Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1906-02-24
TWO KINDS OF WORK
THE MAN WHO FORGOT
ABOUT THE CLOCK.
By I. K. FRIEDMAN.


The sound chimed through the big
house, lost in slumber. and echoed
family in the luxurious library where
Hon Frederick Trevor, eminent law
yer, philosophical citizen, clear
thinker-can the three be separated?
was still at work with all the in
tensity Of trained mind aroused to
its utmost efforts.
The noise made no impression on
the workers senses, and if heard 1t
at all 1t was unconsciously, as If the
sound had stopped short in the hol-
low Of his ear and sent to message
whatsoever to his busy brain.
Trevor was so absorbed in his work
that the roof might have tumbled
from the house and left him undis-
turbed.
He was toiling over brief, solving
one of those intricate problems of the
law that taxed to the uttermost all
his intellectual resources and chal-
lenged his prowess more and more the
deeper he entered into it. He found
in the mastery Of it, therefore, the
subdued though ever-present excite
ment that two rivals find in careful
ly played game OF chess.
The legal battle aroused Trevor's
sportsman's instinct and kept it awake
and keenly on edge. And he could
well afford the mental wear and tear,
for the stake at issue was large and
If the case for his client, the Bolton
rolling mill, was won he could count
on fee larger than the savings the
average man can accumulate in life
time of hard labor.
Hence the statement will not seem
at all exaggerated when it is said that
the clock struck two and did not gain
thereby as much as look of surprise
or a movement of recognition from
this stalwart son of intellectual toll.
The clock struck three and four and
five and its striking was ignored in
the same utterly Indifferent fashion.
And the first intimation Frederick
Trevor had of the passing of the night
and the coming of the morning was
the dawn peeped into his face as he
laid pen and book aside, confident that
his victory was already won. Under
somewhat similar circumstances a
great philosopher had shouted "Eu-
reka!"
He stood before the CRATE, the fire
In which was now burning low, spread
out his hands toward its welcome heat
and smiled with profound satisfaction.
a moment afterward he yawned like a
man fatigued through and through, all
his energy consumed Then Trevor
sought the bed in his luxurious room
and sunk into the deep and refreshing
sleep that he so richly deserved.
At nine o'clock he arose, plunged
into tub of cold water, breakfasted
heartily on the daintiest of foods
served at the .daintiest of tables and
to complete the programme-walked
downtown briskly. drinking in the
crisp, cold air with deep breaths, en-
ioying the feel Of it with deep pulses.
He moved on with his firm, even, dig
nified step, looking as fresh and hale
as if he and work had been strangers
for weeks.
Once or twice friends stopped him
on his way to his Office, passing that
usual commonplace: You are look.
ing well this morning" and then with
a quiet smile of satisfaction and in a
manner not too exuberant, as became
his dignity, the great lawyer explained
that he had toiled through the entire
preceding day and night.
Just as he was on the point of step
ping into the Michigan building to
take the elevator to his Office, he met
Reynolds, his head clerk. who said to
him in his deliberate, low voice:
Have you heard, Mr.. Trevor, that
the Bolton rolling mills employees
have struck
mo" answered Trevor. His quick
mind moved in all directions, back and
forth, trying to perceive if the strike
directly or remotely could influence
his case. In his mind there was, as
a kind of background, vivid picture
of the mammoth mill, the overwhelm-
ing heat, the roar of the terrific ma
chinery, the molten metals, the men
sweating and painting at their toll.
They struck for higher wages last
year" remarked Trevor, as he stepped
into the car, and they struck for a
change in the scales the year before.
They're always grumbling. What do
they want now?
Shorter hours" replied thee Jerk,
and"
Shorter hours!" interrupted Ire
vor. with an ejaculation. They're
only working nine hours as it is.
worked almost "a, hours ON a stretch
Yesterday myself and no one hears me
complain about it.
The clerk nodded approvingly, as II
any expression of his sentiments were
totally unnecessary. Chicago Dali,
News.
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