Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-05-14
ONE NIGHT OF HORROR.
Bill Nye Goes Back to Early Youth
and Tells Tales.
from the Boston Star.1

aFOlueQ III ibis WOrIu Dy reasonable
care In securing our property In such
a way that it would be perfectly safe,
and, while such precautions do not
cost much, the neglect may be pro-
ductlve to us of serious loss. How
often are we led to regret the over
sight of some trifling duty Ia this di-
rectlon, the performance of which
would have saved as many bitter
regrets.
Many years ago, when l was stu
dent In the law Office of Bingham &
Jenkins, there were two of us. Young
law Cubs, who not only labored in the
office days, but camped in a back
room adjoining during the night.
This room was one of the suite to
which the offices belonged. So we
had to do up our bed-lounge day times.
and put our blankets. ETC., in some
place where they would be cut of the
way. Folding beds that look like an
upright piano were not very common
then, so we had to do the best we could.
[ favored putting the blankets ia one
end of the fire proof vault days, so
that they would be out of sight, but
more especially because they would
be perfectly safe there IN case of fire.
Ii the city should burn down and
every body be left homeless and bed
less, I maintained that We could 90 to
our fire proof vault when it got cool
and take our bed out in good order,
while others looked on and envied our
forethought.
Bob, my room mate, agreed to this,
and, as he always made up the bed,
| didn't try to learn the combination
of the lock on the vault door. My
duties consisted in keeping up the tire
and sweep mp the room on legal holi=
days If it needed it. Sometimes hoIi-
days came so close together that we
would let them go by without celeo
brating in the above manner.
Every evening Bob would go to the
the nickle knob on the lock three or
four times to the left, then two or
three times to the right, stopping on
certain number, then back three or
four times to the left, and so on till
the handle turned, its bolts shot back
an0 the door would swing open.
Then he would get the bedding and
make up our l0wly couch. After that
we would frolic around In the lamp
light, shedding our clothes as we
chased each other through the other
rooms, and when we got tired we
would sing some simple little song
shat would reduce the price of rent for
half mile in every direction. Then
we would go to sleep.
One day Bob had to 60 away for
week between Christmas and New
Years. so [ got him to tell me the
combination of the lock. At the
usual hour that night | got sleepy and
lonesome, and as the fires had all
gone out, I thought ] would make up
coolest night of that extremely cold
winter In very cold state, [ took
the lamp and began on the combina-
ton. | got TO sixty~one on the second
turn and carelessly allowed the knob
to move a little to far. Then l went
back to the place of beginning and
reversed the thing back and forth till
I got to where the lock is supposed
to click and the door swing open, but
it did not do so. A wild feeling of
doubt and uncertainty came over me,
and nay fingers got stiff with the great
wealth of cold that now pervaded the
apartments. / went through it again,
slowly and carefully, warming my
hands every now and then IN my
capacious mouth. I did this till the
clock on the steeple struck II. Then
[ put on my overcoat, kicked the
vault door with all my remaining
strength, and went to the Central
Hotel. The clerk woke up am told
me that as it was Christmas time the
house was plumb full, and [ could
not be accommodated. | went to the
Waltham House, and they told me
the ''Yule tide yarn" there and eject
ed me from the place, 1t was then
o'clock GIN.
I went back to the Office, lit the gas
and began again on the combination.
] knew that there were only three or
four million organizations and comb1-
nations of numbers, and SO thought
[ would run through them all. 1t
wouldn't take long, and one of them
of course would be the right one.
Winding up the dial on fre~proof
sarcophagus all night with the Their
mometer As degrees below is exciting,
but the excitement does not repay one
for the nervous exhaustion and result
ant fatigue. Well, I screwed that
North American d0funny around TO
right and left as long as I can remen-
Der, and when the senior partner
came down OF 9 o'clock, he said sat
there with a small lamp in my hand
mechanically turning the knob back
and forth and yearning for my beds
clothes.
When we opened the vault we
found the bedclothes alright and
perfectly safe. I never saw anything
SO safe as that bedding was. It seem
ed to me that it was almost too safe.
When q thing is SO secure that you
can't get it yourself, you naturally
think that the matter Of security can
be overdone
The foregoing incident, is absolute
IL and entirely true, with one except
ion. Bob was the hero of the whole
+b;,,os IN c+ood Of rY1uSo1f T fold him T