Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-12-05
AS ONE WOMAN SEES IT
An Inventive" Father Who Made
Saturday Quests" at Once a
Delight and an instruction
to His Children
BY SARAH ID. LOyYRIE

Gus, conversation he let fall d phrase about
ms father that remained in my mind until
later ON its significance was explained to
me by that father himself.
The boy had said
My father is very inventive with us
children. specially on saturdays
learned from the boys father that the
lnventiveness - specially on SATURDAYS
consisted in taking them TO see a sight char.
acteriStic of the city or of its environs and
OF enjoying the novelty Of it with them, not
SO much as mentor but as a fellow dis
Coverer
list of possible Sights" to be visited
or revisited would be submitted and n
choice of some particular object or objects
to be sought out would be discussed. And
as one who is shopping for particular
fabric or color or shaped article is led BY
her guest into variety IOt otheYStse nteE'
esting places and some advcnturdst so these
children and their father found that having
an objective of their own selection gave
an added zest to the mere act Of sight
seeing.
''As what. for instancct" was my natural
question of the party guide.
"Wcn,' he said. take fish as SUBJ
jcct"
Then I know where YOU went; the
Aquarium out in the park was my prompt
reioindcr.
But they went to several places before
that. That was only the end of the quest,
/ discovered.
They went down 10 the wharves and looked
about for fish coming in. and found little
or none to be seen in boats, but smelled the
smell of them in the nearby streets and
beheld the chaffcring for them in the for.
eigners shops down in the Italian and
Jewish quarters.
Coming up to the Twelfth street market
they viewed them munifCently for sale and
or astonishing variety on the counters, and
presided over the cleaning of more than
nnn int hnS nt hn,, oh md
one for their mother and ate it with more
curiosity than gusto at the following meal.
The next Saturday jaunt they spent In
the Academy of Natural SCienceS--an old
hunting ground for many quest-ponder-
ing the monsters of the deep anCk little fishes
stuffed or skeletons that are there displayed.
And the third Saturday they ended the
fish quest at the Aquarium, Every now ana
then they have continued to add to their
fish interests by pausing over fish in pic
lures and fish in stone and fish in ornament
while they were "Questing" other things,
and later on in their amusing careers they
will go deep sea fishing and brook trout
fishing and even Grabbing with their vcn-
turCsome parent.
T ASKED for one other subject of ''di-
vert" having found fish 50 happy Il one.
and the children's father generously gave
me two more that had of late proved sue
CeSsful. One was "idOS,' and in the course
of that quest they had not only visited the
various museums where idols most do con-
grcgatc" the University. Memorial Hall and
n private collection of Greek statuary casts
being the principal, but they also visited
some churches to comprehend. If possible.
the difference between hCathcn idol and
Il sacred image.
Being very much interested in the whole
subject of gods and half gods from their
Christmas books on mythology. and the
heroes. they adopted pet gods of their own.
even invented some. In this they were like
some children that | knew long ago who
had Il shrine for a dressmaking lady figure
of the sewing room to whom they offered
flowers and whom they addressed as God
dcsS Bodice | understand that thete later
children in further pursuit of idols m"I,
an up to. date missionary who knew some
very dangerous and cruel ones OF present.
day power.
The other subject mentioned had to do
with the places that Washington was known
to have visited or where he might have
been entertained in and about the city
That was n long and CircuitOus quest,
for it involved country houses in the park
where hc might have suppcd or dincd. inns
where he was said to have stopped. roads he
must certainly have Travelled. streets he
traverSrd. and, of course. rooms and build
inys in which he transacted his momcntous
business That quest ended with a super
lAtivc visit to Washington and Mount Ner-
non. with the chidren's mother along as
honorcl guest
UNDERSTAND that this winter some of
l. the future quests are to be "Ships," from
IIop Island to Cramps; "dcsks," old ana
new which will mean junk shops, factories,
schuols and retail stores aS well uS historical
snrcimcus; ''violinS." that will begin with
the maker and end with concert. and "a
niece Of rhocOatC' that will start, | be-
..,I L
ably end at soda fountain downtown.
The reason this sightseeing is done with
thc father aS the only adult j. that when
two or three grown-up get together they
are ant to listen and to talk TO one an
other and then the whole at'"ir gets tcachery
or else absent minded toward the children.
| asked the chldrcn's father if 1t was an
easy task for him to manage the thr"" chill
drcu and keep on their Level. lie said that
II was everywhere but IN the street, where
they talked continually somewhere about his
clhnN,s So he could not hear what they
said or understand half their QucStions
ar see the things they looked first at in
the shop windows, his eyes not being on q
level with theirs, for one thing. and his
mind not being quite as ir"" and easy as
thers for another. But one" hot un the trail
III the quest. they were NIL one age ana
81 far as ingcnUuuS interest went, one spirit
nf adventure uud gullihr belief in the pos.
sibjlity Of all rhuG". lie mad" it a point
To be rs ignorant aH lhrN Wrr"' ana ON"
r another was appointed 10 he the scout
"f the party to 60 forth and fluid some one
Vino r'c could explain processes or positions or
history or futur" plans,
It was part Of III" days pleasure, also
to recount all that had occurred with the
'tno.t freedom Of personal comment and
WOOD .r"od enough jokes" on their father or on
cnch other 10 their mother on their re-
turn.
fer diam a half holiday Of golf or base
Loll- tanning for family man, and sud-
Jrnly made all the rity's places of public
Exhibition. from til" Auuarlun to the Arad-
envy Of the Fine Arts, seem vastly NOR" i'm
uortpnt, more worth keeping MP and adding
to We are rather meek and npologctic to
yncsts and strangers about what is to be
Hod for the looking at in this town. liut.
os Il matter of fact, if one has the carfarc
and Il half holiday one" Il week and the
d"sire to widen his horizons he can cdu-
,otr himself in art and in science to de-