Evening Star Newspaper, November 1, 1925, Page 104

THE § UNDAY , STAR, WASHINGTON, D. ¢, NOVEMBER THE RACING FOOL BY GERALD BEAUMONT He Returned as the King of Speed to the Town in Which He had Been ADING sunlight vielded to pur-| ple shadows that curtained a | vast speedway from which 60,- 000 people were making their way fleets of motor cars and long lines of suburban trains High in the covered stands, a band | was playing: “Oh, Gee! If It Only | Was Me And down below, the voice | of “Bill the Dogman” addressed the | departing spectators of the Knicker-| er Cub Racc Well, hungry Self-st latest model oughly lubricated Frankfurter Sp dime, and the next 1 dre stands stagge Doyle, pit mar team; voung Che the nd between them the Wild Tom” Meredith, j0-mile classic Just concluded rms were around the is supporters. Oil and mask out of which were flat and lifeless His long legs drag: toward hoc | 3 ‘way dogs! The 1y equipped and thor- | « inclosed wow! A iv! Who's go hot it's a vou drive it aw the sber fly om under 1 three men, Biut ger for the Butte formed stared eyes t as tho ged helple “Get 1 Doyle. e of a fish the table,” panted up! Now give me no! You can't bend his clothes off. Ewsy, old champ! Let go It's all over—just No. for the ripping o Then the pit naked flesh, and the all-pervac odor niment The man on the table held forth his right arm pleadingly The fingers were curved stiffly to the shape of the driv- ing wheel Doyle und Cheever bent over the suffering man, rubbing the knotted 1muse covering the dull eyves with Jiot cloths, massaging the long limbs, striving to restore circulation and al- leviate his distress Downtown, the sporting extras were dy the streets proclaiming in lines the t mph of the wild the ways. They carried pictures of the hero, photos taken be- fore the race, revealing clean-cut, sood-humored featur wreathed in the smile that press photographers in- sist shall be worn by every celebrity on whom they train a camera. “Lucky _dog! id the public. “Twenty 1sand fer an afterncon’s work! G b earned at that! Sure some drivin’ fool! He'll get his some day; they all do? Under the vigorous massage dith gradually relaxed. Back of the closed eyes a tired mind was t ng to figure how much would be left of the $20,000 and the lap-prizes after he had split with his backers, rewarded his mechanic and pit crew, paid up his season’s debts d laid aside neces: ary funds for a campaign on the coast. The problem was too much for him. Ten yea of America. Silence. ardine cloth palms against save Mere- of life on the speedways had tamed the soul of Wild Tom Meredith. In the eves of the public he was still the captivating figure of old. Press agent i woven around him a thousand colorful tales and his s sion in life had been to live up to what was said of him. No man had striven harder to keep falth with t public. He was the supreme draw card in a motor-mad a racing driver whose name w ymous with all that was picturesque and ro- | mantic in a game where life I3 a can- | dle wavering in the wind. In reality Wild Tom Meredith now a quiet, serious man of 35, whos veal story, if he had one, was u known to his associates. He was one of a small fraternity of professional drivers, numbering but a few dozens out of a population of 120,000,000, w traveled over the country in answer 1o the call of a public which demanded its_thrill-glutted holidays. The white belt and white shoes that Eet off the black costume were not of Meredith’s selection. Langfield, who guided the destinies of the Butterfly team, had demanded distinetive attir Tt was L gfield who had wished upon | him the sobriquet of “Wild Tom.” It was Teddy Langfield who tipped off a | 7 per man to what we rsad 10 be a professional secrat among the drivers. Tom Meredith was particu- | Jarly wild during the full of the moon! “You don't have to take my word for {t.” said Langfield. “Ask the boys. He's crazy when the old moon is round as a bal- loon tire none of the mechanics will ride with him. Go see Hans \ or De Pulva—they carry calend with the full moon dat marked red ink, and if Meredith's booked to drive at that timo u’'ll see those the pits early in the race re This was one of the few stories that had any basis other than the imagina- of @ press agent. Most racing had thelr pet superstitions, sufficient had happened to war rant the friendly cautfon in the dress- ing room: “Louk for Wild Tom when the moon’s full.” ha supt ¥ | | | JOW the strain was telling 6n the | N man who had been a public idol | dec had mad ing him the in- or of which new triumph but appetite and added | His expenses in-| * him | e he Far fron dependence and he dreamed, vhetted the publ to his_obligations creased. welding new chains of bond-/ 4 while the margin of yea remained to him grew less None knew better than Wild | true significance of the checkered flag, { symbol of victory on the speedway This was a game of sunshine and | shadow, and the shadows predomi. nated. But he w fear formed He had s from behind telegraph poles. 