The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-08-13
THE TYPEWRITER'S BURDEN
A CAREER JUST BUBBLTNG OTER
WITH DREADFUL SECRETS.

There's only one person who has more Sc
crets confded to him than typewriter, and
that's Gcd."
The statement was meant to be startling.
1t was. The young girl blushed; the school
teacher said GO ooh did you ever" and
the married woman said, My dear, isn't that
a trine irrevercnt?'
mot in the least" said the ex-typewritcr.
in nowise abashed by the horror she had
created. IL mean 1T. You may talk all
you please about priests and doctors be-
ing repositories Of grave secrets tina, would
overthrow nations and build new empires
on the ruins. Why. those men are mere
urns Of emptiness compared with the type
writer. Now. this is Il fact II | should tell
just few OF the professional secrets have
in my mind at the present moment | could
land sixteen men in the pententiary, send
five to bankruptcy, and bring on eleven d.
vorce suits"
The young girl screamed at that. For
goodness. gracious sake" she said And
here I've been studying shorthand for the
past two months. But II I'm apt to run in
to anything like that when | take posi-
ton, I'll strangle my ambition while it's
young. couldn't stand it. never! never
! never"
oh, yes. you could" returned the cx-
stcnographer. soothingly. you could do
more than stand II. You'd learn to like 1t.
You'd come TO crave the excitement, as an
habtual drinker Graves stimulants. AMI
II few days should happen to pass UNI
marked by the development OF some scan
dal you'd feel lonesome and imagine you
were not earning your salary"
Elizabeth" said the married woman, re-
provingly, don't you think you had bet
ter say no more on that subject at present?
There are those present hero the mar
ried woman glanced furively at the young
grl-"whose minds are as yet uncontami-
mated by such frivolity, and-and evil. and
the longer they remain in ignorance, the
better"
"Oh this won't hurt her" returned the
OK stcnographer. calmly ignoring the plural
number, "a little wholesome advice will do
her good. She thinks now, that as soon as
she learns to take 100 words minute. and
chews gum at the same time, she will be
| ready for a position. But she won't. Maxi
ing pothooks and curleScues and humping
the typewrting- machine constitute only
about 10 per cent. OF stenographers du-
| ties The other 90 per cent. consists In lock-
| ing up in her own bosom the various por-
lions OF her employers skeleton in the closet
| that come bobbing up under her ears and
eyes every now and then. In other words.
| the first requisite ola competent stenograher
| is absolute secrecy. 1t is far more important
| than rapidity and accuracy in dictatlon.
| When man says, III pay you $2O week.
| he means s. for your work. and $l5 Tor your
| keeping your mouth shut.
Were you thoroughly profcient?' asked
| the young girl. timidly.
| Il was" said the ex -stenographer. proud :
| ". IL was an expert. / haven't spark OF
natural affection for one of the men whose
| regulations l hold in the hollow Of my haid.
yet all the graphing hooks in the United
| States couldn't drag one iota OF the truth
| from me-"
| You must have commanded fine salary.
| at that rate" hazarded the married wo-
| man.
81 did Twenty-Five dollars a week two
| months vacation every summer, ana S5oo LOT
| Christmas present"
And you deliberately gave up such snap
as that" cried the young girl. What in the
| world did you do 1t for?'
| The ex- stenographer sighed. my conscience
| couldn't stand the strain" she said. You
see, it's Just like this You can stand just
so much of anything. then II an atom more
| is piled on to you. you break Well. it's that
| way with keeping secrets. You can hold
| certain quantity, then II you're put under
| pressure, you bubble over and let them all
| leak out. had gotten to the bubbling point.
| II | had learned another secret / should have
| overlooked, and spilled them all My con-
| science wouldn't permit that had become
| so hardened that ! could carry the crime or
| years on my shoulders and never finch, but
| when 1t came to exposing the criminals,
weakened So l changed my occupation,
| Tell us few OF the things you learned,
| implored the young girl, who was always
| ,x,ln ptb pr pynpriPnCpS.
| "Oh | cant go into details much that
| would be telling. Besides. ! shouldn't know
where to begin ! know so much: There Is
one incident. however, that has always hung
| heavily on my soul and I'm going to re-
lieve myself by telling it, taking care not
| to mention names, of course. The man who
| dictated the letters was trying to cheat his
| stepchildren out OF property inherited from
their father. The first letter he wrote was
| to lawyer in distant city and 1t was SO
skifully worded that II he had not given me
| credit for being smarter than ! was
| shouldn't have paid much attention to 1t.
| But he took it for granted that would see
| through his little scheme right away, ana
| gave me the whole history Of the affair. Real
". | don't think | was ever mixed up in
| more pathetic case. The children were not
| very big and some one, think 1t must have
| been their aunt. used to bring them into the
| Office now and then while negotiations were
| pending. The boy was the dearest little TEL
| low in the world, and when realized that
| | an aCCOmpliCc in the plot to do him
| out Of his Inheritance, | worried so much
that lost three pounds Of flesh in a week
| | couldn't give the villain OF a stepfather
| away, of course, for that would have been q
| breach Of professional etiquette that would
| have ruined me forever, but ! did the best
| ] could. ! gave up the position and looked
for something whore ] wouldn't have to soil
my hands with quite such dirty work. Re-
| yond that one instance. ! cant particulars
i2e There is too much to choose from
| That old saw that you don't know a man
until you are married to him is all wrong
| 1t ought to be altered to read, you don't know
him until you have been his stcnographer
for the chances are ten to one that his wife
doesn't know half much as the type
| writer does Writers have entrusted me with
the plot OF their stories, scientists With their
latest theories and discoveries, lawyers with
| the inner history Of their clients. doctors
with the woes Of their patients, and so on
And then the lies I've tOld--thOusands and
thousands Of them. II nhhing second hand
can land anybody in purgaory. I'm afraid
that all the priests in ChristendOm will moi