Evening star., 1939-12-17

Every penny counts when you're running
country weekly" she said firmly. Hurry"
She pushed him into his desk chair and
threw at him carbons and an envelope of
clippings on Old Joe Bean. While he pounded
out lead, she stamped and addressed en-
velopes. Then she leaned over his typewriter
and called for more speed, watching the clock.
She ripped the sheets from the machine,
jammed them in her envelopes and ran out
to the post office.
He slumped in his chair. This was going to
be worse than working for Hurry-Up Flagler.
After all, Flagler had staff of fifty on the
News Item and had to divide up his time. This
girl didn't have any other employees to dis
tract her. He was going to have to do some
thing to impress her, or else resign himself
to being her staff of one.
work, Mac"
He shuddered. Flagler talked that way after
the deadline had been met. Thanks. Any
thing else you want me to do?"
"Um, yes. You're stopping at the hotel,
aren't you? You'll need place to stay. You'd
better take room at our house. You might
call the hotel and check out, 50 you won't be
charged for another night"
This time he didn't even groan. He called
the hotel As he finished, the rumble of the
press stopped in the back room. His other
employee, Jules Carpenter, shuffled into the
front office. Mac looked up fearfully. Maybe
Jules wanted to give him orders, too. But the
thin, stopped man merely tossed a warm slug
of lead on his desk and ambled out Mac read
the 7-point type. 1t announced: Lunch Back
0t2.
Doesn't he talk?" he asked.
Not very often" she laughed He says
too many words are wasted on newspapers.
BY the way brought lunch for two"
She unwrapped sandwiches cake and fruit.
He munched sandwich and felt very queer.
Right now, in New York, the NeWs- Item city
room would be in an uproar. Machine gun
stutter of typewriters. Wire room instruments
clacking like angry parrots. Rewrite men yell
ing, Copy The noise would roll on like
huge wave as the News Item hurled itself at
one of its eight headlines. Out here you could
hear the corn sprouting. His deadline came
once week, at midnight tonight, Wednes-
day. 1t took all day Thursday to print the
paper. Deliveries had to be made Friday so
advertisers could reach weekend shoppers.
1t had happened to him very suddenly He
had been reading Editor and Publisher" and
the ad had jumped at him: For quick sale:
Weekly, $500 Circ., county seat, Corn County,
Ohio; owner must leave for health" And
there, in the bank, was his Pulitzer Prize of
$1,000.
Flagler had said, You're crazy News
papermen always want chicken farm or a
country paper. They never make out. Go
ahead. Come back when you're broke. Me, l
want chicken farm"
He ate two sandwiches and began MUNICH
ing cake. I'm going" he told Jinx, TO pull
a big local story out of this town in time for
this weeks edition.
She looked impressed, for the first time.
Are you, Mac? Swell What kind of story?"
Don't know yet. But feel one coming on.
This sheriff, what's his angle?"
Does he have to have an angle?"
ANY cop who hands out story without
being nagged for it "a story that doesn't
make him out hero - has an angle"
"Ty has four angles. He's square,"
He complained ''You sounded pretty init
mate when you talked to him.
Maybe l did. I've known him since
wore braces on nv teeth "