Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-07-05

do. You can be absolutely certain she isn't
going to let poor Pemmie last much longer
with her, MRS. Griggs."
Well think Mrs. Griggs was sorry she
came: she certainly got her comeuppance She
went out looking pretty sore, and It's fact
that without our having said word to Clar-
tssa about this interview, Mrs. Massey turned
out to be pretty good prophet. The very
next morning, ON the beach, a nasty fest Of
an Irish terrier belonging to the GriggseS and
named Larkie, picked on our perfectly inoffen-
sive, sweet-tempered spaniel Pluto, and tried
to tear him to pieces.
CLARR1sA dashed right into the night.
~ grabbed up Pluto In her arms and stared
to run away with him to save him from Larkie,
but Larkie kept leaping and swapping at poor
little Pluto: and then just before I reached
then I'D jumped up and was coming to help)
the vicious little beast turned his attention to
Clarissa and bit her In the ankle-really bit
her. too; 1t was worse than scratch. tried
to kick Larkie, but tried too hard for much
success, and Just then Pemmie Griggs came
up, took Larkie by the collar and put himself
between US
"Cut that out!" he said to me, pretty fresh
and turned to Clarissa. He didn't say any
thing about her being hurt apologize for
what his dog had done to her; it seems to me
one of the craziest things in the world, the
way people are about their own dogs. II told
you you'd better keep that old cur of yours on
q leash!" Pemmie said to Clarissa II told
you he'd get In trouble II you didn't"
Clarissa was so angry she was almost cry
ing. What about me? Ought to have been
on a leash, too?"
AS Mrs. Massey had foretold, the last of
Pemmie for Clarissa came pretty quick AS
she walked away with me, he heard her use
the expression "Fat-face!" and asked her what
she meant by 1t. She made pretty definite
reply, which I'd hardly like to repeat; but she
was in pain from her ankle, and excusable,
think. The gist Of it was that Pemmie had
better take his dog and go home and stay
there. Shed never be able to look at either
of them again, she intimated without becom-
ing indispoSed.
Mrs. Massey hadn't come to the beach that
morning. She was out for lunch, too, and IT
was late in the afternoon before she got back
ard was able to talk over this ruckus. THANK
goodness, we're all through with that War of
1912 bowling BALI" told her.
But Mrs. Massey shook her head; she looked
badly disturbed. That woman has an awful
tongue" she said. II saw Mrs Ruckleboys
this afternoon and she told me Mrs Griggs
was already going around spreading the word
that Clarissa had spent the whole Summer
trying to eusnare Pemmie, but was so open
about it that he'd finally decided to stay away
from her altogether In order to be let alone!"
WE'LL Of course that made me pretty hot, and
I said I'd go right down to the Griggses and
have the libel retracted, but talked it over
and saw it wouldn't do any good. There
wasn't anything at all we could do and so
after awhile went out to try and walk off
some Of my state Of mind in the open air.
hadn't gone a hundred yards before Eddie
Bullfinch went tearing by me on his motor
cycle with Enid in the side car thing they'd
fixed up together, and got shock that
brought my heart into my throat
There was a boy on a bicycle coming to-
ward them He got ratified and wobbled over
to the middle of the road and they almost
ran into him, but they swerved and missed
~ aI~o IAIR
pretty nearly sick, was so scared, and when
the boy on the bicycle came by me gave him
q sour look.
Cray idiot" thought, because of course
If they'd hit him, nobody knows how badly
Enid might have been hurt. whats more"
went on thinking, with good deal of tndig-
nation, "the boys mother would probably have
put part of the blame on her, and as for the
Bullfinch family, they'd have claimed Enid
was responsible for the whole thing!" OF
he was the worst hurt, being on a bicycle and
likely she'd have made terrible fuss.
People don't seem to be able to use their
reason or common sense at ALL thought
mot in any matter that concerns their own
children!" Well. sir, all at once it struck me
that this conclusion I'd just come to might be
applied to myself. and when did it, you may
not believe me but I was considerably startled.
It seemed to me I'd made pretty remarkable
discovery.
What happened to Enid would have looked
like a mighty minor catastrophe to the boys
mother, Of course, and I had to admit the
chances were he actually would have been a
good deal the worst hurt, so his mother might
have been perfectly justified in the fuss she'd
have made. Moreover, the Bullfnches would
have believed sincerely that it was Ends infiu-
ence over Eddie that got him to running too
fast and, going on thinking. carried this
strange new idea Of mine little farther.
When Mrs. Griggs looked at her Pemmie she
didn't see the bowling alley ball that Mrs
Massey and I saw when we looked at him.
She saw something lovely, and when she
looked at Clarissa she didn't see what Mrs
Massey and I did at all. Well, then what