The Washington times., 1916-01-26
Psychology
Is Merely
j PlainSenSe
Robert the Devils Escape
From His Cage Arouses
Speculation as to His
Former Ancestors.
By WINIFRED BLACK.
OBERT the Devil got out Of his
cage the other day.

Robert the Devil doesn't look
a bit like his name. We call
him that because the song that he sings
sounds so much like the principal ario
in the old-fSshioned opera, "R-r-obert-
Robert tue Ia t-jaime."
y This particular Robert isn't really q
devil at all: he's lust a canary. little.
yellow canary. with tiny. sparkling.
black eyes and the funniest little emo
tional method Of singing in all the
world.
The day he escaped from his cage
shut the door and the windows and sat
down and watched him to see what he
would do. Il
What will he try frst?" 1 thought.
1.-THE window. of course.
Poor thing! he won't understand the
glass and he'll try to fly right through
1t. Poor thing! poor"
But Robert the Devil did no such
thing. He didn't even look at the WIN
dow. He flew right straight over to the
looking glass and stood and admired
himself.
p Oh. he admired himself immensely.
He put his head on one side and then on
the other. and he rufled up his feathers
and stretched his neck and pruned and
teetcred on his tiny feet.
Robert. I'm. surprised at you" But
Robert tiptoed closer to the mirror; he
chirped and nodded. why" thought,
''he isn't vain. he's lonesome" And so
he was Door thing Just lonesome. that's
all. And he thought the bird in the
mirror was somebody that might turn
out to be a friend. and he wanted to
make good impression. that was all.
The Birch Bark Adventure.
Robert didn't care for the pennants on
the wall or for the books on the book
shelf. He was really bit bored, and
began to look around for his cage, when
suddenly something attracted his at
tention.
You could fairly see him get new
side, listened, chirped and few straight
to a little picture framed in birch bark
which hung upon the wall.
He was as excited when he found
that birch bark as one of us would be
to come suddenly into a room and meet,
face to face, the ghost of an old, old
friend we'd heard of for years and never
even seen.
Robert the Devil went mad-stark,
staring, chirruping. warbling, trilling
mad over the birch bark. He whistled
and sang and swelled his little throat
and pecked the bark and few round and
round the frame, and the only way we
could get him back into the little cage
that had been his home ever since he
could remember anything was to take
the birch bark picture frame and put 1t
there before him.
Wasn't that queer? I don't believe
he'd ever seen a bit of natural bark be-
fore in his life, and know he'd never
heard of 1t.
WHO was there to tell him? And yet,
somehow, he knew that 1t belonged to
his world. His world, poor thing! I
wonder II he ever dreams Confusedly of
1t, when all the household is asleep,
k1,n 49, 1W,NI s1,yaV
and falls first upon the cage of Robert
the Devil and then upon little figure
that lies 50 soft and warm in the little
bed within the room,
What does he dream. do you suppose? !?
OF wild, free flights under the open sky,
of brothers and sisters with him in the
old nest, of the mother that fed him,
of the tall trees and the singing wind,
of the sea far and far to the north for
summer time and south again for
winter?
When the Door Opens.
Does he love us with ready gratitude
when he is awake and hate lis with re-
Vengcful anger when he sleeps?
In the day time, is it all curious
muddle to him? How interesting it all
is-this world we live in ana the Gre
atures that live here with us.
Where do your dreams come from and
of memory. too"
met men the other day and talked
with him for five minutes, and / felt
as II had Known him hundred years.
] didn't like him at all. and he .llCn't
like me. and we knew each other at
sight
Was he a Part of some strange life,
some ancestor of mine remembered?
Are we Just prisoners here il! tEeEe
awkward clumsy. stupid bodies Oi ours,
and sometimes at NIGHT. when the jail
Iu ngInn d., flNF rNNzN 90 "
little whileT
Psychology" v hat n lot uf talk thnre
IS about It these days. and yet, Sonle-
how, when you boil it all down, it al
seems to be inst n little common sen-e
and few OF the cid things we used ~
call srperstition put together ard called
by a terrifying and awe-insoirin% new
name, Ike the Toy you've known nil
your life come back. from medical
school. to be called graVely "dGctpr"
and told the inmost secrets OF your life
and heart.
Robert the Devil. wish I dared open
the window. as we'll az the 'loor Ct your
cage, and set you free.
(Copyt 1916 by Newspaper Feature ServiGe,)