130 miles an hour and thundered over freak cou rough that he only knew he w the track by the fence on either side. | Men had been burned to death under | cars that he was compelled to pass | agaln and again without knowing| whether the vietim was Bill or Harry | or Joe. More than once he had been spattered against a fence, and had| wakened in an “anatomy garage” to | find, much to his astonishment, that | he had cheated the under ker H.Aln.l N he was not aid! But the routine of the professional driver’s life | had satiated his soul and filled him | with rebellion. The same old ques-| tions from young reporters. The! never-ending round of entertainment from chambers of commerce, motor | clubs and speedway promoters. The official reception. the stag dinners. verywhere they went, particularly In the small towns, enthustastic offi- clals labored under the delusion that it was necessary to show the boys a| good time. They thought that be- cause Wild Tom Meredith could circle | a track faster than any other man in history, his morals and tempera- ment were in tune with his car. | Nor could he dodge these entertain- | ments, for they were arranged in| zood falth by the -promoters of the | meets, and his presence was a matter | of contract requirement. After all, it was part of the game—the necessary steps toward awakening community Jnterest and enthusiasm in support of approaching race. -h < afraid. Physical | of his make-up. grinning at him ! ourand trees and | He had fis ks lke g not no part de: | HIPDEN in a bluegrass | kil ' my father; and for another, I am | you need the moonlight and me! You an Qutcast. All this has been told to show what | manner of man it was who had won the Knickerbocker cup race, and wa thereafter carried to his room to be put to bed by a veteran of the pits and a youngster who had yet to learn the full drama of the game. kKR It valley that | € resembles nothing much as| “old Kentuck’,” and only 30 miles|p from San Franclsco as the crow flies, |1 the little town of Calora drowsed in| the sunlight meditated the | past. Once, Calora had known the glory That was in the | silver spend go, when fair | formed the so 1 and on : t { | | of a rare prosperity heyday of California thrifts,” a half century women and fast hor: toast of millionafres. The quaint charm of this secluded village was discovered by first one wealthy sportsman and then another Haciendas were established on_ the hills, and presently these looked down upon a race track owned and operated by men whose names were known na- | ¢ tionally, and to whom money meant ¢ but little. = But these things passed with the zeneration that was responsible for hem. Calor had been the toy of ch men, and in an age of commer- lism such toys were shelved great water corporation spread its tentacles over the valley, throttiing a1l efforts at development. Rural it was, and rural it remained, a study in still life—the only community in Cali fornia that had not grown in 40 years Calora was off the beaten path! those broad macadam highways alon, which the State's development has taken place. Nor could Calora, of its own resources, build the necessary | concrete roads to connect up with a | system by which her more fortunate er communities profited Calora lapsed Into a Sleepy Hollow state of existe ¢ village so utterly unlike any other in the Golden ate that one motion-picture director shot it as “My Old Kentucky Home." And the only way of improving the picture_would have been to Diana Davis in the lead. For I was as different from other Calora was unlike other towns. No doubt the bard was right, and there i{s nothing in a name. Never to young Tom Meredith, who was born and reared in Calora, Diana Davis suggested the mystic beauty of the moonlight—calm, serene, virginal, vet potent with a charm that soothed his_restless soul. She was the daughter of the village minister, and he the son of the town | ¢ drunkard, and, of course, they in love—deeply in love! Young Meredith's sins prompted by the restlessness that he set his soul. His father had been a gentleman and a sportsman—a lover of fast horses, one of the sn up of millionaires who squandered their wealth on Calora in the early days. He was the only one who stayed stayed until he had drunk himself into a