Year: 1876




II don't know that | ought to tell the
story, said Mr. Msgufhn, "but as Magru-
der is only Just out OF the hospital, and not
very strong yet, 1 guess its safe -


"Some years ago there was great cor
ner in the St Louis bottle market Bot
ties went up HukIn' Every junk dealer had
q standing order to SCOPE in all the empty
bottles that offered, and in three months
they rose hundred per cent, and all small
boys got rich. A shipment of the bottles
was traced to village in the western part
of the State, and there was found the buyer,
q wealthy but eccentric farmer, who had
read that in certain year within his pro
bable lifetime, the atmosphere was to be
withdrawn from the world, and all living
things would perish. He proposed to cir
cumvent the Almighty by bottling up vast
quantity of air to serve in prolonging his
life after the general catastrophe, and he
abandoned his fields and speut most OF his
time corking and sealing bottles and stack
ing them away in an enormous barn which
he had built for the purpose.


"AIsgruder brooded over the story q
long time he did not believe with the
farmer that the atmosphere would be with
drawn, but he was anxious to try an ex-
pertinent, and early last summer his friends
were surprised to see him one evening after
dinner sitting on the front steps with an
empty bottle beside him They were more
surprised when Magruder clapped in cork
clutched the bottle and rushed up stairs
with it and their astonishment grew into
blank amazement when he had repeated the
act several times Of an evening and many
days in succession.


One evening after Magrudder had carried
up one bottle he did not return, and he had
50 regularly repeated the bottle act several
times the same same night that he was gen
orally missed About | O'Clock in the
morning the boardeIs were aroused by a
ghostly jumping and pounding that could


not be traced, and SO the people went to bed
again One of the boarders, on his way to


breakfast, while passing Magruder's room,
| heard feeble kicking on the inner side,
| and it flashed over him that this was the
source of the mysterious noises OF the night
| before The door was broken open, and 1t
| flew inward with great velocity, Magruder


was found almost dead, but still ialntly
| kicking up his heels He was surrounded
| hy a most remarkable collection of bottles,
] lGdllN Ill VI AAEAn NSdANA up 40 sA%N NAN-a
! MES and openings Of the room were securely


stopped against the passage OF air, and the
room was air-tght Bat the most wonder
! iul discovery was an air-pump Just outside
| OF his window, with the suction opening
/ into the room, and the pump working
/ automatically by cloek-work attachment,
/ which could be made to set II in motion and
/ exhaust the air from the room. This made


clear the nature of Magruder's experiment
/ lie had intended to see if a man could live


on bottled air after the atmosphere was


Withdrawn The air-pump had evidently
/ done its work how signally the bottled ar
/ failed TO DO it, mart Magrnder's dying con-
/ dition when found aud his Just ended SIX


months stay in the hospital wildly attest
He owes his lite to the merest accident.
| Ours Is boarding house street, and II you
| should walk through il on summer night
YOU would cease TO wonder where all the
| pianos 20 to, for every house has one OF
more A. near as eau calculate. there are
ninex pianos in the block and when the


windows are open and all Of them are being


hammered on at once, the effect Is something


startling They play mostly lively tune


and dance music, and the air Is tuIl OF 1t


1t was this sort Of air, highly impregnated


with dance music that Msgruder bottled and
| vou see the instant the ir-pump had e1-
| hausted the room and he began 10 rn-
cork the bottles. he was powerless to resist
/ its influence 1t set his feet in motion, and


his movements attracted attention before Il


was TOO late. Had he bottled his air in coo


weather, when the windows were closed
/ Alarruder would Doubtless now be L dead
/ man