Evening star., 1923-11-18
Heard and Seen


weather map every morning at 10
o'clock at Union station?
Why, that is Richard o. Lazenby
Of the instrument room of the
United States weather bureau.
He has been drawing maps for
thirty-eight years-that Is how he
comes to do 1t so we'll.
Hundreds of travellers have stopped
in front of the big weather map, To-
Gated hard by the Pullman ticket
windows, to watch the unknown, quiet
man put in the chalk lines which in
dicate what the weather was and
will be.
He is a type Of the efficient gov
ernment clerk who does his expert
job day by day without any fuss
about It, minds his own business and
delivers the goods.
If you ask him where he had spe-
cial art training he will disclaim any
such knowledge with becoming mod
esty.
When a man has been doing a GER
tain work for nearly forty years he
gets certain facility. of course.
X X
Next time you are in Union station
about 10 am. stop and watch Mr..
Lazenby at his work.
A thick-set, silent man. he arrives
on the scene to give the passersby the
am. weather conditions In all parts
Of the United States. The telegraph
and even the radio have contributed
to this knowledge.
The big map. on a special quality
Of glass. Is ready to receive the chalk
lines from the hand Of the weather
bureau man.
He seizes bit OF chalk and starts
to draw.
curves-and failed-you will the bet
ter appreciate what a good job La
Zenby makes Of 1t.
AS If drawn with dividers. the line
curves accurately across the conti-
nent. Referring to a small map in
his hand, Lazenby puts in still others.
then seizes a piece OF yellow chalk.
with which he puts in temperatures
for the various belts"
His lettering Of high" and "iow"
compels admiration. Just as If it
were to last there forever, in the
sight of man, he chalks up those
words. There Is loving care given
that map.
Then comes the interesting work of
painting in the weather symbols,
which are put in with a stencil, a
soft paint being used
A yellow arrow indicates rain, a
blue one cloudy and q red one fair.
1 believe I have that right. Any
way, the symbols are on the bottom
of the map. with their proper mean
ings, SO no beholder can be fooled.
4
Looking at him drawing his map.
carefully lettering the early weather
prediction. he seemed to be a sort of
symbol himself.
There Is any amount Of work done
in this world that is so expert. so
perfect, that we commonly accept 1t
without single thought, much as
we do the rain. the sun and the wind.
Amateur and professional--the first
deserves credit-but the second can
do the thing.
Thousands. nay, millions. Of arti-
cles are turned out yearly, by men
unknown to us, which are striking
things of their kind and which we.
individually, could never think to
duplicate.
We go to a store and buy a tube Of
tooth paste. The contents are what
we pay our money for. but we have
to get the tube as container. And
such a tube is really work of art,
in its way.
Most Of us would have to market
our tooth paste in our hands If 1t
depended upon us to make the tubes.
They are made properly, exactly,
probably by machines. 1t is true, but
under the hands of craftsmen.
The amateur in everything has had
his praise. The professional maker
OF things deserves his.