The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1891-06-26
SET UP BY eHosTLY FINGERS.
A TypeSetter's Story of News Getting That
Beat the Telegraph.

- AJPSsHbter = story OF news Getting Ihat
Beat the Telegraph.
I'm the summer of 1881" said com
positor, y was running a paper in ii
little bacllwoods town in Pennsylvania.
The paper was not 50 metropolitan in
its makeup but that | was able TO do
all the work myself with the exception
OF the printing. Publication days |
called in the services of half-witted
fellow, who, under my instruction, had
developed into an expert roller. l was
the only man within radius of twenty
miles who knew how to set type, and if
l had fallen sick the paper would not
have come out until ! was well again.
Naturally am not a superstitious man,
but an incident occurred while | had
charge of that paper which l can not
explain, and, until it is explained, l
shall believe that any thing is possible
in the way of ghosts, spools, wraiths,
etc.
1T was the morning of June 10. !
had locked up my forms the night be-
fore so that l could begin printing early
in the morning. l was pulling the old
lever promptly at seven. and at nine
the local list was in the post office
Soon after the delivery had begun one
of the merchants of the hamlet-a very
intimate friend-came into the Office.
allow did you come to hear of the
death of your brother so soon?' said he
There was no telegraph station within
fifteen miles
What do you mean?' said I.
"'Mean?' said he You ought to
know what is in your own paper, Have
you forgotten that you heard this morn
ing that your brother is dead? Have
you forgotten that you set up notice
Of it an hour or two ago.
Are you crazy?' said I. 4 swear
that do not know what you are driv-
ing at
''At this juncture he opened the damp
sheet that had so recently printed and
folded, and pointed to me the following
item at the bottom of the third column
Of the local page:
" John Jones, brother of William
Jones, was killed at Peoria, Ill, at five
pollock this morning
MY breath was fairly taken away
from me. The merchant was right.
There was the notice of my brothers
death, in my own paper, and | had not
set it up nor heard of it.
"'You are right, said L but this IS
he first have known of it. If there
ever was mystery this is it.
Il went over to the form. There
was the three-line item. The moment
[ saw the type was more amazed than
ever. 1t was the type-setting of my
brother, who, like me, had been bred to
The printers trade. | could tell his work
from that of thousand. He was
marvellous even spacer and he carried
ais taste so far that ne always put less
space after a comma.
But how were the lines put into the
locked form? No item had been taken
out. | examined the form closely. Yes,
there was some more of my brothers
work. To gain the space leads had
been taken from here and there just as
he used to take them. He was great
stickler for good looks in page, and
was very fastsdious as to where he
pulled his leads 1t struck me
right away that the notice of the
death would not have been SO short,
would have gone into details more, but
for the fact that my brother did not
wish to remove any of my matter nor
any lead that could not be spared as
well as not
Though utterly skeptical about SUI
pernatural visitations, from that mo-
ment l believed that my brothers dis,
embodied soul had made its way hun
dreds of miles, had entered my office in
the early dawn, had set up the notice
Of his death and put it in the form
Late that afternoon dispatch came
to the effect that William Jones was
killed at Peoria, H., at five o'clock that
morning. "-Cleveland World.