Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-08-05
HEARD AND SEEN.

aloft had been so romantic and daring AZ
to earn for him the nickname Of The
Blue Devil"
He may have been Just that in the air
but on earth he was the blue violet, and a
shrinking one at that He wouldn't be
lionized at all and the girls who tried
to rush him had a hard time.
But there was one girl in Pittsburgh
who backed him into a corner. When shA
had Unanswered him where he couldn't
escape she opened fire:
Did you ever really kill German?'
''Oh. yes" answered the blue one.
ibid you ever single out any special
German and kill him before he could kill
you?"
The aviator admitted It, with diffidencA.
what hand did you use when You
killed him.
The blue one said It was his right hand.
And at that the Pittsburgher leaped on
1t and gave the hand kiss. which scared
the aviator into fit and sent him home.
That night he told one OF his friends
about it. He seemed all cut up.
"You poor fool" said his friend: III any
more of 'em ask you. say you bit 'en 10
death"
The news columns carried the story
of Bill Dearden going to France to be
Pershing's secretary; and thereat prob
/. ably thousands of young men wondered
| what manner of man Bill Dearden IS
and how he came to get the job.
Here's the story:
Bill has been secretary to Repre-
sentative Samuel f. Winslow Of Massa-
chusetts ever since Winslow came to
| Congress. He is one of those secre-
| taries who can tend to all the knitting
around the place. and a little bit more
| beside. and has the machinery so we'll
| oiled that his chief doesn't have to
worry.
- lasn to Inv. a
work thoroughly and well. looking out
| for constituents by the dozen. answer
/ ing letters, landing Jobs for Massachu.
sets college men, and all that. he has
/ been quietly writing a lot of Interest,"
| ing magazine stun. So you see. PERISH
| ing's new secretary isn't a loafer.
! When the war broke out. Bill found
| himself getting Massachusetts men into
; the Army as fast as they turned up
College men who wanted to make the
! aviation section all came to Bill. and
Bill made it his business to find the
| many hidden entrances to the military
| system. You know there have been all
sorts of ways open to military career
! lately, If only some one had the key.
| Well. after Bill had showed scores OF
| men into the Army. he sat down and
! took stock of himself. He found he
was a bit over age and bit over
| weight, but that his disposition was
! just right. He wanted to find nook
| for himself in that big military ma
chine, and he set about hnding IT.
The first thing that turned up was
| the Army need for field clerks. That's
where Bill thought he would shine. A
clerical man in khaki. He didn't wait
| to find out what it paid. or whether 1t
paid anything. He just took car to
the War Department and handed in hrs
card:
/ II am Representative Winslow's sec
| rotary. am familiar with all office
! work My chief pays me such and
such a sum over and above the regular
allowance for congressional secretary
| work"
| step inside" said the officer.
That night I met Bill downtown. IN
| the worst fitting and heaviest Army
uniform ever made, ] do believe. But
Bill was satisfied. He had found the
| right niche.
| And later. when the Army really
\ found out that Bill Dearden has q
| record of unbroken excellence at the
House office building 1t sent him to
| Gen. Pershing as the best thing yet
discovered in the Army field clerk line
| And so II was that Bill Dearden. who
had been working political and depart
mental pull for everybody that asked
| him for II, fell into a remarkably good
Army JOB himself. without the slight
! est kind of influence.
EARL GOODWIN