The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-01-11
|BR5Ql1IR!AREq GREAT
F fI ssPaIIIINNiIEEZ NEQil

J to know what l could do. and l had to
aunt that l had no trade, unless YOU
could call bookkeeping a trade. DO
you know anything about chemistry or
geology or mechanical engineering?' he
, asked OF course I didn't but 1 said
l thought I could learn to help around
at any kind of work. Do you know
anything about tools, or inventions p
he asked me, and when / said no. ex-
pecting to hear him end the deal. he
surprised me by saying, Wei. 1 be-
lleve you're the very man I'm looking
He explained that ne was an in
ventor and had been busy for some
time on cOntrivance that would rev..
lulOnize certain branches of trade and
make him enormously rich His name
Was BrOderick, he said and all he
wanted me to do was to assume tho
ownership of the contents of the fat
and keep visitors and everybody away
from the two back rooms He said
that if j did exactly what he wanted
for three months he'd give me a bill
OF sale for the furniture and effects of
The place, besides 81 a week wages to-
be paid every Saturday. 1 was to stay
in the fiat all the time except while |
was eating my meals, go to bed not
later than 10 at night and never open
up the rooms till Z in the morning.
The two back rooms, a kitchen and
small dining room, he reserved for
himself, saying that nobody but his
wife should be admitted to them under
any circumstances. He admitted that
he and his wife boarded in another
place, and that he was compelled 10
make arrangements of the kind Hlen-
toned for purposes of absolute secrecy.
I generally work at night he ex-
planned My brain and hand work
better then. and besides I'm pretty sure
not to be disturbed. / go home abcl.
in the morning.
I told him that I'd try TO please
him, and we struck bargain. / was
to tell everybody that I had bought the
hats contents and that Mr. Broderick
had moved away 1t looked like a very
snug layout. and as he insisted that
there was absolutely nothing for me to
do except tend the place as if il were
my own, keep out all visitors except
MS wife and never mention the secret
nature of his business. I was delighted
with the place. Then. as a matter of
good faith. ne led me into his locked
rooms. They looked like machine or
JeWelTy shop, ali Uttered with tools
cigar boxes. jugs. bottles and barrels.
de had converted the gas range into a
kind of blaeksmith's furnace. ard | no.
ticed that the windows were boarded
II
of keys, showed me pile OF magazines
in the front room and a case full of
books, all novels. and told me 10 go
ahead and try il for week
It went ali right for the first two or
three days. and then / began to get
lonesome. l found l couldn't open the
door at the end of the hall which led
INTO his laboratory and the empty
mousse, With no company. began to get
on my nerves I didn't know anybody
IN town, but Mr.. Broderiek had ex-
pressly forbid me to have COMPANY I
sometimes in the night when 1 couldn't
sleep / could hear vague sounds of
from his quarters. but
didn't see him again for nearly two /
weeks. On Satur day morning | found /
my wages in a small yellow envelope on /
the hall seat and that night about /
D clock Mrs. Broderick-the wife-,.ane 1
10 the door. / knew her at once. be- |
cause she called me by me, said that I
her husband had gone out of town for
4 few days. and that she had no kew /
10 the rear entrance I told her that I /
had none either. but she insisted thatI /
ny my best to let her into her hus-
oand 5 laboratory did try. but failed.
and she went away very much an
loyed. ! thought. after asking me If
my visitors had called and if any let
ers had come for them. Nobody ever
allied and no letters ever came Even
Frederick Jet himself in and out by the-l
1ack door of the fat, never came into
he forward rooms. and, so far as 1
;ould discover, never came to the build
ng at all in the daytime
After Id been there about a month
le came in enc night by the front door.
ooked cautiously and. it seemed 10 me.
about and said. We'll. are
Fou tired of your job?' I had to admit
hat il was getting a bit tedious. bat
lie laughed and said that If I'd stick
t out the three months he'd raise my
wages to SO week right off. And
le did But at last. one night about
as I lay tossing never
,ould sleep more than six sor seven
lours in twenty-four-I suddenly heard