fIIsTORIES SPO B OYS and CRAFTS JOKES IfJ 4&» - —GIRLS PAGE ■ - M RIDDLES Cold Winter evenings are a good time to ask riddles, because thinking hard will always warm you up. And there’s real heat in some of these teasers! 1. What Is the largest room in the world? 2. When may a man be said to breakfast before he gets up? 3. When does a ship tell a falsehood? 4. What is it that a man doesn’t have, never can have, yet can give to a woman? 5. When is a chicken's neck like a bell? ; .:.s ANSWERS. I—Room for improvement. 2—When he takes a roll in bed. 3—When it lies at anchor. 4 —A husband. s—When it’s wrung for dinner. Circus Performer's Courage. Being a circus clown isn’t as funny as it seems. There are times when a clown falls or gets struck when it seems to the audience that it’s all part of his stunt—and it isn’t. But it’s a clown’s business to get the laughs, and he doesn’t expect any sympathy. ’’lt’s the clown’s second nature to get hurt,” said Will Delavoyer * famous “old school” clown. “But clowns don’t take the risks the other performers do,” he said modestly. "I re memb:r, for instance, the bravery of a little tight-wire walker, a girl named Zazel, that shows the kind of pluck you will find in the circus. “The Adam Forepaugb Shows were playing in Butte, Mont. The big tent was crowded with people eager to be thrilled by some dare devil performer. Zazel, a star actress, was in troduced by the ringmaster. She climbed to her wire stretched 25 feet above the ground. The crowds gasped at her daring stunts. Sud denly Zazel slipped. Down she crashed to the earth 25 feet below. "The audience was hushed. Surely Zazel had been killed. Attendants rushed to her. She made an effort to arise. They prepared to carry her out of the ring to the dressing tent. She wouldn’t let them, however. Pushing them all aside, she got to her feet. With a smile and a wave at the audience she walked slowly but determinedly toward the entrance of the dress ing tent. “When she approached the entrance she turned to the crowd. The people were all shouting and applauding wildly, for they rea lized that Zaael surely must be suffering some pain from her fall, though apparently she had been no more than a little stunned. Zaael smiled at the crowd and gave her little bow. “Then she stepped inside the dressing room and collapsed, really badly hurt” A Hard Diet. “Where are you going to eat?" “let’s eat up the street” “Aw, no; I don’t like asphalt.” .. < Some Pie. Irate Housewife—Aren’t you the same man T gave a mince pie to last week? Tramp (sadly)—No, ma’am, I ain’t And What’s more, the doctor says X never will be. Lost Record. Professor—How many time have I told you to be in class on time? Student—l don’t know. I thought you were keeping score. POSERS If you are a good student in school, you shouldn’t' have much trouble with these ques tions. 1. What famous city is built on seven bills? 2. Where is Mount Vesuvius located? 3. Who wrote “Oulliver’s Travels”? 4. Why is it impossible for a snake to close its eyes? 5. At what time of day is your shadow shortest?' .6. What fruit must be taken from the tree in order to ripen property? 1. What is the difference between a surgeon and a sergeant? 8. TO whom Is Mary Pickford married? ' ‘' ANSWERS. I—Rome, Italy. 2—Near Naples, Italy. 3 Jonathan Swift. 4—Because it has no eyelids. s—At noon. B—The banana. 7—A surgeon ' is a medical practitioner, particularly one who performs operations; a sergeant is a non-com missioned’ military officer. B—Douglas Pair backs. ’ THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON-. D. DECEMBER 22, 1929. Marching Feet. The Story of a Boy IVho Rose to an Emergency. BY W. BOYCE MORGAN. He was brought down the ladder on the broad, rubber-coated Jtack of one of the firemen. Harrison Gere, a box of slicht physique, but narked musical ability, realises the power of music a* he watches the students of Waynesrilie Hlch School keep perfect time to the marches he plays. On the nicht before the start of Christmas vacation, an entertainment is beins siren in the school audi torium. and Harrison is disappointed because he is not chosen as a “guard” to keep order during the evening, as was his elder brstber. Jack. The hall is filled with the audience when, during the program, fire breaks out on the stage. The panic-stricken crowd flocks toward the rear door, bat the broad stairway there is under repair and impassable. They turn and try to escape by the narrow front door, and there Jack fights desperately to keep order. Bat the terrorised boys and girls lam the entrance and Jack is pushed aside. Then Harrison makes his way through the flames to the piano, and plays desperately. His march rets the crowd keeping time, and they march to safety while the flames lick around the piano. Finally when they are all out. Harrison gropes bis way to the door, bat bears a low moan and finds his brother Jack lying Injured in the path es the flames. INSTALLMENT IV. Somehow Harrison got -hto hands under Jack’s shoulders and started to drag him the few feet toward the door. But the older boy’s body wu » dead weight and Harrison, choked and weakened by the smoke, could hardly budge him. Bobbing desperately, he put every ounce of his fading strength into the effort. Only a few feet more, and they would be through the raging flames to safety. And then, with a crash and a shower of sparks, the framework that had been erected to hold the curtain an the stage gave way and fell outward. A bit of burning wood struck Harriaonls neck and he Jerked his head around, to utter n gaap of despair. He saw that the falling wood had completely blocked the nar row door to the ban. There was only one chance now—to reach the door In the rear and try to get down that demolished stairway. That meant dragging the burden of his brother the full length of the room. With a horrible feeling that he could never make it, he took another grip on Jack’s shoulders and started the painful journey. It seemed to him now that he would