The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-08-23
GHOULS ROB HOME
THE SUN LEFT DARK
1870 Feet Of Copper Cable
stolen MysteriOusly From
Old Building.
PHONE SERVICE HALTED

Flendish. ghoullike thieves they were.
No other kind would do the deed.
Through the dust and dirt and
boards, down the slippery iron spiral
stairs, across the dark and murky SUP
cellar they felt their stealthy way to
where the dead things lay in silence sad.
Nothing save the whispered swear
words Of the ghouls as they slipped u
stumbled over Shiny discarded metal
plates disturbed the awful stiffness.
For years and years in the old days
those dead ones lying there so stlll had
told the worlds sweet joys and woes
its subtle charms and great AFFAIRS
Statesman's words, widows tears and
child's delights through them had been
conveyed to that other n that knows
not how the one half lives. But now
they were silent. Two months & they
died and they lay there as in life.
The ghouls worked on. 1t was day
Light up above. Other fends waited
outside for the dastardly deed 20
be done. The last strand that tied
those faithful servants to the old life
was slashtd away. The ghouls crept
back across the metal plates. up the
slippery iron spiral stairs. back through
the dust and dirt and broken boards.
They were out and gone and the dead
went with them.
In other words
Somebody got into the old sun
Building at TO Nassau street early yes
terday and stole sixty feet each of three
copper cables which carried telephone
and telegraph wires into the old build
ing and branched of into the Tribune
Building. The theft was not discovered
until several hours later when the tele-
phone operator in tine Public Service
Commission room IN the fourteenth
floor Of the Tribune Building could not
get an answer from central. Neither
could the operator In the news room OF
the Tribune itself. and persons trying Ia
use the slot machines downstairs found
them out OF order.
Furthermore. the electric lights in the
Tribunc's "morgue' were dead chats
not a punD. The city editor tried t.
get a messenger hoy to help solve the
difficulty. but the wires would not work
Meantime the Public Service Commits
sion's engineer IN the eighteenth floor
notified the telephone company. Trouble
men we're In a %quandary until they
poked their way into the sub-cellar OF
the old sun Building and found three
two inch cables cut OF where the cables
enter the building from the street due,
at Nassau and Frankfort streets. About
sixty feet Of each cable inside the
building had been removed.
The telephone cable cutting caused
most trouble. II carried $50 pairs OF
wires into THE l. and Tribune. only
forty-four of which were working wires
Among theee forty-four, however, were
those connecting the news room switch.
board Of the Tribune, part OF its genera
tor service. the switchboard and exten.
sions OF the Public Service Commission
and about "A dozen public telephone
booths. Il took until late last night IL
splice new cabl onto the ends OF the
old.
How the theft was engineered is a
mystery. The building was turned ovel
TO a wreckinc company saturday after
moo and "A Waterman was assigned e
II Saturday night. 4 junkman workinl
with the wreck RS had several men IL
the cellar yesterday. beginning at
| o'clock. but he reported seeing nothins
| strange about the place, II was 2 -
when the telephone trouble began. AIS,
II is admittedly a difficult job Ia carr,
away $50 feet ~ two incl copper cdhl,
without a ago handy.
ooh. I suppose they took II for junk,
was the wise ommen OF Lieut.. Earle,
at Police Headquarters.