Newspaper Page Text
fl Bill
BY HARRIET A. NASH.
(Copyright by S. S. McClure Cos.)
It had been a most successful dona
tion party, every one agreed. The
l>astor himself was heard to say that
he tfad seldom seen so many of his
j.eople together, and the pastor’s wife
clasped hands that day with some par
ishioners who had never been in her
house before.
The village merchants dropped in for
B few moments at supper time, while
there was a lull in the business of the
day. and even the busy doctor, after
risking a professional call next door,
ran in for a cordial handshake with
the pastor, leaving in the latter’s hand
b receipted bill for all indebtedness.
IThe pastor's eyes had filled at this,
B nd after the doctor had gone he hur
ried to find his wife and share the
surprise with her, but a thoughtful sis
ter who had observed the scene reach
ed her first, ‘and the little pleasure of
telling her was denied him.
Late in the afternoon Miss Black,
representative of the most wealthy fam
ily in the parish, had swept through
the parlor, pausing long enough to
superintendent the hanging of a fine
engraving she had brought.
It was soon after Miss Black’s de
parture that a fine seal pocketbook was
first noticed among the gifts spread
out in the study. No one knew just
who put it there. More than one fin
gered it curiously, and one or two sur
reptitiously opened it, to see if there
was anything inside. And the pastor
Smiled a little as he heard it whispered
from one to another that the pocket
book was empty.
It was late before the weary hostess
heard the gate click after the last guest,
and Hater yet before she could find time
to examine the gifts. For cross,
sleepy little ones must be put to bed
and the confusion that reigned in their
home be reduced to some such order
as would permit breakfasting there to
morrow —or —no —it was to-day. She
policed as she passed through the
kitchen that little cooked food remain
ed from supper. Not only had a. mul
titude been fed. but more than one
mother had carried home a few pieces
of cake to Tommy or Jane, who had
been unable to attend. But there were
uncooked provisions in abundance; the
shed was filled with fuel, and the sta
ble with hay and grain for the pastor's
horse, while the study was filled with
goods of every description—vases, ti
dies, splashers, among which the pas
tor was helplessly groping.
“You will be able to appreciate these
things better than I, my dear,” he
said. ‘ Some of them look very pret
ty. but I don’t know their uses.”
Mrs. Tyler sighed as she glanced
around. “There's a good deal here I
haven't any use for,” she said. “But I
oughtn't to say it, Ezra, for they have
been generous; that new easy chair
and the lamp and picture, not to men
tion all the provisions and dear Dr.
Holme’s bill that has worried me so.
Only—there wasn’t any money at all,
was there, Ezra?”
"I think not, Martha.”
' You do so need anew overcoat, and
I was hoping it would come to-day or
the money to touv it."
"Never mind, my dear; don’t let us
depreciate the gifts we have by sigh
ing for those that failed to come. I
can do without a coat very well. My
old one is quite whole.”
‘But so shabby, Ezra. And I'm sure
some of the people feel it a discredit
to the church for you to wear it.”
’’Well, Martha, if it’s essential to {he
welfare of the church for me to have a
hew overcoat, the Lord can provide it.
And in any case the people oan’t com
plain that their pastor carries a shab
by pocketbook. Just see this, Martha.”
"What good is a pocketbook with
nothing to put in it?” grumbled the
tired wife, opening it listlessly. But
in a moment her manner changed. For
accidentally slipping her fingers into
one of the pockets, she felt a paper,
and drew forth a crisp new bill—a
twenty-dollar bill.
For a moment they looked at each
other in delighted surprise. Then the
aame question sprang to the lips of
both: Who could have done it? “You
don t think it cuid have been Maria,
do you?" he asked, wistfully.
But Mrs. Tyler settled the question
nu , f L p , ro . n i lpt ne Btlve. It wasn’t
likely that his sister had sent it after
neglecting him so many years. It was
much more likely to have been Miss
Black or some of their people. “Though
L > dol }, t knovv who there is In this pa
rade. she said, “who would do so
a thing and keep It secret."
.ia\ Ty er bad Bevera l matters to at
**"d ln **• city - There were er
dtsired L SeVB^a i P arl *hioners. and he
Bpend some hours ln the
10 library, and carry out a long-
Htt r iS? ed . plan of vlß *tlng one of the
° n *‘ ? ut he obeyed hiß wife’s
iiMM U ? ns and went flrst to the
? - coming out in anew stylish
a ® llle coat, with no sense of the
fortavm, Sa tf that he was more com
fortable. He carried the old cotit in
th^ U n?' Tl r hlch , he forgot and left in
me next place he entered. The er
then 8 .h nlS ot d ’ the mißß ‘on came next,
•ben the library. He was hurrying
tlon > 'wovi the W,nter twilight to the sta
ll™ with a vague fear that he had read
LtJ 0 "*. 4 "! 1 might miss his train,
him =^ h u n< l on hiß "boulder stopped
I™’, and he turned ln wonder, to con
iront a blue-coated policeman.
fArrte, 7 *? o j on y° u,re the man we want,”
rlt?d r b?nvi the pol,ce man. while an ex
orled y ° ung man behind him
him* ’? reath , les8 ly. "That’s him; hold
him. don’t let him get away."
S i r ’” R *" d ‘he bewildered
laved rV- bU T J rea,,y canr ot be de
train.” f 1 have already missed my
rrniild 11, .L reck ™ n you hav - my friend,”
rlty n J h *, Sfhnly. “But the
tern onEf P ,eaß ed to give you free en-
You Tha nt K T don>t let ’bat trouble
come ion be ' ,t . tk,nßr you can d0 < to
along quietly.” ,
under a rea ] ,y ’ Blr> you are laboring
have n,? niisapprehenslon; you can
Possible business with me."
has thee l- . Wel *' 1 hnow a man that
find’ oVit n m Ju,t come alon * and you’ll
seen my Professional friend. I’ve
•ountrv I kind before. You do the
11*“'" omdonT” HPt falrly ' bUt a
hefovlf \?f (i f T . rP i ached the P°"cr station
ders could be made to un-
Kv.n ,h t l h ® wa " under arrest,
been * , b< “ ,lev * and he had only
pro,’ (e 1 taken for another man. and
111 r" tad over and over that It was
, rain n* kll and he *hould lose his
Plain' #„ !?? a PP“IHng truth w*as made
non. a hlrn 8,1 was he. and
Who hHH L Wh *? W “" wan '* d —*h* man
k ,’ln*hi b °ught an overcoat of Claus
it wits r .! hlit morning 'and paid for
/ I,* bill—charged with pass
rng counterfeit money.
not < a,,d over he protested his In
bin I.SI a . tried to explain how the
ed 0 him. He was only greet
vise* tncredulou* smiles, and ad
for ?.el *!\ y nothing until he bad Urns
"l ,„?i 1,1 ’ H< * d *ed mind grasp
, '.:’ n,y th mem outlines of the sit.
(hr JP 11 ™ Tyler, paator of
'onneld Congregational Church,
inee* * nrr * oi - He tried to re*
how !h* h*wn|mi> t itrn r*ntl
*u *ll t4tid tht Itmt dtflMltf
(hhiUfh l|l
* ' Wll * r ( th publicity thrti wriuli]
w bii cut, Ui iimciit mtiii4
as he wondered how his church would
take It—the church that Had been un
able to bear their pastor’s shabby coat.
For a moment he thought of giving an
assumed name. Then his real identity
would not be learned in time for pub
lication to-morrow, and before another
(fay they would see the mistake and
let him go. John Jones would do as
well as any name. Dr. John Jones
would convey more dignity. But when
a few moments later he was called
to give his name his truth-loving na
ture rebelled against the falsehood, and
in a clear voice he answered, “Ezra Ty
ler,” going on, without further ques
tioning, to explain that he was pas
tor of the Gimfleld Congregational
Church. He heard the charge against
him, and for the first time began to
realize the fact that the bill—that prec
ious S2O bill—was valueless. There
could be no doubt of It, they told him.
An Officer more kind hearted tljan
the one who had arrested him explain
ed it all and assured him there would
be no trouble if he was really innocent
and could prove where he got the bill.
He had a confused sense of many
people around, most of them looking
miserable and unfortunate. One wom
an, carrying a baby, staggered as she
tried to cross the room. She was ill
beyond question. He wondered why
they didn’t do something for her. and
felt relieved when a pleasant-faced ma
tron approached'and coaxed the baby
to her arms. How- pitifully the thin
little arms contrasted with the rosy
baby at home. In one comer sat a
ragged man of middle age, from whose
stolid face crime had banished every
trace of a better nature. Opposite him
was a weli dressed young fellow, his
face buried in his hands. The minis
ter’s heart throbbed with pain as he
looked at them and wondered how long
since the one was like the other and
what depths of degradation lay be
tween. He wished he were near eflsiugh
to lay his hand on the bowed curly
head—not much older than the little
heads at home. His own trouble pass
ed from his mind. What mattered it
so long as he was innocent? And an
emotion akin to the divine love and
pity moved him as he gazed on these
fellow prisoners who perhaps were guil
ty. Life must have been so hard for
them—temptations so strong and wills
so weak.
