Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-01-25
HEARD AND SEEN

Reception committee for all the
children Of a big local hotel is the
job assigned Edward Heating. sec
rotary of the Joint congressional
commission on reclassification Of
salaries in the District. In this
pleasant duty he is assisted by Mrs.
Heating.
Washington from Colorado they took
up residence at the hotel. and have
been there ever since. They secured
a table near the door Of the dining
room. Then, slowly, for such self
imposed duties do not develop over
night, the Coloradians began to be
noticed by the children.
Many families live at the hotel
in question, SO many children trip
in and out those dining room doors
the fact that in Mr.. and Mrs. Keat-
ing they had friends. The big man
from Colorado. who demonstrated in
Congress his friendliness for the
laboring man, has a large place in
his heart for the children.
ings constitute a reception commit
tee at the door of the dining room
for the children, and there is not a
one, young or old, who comes In to
dinner who does not stop to say,
'How-do."
When the work of the reclassifica-
ton commission comes to an end a
big job will have been completed. Gov
eminent employees will be glad. and,
what is not so commonly known,
many of the classifiers will heave sew
eral signs of relief. too.
Not that the work has not been in
teresting in the highest degree. Any
work that has such a great motive
must be interesting, and all the work
ers agree that it has been, but there is
no gainsaying that the highly scien-
tific way in which it has been con-
Quoted has made it hard.
It is this very scientific method
which will make the Reconstruction,
many believe, a thing to endure New
ertheless. several of the clasSifiers will
be heartily glad the work is over.
II had a dream" one of the classi-
fers told me.
You know how the walls of build
ing D, where we have our headquar-
tiers, are constructed" he continued.
1.-The walls are made of compressed
paper board. and are made firm by
strips of wood nailed on the outside in
big checker-board fashion.
IT dreamed the other night that the
big squares had changed into big
boxes, and there I was at my desk,
grabbing clerks, stenographers, SCI
entists and other federal employees,
and throwing them bodily into their
proper compartments"
am wondering whether the Civil
Service Commission won't have to re-
wise it's application for examinations
now. The application blank is ia
miliar to the thousands of men and
women in the apportioned service. for
all of them had to fill out the appli-
cation.
Here is the question that seems to
need revising:
"l2. State in each case whether or
not you use any of the following, and.
if SO, to what extent: Whisky, beer.
wine, other intoxicating liquor.
"If you have in the past used any
of the foregoing. state which, to what
extent, and when you discontinued the
use in each case"
Those engaged on the scientific study
Of babies are about to probe the great
fondness these little creatures have for
handbags.
1.-THE exact cause for this discrimina-
ton has not been ascertained as yet,
declared the professor, waving one OF
the newest style handbags presumably
the property of his wife).
But one has only to observe as he
walks the streets to ascertain that the
babies have a most peculiar love Tor
caused by their eternal grasping for the
colorful or whether they associate the
handbag with the mother yet remains
to be determined.
Certain it is, however. that this ac-
ton on the part of these infants in in
not be ascribed entirely to their
fondness for the bright object I myself
have observed many infants clamor for
handbags of dull appearance
1.-The single theory of the association
of handbag and mother is as yet un-
tenable, since it Is certain that other
factors enter largely into the function
ing of the infantile mind in this matter.
1.-THE only thing we know surely is
that babies prize highly handbags Of all
kinds. They seem enamored. OF them.
They desire every handbag that meets
weenir,g fondness? Science will yet
show"
Honest criticism is one of the hard
est things in the world to get. There
are SO many. angles to every question.
SO many personal equations. so much
mental camoufaging, that behind
the-back" criticism is almost always
the most truthful, after all.
One of the symphony orchestras
that recently visited Washington
played q. rather classic but terribly
dull symphony. The second movement
was enjoyable, but the first and third
were boresome. just that. nothing
more nor less.
The conductor and his players got
good hand" all right. at the con-
clusion. But the real criticism came
from a young girl. a member of party
from one of the girls schools.
AS the symphony drooled, to close.
the girl turned in her seat. and: her
eyes shining. enthusiastically said to
"oh, Mabel, I like your hair so
much better that way"
= CHARLES L. TRACEWELL -