Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-10-06
YELL. I guess grown folks
~ don't care whether they

TO having them ana QOnt tnlnk much
about 1t and are not ashamed to have
them. but I guess a kid is always kind
Of ashamed when his folks get them.
We never had ,one in our family, but
we had babies and I guess kid feels
about the same way when there Is
divorce in his family as he does when
there IL a baby. It makes him feel
pretty sick and ashamed and misera-
BILE.
guess that's the way It Is when
you have divorce at your house. 1t
amt your fault but you feel like 1t
was and you don't have any Of the
fun Of hghting and getting the d.
vorce, like your folks do: you just
have the feel-miserable part.
So this day me and Swatty and Bony
went up to Bony.s room y. in B 30 fSs
spring, and guess we had been wad-
ing in the mud or something, SO we
knew Bony's mother wouldn't let us
60 upstairs to his room unless we
sneaked 1t. So we sneaked 1t.
The reason we went UP was 80 Bony
could prove 1t that the Victor bicycle
his father was buying for him weigh
cataiogue, to prove it with. but it
was up in his room. SO we went up
to get 1t. It proved 1t, ell right.
Swatty said that was pretty light Tor
bicycle to weigh, and I said It. TOO.
about a lot of other things, but most
Nv we talked about the bicycle, be-
cause Bony was going to let me- and
Swatty learn to ride on It when ne
on on It t. ana ~ ride right off as sick as a
whistle because he had an uncle IN
Derlingport that had a dozen bicycles.
So then Bony said he'd like to know
why, If Swatty's uncle had that many,
he didn't send Swatty one. and Swat.
ty said maybe he would. We just
kind Of talked and let the mud dry
on our feet and crack of onto the
floor.
was a hole and Bony showed us how
he could look through 1t down into
the dining rom and see what his
mother was putting on the table Tor
dinner whenever she was putting
big around as a stovepipe and it had
a. tin business in 1t to keep the floor
from catching afire because that was
where the stove pipe from the dining
to go into drum to help heat Bonys
room when it was winter. So we all
looked down into Bony's stove-pipe
hole to see II it was like he said. And
1t was.
the dining room. He had his hat on,
hut 1t wasn't time for dinner or any,
thing. and he didn't come into the
dining room as If he was coming for
the table twice with his fist. The
dishes jumped and q milk pitcher fell
over on its side and spilled the milk.
MARY! Mary" he shouted.
40 DNya0 ysx,t oot1 ,ay, orvoo {vo
Why, Henry" she said: whats
the matter?"
Matter? Natter? he shouted. I'LL
you what's the matter! Look at this!
Look at this. viii you"
Me and Swatty looked, but Bony
kind OF drew back from the hole and
his mother didn't look. l. guess she
it was without looking. It was a bill.
all right. Me and Swatty could see
that, but we didn't know what it was
for-whether It was for hat or
dress or what So Bony's father
with one fist on the edge Of the table
and the other fist opening and shut
ting. Bony's mother had been pairing
potatoes or something, / guess. She
wiped her hands on her apron. but she
didn't pick up the bill.
"Well?" she said.
"Of all the useless. idiotic, ILL timed,
outrageous. unheard-of extravaganza
ever incurred by any brainless, CAD
about, senseless, vain peacock of a
wofnan-" Bony's father said.
Henry! Stop right there!'e Bony's
mother said. '"This time will not lis
ten to your abuse. Year after year I
have put up with this browbeating. I
go in, rags, and II so much as
"Ragsw Bony's father shouted.
rags! You in rags? You dare taunt
me with that when you crowd enough
on your back to support q dozen fami-
lies? Rags? When from years end
to years end do nothing but strug-
gle to pay your eternal bills!"
/ Well, maybe l haven't got what
Bony's father and mother said just the
way they said 1t, but it was like that.
So they had a good start and they
went right on, and pretty soon Bony's
father was walking up and down the
room. talking loud and pounding the
table every time he passed 1t, and
Bony's mother was sitting with q cor
ner of her apron in each hand and
the hands pressed to her cheeks. Her
eyes were big and scary. So, then
Bony's father stopped in front of her
and said a lot, and she didn't talk
back. So that made him mad, and he
took the tablecloth and jerked 1t, and
all the dishes fell on the floor and
broke.
:, Bony just went to the bed and lay
on his face and squeezed his hands in
to his ears. l guess he felt pretty
mean. He was crying, but we didn't