He found himself after a little con
ducted to a cell with two others—
strangely enough the two on whom his
attention had been fixed. The attend
ant—Mr. Tyler had no }dea what his
exact title might be—jocosely remark
ed that he hoped they didn’t mind
crowding, they were unusually full to
night.
To Mr. Tyler’s relief his elder com
panion dropped upon the floor in a
half-drunken sleep. The boy, as if
anxious to repel all advancers, had re
tired to the opposite corner and re
sumed his attitude of deep dejection
The minister watched him thoughtfully
for a long time. At last he drew near
er and touched the boy’s arm gently.
A haggard, miserable face was raised
to his—oh, so> vounsr.
"What do you want?” was the im
patient answer.
boy,” Mr. Tyler said gently,
tell me how it happened.” The boy
shrank away and ungraciously de
manded to be left alone. Then, some
gentler impulse seizing him, he mut
tered a half apology, and, as If to
atone for his rudeness, added a few'
words of explanation. Then sloivly
the longing for sympathy overcame
him, and he poured forth a story of
over-indulgence, dissipation and debt,
a pressing need for money, and—the
use of funds not his own. Before him
now was certain disgrace, perhaps
years of prison life.
The minister sat silent. In his coun
try parish he had never met a case
like this. He could recall nothing in
his theological training that fitted it.
According to his best knowledge and
belief, he should speak words of con
demnation and warning. But the pity
swelling in his heart Choked them back.
And when he opened his lips at last
there came from them only words of
sympathy. He seemed possessed by
some power beyond himself—that ten
der, all-absorbing love for the guilty
ones of earth, for whom too often he
(had felt only contempt. He strug
gled with himself in vain. His brain
told hhn he should have exhorted the
young man to repentance before it was
too late. His heart would let him
speak only of a heavenly Father’s love.
When he ceased speaking the room
was very still. Even the heavy
breathing in the other corner had
ceased.
Presently the boy raised his head
with a defiant gesture. “See here,’.’ he
said, and slipped a little vial into* the
minister’s hand. "I didn’t mean to go
to prison. If it came to that, there
was stuff enough in that bottle to
have taken care of me. If they’d put
me alone in a cell I should have swal
lowed it before now. I haven’t any
friends left. My relatives will all re
fuse to speak to me after this, and I
didn’t suppose there was any one in
heaven or on earth that cared. But
I believe you. I never heard it put
that way before. And I’m going to
stand my trial, and whatever comes
after It because of What you say.”
The two clasped hands warmly. And
as they did so the ragged criminal ln
the corner staggered to his feet and
stood before them. Had they but known
It, It was years since he had stood
so erect. “Squire,” he said, “the
youngster’s right. If somebody’s said
to me twenty years ago what you've
said to him I might have been a man
to-day In place of what I be. Oh, go
on. Don’t talk any foolishness. It’s
too late to work any such racket on
me. Well, pray for me If you want
to; 'twon’t do no hurt, maybe, though
1 oan’t tell you ’twon’t do no good.
I tell you I don’t want to be any bet
ter. I wouldn't change If I could.
But ln the name of the boy I was
twenty years ago I want to thank you
for givln’ this young feller a lift.”
He staggered back to his corner, as
if ashamed of the momentary interest
he hud shown, and the brief Intelli
gence died out of the hardened face.
The boy, worn out with deep emo
tion, dropped upon the hard cot and
slept. The minister sat through the
long night wrapped in meditation. It
was not until the flrst gray streaks of
dawn stole through the grated door
that he roused to a remembrance that
he was a prisoner, charged with crime.
Early that morning, in one of the
sumptuous homes of the city, a wom
an past middle age was partaking of a
solitary breakfast, glancing over the
morning paper at the same time. For
Mrs. Marsh was a business woman
and watched the markets closely. Run
ning her eyes slowly down the news
columns, she suddenly started so vio
lently as to overturn the coffee urn, and
regardless of the amber liquid soaking
Into the snowy cloth and dripping
upon the rug, she sat motionless, her
•yes riveted upon these words:
“A suspicious looking character pur
chased a cost of Claus A Clothier yes
terday morning, paying for it with a
twenty-dollar bill which proved to be
a clever counterfeit. "The swindler,
who was arrested as he was about to
take the evening train for New York,
claim* to he the paator of s church In
Gimfleld, and gave the name of Bara
Tyler, which Is believed to be assum
ed."