pauper's grave and had been pointed to for years as the town's horrible example. mall wonder that Calora looked with suspicion on this man’s son, and that Tom Meredith in turn looked forward to the day when he could escape from his native town and never return. There was only one who seemed to understand him better than he under- stood himself, and on moonl hts he crept to their rendezvous, the sweet-scented magnolia tree that marked the entrance to Diana’s home. There he worshiped as reverently as though he were standing at a shrine. In the daytime he ha the ugly little town where nothing ever hap pened. But at night, when the sws brought thelr veil of illusion, a strange exaltation came to him The time came when the wild obses- sion to run beyond the limits of a ntry road became too strong to All of o tremble, he sought ectheart one night, and pleaded passionately that she embark iwith him upon the Great Adventure. And Diana kissed him on the fore- head and regarded him with tear filled, comprehending eves, the while she shook her head and bade him go forth alone. “Not that T don't love you, dear,’ she told him. “I do, and oh, so well! But this would be foolish and wrong, very wrong. For one thing, it would t It t t | ¥ f t 1 I i were were all 1 |t t |n 1 IR afraid—afraid for both of us.” “Why?" he demanded. Diana shook her head, plucking 1 thoughtfully at the leaves of a mag- 't l)l;\:\"\_RE( \Rl}B!.) “Life fsn't all moon- | A man's place Is in| nolia blossom. light, Tommy. the sun, and you won't be hap won't really understand vourself until you've gone out alone into the big world and fought and won. That's what you need now, dear want glory, action and the respect and admiration of even your home town. Go away, Tommy—I know you have to go; and sometime Calora anll) I will both be proud to welcome you | back. Good-bye, dear, and God's Iuck Their lips met for the first time, and the vision that he hore away with him, sycamores Diana came to accept this from some side Now stars and t} ceived. “Adieu, who for | that Tom America tory to establish him as the k what 3.000 miles away | from for the town m; Speedw | But | achieved S (ha"]])nnlcls broke the water pitche whoop and hurrah! baying at thHem from the darkness: s he trudged down the dark aisle of s Diana waving farewell n the moonlixht. g JT took Tom Meredith three years to find himself. Somehow the word drifted back to alora that he was dead—and in time s th ex he had not written. ler's had been a dream romance, as agile and mysterious as the moon- ight. She prefarred to think of him s dead, rather t n faithless. He might well have died, but for he prank of fate that snatched him the darkness. The famous classie” wa, being run the Los Angeles race—a 19-hou planation of why desert hose Phoenix wgainst ure. iny desert town in which Tom Mere lith was stranded. le was among he station loiterers when Jacque Fournoy, the Flying rame flashing up at iolden Submarine, one side car crushed flat, and his 1 nconscious from the pain of m. The officials had mac sion for substitute mechar hey said But the zreat man's blood was up. Wk for mechanic! roarved. “Give me fool to pump il and look hack and I get out of here!” Destiny took young Meredith he shoulder and shoved him forward fe said nothing, but climbed in be the Frenchman, who pound him on the back, and shouted: *Bi we win or we die, re which! Allons T departed in a cloud just as the nearest pursuer behind them. What a ride! rush of the n exhilarati d: to road auel dusk in the of of dust rolled in Moon and nd soul dreaming had never dust and ¢ o Phoenix n the desert! under speed vagabond of Cal Covered . they rolled it and find & them in urnc v young cquaint Looking 1r Fren that was ledicated hims iermes, God of He rode with Fou e daring Frenchman’s methods the day came when they overtu luring the Grand Prix urnoy, hope ing lant hand Meredith yment extended \bsorbing pered mon brs Play e you be luckier zan 1 ng afterward Meredith to America, established th th Butter entually his first N did_he ad marked In a delicious mo- ation he scissored rd mailed them to Diana, the one person in all the world felt would understand. Back came a letter full of the praise which he hungered. He fancied certain lines were tear-stained > wondered why—wondering un- read the clipping she had in- losed, a faded item from the Calora Sun that described marriage of Diana Davis and “our e W tow, Peter So hi re. turned tior team winning reak the he passing y Il the clippings famous ars of self- and til he sman, lora father § Al Tom Meredith « tragedy as clearl een an e ing _he pbedience. It was sk Meredith