Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-08-03

Americas automobiles have trans
formed the citizens of the United States
INTO Nation of early risers, as tourists
| get up in the so-called wee small
hours" to gain time on the open road
Benjamin Franklin, who counseled
the Nation to rise early, would rejoice
to see the way Automobiles arise be.
] fore daybreak, to go hustling down the
road to greet the rising sun.
! This Is the season Of the tourist. Al
front gates throughout the Nation
families gather at or or maybe
am, intent on putting hundred miles
Tor so between them and home before
the heavy trafic begins.
This sensible action does more than
give them good start, however. IT
i gives them a taste of getting UP early
puts them in touch with the dawn, and
does something to their minds which
, they never wholly recover from.
The lure of the covers is one which
! most people have TO fight their whole
| life long. Sometimes 1t seems as If
school children and adults are equally
divided in their allegiance to sleep.
Small boys 5 and years old want to
rise at O'Clock. as every parent knows,
and. what is more. they want to make
a lot of noise at about the same time
Once they get little older, this desire
! largely vaniSheS.
Henry. it Il time to get up!"
Henry hears, but something in his
brain tells him to roll over and pretend
he does not hear.
Henry. If you don't get up this min
| ute. you will miss your breakfast"
The alarm clock has such hold on
people because 1t is such a necessity.
without the rat-tat-tat of the alarm
countless grown-up HenryS would be
late to office or at the golf course. They
! must fight the lure of the covers all life
long.
! The desire to go somewhere handily
takes a man out from between covers
and puts him on National Road 40 be-
fore he has tine to blink his eyes.
He begins days, perhaps weeks, ahead
made. articles purchased. There must
be endless discussion before the details
of the trip can be worked out.
1t would be possible. of course, to get
up at the normal hour. say am, eat
a leisurelv breakfast and start on the
journey at or O'Clock.
Who, however, can resist the oppor-
tunity of securing such big leeway
as is involved in starting out at S am?
An hour earlier is even better. but
5 o'clock will do very nicely. This will
give tne party Oh y IlUuIS vi COI1pdId >
lively free roads. And one can cover a
lot of ground when he has the open
road.
So the family sets the alarm clock
for o'clock. This allows plenty of
time for going back to get everything
that has been forgotten and to turn of
the gas and turn of the water.
An additional 10 or IS minutes
usually is secured. since it is not so
easy TO set an alarm clock exactly as
one might think TO look at the APP
paratus. In most cases the clock will
60 of at 3:45 o'clock.
Every one in the house is awake
when the clock rings, anyway, since
every one was excited over the pros
poets of the trip. 1t is good 10 hear it
ring. however. The clock gives an au-
thoritative air to the proceedings.
Under the stimulus of the alarm. the
family arises to its task. sleepily blink
ing in the unusual light given by the
electric lamps at this time OF the day.
when there is so little demand upon the
current