New-York tribune., 1919-12-18
':End-of- World" Tickets
Good for Next Show
Any One Who Spent His Bankroll on Prof. Portals
Prediction May Expect Sympathy From West
ern Meteorologst; Miners Idle in Some Instances

Anyone who spent his bank roll ON
the theory that the world was coming
to an end at noon yesterday may look
for sympathy from Professor Albert
Porta. the San Francisco meteoroloeist.
or whose deductions from planetary
phenomena was based the prophecy of
the cataclysm.
Professor Porta says he didn't say
it. That is, he denies he said the
world was coming to an end He ad-
mits having said this: "Heavy cleo
tro-magnetic energies, produced by the
tension of the lined up planets on the
sun, would produce a huge sun spot,
which would in turn cause the cata-
clysm. but which event is prevented
by the suns rotation" A simple ex-
pianstion. indeed.
But there were lot of strange re-
actions In every assignment book of
every city editor of every daily news
paper in the United States there was
carelessly scrawled in green ink END
Of World" followed by the name of the
reporter selected to cover this inter
esting event.
Reporters Hard Task
Now it is exceedingly doubtful if a
single one of the city editors stopped
TO think that if Professor Portals worst
should have happened a really consc-
entious reporter would have to spend
half of eternity swimming around in
space trying to find the Office and re-
port on the story, to the neglect of his
family, who might be holding hands
and turning end over end on a new
orbit about 000 600 miles from Wash
ington Heights, waiting for loving
father TO bring home the pay envelope
which is due to-day It's enough to
make one expect bonus
Other persons took Professor Portals
statement to heart also For example.
Max Herman, who is forty-nine and old
enough to know better. He nut mad
ock on TIE door of his restaurant in
,04 East Sixth Street, when a customer
broke the news TO him ov-r bowl Of
..osher cam chowder late Tuesday
night. Max then omptied the cash
register, which contained with the
money paid for the chowd =. about
200, and let himself out The side door
nd started in to make the last day a
holiday.
Faces Magistrate Nolan
An officer of the Essex Market Court
hook Max into semi wakefu ness YES
lerday afternoon before the bench oc-
9ned y Magistrate Thomas ] Nolan,
who was clad in robes that coincided
With MaX's mental picture Of the cos
.ume Of the angel Gabriel. Max tried
TO explain, but Magistrate Nolan found
him guilty of disorderly conduct and
ordered him remanded for sentence to-
lay. Max was taken back to cell to
iinish q bad dream.
Charles johnson is sixty-fve, older
han Max by sixteen years He is
'frmer at West Sa en-, Ohio. He Went
IN Clayn1Qp6
seat ticket for the end of the world.
-iter gong to house, where the "be-
nnlng OF the end" according to direc-
ons on his ticket was to be staged
nd learning that no one there had
ven heard the end was at hand, John
on complained to the police.
Two men came to me last Saturday
md sold me a reserved seat for S15,"
lie said. "They told me all the mem
oers Of my religious faith were to wait
OF. the end in Cleveland"
An unfeeling police lieutenant told
farmer johnson that he ought to be
glad the show hadn't opened
Miners Refuse to Work
Several mines in the Miami, Okla,
zinc and lead field were closed because
miners refused to go down into the
ground while there was any prospect
" VIC cal vi u ulIlpllIlB 10 pieces Wnll0
they were at work.
A long, weird, shrieking whistle
awoke Indianapolis and when this was
Joined by practically all the sirens and
many of the large alarm bells of the
city number of timld citizens were
convinced that the crash was coming
any second. Telephone bells in news
paper Offices there kept ringing CON
tinually as subscribers called up to see
If the din was notice cf the big finish
One woman who telephoned said
tremulously: Il guess it's notice Of
the end of the world. The whistles
are calling people to church and Pm
going"
1t developed later that throttle on
whistle at railroad roundhouse had
become jammed, and engineers controll-
ing other steam whistles joined the noise
making without knowing why
Some Good Is Possible
Some good may have come out Of the
terrible prospect, at that. 1t Is even
possible that in q few widely sena rted