Evening star., 1925-08-30

"A q ramble every week, weeks
pass quick. I know the tall
domed proofreader will change pass
quick" to pass quickly" There is an
evil habit of sticking '.ly" onto almost
every word that serves as adverb.
Many of the best writer's of English
who know nothing about the language
believe that a word cannot qualify an
adverb unless 1t has "ly" for tail.
"Ly" is q form or contraction of old
Teuton words meaning like" or
having resemblance to-" and IL 1t
hurts your eyes or bruises your soul
to lool1' at the clause pass quick" the
Rambler will rewrite it and say that
weeks pass quick-like.'
The yaWns and ennui of turning out
ramble a week do not concern you.
Your only task is to look at the head
line. which owing to editorial skill
sometimes gives a clue as to what
the story is about. Then you peep at
the pictures and find them without
interest because not taken in the
part of the city you live In. Perhaps
you give your eyes the treat of sour
rying through a batch of names, and
not finding a mention of your an
cestors you yaWn, turn to another
page.
The Rambler finds it hard work
to turn out a story every week which
subscribers will cut out and paste in
their scrap-books. The Rambler
knows that readers of correct literary
judgment consider his historic rambles
the best American fiction, but there
are fellows who hold contrary
opinion. 1t is quite discouraging to
the Rambler. He was in The Stars
library a few days ago looking through
The Star file of 1852 for the purpose
of giving you something new and
ai 9
writer's on the paper were there and
their line of talk was thus:
Did you read the Rambler yes
terday?"
Nav
Neither did I.
"I read one of them things once
and had the hives for a week"
They're poison oak to me-"
Jimmie Smith read one once and
has been a cripple ever since
II heard that one of our oldest
subscribers started to read one of
them things and not only fell asleep
but fell out of the second-story win
dow. And he didn't wake up even
when he hit the ground"
II don't know how true it is, but
Billy Brown told me that he once
knew a man who read one OF those
rambles almost through
THAT reader was guilty of criminal
negligence. But, then. Dick Brown
never could get anything straighter
than an eyewitness
Now, the stuff you are writing for
the paper attracts wide attention and
il is very good, considering your EIni-
tations of intelligence, but the stuff
that I am putting over the city desk
is the best copy turned out in the
United States. When a publisher
who knows anything about good writ
ing gets wise to the work / ar. doing
the salary / draw down here will
look like peanut shells"
THE Rambler was telling you last
l. Sunday of John Philip Sousa. He
told You when and under what cir
cumstances John Philips father and
mother. Antonio and Elizabeth, came
to Washington, where they lived in
the southeast section. and he told you
that John Philip was born November 3,
1854. In the brick house now No. 636
G. street southeast. The Rambler
could rewrite all he told you last
Sunday. and, although it would seem
brand to you, he has so many
Sousa facts in his note book that he
will not take any more space in tell
ing you what he wrote about last
Sunday.
There is a granite monument in
Congressional Cemetery inscribed:
Antonio Sousa. born September %,
1924; died April 81, 1892; His Wife.
Elizabeth. born May 90, 1926. died
August %. 1908" A number of other
interments have been made in that
lot In 1860 three children were
buried there whose remains had been
removed from another cemetery. In
1866, 1875 and 1876 three children
were buried there. In November, 1891,
the remains of Prof. r. c. Bernays,
husband OF Elizabeth Sousa, sister of
John Philip Sousa. We're buried there.
In May. 1892, Antonio Sousa.