ereafter that Wild fame as the f the speedways. And Knickerbocker 3 almost within triple-A, crown-symbol on the speedw needed but one mc ed erelgnty He Now you hegin to understand what he moonlight meant 1o Meredith, and was in the heart of Diana, en she inspired lora to awaken w of C: Van old and homage he little town its Rip convert the motordrome »ublic ade, race track ummon the man a boy, go forth alone. Wally King tock all the ¢ the idea, but it was Diana srougit the promoter into town, and old him the history into back he “ had as edit HIM WITH TEAR-FILLED, COMPR and I don't| in | time and the obstacles of na- | Half way on the route was the | Frenchman, | no pro- | by | Winkle slumber, | | fered but who | of drunk! be busted n town back year “Well, we ain't > ahead in vears” said Trustee Smith what's the difference, you old That's what words, we'll ki et this yiare Mark hi bull ed for Diana to heal old Jud's bitterness and reconcile all tions under the slogan. “Watch Cal- ora_Grow OF8 s : angles to a home town drama Wild Tom Meredith had not y learne Not until they reached San Franclsco did Meredith learn that the opening date at Tan foran had been abandoned, and that he was now scheduled to appear in the little town t had once scorned him the of “Dan, the drun wrd.” A tremendous swept over the King of s wretched 1i town wronged him so bitterly in his youth this hamlet of moonlizht and mixed memories and the unhonored grave of his father, had no right now to summon him back and coin money it of his weary flesh and blood. Not for this had he sought a place in the sun! ancel 1 team “Wha' d’ye mean, you won't Ju've got t I dem \ppearance money, and I Blubber Doyle took the team ager aside and showed him a pock calendar marked with red ink. “IUs the moon 1 Blubber. “The old full is doin’ its stuff, and he responsible. Don't try to argue with him now. Leave to me I know handle him. Don't worry all right in a day or two.” son feeling of revulston ed. This that had g my el won't mar ' he told Lang at A turn field. Calos drive ger man- t The other ters at drivers Calora Mer t until ent, and then it was only wties of the fat philosopher of the that induced the ck Ghos reconsider his deci don't know what's in your said Blubber, “and maybe it business, but you've wit the to s oy mind.” ain't none of my ways shet square om., and I » now With the p-pri th and w know. tow 200,000 it I obody's money for cre they ever Must be spor mewhere. "ve got thel waitin w zh, "re bucks t in the squatwkin posted and_they' the Pride of Calors they can tear the roots and hand it Shall T g our way? the Black call of Calora, more like a dise helpless shadow dragzed back haunts of childhood wprehending thi were blind litile, and to town up by the over. W say, ne ‘em that we're on R Ghost answered the nd never had he felt abodied spirit—some from the afterworld unwillingly to nd seeing @ to which Calora much h: had had changed so s0 for | happened to him The program of entertainment dif- htly from that to which was accustomed—the same routine receptions, street parades, inter- and photographs, the same 1banquet,” during the course of views IENDING EYES. pointed out that it was only 30 miles removed from a population of 1,000, 000 souls. Fl % ¥k VE nights later, at town meeting the wildest since Trustee over the Calora ion was formed. resolution was not they had taken Jud Higginbotham, the town skin- flint and pessimist, and chucked him into the middle of the street with a There he stayed, hal 1y Assoc the final until head. Darn fools, you're all drunk! old | Old L 1 which he sat toying with his food and | listening dujly to the same old empty compliments, hombastic speeches. He found courage to ask a question of the man at his left. “What's that?" “Peter Pringley Oor. Must be all of rears now. Widow s had rather a hard time, what with the little boy and nursing her father. doctor’s gettin' pretty feeble. Reckon that's why she ain’t here to- night. Did you know Diana?” The wild man of the speedways nodded quietly. A moment later he arose, whispered his apologies to the toastmaster, and quletly left the ban- sald the other. Peter's dead. | The | suppressed 1 | Tve | tim, | | couldn’t stand more than 1000 people had ubler Doyle whispered Le old boy's going to ¢ early. He's sure got his que to- hit t wede Gibson gnd th I khow.” d Cheever. “I d all about it. They're going to and run his wheels off. But the man we've got to watch is De Pulva. wop is going out for it, and take it from me—that bird can drive when the money’s up. to be won in the pits Well,” said Blubber, “all you have to do is loop your arms and come