The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-09-27
A HUMAN ALARM CLOCK.
A New Line of Business That a Chi
cago Man Developed.
From the chicago tribune.

From the Chicago Tribune.
There is one man on the north side
who has built up a novel business. 1t
can't be said that he is growing rich at
it, but he makes a good living, and his
hours of work are short. His work is
to awaken the newspaper carriers, so that
they can get downtown to lay in their
supplies and deliver the papers to their
customers before the breakfast hour To
get their supplies in time many Of the
carriers have to start downtown between
and O'Clock in the morning. The pa
pers are ready shortly after o'clock, and
to get his supplies early the carrier
registered with the delivery clerk. for,
to avoid trouble, carriers are supplied
with papers in the order in which they
have given their orders.
The carrier doesn't want to stay up all
night just so that he can leave the house
at 230 O'Clock in the morning. He wants
to sleep in the evening, so that when he
gets up he can stay up for the balance
of the day. And so, in the old days, he
went to sleep, trusting to habit and his
alarm clock to waken him. But human
nature is weak and after getting accus-
toned to it's clamor a man viii frequently
sleep peacefully through the racket made
by an alarm clock. Many times carriers
have learned to their sorrow and have
opened their eyes only to find that it was
broad daylight, and that their work
should have been half done instead of
still unbegun.
What they wanted was sentient alarm
clock; one that would ring just long
enough to awaken them and would not
stop until they were awake; one that
would arouse them even if they forgot 10
wind and set it before they went to
sleep. But the jewelers. don't keep alarm
clocks of that pattern. So the newspaper
carriers set their wits to work to find
another scheme. One of them decided
That put all the blame for oversleeping
upon the assistant After a few days
the assistant was told to call another
carrier-a friend of the first One-while
on his way to arouse his employer.
That put an idea into the assistants
head Why not make some money by call
ing carriers! Ihat DAY ne VISITED a dozen
of them living near him and asked if they
would pay 50 cents a week for being
aroused promptly on time. Taught by long
experience with an alarm clock they said
they would gladly. In a few days the story
of the new scheme had spread among the
carriers and the young man was Hooded
with orders from men who wanted to get
up in the middle of the night. He accepted
all the orders he could. and arranged a
regular time table by which he visited
his patrons. More orders came in and ne
found himself unable to get around fast
enough on foot Then he went to the stock
yards and bought a saddle horse, one of
the mustang bfeed-not handsome, but
speedy and enduring.
Within a month his income as an alarm
clock was greater than his pay as a news
paper carrier. Then he remembered that
other people had to get up early-among
them street car conductors and drivers.
Resigning his job as carrier, he canvassed
the car barns and soon had score of
men on his list. Now every night from
1 to 6 O'Clock in the morning. the young
man gallops about the streets of Lake
View. In his hand he carries loaded stick
and with this he bombards the doors of his
patrons and doesn't stop until he sees a
light and hears the sleepy reply of the in
mates. Half an hour after he has passed
his course can be traced by the line of
carriers wagons drawn by sleepy horses
and driven by sleepy men. all headed for
the newspaper Offices in the downtown dis
trict