, 1905-03-01
Sanfine'S Cross
Order
BY ALVAH MILTON KERR

- pening as The annals of rail
reading in the middle west can
Dhow. To a certain order of minds it
had the cast and color of u miracle, to
The more literal and hard headed it ap-
peared as pure coincidence, but to both
it was perhaps equally astounding
and impressive. 1t had inception in
the neXt chair to mine in the dispatch
er's office at Traynor. 1t was the re-
suit of a cross order-that terrifying
shadow of doom and disgrace which
hoyers over every train dispatcher's
life, though happily not SO menacing as
formerly owing to improved methods.
| had been some three months in the
dispatcher's office. My position was
that of way operator, which signifies
that / had not reached the grade of
dispatcher, but stood next to it, my
work being confined to receiving car
reports from the different stations and
sending and taking all sorts of mes
g relating to the train masters de-
partment.
There were three dispatchers, divid-
ing the t~wenty-four hours of the day
into tricks of eight hours each. Be-
sides myself and the three ~dispatchers
there was Train Master W~ilkins-"Old
WIKI" we called nina grizzled gradu-
ate from the dispatcher's chair. Char
ley Sanline had the second trick-that
is, from s in the morning until 4 in the
afternoon. He was a dear fellow, kind,
conscientious, painstaking, and every
one liked him.
Through several years he had order
ed trains from midnight until 8 in the
morning and with never a serious
blunder. But his night vigils and the
long strain had broken his health.
Gradually he had grown thin, and the
telltale pallor Of overwork crept into
his cheeks. Daily l sat beside him,
marveling at his pluck as l saw his
long, thin fingers dangling on the key
as he bent over the train sheet, guiding
the hurting monsters over 200 miles of
track. Old WIKI wanted him to quit
and go to California, but Charley
couldn't afford it, he said. We knew
this was true, for he had a mother to
support, his father being dead; be-
sides, he was trying to keep a younger
brother in high school until the boy
should graduate.
ooh, I'll be all right when cool
weather comes" he would say in sum-
mer, and, Never mind, l will brace
up when spring arrives" would be his
laughing excuse in winter.
The train master, grim, serious and
uon,ninnIy nc aaol aud .,rfaoIinn no
iron, / observed often watched Sanline
and sometimes gruffiy ordered him to
go out and walk about for a half hour,
while the old veteran himself took
Charley's chair and ordered the trains,
to the discomfort of many Il lazy oper-
ator out on the wire.
One day toward the hot end of June
a long train of coaches decorated with
bunting and many flags came pound
ing across the switches and drew up
alongside the platform at Traynor.
The train was loaded principally with
we'll dressed men wearing badges upon
the lapels of their coats and carrying
ribbon knotted canes, the noisy aggre-
CATION representing a great political
- va 80 "oJ W "a &Oh-
vention at Chicago.
AS the painting engine was uncoupled
and started for her stall in the round
house the crowd swarmed on to the sta
ton platform. Looking down from the
bay window of the office, for we were
in the second story, l saw the general
manager of the road in a group of men
nv the train Having Soma Ypaccoroo
for him, | hurried down and presented
them. He drew a writing pad from his
pocket and, scribbling several replies,
handed them to me, then turned with
a CHEEKY Hello, Drant!" and shook the
grimy hand of a short, grayish, solid
looking man in engineers overalls who
was passing toward the front.
How is the 3d. Drant? Can she
take us to Chicago in two hours, you
think? The boys are anxious to get
in for the afternoon session." said the
general manager.
Drant looked up at the tall official. d
twinkle in his keen gray eyes. He was
an odd mixture of humor and %savagery,
a man with a reputation for making
fast runs. THE 80 is we'll, sir. I'll
make her take you there in that time
if | have to drive a wedge in her pop
he said.
The manager laughed and held up his
hand protestingly. "Oh, let her have
her safety valve, Drant! Don't wedge
that or b may blow up! In that
event the east would probably nomi,
nate the next president, the west be