The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1908-04-22
SENSE OF HUMOR SAVED HIM.
FRANK Advicc To His Big Boss Boosted
the Fireman.

ter how big chance you take" said
railroad man. Met man here i'm
New York the other day who helped
TO eXemplfy this theory"
This man used to be a locomotive
nreman on Texas railroad, the h .ad.
quarters for which was then in DaI.
las. AS fireman he was Just as big
ana blrffy and breezy as he is now
Tho president Of this Texa4 rail.
r ad was man Of extreme dignity
end austerity. He was absolutely eAjr
and ;'lst in his treatment Of men in
Inc employ Of the road, but he GER
tainly awas the most whoopingly dirni-
ned human being you ever Saw or
heard of. He demanded every bit Of
thr respect that was a-com;ng To him
and he came pretty close to getting it
too All Of the employees who came
into direct contact with him stood IN
the most profound awe of his terrific
dignity and tiptoed around like as if
they were servitors at some temple of
Buddha.
We'll, this .ireman person that I'm
talking about didn't know much about
that dignity stuff. He didn't know
now To execute I right or a left
oblique. The only way he knew to do
things was to skate right smack to
the place where it was to be done and
do it now, natural like. MAY be at
the time this thing happened he
hadn't heard anything about the stu
pendous dignity of the president OF
the road. and then maybe again he'd
heard about it and din't care a durh
Anyhow, one day his engineer sent
him to dig up the superintendent of
the mechanical department. The pas
senger train to which his engine was
hitched had just come into the Dallas
depot and the engineer wanted the
mecnancal super to take peek at
some defect in the engine. So he told
his fireman to dig out into the, station
and find the super and fetch him if
possible.
The fireman. just finishing a long
run, was pretty greasy and grimy in
his dungarees. His face was smeared
with oil and coal dust and he shed a
few ounces Of clinging bituminous
fuel with every step he took.
HE mooched all over the station
and yard without getting hold of the
mechanical super and was about t.
flag the job of searching for him when
he heard that the man he was looking
for vas closeted with the president ,of
the road
well. this closeted stuff didn't
scare the fireman any. He'd been
sent by his immediate superior to get
hold Of the super. and he didn't care
II the super was closeted with the Nj
zam Of Hyderabad, his idea was to
go get him and fetch him.
$50 greasy and gritty dungareees
and smudgy face and all, he clomped
up the stairs to the door where 'presi-
dent was painted on the main door
of the row on the gallery.
HE didn't even rap on the door
and wait for come in, He was too
direct man for that sort OF fiddling
| and beating about the bush. He grab
bed hold of the doorknob and pushed
! right into the presidents solemn, pro-
foundly dignified office. He forgot
| that he had his cap on too, when he
found himself inside thel office.
"The austerely dighifed president
| and the superintendent OF the me-
chanical department. had their heaGs
together at the presidents desk, AMI
when this grimly apparition thrust
himself in without any knock or ask
ing by your leave, they both looked
up at him with the most intense as
tonishment. The super found himself
grinned.
But the dignified president didn't
grin, not by blamed sight. He turn.
ed red with outraged dignity and
things.
'Well?' he said to the big fireman,
still standing there with his greasy
cap on one ear i'm voice Of chOked
wrath.
I'm here to snag the super eX-
planned the fireman ofhand, just like
that. 'Jim'-meaning' his engineer =
wants to have him look at what a
crazy pile O. junk No. III has got to
oe. Jim's vellin to have 'er overhaul
ed. Wants to see the super right
away and having delivered lis mes
Rgc" the fireman turned anu started