The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, May 1, 1898, Page 22

23 AS By Robert Barr. AZIDDIN, the ambassador, stood at the door his tent and gazed down upon the famous city now for the first time. T on the heights d had sent forward to the pri ing him with t carrying e fact that an embassy fr of Damascus awaited per- mission to ente not yet risen, but the splen with wondrous coloring nounced the speedy com nhabitants of Baalbek still worshipe The temples and aces of the city took their tints from the flaming s and Haziddin, the ambass: thought he had never anything so beautiful, n standing the eulogy Mahomet himself had pronounced upon his own met Doiis of Damascus The great city 3 in silence, but the moment the of the sun appeared above the horizon the silen broken by. a_faint sound of chanting fror temple, Seemingly of upon the city its Gri the Sun towered ove as if the day god pon th color, 1 ing its they ‘were fashioned from the pur Lebanon. - The sun’seemed a mainspring of activity, as well as an object of adoration, for before it had been many min- ambassador saw emergi rte the mounted convoy that > the cit ur} nmand h _speedi retinue into line to sent by the Prir elcome the ambassador, and conduct him , greeted tor with' t ferential ceremony so beloved of Zastern people, and togethe d down the hill to the gates, t followers one mingling frater- nally with the followers of the other. As if the deities of ‘the wonderful temples they were approaching wished to show the futility of man's foresight, a thoughtless remark made by one of the least ir s retinue, made to one of the least who followed the Baal- bek general, wrought ruin to one empire and saved another from disaste A mule driver fro from Dam: Baalbek sald tp one of his lowly us that th als of the north- ern city emed of superior bre of the southern. Theén the Damascus man, ivic pride disturbed by the slighting remark, replied I ¢ that if the mules of Baalbek had endured such s those of Dama t through a rugged mountain count look in no better condition than tho . “Our mules were as 3 urs a month ago when we left Damascus.”” As Baalbek is but thirty-one miles north of Damascus the muleteer of the former place mar- veled that so long a time had been spent on the journey, and he asked his fellow why they had wandered among the_mountains. The other could but answer that so it was, and he knew no reason for it, and with this the man of Baalbek had to content himself. And so the tale went from mouth to ear of the Baalbek men until it reached the general e, THE EMBASS@ADOR'S COAT FELL AWAY THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL; SUNDAY, MAY 1, 1898. : v long has it taken you from Damascus to ien the ambassador answered: have done the journey in three days; it might 5 but two, it could have been ed in one, but ing no necessity for raveled leisurely. remaining silent, said to himself; rumor or the sador?”’ cast e ambassador had #ht with him, and saw that they indeed showed signs fatigue, and perhaps ar and improper food. rince Ismael himself recefved Haziddin, ambassador of Omar, Governor of Damascus, at the gates and the pomp and splendor of that reception was worthy of him who gave it, but the general found opportunity to whisper in the ear of the prince: “The ambassador says he was but three days coming, ver of his told a follower of mine that they month on the road, wandering among the or speed, we Then the general o picion is ever latent In the eastern mind, and the prince was quick to see a possible meanthg for this wan- déring among the mountains. It might well be that the party was secking a route at once eusy and unknown by which warriors from Damascus might fall upon Baalbek. vet, if this were the case, why did not the explorers return directly to Damascus rather than venture within the walls of Baalbek? It seemed to Prince Ismael that this would have been the more crafty method to pursue, for, as it was, unless messengers had returned to Damas- cus'to report the result of their mountain excursion, he had ¢ prisoners within the walls of any envoy sent by the or to his chief in Damascus. The prince, however, showed nothing tn his manner ot what was pa i ng through his mind, but at the last mo- ramme he had laid out for the reception of ambassador. Freparation had been made for a great public breakfast, for Haziddin was famed throughout the st, not only as a diplomatist, but also cian and a man of science. : prince now gave orders that his officers were to entertain the retinue of thé ambassador at the public breakfast, while he bestowed upon the ambassador the exceptional honor