Evening journal., 1911-02-04
A CHRISTMAS
SURPRISE
By EDWARD L. sCARRoN
Copyright 100. by American Press
Association.

the father Of a small boy and know
what it is 10 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 a 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. I felt
that a nest egg should be started. but
every time we tried TO start one some
of our small family was taken i'll 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
II that nest egg would ever be started
or II It were started that it would be
continued.
Then another child. a girl. came
along, and what before was an even
thing between salary and necessities
began to be a gradual running behind.
One day gentleman came into the
telegraph Office where ] worked and
sat down at a desk to write mes
sage. He seemed to be doing more
thinking than writing. After sitting
there an hour or more he got up and
went out. In another hour he came
back, wrote out message and handed
It 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 l have
written 1t. There's no time to COM
municate by mail"
counted the words. told him the
cost. which he paid me. and took his
departure
| I saw that the message was an i'm
portant one, considered in a financial
sense. II was the announcement to
/ parties i'm New York that the sender
/ had completed the amalgamation OF a
number CT 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. It occurred to me that an
operator in financial center might
sell out his secret for big price and
make a lot OF money out of it. II did
not occur 10 me 10 take advantage of
my position TO make money, for the
reason that | have always been op-
posed to making money dishonesty.
But I saw no necessity for sending the
message in such form that it could be
used by any except the parties for
whom 1t was intended We operators
are used 10 various devices for keeping
such kilograms from the public. and
knew a very simple method Of sending
the message whereby only those for
whom it was intended could benefit by
It. I sent it by this method.
D In Che afternoon the gentleman came
in and asked IL had sent his tele-
gram.
YES said. 81 have. but not just
the way you wrote it,"
How did you send it?' he asked,
bristling.
Il didn't think Of suggesting a safe
way till you had gone out. So acted
without your authorization"
"Well?"
81 sent the first the third the fifth
word. and so on to tue 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 a few mo-
E ments till he got the scheme through
his head. then pulled go cents out OF
his pocket and gave # to me-
"Much obliged" he said. II wonder
/ didn't think of that myself"
' He was going out when he turned
% and said: Give me your name.
j reckon / owe you a box Of cigars fol
r. that"
I wrote my name on telegraph
\ blank and handed it TO him, rejoicing
= in the prospect of getting box Of ci
= gars. If he remembered the matter.
. love cigars. but couldn't afford Z
r smoke anything but a pipe and poo
e tobacco at that
This was along in September.
d pulled away on my pipe for a couple
:, OF months, hoping each day woul,
e bring the box Of cigars. But the
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
n wished ] could give something to m
J wife as some return for doing all th
= work In lieu OF servant. One morn
J. ing I received an envelope stampe
20 The Consolidated Copper and Lea
J. Company" I opened It and found
7 certificate for a hundred shares Of IN
:, stock OF the said company made OF
in my name.
= couldn't understand what It NEAR
or where il came from. | inquire
what the stock of that company wa
selling at and found the last quotatio
TO be 70 This made the shares wort
~ $1,000 wrote the company for a
Il explanation. and the only explanatio
ne I got was that the stock stood In m
ed name on the books Of the company.
at Then ! thought Of the cipher tel
g gram and the box Of cigars new
oi' got
lc I've had some Christmas comfo