The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-11-07

Cook, like all famous operators, developed an
aptitude for the telegraph business at
very early age The first work he did as an
operator was in Sandusky,O He quickly de-
veloped into one of the finest telegraphers
the business has ever known. He worked
in Chicago, Cincinnati and ST. Louis for
several years and then began series or
travels and spent two years among tie
Mormons at Salt Lake City. He was one
of the few Gentiles who could count proml-
nent Mormons among his friends, and
John Barrett, at one time sheriff of Ogden,
tried to induce him to join the church.
He then drlfted TO Virginia City, New,
and in its palmy Comstock days he amassed
considerable fortune, but it slipped
through his fingers. He then visited San
francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles and
Portland. From there he went to Texas,
and followed the line of the Houston and
Texas Central and other railroads then
building. Cook had wonderful knack of
making friends with western gamblers of
note and bad men generally. In Austin he
ana Ben Thompson, one of the fiercest and
cleverest gun" ghters in Texas, became
fast friends He was looked upon as
Inompson's protege, and not a tough or
fighter would have harmed hair in his
head for fear of Thompson's wrath. He
was with Thompson when the latter killed
two men. But although Cook was fas-
men, he was the soul Of honor, and never
gambled dollar in his life. de was with
George Hill, a noted gambler in Salt Lake
City when the MormonS were trying to kill
Hill, and the latter!neld them at bay.
Walter Phillips, in his book, gives this ac-
curate description Of Cook as he looked the
first time he met him:
'He was setting at the Chicago duplex.
He was an outre figure at that time. AL
though the month was December, my hero
was still glorious in very hgnt colored pair
of pantaloons, which worn without suspen-
ders, had ceased their endeavors to reach
his vest considerably below the proper
meeting place. Between his vest and pan
falcons his shirt proruded like the balloon
sail of yacht 1t was not until | faced
him, however, that | noticed that he wore
his vest open. displaying one of the most
immaculate shirts l had ever seen. His
nabty picadilly collar, too, kept in its place
by cravat as blue as an Italian sky, was
as spotless as the bosom below. All this
was surmounted by rather large head,
covered with light brown hair: the face
was smoothly shaven, the eyes bright and
clear and the nose a little retrOuSee and the
mouth frank and suggestive of more
comic Individuality than force of
character. Itook seat by his side and we
were sooa talking Familiarity. He did not
ask my name, and manifested no curiosity
about my history Or antecsdentS. For con-
venience he called ME Jim. He had fash
ion of calling everybody Jim" Before
the night was done | began to see how he
had earned the sobriquet of Statistics"
He spoke of everything with q perfection
of detail very briefly stated, which made
the object Of which ne spoke stand out as
defined and striking aSif chlseled in marble.
Statistics was a man of facts and
figures who recognized the ideal and imagi-
fIof iva fn or hut vbN lxxyax
subordinated them TO the actual and realls-
istic. In his quarters, books on India, ST.
IBERIA, Africa, Japan or China were always
lying about the room. | never found
readable story or novel among his books.
Statistics" exhausted the eastern literature
of the Mercantile Library, and had taken
up the heavenly bodies In one year"
Cook was employed by the Associated
Press at Washington six years ago and
worked their wire from Washington to
New York, one of the heaviest circuits in
the world, only the most expert telegraphers
being capable of ''holding the wire down.
as the telegraphers phrase it. He was
stricken with that deadly enemy of the
telegrapher, operators paralysis of the ten
dons of the right wrist, and this incapaci-
tated him from ever working a heavy cir
cult again. Here Cooks noble qualities as
serted themselves and instead of allowing
Walter Phillips to make some soft berth for
him, and practically pension him, which he
would have undoubtedly done, he resolved
to face the deadly fevers of Panama, where
operators are always in demand. He
worked there nearly six years, and seven
months ago he was Frustrated by the
chagres fever.
He wasn't allowed to leave the isthmus
and had made up his mind to die there
Two months ago, however, he determined
to reach his home in Sandusky and die in
his mothers arms He was struggled
aboard the steamer and stood the inspec-
ton. When the ropes were cast off he fell,
utterly exhausted. When he reached here
friends took him to the Roosevelt hospital
His blood was poisoned from the terrible
fevers, and he grew SO weak that there was
no hope of his recovery. His mother then
came on two weeks ago and took him home,
where he died.