104 nature's flMraclea. 



one time he was reporting by telegraph one of 

 Webster's speeches made at Albany in 1852 in 

 which there were many pithy interrogative 

 sentences, and he was desirous of having the 

 interrogation-points appear. So to make sure, 

 whenever he wished an interrogation-point he 

 said "question" at the end of almost every 

 sentence. Next day he was horrified on read- 

 ing the speech to see the ends of the sentences 

 bristling with the word "question." 



Some time back in the fifties a gentleman 

 in Boston telegraphed to a house in New York 

 to " forward sample forks by express." The 

 message when received by the New York mer- 

 chant read: "Forward sample for K. S. by 

 express." The New York merchant did not 

 know who K. S. was, nor did he gather from 

 the dispatch what kind of sample he wanted. 

 So he went to the telegraph office to have the 

 matter cleared up. The Boston operator re- 

 peated the message, saying " sample forks." 

 " That's the way I received it and so delivered 

 it sample for K. S.," said New York. " But," 

 says Boston, " I did not say for K. S. ; I said 

 f-o-r-k-s." New York had read it wrong in the 

 start and could not get it any other way. 

 " What a fool that Boston fellow is. He says 

 he did not say for K. S., but for K. S." Bos- 

 ton had to resort to the United States mail be- 

 fore the mystery was solved. 



Curiously enough, the old method of record- 



