The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1901-02-23
M FIRST attempt at holding an Of
lvI flee had proved such fat and

should never have the heart to apply
for another. ! worked faithfully in
the school for about mouth, and then
the fever to try again took hold of me.
l knew it would be of no use to apply
to my former superintendent, Mr..
Brink, so wrote to Mr.. X. B. Bunnell,
superintendent of telegraph of the p.
@. & X. railroad at Kansas City, NO.,
saying that l was an expert operator
and desired position on his road. Mr..
Bunnell must have been laboring under
a hypnotic spell, for by return mail he
wrote, inclosing me pass to Alfredo,
Kan, and directing me to assume
charge of the night Office at that point
at the magnificent salary of $3.50 per
month. This was slight decrease from
my former salary, but didn't care.
wanted chance to redeem myself, and
felt confident / could be more sue
cessful in my second attempt. So
packed my few belongings, bade good
by to the school forever, and away l
went.
When / left mn" I said nothing to
anyone about my destination, and l
did not know thing about Alfredo.
except that it was near the border line
between Kansas and Colorado. The
brakeman on the train in talking to me
told me it was very pleasant place;
but when he said so i fancied could
detect sarcastic ring in his voice, and
l was in no doubt about il when l ar
rived and saw what a desolate, dreary
place Alfredo was. The only things
in sight were water tank, a pump
house and the telegraph office; and /
wish you could have seen that Office.
IT was simply the bed of box car,
taken off the tracks and set down with
one end towards the track. A small
platform, two windows, door and the
signal board perched high on a pole
the outfit.
1 arrived at $3.50 in the morning, and
there wasn't living soul in sight. An
hour later big broad-shouldered Irish
man, who proved to be the pumper,
came ambling along on railroad ve-
ocipede. He looked at me for a min
ute, and after / had made myself known
be grihned and said: SWELL, hopes as
how ye will loike the place. Burke, the
man who was here afore We, got scared
'ff by thramps, and reckon he's not
stopped runnin' yit." Fine introduc-
ion. wasn't il?
l found there was no day operator,
md the only house around was the Sec
ion house, two miles up the track. The
operator and pumper boarded there
With the section boss; but the railroad |
company was magnanimous enough to |
urnish velocipede for their use in |
yoing to and from the station. How / |
cit the first night, stuck away out
here in that box car, two miles from
he nearest house and IL miles from the |
learest town, / must leave to the imag-
nation. My heart sank and had many |
in fact, / was scared to |
'eath. but / set my teeth hard and de-
ermined to do my best, with the hope
hat l might be promoted to better
flee. ! did win that promotion, but l
'ouidn't go through my experiences
gain for the whole road.
One night after had been working
here about month went to my office
S usual at seven o'clock. IL was a
lack night, threatening big storm.
he pumper had not gone home as yet.
nd he remarked that it was "goin' to
e woild night" but he hoped "the
av the wind would be after
aping me company" and with that
e jumped on the velocipede and off he
rent.
l didn't much relish the idea of the
torn, for 1 knew the reputation of
Kansas as cyclone state, and my box
ar office was not well adapted to stand
hurricane. However, went inside,
nd after lighting my lamps sat down
nd wrote letters and read, when was
OF taking train orders. This office was
ept up solely because it was con-
enient place to deliver orders to
reight trains at night when they
topped for water.
About 1880 in the morning my door
pened suddenly and man stepped
uick,y in. was startled. because this
as almost the only man except the
umper and the train crews that had
cen there since Icame. Once in awhile
stray tramp had gone through, but
MS man was not tramp. He wore
long overcoat, buttoned to his chin,