The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1882-04-12
The Aged fspo.

Il Is remarkable how the habits of
life cling to q person even during his
last moments The boys in the Inter
Ocean Office hardly expected TO lind the
old man at his case when they came 70
work in the morning, for when he had
gone home the night before they had
noticed his steps were very feeble. For
over forty years he had held case:
first on q metropolitan daily, then ON
little country weekly, and then on re-
ligious monthly. His hand was steady
as yet, despite his sixty odd years, and
very few OF his ssa'sn got into his ar"
box. This bright, sunshiny morning he
came in and greeted his 'fellow-tYpos
with pleasant ssGood morning." The
boys noticed his hand trembled some
what, and that his voice was husky aud
uncertain, but they paid no particular
attention to these things; the old man
lad been acting rather strangely for the
last few days, and they attributed these
failings TO grad ially weakening con-
stitution. He sto ID at his case for al
most an hour thru wing in, and had dis
tributed nearly all his matter, when of
sudden and with ,ut any previous warn
ing, his composin, stick fell from his
hand to the floor, and he himself tot
tered and would b ave fallen had not the
boys sprung to his side and supported
him to chair in front Of the fire. His
head dropped forward on his breast,
and his breathing became more and
moro rapid. The pressman ran for o
glass OF water, and returning held 1t to
his lips. As the water touched his
parched tongue spasm Of pain. shot
across bis face, and his frame was con-
vulsed with agony. With an effort
which seemed almost superhuman he
dashed the glass upon the floor. and it
was splintered into q thousand pieces.
This effort seemed 10 arouse him some
what, and he gazed about him with q
bewildered stare.
"Boys," he said; 's'boys, are the
cases all full7'' ssHis mind wanders," !"
whispered the foreman, in low voice,
and then said aloud, as he bent over the
old man: .Yes, Dick, old fellow, every
thing is thrown in"
"fhat'sright, that's right, exclaimed
the feeble old man, i'there Is nothing
like having the galleys and stones al
cleaned of" and he seemed TO brighten
up considerably, and made an effort TO
stir the fire with . warped sidestick,
which the boys used as poker.
"I've run short on EN- quads, boys,
and haven't enough to space out this
poetry, ".he said, and his faltering fin
gers went through the motion Of travel
ing over the case in search of the
requisite metal.
That's all right, Dick, we'll throw
in some quoins and that viii bring 1t all
right" said one of the boys in q sympa-
thetic voice.
"Ah, Charley" said the old man.
''that reminds me of the old Caseyville
Herald days, when we used to drop out
dead 'ad.' and lock up the planer In.
the forms to ill out with. Fat times,
those" he continued; ''they win never
come back to the old man." and he
leaned his head on both hands and
swayed to and fro. The boys gathered
around him more closely to prevent his
falling.
One of the boys, in coming to the old
mans side, stumbled over chase which
was leaning against the composing
stand, and it fell TO the floor with q loud
crash. The old man sprang to his feet,
and It was all the boys could do to
restrain him. "You've pied the FORM"
he shouted, Sand it Is time to go to
press What shall we do, what shall we
dow
"Sit down, Dick, old fellow; it's
nothing but an empty chose," said the
foreman, and he gently placed the old
gentleman in the chair.
"You can't deceive me, Mac" and
the tears stood in the veterans eyes.
''The form is pied. and we ought to
have been to press an hour ago. The
folios are all wrong, Mac. See, here Is
page 102, backing up 81" and the old
man snatched Q proof from the revise
hook, and began folding it in q helpless
manner.
ats all wrong, but it's too late," he
gasped- "The press waits" Here his
head sank again upon his breast, and his
breathing was thick and fast. s'Yes,
boys, lock up-the forms and look out
look out for loose spaces"
The boys stood silently around the old
compositor, and the scene was an inn
pressive one in the extreme.
The pages are all proved, everything
all right" he murmured, in broken
accents. Snow, then, careful, boys;
lift off the forms and clean off the stones,
and before, before you start up the
press, letus-let us-jeff for the drinks"
He fell with heavy thud to the floor,
and the foreman, with the aid of the
pressman, lifted him up and laid him
tenderly on q pile of mail-bsgs under
the cutter, and one by one the boys
returned to their cases and left him to-
sober up.-DenUer Inter Ocean.