The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1920-11-19

little motor tour we took with Pinck-
ney up through the slate roof and
marble quarry section of New Eng
land and how we discovered Lulu
Pulley when we stopped at Simpkins-
vile for one of Mrs. Fosters chicken
dinners. Well, there was one other
chapter of that trip that might be
worth while sketchin' out. Anyway,
it got me kind of interested. I might
say it gave me a new slant on the
well-known human race.
First off we'd planned on only a
luncheon stop at this Pine Tree
Lodge. Don't they think up some
fancy names for them summer hotels,
though? Only none Of 'em is hotels
any more. No. That's old stuff.
They're either inns or lodges or
manors. l expect it looks better on
the letter heads and gives 'em their
only excuse for soaking you tran
silent rates that would make a Plu-
toria room clerk blush.
I must admit, though, that this
Pine Tree Lodge joint wasn't so bad.
Kind of a cute hundred-room estab-
lishment facin' little lake snuggled
in between the hills. And out in
front is whale of a big pine tire, a
regular old he-pine, that waves it's
branches 80 feet or more above the
third story dormers. Had quite a
cheerful lobby, too, with big fire.
place at one end and stable ball
room openin' off one side. Also the
eats were fairly good and the jazz
orchestra was as lively and noisy as
any collection of banjo thumpers and
saxophone blowers you'd find along
Broadway.
That wasn't why we stretched it
into an overnight stop, though. No.
Partly it was the steady drizzle that
set in while we was havin' our lunch,
and partly it was meetin' up with the
Oggie Blairs. You know it was along
towards the end of the season, Just
after Labor Day, when those places
thin out so sudden. So, just as our
party of four assemblies to advance
on the head waiter, and we're
glancin' around the almost empty
dinin' room, Pinckney registers joy
"Oh, I say, Shortly" says he. "See
who we have with us. The Oggie
Blairs! A bit of luck, what?"
"Some might call it that" says
Personally I shouldn't get thrilled
over meetin' Oggie anywhere. But
then, neither would he over meetin
me. So it's stand-off. Chiefly we
split over the way we talk the Ian.
guage. / understand he thinks use
some kind of dialect that he calls
pure Manhattanese," and a standin
joke of his is to ask Pinckney to
translate some of my remarks. Now
I'll tell you how Oggie talks it: he
uses a Ham. Mabie imitation of a
Copley square imitation of Lord
Dunsany givin' lecture and chewin
marshmallow at the same time. He
tells about "having bean thea-uh
lawst season; y'know," and things
like that.
Then there's Oggie's method OF
sizin' up folks. The ones who count
either have lots of money and read
The Atlantic Monthly, or else they
read The Atlantic and haven't much
AS for the others. they're only useful
in swellin' the census reports. Oh
maybe, they're needed to work in fac
tories and run trains, and clerk in
stores and so on. But of course
they're socially impossible. Oggie is
alinsistin' on that point.
And yet in his way expect Oggie
Blair is more or less entertainin'. He
\ has line of chat that's kind of
bright and snappy, specially when
he's among parties that it'll pay to
be nice to. For the Blairs amt such
plutes themselves. They're the kind
who've had it left to 'em and have
more some day if the will reads right
Meanwhile they're scrubbin' along
the best they can with only two
maids and closed coupe that Oggie
picked up at a bargain two seasons
back.
So maybe you can guess that Oggie
is just as glad to see Pinckney as
Pinckney is to see him and ther
some.
ooh, I say, old chap, but this il
perfectly rippin', y'know!" he ex
claims, jumpin' up hasty. "Madge ant
were just wondering whatever We
should do, stranded here in thi'
beastly little hole. But now-Say
can't we join forces? What about /;
big table for all of us? I say, m.
mani" and he snaps his fingers a
the head waiter.