Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-08-15
HEARD AND SEEN

1t was long after midnight in the sort
Of ampitheater formed by the backs of
two rows OF houses and the sides OF two
apartments at either end.
The last automobiles had reluctantly
chugged into their garages. the last
garage doors stormily creaked to. the
last person who could get along with
two or three hours of sleep had gone to
bed
Real silence Of the kind seldom found
in city permeated the ampitheater.
even as the darkness held all in Its
grasp. Hundreds of windows opened
into the long space formed by the alley
and the back yards of the houses.
Suddenly an awful clatter smote that
silent space. Bang. bang. rattle, bang
The reverberations caused by a cat in
tumbling the top of b garbage can
echoed loudly. Children were awakened
from their sleep.
Then, with a tremendous chatter,
another garbage can top smashed to the
ground and noisily rolled down the alley.
The noise continued for a few seconds,
then all became quiet again.
Hundreds of persons must have been
awakened by the noise. but no one said
anything. None leaned out a window
to throw anything at the cat. Only one
man, evidently bowler, seemed to
take cognizance of the noise.
Out Of some window in that ampi-
theater his voice came sailing. in the
silence sounding like the voice Of a
giant:
said.
4
Most people in Washington have
| little sympathy with the person who
is forever Knocking" the govern
eral service here contains some of the
finest, most capable men in the city
and that the average of intelligence
and ability among government work
ers is fully as high as in any other
group of persons.
across something that makes one sus-
picious and it is probably through
meeting something or other like II
that some have gotten grouchy about
government workers.
Malcolm Kerlin, who was assistant
| city postmaster here, after leaving
the government service for q few
months. was asked by the Post ONCE
Department to return as head Of post
al savings.
1t was big job and the words OF
the Post Office Department officials
were So flattering that Mr.. Kerlin &C.
Icepted and shortly thereafter was
established in the big Office vacated
| by Carter Keene in the city post office
Not long thereafter a responsible
official of the department CHANGED to
see the new director of postal savings
In a lunchroom. Now, the position Mr.
Kerlin has is good one. indeed, and
one naturally would have thought
ment would have been aware of who
got 1t.
We'll. there's Kerlin." remarked
the official to a companion. Whats
he doing since he left the service?''
~
| Human nature in it's varying as.
poets has been prettily brought te
light by the retirement law for civil
service employees of the government
| Some of the superannuates want tt
be retired and some do not. But thai
was something to be expected. q
broad and characteristic phase Of
human nature not to be wondered at
The unusual phase comes in the
reaction of some of the elder clerks
to the unusual publicity which has
been given them as the result of this
retirement law ana Its enforcement.
Some of the fine old fellows like
Sthe publicity and some Of them do
| not. Some are glad to have their
| friends know all about them, how old
they are, how long they have been
| in the service, what they intend doing
when they retire August 20.
The antithesis OF this came when
one employe wrote to the Secretary
of the Interior complaining against
the publicity being accorded the re.
| tirement.
when came into the service. >
he declared. nobody put my name
| in the paper"
CHARLES E. TRACEwELL.