Life — November 16, 1928 — page 10: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

SKIPPY’S Dear Sooxy: Last night I was Percy L. just about to go to bed Crosby when I saw Pop playin quoits with his smoke rings an I knew he didn’t have nothin on his mind cause there's no talk about mort- pages aid more. Since he got an office by imself he goes down on the 9:34. It's causin a lot of talk, him bein a_ boss now. When I sce him whiffin smoke so free an easy, I knew the time come to show him the report card. Oh, if they was only laws to make teachers write in pencil what a ball of taffy we'd be livin on. 1 handed him the card an got to dustin off his coat. Then we batted out the old silence. My heart got tickin so loud I couldn't catch my breath. Somethin had to be done or I'll yell “Fire!” “Sooky’s the only friend I got!" I looked to see if the walls said it, but the mirror give me away. Pop pinkyed the ashes off his cigar, took a long pa an bupped out smoke rings. When he threw his head back, the look in his face made me feel I was bal- ancin the sky on a pompadour. “Why Sooky?” he asks. “Cause I feel it,” I told him. “Suppose I told you he wasn’t,” Pop says. “T never would listen to anybody slittin Sooky up the back cause he’s my friend —I just Lsiow it,” I says. “IT would rather hear those words,” by LETTERS a perfect report card.” He fanned me with it to bring me to, I guess. He wipes the dew off his glasses an looks me straight in the eye—so straight that I could feel he knew I needed a haircut behind me. He begins flippin over the big book in his lap an says: “Once upon a time there was a great Prince, who was very sad because he felt sorry for all the peoole that had to work and never got anything for it. He loved both men and animals an got to wonde. ing why there was so much sorrow in the world. Well, son, one night this Prince left all his wealth and went far away intp the woods and there he thought anj thought—” “Didn't he call up the office or any. thin to say he wouldn’t be in?” I asks But Pop says: “A Prince don’t have ag office!” I was wonderin if he wasn’t scared to be in the woods all by himself with spiders an lions all around maybe, but Pop says, “‘No—he was tryin to figure out the best way to help everybody.” Then he looked at me sharp. “Even fittle who don’t get good marks on their report cards.” I asked him if the Prince hada little boy, an he said, “Yes.” So that settled the report card question. “How long did this man think?" | asked, an Pop said, “For days an days, an then one day he solved a great big arith. metic problem.” I said, “He didn’t copy from anybody, did he?” An Pop says: “No! Smart men don’t copy.” An be looked at me again an I wished I hada't made the crack. “Where did this man come from, Pop?” I asked. “He came from the East,” says Pop. “As far over as Second Av- enue?” I said. “Oh, farther than that.” “Avenue A?” I says. Pop patted me on the back an said, “You're getting warmer. Now if I tell you he came from way over the sea—over a long stretch of water, would you know where the East is?” An right like that, I says, “Yes— Astoria!” . “Well, no matter,” Pop says, “Astoria “To what do you attribute your long life?” seca A says Pop, “than gaze at the impossible— | “Among other things, to the fact that the sheriff still don't know who shot Jim Williams comicbooks.com