The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1941-01-21

HlhNt> 4 cunning Illle Mss As
kecty. parfum Is Ike an emo
ton. it must know how = say
goodbye You mus, be able 10 get
nd Of same when the MOOD
changes. Can you say that for me-
in the language Of advertising. not
more than ten words pleas
The minute saw dear old Pop
everything else went out of my
mind. He was pretty sick. Some
kind Of bloodelot had been travel
ing round his system and landed in
his speech center.
I can't make out what he
wants 20 say Mac warned me
Something about an owl Crazy
stuff. He mumbles so cant get
IL"
Pop opened his eyes and looked
81 me like he was empty. He was
in the biz brass bed in tho front
bedroom. the enc We al came out
n. In forty years he had worn a
hollow in one side Of II. II wasn't
!, any Use 10 try to move him over.
he'd roll hack.
OWL. he whispered. Wise old
owl.
7 knew night away what he was
thinking. I was near hawling. but
! managed 10 grin and say it
"A wise old owl sat on An oak.
And the more he saw the less
he spoke"
7 said this into his hairy ear and
1t hurt me that his beard smelt
of medicine instead Of whiskey. He
nodded and his eyes frightened.
That's right. Wise old owl sat on
oak. Good girl. Kitty Kitty wise
old owl"
That was a rhyme he used TO
quote 10 me when l was a kid
Fine fot you. sal Mae when We
went downstairs. Gee. I thought
I'd go nuts trying to figure what
he wanted"
4 never should have gone away.
1t was selfish Of me"
Don't be silly. kid. The old man
wanted you to 60. Besides l think
he got off easier than We thought
AT first. Maybe that amt real
-bloodClot I have q bunch its part
" boozeclot The old bum went
out on toot few days age. he
got into an uproar with some Of
the boys AT the ginmill. arguing
about Al Smith and Hoover"
You go on home and look after
Martha" I said. They were ex-
pecting a baby This is my job.
Maybe l really was good medi-
cine for Pop, the way DR.. Bartrum
said. After a few days we were
able 10 let the nurse go. We had
to. she annoyed the old man be-
cause she was so homely and as
his speech cleared was scared
she'd hear him Grabbing because
she was fat. DR.. Bartrum said IL
was remarkable what a comeback
he was making: but remember he
added. at 81 you don't come back
ali the way. Don't let him get eX-
cited. keep him in bed as much
as you can. II he wants TO get
downstairs after lunch it's all
right.
We soon got into routine Myrtle
was wonderful. Pop minded her
better than anyone else. Getting
him downstairs was a problem: If
II wasn't done just right he got
Jitters. Myrtle used 10 take him
sort of pickabsck IN her broad
shoulders. "Honeychile. YOU don't
spend all desc yeshs az de wash
tubs widout gettin' betty" He
liked 70 sit in the kitchen so We
put the old wicker chair in The
corner where he could see out the
little window and watch what
Myrtle took out Of the ice-chest. i
He'd stay there for hours while !
Myrtle went on working. talking
or grooming 10 herself. Once and a
while his eye would study the
pantry cupboard where the whis-
key bottle used 10 be. Mister.
you don need TO speculate dat
closet any mo. Ain nothin' there j
but groceries. ain no Popes tele- .
phone"
Maybe sick people would all live
longer II they sat in kitchens.
There's something alive about A
kitchen. the way il smells and
sounds and feels Afternoons 7 was
in my bedroom upstairs working
on the typewriter. Id hear Myrtle
mumblir2 away ard once and q
while Pop answer back No sub.
oullui folks don't drink TIE way
white folks does Dey don need 70
drink dat way, cullGd peoples
hear ain sunk 80 far down. Don
reed 10 fish 70 i wid whiskey."
Pop says something 7 don't hear,
and Myrtle cracks right back. .
Don talk 70 me bout Repeal You
been repeating it yo'self 70 ten
yeahs. OATS what put you where
20 q now. No, don you boiler fer
Miss Kitty, let dat honeychile get
on Wild her wuhk. Mister. don you