of asking him to his private table, thus giving Haziddin of Damascus no opportunity to.confer ;\K“\h h‘i(a ollowers after they had entered tne gates of aalbek. It was impossible for Haziddin to demur, so he could but bow low accept the hospitality which might at moment be m as indeed It was. The s manner was so genial and friendly that the hysician, Haziddin, soon saw h: ne of Lebanon {s strong, and his highness, d it upon his guest, urging that his three- had been fatiguing. The ambassador had ed that his own servant might wait upon him, but the prince would not hear of it, .and said that none should serve hl"mkwhc were not themselves among the first nobles bek. _, “You represent Omar, Governor of Damascus, son of King Ayoub, and as such I receive you on terms of equality with myseit.” The ambassador, at first nonplused with a lavishness that was most unusual, gradually overcame his diffidence and became warm with the wine, and so failed to notice that the prince himself remained cool and drank sparingly. At last the head of Haziddin sank on his pbreast, and he IT EXPOSED A CAGE CONTAINING FOUR PIGEONS. and had spent the night before sleepless. As his cloak fell away from him, it left ‘exposed & small wicker cage attached to his girdle, containing four pigeons, closely huddled, for the cage was barely large enough to hold them, and here the prince saw the am- bassador’'s swift messengers to Damascus. Let loose from the walls of Baalbek, and flying direct, the tidings would, 1 a few hours, be in the hands of the Governor of Damas- cus. T din then'wa: 1s well as ambassador. The so possessed carrier pigeons, and used them as a s of communication between his armies at Tripoli ignorant of their con- princ me: and at Antloch, so he was not sequence. The fact that the ambassador himself carrfed this small cage under his cloak attached to his girdle showed the great importance that was attached to these winged messengers, otherwise Hazlddin would have entrusted them to one of his subordinates. “Bring me,”” whispered the prince to his general, “four of my own pigecns. Do not disturb the thongs attached to the girdle when you open the cage, but take the am- bassador's pigeons ~out and substitute four of my own. Keep these pigeons of Damascus sepirate from ours; wa may vet have use for them in communicating with the Governor of Damascus.” The general, quick to see the scheme which was in the pringe’s mind, brought foud Baalbek pigeons,identical with the others in size and color. He brought with him also a 'cage into which the Damascus pigeons wers put, and thus the transfer was made without the knowledge of the slumbering ambassa His cloak was arranged about him so that it concealed the cage attached to the girdie, and then the ambassador’s own servants were sent for, and he was confided to their care. ‘When Haziddin awoke hesfound himself in a sumptu- ous room of the palace. But he had a hazy remembrance of the latter part of the meal. with the prince, and his first thought went with a thrill of fear toward the cage which had been under his cloak; finding, nhowever, that this was intact, he was much relieved in his mind, and could but hope that in his cups he had not babbled any- thing of his mission which might arouse suspicion in the mind of the prince. His first meeting with the ruler of Baalbek after the breakfast they had had together, set all doubts finally at rest, because the prince received him with a friendship which was unmistakable. The physician apologized for being overcome by the %mency of the wine, and pleaded that he had hitherto been wunused to liquor of such strength. The prince waved away all reference to the subject, saying that he himself had succumbed on the same occasfon, and had but slight recollection of what had passed between them. Ismael assigned to the ambassador one of the palaces near the Pantheon, and Haziddin found himself free to come and go as he pleased, without espionage or restric- tion. He speedily learned that one of the armies of Baal- bek was at the north near Antioch, the other to the west at Tripoli, leaving the great city practically unprotected, and this unprecedented state of affairs, jumping so coin- cident with the designs of his master, that he hastened to communicate the intelligénce. He wrote: “I1f Baalbek is immediately attacked, it cannot be protected. Half of the army is at the-shore of the Mediterranean near Tripoli, the other half is north at Antloch. The prince has no suspicion. If you conceal the main bud{ of your army behind the hills to the south of Baalbek, and come on yourself with a small retinue, sending notice to the