The Magnolia gazette. [volume] (Magnolia, Miss.) 1872-current, 1886-05-07
AHEAD OF EDISON.

An Inventive Train News-Agcnt who An.
tedated the Wizard.
edison may think he has this busi-
ness OF telegraphing from moving
train down fine," said the candy
butcher, "but can go him one better
have been sending messages from
moving train for two years, and
stopped only three months ago. That
amt all, either; 1 send my autograph
by wire, and boxes of candy, fruit, nov
els, and hull lot o. such things. Edi-
is way behind the times.''
"You're lying"
.'No, I hain't. swear by the great
hoyaed spoon that l am telling the
truth, s'elp me. You doubt meP OF
course. All great inventors have been
greeted in this cold world by sneers and
incredulity. That has been the fortune
of all of us great men. But we get
there Just the same. You want to hear
how 1 did itp Well, I'll tell you.
About two years ago l went gone on a
girl who lived down in the country in a
house located about half mile from the
| track in little valley. There was no
station there, and I didn't get to see
her very often, except at distance-a
wave of q handkerchief, or some thing
like that-and this wasn't satisfactory,
as you may imagine. My train never
passed that way unless 1 had yearning
that there would be an ac-
eident or something that would cause us
to lay over two or three days. 1 used
to think seriously about throwing my
self off the rear car and getting hurt, so
could be carried to her dads house
and by her fair hands and loving ten
derness nursed slowly back to the
strength and health of avigorous young
manhood, as the story books have it.
But didn't throw myself off the train,
not just then. Might have done it but
for an idea. An idea came to me from
out of the clouds, / guess. 1t was a
regular inspiration. 1t broke all over
me like bad egg, which granger
threw at ME once down the road in re
venge for cheating him out of nickel
1t took possession of mo from my brair
TO my heart. wasn't long getting tc
work ON it, either. The very next Sun
day stopped at the nearest station
hired a livery horse and carriage, ant
drove out to my girls house. Unde
the seat in the carriage / had big rol
of telegraph wire which the linemei
had left out in the storm. L told the
girl of my little scheme, and she becam
enthusiastic over it. Between tn
house and the railroad, a half-mil
away, was a piece of woods comm!
clear up to the track. Here we wer
walking, and took along my roll c
wire and some tools which sh
sneaked out of her dads shor
We worked like beavers all the after
noon, and by night had wire stretche
from the track down the hillside to a
arbor in the garden by the house. Frol
that on sent her a message every tim
passed. Some days sent her book
oranges, boxes of candy, every thin
like that. Howp Just as easy as fal
ing off log. had stretched the viii
from the top of o whistle post close
the side of the trark, and in my kit
kept lot of little wire fixin's which
made myself. They fit the wire nicel,
and to 'em I could tie letters, ligi
packages and such things, and then a
Ihad to do was to watch for the whist
post, hoop in hand, and, on reachir
the post, slip the hoop on the vii
while the train was running forty mil
an hour. Down the hillside the lett
glided with great rapidity, and at tt
other end of the line she was waitir
on the arbor bench for my messag
Great scheme, isn't itp"
Yes; but how did you come to stc
on itP''
"Why, bout three months ago ma
ried the girl, You wouldn't expect
man to go to all that trouble in order
keep up communication with his on
wife, would Yona'' Gijaaqo Hyqla,
\.