ir I'll_change all four wheels in onds. you will! . ‘Yes, T will'” said Blubber. “You wait and see!” But for once the fat man was wrong, for Wild Tom Mere dith was destined never to come into the again. It was De Pulva’s tires that were to be changed on the rrow in world record tin * UTSIDE in the darkness, the speed hero of America skirted Calc ngle street, now nofsy and illumined, and found his way to the familiar I sycamores that had been his adoration” as a boy. The from him, and aga age vagabond secking t e only one who wou The moon was in its Nothing much had ¢ 1, the same shr all the music And there w of ars fel was a shrine of understand, last q ¥ vi of nature in the s Diana, the same him at the spot from wh ed good-bye long years an who had spot in the fierce sunlight of d nd been shriveled by it irl who had spent her years little town where nothing ever a wonder a wall betw dith's dre: When t he pleaded impetuously and Diana, whit troubled. was afraid « ess—afraid because th transposed. rsecuted so 1 but a of Amer king that there seemed to n them against which m beat its wings in - narrative was over with all ) by passing nd wistful - positions He w: of the vil- lage drunk publie spes ince the ow power of the to reconcil wdred fictitiou whom e rned? Sh ad answered ¢ “It fsn't t followed your car You sent me the I've dreamed of the would call you back, so that I could witness your triumph, and I've also dreamed of this moment, of you and me in the moonlight again. That the trouble, Tom. I'm afraid you're dreaming now as well as I It's the night and memories that are talking now. Your place is in the sun, and wine is in the moonlight, don’t shine togethe Good: —and God’s luck tomorrow le treasured her hand a moment, dropped it. and turned away, murmur- ing: “God's luck! God's luck! What or? Imagine the crowded stands front- ing a’great wooden saucer around which steel dragon-flies guided by hooded humans were due to sing their way a hundred and twenty times, flashing past so swiftly that only the trained eve could check the number: Dick Wagner, czar of the speed- ways, was lining them up in rows, with th ce-setter in front of the pole; and finally came the pistol shot that set the torpedo fleet in motion. Four times they circled the track, maneuvering into position, while the pace grew faster and fast The next time around, the gaps began to close Those in group 2 stepped on it and moved up toward the leaders. They swung into the turn and came down the stretch, 18 cars in a thundering mass of straining steel Down went the red flag, and the race was on. know the inventive How was to 1 press agen the gild tales wi heart ans I din't from the first clipping time when Calora ye, Tom ANSER was grinding tmported special along in its stub- born Dutch w4 ponderous, deter- mined, unimaginative. De Pulva, the fiery Ifalian, was shoofing out reckle: ly in front, burning up his tires, and paving for it with lightning visits t the pits. Swanson, the “savage Swede, fought his car as usual, punishing it on the curves with vic wheel, during which the rear wheels hit for the sky and were pulled down like the heels of a startled horse. Chet Gibson, cool and calculating—reck- oned as a ‘“safety” driver—was set. ting his own pace, without regard to the others. And, as usual, the pro- cession of comets was bLeing led at this stage of the race by the French Beau Brummel, Marcel Leroux, al- ways a popular flgure with the crowd, but seldom In the money at the finish. Marcel's dashing temperament a_hundred miles of dueling: neither could his car. They always cracked under the final pressure. But it was not for these men that a little town had mortgaged its munici- pal soul. Nor for these men that 7 embled, among them a_girl who, whitelipped and trem- bling, comprehended for the first time the fearful peril of the glory-seekers. All eyes—including those of Diana— were watching a black car with a white “9"—snob-nosed and ominous, and guided by the king of them all, Wild Tom Meredith. The crowd was strangely silent, for the Racing Fool of the speedways had not yet fulfilled the demand upon him. Not once had he taken the lead; not once had he brought the crowd to its feet, shouting his name. The Black Butterfly, sole remaining hope of the factory, was lagging in the rear, ap- parently unable to wing its way to the front. It, too, was reflecting the mood of its master. From the very start of the race Meredith’s subconscious mind had suc- cumbed to a shadow. Whether it was w 1, 40 | work cut out for him tomorrow. Chet | to determine, This race is going |whistling wickedly in inn. the | Meredith w uch