Mra. Marsh rang the bell for a maid
to repair damages, and, paper In hand,
left tbs room. "I wish 1 could think
SAVANN AH MORNING NEWS: SUNDAY. NOVEMBER 27. 1904.
it was a mistake,” she soliloquized as
she tied on her bonnet. “But it’s too
much like him. Nobody but Ezra could
get himself into such a scrape as this.
Well, he was quite right when he de
clared he had no head for business,
and after all I shall have to acknowl
edge it.”
Mrs. Marsh's quarrel with her only
brother dated from his entering the
ministry. Many years younger than
she, he had until that time been en
tirely submissive to her wishes. She
had selected his books, his clothes, his
college, even his friends. But when
it came to choosing a profession and
a wife the young man’s will asserted
itself. He would study theology in
stead of banking, and he would mar
ry the girl of his choice. The result
had been utter estrangement and a
silence which no effort on the brother’s
part could break.
This morning Mrs. Marsh's lawyer,
listening to her story, smiled to him
self, as he read beneath her calm, al
most indifferent manner her longing
for a reconciliation. “For he's prov
ed me in the wrong,” she said candid
ly. "Asa business man he would have
ruined himself and all his friends by
this time. And I intend to keep an
eye on him after this.”
And the lawyer, as he closed his desk
and prepared to accompany her, re
marked under his breath that the
working of a woman’s mind was past
his comprehension.
It was a busy morning. But wealth
and influence can accomplish much,
and before noon Ezra Tyler walked
forth a free man, the charge against
him withdrawn. He hardly knew how
it was brought about. His sister, greet
ing him as though they had parted but
the day before, had announced . the
facts to him, and knowing she had at
tended to it he had not troubled his
head with details. He was far more
interested in the case of his young
friend, and insisted on calling at once
upon the employers, where he argued
the matter with such persistency that
they finally consented not to prosecute
if the money was refunded.
Mrs. Marsh grumbled not a little,
wrote a check for the amount, and the
much amused attorney added his mite
by consenting to give the young man
a position in his office, where he would
be under strict supervision and out
of tempfation’s way.
Altogether, as Mr. Tyler sat at lunch
in his sister's house, he was by no
means unhappy, even though his par
ishioners were yet to be confronted.
If he only knew where that bill came
from! That was a mystery which must
5,000 TELEPHONES
MADE IN A DAY
MILLIONS OF 'PHONES
NEEDED EVERY YEAR TO SIPPLV
THIS DEMAND.
Interesting Proomu Employed In
the Manufacture of Apparatus and
Equipment—One Chicago Factory
Covers 31 Acres uud Employes
5.1*00 Workmen—ln One Factory
in \flv York 4,1*00 Are Employed.
The Ordinary 'Phone Comprises
150 Pieces of Mechanism.
New York, Nov. 26.—Few of the
millions of Americans who daily use
the telephone stop to think where the
familiar appliance comes from or how
tt is made, yet the manufacture of
telephones has become a great indus
try and one involving many delicate
and wonderful processes. So gretat is
the number of telephones needed to
meet the ever increasing demand of a
nation of telephone users that in a
single factory, the New York establish
ment of the Western Electric Company,
as many as 6,000 instruments are turned
out in a day to be distributed ‘among
the companies of the Bell system.
A Complicated Instrument.
How complicated in reality is the
seemingly simple telephone is shown
by an examination of a single portion
of the instrument. 'Bake, for example,
the transmitter, close to which you
place your lips when you talk over the
wire. It is composed of brass, vulcan
ised rubber, steel, aluminum, paper
and carbon, and comprises 150 pieces.
When transmitters are made at the
rate of several thousand a day, as in
this New York factory, it requires the
services of eighty persons merely to as
semble the parts. Some of these parts
are of a delicacy of construction far ex
ceeding that necessary in the making of
TESTING TELEPHONE TRAXS
MITTEUS.
Every One of (he Millions In t'ae Has
Been Proved in This Way.
the finest watch which ever ticked in
the pocket of a telephone user and they
are constructed with a mathematical
accuracy greater than that employed
in grinding the glasses which enable
him to read the names in the tele
phone directory.
