The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-06-05
CITY WEATHER MAN
STRICKEN IN TOWER
Telephone Janglcs Three
Hours as Observer Lies Tn
able to Move or Shout.
WITH GREELY IN ARCTIC

The telephone Of the Weather Bureau
In the Whitehall Building. a few flights
from tho sky that the observers read
day and night. tangled more than three
hours last night and nobody took down
the receiver to tell what sort OF weather
might be coming to-day. 1t was the
nrst time In many years that that had
happened and the callers marvelled nj
IL They had become used to a swift re-
sponse from n voice with n slight Ger
man accent. II was n robust voice. be-
longing TO a vigorous mar whose hair
had once been red. but now was some
what gray.
The owner NJ the voice. sergt. Francis
l.. Long. night observer. had lost It for
a time and wac lying on his back close
TO che telephone. which he had nprar-
entity made an cTort to reach. He had
been unconscious some time. nj; had re-
vived and decided to answer the call.
which was insistent. Then he realized
hat he was not the captain OF his body.
His left side was paralyz ed and he could
! not rise.
| He wondered wha, time il was and
how soon he might be discovered. lie
found that he could not cry out. the
stroke having affected his vocal cords.
40 he just lay In the dark and waited
When he entered the big ONCE 1t was
light. before I o'clock. and he had lost
consciousness then and only "A confused
elimmer had returned when he gazed
into darkness
The sergeant listened to the jangling
Of the telephone end regretted his help
lessness. lie thought of the observation
that he should have made at ; o'clock
and Of the newspapers that wanted 10
know what sort Of weather We might
have to-day and tomorrow after 40
sparkling an afternoon as that Of yester-
day. His efforts to get up were frus-
,rated by his paralyxed nerves.
After a long time he heard the watch
man outside the door. Then the door
opened and In stepped the Waterman.
who had been accustomed to drop In
and ask about weather prospects and
who had hurried in this time because
the room was ~unlighted.
The Waterman turned Oh tho Light
and discovered the helpless sergeant IN
ambulance from the Volunteer Hospital
came n Or. kresch looked over the
I sergeant and took him away. The doc
tor said the sergeant was In very seri-
Gus shape and might do no more me
neurological work.
The sergeant. fun Of the spirit of duty
rs a retired veteran Of the United states
army. asked feebly that some one notify
Eorecaster Reed. Meteorologist James
II. Scars assistant. 30 the local world
might get the weather reports for this
morning As Mr.. Reed came be met
the sergeant going out on a stretcher. II
was nearly midnight when Forecastei
Reed announced that the skies to-day
might be partly cloudy. with l"ca
showers.
Sergeant Long won distinction as the
only man OF the Greedy Arctic exped
ton left on his feet when the last siS
men were rescued by III" Schley relie'
expedition ;h!rty-iwo years ago. II,
was the hunter OF the party and mad
just crawled out Of the shelter ten
and shot a duck. whose blood ne was
sucking. when he spied a moving blacl
object in a strait OF open water IA
from the tent. lie GO, back and tolc
Commander Greely
Long was tn. hardest and mos
dogged man Of the Grecly party auC
was distinguished for his strict ohedi
ence to orders. II ~ said ~ him tina
when ne was the only man save on
able to walk ab>u; an order was givei
TO him to carry out the findirg %
!. court-martlal by shooting the bad mar
Of the Greedy party. He did 50,
Sergeant Long officially los, his titl
when The Signal Corps men doinl
meteorological duty were turned over 1
the Department Of Agriculture He /
81 years Of age and entered the arm,
when he was about is He draws
liberal pension for his past services
He obtained leave %: absence when tn
Fiala expedition went 10 the Arctic an,
was its me,eorologist He is owe q
five OF the survivors Of the Greedy ~
=. rloring party. His home il AZ - DC
catur street, Rrookll n. and he has
a wife and one son.