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Story
July 27, 1883
The Jasper Weekly Courier
Jasper, Dubois County, Indiana
What is this article about?
In St. Louis, an insane man repeatedly visits Judge Cady, convinced that superintendent Ernst Hilgendorf implanted a telephone and fire alarm in him, disrupting his life; he demands $100,000 in damages and imagines aid from hotel associates to remove it.
Clipping
OCR Quality
95%
Excellent
Full Text
An Operator Who is Striking for Damages.
From the St. Louis Post Dispatch.
"There is a specimen of the most modern crank extant," remarked Judge Chas. F. Cady, sotto voce, to a Post-Dispatch reporter, as a shabbily dressed individual entered his office opposite the Four Courts this morning. "Well, judge," said the visitor, "I have come to talk to you about my case." "Hold on; Charley Warner, of the Southern, is talking to me. He says that you and I and Colonel Claiborne and Judge Lubke are to meet a party of physicians in the rotunda of the Southern Hotel to-night, and we are going to have things fixed. Charley Warner says he is going to pay those New York physicians $10,000 to have this telephone removed. I was his head cook, and he knows how valuable I am to him." Having declared the object of his mission, the man took a seat in one corner of the judge's office, and during the silence that ensued sat quietly for a few moments, and then interrupted the conversation that followed with the anxious cries of "Hello, hello, hello there."
"All right, I'm here; what do you want?"
"Here is my old client," remarked the judge. "Well, how does the case stand now?"
"Well, just the same as usual," remarked the man. "I think I have a good case for damages against this man. The facts of the case are simply these: I lost my position as head clerk of the Southern Hotel and my funds got to a low ebb, so I had to go to the court house steps to sleep. While I was sleeping there Ernst Hilgendorf, the superintendent of fire alarm and telegraph, introduced a fire alarm and telegraph into me, and has been bothering me ever since. Every once in a while he calls me up by telephone, and in a few moments sounds the fire alarm. The life is annoyed out of me, and I have engaged the services of—"
"Hello! hello!" "All right! cut off?"
"—I have engaged your services to get $100,000 damages against Hilgendorf for this. There is nothing new in the case, so I'll bid you good morning."
Without further ado the visitor withdrew, and Judge Cady explained that the caller was an insane man who had visited his office daily for the past month.
From the St. Louis Post Dispatch.
"There is a specimen of the most modern crank extant," remarked Judge Chas. F. Cady, sotto voce, to a Post-Dispatch reporter, as a shabbily dressed individual entered his office opposite the Four Courts this morning. "Well, judge," said the visitor, "I have come to talk to you about my case." "Hold on; Charley Warner, of the Southern, is talking to me. He says that you and I and Colonel Claiborne and Judge Lubke are to meet a party of physicians in the rotunda of the Southern Hotel to-night, and we are going to have things fixed. Charley Warner says he is going to pay those New York physicians $10,000 to have this telephone removed. I was his head cook, and he knows how valuable I am to him." Having declared the object of his mission, the man took a seat in one corner of the judge's office, and during the silence that ensued sat quietly for a few moments, and then interrupted the conversation that followed with the anxious cries of "Hello, hello, hello there."
"All right, I'm here; what do you want?"
"Here is my old client," remarked the judge. "Well, how does the case stand now?"
"Well, just the same as usual," remarked the man. "I think I have a good case for damages against this man. The facts of the case are simply these: I lost my position as head clerk of the Southern Hotel and my funds got to a low ebb, so I had to go to the court house steps to sleep. While I was sleeping there Ernst Hilgendorf, the superintendent of fire alarm and telegraph, introduced a fire alarm and telegraph into me, and has been bothering me ever since. Every once in a while he calls me up by telephone, and in a few moments sounds the fire alarm. The life is annoyed out of me, and I have engaged the services of—"
"Hello! hello!" "All right! cut off?"
"—I have engaged your services to get $100,000 damages against Hilgendorf for this. There is nothing new in the case, so I'll bid you good morning."
Without further ado the visitor withdrew, and Judge Cady explained that the caller was an insane man who had visited his office daily for the past month.
What sub-type of article is it?
Curiosity
Medical Curiosity
What themes does it cover?
Madness
Misfortune
What keywords are associated?
Delusional Man
Implanted Telephone
Fire Alarm
Insanity
Damages Claim
St. Louis
What entities or persons were involved?
Judge Chas. F. Cady
Ernst Hilgendorf
Charley Warner
Colonel Claiborne
Judge Lubke
Where did it happen?
St. Louis, Judge's Office Opposite The Four Courts
Story Details
Key Persons
Judge Chas. F. Cady
Ernst Hilgendorf
Charley Warner
Colonel Claiborne
Judge Lubke
Location
St. Louis, Judge's Office Opposite The Four Courts
Story Details
A delusional man visits Judge Cady, claiming Ernst Hilgendorf implanted a telephone and fire alarm in him while he slept on the courthouse steps, causing annoyance; he seeks $100,000 in damages and believes influential figures will help remove it.