Telephone makers are fashioning ap
paratus to be operated with the as
sistance of the most delicate electrical
impulses known to the engineer. The
current which will carry the tones of
the voice one mile or one thousand is
so minute that Its passage through In
struments and apparatus must he made
ns easy and an free from Interference
by other currents as science and skill
permit.
The Making of Transmitters.
When you speak In a telephone
transmitter, the sound waves set In
motion by your voice cause vibrations
of the diaphragm which may be seen
behind the screen placed over It for
purposes of protection. In the center
of the diaphragm Is what appears to
be a little brans button. In reality It
Is one end of a small cylinder lined
with paper and tilled with powdered
carbon, hardly morn of It In quantity
than the proverbial pinch of salt,
When the receiver Is taken from Its
hook, the telephone current Howe
through the carbon tn the cylinder. As
the diaphragm vlbratea, the bit of
ItraM moves back and forth, luertae-
be solved before the world could be
entirely assured of his Innocence.
As the train drew into Gimfleld that
night, Mr. Tyler stepped from it with
the utmost unconcern. It had ceased
to be of any consequence what his par
ishioners thought. The few people he
met greeted him warmly. One or two
stopped to shake hands and express
their regret at his disagreeable experi
ence. He felt his hypocrisy In allow
ing them to call it an unfortunate mis
take. His wife met him at the door,
full of questions and comments, but he
brushed them all aside, only inquiring,
with a sarcasm she had never heard
in his tone before, if his overcoat was
quite satisfactory. Supper was a si
lent meal; even the children, uwed by
the general gloom, spoke little. Tom
my was sent away from the table for
dropping his knife, and Lizzie was
sharply reproved for putting her el
bows on the table. .
All the time Mrs. Tyler was put
ting the children to bed her husband
meditated.
The door bell rang, and Mrs. Tyler,
coming down at that moment, ushered
into the room Miss Black and her lit
tle nephew. Miss Black’s face wore an
expression of righteous indignation.
Jimmie’s eyes were swollen, and he
hung behind his aunt. “I have no
words to tell you,” she began, “how
grieved we are at the result of Jim
mie’s naughtiness. It was he who put
that counterfeit bill in the pocketbook
—just before the party dispersed. My
brother-in-law took it at the bank, and
had brought it home to examine by
our microscope. This all comes from
allowing young children at such gath
erings unattended. Jtmmte knew the
bill was counterfeit “
"I only just took it to show' the
boys,” faltered Jimmie. “’n then I
thought what a good joke ’twould be
to put it in there. I never thought
a man that knew so much as the min
ister'd be fooled by it.”
“We are very much annoyed.” com
menced Miss Black, but her pastor, his
face wreathed in smiles, interrupted;
“Never mind. Jimmie,” he said.
“You’re a nice little boy, and I am
glad you did it. That is”—for Miss
Black looked scandalized—“l should
say, I am very glad to know who did
it. And it has proved how even our
mistakes—for I think we won’t oall It
anything more serious than a mistake,
Jimmie—may .be used for others’ good.
Some time, when you are a little older,
Jimmie, I will tell you a story of an
other boy who made a mistake.”
“Martha,” Mr. Tyler said, after the
.guests had gone, “can w'e not sing
’Praise God. from Whom All Blessings
Flow?’ ”
“I’m afraid it W’ould wake the chil
dren. Ezra," replied the tired mother.
"Then let us read the 103d Psalm;
■and after that I have a long story to
tell you about last night and to-day.”
But there W'as one part of the story
that Mrs. Tyiler never heard.
ing and diminishing the pressure upon
the carbon. The particles of the pow
der thus pushed about alter their re
sistence to the electrical current and
the fluctuations set up in the current
itself are the means by which sound
is transmitted. The little pinch of
powder in the tiny brass receptacle
plays so important a part in the appa
ratus that it is measured with the ut
most exactness. There can be no
guessing in work as delicate as this,
for a few grains too much or too little
means an imperfect Instrument. The
same care is bestowed upon all parts
of the mechanism. It is necessary to
prevent the outer face of the brass
button becoming a conductor and so
it is fitted with a mica disk which
must be made with equal exactness
IX THE “RECEIVING BOOM”
Where Thou mi nits of Telephone lle
ceivers Are Manufactured Dally.
as a variation of two ten-thousandths
of an inch from the standard thick
ness is a defect which condemns the
instrument.
Receiver for Every Transmitter.
