The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1895-05-01
WHEELING DAILY MTELIIGENcER, WEDNESDAY,, MAY 1885


and odds aud onds which covered H..
and it, door Atood opon. revealing aomo
rusty mechanism. A hugo roll OF cot.
]ton.coyJTed wiro had evidently boon
exliumod from under tho bod, and In.
sido tho saio had been found what
Julius first thought worc preserve jars,
but which turned out to DO tho coils Of
n voltaic b~attcry-dry as 10 contents
but needing only to DO lllcd with wntcr
aud acid TO make them give a strong
current OF electricity.
A floor board had boon lIfted In tho
middle Of the room. Just over thu place
whore ran tho gas pipc which supplied
tho fixtures belonging to tho room be'
low.
Al longth. julius arose, mud naid-
cmphasIztng his words by tapping tho
riCkety table with his finger:
"Wo want no misunderstanding about
This, aud | think so far there Is none.
You will surrender this room to'mor-
row as It IL, and l will hiro It.. At tho
agreed ,imo you will como back. ! will
| admit you, 40 that no ono will know OF
your presence horc. will thon go out
openly. While | am temporarily absent
from tho house, you will do as VIC have
auttlcd. You will then leave tho house
aud disappear. You will not reveal tho
part you have taken In this. no matter
what may happen. And OF whatever
is rlin0d nerce 10 give you half"
On the early morning OF the eleventh
day after tho great strike had begun,
any II passing through the uptown
stroots Of New York might have seen
groups OF people at every cornor, in.
tently staring at something In tho aky.
Before noon the,o groups had increased
to crowds, and tho numbers Of tue
gazcrs wero reinforced by pooplo at
windows and people on tho housctop,,
all gazing skyward. Tho object OF thor
attention was n balloon, which iloatcd
gracefully ut m elevation OF perhaps
five hundred feet, but was held by a
slender wire which led to q point III
where In tho vicinity OF the Grand
Central depot, The balloon bore no
sign; hencc It was not intended rs an
advertisement. In fact, It was OF tho
dull brownish huo Of tho well vanished
silk used in making air ships Tor actual
%aeronantis use. In tho small basket
which served rs q car there was 10 one,
but beneath II was suspended an object
s%uspiciously like a large C%tOckcry water
pitcher. Now. Il balloon towering over
Now York, oven ii 1t be only quo OF tho
miniature red globe, made for children's
playihings, ia always sure to attract
abundant attention; but here was not
only a balloon, but a large one. sent
aloft apparently for no other purpose
than TO carry n water pitcher. Nothing
better calculated 10 rouse the always
noignant curiosity OF the average New
Yorker could have been imagined. So
tho crowds grew larger and larger. until
nightfall, rendering, the balloon invisi.
Bile, compelled them TO disperIe.
But next morning, the big globe be.
ing still there. the popular Interest per.
ceptibly increased, and people began to
move In masses toward East Forty
fourth street, to some house in which
th~oroughtarc it was clear that the con.
firing wire OF the balloon lod. but just
which house it was difficult to deter
ninc from the roadway. Numerous in
Quircrs rang the door bells OF all the
houses in consecutive order, but as mos.
OF ,he,o residences were fats and the
parties whose bells were rung were in
variably tho occupants OF the basement
floor, answer OF mn Incorporate char
scter only were ELECTED.
AS for tho house to which the wire
actually led, the abode Of Smith-the
landlady WAS too well accustomed to
bitter complaints concerning the per.
formances OF her former inventive
lodger 20 pay any attention to sugces-
tions or inquiries from her c%alicrs; and,
in fact. the instant she discovered that
the hiring OF rooms was not in question,
n sudden slam OF the front door consti-
tuted her sole response.
Meanwhile certain reporters. having
terre,ed out some little information,
kept it to themselves unit! the following
startling headlines appeared in au extra
OF IN afternoon paper:
IORRoE!i.!
DESTRUCTION AT UASDll