Evening star., 1918-01-27

| vERYWHERE the Observer turn
IN ed he found grim reminder of
IT. war. The cold water in his bath
@ told of a fuel shortage. The
double prices he paid for his breakfast
proved second reminder. The greatly
increased "9 o'clock crowd" left no
room for doubt that the government
wheels were turning faster. The pre-
ponderence of olive drab suits on the
streets. the snappy salutes of passing
men, the headlines in the papers
death. murder, intrigue. charges and
counter charges, war, war, war!
The Observer Is for the war. whole
heartedly. unreservedly. Restricted from
fighting now, he is not unwilling. And
yet
There came time recently, one warm
day before Washington became a
Greenland overnight, when one paper
had story of the first robin being
seen in New Jersey, that the Observer
felt longing to get away from every
thing pertaining to or suggesting war.
He WAS tired and sick of it all and he
longed for peace.
So he went over into Lafayette Square
and conversed with the pigeons.
~.
Surely, he thought, the war had not
reached them. Their life seems much
the same the year round. A grain OF
corn. fiutter. fly. landing and &
COO. A grain of corn, a hutter, etc. over
and over and over again.
But he was wrong. The war has come
home to the pigeons just the same as 1t
has to every one else. The pigeons told
the Observer so. and why should pig
cons lie to an utter stranger.
Warlfke, it just naturally being habit,
the Observer went armed. He had a
bag of peanuts, bought from Pete, the
peanute man over on the Treasury
building corner. Pete, you know. has
boy in the Army. and SO he gives the
returns from his sales, every now and
then, to the Red Cross. Besides, Pete
almost gave the Observer a story one
time. The Observer asked him If
President Wilson ever bought peanuts
of him.
yes, yes" Pete said Lot times;
sometimes three. four times day."
That's the way with Pete, always
times, perhaps.
The pigeons liked the peanuts, ap-
parently. They focked about the OBJ
server and ate from his hands and
his pockets. g..
Dear little things" the Observer
does not bother you. Doubtless you
never have heard of it,
They hoped away, tapping their
wings and cooling in such manner
that there could be no mistake about
it; they were registering laughter.
my friends" the Observer said. This
is unseemly. Why should you laugh at
my observations"
1t was the leader of the flock that
spoke. I don't know what you would
call him. If he had been COW he
would have been the bell COW. Maybe
he was the bell pigeon. Anyhow, he
threw his head owe to one side and
saucily said:
I 'Why, you poor, old bald shrimp. You
talk with all of the wisdom of a hey
horse. What do you know about war,
anyway? Where have you been? Hid
ing in coal bin to avoid the draft.5I
suppose. = Certainly nobody who has
been walking about the streets for the
last two or three months, as you ap-
pear to have been doing, would make
a crack like that"
Excuse me, my friend" the Observer
said. what is the trouble?"
'"Trouble?" the rough one went on.
THE war doesn't bother US, eh? Say,
you ought to stick around here a while
and try to snatch your cakes and chops
out of this park like we do, and see II
you don't think the war has come home
to US. Home! Great whistling cat
fish! It's not only come home to us. but
now it's hiding under the front door
step waiting to spring upon us when
we come out.
"In the old days before the war
started this park was the biggest cinch
in the world. It was the bread line dc
luxe for us, that's what it was. The
place was choked with loafers from