Aunt Janes Nieces on Vacation | Page 9

"Lor' knows I'm poor
enough. You don't ketch me a-talkin' to New York at a dollar a throw,
Nib, do ye?"
Meantime Mr. Merrick had succeeded in getting Mr. Marvin, of the
banking house of Isham, Marvin & Co., on the wire.
"Do me a favor, Marvin," he said. "Hunt up the best supply house and
have them send me a complete outfit to print a daily newspaper.
Everything must be modern, you know, and don't let them leave out
anything that might come handy. Then go to Corrigan, the
superintendent of the railroad, and have him send the freight up here to
Chazy Junction by a special engine, for I don't want a moment's delay
and the regular freight takes a week or so. Charge everything to my
account and impress upon the dealer the need of haste. Understand all
that, Marvin?"
"I think I do, sir," was the reply; "but that's a pretty big order, Mr.
Merrick. The outfit for a modern daily will cost a small fortune."
"Never mind; send it along."
"Very well. But you'd better give me some details. How big a
newspaper do you want to print?"
"Hold the wire and I'll find out," said Uncle John. Then he opened the
door of the booth and said: "Patsy, how big a thing do you want to
print?"
"How big? Oh, let me see. Four pages will do, won't it, Louise?"
"Plenty, I should say, for this place," answered Louise.
"And how many columns to a page?" asked Uncle John.

"Oh, six or seven. That's regular, I guess."
"Make it six," proposed Beth. "That will keep us busy enough."
"All right," said Uncle John, and closed the door again.
This conversation was of the most startling nature to the assembled
villagers, who were all trying to look unconcerned and as if "they'd jest
dropped in," but were unable to dissemble their curiosity successfully.
Of course much of this interchange of words between the man in the
booth and the girls outside was Greek to them all, but "to print" and
"columns" and "pages" could apply only to one idea, which, while not
fully grasped, was tremendously startling in its suggestion. The
Merrick party was noted for doing astonishing things in the past and
evidently, in the words of Peggy McNutt, they were "up to some blame
foolishness that'll either kill this neighborhood or make it talked about."
"It's too dead a'ready to kill," responded Nick Thorne gloomily. "Even
the paper mill, four mile away, ain't managed to make Millville wiggle
its big toe. Don't you worry over what the nabob'll do, Peggy; he
couldn't hurt nuthin' if he tried."
The door opened again and Mr. Merrick protruded a puzzled
countenance.
"He wants to know about a stereotype plant, Patsy. What'll I tell him?"
Patsy stared. Louise and Beth shook their heads.
"If it belongs to the--the thing we want, Uncle, have 'em send it along,"
said Patsy in desperation.
"All right."
A few minutes later the little man again appealed to them.
"How'll we run the thing, girls; steam or electricity?"
Patsy's face was a blank. Beth giggled and Louise frowned.

"Of course it'll have to be run," suggested Mr. Merrick; "but how?
That's the question."
"I--I hadn't given that matter thought," admitted Patsy. "What do you
think, Uncle?"
He considered, holding open the door while he thoughtfully regarded
the silent but interested group of villagers that eagerly hung upon every
word that passed.
"Cotting," called Mr. Merrick, "how do they run the paper mill at
Royal?"
"'Lectricity! 'Lectricity, sir!" answered half a dozen at once.
"They develops the power from the Royal Waterfall of the Little Bill,"
explained Cotting, with slow and pompous deliberation. "Mr. Skeelty
he tol' me they had enough 'lectric'ty to light up the whole dum country
fer ten mile in all directions, 'sides a-runnin' of the mill."
"Who's Skeelty?"
"Manager o' the mill, sir, an' part owner, he says."
"Has he a telephone?"
"Yes, Mr. Merrick."
"Thank you."
Mr. Merrick shut the door and called up Skeelty. Five minutes of
bargaining settled the question and he then connected with Mr. Marvin
again and directed him to have the presses and machinery equipped to
run by electricity. Thinking he had now given the banker all the
commissions he could attend to with celerity, Uncle John next called up
Major Doyle and instructed his brother-in-law to send four miles of
electric cable, with fittings and transformers, and a crew of men to do
the work, and not to waste a moment's time in getting them to Millville.

"What in blazes are ye up to now, John?" inquired the major, on
receiving this order.
"None of your business, Gregory. Obey orders."
"Going to light the farm and turn night into day?" persisted the major.
"This is