davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Easy Rules for Crew.

II is quite as possible for the cure nj in the
rails to be interrupted by an open switch.
broken rail. or any obstruction on the track
When this takes place. the ssma phore arm
comes to the stop position. Or should any
part of the electric automatic system get out
Of order. the erm will fly to the " stop posi-
ton. and will in no case give the clear "
signal unless the " block is clear. So even
when the automatic apparatus is not working
properly It is safe.
The train crews have simple rules to follow
II the arm is in an inclined position. the train
may go ahead to the next signal. II the arm
is in a horizontal position. the train must
stop. and not enter the block until proceed q"
orders are received or a fegman has been
sent ahead to investigate.
These signals operate as we'll at night as by
day. At night when the semaphOre arm
comes to the stop" position. it displays
red light When the arm is in inclined
position indicating a clear block. a green
light is displayed. II the lights should fhil
TO work there is a warning signal in the alb
sence of either the red or green lights. The
mute orders are to stop. just as though a red
light was flashed down the track.
Thus the engineer runs his train with con-
ftence in the electric automatic block sys-
fem. He knows the man in the signal tower
in giving him the right of way automatically
sets signals against all other trains from en-
tering the block which he occupies
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Money Made on FIRST Crop.

In the next two weeks John preempted a
quarter section. one mile from the school
house. The settlers helped him build shack
on It, and he was soon living in his own
house. and ba5ching" It. He paid for
breaking up and seeding to barley and flax
forty acres OF his land. and made a small
garden near his shack for potatoes and
vegetables. Weather favored the settlers
hat year in North Dakota, and crops were
good ali over the state. John made the first
big money OF his life on the barley and fax.
and was so well satisfied with his first crop
that he put the money made on it in break
ing up the rest Of his land. having the whole
100 acres ready for seeding the following
spring The spring came round on schedule
time. and with 1t a large number of land
seekers.
Among the newcomers was Capt. Meeker
and his two daughters, who preempted a
quarter section each. The youngest daugh-
ter. Mary. had a quarter section next to the
land Of John Page. AS neighbors they were
soon acquainteG-and It was case Of love at
first sight. Capt. Meeker was informed Of the
young peoples engagement and poohpoohed
the idea until they had obtained patents from
the government forf their land, and built a
home to live in. But Cupid inspected John
Pages little house and pronounced 1t a COM
that beat as one" The lovers inclined 20
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Each Step Taken Carefully

In the Ihrash!ng season when a machine
broke Gown in me neigh borhnOd IL was
brought 10 Pages shop for repairs. John
why and wherefore Of everything he han
died and while repairing the thrashers ne
asked many questions as to the best make OF
machine. the price. the average daily cost OF
running. and the earning capacity of a ma
chine during the thrashing season. He saw
mbney in .he thrashing business and bought
q new Machine He operated 1t himself and.
being a careful man and handy around ma
chinery. his thrasher worked full time and
made big money. Next season he bought
another machine. and of course doubled his
income from that source. while adding large
" TO his fund of general information among
me farmers
There were few granaries or elevators in
the Dakotas at that lime, and grain, fax. and
seeds had 10 be hauled from the threshers TO
the railroad stations and loaded into cars.
Farmers had their pockets full of money
and banks were few and far between on the
praIries Leeds had no bank. and there was
a good opening for a banker in that village.
John Page filled the opening and started a
national bank with capital of $25 1000. The
bank was a paying institution from the day
it was opened An Iilnoisan was made
cashier. and is as genial and well liked today
hv the patrons of the bank as he was with
the party OF Mclean county Farmers Win
whom he came TO tine Dakotas prospecting.
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Making Railroad Travel Safe;
Nothing Spared to Attain End.
By CHALMERS L. PANCOAST.

control Of the man in the tower. whose map
tells him when and where all trains are to go.
Mistakes and collisions are almost impos-
sible, because when the man in the signal
tower has set certain switches he cannot open
other switches without changing his first
signals automatically. 1t is the same way
with every clock signal along the line; once
a signal Is given It cannot be changed with
out setting instantly other signals against II.
On single tracks trains enter the blocks
from both directions, and II Is necessary TO
provide signals al both ends Of every block.
In making the block signals overlap each
other. two trains approaching the same block
from opposite directions at the same time
are prevented from getting " clear signals
to enter the block simultaneously.
On many roads OF double tracks the sema-
phores are provided with two arms for con-
trolling two blocks instead of one This sys-
tenn OF overlapping the various block sections
gives advanced signals to approaching trains.
The extra arm tells the engineer whether the
second block signal beyond is a; stop ="
or proceed position. and II the first block
is clear and the second obstructed. the train
can thus proceed with caution to the mkt
signal
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Average Miss the Details.

OF course this does not apply TO all win
dows nor to all shoppers. for there are many
observant women who will note al OF the
little nCeties Of display as readily as would
the most careful student of window trimming
methods. But the general principle remains
the average woman on the sidewalk pays
little heed to the details of window setting
unless II is Of such a character as TO make a
strong impression upon her.
For this reason the trimmer who takes his
work seriously and has ambition to succeed
in a big way must work with his brain as
well as with his hands: He must have ina gl-
ration and a good memory for form and
composition. He must study originality as
we'll as technique
The really clever trimmer is the one who
knows an idea when he sees II, and can make
use OF it in his windows. While II may seem
to be putting the cart before the horse. it Is a
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24

as teacher in the school that gave himself
his first start: his father and the other
brother were taken into the bank to learn
the banking business. II due time John Page
Jr opened two other banks in neighboring
towns and ii rstaIled his father in one CT them
and his brother in the other as managers.
giving each a half interest in the bank he
managed.
Banks in the Dakotas then. as now. were
biG money makers. The earlier settlers put
their money in the banks for safe keeping
and the newcomers borrowed money at TO
per cent interest with which to build houses.
buy horses and cattle and farming imple-
ments New settlers poure ID into the Dakotas
and the borrowers OF money greatly cutnum-
hered the depositors at the banks,
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
His Possible Future Career.

If the train has whistIed for the station
up or down the track the operator is likely
TO ask you to step out on :he platform while
he locks the waiting room door Why Goes
he lock it so soon? Simply because the
waiting room is made for passengers to vait
in, and by locking it before the train gets in
he can throw the mail sack on a truck and
skip across the street to talk some NOR.
I've been thinking over the possible I'm.
ture career of that char" said the man al
rect from Tomahawk Lake I've fsursd I,
this way: One Of these days the road viii
be looking around for a live wire which {,
wants to give better post and a timely boor+
The pay roll will show that at Tomabawt
Lake Is chap who's been holding doUn .
twenty-four hour job FOR long time, HIS
record Is clear, due solely to friendly chance
and cirCumstan
:" Transfer him to wslla baIoo station or
an eight hour shift ard let him prove him.
sell, Is about what the manager Of the de-
partment will say. He goes to Wauabaleo
puts on starch, joshesS and shirks on rbs
strength of his guff. finally tosbe put In ruI
charge OF the station there. Chance will
favor him again. 6oubtless until finally he
finds himself go points above where he
ought to be In the dump ard there he'll nose
and tell every short sniff, worker under hin
about the hardships he underwent when hi
was Sack-at-all-trades in Tomahawk LAX.
station doing a twenty -four hour stunt six
day In the week
Truth is. he's up there now. working
about twelve hours a week"
Ny friend from the north woods was 81
pessimistic over this story OF one telegraph
operator at Tomahawk Lake that in the tint
required 10 get into Chicago again he'd fg
ured that any mans q fool who doesn'
ahirk on his job all he can shirk short o
firing
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
At Least You Expect To

Leaving Chicago you may expect TO get
OF at TOmahawk Lake az 2:31 o'clock In
the afternoon or at 4:34 o'clock in the morn
ing Coming back. the train south leaves at
9:Il o'clock in the morning or at 1914 at
night. six days in the week. There are no
trains on Sunday. Six days in the week
this poor combination telPsrspher has TO
meet these four trains. On Sundays he has
a two hour time stunt. in which he is sup
posed to be at the key, ready TO take any
chances al receiving a commercial, social,
or railroad dispatch.
Sounds like Uncle Toms Cabin doesn't
It? Il certainly dCes--and Just true to
real life and some more.
. According to an anticipated census, the
township of Toms hawk Lake is expected to
show a total population ofthirty-seven peo-
pie as against the twentyseven fnha abitants
Of 1900. This viii show gain of q per
cent for the township, exclusive Of Toma-
hawk Lake. which Is known to have lost
one man since the village count. ten years
ago.
In view OF these statistics II is more than
passing strange that every door In the town
ls locked The moment the resident or bust
ness man leaves house. Take the saIoc n
keeper-stofekeeper. He locks his store and
unlocks his adjoining saloon when he sells
you drink. When he is eating luncheon
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Originality in Window Display;
It's What Attracts the Crowds.
By S. R. WEISS.

