Well, anyway, a drop is a little brass door which falls down with a clatter whenever the telephone which is hitched to that particular drop wants a connection. And Miss Carrie Mason, our chief operator, sits on a high stool with a receiver strapped over her rick of blond hair jabbing brass plugs with long cords attached into the right holes with unerring accuracy, and a reach which would give her a tremendous advantage in any boarding-house in the land. Sometimes she has one assistant, and in rush hours she has two. But on Sunday afternoons and other quiet times she holds down the whole job alone for hours at a time; and when I go up to her citadel and ask her to jam a toll call through forty miles of barbed wire and miscellaneous junk to Taledo by sheer wrist and lung power, she entertains me as follows while I wait: "Yes, indeed, I'll get your call through as soon as I can, but the connection's--Nmbr--awful--Nmbr--bad to-day--Nmbr--They're not at home, Mrs. Simmons; they went to Paynesville--Nmbr--I'll ring again--Nmbr--Hello, Doctor Simms, Mrs. McCord told me to tell you to come right out to the farm; the baby's sick--Nmbr--The train's late to-day, Mrs. Bane, you've got plenty of time--Nmbr--I can't get them, Mrs. Frazier. I'll call up next door and leave word for them to call you--Nmbr (To me: "Hot to-day, isn't it? I tell 'em we ought to have an electric fan up here.")--Nmbr--("It would keep us better tempered.")--Nmbr--Oh, Mrs. Horn, will you tell Mrs. Flint when she comes home that Mrs. Frazier wants her to call her up?--Nmbr--Now, Jimmy, you haven't waited two seconds. I know you're anxious to talk to Phoeb, but she isn't home; she's at the cooking club--Nmbr--Cambridge, do see if you can't get through to Taledo. I've a party here that's in a hurry--Nmbr. (To me: "That Taledo line's awful. It's grounded somewhere on that farmer's line west of Tacoma.")--Nmbr--Yes, Mr. Bell, I'll call you quick as he comes in his office; I can see his door from my window--Nmbr--No, Mrs. Bane, the doctor's just gone out to the McCord farm. If you hurry, you can stop him as he goes past. He left about five minutes ago--Nmbr--Gee, Paynesville, you gave me an awful ring in the ear then! No, you can't get through, the line's busy. Well, you'll have to wait. I can't take the line away from them--Nmbr--Oh! (very softly) Hello, Sam. Oh, pretty well. I'm most melted--wait a minute--Nmbr--Hello, Sam (long silence) Oh, get out! My ear's all full of taffy--wait a minute--Nmbr--Nmbr--No, Mr. Martin, there hasn't been any one in his office all day. I think he's gone to Chicago--Hello, Sam--wait a minute, Sam--Nmbr--Nmbr--Hello, Sam--Say, I'm all alone and jumping sidewise. Call me up about six (very softly). G'by, Sam--Nmbr. Oh, Mrs. Lucey, is Mrs. Simms at your house? Tell her her husband will be home late to supper, he's gone out in the country--Hello. Hello. _Hello_, Taledo. Is your party ready? (To me: "All right, here they are.