prince of your arrival, he will likely himself come out to the gates to meet you, an hn“"fi secured his person, while I with my followers hold the open a hold- clty s as nearly as possible "“p"g““b“,fi'tflflzmyour ince prisoner you may make ngnmfe%rs‘. © Hhe city is indescribably Tich, grrllg robably never before In the history of the Wor.C as there been opportunity of ‘pccflmula ng much treasure with so little risk. . This writing Haziddin attached to the leg and throwing %he }?lrd aloft from ;h: rvg:ll;;olnth:‘r‘:nln:g:; d over the housetops, and e e hands of 1ts master, the Prince of Baalbek, of a pigeon, there were rumors the city, one going- to the north and the other to t] Kgc ambassador would (?"lel‘:d‘ the proper moment to strike. e communication the prince attached to the leg ot one of the Damascus pigeons, and throwing It into the air, saw with satisfaction that the bird flew straight across the hill toward the south. | 1 Ismael that night sent messengers mount&d on.swift Arabian borses to Tripoli and to Antioch, recalling his armies, directing his generals to avoid Baalbek and to Join forces in the mountains to the south of that city and out of sight of it. This done the prince attended In state g banquet tendered to him by the ambpassador from Damascus, where he charmed all present by his genial urbanity, speaking touchingly on the blessings o!'-ggnce, and drinking to a thérol:ghfilng‘emta:d;g between two ities of the East, amascu g:;:ttsc which were cordially reciprocated by the am- assador. k Next morning the second pigeon came to the prince. “Ismael is still unsuspictous,” the document ran. “He will fall an easy prey if action is prompt. -In case of a failure to surprise, it would be well to impress upon your generals the necessity of sur- rounding the city instantly so that messengers can- not be sent to the two armies. It will then be advisable to cut off the water supply by diverting the course of the small river which flows into Baal- bek. The walls of the city are incredibly strong, andafew menjcan defend them successfully against a host, once the gates are shut. Thirst, however, will soon compel them to surrender. Strike quickly, and Baalbek is yours.” The prince sent a note of another tenor to Damascus, and lhepca!m day passed serenely omn, the ‘ambassaqor watching anxiously from his housetop, his eyes turned to the south, while the prince watched as anxiously from the roof of his palace, his gaze turning now westward, now northward. The third night after the second message had been sent the ambassador paced the long, level promenade of his roof, ever questioning the south. A full moon shone down on the silent city, and in that clear air the plain outside the walls and the nearer hills were distinetly Visible, as if it were daylight. There was no sign of an approaching army, Baalbek lay like a city of the dead, the splendid architecture of its countless temples gleam- ing ghostlike, cold, white and unreal in the pure reful- ence of the moon. £ Occasionally jthe ambassador g:msed in his walk and leaned on the ropet. He had become vaguely uneasy, wondering why JDamascus delayed, and there crept over him that sensathn of dumb fear which comes to a man in the middlé of the night, and leaves him with the breaking of day. He reayzed keenly the extreme peril of his own position, impri#hned, and at the mercy of his enemy, should his treachery be discovered. And now as he leaned over the parapet in the breathless stiliness, his alert ear missed an accustomed murmur of the night. Baalbek was lulled to sleep by the ever present tinkle of running water, the most delicious sound that can soothean Eastern ear, accustomed as it is to the echoless silence of the arid, rajnless desert. The little river which entered Baalbek first flowed past the palace of the prince, then to the homes of the nol les and the priests, meandering through every street and lane until it came to the baths left by the Romans, whence it flowed through the poorer quarters, and at Jast disappeared under the outer wall. It might be termed a liquid guide to Baalbek, for the stranzer leaving the palace and following its current would be led past every temple and residence in the city. It was the limpid thread of life running through the veins of the town, and without it Baaibek could not have existed, ‘As the ambassador leaned over the parapet wondering whether {t was his imagination which made this night seem more still than all that had gone before sirice he came to the city, he suddenly became aware that what he missed was the purling trickle of the water. Peering over the wall of his house, and