Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-08-10
Highest Of all in Leavenng Power-Laest U. S. Report
R0E:aal!! B BskiRS
ABSOLUTELY PURE

| now Ior SO many years that whatever of
awe II may once have possessed has passed
away tegether with my top hair. That
night is a fact. Why it did / can mo more
| explain than I can forget it. Let me inst
add that had not been reading Edgar AL
ia IT. roe, ana nad no idea of plagiarizing.
| NJ was 800 when Give got his assign
| ment and 10 O'Clock when he telephoned
| l want you to remember these things. he.
! pened -'"p
When Aekiey got through swearing at
and rewriting Gives COPY it was II al
O'Clock. Ackley looked at the clock. re-
marked that he had five minutes to make a
traln' and new down stairs. No one knows
now deadly still, on occasion, a newspa per
once can be. For once that evening / was
absolutely alone. and until first edition time
L had nothing to do. Save for the far dis
I tant, smothered click of the teleeranh IN.
struments there seemed to be no Sound in
the great building.
Usually when things are like that I
turn out the desk light, pillow INV head nm
a directory and go to sleep. for 7 have q
particular use for all the sleep 1 can Get
rms night 1t was different Somehow the
Only Things l could think of were Give
wondered why he spoke so strangely and
why ne sent in SO ragged a story, but the
explanation never came to me then, Twice
tbo u.eh 70 read. and as many times my
phone. Over my head hung an electric
CLOCK For many months 1t had struck
inlanight without disturbing me any, but this
ing myself that was smoking altoyetSar
TOO many cigars for my nerves. I stood nm
ana thought I would go to the telegram
room for company.
Then the telephone hell RANG
Il don't know what there was abopt
IhaI particular ring to presage anything
Looking back at the circumstances, calm
~, 1 believe there was nothing at ou
Nevertheless. 1t chilled me through All
the thousand sounds of the city and the
Duiidlng shrank into silence behind the
1lngnng horror of that bell. In a rage
with myself for my nervousness. 1 SNATCH
Well" sV snou'eo'
Gives voice answered me; foated to
me rather, for through the timbre of his
voice was there no machine that man eyer
made reproduced the tones I heard that
night. 'Aa'
well; is it WELL? came the voice Ash
ier IN the Gays to come if it was well.
because you have been good to me always.
seytcn, have come to say good-bye-a
farewell such as none has had before
Goodbye, dear old friend; think well of
me- VIC" VI
Give I shouted back to him. what ia
1t! What do You meanr
There came back to me a voice such as
l hope l shall never hear again. 1t may
nave come from the telephone but IL
seemed to come from the very room
'Dead-dead-dead.' were the words II said
and the bitter despair that rang through
those tones lives in my brain vet.
For minute 1 was speeches., then
rang furiously for the main office.
Number" came the answer.
Who was that 1 was talking witnr I
asked, breathless
Talking with" answered the girl.
You weren't talking with any one. There
hasn't beer connection on your wire for
over thirty minutes
don't know what I said, but the next
thing 1 knew 1 was up in the Composing
room asking wildly for a proof sheet Of
Snve's story 1 got it. The first thing
that caught my eye read: