The record-union., 1896-08-30
TRAPPED BY TELEGRAPH.
Thrilling Adventure With Train Rob-
bers-A Railroad Girls Romance.

| Thrilling Adventure With Train Rob-
/ bers-A Railroad Girls Romance.
! While in a small town in Wyoming
| learned that a lady living there had
been the heroine of a thrilling advent
ure with train robbers, and curiosity
! and love for the brave induced me tC
! call on her to tell me the story. When
l went to her house l was welcomed by
a handsome woman of about 30, and in
| response to my earnest request for this
! one chapter of her life, she related TIE
| following:
In IS, when but a girl of Is, left
my home in Omaha and came out here
to fill the lonesome position of night
operator at station on the Pacific
| Railway. 1t was dreary, desolate
SPOT in the midst of desert. The day
| operator and an agent, a mere boy
slept at a section house about 200 yards
distant, so that during the long, dreary
night l was alone in the depot.
| mo. 4 express train, bound east, was
/ due at 2:15 in the morning, but it never
stopped unless signaled, and, as this
was the only train during the latter
portion of the night, you can imagine
my lonesome situation upon the desert
wild.
The Superintendent of the division, 6
| buoyant, light-spirited young gentle
man, came over the road at frequent in
| tervals and cheered me up by promises
of a better position when a vacancy
should occur. He often found me on the
very brink of despair, almost on the
point of resigning my position and re-
turning to my mother, who depended or
my salary for the necessaries of life
! but his promises, his genial cOnverSa-
drove away the gloom, and l came tC
| look for his visits with a sense of the
| keenest pleasure l began to regarc
him with a sisterly affection, he was 81
kind and tender and SO solicitous fol
my comfort and welfare.
/ "One night, shortly after midnight, a:
sat at my table reading a late novel,
thought 1 heard a shuffling footstep up
on the depot platform; but as it was no
repeated, l concluded that it was but {
wolf more daring than his cowardly fel
lows, and 1 resumed my book. A few
moments later l heard a low knock a
the door, which 1 always kept locked
|
During my stay at the station 1 never
had a visitor, and the sudden knocl
caused my form to tremble and my
cheeks to blanch.
while l sat there in alright, thu
knock was repeated louder than before
and mastering all my courage, l ap
preached the door and asked who wa
there A gruff voice replied that it wa!
a traveller who desired to take the east
bound train 1t was my plain and un
mistakable duty to admit him, and will
trembling fingers I drew the bolt.
Instantly the door was pushed open
and | sprang back to the table in ter
ror, when seven burly men, all wearing
cloth masks on their faces, and armed
to the teeth, entered the office, ant
walking up to me, said:
"'Gal, we don't want to hurt you, bu
if you make a suspicious move, o
scream, or give any alarm, so that tn
men in the section house kin hear you
I'll spile the looks O. that pretty fac
with a bullet. Be quiet and sensible
and you shan't be hurt. Whar's ye
red lamp signal?
What would you do?' I gasped.
want to hear any unnecessary bacl
| talk, nor no imDertinent questions
| Whars the red lamp?'
| "a chill of horror swept over me whel
the truth burst upon me that 1 was il
the hands of desperate band of trail
robbers, whose evident intention was t.
signal the train and rob the express ca
at my station. I knew they could fin
IL l.; e. o,a1 fy1
trembling voice / told him 1t was hang
inG just inside the door of the freight
1oom One of the men got it, and afte
examining it to see that it was in or
der, the rough band took seats to avail
the coming of the train.
The leader lit his pipe, and lookinl
at me steadily for a few minutes, said
Young gal, when that ar train toot
her whistle we've got some work 70
you to do. An official duty as you nigh
call it You must signal that train t
stop. If you don't swing that lamp jus
right, Wen ventilate that graceful bod
with bullets-do you understand?
"A desperate resolve had been taking
shape in my bewildered brain. l re
piled that l fully understood him, an
with piteous cry, oh, you will make
murderer of me,' l threw my arms an
head down upon the table and bega1
to cry and sob as if my heart wer
breaking. Had he seen my face, h
might have noticed a total absence o
tears. l was crying for a purpose.
When my arms dropped upon tn
table / allowed my hands to fall upol
the armature of the telegraph instru
rlent, so that l could prevent it fror
ticking, while my right hand rested o.
the key. Sobbing so that any sligh
tick the key might make would no
reach the robbers, I opened it and slow
ly made the telegraphic characters: