South Branch intelligencer. [volume] (Romney, Va. [W. Va.]) 1830-1896, 1893-02-24
THEINTELLlGENCER
FRIDAY. FEBRU AIRY "a. 1898.
A PLUckY LITTLE WOMAN.
By CHARLES B. LEWIS.


In the building of the first great
trunk line of railroad across the
continent upward OF 1o,0os men
were killed by the Indians or met
death through sickness or accident.
During the first three or four years
OF train service trsmps and toughs
and terrors made life a burden for
all train conductors, and the small
stations were entirely at their mer-
cy. There were plenty of telegraph
operators out Of job who could
not be induced to take . lone sta
ton at any salary, and sometimes
the company had to send three
men to one station where there was
little or nothing for one to do.
Lone Pine station was up in the
mountains, just at the east end Of
a long stretch Of snow sheds. 1t
was thirteen miles from Bad Greek
to the west and eleven from Big
Rock to the east. The names of
these stations, together with dozens
Of others, have since been changed.
At the date / write Of man nam
ed Clark had the Big Rock station.
| had Bad Creek and a new agent
and operator had just taken pos
session Of Lone Pine. That sta
ton had been vacant for q week.
II had been held by young man
named Reed for about three
months, but one night he was
found dead and robbed work
OF the lawless element then over
running the West. The first news
1 got from the new agent came
from herself oyer the wire ono day,
and this ia what she said:
"Allow me to introduce myself
as Mrs. Hadley, the new agent ct
Lone Pine. l am just out from
Chicago. Charming place this, and
l know l shall like it. Hope to be-
come better acquainted"
l found out later on that she was
q widow about &c years old, good
looking, we'll educated. and nossas-
sed plenty of courage and common
ssnse. Just why she didn't do as
most other young widows do was
no ones business but her own.
Finding that she must earn her
own living, she learned telegraphy
and came down the road in search
o: q place. They didn't want to
give her the station at Lone Pine,
but she was so persistent that she
was finally installed. AS at many
other stations, she had to gather
her own freWood and cook her own
provisions, and there were many
annoyances to be encountered.
Clark and / were both knocked
out to find that a woman had been
sent to Lone Pine. Had it been a
man we should have expected him
to take care of himself, but as it
was We couldn't help bat worry.
There was hardly q day that we
didn't have to drive some rough
sus Of our houses at the muzzle Of
= shotgun, and both of US had twice
been held up and cleaned out BY
gangs. Her station was even more
isolated, and though her sex might
be respected by some, there were
men abroad as wicked as the old
time pirates. In response to our
inquiries she assured US that she
had been provided With the regular
outfit Of weapons by the company,
and that she sbould not Hesitate
to shoot if she found it necessary.
1t was in May when the little wo-
man took possession. In desorib-
ing her l did not say that she vas
little, bat suoh was the fact. Her
weight was not over 100 pounds,
and she looked more like a girl Of
16 than a woman Of 20. 1 got a
chance to run mp and see her one
in the month, and found
her nicely settled. She had been
more or less annoyed by roughs, but |
there had been no occasion to test
her nerve as Jet. found her
doubled-barrelled shotgun loaded I
with buckshot aud her navy revolt /
yer ready for business, and she as !
'ured me that she should not hesi- (
10 fire upon any man who menacsd I
her safety.
[ went home much relieved ia
mind. Outside Of the fraterna1 4