gazing dawnward on the moonlit street, he saw no reflecting glitter of the current, and realized with a leap of the heart that thé stream had run dry. The ambassador was quick to understand the meaning of this sudden drying of the stream. Notwithstanding his vigilance, the soldiers of Dai us had stolen upon the city, unperceived by him, and had already diverted the water course. Instantly his thoughts turned toward his own escape. In the morning the fact of the Invasion would be revealed, and his life would lie at the mercy of an exas- perated ruler. To flee from Baalbek in the night he knew to be no easy task, all the gates were closed, and not one of them would be n{penod before daybreak, except through the intervention of the prince himself. To spring from even the lowest part of the wall would mean mstant death. In this extremity the natural ingenuity of the man came to his rescue. That which gave him warning would also provide an avenue of safety. The stream, conveyved to the city by a lofty aqueduct, penetrated the thick walls through a tunnel cut in the solid stone, just large enough to receive its volume. The tunnel being thus left dry, a man could craw! on his hands and knees through it, and once outside, walk upright on the top of the viaduct, along the empty bed of the river, until he reached the spot where the water had been diverted and there find his comrades. Wasting not a thought on the jeopardy in which he left his own followers, thus helplessiy imprisoned in Baal- bek, but bent only on his own safety, he left his house silently and hurried, deep in the shadow, along the obscure side of the street. He knew he must avoid the guards of the palace, and that done, his path to the nvading army was clear. But before he reached the palace of the prince there remained for him another stupefying surprise. Coming to a broad thoroughfare leading to the square in which stood the temple of life, he was amazed to see at his feet, flowing rapidly, the full tide of the stream shattering into dancing discs of light the reflection of the full moon on its surface, gurgling swiftly toward the square. i The fugitive stood motionless and panlc-stricken at the margin of this transparent flood. He knew that his retreat had been cut off. What had happened? Perhaps the strong current had swept away the impediment placed against it by the invaders, and thus had resumed its course into the city. Perhaps—but there was little use in surmising, and the ambassador, recovering in a measure his self-possession, resolved to see whether or not it would lead him to his own palace. Crossing the wide thoroughfare into the shadow beyond, he followed it toward the square, keeping his eye on the stream that flowed in the moonlignt. The rivulet flowed directly across the square to the temple of life; there, sweeping in a semi-circle half round the huge building, it resumed its straight course. The ambassador hesitated before crossing the moonlit square, but a moment’s reflection showed him that no_suspicton could possibly attach to his movements in this direction, for the temple of life was the only sacred edifice forever open. he temple of life consisted of a huge dome, which was supported by a double circle of pillars, and beneath this dome had been erected the palace of - accurate conclusion. Underneat| Raalbek, senti-. the dome allowed the ra tase an nflllumlrm.le the head of the the white polished surface of the broad v at the foot of, the statue, the am- veral prostrate figures, SR beg of the.sightless A circular opening of the moon to statue. Against marble slab which la: ba.ssal.?hr oh e dafir was_there to .nd knew that each was t 2 tiess ;F&tuel]”fc for some friend )L)o'(rl)%h‘fls(r‘g};;;arn!x;]rgctnc&ni?;x_lzr N oA i LT fll‘nesasr;d sapplicants. prosirated them- it at a=y hour of the night.or Rémenmi- s- the resort of high and knowing that It rank, Haziddin With e ke, for death respects 1o an ow alike, for dea 'S A athering confidence entered the moonlitequare.. ., At the edge of the great c(r(‘nl_nl'.l?"";g ei the stream meeting there his third surprise. He i) e Edifice bt was not deflected around the lower rim-of the ealire, AUt that a stone had been swung atright nug.ts'“b 16tt, and er step, cuttitg off the flow of the streath -to t ;?P tLl'stten- allewing lts waters to pout. underneath the-temple: (LISien” ing, the ambassador heard .the l;n;'(, r;\:{%e}i jl"&f;ped ot ing' water, .and instantly his quick ®mind. JUEES “'gaflfl“fi tank for the storage of water, and-it was being fillec during the night. Did the authorities of b;\)a.)