Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-09-07

orders or a clearance and tell the hind
man to give lem the sign and saunter
back to the cabooses before they GOT 20
rolling. But to have seen the an MIN 81
ton with which he swung himself:
aboard the pay car would have cr req TED
the impression that he was the only
working railroad man on the division N
AT his side stalked Panhandle Dan,
the engineer, his face actually Wrea tn IS
ed in smiles. Panhandle Dan had g
chronic crouch from 1901 a. m. Jan. ]
to 1859 p. M. Dec. 81, except for
three minutes once q month. On the
way to the pay car he always per ras'asia
up bit and was even known 20 crack
joke with Old Man Flatwheel. a fter
these two came the hind man talking
necessarily with the fireman. Charles
always was talking that way. He had
an automatic tongue, which never ran
down. Half the time he didn't know nov
he was talking. His was what the
doctors would diagnose as reflex
conversation Frank, the fireman. was
the only sober one. He, poor 15lie ,E'SF
was doing sums in arithmetic, trying
to figure out how on earth $500 could.
be made to pay all necessary bills I'LL Tor
helpless father and mother, wire
and four kids, besides board bills Tor q
man who was obliged to be away from.
home half the time.
saThen there was the operator IN
shirt sleeves and careworn air hoping
he could get back to his key before,
the dispatcher lost his temper; the
agent, placi1ly smiling, and the two
coal beavers from the coal shed with
an expression of almost human inteili-
gence struggling up through number
less strata of CRIME and hiskers
After thirty days OF humping over q
scoop shovel in a choking smother of
dust they were now about to be recon-
pensed with thirty seconds of bliss IN
which they could fondle real money
with their own hands. After that the
storekeeper would do the fondling and
feel bad because there wasn't more.
''You had presence Of mind enough
to float into the pay car In the wake
OF others. There were nine In the lit
tie party, and you knew by experience
that the average time required to pay
nine men was sixty seconds; also that
Moriarity would have 'em rolling be-
fore the last man had scooped his al
lotted coin into his trembling palm.
But in the presence of death or the
paymaster one may live an eternity
In sixty seconds How glad you were
that you had not been rude and rushed
In ahead of anybody, even the coal
beavers!
From the Autographs Of Caroline
Miskei Hoyt on the wall to the little
shollows In the hard mahogany counter
worn out by the attrition Of the $128,-
100000 in wages the payInaster had
plunked down on that spot since this
first pay car ever built had been com
missioned, you kept on absorbing de-
tails until your name was called a
still greater rush of blood to your head
caused you to gulp violently Mechan-
ically you lifted your hand to touch
the pen as the others had done and
turned to go. ss
Here! Come back and get your
money
When you came out of yeur trance
you were standing In the middle Of
the track your eyes wandering from
some yellow objects In your hand to
nfmbus of smoke and dust which
was just tipping over the hill to the
a.
dutter Of Moriarity's exhaust.
But now! Oh, well! After you
have washed up on certain day IN
each month You trudge drearfly down
to the station all alone, walk In, and
Eslolling on the counter affect to lool
Indifferent and say, Hello, joint
And the agent, after going over 8
T column Of figures three times. replies
Hello, Bill:' and gets up and goes Il
the safe and fumbles over some papers
and hands you
A checkl No jokes, no infectious
sprightliness no uncertainty to put 1
wire edge on anticipation, no fleeing
4 vision Of brass and varnish and opu
lence wreathed Id a halo of romano,
to leave q golden taste In your moutl
4 for day, nothing but measly 81,
check handed over d commonplace
counter by q man who lives next doc
to you. # 5.5 s55.. ss Az
Why couldn't they have left us tn
pay carp
Letter Carriers and Tuesday.
There's one good thing about carry
4 ing mail I" said an old letter "a rrfe,