The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-10-14

and come out less hurt than any man
that ever lived
While he let this assertion fix itself in
the mind of his hearers he delivered him
self Of this story:
L was working some time ago where
we mad great many dangerous wires
some carried voltage of 500, some Il
voltage of 800, and some a voltage of 1f0.
Many OF the wires were so exposed that
IL they got loose from their fasteninss
and fell where people walked someone
would be surely killed. [ warned peo-
PIE about these wires, and l did my best
TO Keep them firmly in place, but they
should have been buried.
One day | received. a compIaint notica
that one of the main feed wires was out
OF order and needed immediate atten-
tlon. No one knew where the trouble was
ana spent an hour locating it. At last
fouiid 1t in stretch of wire running
through semi-public hallway, In order
10 work freely and to get the trouble
rehleoled as soon IS possible 1 put a dan
ger sign at each end of the hallway. and
then took the wire down from it's fasten
lhgs. was working, of course. with
Such TOOLS as made it impossible for the
WIRE TO hurt me, unless [ was very care
less vi
mad been at Work. I guess. fifteen
minutes when woman spoke to me-
looked up, and there, close to me. stood
a woman about 40 years of age. She had
brushed by the danger sign without
bba snn any attention to it.; OF course
pc expected of her She was almost on
top Of the red-hot, Sizing live wire and
my heart jumped into my mouth Ma
oam, almost yelled, get out of here
ana keep close to the left wall when YOU
do go out. ~
Young man, she said, I'm not going
out OF here until find Henry Brown.
Where is hep -
Madam, said 7, 4 don't know Henry
Brown, but you're standing over light
out of here
You are impudent,' said she.
m not said l, but for heavens
sake go somewhere else and find Henry
-, Young man. said she. III stay here
an an nlght II you don't find Henry Brown
We'll. there I was I had that wire
in hand and an obstinate old woman
standing over me, and l didn't know
what minute she might get hold of that
s MIre- L thought very quick and then
sad to her: If you go out into that
other hall and wait there five minutes
until I get done with this wire I'll see
II ., l can find Henry Brown for you'
started for the hall, while I resumed NV
work. [ did not look at her, but it an
pears that she was about half way out
OF Of my hall when she noticed this cleo
picked 1t up in her hand. I did not even
know that she had done this until sud-
denly heard her say:
My, this tickleS me-
Il looked up and there that old Iadv
stood fooling. with that wire and smiling
as if she had her pet dog in her hands
nstanfR ye at dea her Why she didn't
never will know. ] tried to scream, but
something stuck in my throat and could
only gasp and look at her, Finally she
dropped the wire and walked into the
other hall. An instant later she called
to me- ne
my hand from that dirty old wire
II just showed the wire up into its reg
ular position. where it could harm no
one who let it alone, and 1 went out into
the other hall and said to the old lady:
DO you Know that you ought to be
dead this minute?
No more of your impudence, young
man. said she. You just look at my
hands and remember that I am going to
sue your company for damages
She held up the palms of both her
haEds and the wire had burned the skin
so quick and so sure as to leave three
or four black lines that looked like dirt
marks. 1 said to the woman:
That is not dirt madam You have
been burned by an electric wire having
50O voltage, and those marks are dead
skin You will probably carry them as
long as you live. Didn't the wire hurt
YOU
Sc Didn't hurt me a Bit said she, be-
ginning to look little scared. 1t just
made me feel as if somebody was tickling
me. 1 don't know a live wire from dead
one
Il took her down to the office of the
company, and they found Henry Brown
for her, and it seems that he was her
nephew. She told him about her expert
ence with the wire, and he looked mighty
troubled. Before she went away l thought
to ask her:
f" Do you wear rubber heels. madam p
You young sassbox,' said she, I
doE't wear rubber heels nor iron heels
81 have often wondered since what pro-
tected that woman from being killed at
that time. Chicago Record-Herald.