(?;ek 3;}5;: a siegé, and were they thus. préparihg for it? Or wes Lo filing of the tank an ordinary fungtion performed periocs dcally to keep-the wafer sweet? The ambassador wou have given much for an accurate answer to these ques- tions, but he knew not whom to ask. fi Entering the temple. he’ prostrated = hrmself on the marble slab, and Temained there for a fey moments, hop- ing that, if his presence hdad been observed, this action would provide excuse for his nocturnal wanderings. Rising, he ‘crossed again:the broad square, and. hurried up the street by which he had entered it. This street led to the northern gate, whose dark arch heisaw at the end of it, and just as hé was about to turn gdown a tane which led to his palace, he found himself .corifronted with a fourth problem. One leaf of the ponderous gate swung inward, &nd through the opening he caught a gilmpse of thoe moonlit country beyond. Knowing that the gates werg never opened at night, except through the direct order ot the prince, he paused for a moment, and then saw a.man on horseback enter, mn% himgelf hurriedly from his steed, leaving it in'care ‘of those in charge of the gates, and disappear down the street that led directly to the prince’s palace. & B In a most perturbed state of mind the ambassador sought- his own house, and there wrote his final dispatch to Damascus. He told of his discovery of the water tank, and said-that his former adyice regarding the divertig of the stream was no longer of practical -value. He said he would investigate further the reservair under the Temple of Life, and discover, 1t possible, how the water was discharged. If he succeeded in his quest he would endeavor, in the case of a long'siege, to set free Baalbek's store of ‘water, but he reiterated his belief that it ‘was Dbetter to attempt the capture of the city by surprise and flerce assault. The message that actually went to Damas- eus. carried by the third pigeon, was again different in enor, “Come at once,” it sald, “Baalbek is unprotected, and the prince has gone on a hunting expedition. March through the pass of El-Zald, which is unpro- tected, because it is a longer route. The armies of Baalbek are at Tripoli and at Antioch, and the city is without even a garrison. The southern gate wiil be open awaiting your coming.” - Days passed and the ambassador paced the roof of his house, looking in vain toward the south. The stream flowed as usual through the city.. Anxiety at the lack of all tidings from Damascus began to plow furrows in his brow. He looked careworn and haggard. To -the kindly inquiries of the grlnca regarding his health he replied that there was nothing amiss. One evening an urgent message came from the palace requesting his attendance there. The prince met him with concern on his brow. “Have you had word from your master, Omar, Gov- gnor Xof. Damascus, since you parted with him?"” asked i P 2 have had no tidings.” replied the ambassador, “A messenger has just come in from Damascus, who. says that Omar iIs in deadly peril. I thought you should know this speedily, and so I sent you.”” ! “‘Of what nature is this peril?” turning pale. & “The messenger sald something of his falling a pris- oner, sorely wounded, in the hands of his enemies. “Of his enemies?” echoed the ambassador. -“He has many. Which one has been victorious?” “I have had no particulars, and perhaps the news may. not be true,” answered the prince soothingly. “May I question your messenger?! “Assuredl{]. He has gone.to the Temple of Life to pray for some of -his own kin, who are in danger. Let us go there together and find him.” But the messenger had already left the temple befors the arrival of his master, and the two found the great place entirely empty. Standing near the edge of the slab before the mammoth statue, the prince sata: “Stand upon that slab facing the statue, and I will tell you more faithfully than any messenger whetlier -your master shall live or die, and when—"" “I am a Moslem,” answered Haziddin, “and pray to none but Allah.” ¥ “In Baalbek;,” said the prince carelessly, “all religions are tolerated. Here we have temples for the worship of the Roman and the Greek gods, and mosques for the Moslems. Here Christian, or the Jew, sun worshiper, or Pagan implore their several gods unmolested, and thus is Baalbek prosperous. I confess a liking for this Templé of Life, and come here often. I should, however, warn you, that it is the general belief of those who. frequent this place that he who steps upon the marble slab facing the god courts disdster, unless his heart is as free from treachery and guile as this stone beneath him is free from flaw. Perhaps you have heard the rumor, and therefore hesitate.” “I have not heard it, heretofore, but having heard it do not hesitate.” Saying which, the ambassador stepped upon the stone. Instantly the marble turned under him, and falling, he clutched its polished surface-in vain, dropping heiplessly into the réservoir beneath. The air under his cloak bore him up and kept him from sinking. The reservoir into which he had fallen proved to be as large as the temple itself, circular in forin, as was the edifice above it. Steps rose from the water in unbroken rings around it, but even if he could have reached the edge of the huge tank in which he found himself, ascent by the steps was impossible, for upon the first three burned vigorously some chemical substance, which luridly illuminated the surface of this subterranean lake. He was surrounded immediately by water, and beyond that by rising rings of flame, and he rightly surmised that this substance was Greek fire, for ‘where it dripped into the water it still burned, floating on the surface. A moment later the prince appeared on the upper steps, outside the flaming circumference. ‘“‘Ambassador,” he cried, “I told you that if you stepped on the marble slab you would be informed truly of the fate of your master.- I now announce to you that he dies to-night, being a prisoner in my hands. His army. was annihilated in the pass of El-Zald, while he was on his or asked the ambassador; way to capture this city through your-treachery. In your last communication to him you said that you would inves- tigate our water storage and learn how it/ was discHarged. This_secret 1 shall; proceed to put you in possession of, but before doing 5oL beg to tell You that Damasous 1o fallen and is in my’ possession. The ‘reservolr, you will observe,. is emptied by pulling this lever, -which releases a trapdoor at the center of the bottom of the tank.'™ The prince,/with both hands on the lever, exerted his ;strength and depressed it. Instantly the ambassador felt the result. First, a smail whirlpool became indented fm the placid surface of the water, exactly in the center of the disc; enlarging its influencd, it grew and grew untll it reached the outer edges of the reservolr, bringing lines of fire round with it. The ambassador - round ~himself floating with increased rapidity, dizzily round and rvound. He?“crled out in a voice that rang out against the stone ceiling: “An ambassador’s life is sacred, Prince of Baalbek. It is contrary to the laws of nations to do me injury, much less to encompass my death.” : “An ambassador is sacred,” replied the prince, “but not a spy. Aside from that, an ambassador's duty is to precede his master, and that you are about-to do. Tell im when you meét him the secret of the reservoir of Baalbek.” himself. He thought little of it for the moment, but turning to the ambessador sald, having nothing else réclined at full length on the couch he oecupied, falling into & drunken stupor, for indeed he was deeply fatigued, sntes you ¢ nce wi an march into Baalbek unmolested. th a force inside the walls of Baalbek the a gigantic marble statue. repre- senting the god of life, who stood motionless with out- stretched arms, as if invoking a blessing upon the city. This reservoir, now. a whirling maelstrom, hurl shrieking Phcum into {ts vortex, and then drown:dr §f‘m’e‘§ and man together. 0000000000000000000000000ODOOOOOOOODO0OOOOO0OOOO0O0O0ODOD0OO0OO OO 000000 UST at present the air Is sur- charged with a great deal of elec- | trical talk apropos of the tourna- ment of telegraphers to be held in New York at the Madison re Garden during the month sthe auspices of the New Yor al Society. . Roughly, the tournament s divided into two big classes,. the sending events and the receiving events, the former being much the more important. Competitors in the sending events send off as many words as they possibly can during a period of flve minutes. Those in the receiving events as many words as possible sent to them during a period of thirty minutes. In the tournament of 1893 some surprising records were made. F. J. Kihm of the Brooklyn Eagle staff, C. D. White of the Assoclated | and Frank Catlin tied at 248 | Press words, though White had a few errors against him at the finish. Gibson made a record of 246 words, Frank English 239 and Hinnant 236. All these men are expected to com- pete again this year, and it is quite possible that last year’s best record may be bettered by one of them. The prize in each class will be $100 for first and $75 for second place. Special events will be a sending contest, limited to female operators, and a code contest for senders and receivers, unknown {lr:fl(f].ter in the Phillips code to be han- The expert telegrapher is as far re. moved from the ordinary operator as is the orator from the stammering school- boy. In sending his dispatches all the mechanical side of his craft seems to be eliminated; he loses all conscious- “take” | | ness of the key and the succession of clicks. He talks to his machine as he would talk to a friend, never think- ing how he forms his words or letters. Some of these wonders can even sena upon one key and receive from another simultaneously. . It is the same in the matter of receiving. 