The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-08-29
The Elevator Boy
BY M. QUAD
Copyright, 1916, by the MCCLURE
Newspaper Syndicate
BY M. QUAD

IN make a record Of holding position
for twenty-eight years without the loss
of day, I feel that l have rign. "
talk plainly to the boys who have JUST
entered upon the noble work OF eie'
waiting elevators.
If YOU have been selected to conduct
a wire cage up and down, no matter
whether In a skyscraper or an apart
ment house. the first thing to be done
is to ask yourself these questions:
"Am a modest, unassuming ooyF
SIS my position going to make me q
conceited young jackassY
"Will I keep my mouth shut and let
Others do the talking"
"Have the proper respect for old
age?"
Having answered these questions sat
isfactorily to yourself. you can Degln
your duties. If you have any douDts oi
Yourself take up some other profession'
for you will be failure in this. | have
watched the career Of scores OF eieva'
tor bows and lamented the failure OF a
good share Of them. There was johnny
Beers. He was red headed boy WITH
a turned up nose and ears that started
out to be palm leaf fans, but stopped
halfway. His mother wanted MIN 10
be lawyer and his father wanted MIN
to be a doctor, but he thought that ele-
waiting an elevator was the only tning
for him.
Within three months he fell In love
six or seven times. and 1t was MS
proposal of matrimony to a widow
forty years old that finally sent him
out of the building with the agents
boot behind him.
And when Mike Salters was offered
a place to conduct gilded cage In q
twelve story palace Of an apartment
house he came to me to get pointers.
1t was a grand opening. The house
was occupied by aristocrats. Success
would be his II he only struck the
right road. warned him Of the pit
falls, and with tears in his eyes he
solemnly promised to avoid them.
Maybe 1t was his mothers fault that
he failed to do so, for she was ro-
mantle Lady. and the first thing she did
was to have him change his name to
Claude La Sale. He was told to ad-
dress every man as monsieur and ev-
cry woman as madame and to lift his
cap and smile smile as he addressed
them. He was told that in case he
carried a lone lady up or down he
should ask after her health. refer to
the weather and be as entertaining as
he could.
The tenants were amused for awhile
and then began to make complaints,
and one day after he had advised a
broker to quit that trade and open a
sawmill somewhere he vanished from
the building and never came back.
My heart saddens as think of the
case of Jim Clark. He came to me
as others had done. and. though he
had once licked me when l had a sore
finger and could not use my right hand,
/ sat down and had a fatherly talk
with him. He agreed to do as | told
him, and If he had kept to his prom
Use he might now have been the owner
Of sthR geological gardens in the
Bronx, to say nothing of being the hus.
hand of widow worth $10,OO0,0OO.
Jimmy restrained himself for, a cou-
pie of weeks and then broke out. He
felt that his passengers expected to
be surprised. and he went at it to
surprise them. He jounced. and
bounced that elevator until women
screamed and men swore, and one
day when he got stuck between the
nineteenth and twentieth floors and
every passenger was half scared to
death Jimmy held up his hands and
shouted:
All OF you shut up! What's all this
row about, anyhow? Let me explain
to you that this cage got tired and Is
only restin'. There is no danger
whatever. It will start up agin when
1t feels like 1t. am here to save you"
When the elevator at last reached
J the first floor Jimmy was the first one
! out. He went out as If kicked from
, behind. and he kept on down the cor.
! r1dor and out Of the front door and
out on the sidewalk. Jimmy Is now the
driver OF motor truck, and, though he
runs over three or four people a day
on the street, he has no future before
MIN. To be a success as an elevator
ooy Is as easy as to be a failure. One
need not be slavish. but he must be
modest and respectful. He NAV be
cheerful. but not enthusiastic. He
may be digni1ed but not surlv. II
travelling drummer takes his caot
for the twelfth floor and SLAMS him
on the back and calls him ''old man
ne may smile In reply to show that h.
appreciates humor, but he should mo-
go further than that.
The car starter In a skyscrano- .,
always young man of great dicn,tz
when on duty. The elevator bow INNS,
respect that dignity. He Is exnactof
to divide mis- tips with the starter
and If caught holding out on HIN
there IS sure to be a row.
The engineer of a skyscraper axnac+,
the elevator boy to keen him IN cio.
arettes. This sometimes comes bor,
upon the boys purse, but It is onIv ,
m1lepost on the road to success :,
the cigarettes come promptlv an,
without a kfoty A. - SAN