The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1902-06-06

on the Southern MlnneSoid pah
4 road, n line-repairer named frshk-
lin sustained Il severe injury by taii'
and during the winter was uhaple W
attend to his duties. In reporting HIS
condition. he recommended that iona
than Hardrubble be employed In MS
place on .he Western DIVISION, as
HardrubbIe knew the line thoroughly,
and was competent and trnthWorthSr ,,
On this recommendation L 1mmedlate-
Iy sent instructions to Hardrubble to
assume Franklin's duties. and he dld
So Save that his division was kept
in excellent condition. and his reports
We're conciseiy worded and written III
n neat, round hand. | knew nothing
of him.
One morning in April l received II
tersely worded note from the general
superintendent. telling me that he had
been Informed that the lineman on
the Elandreau Division was sixteen
year-old boy and suggesting that a
man be appointed in his place.
| was not only surprised to learn
that my model lineman was a boy. but
regretted to discharge him without
cause. as he had proved painstaking
and efficient Furthermore, good men,
willing to bury themselves on the Da-
kota prairies for forty dollars a month.
were not numerous, and undoubtedly
difficulty would he experienced in find
ing a man to accept the place, There
fore | tooE half dozen monthly re-
ports that had been submitted Dy
Hardrubble. and stepped across the
hallway to the superintendent othce
to make a personal appeal for the boy.
The general superintendent was a
thorough railroad manager of long eX-
| perlence. sometimes grun but always
Just and I was not without hope OF IN
| ducing him to rescind his order. de
| listened to my statement and then
shook his head.
| There is too much hard work and
responsibility in that position for six
| teen-year-old boy!" he declared en-
| phatically He may do his work well
for a time. but occasion will arise
when he will fail. and fail in such
manner that it will mean heavy prop
erty loss, if not loss of life. l mus
insist that you replace that boy will
man."
As the superintendent finished
speaking and was about to leave tint
room, a messenger entered with teie
gram 1t was long and evidently i'm
portant. as the superintendent read l
through twice He folded it into
small compass and slipped it int hi
rocket, and as | started to leave tn
room said:
st have changed my mind about tina
boy, Gregory; you need not dlscharg
him And when opportunity to q
anything for him arises, Just call m
attention to the matter"
1t was two weeks before 1 knew tn
meaning of that unexpected change c
orders.
Through the long. hard winter-stt
famous as the big winter'-the youn
I lineman had done his work as well {
a man could have done it, From n
vember IA. 1879, until the second wee
in March following. no trains were TT
on time between Wells. Minnesota. OF
hundred and fifty miles west OF u
Mississippi. and Flandreau, Dakot
the western terminus of the road; AZ
in all those months not dozen train
! freight or passenger, passed over e
. entire length of the road. The prairl
west of Jackson were buried una
snow drifted to an unheard-of uep'
> and in many places the tall telegral
poles barely protruded above the cru
But on every day of that long, CO
winter the wires west of jackson we
working and twice between Dece
Der 1st and the day in March when t
bic rotary snow-plow cut its w
through the disappearing drifts t
bow had tramped across the crust
snow, from the point where the TIL
big engines working westward we
..bucking' the drifts, to the crew
A farmers and sectionmen slowly sh'
cling their way eastward.
With the last week in March the
had melted what little snow had be
left on the right of way by the shoY
lers. On the open prairies great b;
spots of grass alternated with wa
like drifts-shadows of their form
selves-and every tiny brook and sw
was turned into raging torrent o.
lake by the melting SHOWS. The wa
chinook, sweeping eastward from
far mountains, tempered the atm
nbere: and when the young linen
+. set out Cd his velocipede car to lnsp
$ Every foot of wire in his division.