Mr. Newton gave a quick look at Peter, and then at the still smouldering cigarette end on the floor. However, if he had any suspicions he did not mention them.
Several other reporters came in now, and there was much laughter and joking among them. Some had work to do on the stories they had been out on the night before, and soon half a dozen typewriters were clicking merrily.
Mr. Emberg arrived about half-past eight o’clock and began sending the men out on their different duties, or assignments as they are called in a newspaper office. He greeted Larry with a smile and told him to wait until the morning’s rush was over, when the lad would be told what his work was.
Larry was much interested in watching and listening to all that went on. He heard the men talking about fires, robberies, suicides, and political matters. The place seemed like a hive full of busy bees with men and boys constantly coming and going. Larry felt a thrill of excitement when he realized that he was soon to have a part in this.
In about half an hour, when most of the men had gone out to various places, some to hospitals, some to police stations, some to the courts, and some to fire headquarters, the room was comparatively quiet.
“Now then, you new boy--what’s your name?” began Mr. Emberg, motioning to Larry. “Oh yes, I remember it now, it’s Harry.”
“No, sir, it’s Larry,” corrected the new boy.
“Oh yes, Larry. Well, I’ll tell you what you are to do.”
Thereupon the city editor instructed Larry how, whenever he heard “Copy!” called, to hurry to the desk, get the sheets of paper on which the articles for the paper were written, and carry them to a room down the hall. There he was to put them in a sort of brass tube, or carrier, drop the carrier into a pipe, and pull a lever, which sent compressed air into the pipe and shot the tube of copy to the composing room. There it would be taken out and set up into type. But Larry’s duties, for the time, ended when he had put the copy in the tube.
There were many other little things to do, and errands to run, Mr. Emberg said, but Larry would pick them up in time.
“Now then, Peter,” called Mr. Emberg--“or never mind, I guess you had better do it, Bud,” to the tow-headed office boy. “You show Larry around a bit, so he’ll know where to go when I send him.”