Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-09-21
A HUMAN ALARM CLOCK.

A New Line of Business That . Chi.
cage Man Developed.
From the Chicago Tribune.
There Is one man on the North Side who
has built up a novel business. It can't be
said that he is growing rich at 1t. but he
makes 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 de-
liver 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 papers are ready shortly
after o'clock. and to get his supplies early
the carrier must be on hand SO as to get
his order 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 2:3O o'clock in the morning. He wants 10
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 accustomed to its clamor
man will frequently sleep peacefully
through the racket made by an alarm
clock. Many times carriers have learned
this to their sorrow and have opened their
light, and that their work should have been
half done instead Of still unbegun.
What they wanted was a 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 to wind and set
1t before they went to sleep. But the jew
elers don't keep alarm clocks of that pat
tern. So the new spaper carriers set their
wits to work to find another scheme. One
Of them decided to have one of his assist
ants wake him. 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 calling car
riers? That day he visited dozen Of them
living near him and asked If they would
pay 80 cents week for being aroused
promptly on time. Taught by long expert
ence 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 flooded
up in the middle OF the night He accepted
all the orders he could, and arranged reg
ular time table by which he visited his pat
rons More orders came in and he 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 mus
tang breed-not handsome. but speedy and
enduring.
" llhiu q HoHth MS iISoue do oil didfi
clock was greater than his pay a news
paper carrier. Then he remembered that
other people had to get up early-ameng
them street car conductors and drivers
Resigning his job as carrier. he cauvassed
the car barns, and soon had score Of men
on his list. Now, every night. from 1
o'clock until 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 inmates. 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