Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-06-22

boys who answered the call so noble
when 1t was a case OF beatin' back
the hun and-and all that sort of
thing.
l kind Of hand it to myself, too,
that l was spielin' it out some elo-
quent. Course, / might have been
quotin kind of free from the Rev.
Pedders. You see, he's chairman of
our committee, and not half an hour
before he'd been readin' over to me
bis draft Of the inscription. I'm CRATE
full memory OF what they did and
dared for u.s." was the way it started
Off. Swell stuff, take it from me. Sort
Of makes you warm up under your
vest and get dim in the eyes. And
I'd told her what the subscriptions
amounted to up to date.
Perfectly splendid" says Sadie.
"And, by the way, Shorty, wish you
would put in an order for those bed
ding plants. Here it Is after the first
of June and those flower beds haven't
been filled yet"
Isn't that just like a woman? When
you're all blown up with patriotic
gratitude and-and so on, she has to
kick in with reminder of some
piffiing little thing like that which
you've let slip. Shows where their
minds run-never higher than the at
tic window. But what's the use de-
batin' such points. They wouldn't
understand. So 1 just lunches my
shoulders and starts for the telephone.
Might as we'll do it right off before l
forgot.
And 1 expect it was looking up the
name of that big greenhouse firm in
Portchester that reminded me of
ex-Corporal Buck Kinney. Let's
see, wasn't that where Bucky had
started in to work when he'd been
sent back from France and turned
loose from the Army? And hadn't he
opened up a little dollhouse business
of his own at his place down on the
marches? Seems to me he had. May
be he'd have the very stuff we wanted.
Might put it in cheaper. too. Anyway,
1t would be easy to jump in the car
and run down there to see. Besides.
it had been month or so since I'd
had a talk with Bucky. Most likely
/ could get him to dig up another one
of the war yarns. You know he can
spill the real thing, Bucky, for he was
through a lot of it; won the D. 8.
medal, and all that.
Well, l finds him maxim hard-work
motions with a spade, standin hip
deep in a drainage ditch that he's
diggin'. He seems glad of an excuse
to climb out and scrape some Of the
mud off his boots and hands.
NO" says he, II expect I amt got
much you'd want-a few geraniums
and saliva. Didn't go in for beddin'
plants very heavy this year. I was
plannin' mostly on lettuce and cucum-
bers, but they sort OF petered out.
That old steam heatin' plant I put in
wouldn't work and lot OF the stuff
froze on me while L was patchin' it
up. 1 was hoping could blow myself
to a new boiler next fall. but dunno's
! can. Tits kind of hard scratch
In"
Still got your job with the green
house people. amt your" I asks.
He shakes his head discouraged.
"They laid me of a month ago" says
ne. Got in a new foreman, Heinie.
When he found out I'd been across
with, the A. E. F. he gave me the
quick dump"
Huh" says l. That's what l call
a raw deal. Didn't you put up howl
at the Officer"
Tried to-" says Bucky. but they
backed up Myers. SO I've been dom
the best could here"
1t wasn't much of an outfit ITO make
a living with. for a fact. Bucky ex-
plains that he didn't have the capital
to build his dollhouse right. Besides,
this soil down on the marsh was
mostly sour and ne needed lot Of
chemicals to cure it. II he could do
that 1t would be. just right for bulbs
narcissus, dahlias, crocus, gladioli,
ETC.: and IL he was able to lay In
stock for next spring he thought he
could make a good thing Of 1t.
Have you tried 'em down at the
bank?" says I.
Nothing doing" says he. "Old
Dishler wouldn't lend me dollar"
wouldn't, eh?" says !, scratchin'
my head. I'd just remembered how
1t was the Hon. Hi. Dishler who'd
made that spread-eagle speech when
we welcomed the boys home. and had
dragged Bucky up on the platform
and patted him on the back while he