"Mickey"Murray Recalls Past
A lot has been told of the youthful days of Perfect Circle; the obstacles to overcome and the slow pains of growth. A part of the early development was the building of the water tower and installation of the large steel tank for the drinking water supply. These two projects were anything but child's play, and Claude "Mickey" Murray can readily testify as to the hazards involved.
It seems that in the early days Mickey had the reputation of being very versatile and was frequently asked to do odd jobs around the shop. About 1910, after the plant water tower was built, he was assigned the job of painting it. This was done with no mishap. Mickey and his brother-in-law then undertook the task of insulating the drain pipe from the tank to the ground. Mickey was perched in a rope swing suspended from the tank near the top. The pose was not unlike a circus aerialist, except that Mickey lacked the professional finesse. In trying to stand up, he suddenly lost his balance, and to keep from plunging headlong, which would have meant certain curtains (no net underneath), he hooked his arm in the sling while grabbing fresh air with his other hand. His partner wasted no time coming to the rescue. The dangling figure was lowered to the ground none the worse for wear except for a mild case of the jitters.
Some time later a large steel tank arrived that was to be buried in the ground for the shop drinking water supply. This was easily accomplished, but then there was the problem of enamel¬ing the inside. The opening was so small that only a man of di¬minutive stature could squeeze through. The only man small enough to do the job was Mickey Murray. "Nothing tough about this," decided Mickey, so he cheerfully grabbed a paint brush and paint and threaded through the hole.
Things went along pretty well for awhile, but half way through the job, the fumes got so bad that he keeled over in a dead faint. The situation might have been fatally serious had not Ray Deeter strolled over from the railroad depot after some water. Hearing a faint stirring from inside the tank, Ray peered in, saw Mickey's dilemma, and like pulling a cat from a rain barrel, yanked him out to safety.
One of the Tool Room old-timers, Mickey is one of the legendary figure's at PC."
This bit of info was taken from an old PC Magizne dated: Nov.10,1949