Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-11-04

hospitable speech of
welcome. Come up come up! I'm right glad to
you! Some climb, hey? Every man his
elevator newspaper fellow said once Ha, ha!
But you get used to it. Why, when 1 at
nearly every day during the summer and, sayl she
could just about get through that trap door"
And so Bill rattles on while the visitor mods
feebly struggling the while for breath.
1t is from here that all the craft sailing in out
of the port of New York reported by Bill Bingham
of his two associates watch ready to notify
owners. 1t takes number of visits to the top of
the tower to appreciate thoroughly the beauties of
its position: On clear days the view seems limit
less; in fog the beach, stones throw away, is
invisible. Between these extremes every variety
of shadow and sunshine playing a restless ocean
is stretched before with nothing interposed to
break the eXpanSe of blue water spread out in all
directions. The house itself is certainly not more
than eight feet square, with large windows opening
every SIDE and in the corners the port holes
where the operators rest the telescopes.
Straight to the northward is the main ship chan
mel past Sandy Hook marked by the red tobbing
buoys surrounding Flynn's Knoll, and beyond
other of these channels 60 count
less vessels of every sort, dropping their house flags
in the day time outward bound, sending up their
rockets at night to tell Bill Bingham and his kind
who and what they are-passenger boats, tramps,
yachts, barges, tank steamers, schooners, barks
and ships-all with word of welcome good by
to the black tower standing almost at the waters
edge on narrow spit of New Jersey sand.
THERE amt much excitement in this business"
said Bill. 1--WE sit here, and messages go just
as fast whether anything is wrong not. When
catch ship flynn distress signal we send word to
the owners and to a wrecking company; when
there's fire notify the harbor fire boats; and
that's all there is to it,
Bill Bingham would have you believe that there
is only tower of Importance at Sandy Hook but
it is fact that another company has station there
also and that there is keen competition between the
two. Most of Bills tales are accounts of victories
over his rival and invariably end in some such way
as this, And SO l beat him by ten minutes" or,
more triumphantly, He didn't never report her"
We had watched the Cedric go out, and my
companion clicked the last word of her to the central
office he took glance around the horizon and turned
to The passing ship brought recollections, and
his tale had to do with prominent official in the
national Government who, being in rather uncertain
health, forced into trip to Europe The entire
country anxious for news of him, for he had
collapsed going aboard the ship, and it
through Bill that the last bulletin of him to
come before he reached the other side.
Il was ready for em. Had my code flags out
l could hoist em in jiffy and get his condition
since leavin the pier. My friend over here he
nodded toward the place where his competitor
stationed, he got his flags flynn before the Cedric
off Quarantine. Well, that made it pretty easy
for me, as you might say. All had to do to
read the answer to his signals and send 'em in.
Along the Cedric, and just she is opposite
here she up the letters P F. O., meanin', Con-
dition improved l had the code book in my hand
opened to what might expect and before they had
the signal I'D to the masthead I'd licked it off to