Evening star., 1925-12-07
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

That's gratitude" exclaimed the
kind-hearted automobilist, discovering
that the man and woman he had
taken downtown, after he had picked
them up in the rain, had walked off
with the brand-new IS umbrella he
had left on the back seat.
In this column recently the writer
thereof presented at length the prob
lens of the man who would much
rather ride to work in bus or street
car than be gathered in by a well
meaning automobilist who takes one
only halfway
as witnessed in our first paragraph
above. And also by the following
letter:
In re your good piece In Friday S
Star. let me say that I picked you
up the other morning because I knew
you--on sight. I had a subconscious
hunch that / might be making copy
for you, SO I didn't introduce myself
as a good neighbor should under
such conditions.
II got a bit of mean joy out of the
quite evident fact that you didn't
enjoy the ride. and particularly, on
turning south from the Avenue, when
1t became quite patent that there
| your I1itil
that I might be the Blond Bandit
and bent on pulling a joke on The
Star and its readers, for no sane
bandit could expect to get anything
else out of the kidnapping of a news
paper man.
Il agree with you about halfway
carrying. Before a man wished an
old car on me l swore that I'd never
be guilty of that and many other
offenSes common to folk who operate
motor cars.
But l learned that it can't be
avoided except by doing no vicarious
carrying. Another offense I was go
ing to avoid scrupulously was Of let
ting something always be out of fix
when some friend asked me TO take
one somewhere. But found that that
was beyond me. 1t ever is the case as
IT ever was when was on the other
side of the question
X X
Between the driver and the non
there Is an unbridgable gap con-
tinued this automobilist. maintained
I think. as much by fate as by ex-
plainable circumstances. ] am usu-
ally a non for l walk a great deal
more than / drive and my sympathies
are wholly on that side.
but as " tiilo pithils up lOihS ou
don't know: it's an awful problem
When i first got the rattler that
serves, sometimes. as a car, ! lived far
out near an avenue. l came in often
| by street car. which nearly always
WAS jammed to the point of Suffoca
ton.
Frequently while waiting for il sc
or 10 automobiles would pass, half OF
them three-fourths unoccupied. Not
once in d blue moon did any one offer
me. or any others waiting with me
lift.
Il resolved to do differently when
ever driving in alone. On the frs,
morning thereafter that 1 did so
saw on approaching my corner two
ladies of seasoned years and looks
They were not the sort that | prefer
to flirt with, but | took a deep breath
and said to myself heroically that I'd
play the game squarely by taking the
first ones l saw.
II slowed up, waving my left arm
as usual. tipped my hat and suggested
they hop in. Their faces became tau1
and their heads went up in naughty
manner as they said coolly in unison
No, thank you They evidently
thought that / was worse than a
Blond Bandit I persisted in my eff
fort to do as I would be done by, but
other experiences were almost as un
satisfactory.
"In the last three years, having
done much long distance driving
alone, l guess / have provided gratis
for total strangers several thousand
miles of transportation. In only one