The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1910-12-22
A CHRISTMAS
SURPRISE
By EDWARD L. ScARRON
Copyright, 1910. by American Press
Association.

/ had been married long enough to be
the father OF a small boy and know
what it is to have coal bills, doctors
bills, clothing bills, grocery bills-in-
deed, all kinds of bills-coming in and
a small salary with which to pay
them. My wife proved financial
gem or / don't know how we should
have made ends meet | turned it all
over to her, and she brought the ends
together as well as she could. | felt
that nest egg should be started, but
everyStime we tried to start one some
Of our small family was taken Ill and
a doctor must be called in and paid or
extra clothing must be purchased or
some one Of the many extra necessities
must be provided. and it didn't look as
If that nest egg would ever be started
or IL it were started that it would be
continued.
Then another child, girl, came
along, and what before was an even
thing between salary and necessities
began to be gradual running behind
One day a gentleman came into the
telegraph office where ! worked and
sat down at desk to write a mes
sage. He seemed to be doing more
thinking than writing. After sitting
there All hour or more he got up and
went out In another hour he came
back, wrote out a message and handed
1t In to me.
81 should use a cipher for that he
said, but / haven't one. You'll have
to send it in plain English, as have
written it There's no time to COM
municate by mail.
/ counted the words, told him the
cost which he paid me, and took his
departure.
saw that the message was an i'm.
portant one, considered In financial
sense. 1t was the announcement to
parties in New York that the sender
had completed the amalgamation Of
number of companies into one trust,
provided his action were ratified by
the New York parties. In order TO
close the deal he must explain what
was proposed and get their authority
10 do so. 1t occurred TO me that an
operator In financial center might
sell out his secret for a big price and
make q lot of money out of it. 1t did
not occur to me to take advantage of
my position to make money, for the
reason that | have always been OPP
posed to making money dishonesty
But / saw no necessity for sending the
message in such form that it could be
used by any except the parties for
whom it was intended. We operators
are used to various devices for keeping
such kilograms from the public, and |
knew very simple method Of sending
the message whereby only those for
whom it was intended could benefit BY
It. l sent it by this method.
In the afternoon the gentleman came
In and asked if had sent his tele
gram.
YES" l said, Il have, but not just
the way you wrote it,
How did you send it," he asked,
bristling.
Il didn't think of suggesting safe
way till you had gone out. 50 ! acted
without your authorization.
"WeIlf"
Il sent the first, the third. the fifth
word. and so on to the end, by our
company and gave the second, the
fourth, the sixth, and so on by an.
other company OF course neither Of
the two dispatches alone means any
thing. Then | sent third telegram
telling the parties how to read the two
former ones. There is a cost of 60
cents for the third message"
He stood gaping at me for few mo-
ments till he got the scheme through
his head, then pulled go cents out of
his pocket and gave it to me.
Much obliged, he said Il wonder
didn't think Of that myself"
He was going out when he turned
and said: "Give me your name.
reckon owe you box of cigars for
that"
| wrote my name on a telegraph
blank and handed it to him, rejoicing
in the prospect of getting box Of CT
gars, If he remembered the matter
love cigars, but couldn't afford 70
smoke anything but pipe and poor
tobacco at that
This was along in September l
pulled away on my pipe for a couple
Of months, hoping each day would
bring the box of cigars. But they
didn't come. Indeed they never came.
Things looked rather blue for Christ
mas that year. The children were get
ting old enough to expect gifts. and |
wished | could give something to my
wife as some return for doing all the
work in lieu of a servant. One morn
Ing / received an envelope stamped
"The Consolidated Copper and Lead
Company" l opened It and found a
certificate for a hundred shares Of the
stock of the said company made ont
In my name.
/ couldn't understand what IL meant
or where 1t came from. | inquired
what the stock Of that company was
selling at and found the last quotation
to be 70. This made the shares worth
$1,000 wrote the company for an
explanation, and the only explanation
got was that the stock stood in my
name on the books Of the company