1In reading a page of print the reader never stops to sep- arate the sentences into words and the words into letters. He does not spell. The shape of the word is enough. It is | 80 with the expert operator. The gen- }(-t‘al sound of the clicks is all that is necegsary. The writer remembers once talking | with a telegrapher at a time when his | whole attention was absorbed by what | I was saying. - For over ten minutes | an instrument had been clicking away | near at hand. Suddenly my friend wheeled sharply about and went to the key. He had heard his name in the clicks of the instrument. To him it could not have been plainer than it some one had shouted it in his ear. Another curious fact is style in tele- graphing. The manner of the clicks themselves varies enough to enable an operator to detect at once variations in the sendings. The writer has: seen cases of this in the Western Unlon of- fices. Philadelphia calls up New York, and the receiver in New York at once responds wit “Hello, Tom, is that you?” or “Dick” or “Harry,” recogniz- ing the different men by the style and manner of their “Morse” as friends would recognize one another over the telephone by the sound of the voics There were two operators, once in Sal- amanca, N. Y., great chums, who used to telegraph to each other by the hour from different ends of the town during slack business. One of these men—his name was Sturgis—went West finally, got mixead up in an Indian row and, according to report, was killed. TFive years later his friend was in the Western Union STORIES OF EXPERT TELEGRAPHERS. 0000000000000 0O000000O0OCO00000O000000000O0O0D0D0O0O0OO0O0O00O000O0O0O OO0 | | 00000 office of New York on a Sunday after- noon, when business was dull. "He was sitting upon a receiving desk, when Chicago called up, asking who was there. Instantly the man on the desk jumped to the key and sent back: “Sturgis, is this you? We heard that you had been killed.” And Sturgis it was, sure enough. Just what it is that gives this style to operators, and precisely what the styleiitself may be, cannot be very clearly explained, but telegraphers haveé their styles for alt that, just as writers do, and they can be detected thereby. But the expert, or even the average operator, is not confined to his key in the matter of sending messages. Two operators can talk to each other by the mere touch of their fingers in the dark, or, if needs be, can cornmunicate to each other in a crowd, unnoticed, by the same method. There is a story of Edison—the wiz- ard—that is well worth repeating here. Edison was a marvelous operator in his younger days and at one time managed to transmit his messages even when his wires had been broken. He was the agent in a railway station located upon one side of the Ohio; the next sta- tion was on the other bank of the river and also in a railway office. On the day that the wires parted all communica- tion was cut off until Edison got aboard a switch engine that was stand- ing at the depot and began calling up the other side by means of the engine’s whistle. The other cperator understood | at length, and during almost the entire day the two engines were hoarsely whistling messages at eagh other. Homer sometimes nods, and even the expert operator.can make mistakes. C. S. Lawton, a sometime employe in the ‘Western Union offices, tells the follow- ing amusing anecdote on himself. He was receiving a dispatch from Albany, in which the sender was not over care- ful in the matter of spacing his letters. Lawton took the address as follows: “Dr. A. Wing, room car agent, central depot, New York.” The dispatch came back with the marginal report that there was no such person at the address named. The operator at Albany was called up and explanations followed, in con- sequence of which the address was cor- rectly changed to drawing room. car agent, céntral depot. But even a more absurd mistake was one made in the same offices when a.wire was received for “James W. Gilles, pie clerk, Brook- Iyn nasty yard.” This was afterward amended to read “James W. Gillesple, clerk, Brooklyn Navy