The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-03-21
THE EVENING STORY
Revoking His order.
(By Henry Moore.)

western end of the K. and L. road had
not risen from the ranks If he mad
he would have been more popular
with the force under him. He had OBJ
| tanned his place through influence.
and nineteen times out of twenty, such
men are cordially hated for the best of
reasons. He had many trainmen in
not water within a month, but in all
appeals he was sustained A division
superintendent. on his own ground, is
an autocrat. What he says goes. He
is monarch of the rails in his territory.
He is responsible only to headquarters.
The K. and L. had no use for wo-
men telegraphers. 1t had long been
the rule of the road to turn all such
applicants down in the curtest man
ner. In some way that seemed mys-
FERROUS to the other operators on the
division, a young lady had taken
charge of the office at Stapleton- The
place was only a hamlet, and there
was not much freight or passenger
traffic, but there was the great bridge
over the Big Blue river just to the
west of it, and there was the deep cut
extending for half a mile in which
several landslides had occurred, so, in
a way, the post was an important one.
The agent and operator in question
was Miss Carrie Williams, and she had
been crowded in, so to speak, by one
of the big stockholders who had help
ed the president out of hole. She
had learned telegraphy at a school,
and this was her first place. A hum
dred miles down the line lived her
widowed mother, and the girl was
working for the support of both.
When the operators came to under
stand all this they went slow" on her.
Had she been a man, they would have
let her sink or swim. She made mis-
takes and they covered them up. She
became confused and tangled up, End
they helped her to straighten things
out. She got discouraged, and they
flashed her words of sympathy and
hope. They would have done nothing
of the sort for a beginner of the male
sex. He wouldn't have held his job
beyond the first month.
1t was a bit strange that Charles
Morton. the new I'D. s." had been in
power for six months before he ascer-
tanned that there was a woman on the
line. Even his private operator had
sheltered her. Then an accident to
his train at her station brought the
two face to face. The man was
brusQue and pompous in his authority
and he was provoked and impatient at
his delay. He saw that the girl was a
lady, and that her Office was we'll kept
and that she understood her business,
but even before he had addressed her,
he had made up his mind to have her
out of that at the end of the month
She was told plainly that his division
had no use for her. He was not run
ming a kindergarten. At the end of
He had no complaint or excuse to
offer. In fact, he was not man to
make excuses. What astonished and |
piqued him a bit was the way the
young lady received his orders. She |
was not in the least frustrated and lost |
none of her dignity. While treating !
him with the respect due his position,
ne somehow felt that there was a feel |
ng of contempt for him in her de- |
neanor He took his departure bit |
ashamed of himself, and yet furious |
hat the whole division had conspired |
against him.
Within an hour it was known. the
ength. of the division that Miss 4
vas a mere woman. She had the sym
lathy of all the operators, and more
han one counseled her to appeal, to
She thanked them for
heir kind words and said that she
would be all ready to step out of the
,ffice when the new man arrived. The
,. s. should have saved his dignity,
,ut the feeling that he had been out
vitted kept him boiling hot: and with
n the next ten days he discharged five
,perators and struck terror to the
learts of all the rest.
For ineff1ciency," was the report he
made at headquarters, and that went
n each case. The president of a rail-
'oad never sees reports of such trifiing
lffairs, and would not read them If
hey were placed under his eyes. 1t
therefore, followed that the president
# the K. & l.. knew nothing of what
lad happened and was going to hap
zen at Stapleton. 1t might have al
cred the case if he had been appealed
o. but the girl, knowing that she had
zen crowded out through no fault of
Ter own, would make no sign.
Fifteen of the twenty days alloweZ
Ter to finish her month had passed.
was early spring and there were
onstant rains. The track gang was ,
i -,
ut but the floods rolled under the
ne, and the banks of the other showed ,
G signs of giving way. The Stapleton
ffice was cut out of the circuit after !
he evening. Then the girl operator
-ent to her boarding house for the
light and resumed duty at next
forming. The office at Marion, the
chedule At 6 o'clock in the evening
f the fifteenth day the track gang
anne in and reported all safe AT
he passenger train whizzed by without
topping, and ten minutes later the f
iri was ready to go home. AS she
epped out into the rain and dark O
ess she heard shouting down the
-acks. and five minutes later an af- n
lighted hobo appeared and called out: n
'fSay, now me partner is buried I'M
err about four million tons of dirt
ack dere in de cuti" II
"Do you mean that one of the banks
as caved in 20 was asked n
"More'n an acre of it. It'll take a r
hole week to dig me partner out.
etter git de telegraph workin'. If a Il
ain runs into dat heap you won't t.
lttin' but splinters left"
The girl turned and ran back to the &c
flee. and as soon as she could light -
lamp she began calling for Marion. -
he through freight was due soon af-
+ 8. 1t must be notified and held. e.
er calls were not answered The OPP te
ator was off duty, as he had a right
be. There was no telephone SER RI
ce between the towns. The tramp a
Id disappeared into the night, as If