, 1889-05-01
SAVED BY A BELL BUTTON.
An Old ~TelegraPher's Successful Expert
ment with n More

An Old Telegrapher's Successful Expert
ment with n Morse Sounder.
"Some years ago." said A. Howard,
"my life and $50, 900 belonging to my
partner, Jim Bigney, and myself were
saved and n gang of robbers broken up
by means of an electric bell. Jim and l
had been telegraph operators, but had
abandoned the business for mining. We
had luck in prospecting, and after n few
years had sold our claims for S27, 30S, of
which we took 1900 in promissory notes
and started east with the balance, chiefly
in bank notes. 1t appears that three
outlaws learned the real value of our old
trunks and contents. had left Jim at
the clerks desk of n new tangled hotel
In n western town and followed the par
ties as they carried the baggage to tho
front end of our room on the fourth
floor. After Diminishing them l had shut
the door, ~neglecting to lock it, however,
and had turned to the washstand behind,
when / heard the door swing slowly open
behind me.
Thinking it was Jim, l rinsed the
lather from my face and turned, only to
find n man holding a six shooter In my
face, another locking the door and n
third making a break for the trunk. l
wanted at first to argue the matter from
a standpoint of morality, and so inquired
what right they had to disturb me in
dressing. But the man with the gun re-
marked automatically, Might makes all
things right, stranger, and this is might
tapping his weapon with the disengaged
hand. i felt that tho silent instrument
In his and WINS n deeper, n more potent
argument thar any / could advance I'M
der existing circumstances.
"'Back him up 10 the wall and keep
him covered until we get the stuff, and
then weTn slit his throat and LOPEZ re-
sumed the leader.
Though the programme did not just
suit me, 1 acquiesced, as far MS the wall.
Put your hands behind YOU command
ed my jailer. 1 did, when a happy
thought struck me. My right hand had
come In contact with n knob, which 1
recognized as the electric bell which
communicated with the clerk. This was
n feature of civilization the robbers were
not posted about. Unobserved by them,
1 began sending tho following message:
"'JM-Three robbers have tho door
locked, and are just waiting TO get our
dust 10 murder me. Get q man and step
ladder, and don't make a sign of noise,
put n gun through the transom and
shoot. Be quick and careful
my only hope was that Jim might be
still lounging where 1 left him, in which
case his ear would quickly catch IN.
There was n chance in n hundred, and l
began to sweat very freely. But 1 started
repeating the message, and was nearly
through, when bang, bang, two shots
were fired from over the door, and the
man, who had not been hit, turned Just
enough TO let me hit him back of the ear
with my right hand-tho force of despair
and the knowledge of being on the right
side ut last. 1t would be painting it a
shade light to say we had sprung u sur
prise party on the visitors. 1 had n gun
In u moment, and kept the thieves at bay
until the two men outside got in and tied
them up, except the leader, who was as
dead as n man ever gets to be. The other
wounded n died In q hospital three
months afterward, and my jailer was
killed In an attempt to escape Jail about
the same time.
A l had expected, when the bell be
gan ringing the message In the office,
Jim was there and commenced taking
1t. The clerk gazed in such astonish-
ment that ho forgot to start a boy up to
answer 1t for n minute, when Jim pulled
his gun and remarked: The first man
that leaves this room gets all I've got
hero In the neck When he had got the
'ringogram,' as he afterward termed it,
he rapidly explained, cautioned every
body else not to follow, took q drummer
he had met on the train, snatched q lad
der, and as soon as no could climb
around the job was done."-St. Louis
Globe-D Democrat.