New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-12-29
BY t4arriette Underhill

Twas the day after Christmas
when all in the house"-wo started out
to make rhyme Of this. but we can't
think Of anything to rhyme with house.
and when we asked the office poet.
r f. w. he suggested coupie of
words which wouldn't do at all. But
here he comes now with this:
Twas the day after Christmas, in my
domcilo
We were looking at life as a thing not
worth while
All Of which was true and, besides
that it was showing, and we had an
appointment to interview Clare Kun
mer at II o'clock.
Now, Miss Hummer is almost our
favorite playwright. She writes the
sort OF dialogue that we wish people
would talk thereby making the world
zafe rom platitudes.
And for that reason we thought that
Size would probably be q punctilious.
eNac,iag person who was difficult to get
on with.
1'ss Hummer lives right across the
street from the park in Fifty-nfnth
Street, and we knew that some one Of
'he subways stopped near there; but,
1t being the day after Christmas and
1850 a. M, we couldn't remember
which one, so we took bus and asked
the conductor to put us of at Fifty
ninth Street.
And presently We found ourself in
'front.' Of her house, and then in front
Of her elevator, and then in front of
her door, and then in front of her CRATE
ire.
We were fifteen minutes late, and
were terrified for fear she would send
out word that she had an order for q
play to be finished by II o'clock and
couldn't be disturbed.
And while we waited, small, yellow,
very friendly dog entertained us by
bringing scraps of paper and pieces of
wood and placing them in our lap.
And then we fell to wondering how
Miss Hummer was going to look, and
IS we heard footsteps coming down the
long hallway we watched the curtains
oXpectantly all ready to greet tall
lately lady with light reddish hair
wearing a trailing, pale blue peignoir
Clare Hummer sounds like that to US
And then through the curtains came
q tiny dark person, with the smallest
feet and anskles we ever saw, ane
wearing a smart black taffeta frock
So much for our intuition
I'VE love your dog" is what we said
in greeting; and
II love you for not asking what kind
Of dog she is" is what Miss Hummer
said in answer.
you see, we don't need to- We used
TO be kennel editor and we know"
ooh. do you?" said Miss Hummer
Then tell me-
well, she is part fox terrier and
part greyhound"
yes, and that's all. She is really
very we'll bred even if she did turn out
20 be yellow
And then we all moved over in front
Of the fire, and we told Miss Hummer
how we had thought she would look and
act and be-
We'll, you see you're all wrong, ant
ne reason is, no doubt, because my
name isn't really Hummer at all. 1t
IS Claire Beecher" Miss Hummer is
a grandniece of Henry Ward Beecher
"Oh, if we had known that we should
have fancied you entirely different
We should have known that you
wouldn't mind our fifteen minutes
-ardiness."
Mind" answered Miss Hummer
II was fast asleep when you got here
didn't think you would be on time
because no one ever is In New York. u
"Oh how did you come to write your
first play" we asked, not because we
we're getting an interview, but because
we really wanted to know
We'll, you know, | always wrote
songs and finally | was allowed to dc
the music and lyrics for some musical
plays, but no one ever would trust me
With the book, and | was so ambition:
that | wished to do the whole thing
So, in the spirit of showing them,