T~HERE Is nothing new in art. and the
best the window dresser can do is to
take old ideas and give them new
application.
Novelty has its value in window dis
play as we'll as artistic designing or clever
handling of the merchandise. In most cases
the idea is of as much Importance as the
manner in which the trim Is executed. Orig
inality. is the thing-to get something new.
something that will compel attention Of the
crowd. some decorative scheme that has in
dIvIduality without being freakish.
There can be no denying that good deal
Of similarity exists in the methods OF win
dow dressers. Given the same sort of win
dow the same merchandise. and the same
occasion to trim for, and there will appear
to be great deal of sameness in the manner
in which most displays are handled. so far
as the general public is concerned. OF course
:he trained window dresser will see many
differences in the displays, but these differ
ences are far less apparent to persons who
are not familiar with the technicalities OF
window trimming The latter do not anAlyze
the details Of a window. hut size up - the
display as to its general effect
For example a woman will stop before a
window that is set as garden scene Of more
or less conventional character, and will get
a general idea of its appearance-then she
will walk a block or so in front of another
window in which is shown a second garden
scene Now to window trimmers these win
dows may be totally different. but II both
are fairly well executed. the woman will
notice little or no difference. 1t Is likely
that both windows will have flowers and
foliage. with gateway, pergola, lattice. or
garden wall effect. AS ell OF these features
are conventional and appropriate to garden.
they make no lasting impression upon the
average window gszer-to her the two win
dows look much alike.
If these windows were side by side she
would see the difference at a glance. but
while she has walked a block the image of
the first window has faded into indstinct-
ness and the second one takes its place. BY
the time she reaches home IT is likely that
the two settings are completely confused
IN her mind.
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24

e. lHEN you, travel on a train that
A speeds over many miles of intricate
Wv tracks, and then dashes into some
city across a network of puEzling
switches, have you ever wondered
why it was you felt so secure?
Somehow. you are conscious Of the en5i-
neer' confidence in his route by the masterful
way he rushes his train over the tracks and
through the great yards OF terminals.
Last year one large railway system carried
ten per cent of the estimated passenger traffic
OF the United States, or 49,491, 600 people.
without fatal accident to any of the number.
This remarkable achievement. which is an
unparalleled record In railroading, Is attrib-
uted directly 10 the installation Of safety
devices.
TIE victory Of safety devices has reduced
the possibilities Of accidents and collisions to
the minimum In America the accident prob
lem has been the most serious to deal with
in modern railroad affairs The long lists OF
casualties have been presented as evidence
that railroad men in general held a reckless
disregard for ltfe and property.
However, this cannot be proven true. as
railroad progress has been too rapid to permit
OF great deal OF time for developing systems
for the safe handling of trains. But the pub
IICity given to all forms Of accidents and their
investigation. has been a spur to greater ef-
forts to safeguard lives and property. This
effort has developed a universal campaign
calling for the expenditure Of millions OF dol
lars which has already resulted in a big re-
duction OF accidents and the guarantee OF
greater safety to the travelling public
When you have occasion to travel again
you will find it m interesting study to watch
the signals along the track. You will then
understand why the " semaphore arms " pre-
vent one train from crashing into another
guard against all kinds Of accidents and OBJ
serve Just how railroad travel Is made safe
This system Of providing safeguards
against accidents and Fofs OF life is known as
the automatic block signal system"
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Principle a Simple One.

The principle governing the operation o.
this system is simple and easy TO understand
Along any line where automatic block signals
have been installed the track Is divided into
sections called blocks" theaverage Of "a ch
being mile or a mile and a half in lengr h.
At the end Of every block " a signal in the
form Of a d" semaphore arm is erected whi"h
controls the section on which It is stationed
The position of the arm of the semaphore
tells the engineers Of approaching trains
whether to stop or go ahead. II e block is oc-
CTpied by train. the signal arm will extend
in a horizontal position. meaning stop or
danger" and It holds that position as long
as the train rem aims in that block Or II any
obstruction, such as a broken rail. mis-
placed switch. or any object is on the track
in the block section" the arm will remain
at the stop signal until the obstacle Is
removed In this way the electric semaphore
prevents all kinds of accidents, which in the
past have occurred because no one wasthere
70 give warning, or perhaps II was the mis-
take Of some tratnman. But the trustworthy
block signal places around the traveller zon5s
OF safety from terminal to terminal
Through the two rails OF the track there
flows an electric current from a battery at
the opposite end Of the block. This current
controls a small motor,5yhich pulls the sema-
phore arm down and holds it in that position
as long as the block section is unUbstructeI
But when a train passes the semaphore and
enters the block the wheels and aNles OF the
engine and cars interrupt the current flowing
through the rails When this occurs the
semaphore arm - Immediately flies to the
"stop" position. This Is because the electric
motor has been disengaged from the sema-
phore arm. and the arm beirg released is
restored to the horizontal position by coun-
ter weight.
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Prizes Spur to Effort.

The spur ard stimulation of the competition
for the cash prizes has already brought about
noticeable improvements, and unusual rec
ords are expected by the end of the year.
As the plan will cover all the Iinfs CT this
system. the prize money will reach the sum
o.: between FIVE ard ten Thousand dollars.
The roadmsster OF subdivision OF the main
line whose division shows the greatest i'm
provements during the year will receive 800.
the foreman Of the section en- each roa6mas-
ter's division showing the greatest improve
ments will receive $50. The prizes viii be
awarded on the basis OF the highest mum Der
OF points credited for improvements in line
and surface work. bitches. drainage. switches,
sha cling OF ties, etc.
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Emergency Tests for Efficiency.

