Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1910-12-24
PERTAINING TO LEAD PEN CILs.

Il
In the fall of 1879, during the preva-
lence Of a typhoid fever epidemic that
numbered several hundred victims in
Denver, ]. d. Dilenback, then in the
business Office of The Denver Daily
Times, of which general Frank Hall was
at that time managing editor, becoming
much disgusted at the untidy and worse
than useless habit that many people
have of constantly wetting in their
mouths and sucking the point of lead
pencil, wrote lively "squib" to dis
courage it.
The article Caught on" and was
printed and sometimes reprinted in
nearly every paper in the United States
and Canada. In fact, it invaded the
press in every country where the Eng
lish language is spoken, and may, for
all We know, have been translated into
other languages.
Having thus become a waif of the
press, it was credited to great number
of papers, but never by any accident to
The Times, in which it originated.
Some 10 years after its first appear
ance, it was republished in The Times,
then under different management, in
somewhat mutilated form, and credited
to London Tit-Bits, which had evidently
stolen it and published it as original
matter.
Even now, 81 years since it is launch
ed, fragments of it occasionally make
their appearance.
Here is the article as it was originally
printed-and it's lesson is as we'll worth
needing now as it was generation ago
PERTAINING TO PENCILS.
A lead pencil should never be wet. It
hardens the lead and ruins the pencil.
This fact is known to newspaper men
and stenographers. But nearly every
one else does wet a pencil before using
it. This was definitely settled by
newspaper clerk way down East.
Being of mathematical turn of mind,
he ascertained by actual count that of
80 persons who came into an Office to
write an advertisement or a church no.
tice, 40 wet pencil in their mouths be-
fore using it. Now this clerk always
uses the best pencils that can be pro-
cnred-in fact, is connoisseur in lead
pencils, cherishing good one with
something of the pride soldier feels in
his gun or sword; and it hurts his feel
ings to have his pencil spoiled. But
politeness and business considerations
required him to lend his pencil scores
of times every day. Often, after it had
been wet until it was hard and brittle,
and refused to mark, his feelings would
overpower him, and he would 90 into
back room and say over his Sunday
school lesson for five minutes at a time.
After be came out it was frequently no.
ticed that the room was full of blue
smoke and smelled of sulphur. Finally
he got some cheap pencils and sharp
ened them and kept them to lend.
The first person who took up the stock
pencil was q drayman, whose breath
smelled of onions and whisky. He held
the point in his mouth and soaked it |
for several minutes while he was tor
turing himself in an effort to write an |
advertisement for missing bulldog.
The next was granger, whose mouth |
overfiowed with tobacco juice, in streaks
down each side, and who wet the pencil |
every time he wrote a word.
Then sweet looking young lady came !
into the Office with kid gloves that but.
toned the whole length Of her arms. |
She picked up the same old pencil and |
pressed it to her dainty lips preparatory
to writing an advertisement for lost
bracelet. The clerk would have stayed |
her hand, even at the risk of box of
the best pencils ever fabricated, but he
was too late.
And thus that pencil passed from
mouth to mouth for a week. 1t was
sucked by people of all ranks and sta
tions, and all degrees of cleanliness and
Finally the clerk, who
had now learned always to keep lend
ing pencil with him, went to see friend
who was just recovering from typhoid
fever, and who borrowed a pencil to
write his acknowledgements to kind
neighbors who had watched with him.
Next day that pencil went upon the
counter, attached to pad of paper by a
string, and was in turn admitted to the
mouth of every caller. Alas, it had alb
sorbed the fatal typhoid germs, and one
by one those who sucked its poisoned
point were brought low by the epi-
demic.
But we forbear. Surely no one who
reads this will ever again wet a lead |
pencil. Let it be terrible warning.
Denver Times.