The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-01-16

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 COM
pany, and that she should not hesitate to
shoot II she found it necessary.
THE LITTLE WIDOW.
1t was May when the little woman took
possession. In describing her l did not say
that she was little, but such was the fact.
| Her weight was not over 100 pounds and
she looked more like a girl OF 10 than q
woman Of %. / got q chance to run up and
see her one afternoon in the mouth and
found her nicely settled She had been
more or less annoyed by rouRhs, but there
had been no occasion to test her nerve as
| yet. / found her double-berreled shotgun
| loaded with buckshot and her navy revolt
yer ready for business, and she assured me
that she should not hesitate to fire upon any
| man who menaced her safety.
| l went home much relieved in mind.
| Outside of the fraternal feeling SO strong
among the brotherhood of the key, there
was something in the thought of that little
| woman being perched up there alone among
the grim hills and wild forests calculated
to keep man awake when he should have
| been sound asleep on his cot The first
1
| In the forenoon of that day two very
rough-looking men had come up the
| track from the west. They halted at my
station, sized me up, and then demanded
| something to eat. might have given thcm a
bite had they requested instead OF demanded,
but when saw that they meant to pick a
quarrel and have an excuse for assaulting
and robbing me, brought out my shotgun
| and obliged them to walk on. As soon as
they were out of sight notified the little
| woman at Lone Pine to look out for them.
She replied that she would, and up 10 10
O'clock at night heard from her every
| hour, but the tramps had not put 10 an APP
| pearance. 1t was II 80 o'clock. and I was
| sound asleep when heard Lone Pine call
| me over the wire. / rolled off my cot and
| ran TO the instrument and asked what was
| wanted.
THE tramps are here" was the reply
| They are knocking at the door and asking
! for food and shelter"
But don't let them in. Get down your
shotgun, lay it across the table with ike
| muzzles pointed at the door, and II they
break in pull both triggers"
| They are cursing ME and declaring they
| will set the cabin on fire If don't open the
doorm telegraphed the little woman a mo-
meut later.
IF you open the door they will murder
you! You have sliding window to the
right of your door if remember right"
| "Yesn
Take your revolver, slide the sash back,
and fire upon the fellowsr'
But / may kill one Of thefnW
| That's what you want to do--buth, IL
possib!e Ii you show any fear OF them
| they will batter the door in, and then God
help you'll"
| "lt's awful to shoot"
Then came a break. l knew that the
| fellows were making some demonstration
xzghf nh fNEl iVaI baK. 10 @v~I 4.
next sixty seconds l heard every beat OF
my heart. Then came the tremulous mes
! sage:
live shot ore Of them and what
what-snall do about its'
did YOU fire from the Window"
| YES"
Don't do anything except wait and
| watch. IL you've hit one the other will
| likely make off If he tries to get in. now
ever, give him the same Dose Do you hear
him about!"
mo; think he's moved off, but the
one | shot is grooming and taking on
awfuliy."
LET him groan. You'll have train
from the east in thirty-fve minutes Keep
me ad ised"
| had two more messages before the train
reached her One was that the man lad
ceased to Rrcau and was probably dead and
| the other was that the other tramp had
tried TO burst open the door, but had been
driven off by her firing one barrel of her
! shotgun into Ii from her side. When the
train rolled in q dead man was found at the
door and wounded one lying on the ground
q few va DIS away. There wasn't any in-
questing on the dead. The body was car
ried few miles west and dropped into a
guich, and the wounded man, who had
half a dozen buckshot in his shoulder, was
turned over to the first sheriff. The little
woman's adventure made her a heroine for
many weeks, and was not mean enough to
let on that had been obliged TO brace her
up and direct operations from distance of
thirteen miles
Everything went we'll at Lone Pine I'M
til Sept. 10. That fall there was a regular
army OF tratnps headed for the west, and
the employees OF every passenger and frei2h hit
train had TO DO armed to the teeth. In
some instances the gangs took possession Of
freight trains and ran them to suit their
own convenience. The number of train
mon killed or wounded every week was
something astonishing. On Sept. Is gang
OF twenty tramps seized freight train at q
water tank twenty miles east Of Big Rock
and ran 1t to that station. There happened
to be big construction gang at Big Rock,
and they turned TO and overpowered the
tramps and scattered them in every direc-
ton. 1t began raining at 3 o'clock in the
afternoon, and when night fell it was rs
|
with bridge material and accompanied by
twelve mechanics reached my station from
the ~ est on it's way to Big Rock.
just as IL came in got word from Clark
over the wire that landslide had occurred
between him and Lone Pine ami no trains
would be able to pass it before ext day
This, you will observe, cut Lone Pine off on
the east, and it held the bridge main at nv
station l turned in about IL O'clock with
the rain coming down as If every thing was
TO be drowned out, and it was just half an
hour after midnight whom l was called by
the little woman at Lone Pine. ppm sorry
to disturb you" she said, "but fear Pm
going to have trouble"
"W hats wrong1'
"A number of those tramps who were
bounced at Big Rock to-day have reached
here aud taken possession of two empty
freight cars on the siding. The whole
crowd is half drunk and raising Cain"
"If they have shelter and something to
drink they won't be apt to bother you to-
night. However, I'll sit up with you for
awhile for company's sake. Are your fire.
arms loadedn
YES. The gang appears to have four or
five revolvers, and two bullets have been
fired through tbs widow"
We'll, don't show any light, and you had
better bunk down on your cot. The fellows
will get over their hilarity pretty soon.n
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