The Rugby gazette and east Tennessee news. (Rugby, Morgan Co., Tenn.) 1884-188?, 1886-02-27
HE HAD NERVE.
The Gall Displayed by a Travelling Printer
In an Iowa Town,

In an Iowa Town
Ihad been devil in the Bngler office,
in town in Iowa, about four months,
when the editor was one day called
away. The man who was acting as
compositor, pressman, job printer, col
lector, solicitor and so forth, seized
the opportunity to go off on spree.
and l was thus left in sole charge.
just after dinner, as ] was washing
the roller and cleaning up generally,
in walked the first old "printer bum"
| had ever seen. The buds on his back
weren't worth silver quarter, his hair
was long and unkempt, his face COW
cred with dirt and bristles and his
breath scented the room. He was rag
ged, dirty, homeless and penniless, and
had been let out of the county Jail,
eight miles away, that morning
Howdy, boy" he said as he came
in, and without second glance at me
he took seat at the desk and attacked
the remains of my lunch. When he
had eaten the last crumb he picked
his teeth with the editorial pen, peeled
off his old coat and commanded:
"Boy hunt me up job stick"
I obeyad, and as he took 1.-THE walked
over to the rack, 'slung in two or three
lines of display type and then stepped
to the small plea case and set up the
body of a circular reading:
HE HAS ARRIVED!
THE WORLD RENOWNED PROF. PETERS!
Ventriloqust! Mesmerist! PhronoloDist!
Prof. Peters has engaged Snyders Hall for
the evening of September ~, 1868 tomorrow
evening", and will give the citizens OF GARNER
Cit an exhib ton of his wonderful powers in
ventriloquism, mesmerism and chronology.
Will initiate the notes of all birds; will speak
to you in sixteen languages; will wager $40
to 81 that he can mesmerize any person IN
the audence can read your character by
feeling Of your head; will forfeit 500 If he
fails in a single case. Medals from all the
crowned heads of Europe Flatterng press
notices from the leading newspapers of the
world Every body turn out. Admission only
"a cents, children free.
He placed this matter on galley,
pulled a proof and corrected it, and
then cut lot of print paper to the
right size and said to me:
"Get up the roller and roll for me. y
l complied, and he worked off two
hundred of the circulars. He was not
only good compositor, but he wrestled
that old hand press around like mar
who had never done any thing else.
When we had finished he said
"Take the tin pail and get me {
quart of beer. Tell 'em to charge il
to the office"
: l was afraid of the man, and go
the beer and paid for it out of my own
money. He drank the whole quar-
with only one breath.
"Now, then, take these circulars on
and distribute 'em,' he said, MS he pu
away the pail. "Be a good boy and ri
give you two tickets to this great ell
tertainment.
That was inducement enough, and il
two hours, with the help of anothe
boy, had billed the town. When
returned the "bum" had washed up
suit of clothes. He had gone to
clothier's and bought them and hal
, them charged to the office, claiming
that he had been engaged as foreman
Further than that, he had been and en-
,, gagged the hall. had been back onl,
d five minutes when the booty composite
}. came in. He had scarcely entered tn
$ door when the ''bum" rose up, wave,
, him back and tragically exclaimed:
t $50 hence! This is no place for tn
5 depraved! How dare you enter IN
: Office in your present condition.
t The comp" backed down stair
o drunken than ever. and after the stran
5 ger had questioned me as to when tn
b editor would return he went to the hott
, and engaged the restroom. | had hear
s. that somebody held mortgage on tn
= office, and it struck me that this mu:
f )e the mans agent. l was young an
> green, and had never seen display {
:. tramp printers gall.
l. Next morning he took possession {
II the Office. When the now sobere
g compositor arrived the "bum" selectc
l. copy for him and bossed him arount
and there was no rebellion. He wro
!, and set up several editorials himsel
v and made up the outside pages of til
d paper in a neat manner, and workC
n off two jobs for which three dollars an
is seventy-tive cents cash was paid. Du
$, ing the day two subscribers paid in fou
,e dollars, and all the money went I'M
I'd the strangers pocket.
as The editor was to be gone two day
a. and the man took such complete po
IT session that we believed in his RICH
and did not kick. During the day
10 got hat and a new pair of boots tt
.r same way he got the clothes, and
r drank three quarts of beer at our e.
Id pense.
e Prof Peters circulars filled Snyder
s. hall that evening to overtiowing, and
es was the old bum who stood at the dot
and took the money. When the la
Or person had passed in, the door-keep
IN slid into the darkness, and the Poop
If sat there for half an hour before thu
ty realized that they had been dupe
Dt Then grand man-hunt was organize
ill But it was too late. The bum hi
a stolen skiff and dropped down Il
e. river, just about one hundred and fiji
e. dollars ahead of our TOWN. Y. So