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Show PA. i The greatest thing in the world to a boy, not even excepting his mother, is the man with whiskers whisk-ers who comes home of evenings and who is dignified digni-fied by the title of Father, Papa, Pa or Dad, just as his early training dictates. A boy naturally loves his mother who does not? But hi3 father does things. Pa can put a new washer on a leaky valve; he can carry two buckets of coal at once; he can repair the boy's broken wagon; he can rig up, some hooks upon which the boy can hang up his hat and coat. That is, the boy can, but he always allows his mother that glorious privilege. After seven or eight years of intimate association, the boy comes to the conclusion that Pa can do anything. any-thing. If anybody disputes with him the all-encompassing wisdom of his father, there is sure to be a fight. If the boy gets licked, Pa consoles him, and if he is the proud victor, Pa mildly reproves, re-proves, but the boy reads the unexpressed congratulations congrat-ulations of his prowess in Pa's eye. Then there are the Christmas presents. Pa always al-ways fixes up the mechanical toy that is broken before breakfast, or if he doesn't it's only because he lacks the proper tools never because he can't. And Pa can build the dandiest block houses build them as high as his head, and the boy stands on a chair in open-eyed wonderment at the things Pa can do. Surely no one in the world is so wise as Pa; surely no boy is blessed with a father quite equal to his own. Upon the pinnacle of perfection the sapient Pa is supreme. And then through some untoward incident the boy discovers his dad, and henceforth and forever there is no more the calm confidence on either side. Pa's downfall came last week. The young hopeful hope-ful came running to greet the monarch of all men with cries of joy and satisfaction. From one pants pocket the boy drew forth a string about five feet long with a button, on one end. From the other a top, was dug up. With that superior wi , quired by many years of deception Fa m wound the string around the top, ju.-r as ' , years ago, when he was a boy himself. 1 -,r. f wouldn't spin. It rolled out into the street. A-.,; and again was the trial made with equally ;!,-factory ;!,-factory results. And now Pa is down ami out. He do.-.!,'; . for much in the boy's world of thing-;. In ti,, of the twentieth century he is a "dead Mir." , tried to keep up a bluff, but it didn't work. f. - ' evening, after the boy had said his little jew, .. and was tucked away for a night's rest he r ; to his mother in tones of the keenest dia; ment : "Mamma, daddy can't even spin z tc;."' |