Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-07-01

If your friends include a country
squirrel whose home address is a nut
tree, with running stream for neigh
Dor. you will know that, as a food
provider. his name is Hoover But there
are always others-this one, for in
stance, who has found a champion in
kindly big brother, named Man:
while sitting in Stanton Park early
Sunday morning last a squirrel ran
down one of the trees near the park
fountain, and after first trying to get
water at the hose connection nearby,
he failed to satisfy his thirst and there
upon made for the fountain itself and
dashed over the wall of the basin into
about a foot of water. He followed
the wall of the. fountain basin and I
soon saw that he was not going to be
able to get out of his predicament. /
hailed the street lighter and he got
him out with his stick. He tells me
this happens frequently in summer time
and that he often takes them out of the
fountain in very exhausted condition
But to get back to the story-the sauir-
rel was no sooner rescued than he made
on for the same tree which he had de-
scended a moment before. and as my eyes
followed him in his ascent they rested on
something in the forks of the tree which
proved to be a flask little more than
half full of whisky This fact coupled
with the animals thirst certainly makes
out good case by circumstantial evil
dence. However. this, of course, is a mere
coincidence and has nothing to do with
either the chilling effect of the squirrels
early morning bath or his abnormal thirst
for he seemed to be perfectly sober and
respectable Stanton Park squirrel. and
there is no doubt in my mind but that the
aforesaid hidden treasure really belonged
to another and entirely different kind of
animal. Still one cannot help but wonder
II. the owner of the bottle would not take
quite as great a risk to secure a drink
from either it or the fountain SO early on
Sunday morning, or which animal is
really the more reckless of his future.
III you can use this little story, which is
a true one, 1t may bring about the pro-
vision OF means whereby the squirrels may
be able to get out of the fountains. which
ought to be done. 1t is not pleasant to
think of their swimming themselves to
death on some occasion. c. E. b.
A Washington boy went over there.
He had been a care-free youngster
who made a playground of life until
the big, splendid thing we know as
courage started him on a road that
led to trench.
His first letter told his mother that
the war was making man of him.
His comrades and the cause they were
giving their lives for taught him to
realize that he had been Sinking his
own responsibilities. but mother, dar-
ling, would find him changed when he
came home from his baptism OF blood.
To show that he was no longer
trifling kid, mother. he was shining
boots, cleaning guns and Jobs like
that for the fellows. partly to teach
himself i, needed lessons in serving
others. hAt mainly to earn that much
extra for something fine for mother
oh, yes, and he had found two friends,
nice chaps. who were alone in the world
and who loved to hear him tell about
his home.
After awhile came the happiest letter
of all-the son who had gone away a
kid was coming back a soldier, who
measured up to that other big,
splendid thing we know as manhood.
II am bringing the two boys along.
mother. told them that your heart
was big enough to take them in, and
but every mother knows just what a
boy like that would write And she
was to expect them as soon as the ship
could bring them over.
So the mother waited until Joy gave
way to patient longing.
But the ship did not bring them over.
It was summarized, and the boys were
drowned.
What of it. in these days of uni
versal suffering? Nothing.
And everything.