lose consciousness at any moment. Close to the floor, however, the smoke was not quite so . thick, and doggedly he made his way, inch by inch, back through the room, dragging Jack’s inert body after him. But his strength was not equal to the demands upon it, and half way bade he faltered, gave a last desperate tug, ‘ and toppled over beside his brother. For a second he’ lay there, dimly conscious that now all was lost. And then there came pounding at his brain a sound from outside, a sound that had often before stirred hts senses to excitement It was the wail of the siren of a fire engine! The firemen were here! If he could get Jack to a window, perhaps they could be rescued that way. The windows along the side of the hall were closer than the rear door, and if he once made them, he would at least be able to breathe again. The flames had now spread so that the whole inside of the room wss ablaze, with tongues of flru licking up the walls and run ning along the beams of the ceiling. From some unknown reservoir of strength, Harrison found the power to drag himself to his knees and clutch his brother’s arms again. Slowly, with his breath coming in agonised gasps and his teeth biting into his raw, swollen lips, he battled his way toward the window. It seemed hours before he reached it, but finally his hands were on the sill, and with a last desperate shove he raised the window. The cool night air flooded in, reviving him for a moment, and he managed to pull Jack’s head and shoulders up to the opening. Then, lean ing over and reeling out, he started to wave his hands feebly to attract attention. In the street below an excited crowd was gathered, watching the firemen, who had Just arrived. Somebody, gating upward, saw an open window, and the white face of a boy through the smoke. “Look!” he cried. "There’s somebody up there!" Other voices took it up. In a moment several firemen had run fbrward and a ladder was raised against the wadi. Harrison, with a sob of relief, oollapsed over the sill as strong hands reached in to him. But he revived a moment to gasp, “Ho. take him ftfet. He's hurt" And he saw Jack's body lifted and carried down the ladder. Harrison's earns were deaf to the cheers that rang out as he was brought down the ladder on the broad, rubber-coated back of one of the firemen. Ten minutes later he recovered con sciousness, to find that he was lying on a couch in a strange room, in a nearby house to which they had taken him. Somebody was bathing his smarting face with a soothing cloth. Every muscle in his body seemed to ache, and every breath that he took pained his chest. He raised his head, glanced at the anxious faces clustered about him, and found his voice. “Where's Jack?” he asked anxiously. “Right over there, Harrison,” replied the voice of Prof. Marks, with a note in it that thrilled the boy. “Your brother is all right. He’s got a twisted leg and a bad bump on the head, but he'll be all right in no time, thanks to you.” With an effort Harrison sat up and looked toward the figure stretched on a davenport across the room. At that moment Jack looked over at him and grinned wryly. Harrison got to bis feet and crossed the room. “Fee! all right, Jack?” he asked anxiously. “Sure,” said Jack. “How are you?” “All right,” said Harrison, “only I ache. Gosh, you were heavy!” Harrison’s brain was still a bit cloudy, and he couldn't understand why Jack suddenly seemed to choke, and then turned his face to the wall. Then the younger boy felt his brother’s hand come out and clasp his own with an iron grip. < He looked around wondering, and now he saw that the people in the room were regarding him with something like awe in their faces. Prof. Marks stepped forward and placed an arm around his shoulders. “Harrison," he said gravely, “you did more than save your brother’s life tonight. Your music got the audience out of the burning building and averted what would have been a horrible tragedy. You saved dozens of lives, my boy—not Just one. And you're a hero!” Harrison looked at him unbelievingly. "Maybe,” he said. "But the music wasn’t any thing. I can always play. But getting Jack out was a real Job." Suddenly he paused. “Say,” he said to Prof. Marks suddenly, “how bad was the school burned?” “Pretty badly,” said the principal. “Gosh!” said Harrison. “Now we’ll got a reah vacation!” ” THE END. . Banking Facts For Boys and Girls. By John Y. Beaty , Editor The Bankers' Monthly' “There are still other services which large city banks perform for banks in smaller towns,” con tinued Mr. Sears, Harold, who had been learn ing a great deal about banking, and th? con nection of one bank with another, listened closely. “It is not necessary to explain all of these to you because they do not have so much to do with customers of the local bank, but they are of benefit to the bank itself. For example, some city banks supply their cor respondent banks Li the smaller towns with advertisements to to run in the local papers. Others supply the local banks with bonds they may sell cr that they may buy for their own investment. Then, too, when our local bank wishes to borrow some money, it can borrow from its correspondent bank in the city. “There crc times, you know, when there is a greater need for money here in our town than usual, and the local bank has no more to lend, so it borrows what it needs from a city bank and relends it to its customers. “There is one more thing that I want to call your attention to. That is, when our bank sends a check to New York, it is about four days before it can get credit for that money and can make use of it For that reason, it cannot lend that money for those four days and does not receive any interest on it. When you realise tbit a bank may have several thousand dollars or, in ease of the larger city banks, two or three million dollars, on the way between one city and another, you can realise that not all of the money that fe on deposit with banks can be loaned by the bank.” Original Buccaneers. <