Yard.” The expert tclegrapher's great chance comes at the time of national conven- tions and Presidential elections. Speed lke lightning variety is then a requi- site of his every movement. During the. last Republican convention Frank J. Kihm, press operator of the Brooklyn Eagle staff, covered himself and his paper with glory, and established a speed record which 11 long remain unbroken. Kihm had planned for this feat weeks ahead by learning to ope- rate a linotype. At the time of the nom- indtion Kihm placed himself at the linotype, his sounder at his elbow. As the sounder began to click the news from Chicago. Kihm ‘received” the message and ran it off on the linotype. The first part of the speech was in the newspaper forms ready for printing before the speech itself was ended, and the paper, with a verbatim report of the speech, was being sold upon the streets of Brooklyn before the audience in the convention hall of Chicago had ceased its applause. ————————— To_build one of the “crack” ships in the P. and O. service entails a cost of about £300,000. When it is remembered that a big ship can accommodate in her bunkers over 1700 tons of coal and that more than a hundred tons a day is expended in driving her along, it is not surprising to learn that the coal bill of the P. and O. Company amounts to nearly £600,000 per annum. —— The republic of Uruguay has more newspapers in prommjnn'to its population than any country in the world, BIGGEST MOOSE HEAD IN THE WORLD. HE monarch of all the moose has been slain. is mas- slve head, adorned by the most magnificent antlers of which there is any record, now hangs in the office, of C. F. Periolat, in the Masonic Temple, Chicago. It is valued at $1000. Sorhe idea of the size of this monster may be obtatned by comparing the spread of the antlers, or the distance across from outermost tip to outermost tip, with the distance between the finger tips of a man with outstretched arms. The average man, by stretching arms and fingers to the utmost, can reach from 65% to 68l inches. The antlers of this monster moose measure 74 inches across, or 6 feet 2 inches. The antlers of the average sized moose measure only 40 inches across. Here are some more measurements of the big moose: Around base of beam of antlers, next to skull, 13% inches; circum- ference of beam, § inches; width of blade, inches; width of blade taking in points, 26 inches; distance from base of skull, following curve of beam, across tip to tip of rear prong, 9 inches; f of head to mouth, .28 inches nose, 9 inches; length of nostrils, 3% inches; length of ears, 12% inches; width of forehead, 9 inches: length of neck, 6t inches; smallest circumference of neck, b2 inches; circumference of neck at shoulders, 75 inches; length of beard, or “bell,” 14 inches. " Professor James Ward, the naturalist, ives it as his opinfon the monster must fila.ve been 100 years old. An experienced hunter places the age of the big moose at 150 years. It Is reasonably safe to sup- pose, therefore, that the monster was gomewhere between 100 and 150 years of B The moose was killed last season by an Indian chief named Kushetan Tyone, about 275 miles from ¥akutat Bay. s + H. H. Cross, the animal painter, came from Butte, Mont., to Chicage to have a look at the head. “That is undoubtedly the finest moose head in existence,” sald Mr. Cross. “I have seen hundreds of moose i Alaska, but 1 never saw amythlngv approaching this fellow either in ' size or beauty of form. The animal in'life must have stood 22% to 23 hands high—larger than any horse in existence. He must have weelshed 2500 pounds. A moose weighing 1508 pounds is consl%er remarkably large. The average weight is 800 to 900 pounds. “You will notice that the neck is so short that the animal is unable to feed from the ground. See those bristles,’ ten inches Iong, on the neck? They stand erect when he dis- covers the hunter. There are large, open areas in Southern Alaska where the grass grows luxuriantly. Tne moose frequent thesé openings during the season when their antlers are growing to avoid knocke ing them against trees and shrubbery, for the antlers while in the velvet are exquisitely sensitive. About the middle of summer the new antlers have com- pleted their growth and the moose Te- turn to the forest. A bull moose is very proud of his antlers. He will spend a great deal of time rubbing the velvet off on trees and polishing them to the proper degree. I cannot hazard a guess as to the age of this big fellow. It is impossible to tell the age of a moose after he is 10 years old.” —_——— Nearly 5000 rmon- were injured ac- cidents in coal mines last yefi'. 5% %