Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1900-09-13

in Crescentville. His father. Nelson
Graham, had run tho general store
there for many years, and was rated
in Dummy as &c. s. NJ. 3.,' which
cabalist!~ letters established the Gra-
hau. credit on Il solid foundation
throughout the United States. SO that
whenever Il salesman happened to stop
at Crescentville. he always made
lall at Nelson Graham's.
Crescentville, Illinois. was flourish
ing city of over 2000 inhabitants, and,
of course, things We're just rushing.
The city contained two manufacture
ting plants, a brewery, First Nation
al Bank of Crescentville, an Electric
Light and Power Company, and IA rail-
yoad depot Also, various stores ana
mall industries according to its needs.
fhe railroad was a loop of the b. X. \
&. S.. the main line ten miles from
Erescentville.
Nelson Graham. as the proprietor of
the general store, was quite an in
t1uential citizen, and it was under
stood that his son, Rodney. was in
position to pick the profession of his
choice. The law. medicine, art, music.
poetry stenography. bookkeeping,
were all within his reach; he cOnsid-
cred them all from different points of
view very differently from most peo-
ple) and then deliberately chose the
profession of stoking n freight engine.
The masses of CreScentville resented
his choice. They were surprised and
displeased. They discussed it over tea
70 d,.Iu couutnrS md a loou h1rS
and decided that Rodney. though
smart, was born without ambition.
For this reason they voted against
Nelson Graham when he ran for may
or, and defeated him, which shows
how the sins of the sons are visited
upon their fathers.
Rodney Graham was peculiar In
many ways. He came home to Cres-
centville once a week, and in his con-
versation frequently cursed the
freight engine. Instead of having
consuming affection for it-as all we'll
regulated stokers are supposedto have
he shamefully abused and (metaphor-
ically) despitefully used it, He said
the boilers We're bad-the brakes We're
no good-the engineer was crazy and
that were it not for his untiring zeal
and sleepless watchfulness. fast
freight Number Forty-SiX of the
great b. r. & c. $. r. II. would be con
tinually jumping off the track and
having to be lifted on again at great
expense of life aud money. He said
that all stokers We're excused from pur-
gatory; but Notwithstanding all the
things he said he stuck to his job, and
when his father solicited the votes of
his fellow citizens for the honorable
position of alderman. his fellow citi-
1ens elected some one else.
In addition to running the Crescent
vile general store. Nelson Graham
was ipterested in the First National
Bank OF Cresccntville. He had always
deposited his receipts there, and as
they had grown i'm volume he had in
vested what he could spare ana was
aow vice-president of the bank. 1t was
in the fall of the year that the FIRE,
silver agitation burst forth in all its
virulence. The Democratic party
would surely win the elections and
the value of the dollar would be cut
N half The farmers all around CreS-
centvillc wanted their money before
the dollar deprecated The Crescent
Vile bank had money loaned out to II
number of neighboring manufacto-
res on easy terms. and this money
could not he called in. Therefore the
Crescentville bank was III difficulties,
and the farmers came up and besieged
tt.
II the bank suspended. Nelson Gra-
ham would go with it. If the bank
pulled through, Neison Graham would
pull through. The bank wanted $50
900 to meet the demands upon it. but
no one knew where to get the money
In time.
These We're the circumstances when
Rodney Graham departed from Cres-
centville one afternoon. to stoke fast
freight Number FortyS.x which he
would join at ST. Louis. stoklng it to
Chicago and back. The station agent
was OH the platform at Crescentvllle.
and saw Rodney Graham get into the
cab OF the train which left Crescent
Vile for st. Louis at II quarter before
six. The freight agent at Mattoona
saw Rodney Graham in the cab of
Number Forty Six when il stopped for
water. 1t left Mattoona ON time
passed kalakoka Oh time. But il did not
reach Dalabeke. II was signalled t.
Dalabake, and the operator there wait
ed for II. because after It had gone II
was his Intention to get his supper.
Number Forty ySlx was II minutes late:
30 minutes late; II minutes late; one
hour late clearly II must have met
with some accident since 1t left Kala-
kOkn.
The i'alabeke agent DImI:lnsi, wired
.thicago that fast freight Number
Forty-six had met with an accident
and was delayed. Then he arranged
with some One to watch the depot.