Omaha daily bee., 1889-06-19
NUMBER 1.

SouuUl bluilS ana Lincoln, nor inc papers
sold at the news stands throughout the city
and upon all outgoing trains.
Every morning 10 600 copies of the paper
are stamped, wrapped aud mailed, and on
Sunday morning 120O0 copies go through
that process. Every Wednesday the
weekly edition has TO be looked
after, which numbers $4,000 to 10000
papers. On week days about 1900
copies are expressed to the various news
dealers in this ana surrounding states, and
6,000 on Sunday.
Mr.. Cliss Butler is the foreman of this de-
partmont and is an expert in the business, as
are the men under him. They have wrapped
rs many US 100 BEES in one minute, and one
of the boys (Somers) has wrapped 1000 in an
hour including pastng and changing the
mail sacks.
The Counting Room.
The ascent Of the grand staircase leading
TO the banking story elevator landing, and n
passage through the east corridor ending at
the entrance to the counting room is the
method of gaming access to the business
quarters. The counting room doors are OF
antique oak, the upper panels of which con-
sst of bcvcled plato glass, swinging under
largo plate glass transom. This room and
the private Office south of 1t occupy the en-
tire space embraced in tho east side of the
banking floor with the exception of about
twenty-five feet in the rear Its extreme
width including the public lobby adjoining
the counter on the east and reaching to the
inner court is thirty eight feet The count
ing room proper, excluding the private room
in 'front.' is more than eighty feet in length
and has a minimum width of twenty four
feet and maximum breadth of thirty eight
feet. The high ceiling is supported by four
grand pillars, with Ionic capitals that spring
from about the center line of the room. Five
magnificent chandeliers support an artificial
lighting capacity of thirty incandescent and
like number of gas jets while ten auxiliary
double light ncandescent brackets are dis
tributed about the sides of the room. Nine
generously dimensoued windows on tho
Seventeenth street side of the building and
three vast glazed openings on the court, with
large transoms on the north and south admit
daylight The floor of the counting room
is of oak ornamentally bordered by
strips of black walnut and oak and the
wainscot and other finish is of antique oak.
a iifty-foo, counter runs from the private
room on the south to a junction with the east
wall, where 1t contracts the width of the
business Office enough to meet the counter at
n right angle 1t is erected on a base of
chocolate marble, supporting the russet
Tennessee marble pasters that are sur
mounted by quarter round section of mar
bic of the same color as that of the base
lying Immediately below the marble crown.
Between the pilasters and the upper and
lower courses of russet marble which run
along the side of the counter are panels
of very dark notified tlorentine marble.
Above the marble is very artistically shaped
screen worked in Bower Balff iron and at
various intervals in it appear openings for
the advertising, subscription and divers other
departments. The lobby or public portion Of
the counting room outside the counter is
fioored with mosaic pattern of marble i'm
ported from Bcrgamo, Italy, and wainscoted
with very dark notified Florentine marble,
touched off at the edges by the russell colored
marble. A pneumatic tube carries copy be-
tween the composing room and the
business department. Entrance to the
rear of the room can be effected
from an cast and west corridor PREACHED by the
grand stairway at the north end of the court.
To tho right of this rear entrance are two
great vaults standing on each side of q pas
sageway leading to dressing room The
private office or directors room is 20 feet
square, and fronts on Farnam and Seven.
with quarter sawed oak, the extremities of
which are ornate IN oak and walnut, and fin
ishcd In antique oak. This room is without
doubt ono of the handsomest in the city.
The Editorial Rooms.
A broad tiled corridor, running east and
west in front of the elevator landing of the
seventh floor, leads to the entrance of the
editorial department The words Editorial
Rooms" are painted in large gilded letters
upon the glass panel of the door which opens
into the ante-room immediately east of the
elevator This is n spacious chamber
supplied with chars, tables, files Of
the paper and telephone. Through this room
every visitor and every member of the edi-
torial staff is obliged to pass before entering
any of the rooms set apart for editors and
reporters.
A door on the east opens into the editorial
corridor on either side of which are located
the working rooms of the staff. The rooms
were designed with special reference TO the
purposes to which they are now devoted,
and, as consequence, are well lighted and
ventilated and supplied with all the conven-
fences of modern journalism. They are fin
ished IN antique oak and supplied with furni-
ture which harmonizes with the wood work.
Turning to the right and crossing the hall,
which extends north and south, the visitor
enters the suite of the editor in chief. These
apartments consist of two rooms, the larger
plainly, but tastefully furnished, command
ing u magnificent view on both Farnam and
Seventeenth streets Of two sides of the
city. The smaller is the library room.
To the north is the suite Of the managing
editor, consisting of a working room, 10
which private consultation room adioins
North of the managing editor's room Is
that of the city editor. This room is con-
necteo with that of the managing editor, and
beyond it is the reporters room, where at
almost any hour of the day or night some men,
ber Of the local force may be found at work.
Each reporter Is provided with an antique
oak table provided with gas jet and electro
lier. From this room there is an opening
into the composing room by means of which
copy may be dropped into the hands Of the
foreman, both by day and night.
Crossing the hall, is found spacious room
used by the night editor and telegraph editors.
This room is occupied by the day proof
readers also. 1t is joined on the south