Page:C Q, or, In the Wireless House (Train, 1912).djvu/81

 clock at his elbow; and Micky and Morrissy, and all the other operators off the Azores, were hearing him as distinctly as if they were on the other side of the room in that same shanty and listening to the ticking of the clock.

Micky drew a pad toward him and picked up a freshly sharpened pencil. The man in Cornwall threw a few commercial messages to boats here and there on the northern route, and then sent out his “SP&mdash;SP&mdash;SP” signal. "Press for transmission only. Time 1.45. Four hundred words.”

At the end of every sentence he said “stop” instead of punctuating. Micky took it down mechanically Sitting there in his little box in the middle of the night, a half-eaten sandwich beside him, he jotted down the doings of the world as casually as if he were playing tit-tat-to.

“Germany - has - not - yet - replied - France’s - ultimatum - regarding - Morocco - stop - Considerable - uneasiness - in - financial - circles - Bank - of - England - raises - rate - one - half - per - centum - stop - famine - spreading - in - China - stop - Millions - on - verge - of - starvation - stop - Great - fire - in - New - York -