Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-05-06
VALOR AT A TICKER.
A Lady Telegraph Operator Who
Talks Ofthe Block Signals,
TELLING ATHRILLINGT TALE TW,
One Case in Which Her Revolver Had q
Mission to Perform.
MORE THAN MECHANISM ESSENTIAL

The block signal system of the Pennsyl.
vania Railroad is great success, but one
scarcely realizes how much depends on the
carefulness and wakefulness Of the telegraph
operator until he spendsa night in one of these
telegraph towers. 1t was the misfortune
of a DISPATCH reporter not long since to
have such an experience. Caught at night
in the country, with the only hotel in the
village two miles away, and the farmers for
miles around sound asleep, one of the
lonely towers Of the Pennsylvania
road was not uninviting under
such circumstances. Thenews gatherer had
a long telegram to send and the young lady
operator vowed thousand times, as she ad-
mitted afterward, that she would keep the
door locked hereafter, and admit nobody
but railroad men at night.
CoMPANIoNsHIP WELCOME.
But when the hard job had been per-
formed and after vigorous rubbing the
blood began to return into her numb arm,
she was pleased with the prospect of having
even reporter to talk to until morning.
How these poor girls in the towers must
suffer from loneliness none but they them
selves can tell. If man had wife that
talked too much he could easily effect cure
by having her learn the telegraph business,
and then secure for her a position in one
of the Pennsylvania towers. It is surpris-
ing how many lady operators there are on
the railroads, and invariably they work at
night. One of them accounted for it by
saying that their chiefs are men, and they
try to discourage women from entering the
business as much as possible.
81 wish didn't have to work, " said the
lady operator in the course of the long chat.
Certainly we get lonely, and the night is
always terribly long. I have two revolvers
in this drawer, but I am awfully afraid Of
firearms. In my experience so far have
had plenty of scares, but never was really
frightened but once. A German tramp was
determined to come into the tower one night,
and, placing skid which the men used in
handling freight against the building, he
climbed up as far as the windows.
DON'T SHOOT WAS THE CRY.
81 pointed the revolver at the fellows
head, ,and he cried out to me in broken
English not to shoot didn't, and con-
fess I felt as much relieved as he did when
he found himself on the ground agaiu. He
slid down that skid almost like shot.
"Most of the night operators on the Penn
sylvania road are girls. About the hardest
work we have to do is to pull the lever back
and forward which changes the lights. In
the winter when the long bar becomes COW
cred with ice it is almost impossible to pull
it. and it requires all our exertion.
'My greatest trouble is to keep awake
after o'clock in the morning. We help
each other, and if think an operator is
asleep I try to warn her by making all the
noise over the wires I can. I remember
when the Eastern express was put ON
early in the morning. The opera
tors were so used to doing
about that time of the night thatthe express
had to make number of stops on its first |
trip. You see the red light hangs out con-
tinually, and this the engineers are guided |
by. IF the operator goes to sleep the trains |
are blocked, and if she is reported she is
fined 81.
IT ALL TAKES TIME.
"Well, have forgotten how often that |
train was stopped the first morning. At |
some towers they had to break open the |
door to see what was the matter. Generally |
the conductors and engineers are good fell |
lows and do little reporting, but there is a |
limit to their patience. The train made a
number of trips before the operators got |
used to the new run, and now we all man
age to be awake.
'eIt is true operators often become care
less, and we forget sometimes what import
ant positions we fill. / never get nervous
except when there is a wreck, and then we
have to be constantly on the alert 30
The reporter sat there through the long |
night listening to the young lady talk.
They yawned great deal at times, but
both kept awake; the one because it was her
business, the other because he
couldn't sleep. It was noticeable
hat on this particular night
'ew trains passed. There may have been
,ther reasons for it, but at the present time
he freight business is very dull, and it
must be worse than the agents admit when
lot more than ten freight trains both ways
PASS given point on the Pennsylvania
Dad during night. There were more
Fest than east-bound trains, but mighty few
ither way outside of the passenger trains: