The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1911-08-03
II Telegraph
Joke
and HoqO II Turned
Out
By SCOTT KRdENER
Copyright by American Press Asso-
citation, 1911
By SCOTT KRAEMER

There Is no more favorable oppor-
tunfty for young people of opposite sax
to poke fun at each other than over
q telephone or telegraph wire. There
is fascination IN operating from be-
hind shield rendering one invisible.
A girl will delight to say things to q
man who can't see her and doesn't
know who she is. was a telegrap h
operator when a young man, and l
noticed this disposition in many a girl
operator with whom / talked over the
wire. am matter of fact sort of
a fellow myself and doubt II 1t would
ever have occurred to me to bamboo.
zle girl In this fashion had not the
girl shown a disposition to bamboozIe
me.
She who first tried II vas an opes-
ator at station about twenty miles
away from me- / was IN the town of
NJ, while the girl was out at G..
way station some twenty miles dis-
tant In the country. She had more
time on her hands than l, and sup
pose this is what set her on to quizztng
me. She started in one night about 8
O'Clock after having taken q message
from me. beginning by asking me
what was going on In town; bow l
liked NJ: If there was any fun going
on there and expressing her dislike at
being compelled to live In a little way
station like G. From this we fell to
talking about ourselves and naturally,
as persons of opposite sex at that age
invariably do. finally drifted on to love
and marriage From love and mar
rage in general we dropped into spe-
cialties. at last narrowing the topic
down to ourselves.
The girl led me along in the channel
she laid out herself till ! admitted
that, marriage being lottery, I would
about as lief marry girl I had no
knowledge of as one had met and
loved. All required was to know
that the girl was to marry DOS
sessed a fair amount Of good looks.
One thing led to another till IT was
arranged that she should mail me her
photograph and l should send her
mine. Then If we were mutually
pleased we might proceed further to-
ward forming an acquaintance with a
view to matrimony.
The next day l booked over my
stock of pbotographs-not of myself,
but my friends-and. selecting one OF
Sam Atkins, the best looking fellow
In the lot, sent It TO the girl. Sam
was of at the Spanish American war
at the time, and | trusted to his get
ting shot or dying OF disease so that
/ might not get into trouble by pass
ing him of for myself. In return |
received a picture of rather pretty
girl. who l judged from her features
was full of the Old Nick. the very
one TO get up just such a complication
as we were entering upon. On her
lips was an engaging smile and In her
eyes very saucy look.
After that the wires began to warm
up with our conversations, till at last
they came to a white heat with hove
passages. When we had fred a lot of
such missiles at each other we began
to talk about meeting. At my pro-
posal to go to see her she cooked down
bit, and 1t was easy to see that her
exuberance was the result of fighting
behind a masked battery. made sew
eral propositions to go to see her on a
certain day and hour, but for every
time l set she gave some reason why
II would be inconvenient or impossi-
BILE for Der 10 receive me. At last II
occurred to me to go up and look her
over without an appointment Never
hn VIZ Oh 1V,Bf l-YAaT
me.
So one day, having secured leave.
l started to see my cbarmer On az
rival l walked up into the village and
on the street met my girl. whom l
recognized at once by her photograph.
| followed her into several shops and
finally to a yellow house that stood
back from the street. She went into
the house. and having waited half an
hour for her to come out l concluded /
she lived there.
l knew man In the place, Tom
Foster, and, bunting him up, told him
that there was girl In the town
wished TO know. He said theBe WAS
going to be q dance that evening and
ali the girls in the place would be
there. He would take ME with him
and If be knew the girl wished TO
meet be would introduce me.
thought that an excellent plan, since
II would give me the advantage of
keeping my affairs to myself. l could
obtain an Introduction to different
girls without my introdUcer knowing
the one l was especially interested IN
That evening l went with Foster
to the hall where the dance was to
take place. He asked about the girl
! wished to know and why wished TO
know her, and all that but l evaded
his questions. l didn't propose to let
the girl herself know that l was the
fellow she had been making love to
over the wire-at least till had learn
ed all about her.
She was there sure enough. looking
as pretty as picture-e brunette, with
profusion Of Jet black hair, stately
figure and as mischievous an eye as
ever / saw in a woman. When first
saw her she was talking with another
girl about her own age, and that