The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1914-02-05

Gu6lduu
But listen, man. / can flash 8
message to the coast. 1t will prob
ably be picked up by passing ships
and transmitted from point to point
Perhaps an answer will come"
Fired with the idea, he hurried out
to the transmitting apparatus; and
that was the origin of the strangest
message thyt ever went by wireless.
1t was the operator on board the
U. S. cruiser "Tenafly" who caught
the faint signals and showed the mes
sage to his commanding officer. 1t
ran like this:
Miss Daisy Gibson, Plymouth, Eng
land. Peter Barnett, sick in North
Australia, asks for message"
There was no signature
The message was flashed out in all
directions. 1t was picked up simulta-
neously by Dutch merchantmen off
the Celebes, by a British warship in
the Indian ocean, by a German pas
senger ship off Surinam. Before noon
it was pouring into the telegraph Office
at Plymouth from a hundred different
places. 1t came from Russia, from
the United States, from South Ameri-
ca, from Egypt. The wires were
blocked, and, following one another
without an interval, the same words
were clicked out by the needle:
Miss Daisy Gibson, Plymouth, Eng
land Peter Barnett, sick in North
I'm oc1yc frr
The newspapers brought out spe-
cial editions. Reporters hurried to
Plymouth to obtain particulars of the
romance. By nightfall Miss Gibson
was world-famous heroine. Mon
sieur Jules Carpenter, the veteran
correspondent for the Paris Figaro"
departed for England without any
other baggage than toothbrush and
a pair of opera glasses, in order to
secure an interview with Miss Daisy.
But of all that Preston was ignor-
ant. He had sent the message in the
last hope of saving the strangers life.
Now, having dispatched it, he sat be-
side his guest, his head in his hands.
All his work had gone for nothing
and the hope of life was shattered, for
the message had been to his own
sweetheart.
He took the locket from his pocket
and opened it. The sight of her face
occasioned him exquisite tortures.
Yet he could find no reproach for her,
for he had always known that there
was another man. That much she
had told him. They had been en-
gagged six months when Preston met
Daisy. She had told him that the
other man had gone away, but he had
never learned his name. He knew,
however, that she had ceased to care
for him. 1t was only after long per-
suasion, and because they knew that
their love for each other was more
sacred even than plighted word, that
she had promised herself to him. And
now he had been the agent whereby
those two were brought together
again
The dismal night passed by. The
hot sun scorched the sands again.
The sick man awoke. He would re-
cover now. Yet Preston had not de-
cided what to do. 1t seemed that he
had staked his future on one reckless
throw and that the issue lay with him
no longer.
What was that you said about Miss
Gibson?" asked the man on the bed.
How did you learn her manner"
From your lips" answered Pres
ION OUo,, r-o-o do1ir;o,,cv
II should have kept that name Sc
cret," said the other bitterly. "You
said you had received a message?"
81 said that one could be sent"
said Preston. "And-"
with that wireless apparatus? My
friend, If you sent message to her
you would wrong two people bitterly.
II suppose I had better tell you
about it," he continued. ut isn't a
thing that am very proud of, but
here it is. We were engaged nearly
two years ago. Then I went to the
indies with a pearl-fshing outfit, hop
ing to make a fortune and return to I
marry her. Well, I got tangled up !
with a girl in Calcutta, and the long
and short of it is that we were mar
RED. l wrote to Miss Gibson and told
her-it was the only thing to do. l
haven't regretted my marriage either,
but when I think of the dishonor of
fitting a girl who was waiting for
newell, it makes me pretty we'll
of myself"
Preston's heart was beating hard
against the locket He did not dare
o move for long time. When at
asst he went outside the tent he felt
Is though he was treading ON air.
And just as he reached the wireless
he heard the faint click Of
he needle.
He could not catch the message at
irst, for it was, in fact, travelling
lcross two thousand miles of water.
But somewhere. out in that world he
onged to see again he knew that his
.ppeal had been received, and that
he future was to be decided very
peedily He did not know that all
he world was aware of all the de-
ails of the story; that Daisy, be-
gildered by the unending interroga-