The Weiser signal. [volume] (Weiser, Idaho) 1890-1904, 1891-03-05
DUTY VS.. GRATITUDE.

ed by charwomen.
Jerry and Pete were hard workers;
they worked far into the night, and.
occasionally the thin mlsts of davis
had begun to break on the narrow
city pavements before their labors
would cease. Nobody would say that
theirs was not q hard-earned pillow.
Sometimes they did not toll in vain.
it depended largely upon the police
1t was chilly night in November
that this horny headed pair planned
the burglary OF Il certain safe in the
establishment of Il furniture concern
on the West-side. On the evening
in question the bookkeeper had had
wrangle with his accounts.
81 can't make head or tail of this"
he said to the senior member of the
firm, "but know everything is all
right. An error of several hundred
dollars has been carried over from
each daily footing, but where the
error begins or ends | haven't found
out.
The fact was the monthly sales had
been extraordinarily large, and q page
of the balance had been mislaid. The
head booKkeeper spent an hour in
again casting up both the entries of
himself and his subordinates after the
establishment closed it's doors for the
day.
Then he went home for supper, de-
termined to locaSe the deficit if he
didn't get a wink of sleep that night.
Bookkeepers, it must be remember
ed, have singularly sensitive organisms,
susceptible to the slightest atom of
anything which reflects upon their
probity or skill.
At half-past 8 he returned and COM
menced anew his critical calculations.
He worked precisely two hours, at the
end of which time he suddenly slapped
his forehead and exclaimed:
Great Scott! Why haven't l looked
through the safe for a missing sheet?
Ten to one Weeks forgot to number
theml"
He turned over the pages of the bal
ance in his hand and, sure enough, the
numerical marks of designation in the
upper left-hand corner was wanting.
In all likelihood one page, or perhaps
two, had slipped into some remote
corner of the safe.
The safe was q large one, partially
receding into the wall, and containing
all the papers, documents, and sever
al days receipts i'll cash and drafts of
the firm.
The bookkeeper in his efforts to I'M
earth the lost page of the cash balance,
was obliged to ntrude his entire body
into the safe. Fearful lest the candle
he held should attract attention from
the street, showing out as it did in
glaring relief against the black recesses
of the safe, before entering he drew the
door slightly aiar.
AS he stepped in the tail of his coat
probably caught on an angle OF the
huge riveted hinges of the lock. The
massive gate swung to as if it had
weighed no more than q single pound
and the bookkeeper was a prisoner.
He heard a resonant click, that was
all, and his candle went out.
There is nothing especially remark
able about the incident-tragic as it
certainly must have been to the I'M
fortunate wretch inside Many men
have been imprisoned in safes before
But this reflection would hardly
soothe the agony of that horrible
moment.
The bookkeeper at the outset lost
his presence of mind. He fought like
a Gagged demon, after the first eXerting
almost superhuman strength against
the four sides of the iron tomb. Then
his body gave out, and without for an
instant losing consciousness he found
himself sitting in q partially upright
posture unable to stir hand or foot.
At that instant, when hours seemed
tohave elapsed, the drum of his ear,
now abnormally sensitive, was almost
split into fragments. A frightful
monotonous clangor rent the interior
OF the safe.
The book keeper used to say after.
ward that a seconds deviation Of
characteristic thought and he would
have gone mad.
Stronger minds in parallel situar
ton would have collapsed. But q
weaker personality clings more strong
ly to hope. Only weak Municipalities
while in the act of drowning catch at
straws. As the bookkeeper himse
gradually growing faint from want o
air, his revived hope led him to DELHI
erately crash his fist into the wood
work with which the interior of the
safe was fitted, in secretaire fashion
one drawer being built above another
As may have been conjectured, the
noise which smote the bookkeeper'
ear was that of a drill. Although
keenly distinguished from the inside
the sound was practically smotherec
on the outside OF the vault.
At one end of the drill was n cavity
rapidly growing larger in one of TIN
steel panels. At this other end was I
heavy, warty fist, part of the anato
my of Pete, the industrious mechanic
Pete held the drill while his frienC
Jerry pounded it in.
Pretty soon the two burglars be
came aware that a terrible commo
ton was going on within the safe. l
nearly drove them into fits. The,
We're certainly very much startled.
Jerry was for throwing up the job
but his companion rejected the pro
posal with scorn as savoring of tn
superstitious. Pete had large famil,
to support, he argued. He spok
frankly to his friend and colaborer
The burden OF his remarks were il
these words:
You makeme tired with yer ghost
and things, and dom want any NOR
darn fooling-see? De blame Job
most trough anyway"
Pete and Jerry went back to work