The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-11-17
JANIToR CUT THE WIRES.
As A RESULT FbhTBUSH WAS QUE
orr FROM THE OUTSIDE WORLD.

esrrnbrent Thought the wires Were Ola Ones
Formerly Beionaing 70 = Messenger Gem
many. nnd Failed Them Out Rect ana
Done Now by Teisphone.
For uome weeks an unsightly mess OF tele-
graph wire cable, struggling of in eighteen diff
| ferent sections, in the cellar at 800 Flatbush
| avenue. Flatbush. has been an infiiction to the
orderly soul Of Orville Garrabrant, tho ~janitor
of tho building. At every visit to the cellar he
made up his mind to root out the tanRle. but has
kept putting 1t of because 1t looked like q
troublesome Job. On Monday afternoon. having
nothing else to do. he got an axe and started for
tho cellar, On tho way he stopped TO sneak to
Miss Angelica Smith OF Windsor Terrace, who
is the operator in tho Western Union telegraph
Office. This company has the rooms formerly
occupied by the Flatbush Messenger Company,
which moved out of the building q year ago.
He told her that he was going to romove the OLD
wires formerly used by tho messenger company.
Fifteen minutes vigorous welding of the
axe detached eighteen wires from the parent
stem. Following the lead Of each wire, he
Topped It neatly of. Next he went to the roof
and moved off the connections Of the wires
there. To got the big mass Of cable out of tho
cellar was too much for one man, 80 no enlisted
the services OF Jimmy Mccormack. man-otany-
and.all work. Together they hauled tho heavy
ulCIhl Out lhlO WV VIVA "at ".SsS eht
handed his axe over to Jimmy.
"Chop that up. Jimmy" said he, and sell IL
for Junk. IT ought to bring q good price,"
Inside tho telegraph Office Miss Angelica
Smith was holding with herself and the uni.
verse In general the following colloquy, punctu-
a,cd by dabs at an irresponsible telegraph in.
m
n" What on earth-click. click.clicketty click
is the matter with this-clicketty. click.click-
wire! Ten minutes of-clicketty-c licketty click
and not an answer from anywhere. I believe
all the wires down. Gracious! Won't they
etty-click-click. Bang!,'
by the impact of the operators small but forci-
BILE foot In wrath upon tho unoffcnding floor.
into the hall to COO, off, and from the rear win.
dow beheld the back yard strown with the rem
n mani, s OF The wires Ire Which hov were sn iat ;I n tsd t to s9n,
Jimmy Mccormack hewing valiantly with the
axe and the inspiration of a good price for old
met" sGri IN ssG and ,Sapf ssTflSSBBiies!' shrieked Mis-, An.
gelica,. using this fearful sw%ear-word involun.
your sesii mani an ing WAT 1heH are you e, "e do f1gii i0u-'0u-
Jimmy paused and wiped the sweat Of honest
toll from his manly brow with a graceful sweep
Chopin up some old metal. ma'am," he
my Wires p cried Miss Angelica. MY tele-
graph wires and with an axe employing a
tone which seemed to imply that the enormfty
of the offence was increased by tho use of an
axe instead OF q draw-shaveo or u cross-cut saw.
What did you do 1t forf'
"Sure; 1t was for Mr.. Sarrabrant." answered
Jimmy. readily raising his axe again.
stop it, tho telegraph operator fairly
shouted with such stcrnness that Jimmy. star
tied, dropped !, the axe on his toe.
Don't you dare chop another chop" warned
the operator. do you know what you've done
nowf You've cut Flatbush off T.
"Flntbush." repeated Jimmy in puZZlement-
cut it off, and he began pokfng around in the
grass In a feeble sort OF way. as IL he expected
to discover the remnants there.
oh. gracious, don't stand there like a min
kum!" Miss Angelica adjured him. Get up and
do something!' But this advice SO disturbed
Jimmy that he turned and fed. leaving the
Being a person Of considerable resource she
resolutely withstood n composite temptation to
langh md cry in alternating. installments and
tclephoned for a lineman. When he arrived she
had him tap the wires Mt Ocean and Fort Hamil-
ton avenues anu. setting her instrument on "
fence picket. tclegraphed 10 the main offices the
condition OF affairs.
The rest of the day. and up 10 noon yesterday,
the Western Union transacted Its Flatbush
business by telephone. Miss Angelica Smith
went back and had an interview with ;Jonitor
n deep blue trance. II spoken to, gently. he will
say with a dreamy and melancholy information:
II thought it was the other company's old
wires.'
A rumor is current In Flatbush that q hand
somely engraved memorial, suitably framed.
will not be presented to him by the Western
Union Telegraph Company In recognition Of his