish-
ment and looked at him. Mr. Bowser
returned her look and continued to
stroke the cat After half a minute he
asked:
You seem to think it funny that I
love our cat. Haven't you always
noticed that / just dotted on her."
Not by jugful. Mr.. Bowser. You
have almost kept her in terror of her
life ever since She came TO us"
she knows better than that, doesn't
she?" said Bowser as he lifted the cat
up asaisnt his cheek. l have always
thouhgt her the best cat in the world.
and sometimes I have hurried home to
dinner more on her account than on any
other. Nice cat. Good old cat. I
wouldn't have anything happen to this
cat for a hundred dollar bill-ha, ha.
ha"
Mrs. Bowser moved toward the tele-
phone with the object of communicating
with the family doctor about Mr.. Bow
sers mental condition. but he stopped
her with the question:
Mrs Rowser. how old do you call our
blessed old cat?''
'Why-why-1 was thinking about it
a day or two ago and l made out that
she was about twelve years old" she
replied.
That old? How good and kind of her
to live that long. I hope she will live
another twelve years to comfort this
home. She will always find in me
friend and protector. Mrs. Bowser.
should I ever learn that during my alb
sence at the office you had perpetrated
an act of cruelty toward this dear old
cat l should certainly make y>u answer
for ,t-ha. Ia. ha.'
At this point the cat lcapcd to the
floor and took up her quarters under the