Evening star., 1924-09-24
THIS AND THAT
nv G. T.. TRACEWELL.
q Int" each life some rain must fall,
Sepc days must be dark and drarx

| like a rainy day in any other CT.
| yet, because VIC happen to live herr,
| it is different, after all. When W.
read about il raining out West No
! pass on to something more interest
! ing.
] Let that rainstorm continue Is
| eastward sweep however, soon ye
! are talking about the rain, complain
! ing at the gloom of the day, our
! capillaries relaxed. cur tempers ar
| out of kilter.
The average person never gives Z.
| thought in his whole lfe to his
! capillaries. Most of us do not even
I know we have any ca apillaries- We
! wouldn't know a capillary if we met
! II in the middle of the road
! Webster says capillary is 80
! minute, thin-walled vessel, as tha
smallest Emphatic and hillary vc.
! sells, especially one of the minute
! blood vessels Ghe smallest barely
permitting the passage OF the biood
: corpuscles) which form networks ~
! nearly all parts OF the body"
! Some way or other, rainy weather
relaxes your capillaries. with the re
suit that you feel out OF sorts,
gloomy minded, mean 10 dogs sni
cats. Rain not only gets one 1cl:
1t affects one in direct physical
! way.
! Just how this evil work is done h
the relaxing process I am not aba
10 explain. Ask your doctor. lie viii
feel your pulse, look wise and talk
about the weather.
So there is some excuse for tia
grouches one meets on a street car
coming down to the office on q rainy
| morning. They are i'll, that IS All.
Their faces are not pale, their wa.E
Is as vigorous as ever, but thor
capilliaries are relaxed
Hence II is unwise to shove anoth,
man on a street car on a rainy day
Even the sweet ladies will growl 81
you II you dare ask them To ste.
| aside to permit your humble self u
advance down the aisle.
| Perhaps the most striking man
festation Of the effect Of rain on y
Snman system is the universal iat"-
| ness which besets Washington whei
| the water starts falling down abou'
am.
Every Government department.,
every private office, knows the effect.
| Of rain on the promptness of tho
| Office force. One explanation IS tha
on rainy morning people oversleep.
! aklng, perhaps, at the proper tim
they mistake the gloom of the RAIN
for The normal darkness OF cart
morning.
LNlnk the alarm clock i.
! wrong, so they turn over for anotheE
! MP. Some time later they will l.,
seen hurryins along through tn
| rain, trying to get to the Office elt
| time.
Another bane of a rainy Gay in
/ Washington is the fact that the lat.
| risers crowd the street cars TO over
| lowing. Whereas usually one may
! get seat on certain lines in the
~ hn - 8
on bright days leave for work a.
| $50 fail to get to the car track
until around o'clock
| Thus, all along the line, cars ar.
| unusually crowded on a rainy morn
ing. Undoubtedly some OF this crowd
ing IS due to use of street car hv
those who usually walk to work. Tn
number OF these latter, however. c.r-
tainly cannot be great enough to a
| count Tor the crowded cars Relax,
| caplilaries is what does it.
y *
Nothing that is can pause or s.ay:
me ne moon viii wax, the moon viii wsnr
Inc Inc mist and cloud will turn 10 rain,
The rain TO mist and cloud again
Tomorrcv be today
SHINING green trees, wet and gIiS-
| tenlng' help make Washington rainy
| days unique. Soddea houses, build
| ings, streets, automobiles. all theSa
L
| should keep her trees as long a.
| possible.
Asphalt streets turning from graz
1" Sllstening black is one Of the most
interesting phenonenons of a rsipv
day in the National Capital Liz.
so many things under our feet, Liter
ally or fguratively, this is some
| thing usually overlooked
Watch from a high office huildip-
the changes in the streets below as
rainStorm strikes the CITY. Tn
tranSformation from dull gray thor
oushfares. to shiny. black ones 5
quick and complete.
| with rush the rain makes the
transformation. Tops of automobiles
take on a shiny hue, roofs CLEAN,
under the water. haes flap against
the beating drops. If a stiff wind
arcompa MES the rain the fash O.
the white water careening off the
asphalt is striking sight
The number of women out in a
rain without umbrellas is a note
worthy thing. Just why women hate
would think. with their liking for
clothes, they would rather like 10
keep their dresses fresh.
| Nothing of the kind. Almost any
woman would rather get soaked than
lug along an umbrella The stubby
sort recently become popular has
helped some in this regard. bur
still women and girls go out or
| cloudy mornings without umbrellas
Men, on the other hand. are stick
lers for their umbrellas, raincoatS
and rubhers. They have found our
that dry pair Of shoes will wear
, about four times as long as a pair
constantly wet. There are many
youn gsters. of course, who like 10
sion 3lpnC in n in h,,+
after they reach the age of discretion.
wear overshoes.
/ * = y
The useful trouble of the rain.
Tennyson called it, in his dull "Idylls
of the King
Truly. rain in big city pays biz
dividends. Not only does II clean
the streets in a way that no street
cleaning department, no matter how
efficient can do 1t, but 1t clears the
. air. revifies it, puts oxygen into it,
ozone, pep
Sometimes the air OF a big city.
even a city as clean as this one, gets
sort Of musty. Especially in warm
weather is this true. Personally
believe that the widespread tree
system here helps great deal in
keeping our air pure. Where you
find trees, grass and flowers YOU ar.
lik ely to find good air.
\ rain, now and then, is necessary
, TO give the blanket of air over a ciiy
thorough washing. much as 4 good
housewife washes her blankets
This is the function of a rain in
big city. Here we have no need
for rain for crops, although we feel
better when it rains, knowing that
we do. When 1t rains on Washington,
| usually IL is raining in Maryiapd