Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-03-05
THIS, AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

Letters are among the most inter-
esting forms of composition. They
possess an interest far above that OF
the mere writing.
Whether they be written well or
III, letters furnish peeps into the
heart, as the eyes do into the soul.
1t Is scarcely possible for one to read
letter and not know more about the
writer than when it was begun.
The mind of the letter writer, like
murder, will out, only. in most cases.
the revelation is pleasing, rather
than otherwise. Even in the case of
the famous letter of Benjamin
Franklin, when he ended, You are
my enemy, and am yours. B. Frank
Uneven in such a case the fine art
of letter writing throws a charm
over all.
What is more delightful than a
pleasant letter from a friend? There
is slight trepidation before opening
the envelope-will one be pleased or
not with the contents?
No matter from whom the letter
comes, always there Is this initial
doubt. Like the future itself, a let
ter cannot be read through the enve-
lope. The seal must be broken, one
must be face to face with the con.
tents. before the letter stands out.
Though the contents deal with
trivial matters, or so would strike
others, they possess for the reader
all the charm of great matters. So
and so has been sick, but Is well
again; the town has changed great
deal; radio set has been installed;
old Sam Jones hasn't spoken to his
wife for q yeari
IL II ~ II
Because all letters are interesting,
and pleasant ones doubly So, we have
shared, from time to time, some Of
those received in the course of this
work. with the readers hereof.
The following comes from Charles
Town, w. Va:
Let me thank you for the pleasure
you have given me in This and That, >
not only for what you have said but
for the happy memories you have
awakened.
Many months ago you told us Of
your backyard garden on Estey alley.
the flowers that grew therein, and Of
the humming- bird that visited them.
THE story of that humming- bird
was a magic wand which made a sill
very-haired woman child again
held high in the arms Of dear uncle
to look down through mass of coral
honeysuckle all abloom. at the nest of
a rubythroated bird.
Il saw the mother bird on her nest.
later the tiny eggs and, still later, the
fledglings. And l have not seen the
coral honeysuckle and the ruby-throat-
ed hummng- bird since I left Indiana
my native State-early in Cleve-
lands administration!
I'm fancy 1 have wandered about
your garden with you. for you have
many of my favorite flowers, and !
have loved and grown flowers all my
life. Estey alley reminded me of an
alley in one of our citieS-a private
alley-which I transformed from an
eyesore to a thing Of beauty by teach
ing a neighbor that an alley was not
a depository for trash-and enlisting
the aid of the mayor, so that she
never knew to whom she owed the les
son.
After the removal of the trash l
planted flowers along the side, for
wire fence permitted the light and air
to reach them. Marigolds, asters,
calendulas, Zinnias, etc, made a vivid
splash of color, and the janitOr Of the
apartment adjoining moved the grass
There were no 'bush-hoppers' in
the neighborhood, and by giving flow
,ers and later seed to the children
about 1 enlisted their aid in preserving
the flowers.
II liked the freshman. the seed cata-