Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-10-27
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES Z. TRACEEELL.

Autumn Is not exactly Autumn Il
many people unless they can make bon
fires with fallen leaves
There Is some possibility Of danger
from the pretty conf7agrattors, however
! as wei as chance Ct actual street and
property damage, including that Of In
JtIred shrubbery and trees.
1t Is not always realized By those
who set these leaf fires that certain
types OF street paving are hurt By
them
Many persons coufine such b.azes to
cutters, thinking themselves models OF
civic virtue IN doing so. when all the
time the heat is melting and tending
TO crumble the edges Of macadam and
certain other types OF streets. especially
In the suburbs.
Some Ct the outlying suburbs, in IN
attempt to stop this sort Of unconscious
mischief. have adopted strategy. In
stead of asking citizens TO desist from
their beloved bonf1res, they have pointed
out TO them the great desirability q.
saving the annual fall Of leaves in
order to compost it with lime and Ger.
tain chemicals for mulch for next
season.
Psychologists point out that more
memories are stirred, perhaps, by odors
than by any other factors whatsoever.
A certain scent. caught in childhood
cltngS tenaeiouSly to the memory as
well as to the olfactory organs. as II
were
Years may go by without that fra
GRANGE being caught again by that indi-
vidual, but once he smells 1t, though ii
may be in crowd, memories of child
hood days come flooding back to him.
He sees himself on the great pile of
sand near q home under construction.
He sees once more the faces of his
old playmates, forgotten these many
years. He realizes that he is looking
again at certain shrubs, glorious with
flowers, and smelling the same old fra
GRANGE.
1t comes In a fash. like the life his
tory Of the drowning man as it reels
through his brain faster than any mo-
ton picture Aim could be projected, even
in dreams
This is the spring OF memory which
Is touched, one may believe, by the
smell Of burning leaves and furnishes
one Of the real pleasures CT the bon
fire to many. although they may not
realize as much.
They may not stop to consider, either,
tAAdk tic OQIE VI LEAVES burning Is dCTlG
to many noStrils and utterly lacking in
any pleasure content
Making compost out of fallen leaves
and permitting them to mulch the lawn
as is" constitute two excellent ways of
disposing of them without any particu-
lar fuss and bother on the part of the
home owner
The latter way is coming into great
er vogue every year as householders
begin to see that the annual furry
about leaves is largely unnecessary.
The leaves will take care of them
selves if given q chance. Nature will
take care of them, as she does in the
forests, by piling them up around Shub-
berry bases and permitting them to
nestle down in the grass, and send
something of fertilization into the soil
all Winter long.
It is true that dry leaves win blow
around, but If a rain vets them down
good before they do much blowing they
are not inclined to be so restless. Per-
haps a good sprinkling with a garden
hose would serve the same purpose.
Stray leaves, especially if small and
in sufficient quantity, tend to mulch a
lawn. They protect the grass roots
from the cold of the Winter, and no
doubt furnish some elements Of fertility,
as suggested.