Evening star., 1953-03-29

wars raging, and rumors of other
wars filled the air. A great and
gracious queen, full Of years and
honors, died in London. A handful
of intranSigent Senators made
loud propaganda over the nomi-
nation of an Ambassador. An
atomic bomb exploded only $500
yards from a trench full Of officers,
and the officers lived to talk
about it.
These, and others, were legiti-
mate items of news, and big news
at that. But the biggest news OF
all was the oldest and most pre-
dictable event in the worlds ex-
perience. It was the subject Of
more conversation, perhaps, than
all the other news put together.
Spring was here.
Spring always has been big news.
There is a mystic flavor to this
most spectacular of seasonal
changes, a flavor that caused the
imaginative Greeks to invent the
charming myth of Persephone, an
nually resurrected to bring life
anew to the earth.
So this week, with fickle spring
unmiStakably in the air and In
the hearts of WashingtonianS, the
spot news has to take second place.
In recognition of a signal event,
The Star sets down here some
notable remarks, ancient and mod
ern, about spring-plus a few OBJ
servationS and comments OF its
own.
The flowers oppeor on the earth; the
time Of the singing Of birds is come, and
the voice Of the turtle is heoFd in our
Iond.-SoIomon's Song, ii:l2.
The first one family knew Of the
coming of spring was when the
little boy of the house came
proudly to his mother, clutching
q budding daffodil- bulb and all
in his fat fist. That same after
noon theyasaw the family cat in
the back yard, stalking the first
robin of 1853.
At that moment, without ref
erence tothe suns crossing OF the
equator a week earlier, 1t became
spring inaone household. And all
up and down the street, and ii
other streets and other settle
ments, other small boys were de-
spelling other flower beds and
other cats were plotting aRieid
Spring asa state of mind. rather
than as u rancmical fact, hit
town some time last week naay
have been that beautiful Sunday
when the cherry blossoms were
Just starting to open. Or it may
have been that warm and sunny
Monday, Of that changeahle Tues
day, or that Wednesday when
.showersa were predicted and the
deluge came. Conceiyably spring
might even have first impressed
itself on some people on Thursday
when icy blasts made the season
seem like winter again.
Last weeks weather was ample
proof of springs arrival, as a noted
American pointed out many years
ago: -
In the spring | have counted one hun
dred and thirty-six different kinds Of
weather inside Of twsnty-four hours. 1. :.
Probable nor east to soU'west winds, voEy-
ina to the soUshord and westoFd and
eostord ond points between: high and low
barometer, sweeping round from place to
pIoce; probable ure0s Of. roin, snow, hail
and drought, succeeded or preceded BY
earthquakes with thunder and lightning.
Mark Twoin.
Once we get over the present
meteorological hump, things will
take q definite turn. April now is
only three days on, and if you
think May is the best month Of
the year, there are plenty Of April
lovers who will wreStle you about it.
Not that April is as mild as May;
1t is probably the most changeable
Of months. AS a result it Is one
Of the most exciting. Anything can
happen in April, and Gas they .Sayl
usually does. It can get awfully
hot, as it did in 1915 when the
temperature reached 95 degrees.
And it can get awfully cold, as in
1928 when the mercury got down
to Is. April can be as wet as
sponge or as dry as bone, to use
two hackneyed SMILES. In 1889,
9.13 inches Of rain fell in the
month, and in 1942 the precipita-
ton was a bare half inch.
But when things are normal
hereabouts (as one can hope they
will be this year, April is just wet
enough to make things grow nicely
without waterlogging the area,
and just warm enough to encour-
age the strenuous life. The normal
mean temperature in April is 54.4
degrees, and the average rainfall
is 500 inches. That sort of weather
is guaranteed to turn thumbs
green and start people thinking
about yard work.
That God once loved garden.
We learn in Holy Writ.
And seeing sordens il the Spring.
| well con credit il.
Winifrad Mary Letts.