The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1886-09-29
An Editors Tragedy.

He was The telegraph esiifer On a
paper. and all shrpueh the evening and
morning hour he cut the sheets of mani
f,lds do,ts-'I the = is pat in periods.
straigiltenes the twisted sentences. and
OCCASIONALLY swere at the operator who
made stch poor copy. He was al the
time I knew him strictly temperate. a.
afferwsrd learned. DUE % the klef that
while IN New Orleans he had fallen in
love with a Young girl in moderate cir
eun-tanees. who had promised to become
his wife when he should consider him
self Is circumstances 10 warrant such a
step. He never toli me Of this. but of-
ten spoke Of prsierring to live in a small
citv. away from the boys. and where ne
could save nor. money Tie had pc
ture Of a young lady. that was always on
hls desk. and often in the night his eyes
would wander from the manifold and
look for ive minutes On the E.ce-tha 0f
a sweet-faeed girl, with dark hair and big
ewes. that in the picture seemed deep and
liquid
One night. or rather morning. for il
was nearly time for the paper 10 - %
press. the night editor came in. and
said.
Mr.. -, how Is the report coming
on
The Western Union kid had just
brought in the last sheet ofcopy, and the
telegraph editor replied
Thirty Is IN
when the telegraph operator receives
the lsst dispatch for the night, he writes
under ii the conventional sign, 30"
The night editor said unless there wAs
something important, to Kill it. for il was
getting late.
Ny friend, with hiS pencil in his fingers,
ran hastily through il. and when he
reached the last paragraph stopped short,
and for moment turned pale a. death.
while his pencil dropped from his fingers.
But he recovered himself in a moment,
and in reply to the night editors qucs-
tion, said wearily
There are two paragraphs-One ON
Beecher's trial. and another about some
young lady being ~trnck by lightning d
q town in Louisiana that's all
send Gp the one about Beecher and
kill the other said the night editor
~ nobody IN this part of the country cares
a continental about any young lady being
killed two thousand miles from here, not
at this time in the morning
Ny friend wrote head for the Beech
er story and put the rest Of the manifold
paper in his pocket. He pat on his coat
with tired air and left the Office, passing
the police reporter in the adjoining room
with a brief goodnight
Next evening he did not show up at the
usual hour, and the night editor swore.
for he had to handle the telegraph him
self It Was two DAYS before / saw or
heard from my friend. and then heard
that he had quit his job. and / went TO
his room, way down ON Elm street.
am not vel. - he said bad toquit
night work awhile I'm about done up
That wis about all he said. and for q
week. a. | made calls on him. Il wa- the
same He got no better. but said when
he got over a bad cold he would be- all
right Two weeks later he died A doe
tor had attended him. and said il was a
sort Of quick consumption. In his peck
ets were found half dozen letters one
which the dead man bad evidently writ
ten and neglected 70 mail. was directed
to Miss Annie f. Clement, New Orleans.
was intending to mail il when | came
across, among the papers found in his
pockets, bit of manifold copy, on ~hieh
WIS written. as near "a l can remember.
the following
NEW ORLEANS, s.-During a severe than-
der storm this evening lightning struck
house Of Mrs f. Clement, No. ~ Caronde-
let street, and that lady daughter Annie.
aged twenty, instantly killed That even
ing went down to the office where the
dead man had worked A new man was
8 doing the telegraph and nobody seem
ed to remember that the man hal ever
worked lhere. The picture Wa pushed
over TO the window sill and covered with
dust It vas the picture Of Annie. who
had been killed by the bolt that dliy that
the telegraph editor had quit his desk
forever. The picture. with the letters,
were mailed to the girls mother. with a
short notice Of the death, but no one ever
told her that the blow that broke the
poor. hardened newspaper mans heart,
was the unimportant paragraph that the
night editor had ordered killed