The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-01-23

on the railroad between Detroit and
Port Huron Many of the towns along
the way had no local newsdealers, and
the people used to come down to the
station every day and buy the papers
OF the train boy. / used to get around
to the newspaper office before daylight
every day, Il SO, from loafng around
the composing room, l got to know sew
eral of the printers. We used to laugh
and joke with one another, and we be-
lcame pretty good friends. One morn
ing L went into the Office as usual and
found every n in a state of excite
nent. Instead of joking, the printers
were running about getting the takes
or putting them in the forms, and the
makeup men were standing on tip
toe around the stones jUstifying the
type With q nervousness which they
did not usually show. I asked several
what was the matter, but they paid no
attention TO me. I couldn't understand
it. Finally I grabbed one fellow by the
apron as he started for the sto1e and
yelled at him to tell me what the trQu-
Die was. He jeTked ava in a moment
and said:
EDISON HEARS THE GREAT NEWS.
Don't bother ne. boy. Battle of
Shiloh. Ten thousand killed. Then he
rushed down the room, his heelless slip
pers slapQing the floor as he went.
so a battle had been fought. Wen.
/ knew what that meant. 1t meant Ihat
the paper was putting out an extra edi-
ton OF war news 4 that il would be
late. 1 walked downstairs slowly with
out thinking very deeply of the subject,
when suddenly the realization of the
magnitude of the affair rushed over ne,
and 1 stopped on the landing with a
jerk. Ten thousand men killed. Why.
the news would create q storm of ex-
element. No wonder the printers hur-
ried. [ jumped downstairs three steps
at q time and rushed around TO the tel
egraph Office. I knew the operator at
the station, and I had an idea.
"tEellOr he said.
Hello I said. I ant to Aend a
telegram
".WeI. write it out said he.
EDIsoN'S FIRST TELEGRAM.
But I said. this can't be written.
You viii have to fix II for me. Here's
the point: Ten thousand men have
been killed at a place called Shiloh. 1t
Will be in the paper this morning, and
everybody will want it. Now, Till you
telegraph these words to all q sta
tons along the lire, and get the Oper-
atOrs to paste them uD-Battle of
Shiloh fought. Ten thousand killed"
If you will do il | viii give you Z morn
1L6 DdDGl eve Qcl " - 80 I
You see. 1 hadn't any money. and 1
had to reach the fellow in some way.
Those papers would save him quite an
amount at the rate of five cents a day.
he hesitated, so to clinch the mat
ter, I added. and 1 will give you "Har-
per's Magazine" for a year
That settled it. He agreed to it,
and l knew that If he kept his promise
l would have customers enough wait
for me along the line. Then 1 went
over and saw the fellow who gave out
the papers to the carriers every day. l
said to aim: I'll take a thousand pa
peTs this morning. He fairly gasped
at me.
You'll take a thousand papers.
Well. you win lay down thirty dollars
now. And you VIII be lucky if
scarce today
APPEAL TO EDITOR STOREY.
We'll, hat staggered me. They had
trusted me before that, but l
suppose the size Of the pile and the
news of the battle made him stop short.
He had no jurisdiction, except in a
way, L ppC But I was COM
discouraged. Some one else
would get the benefit of my advertis-
l walked away in the early morn
wondering why some things "
Ieem to work out right. l passed
lround by the door of the editorial Of
ice, which was pure luck, for l did not
iotice where l was walking. 1t gave
a thought. Upstairs the editor of
he paper probably was at work on his
eaders. At that time the editor of the
Detroit Free Press was w. F. Storey. a
earless writer and a good newspaper
nan, but a martinez of the most cross
school. His associates an
lroached him at ordinary times with
ear and trembling. n now. with the
ush of the morning on him. he prob
IDLY you'd be worse than a bear. But
Re was my last hope, so I went I'D the
tairs ard knocked at his door. l got
20 answer. but / could see a light in
ide, S o 1 Knocked again. No answer.
! opened the door. He was sit
ing at a desk on the opposite side OF
he ROOM. His back was toward me, 4