Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-08-29

button eyes, Lester. a putty-colored
complexion. and slick black hair.
Not such an imposin' young gent
to look at. I'll admit. A sub-feather-
weight, any way you took him. But
then Piddie don't hire either mental
giants or young piano movers when
he needs a new film clerk. Thinks
he's a great judge, Piddie does, too.
gettin' when he took on Lester Nudge.
1t was a month or so before we got
much of a line on Lester. Seemed
| to be about the average as hiln
clerk, pulling bone now and then,
but mainly doing his work well
enough and going about it quiet. His
J only fad appears to be collectin clga-
! rette and cigar coupons. Every
lunch hour I'd hear him holding up
different members of the force, asking
him. If he couldn't get the things
| by beggin' he'd offer to buy EN- with
extra work or by runnin errands and
,, SO on. And for enough green and
yellow slips he'd swap anything ne
! had on him. He even taek H me- don.t
burn up enough tobacco to make 1t
worth while Never get en-: .
"But You ought to-" says Lester: '1f
YOU don't take them the trust gets so
much more out of the public. Take
them and save 'ern for some one who
does collect 'em, just as matter OF
principle. You can get swell prizes, you
"What you got your eye on. Lester,
| Just for Instance says l.
"Split bamboo trout rod" says Lester.
ITS a dandy; silk wound. agate guides,
nickel plated multiple reel, n'eVerything.
Perfect peach"
Didn't know you fished?" says l:
| 81 don't" says Lester. but II had
| that / might-next vacation time. Any
T for S00 uhnla commons
and / got about 1900 now"
| SO I worked up sort of an interest in
Testers collection. / used to ask MIN
occasionally how he was coming on, and
| whenever l did patronize the cigar coun-
! ter in the arcade I'd make 'em give me
| the coupons and I'd stow 'em away until
| | could pass 'em on to Lester.
| How near does that fetch you to the
fish rod?" I'd ask.
| "Oh. I'm working for a cabinet music
| take $500 and I'm nearly up to 5000.
! Say, Torchy, why don't you lay in your
smokes Saturdays? They give you double
ones then, you know"
DO they?" says 1. ''Fll try to remem-
| Der that"
Funny how you'll follow up some
simple thing Of the kind, like votin'
contest or a hunt for some lost girl.
expect I was just as much Interested in
the growth of Testers coupon collection
as / was in tryin' to dope out which two
| of the big legue teams would play off
the worlds series. More so at times.
And half the Office force was the same
way. You'd think it was one Of us that
had chance for the music machine in
stead Of Just Lester. But the earnest
| indoor sport. 1 believe some OF them
young hicks in the bond room near
smoked themselves black in the face
just to add to Testers coupon pile. He
kept it in the big Office safe. by special
permission from Piddie, and every Satur-
over the piles Of ticket packages. hand
lin 'em fond and gloatin' over the num-
Der like a miser countin' his gold.
| Finally the word was passed round
that Testers collection had passed the
seven-thousand mark and that If he had
his usual luck, and there were no quit
ters on the force, the mahogany cabinet
affair would be his within a couple Of
weeks. Course. 1 congratulated Lester,
nrst chance / had.
GOOD work. Lesterv' says I. "But
I'm glad the strain is most over. Pretty
soon 1 suppose you'll be blowin' in all
your spare cash for gold seal records
and sittin' up half the night playin'
EN-"
But Lester only shakes his head.
mo-" says he. i've changed my
mind. What I'm after now is a motor
cycle"
"Oh. have heart, LESTER" says
I. "How-how many?"
| twenty-five thousand" says Les
ter. tossing up that half-portion chin
"z-z-zingw says I. Say. what do
you take us for. anyway-Erie
freight engines? Why, you'll have
the boys smokin' overtime"
"oh. I guess we can do it," says
Lester. Il have some of the fellows
in the other offices lined up for me
and 1 known of one or two small col
lectors who might be willing to trade
in their patches. Then there's a few
private parties I amt tackled yet
Anyway, I'm going to get that motor
| cycle. It's beauty. I was just up
to the premium rooms and looked it
over-four cylinders, three speeds.
and can make 20 miles an hour easy"
But $4,000 coupons. Lester" I
gasps. That's an awful lot"
Not for me-" says Lester.
I was telling Piddi4 about it soon
sitter: Think Of that, Piddie.~ says
IL The lads ambitious, eh?"
Piddfe shakes his head solemn, "A
] very low Ambition.-- says hA In