While in one portion of the great
factory, transmitters are made by the
thousand, elsewhere receivers are
out In equal numbers. The receiver,
in its ordinary form, Is familiar as
a hard rubber cylinder, with one end
fla/rlng outward and surrounding
small opening back of which is a
diaphragm. In that rubber case, there
is no magical black powder but there
is apparatus so delicate that it will
transform the minute telephone wave,
which may have traveled a thousand
miles. Into exact reproductions of the
sounds caught by the transmitter and
sent on the long journey.
The central feature of the receiver
Is in the shape of that emblem of
good luck, the horseshoe. It Is, in
fact, a horseshoe magnet around the
poles of which are wound many coils
of fine wire. Through this wire flows
the current and as it fluctuates be
cause that pinch of powder In the dis
tant transmitter is varying its resist
ance, the changing power of the
magnet keeps the diaphragm of the
receiver vibrating, setting In motion
the sound waves which fall upon the
listener’s ear.
Every Part Tested.
The thousands of transmitters and
receivers which constitute a part of
the dag’s work in the factory receive
a great deal of careful attention after
they have been finished. When anew
telephone Is put In place by a Bell
company anywhere In this country the
subscriber receives an Instrument
which has been so carefully tested that
It is known It will do good service
whether the person using It be talking
over a line one thousand feet or one
thousand miles long. Here in the fac
tory are men who spend their entire
working day listening to the words
which are flashed through the new in
struments. The men who do this work
are especially selected after their hear
ing has been rigidly tested and they
become so expert that many Instru
ments are rejected for variations In
the volume or quality of sound so
slight that no one else can detect
them.
While every Instrument Is known to
be capable of successful operation at
the end of a thousand-mile line, It is
obviously Impracticable to have a
thousand miles of colled wire In a sin
gle room, so the engineers have de
vised an Ingenious apparatus which
develops an amount of resistance as
the telephone current flows through It
equal to thnt found in a line of the
desired length.
Voice-saving methods are used to as
sist the testers In their work and the
man who holds the new receivers to his
ear listens to the tones of a phono
graph, The tests are made by com
paring the new lnstrumente with those
of a known capacity but so highly
trained are the specialists In this part
of the work that merely listening at
the receiver shows them at once even
a slight defect.
Employes Kepi llusy.
The making of transmitters and re
ceivers ta a email part of the activities
1,000-Year Old Viking Ship Discovered in Norway
A remarkable Viking ship has lately been unearthed west of Christiania Bay, Norway. Various circumstances
point to its having been the pleasure vessel of some Viking queen. No weapons were discovered in the burial
tumulus where the ship lay, and the tine woodwork on the rails and prow and a loom and a fine sledge, which
were also found beside the vessel, seem to indicate that a woman commanded it.
MAGNETIC MIRACLES
WHILE YOU WAIT
BY J. C. BEARD.
Illustrated by the Author.
The audience Is seated before a
screen which is dull black. It must
not have any lustre. On the floor in
front of it is a piece of black cloth.
The performer holds up a common
horseshoe or U-shaped magnet, which
may be bought in any toy shop for a
few cents. He hands it around that
all may convince themselves that it is
really what It seems to be.
When it is returned to him he tells
them that nature furnishes magnets
ready made, the lodestone being an
example of such a magnet, but thnt
permanent magnets are under ordi
nary circumstances quite feehie. They
may pick up a few needles or tacks,
but w-11l fail to lift a tenpenny nail.
He attempts to do so, and, of course,
fails.
Then he tells them that he has con
structed a universal electrical genera
tor of magnetism hy the aid of which
the pow'er of even the little magnet
The magnet holds them all.
that he holds in his hand may be In
definitely increased.
He brings forward a queer-looking
box with a few curious glass bulbs
fitted into the cover, and tells his audi
ence that he will lncre/is.> the magnetic
force of the magnet a thousand time*
merely by placing it in contact with
the machine, and in the magnetic
meridian of the fulminating planes,
next the induction colls.
He stops turning the crank while
he does this, on the side of the box
furthest from the spectators.
All this has been described in de
tail as it Is a necessary part of the
performance.
When he has adjusted the magnet
to his satisfaction and allowed It to
remain a moment or so while he turns
the crank, the performer takes It ln
his hand in full sight of the specta
tors and holds it to a line of ten or
a dozen tenpenny nails, which he has
placed on the cloth at the foot of the
screen.
The magnet, to the astonishment
of all, has become strong enough to
raise the whole collection clinging to
gether end to end.
The performer brings a hammer
In this busy establishment with Its 4,-
000 employes. One floor of the great
building is almost entirely given up
to the assembling of portions of tele
phone apparatus of which the public
knows little. Here, for Instance, are
hundreds of thousands of electric light
bulbs, each no bigger than the end
of a lead pencil. These, when placed
upon a switch-board. 15,000 being re
quired In a single standard board, 'as
they glow and are extinguished, give
notice when people desire to talk over
their lines and when the conversations
are ended. In the lower floors of this
New York plant are machines which,
working with great rapidity and exact
ness, take the raw material and fash
ion It Into the hundreds of small parts
which go to make up the completed
apparatus.
And yet only a sm’all portion of the
work of telephone equipment Is done In
the New York factory. An equal
amount of the necessary apparatus,
Including switchboards, telephone
boxes, cords and cables. It made In
the Chicago factories of the Western
Electric Company. Here, as in New
York, the visitor Is Impressed with
the delhtscy of the work required In
handling the minute telephone cur
rent.
The Mw llciiboerd.
A switchboard must be so construct
ed that the Insulation shall be perfect
In character. The thousands of miles
into contact with the nails and the
line remains unbroken; the nVagnet
holds them all securely.
At last he even attaches a flatiron
to the hammer, and still it holds.
After various experiments of this
kind the performer tells his audience
that Mahomet’s coffin was formerly
supposed to hang between heaven and
earth In equilibrium between two
masses of lodestone. This has been
pronounced Impossible, but the per
former assures his audience that the
things could be done.
He has a metal box in which lies a
doll. He places It upon the generator,
or box, and holds the magnet over It.
As the magnet Is raised, the box fol
lows it steadily. As long as the mag
net Is ‘held up, the box containing the
doll remains suspended between the
generator and the magnet.
The performance Is repeated with
a flatiron instead of a doll in a box.
Although the Illusion. If skillfully
performed, is perfect, the means and
apparatus and, consequently, the ex
planation of how the trick is perform
ed, are almost absurdly simple.
All the articles lifted by the magnet
are strung with black wires. The mag
net Itself has a wire fastened to the
middle of the bend or arch above and
ending in a book below the armature
or little bar that Is placed across the
two ends.
With this 'arrangement all the ob
jects required, of course, can be picked
uu and hooked fast to the magnet.
The wire is put on the magnet when
It is taken behind the box out of
sight of the audience under pretense
of increasing its power.
However strange It may seem, the
black wires, by gas or lamplight, awe
absolutely Invisible against the black
background. It is well, however, 'to
keep the spectators from approaching
too near the performers.
The box is nothing more than an
old soap box painted over with stove
blacking. The top is made of paste
board with holes, in which different
oddly shaped bottles are fastened.
You can use your imagination and in
genuity freely as you please to make
it look wonderfully complicated and
“scientific.” There Is an old coffee
mill inside the box. and when occa
sion offers It is ground by the per
former.
Many tricks that will suggest them
selves can be performed with this sim
ple apparatus. There is no end to the
fun you can get out of It.
of copper wire burled In the apparatus
must all be wound with fine silk
thread, or covered with rubber Insu
lation, while where the wires Join, that
there may be no loss of energy and
no interference from other electrical
impulses, the union must be made with
bits of solder, there being over 2,000.1)00
of these Joints In a standard board.
There Is hardli' a mechanical trade
which Is not represented in the manu
facture of the Bell telephone apparatus,
and most of the machinery has been
Invented as required. Bits of steel
and copper are stamped out and
shaped bv the hundreds of thousands
for uso in the switchboards. Braiding
machines are constantly at work mak
ing the familiar green silk covering of
the wires which are exposed to view In
the houses and offices.
The making of the telephone cable
which appears to the ordinary observ
er like a lead pipe involves many In
teresting processes, for that lead cov
ering must be perfectly alr-tlght and
the wires within It free from moisture.
These wires, as many as 1.240 being
placed In a single cable, are each wrap
ped In paper and after this Is done
and they are assembled In the ahesth
they are thoroughly cooked In a huge
oven to drive out anv trace of mois
ture. The liner work of construction
carried on in Chicago Is done In a fac
tory building which affords over twen
ty-one acres of floor space end accom
modates nearly 6,000 employes.
BOY AND GIRL
RIFLE SHOTS
WHY THEY SHOOT RIFLES.
UL'NS BRAT BOOKS FOR RECRBA
TIOW AND AMrSIiMKN'T.
