Evening star., 1946-12-09
This and That
By Charles =. TracetDeH.
Il STREET.

'.Knowing that you and Tetnpleton
Jones and your other readers are always
interested in human nature, as well IS
bird nature, take the opportunity Of
telling you about the genesis Of rumor.
"Just how rumors get started Is always
q mystery. Well, here was actually
at the birth Of one. I heard it come
to life, as it were. and then proceed
full fedged in the wicked world.
'It was like this. / was waiting at
q bus station, standing on the platform
with oil the rest Of the people. Not .
bus was In sight.
"A large lady began to wonder II
there had been an accident. A friend
buses from coming, and the large lady
said that sometimes street car got
OF the track and that prevented the
buses from arriving.
"The large lady kept wondering If
they had an accident Since there
seemed to be no particular evidence of
such happening, the rest of us rather
prided ourselves on keeping our collec-
tive and individual heads. You could
just see that every one thought the
lady was little cuckoo.
"Well, at last, here came a bus. As
it came into sight, the large lady ad-
yanced her story one peg.
"I'll bet there has been an accident
she clamored. Still no one paid much
attention to her.
"As we all got on. heard her say
to stranger. Yes, there has been an
accident
80 from wondering II there had been.
she advanced frst to being willing to
bet there had been an accident, and
now at last she was announcing 1t as
an accomplished fact!
'As the bus started of downtown, a
small child shrieked out to its mother,
'Mommy, will we pass where there was
an accident? Mommy, will we pass.
ETC., time after time.
This ought to show just how rumors
get started, and carried on.
Sincerely, H. F. D."
Rumors are marvellous, children are
marvellous, and, as Saroyan says, the
whole world is marvellous.
The other day small girl was seated
on one of those buses with her mother.
She was saying rigmarole strictly
her own, but probably based on some
thing that had been read to her.
It went:
"The world can't move, can it,
mommy?
The sun can't move, can It, mommy?
THE world knows 1t can't move,
doesn't it, nnomny?
"The sun knows it can't move, doesn't
it, mommy?"
And then, over and over:
THE world can't move" etc, and
1.-THE sun can't move" etc.
Followed by "The world knows It can't
move" ETC., and "The sun knows 1t can't
move" etc.
The world and the sun went on know
ing they couldn't move for at least six
miles, to our personal knowledge.
r. X
Listening to what people seated be-
hind you have to say on = bus is almost
as much fun as going to circus. Some
lazy persons may even think 1t is better.
because you have to cbme home from
q circus, whereas on bus, when you
ret Oh, well. you're of.
But probably the worst bore on bus
is the busy newspaper reader who in
sists on poking you in the back OF the
neck with the edge of his paper.
Certainly . newspaperman ought to
be willing to put up with this for the
sake Of his craft, but sometimes IT Is
all one can do to keep from turning
around and announcing, Mister, ! have
worked on q newspaper for thirty three
years, but If you don't keep that one
Oh me ! am going to tear it to shreds.'