The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-02-24
He Silent rhroushIt All.

Sol Pitcher who lives at Rushvllle Neb.,
where he holds a Federal position, unless
President Mckinley has been unkind
enough to eliminate him from the public
service, is renowned as the soundest sleep
er along the Elkhorn, says the Chicago
Record. Other men in a weak, paltry ard
vacilating way may sleep through the
hours past the time for rousing but PitcA-
er has no competition for the profundity
of uninterruptible slumber.
Once he was at Long Pine attending
some kind of sheriff meeting or lodge
Installation, and il occurred to him on the
night before the day set for his departure
that if he did not catch the north-bound
train al 4 o'clock in the morning ne would
miss the opening of the September term
of court. So he went to the proprietor of
the hotel and said to him:
Il want to be woke up at $3.50 in the
morning"
ooh, yes. that's all right" said the pro-
prietor, turning to the book labeled morn
ing calls" and catering the hour opposite
Pitchers name.
Look here, my friend" said Sol; eff you
think that settles it, you are mistaken. The
mere fact of writing a number down in a
book doesn't get me out of bed. You've
got to give the thing physical attention,
and don't rely on any underlings, either"
Il assure you that you'll be up to catch
that train"
If l don't, I'll be mad man."
quite right, too. Be assured that under
no circumstances will l escape going in
and waking you"
And don't go away till I'm dressed"
The landlord said he would obey, and he
meant it, 100. Sol went TO bed and was
soon dreaming that he was running
against Westover for county judge and
beating him in every precinct. 1t had
been a viciously hot day, but although
other men slept uneasily Pitcher slumber-
ed with the sweetness of an innocent child.
About l o'clock the men who had becn
tossing restlessly about on their beds were
reused by yell from the landlord flash
in the heavens, a whirring sound of a
great wind, and all hands made for the
cellar. Pitcher alone remained undis-
turbed.
The house was taken up by the night
visiting cyclone and blown about forty
rods down the railroad track, where it
collided with grain elevator. Both build
inss collapsed with laundering crashes
Beginning at that instant and continuing
for five minutes, empty freight cars were
Down down toward the nucleus of disas-
ter and piled up in a pyramid of debris.
Several corncribs were waited that way
and for half an hour, more or less, it was
as though the world was coming TO an
end right there in the Elkhorn yard at
Long Pine
1t was o'clock in the morning before
the people Gained down from their excite
ment, and then they set at work digging
among the debris to remove whomsoever
might be there, although it was pretty
well established that ali had escaped. The
eXcavators had reached the freight car
stratum when one of them came upon a
human foot and yelled about it, They
were encouraged to believe the person was
alive because of the warmth of the flesh,
and after awhile il was found that a lot
of timbers had fallen in a trusslike man
ner and that whoever was underneath was
probably fairy shielded
At II o'clock the man was reached and
| hauled out in AN apparently unconscious
condition. But just as they got him into the
| drug store, which had escaped annihila-
ton, he opened his eyes.
Thunder and lightuingl Is it sun-up?'
| he roared, looking out at the blazing
! glare of the September SUM-
| Yes, Sol,' somebody said in a soothing
tone Rest easy. l don't think you're bad
| ly hurt but you must be quiet It's Il
| O'clock"
Eleven? Eleven in the morning? Get out
! of the road, people. I told that man I'd
J lick him if he didn't wake me in time for
it. The idea of letting man sleep till II
when he made a special point to ask to be
| reused at 800 Who took my clothes? I'm
| going to fghtr'
But when they explained that he had
slept on through a cyclone Sol was molli-
! fed and concluded that perhaps the hotel
man had done his best.