Evening star., 1921-05-08
HEARD AND SEEN

| Who is the first man most people
see when they come to Washington
Well. if they arrive between 1:l5
a m. and pm. it is most likely to be
/ Benjamin Franklin Cross. inspector
for the Capital Traction Company at
| Union station
| Thousands of people during the
, past nine years have talked to the
| sialwart, gray-haired man with the
tanned face and hands, and have al
ways received courteous treatment,
| without knowing his name.
| he is there in all sorts Of weathers.
! ON rainy days he resembles seafar-
| ing man. with his "oiiskins" and high
boots. But, however me day, he al
| ways wears d smile.
nQuestionably there are people all
| over the United States who have
| memories of the pleasant man at the
| street car stop in front of the Union
J station. He is always ready to help
| with directions. Seemingly there is
no address in the National Capital
! to which he cannot properly direct
| the newcomer.
| Especially he is the old ladies'
friend. He reserves for them his most
! courtly smiles. and his arm is ever
! at their disposal when they get into
| tIt green CARS.
| Mr.. Cross has been with the Capt.
| tai Traction Company since 1894. and
has been an inspector since 1872.
The modern child, especially the
apartment bred child, gets some queer
conceptions unless particular pains
are taken by the parents to acquaint
I Il -;,;o
| the great world.
| AS this is the task of a lifetime of
education. it is not to be wondered
at that the child Of today sometimes
jumps to conclusions which seem
, queer. Yet the child is not to blame
1 in the least.
! Modern advertising makes the child
well acquainted with certain articles
| in daily use. but leaves it unac-
| quainted with other articles which
| resemble them. Therefore. the child
| jumps at conclusions
! Take certain youngSter. Recent
ly. a woman who dabbles in art NOV
ed into the apartment, and the child
| was much Interested in her. Quite
| a friendship was struck up between
| them.
/! One day the woman invited the
| little one to view her box of paints.
| AS she opened the lid the child's
eye fell upon the tubes of paint.
| How many tubes of tooth paste
you've got.' he exclaimed.
| * 4
Nor is child TO be blamed for at
| tempting to make excuses.
Even grown-up people do that.
The ingenuity of some of the ex-
cuses offered by children is refresh
ing after hearing the time -hnnnTei
excuses given day after day by their
| elders.
The boys and girls have yet to
| learn the old-timer about the clock
| being wrong, or the street cars re-
! fusing to run.
They are thrown on their own re-
sources. Small Jimmy went out to
play on bright, sunshiny day. And
he got the sleeve of his new shirt
waist wet, playing around the fire
| hose or the hydrant.
When his mother saw what had
happened to the new waist, she asked
an explanation.
Jim looked as innocent as a three
year-old can on A sunshiny day.
why. l 'spect it's been out in the
rain,' he said.
A kindly woman who wouldn't
hurt a fiy''-although she is an in
dustrious swatter of them-feels that
| she hurt the feelings of a cat re-
! Gently.
! She was looking out the back win
| dow when she spied a curious-look-
| ing cat walking along the edge of the
| fence. The feline was spotted and
| Streaked like no cat she had ever
! seen before.
| She called out to others:
| There's the ugliest cat in town.
| No sooner had she said this. she
AYERS than the homely cat stopped
| and turned its head in her direction.
| Looking at her accusingly, the cat
balanced himself on the narrow top
| rail.
For a full minute he glared at the
| woman. whose sensitive heart beat
in apprehension.
"Why, it seemed to know just what
said about it," she said, afterward.
| CHARLES L. TRACEWELL.