The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-03-11


ers she pounded her chest after the man
| ner Of very young children keeping time
as IL were
Suddenly the smell Of burning wood
came TO her nostriIs with startling dis
| tinctness. She looked up and down
| through the old woods, fearing TO detect
some private tree that had been burnt
She knew them all by heart, and just
why she she specially loved each one. In
quick review she passed them. Soon she
came to the borders Of the Panhandle
j Railroad.
/ There she stood shielding her eyes from
the vanishing sun. She looked up and
| down. trying still To place the smell of
I burning timber. Suddenly she paused in
terror. Her eyes were fixed and CLASSY.
( She grew rigid and pale as death. The
: reason for the smell OF the burning tim
Der had been revealed 10 her in one aw-
fuI moment.
Just below where she stood the railroad
bridge, spanning an ugly gulch, had been
burned away. 1t had caught fire from the
burning grass, which had been set on fire
by spark from a passing engine. Il was
still in flames.
situation pierced with terrible distinct
ness The condition of the sun told this
little country bred girl that IN five min
utes the eastbound Chicago express would
come dashiug along carrying its human
freight.
Alone stood this little scrap Of human
ity prayed to God to help her to devise
some plan TO rescue these hundreds of
helpless people. She looked down my
RAIDS Of feet into the wreat. ugly guIch
lined with sharp rocks and rough peb-
bles. she looked ID the track and to-
wards her own house, about a half a
mile away
WouI she have TIME 70 summon help?
Just as she murnured the question be
tween her parched lips she heard the
whistle Of the train-the Worlds Fair
train, as she had heard her companions
call il
Joyously ii announced its coming With
merry cIang II semmed I ocry. I'VE are
going 10 our friends-to our friends" The
little girl, just eleven years old, stood on
the borders Of the gulch seeing in her
imagination eager faces pressed upon the
windows. peertEg Ont into the distance.
II she did not act, act quickly. these peO-
PIE nigh tnever see their dear ones again.
Lord Jesus prayed this little girl,
help me-reu me what 20 dol'
She realized in hte single instant eft
her that she must stop the train. How
She looked abou tfor something to wave.
Hundreds Of branches swayed toward
her. II flashed through her mind to break
OF one and use it as a flag.
NO no" she moaned, they would
never see it
She new that a red flag was a sign Of
danger. If only she had something red
suddenly she remembered her undersEdrt
of red flannel
The train was laundering along as only
an express may. It was almost on top of
the bridge when like an apparation out Of
the ground there foned into Engineer
Frank WI liam soesn al BIN N.
Frank Wiluamson's eye a fash of red.
In a ninstant he say that figure was
riskin gifts life by standing in the very
middle Of the track.
The engines We're reversed, and in that
instant little Jennie Creek had made her
self one OF the worlds heroines.
Through the cars she was carried in
triumph amid a shower Of blessings on
the shoulders Of stalwart passengers.
They crowded about her her to hear the
story Of it all.
ATodestly she reiterated that she had
done nothing. But these big people seem
ed othin kshe had. They poured money
int cher hands and into her ears all sorts
Of offers OF assistance fshe ever want
ed for friends.
II happened that some Of the people on
the train returning from the Worlds
Fair were French. They carried TO their
native land the story OF the little Ameri-
can girl who. without thought Of her own
danger, had saved their lives So it was
that to little Jennie Creek, then eleven
years o fage. was sent the fve-pointed
gold star with the compliments Of the
Society of the Legion Of Honor.
only one other American girl IS entit-
led 20 wear this medal She IS an Iowa
schoo Teacher. who saved her pupils dur
ing a cyclone by tying them together.
But Jennie Creek IS the "littIest'' girl Of
any to whom the emblem was ever
awarded. And she VIII probably be the
youngest guest Of honor at the Paris Ex-
position.
Meanwhile the primary class of the In
diana public schools every Eear spells out
in IT'S hrst Reader hte Glory Of how little
Jennie Creek an Indiana girl, saved hun
dreds Of lives.
me following is from a statement by
Miss Jennie Creek: 20 fcourse feel
proud that l was enabled 70 prevent
train fun of passengers dash!1g on TO
burning bridge and thereby saving many
lives. but I VIII Away sresret THAI I did
rot think Of some other signal 70 distress
than my red petticoat- I was only ten
years old Worlds AFR year I lived at
NIiHgrove. a little rag station on the Pan
handle road between Columbus AMI Chi-
cage. and there was no school I ran
about like a wild thing Ny mother had
-ied, and the relatives who had under
taken the task OF bringing NE VI lived
near the railroad tracks Because I had
always been tol dit was dangerous. I sup (
playing ground made friends with the
section men, and took & sort 0 <proprie-
Jary interest il The track.
Near ny urcls's house was a small
stream. which had worn deep gully
where IL ran under the arilroad track 5
The bridge across It was . substantial
wooden AFFAIR. Il was I o'clock one az
-ernoo1 when / ran - the bridge q play.
found it smoking and while was In
yestisating Hanes shor Up between the !
cross ties I was frightened q course, I
and ran up the track 90 give the ala-m- /
had net gone far when heard TIE +
whistle ot tae fas ttral1 from Chicago. !
which always went through ATiuZCcvs az (
train could be stopped q wouId be piled /
lp II the gully beneath.
The train must Dc stopped But bow (
IA 80 - $500 $780, -, --,s..- |