Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-02-20
He WAS A HERO,
How . Policeman Gained Great Praise and
Earned Promotion.

How . Policeman Gained Great Praise and
Earned Promotion.
There was a telephone call at the headquar-
tiers OF the sanitary police. An urgent case
that demanded immediate attention. It came
from an obscure firm of undertakers. As it
happened there was but little going on and the
officer in charge detailed three men, who may
be called Officers Kelly, Schweiniger and
Walker, because these are not their names, to
60 and see what was the matter.
The three sanitary policemen found that the
place to which they had been sent was Ger
man tenement Of the humber sort. 1t was Q
two-story brick. with little grocery down
stairs and two families upstairs, one In the
front part and one in the back. On the door
Of the stair huttered piece of white Grape.
This is no case for us, 'growled Officer Kelly.
What has the health depar tment to do with
stiffs?"
the stairs silently pointed them to the front
rooms. In the first room they entered some
old women were sitting in silence. A man was
on his knees, his head bowed on a chair and
crying with convulsive sobs. On the floor lay
extended the body Of a woman, her throat cut
from ear to ear and the blood still flowing in a
CHASTITY stream over the boards and under the
stove, for this room was the kitchen. The
light came in through the uncurtained win
dows SO that all was horribly distinct One of
the Oiu women VINO Was slttlnS nearest the cry
ing man silently rose and beckoned to the
officers, who were startled by the unexpected
sight. They had looked for nothing more than
case Of bad drainage. The woman led them
into tho other room. The windows there had
blinds that were closed and for q minute the
officers could not see clearly. When they
could distinguish what was about them they
saw a boy in bed, moaning family. But there
against the wall, what was that? The old
woman, without word, pulled back the sheet
that covered it and the officers saw the corpse
OF another boy. Their mother had nursed
them for two weeks. and when this boy had
died she, worn out with watching and stricken
by grief had killed herself. So said the old
woman in German to Officer Schweiniger
Then as the eyes of the officers grew more
customed to the dim light they saw that the had
in bed was blotched and purple. With sudden
sinking of the heart Officer Kelly asked:
"What was the matter with the boysI'
SMALLPOX"
Offcer Kelly and Officer Schweiniger fed.
Their hair stood almost on end. But Officer
Walker remained. II was he who closed the
eyes of the other boy when he died. II was he
who sent for the coroner. 1t was he who found
out that the case had not been reported be-
cause the family had feared thst the children
would be sent to the pest house. 1t was Oficer
Walker who did more than hi3 duty. 1t was
Oficer Walker who gained great newspaper re-
nown. who WINS the hero of day.
Ofhcer Walker il Lieut. Walker now, but only
to his wife does he occasionally say:
"And ali this promotion because wasn't
afraid Of smallpox. Bless me, wonder what
they'd saw il they knew had smallpox when
was q kid mat worked as nurse i've years in
A smallpox hospital and that am no more in
danger of taking il than am at this blessed
minute Of being killed and eaten BY the Fiji
csnnibaia"