Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1880-03-11
Vol XVI. Whole Nc. 1911. No. Il.
That Puzzle.

/
spondent of the Boston Gazette:
| Boston has great many sins to answer
for, like the rest of us, but none greater
| than the introduction of the Block puzzle.
| The Gem puzzle it is called on Broadway,
the Boss puzzle on Third Avenue, and that
puzzle on Wall street. New York was
a comparatively happy and peaceful city be-
| fore the introduction of this puzzle. Now
happiness has fled and discord reigns. Of
course YOU know the puzzle to which re-
fer. 1t is useless for you to deny it; YOU
have one in your pocket now, and are only
waiting for a quiet moment to take it out
and move the perplexing blocks around.
| Everybody in New York has one, and there
are five or six in every family. How to
bring the numbers out right is the one
| thought that fills the minds of our citizens.
In the shops you see the clerks with anx-
| lous eyes hurrying them customers to
| choice of goods. that they may steal mo-
| mcnt under the counter with their precious
blocks. On the street cars YOU see men
with their abstracted gaze suddenly pull
box from out of their breast pockets and be-
gin to move the blocks with eager fingers.
All goes swimmingy at first One two,
three, four, five SIX, seven, eight nine, ten,
eleven. twelse-how simple, to be sure,
| thirteen, fifteen, fourteen stand the last
numbers, and here's the rub. Can they be
placed in the proper order? This is the
question now agitating this city. Politicians
no longer care whether Mclean is in or out
of the police board IIumanitarians have
turned away from the Cowlev case, and
fcnians have forgotten Parnell. Clergymen
have almost determined not to preach, for
| their congregations take no interest in what
they say. Wrinkled brows meet them on
every side, and even deacons and elders are
seen sinking out of church in haste to get
home and work out that knotty problem.
Il Is SAID that when a well known clergyman
gave out the text of his evening sermon from
Numbers, II WAS almost impossible TO get
seats, as every one thought he was going TO
explain how -, Is. IA, could be changed to
IL, A. -. Time no longer hangs heavy
on the hands of the space man waiting in the
city editors room for his detail. He is
armed with puzzle, and has actually been
known to shed tears when sent to work up
case that would bring him in $50, Just as
he thought he had solved the problem. 4,
ll-ii. used to be the fayorite numbers of
the Bohemian reporter; now its attractions
are gone. The increase in the number of
suicides recently. is said to be entirely due
to the block puzzle. After spending whole
day over ii men become desperate and life
loses 1t, charms. Divorces are brought
about through its agency. The infatuated
husband takes the puzzle home at night.
Angelina wants To tell him all about that
horrid Mrs. Simpkins and lovely new dress
she can get at Stewards for almost nothing.
Charles does not hear he is moving the
blocks wildly about. determined to get that
Is, II. - She accuses him of indifference.
He does not answer. .'You do not love me-"
she cXclalms. bursting into tears. "Oh,
bother :" he eNclaims; he is thinking of the
blocks You love another There is
woman at the bottom of this ." Thirteen,
fifteen. fourteen" signs Charles in despair
"Oh, You old Turk =" shricks Angelina,
ru>hin. from the house to her mothers
across the street.
John Henry. whose engagement TO Sarah
Emclinc is Just announced, goes up 10 spend
the evening with his beloved, who has in-
,itcd q few friend. to meet him. He takes
the block puzzle up with him to make il
pleasant for them. lie il quite dexterous in
the use of the blocks of wood, and has come
out even several times. With great pride
he shows II 10 Sarah Emeline and her friends
lie works Il out carefully. Somehow or
other 1t bothers him more than usual this
time. Il wish many Of YOU wouldn't
stare at me-" he remarks 1T makes me ner-
,ous.' Then he goes into quiet corner
and works it out by himself After few
minutes he returns. exclaIming, Eureka
The guests all gather around, and there,
sure enough, is -. Ii. -. 1T amt right,
after all" saws Sarah Emeline; you've get
r. II. instead of IL, L." And so he had,
and no shifting Of the blocks could bring il
right. Is it any wonder that John Henry
put the box in his pocket and never saw his
Sarah Eneluc more For" said he re-
fectively "a girl who would take fellow
down like that before a roomful of invited
company has got no feelin', and it's feelin'
that tells in the long run
plague upon his country when he invented
the horse-car poetry
blue trip slip tor q six cent fare.
pink t,ip slip ior an eight cent fare.
etc, Is a terrible thing to get running through
ONES head. But that flows easily along, and
while il occupies the mind it does not torture
the BRAN. The block puzzle turns black
hair gray, makes amiahle men cross and
sane men unatic> 1t is however. the bond
Of sympathy that binds the people of this
city close together and when a man is seen
to stand upon the corner of street and
throw his hat in the air, while he shouts for
joy every person who passes that way joins
in the wild halo, for they know that he has
got l3-li-lj,