Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-10-24
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

the soft Spring turf in the most pleas
ant manner, and comes out with Few
grains Of dirt clinging to it. >
After a protracted session at num-
blety-peg q knife blade Is secured and
polished and made sweet and shining.
There are few games which bring boys
into closer contact with the earth, and
for that reason alone 1t should never
die out.
A person who has got beyond the
mumblety-peg stage, however, will ind
great many more uses for pair OF
scissors than for jack-knife.
II you carry a so-called mechanical
pencil, you have no use~4or a knife in
that respect. and II you prefer to use a
wooden pencil, the grinder sharpeners
are available almost everywhere in
business circles.
upSed for personal toilet uses. Such
jobs should be done at home. and not
brought before the public. 1t is true
that many men still pare their nails on
public vehicles. but then, a great many
expectorate in waste paper baskets,
too. If you do 1t at home, do 1t here, "
ran the old sign. I'VE want you to
feel at home"
No, the use of the small pair of scis-
tasks. One of the most important OF
these is to cut out clippings from
papers and the like.
One Is forever running across some
thing or other which he wants to cut
out, either an article, or an advertise
ment. or q picture.
Advocates Of the jack-knife will tell
you that this Is the most excellent in
strument in the world for this purpose,
but the fact is that a knife is no good
at all for this use. If 1t Is not very
sharp. If its edge is keen, usually It Is
SO sharp that it cuts through several
sheets instead of one.
+ II
If one is a home movie fan, Of which
the number is constantly increasing,
the small pair Of pocket scissors is in
dispenSable. One uses 1T to cut film, to
splice, and do all sorts of tricks in
making "dutter-in" titles.
The horticultural enthusiastic, too,
will discover many uses for q small pair
of handy scissors. which may be used
to clip diseased leaves from rose bushes,
even to do small jobs of pruning. In
the collection Of cut flowers for the
house they are essential
Some one might object here that the
person we are describing is essentially a
home loving type, and that he would
love books. too, and that pocket knife
would be necessary for him to cut the
pages of his new uncut volumes.
The truth is that good jack-knife
is the worst instrument for this de-
lightful task. second only to the Joy of
reading itself to the person who loves
books as things as well as for their
content.
A pocket knife Is too sharp.
Most book lovers have discovered the
errors of their ways when they at
tempted to use a sharp knife for this
delicate task. Instead of keeping to
the even track Of the fold in the sheet
the knife cuts through. and suddenly
slices a neat way into the margin.
To the book lover this is most dis
concerting. An ordinary dinner knife
is not sharp enough to so cut into the
paper, yet possesses a keen enough edge
to cut capably along the crease.
Youth will prefer jack-knife; mid
dle-age may or may not take to the
scissors; no doubt there are arguments
on both sides. But if gentlemen take
up the scissors. let them be sure to
get blunt pair. and preferably in a
leather case.