Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1889-07-18

lghtened by this narrative.
Joe has run a locomotive over the C. & o.
ever since the road was built, twenty years
ago. He now pulls the fastest and most
important mail and passenger trains, and
his name heads the list on the engineers
payroll. He has always been known and
recognized as skillful mechanic, faith
full, steady and reliable man, with nerves OF
steel and eyes like an eagles; he has, from
the first, attended diligently to his duties,
seldom lost time on his run-and has always
been respectable his superiors, corteous TO
his equals and kind to his subordinates.
And yet during all those twenty years,
the c. & o. '.boys" felt that Joe Burdett
had never been really one. OF themselves,
and were constrained to confess that
they knew very little about him
But there ards little romance connected
with Engineer Burdett, and good deal of
sentiment has woven itself into his life's
history.
Before Joe went to the C. & o., he was
promising young knight of the throttle in
the service of a railroad company whose
line ran eastward from Chicago. He was
very young man-not yet twenty-four-and
with all the depth and intensity of a quiet,
earnest nature he loved (even more than he
loved his profession) q fair, sweet girl.
And when pretty Anna Redman showed
preference for, and finally married the
handsome but ''ne'e--do-welI' Dick Fender,
Joe Burdett loved her not one whit the less
He was bitterly and sorely disappointed
himself, and he was, in manly way, gen.
timely and honestly sorry for the girl; for
he could not but think that Dick PendeI
would deteriorate instead of improve. But
Joe said never a word to Anna or to PerdeT
or to any one else; only he resolved not &c
lose sight Of the one woman who might have
made him supremely happy.
Too soon Joe Burdetts expectations in re-
gard to Dick Fender proved true A little
child, girl, was born to Anna; but instead
of awakening feelings of fatherly and hus-
handy pride in Fender, the advent of the
little one seemed to start the thoughtless
and unprincipled young man on headlong
career to the 1.-THE dogs" 1t almost broke
Joe Burdetts heart (for he had large,
tender heart under his greasy blue blouse)
as he perceived that things were gong from
bad to worse with the Penders; and the
consciousness that he could not proffer any
practical assistance TO poor Anna only made
it all the harder for him to bear. At last
the worst came. The once beautiful and
ight-hearted girl died, and (more's the
pity died of starvation and neglect.
Burdett did rot learn the fate of his old
love until she had been several days in her
grave, and when he set about to discover
the shameless father and his luckless babe,
both had disappeared-no one knew width
er. Joe looked up shrewd private de-
tective, to whom he took two hundred dol
lars of his savings, which he thrust into
the hands of the professional solver of
many social riddles. To the detective Bur-
dett told his story. Find the babe" said
he, ''and obtain her fathers consent to let
me keep her, and will give you two hun
dred dollars more"
But neither money or skill were of any
avail, and gradually Joe Burdett gave up
all hopes of adopting Anna Redman's baby
girl.
Six years passed away, and on a pleasant
day in summer Engineer Burdett, enjoying
a 'lay-off,' strolled through the busy
streets of the great Western metropolis.
As he sauntered along he came upon the
entrance to the central police station and,
prompted by mere curiosity, entered the
courtroom. The court was at that moment
considering the disposition of little waif,
brought in from one of Chicago's bustling
highways by q burly police officer The