Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-04-01

~ - strange, tnlnk, now on day
4 s.cS varied experiences and much
s.enng and thitherins, one incident
Il II way OF dominating all the Others
n 70 the point Of worrying one with
lAsistency at the end Of the day
q Ne0 one ought to be asleep. A face
very little child has been recurring
~ the evening to me, yet at the time I
~ the child l was busy on an absorb
4 ne errand, which / pursued without
0uch thought at the moment after one
arrested step.
was' coming up Locust street and
80 just crossed Fifteenth street when
AN coming toward me forlorn little
oeoy child with SO curious an ex-
peossion on her mite OF a face that I
ceoke Into the purport of my thought
g consider her wonderingly. l could
not think what was so odd in her ex-
RSession until l glanced up and saw
mat the man whose finger she had n
slghe hold upon with all Of her little
Aand was a policeman.
THE two were approaching very
= slowly, and I realized aftcrward
sh!s was due to the fact that the rather
teu man was fitting his gait to that
very weary and very young child
1ne most obvious thing would have
Deen Tor him to .nick her up, and the
!Nason that he did not. 1t struck me
later, was probably because it would
nave added to her fright and bewi,dcr-
ment to find herself in the arms Of n
Stranger. AS the pair passed me somp
chauheurs, gatEere, near their waiting
motors. called something out to the of
ncer, to which he nodded and replied
Aconically:
know which -
And with that the cropping. question
I1nS anxious expression on the childs
race was Immediately explained. I
knew, too, in a fash what had seemed
20 odd about the little thing. The baby
look was filmed over for the hour BY
positive look OF age. At least IL
- o look on some old faces that have
lost their serenity and gentle humor--u
!ook OF helplessness and bewi,derment.
I've seen it in strayed dogs, but never
20 concentrated as in this bit of a child s
WATCHED the two--the grave, SOL
emn policeman and his ch,rge-cross
the street In the direction Of the sta
ton house and / wonderetl---what next !!
Then l brushed the episode aside and
cloeed down in pursuit Of nv original
and pressing errand and yuccessfuilv
forgot all about it. But now at the
enc OF the day it has come back and
taken possession OF me and looms larger
~ happening than all the other hap.
penings put together.
I SUPPOSE that baby Is found by
= now. Mt all events she IL In kind hands
ana has been fed and put TO sleep and
VIII have lost her brief hold on tragedy
oy morning And yet in another sense
she must carry the pain and dread OF
the lost feeling somewhere back in her
memory to make it's mark on her mind
Tor all time. if the psychologists are
right. just as / am carrying the fleet
Ing glimpse Of the encounter into my
sleep, doubtless to color all my dreams
ana tomorrow's reactions.
The question for us both, suppose ia
what must that particular impression
bs turned into in order to fulfill its err
randi II 1t Is preparation for some.
thing to happen tomorrow. or next day
20 me, to sharpen my imaE ton for
action. or il 1t is in preparation for
comething years hence for her, who sent
lit And why were We chosen, she to
suher and I, perhaps the only seeing
witness Of what lay back Of the look
n her face, to remember it SO sharply
GONE Of US were discussing the other
~ day the points Of vantage by which
one could gauge the character Of a place.
or OF q person. or Of a movement on
short notice. One Of the group, who is
q great traveller, said that to gauge n
place such as city or even country
town, he always made for the outdoor
park, or common, or green, or square,
or public garden, and observed the life
Of the community from that center of
play, repose and cross travel. Another
Of those discussing the idea announced
that she invariably found that one word
which was oftenest on the lips Of per
son indicated character very accurately.
6uch words as "plan." or simply"
or II mean or "why?" or "you