Letters front Boys aiut Girls to Be
Used ilefora Coairrese by National
Honril for Promotion of Rifle Prac
tice In RfTort to Secure Appropria
tion—Boy’s and Girl’s Reasons for
Wanting Rifles.
By R. M. Larner.
Washington, D. C., Nov. 2fi. -3am*-
tlme ago the manufacturers of a well
known sporting rifle lnaugifated a com
petition under which boys and girls
were to submit their reasons for de
siring a rifle, and offered a number
of rifles os prizes. The National Board
for the Promotion of Rifle Practice
has come into poesrasion of a number
of these letters and they will prob
ably be used In connection with the
report of the board to Congress as
showing the Interest which young peo
ple of both sexes take In the subject
of rifle practice and the good which
may be expected to follow encourage
ment of the same by the Increase of
facilities for practice in the public and
other schools, as well as In the estab
lishment of outdoor ranges. Some of
the letters 'Are so good as to lead to
the belief that the youthful pens were
guided by more mature hands, but In
any event they are very Interesting.
A Michigan Boy’s Latter.
Morton R. White, a 14-year-old boy
of Grand Rapids. Mich., writes. "The
rifle is a weapon everybody should
learn to shoot. Shooting makes us
keen of sight and steadies the nervous
system as nothing else can. Owning
a good gun encourages one to leave the
smoky city and seek the fields and
woods where, while enjoying one's self,
there Is a chance to study nature bet
ter than one can from books on the
subject."
John G. Brady. Jr., the 14-year-old
son of the Governor of Alaska, says:
"The reason I think that young boys
and girls should have Are arms is that
It trains their eyes to be straight and
their hands to be steady.”
Girl Who Shoots a KJIIe.
One of the most interesting letters
Is from Ruth Alice Anderson (aged 11),
who says: ”1 believe that all young
people that like open-air sports should
own rifles of their own and become ex
perts in handling them. It is a splen
did exercise for the mind, body, nerve,
eye and hand, and Is beneficial In many
other ways. In the first place, It is
such fine recreation after one has been
closely confined to study or work, and
in the beginning one should learn how
to handle and clean his or her gun,
and first of all to be very careful to
avoid accidents of all kinds, so that
neither one's self nor any one else Is
hurt by an accidental explosion or dis
charge." Little Miss Anderson lives
In Baltimore and It Is to be hoped she
makes good use of her rifle as she was
one of the two girls to whom prizes
were awarded. Her father Is fond of
the sport and has taught his daughter
the use of his own gun.
“Every boy and girl should own and
learn to shoot a rifle," says another
letter, "because accurate rifle shooting
requires precision as the rifle must be
aimed exact In order to hit the target
aimed at. This reflex action or habit
trains his or her mind to precision and
whatever does this Is to be encour
naed.”
Prefer* Rifle to Novel.
Martha Gay Haskell of Aubumdale,
Mass., a 17-year-old school girl, says:
"You cannot leave a rifle hanging use
less on its pegs while you doze lazily
with a novel by the fire. It Is Insist
ent In Its call and many a tramp to
many a pleasure would have been pass
ed by unknowing If It were not for
its timely presence. It Is truly a
‘guide, philosopher and friend;’ a
guide to strong muscles, clear brains
and Cheerful hearts; a philosopher
teaching the best of Its creed—content;
and a friend to all who ask and are
worthy of Its friendship."
A Tennessee Boy’s Ambition.
A boy In Tennessee gtves the fol
lowing logical explanation of his de
sire to owVi a rifle: "First, a boy
can never learn to shoot without a
gun: If ho cannot learn to shoot he
cannot be a Rough Rider; If he can
not be a Rough Itlder how can he be
President? Every American boy has a
right to be President, so he should be
fairly started with a gun. Every girl
should have a gun, for she might be
come the wife of a President."
"If Uncle Sam called for soldiers
and the soldiers had never handled a
gun, and had to be taught after they
Joined the army, why, I think the army
and navy would be left In the soup,”
writes another candidate. "So I think
that every true American boy should
have a rifle and not only shoot It to
hear the noise, but get so accurate
with It that he could hit a small spot
within the rifle’s range: then when Un
cle Sam calls for volunteers the Unit
ed States would have the best army
and navy In th*> world.”
A little girl of a philosophical turn
of mind, says: "It seems to me that
girls should have steady hands and
eyes its well as boys. In fact. It seems
m i hough girls needed to learn to be
steady more than boys, for 1 am sfrsld
we have too many nerves and are too
easily unstrung and fly-sway.**
29