Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-07-21

tered life had never cerls In contact witt,
anything like that before. The girls and
myself had taken no hand On the conversa-
ton. being rather curious TO see what Rose
would do. The elf paused before filling her
mouth a second time3 and with a long
drawn breath said conte,n ntaouslv. "What'd
1 want of anybody? IaiRt no kid. Course
there ua,l Ddt ne ain { no good now. we re
strikin' an dad he's hongEs as the rest Of
usunS now"
From the strikers Standpoint.
''IIow many of you are there" asked
Elaine as bloom drew back in
frightened disgust from the tough little
creature.
Six; all on us girls" she replied, uncon-
ce nedly, setting her teeth in the breast OF
chicken Elaine had given her and tearing
it as dog would. Just then the youth re-
turned with the welcome Information that
he and the rest of the strikers had con-
cluded to let US go on as far as Kansas
City. Il KANT tell whether you'll sit any
furder cr not, he remarked. as he fired
stream of tobacco juice owe: my shawl
strap. I'VE are gittin' mighty tired of this
foolln an are Liable to make things inter
6Stin' most any minute.
The elf child was trudging along at Nora's
side, talking a straight streak Appeasing
her hunger had Embossed her tongue, and
her ten-year-old wisdom was something
pitifully ludicrous. we live most any
where's" she said. Dad. he sweeps out
s., a
struck agin the plutccrats, he has, an now
he's mighty busy watchin' that there aiu't
no scab gets put in TO take his place. Dads
ristocratic an he won't work long of
scabs. Would you. now?" she asked SOL
emily, as she gazed earnestly up at Nora
through her tangled mat of hair. There
was no time for an answer but Nora thrust
a box of biscuit In her hands, and we
pulled out OF the depot we saw dad. pre-
sumably, and the six on u.s. greedily de-
vouring the biscuits, as they sat on the
platform. All along the route to Kansas
City We saw bollow-eyed men and half
starved women and children strikers"
work lying under their very hands, yet
with the wolf at the door and starvation
staring them in the face. they were stolidly
sitting in squalor Warrington what?
Now and then there would be little knots
of people gathered on the platforms, and
from our train professional agitator would
alight and harangue them. urging them TO
stand firmly against the devil fish corpora
tions.' and uttering anarchistic threats
which wee applauded to the echo. AS the
unctuous and oily agitator got back on the
train they parted with him as the children
of Israel might have parted with Moses.
He rolled on his way, comfortably fed,
handsomely dressed and his expenses paid
by the very men whom he was counciiing
to be firm even to starving TO death for
their principles. yet | heard him say to
some men with whom he was discussing
the situation later on that the money of
the n. X. l. was going TO give out pretty
then he would drop the thing He could
not afford to work for nothing. And this
was the character of the man for whom
starving thousands were willing to ignor-
antly sacrifice everything on earth believ-
ing that he Was working for a great prin-
cipe.
The Train Hands Struck
At Kansas City We were speedily sent on
west. The poison of unrest had not yet
inocu.ated all the railroad men, and they
had some thought for the wives and little
children who were depending on them for
support They represented the practical
side OF Melville's theory: I'VE cannot live
only for ourselves. A thousand fbers con-
meet US with our fellow men; and along
those hbers, as sympathetic threads our ac-
tons run as causes. and they come back
10 US effects" But l don't suppose that
any one OF them would have known who
Melville was 1t was only sterling COM
mon sense working out. At little town
away out on the Kansas prairie, where the
sky shuts down over the nat earth like a
big blue china bowl. our train came to a
standstsli. and We had our first actual taste
OF the strike. The engineer and fireman
were ready to go. but the brak esmen re-
fused, and they would not move the train
with green men. or, to use the more IA
miltar term, with scabs" For five hours
We stood there under the broiling sun: there
was nothing to eat except the lunch We
had prepared. and there were dozens who
had not been az thoughtful as We were.
So We divided with them; the ice gave out
and the hot winds swept over the cars and
through them fairly scorching our lungs as
we breathed IL in.
The girls got restless and uneasy; they
had read all their books. and the supply
of the train boy was speedily exhausted.
People wandered from car to car. making
friends with everybody: Elaine and Nora
got some new books from somebody. and
finally settled down. but Dorothy and Rose
in-bloom failed to return. so l went to look
them up. l found them in the second class
coach. Dorothy holding a little weakened
faced baby In her arms, and crouchins in
the corner Of the seat was the child's
mother. sobbing her heart out Rose-in-
bloom was down on her knees bathing the
hot little head with cold water brought
from the water tank. and half a doxec wo-
men were standing around In fearful SYM
pathy: IL was a pitiabie sight. The woman
was on her way west. hoping that the cool
mountain air would help the child. Half
a day would put her in sight OF the health
giving hills. yet there we were on the sun
burned plains. and death lowering over the
little thing. rsacy to swoop down at any
moment.
Baby so Sick. it gasped in childish ac-
cents as l bent above IL. "Dirl dood to
baby. and the thin little hand wandered
lovingly over Rose.n- blooms face
hut u Was Too Late.
Il can't stand it, Sara" cried the child
at AhS'' II IL 10 XIII people this
way. III those awful men knew that they
were just numbering a baby maybe they
would so on. I'm going to tell them about
1t. And fiinSing the wet cloth into my
hand she flew out Of the car As soon as
l could went to see that she did not get
into mischief. and found her talking eager
ly To the conductor who had brought us
that far. but had left us. as it was the end
OF the division. Before / reached them they
went down to the knot of men, who were
standing. yet undecided what to do |
don't know how she ACCOMPLISHED it, but
in less than five minutes she was back,
her face shining like a full moon
I'VE are going" she cried as she ran BY
Inc to the poor mother And sure enough
we did start in few moments but it was
too late to save the baby. In less than an
hour its frail grasp on life was loosene,!
and RoSe-fn blooms. eyes looked for the
first time on death, as it came to the child
whose little fingers were tangled in her
curls. while she bowed I'm an abandonment
OF grief above IL. At a lonely waysde sta
ton. which looked to be deserted by man
and forsaken by God the stricken mother
with her precious burden was put of, and
as We rounded a curve in the sandhjils on
our westward journey l saw her standing
In Silhouette against the sky. an image of
the deSolatton OF sorrow, a stranger in a
strange land. weary with disaster, tugs'd
with misfortune Through all the years
to come she viii carry with he. the thought
that but FOR that awful strike which held