hap- | no | 1 idol—the | § a about to be | the fleld. hero of a | | ba | ty-five miles Tom. | and the two | | | | i | 15 flips of the | | tive. 1925—PART premonition of what Bt depre < ahead, ¢ behind, is that this was to be his last race, and | exactly as though he were drowning, | the events of his life were re-enacted photographically on the sensitive film of ibconscious mind. His body | was 1tomaton, hands on the wh on the track, and the wind his fuce; but his usn occupied with ! ten incidents, and their re 4l fascinated him Life after all is best spective; wherefore the past unfailing charm now that he had never comprehended before. Bitterness went out of his heart, and he felt more kindly toward this little town; he saw it in a new light—even grew to love it. Why, it was his home town, his birthplace— the spot where Diana had f the light of dawn, had in his sorrows and kissed courage. And now Calora, shaking : of 40 years, had called as_ts honored son—calle to help start a new era 1 the town's development Suddenly the drama of it all hit him full force, snapping the bonds of emo- restraint Diana- le-A the glory of Calora name and bi I emotional impulses shocked him into_consciousnes: was his day, and nothing shoul him of it—nothing! The cars were etch in the n pits, Blubber 1 fleld glasses, whoop and flung “There he goes!” Meredith! Yil-hoo-0-0!" e had , eye: conseic in has seen pe: The: that This rob down the netieth lap. In Joyle, watching suddenly emitted his he Go on roaring wild man! THE the walting, and the c for stands had owd responded now and “stepping they understood at last why called the Black Ghost. They had never seen such speed, such driving! The black car had become a blurred hadow that was rapidly overhauling moment come packed heen vociferous. g e was as one erect man, on and It ned caught through phantom B the swishing , and then b figure * ck and forth at a hundred n hour, and never click- ing a hub cap. On the hundredth lap he did it again, and this time went into the actual lead, taking the pole and skimming o in front, a reckless son of - Hermes, piloting a black destroyer of space and time. In the pits the mechanics were helding up blackboards chalked with white signals 't That meant 9! Get Meredith!™” ar where men were out and re-entering it was hard keep track of who was actually in the lead. The drivers nodded now they thundered past. They un tood that the Black Ghost was in front and they set out to drag him down. Remember that not once had Mere- dith gone into the pits for a tire change. De Pulva had renewed all four wheels on the eightieth lap and now he was driving like a demon, the nearest man to the leader. If Mer dith stopped now the race was los with all that it meant! Wild Tom was the firs a thin white streak showing le front tire. And the widened as he watched! So, that was it! Death had flung down its challenge. Fate had unco ered its trump card. Destiny v daring him to go on. Well, so be it. His jaw-muscles bulged, and'he forgot everything but the blind lust to win. He roared past the shouting stands and the green flag sign: “One more lap to go!” He w Blubber Doyle, waving frantically from the pits, blind to everything but the spreading white streak on that He felt only the pressure of a mechanic’s arm around his shoulders, heard only the voice of young Cheever_shouting frantically nto his ‘De Pulva! De Pulva! De was a then in a -weaving d thir “Get No. dr ¥ t, to see ft— in the streak By that cry he knew that the Italian was at his heels. Down went his foot, and the Black Butterfly be- ame a singing comet scorching its way along a boarded skyline. And there was the goal at last! Tired, straining eyes recognizedythe finish—tumult—dark crowded stands that rushed to meet him—the figure of Wagner crouched on the sideline with the-checkered flag, that means: “You have won!” Fifty car lengths—20—1 could beat him now. He had kept the faith! Flash of blinding black, fall of checkered flag as he passed the line, and then—bang! The left front tire exploded, and the Black Butterfly swerved in its flight, plunged, spun twice around—appeared to_hesitate- Even with the swiftness of the blow Meredith’s mind reacted instant- ly, obeying the training of years. He thought of the young mechanic at his side, thought of his comrades be- hind him, and with all his skill he struggled to save them. He guided the car in its last struggle so that when it did turn over, and he was pinned beneath it, young Cheever was thrown clear, and the wreck was out of the path of those behind. Then the sun went out and he floated off into the moonlight that he loved. . . . SR INO: he did not die. “God's. luck” had ridden with him. He realized it when the fractured skull had mended, and he discovered that he was in Diana’s home, and that it was she who had nursed him back to life. s News of his return to consclous- blind to | | Nothing lay | ne: ion due to what lay | tc tter for psychologists | tribute—even old Jud } Meredith only sensed : the town pessimist nd skinflir THE BLACK BUTTERFLY BE- CAME A SINGING COMET, SCORCHING ITS WAY ALONG A BOARDE 5D SKYLI? “We're “Durn _tootin’ won all the buy you a n all for you,” sald Jud If you hadn't alr money in the town w car myself.” “Oh, but he isn’t going to race ar more,” protested Diana. promise t gor hir “What' “He's goin here,” said 1 | you better Eoing Wild Tom Dian hane¢ their | now I'm go and ‘watch (« n he gonna dc s tha nna drive?” £ 1o open up a garag yiana, “and—and, well sk him what else he to do.” Meredith reached out fo: 1. “Thats it, Jud,” e old r hat ve won tr to He understoed things | Quarter of a Century Of D. C. Flower Shows BY NELL RAY CLARKE. HE of the De chrysanthemum being held at the nh Ag gy D ture marks a quarter of £ such ome far abro: Today yus visitors {State in the Unic countrie between handsom are troopin: flower 1e blossor which rear their head |ov er | have proved their love has for the * the Fall and the amary its ki ested in them. | | tables th fect in the air, nearly autocrats a s, The event tory behind it, Spring—incident 1 in the been staged over by two men, fath Back in 1901 riginated the Department of A to the Bureau of squares of the cf His sole flowers was to 30,000 ‘mum” purpose zet How admira Before di nd street gam humar mum [ sh Ny the United a period er and son Edward M shows ¢ griculture. He Plant Industry only stz eau of where pai Are ErOw in the people eeded the crowd: In Februa he passed Wise Byrn n the middle 1se there hrysanth tion h 1,400 cone bloom r o are vable shade presents : Government ser on to his son, | > had been d fron lized rgeous the een 1 table « e re bet hue and I bout $00 pran clusters of hundreds of p represents three days men merely to pl er table alon nzed several most blossoms s the line of vision any attempt to & ing to col a longer one. I show, while the refully take and replace ther that the ranks of flower soldiers shall unsullied. remain neans that as have to be replac When the elder Byrnes staged the first show he chrysanthemum, the trade of th: time hundreds of been added. originated others are in purchased by t waves in the task we = ace the pl e They ve according to height to fc throw order ssible directly W n. If there had arra ch night durins the wee 0w v sleeps, w fading fresh on Sometimes many ced in a single ¥ used the as-it w at day. new va 1 k Since ieties Some of them have been the varietles | commercial growers which have been | week department, ori he department | grown especially for the show Many of the |appear in the pre | been produced by cross pollination in |4 ¢ | the greenhouses” of about 30 of the principal floris casionaily a new new varieties o D commercial grow ner they get into the trade, for the rtment of Agr varieties ent collection new of this count variety comes iginated by iculture are ers, and in this department is not allowed 1o s variety it may o J. WISE BYR GARDENS Al TURE, & riginate GROU A GREENHOU one showing own to which the De- glve ricul L ce we owers interest n the = the the Mr 3 er Bu Mitchell, Ellen Mac can when £ En- The Doctor ¥ the best ever after | I vice, | per pink in der. | ing to m his | the Hel blos, v xh mums in nearly every On the sic been | &ry, were orange trees 3 > been | were lost blossoms S0 stood i ind when las The this nts ight. anese | ever Wasl country where quantit mary given i h n that have the bl and by 1 Ame ns, and and | den the of mar and Am O The pres with from shown. en to n i th E OF “MUMS.” M n office Seven trees w nhouses, t after che; Heazt the wife of the Agriculture to T 1 and the privilege ne for the first ti thi doze her t T ar uppe which is ¢ the Mr tirs: & ohn € Phyllis, Mi onze Turner ar nor 11 period in the 1 Secret Jardin four of the ¥ \nsidered one o in the depar: h commerci: - produl | ningham 1s pal white. we t from Bra planted in River e an depart the tow: t heard from was though unaryllis show try. In fact in n th is the onl 1ce )ssoms can be seen in : weelk is the joy of Latin 1st chrysa blossom tin Japanese native al flowe! shade in whic is the or the onl s show in March more than white to veloped bult nt vear deep red hybrid from an imported ., ASSISTANT IN CHARGE OF EXPERIMENTAL NDS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICUL-