Economy

The telegraph operators were telling stories again last night. The tall man, who bas held a key all over the country, had the floor. "You see a good rnany jokes in the papers," said he, "abont the culture of Boston and tlie habit people living tbere have of using big words and correct grammar and all that. Most of you think that these jokes have no foundation in fact. Now, I know better. I was receiving clerk in the Western Union office theie a good maiiy yeais ago, and sotne of the inessages haniied in to me were corkers. "One sunimer I had the cable window. One day two women dressed in black anti greatly agitated came in and inquired the rate per word to London. I told them it was 28 cents. Tbey consulted for a minute, and then one of them asked for a blank. I told them where the blanks were, and one of them wrote a message. The other took it and read it two or three times. "Then she came over to the window and asked again how much it was a word to Londoii. 'Twenty-eight cents,' I told her. She looked at the message dubiously. The other woman came up to her and said, 'Don't you like it?' " 'No,1 she said, 'I don't like it. That forni is ini proper. You say that Charles suicided tliis moniing, wheii it should be said that Charles committed suicide this morning.' ""'Bat,' said the other, 'ifwe put it intuat way we will save 28 cents.' "The woman who objected turued this proposición over in her miiid for a long time. Finally she said, "I don't think that such syntax is excusable.' "The ocher took the blank and read the message a few do.en times. 'We're poov,' she said decisively, after studying it in all its phases, 'and we can't save 28 cents any easier.' "This partially convinced the woman who objected. 'But what will our friends think?' she asked dubiously. " 'I suppose they will notice it, but we can't help that.' Then the two women retired to one corner of the room and had a consultación. After talking earnestly for 10 minutes they wrote out another message. So help me, this is the way I got it: 'Charlea suicided this niorning. False syntax used because it is cheaper.' "And they paid me 28 cents a word for it. All of which," continued the tall operator, "Ilústrate one of the curious ways in