Quite few of the leading railway systems,
which have a large mileage of automatic sig
nails have adopted a plan of carrying out
surprise " or " efficiency" tests for train
men. These are sometimes called emer-
genCy tests end the object is to make sure
that the trainm en- are Obeying operating rules
and respecting all signal warnings.
At various points along the line. the plan
Is 10 secretly make these " surprise " tests
by disconnectng a number of signals so that
they will give the stop" warning. Signals
are also reversed. tOrpedoes and fuses
dropped. so that a committee Of officers may
observe how careful the engineers and train
men are in looking out for emergencies: and
what precauti are used in running through
blocks"
On a western railroad the safety movement
is being advanced throughout the entire sys
tenn by a campaign known as the safety
habit button plan" The slogan that is
printed on each button is GET THE
SAFETY HABIT"
These novelty buttons have been freely dis
tributed among the army of railroad workers
with excellent results. The slogan, Get the
Safety Habit " has become so popular that it
has already performed a most important mis-
sion. In the first place. It has firmly i'm
pressed into the MINDS Of the wearers of the
buttons the necessity Of being ever watchfuI
in protecting lives and property by obsying
orders at all times and under all circum-
stances.
These little reminders of safety" have
been issued in various languages and dis
trIbuted among the foreign track layers and
laborers. as well as the trainmen and shop
men.
Another large railroad system has started
at the foundation OF things to promote the
safety moveme mt among employees.
For the purpose OF developing individual
efforts and efficiency in maintaining the
tracks and roa dbed in the best condition. this
company has established a system OF award
ing cash prizes. The money is to be paid to
the roadmasters and section foremen whose
divisions show the greatest improvement for
the year.
This railway system considers a good condi-
tion of tracks TO be the first and most i'm
portant accomplishment in their work Of de-
velopment. 1t directly promotes greater
safety and efficiency in operating trains.
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Work of the Towerman.

After studying the signals OF the semapAore
arm. which prevent collisions and accidents,
The man in the tower who operates the signals
comes next In front OF the Han IN the switch
ing tower is a map covered with little lines
corresponding to the Confusing network If
tracks which make up the railway yards ard
main tracks. On this map each track is num-
bered ana each switch is designated by a
symbol.
BY means OF the map in the switch tower,
the great problem Of receiving and Dispatch
ing trains is solved. The tower man has
pIaAned ne rapid movement OF all trains
withou ste OF time or disastrous accidents
long before their arrival at signals or stations.
In this way hundreds Of trains travel over the
right tracks with speed and safety. because
all switches and block signals are under the
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
Iohn His "Mother's Son

John Page Jr. was his " mothers SON"
Like her, he was OF medium height slight in
build, and a delicate constitut:on-but prac-
tical mind and Of strong will power. He
summed up home conditions. His father and
mother two brothers, and sister would get
fair living of the farm. and. as for himself.
he would make a living, ard'help his parents
If will power could do it
But where: The Dakotas were opened to
homesteaders. There was a cut rate to Grand
Forks He would go there and take up
farm.
On his arrival at Grand Forks John met
a number of people who were going farther
west in North Dakota He went with the
crowd. visiting some of the new settlements
on the way. A; point ten miles ca st Of
the present site of Leeds he heard Of a
school teacher being wanted. and made eppli-
cation for the place He got the school. but
rouId not find Il place to board. Most Of
ne settlers had large families and were Nv
ing in one OF two room houses. and could
NOT take in strangers, A meeting of the
settlers was held and Il was arranged that
M Page could board with family of FIVE
grown people, who lived in a one story house
leo feet until he preempted a quarter sec
ion for himself and built him a shack on IT,
There were two beds in the house. MI
Page and one of the men slept in one bed.
two women in the other. and one man slept
on a bed of hay on the foo- When it was
bedtime the head OF the family coughed. and
the men went out to seepwhat the weather
looked like and did not return until the
y omen folk were in bed. and the same little
i-y cough woke the men up in the morn
.n~: they dressed hurriedly and went out to
see how high the sun was. After a time
they returned to the house and found the
;Wo women preparing breakfast
The Washington herald., 1911-09-24
New BurgIar-P Proof Door Device.

Wneu the Goor Is locked and the steel bar
placed over the head Of the key, the thumb
screw is turned until the bar presses against
the head Of the key with great force. At
tempts 20 pick the lock. to use a skeleton
key. or TO take an impre ssion of the lock
would be failures because the key is tightly
held in place. thus blocking and filling the
keyheIe completely. when not in use the
bar is dropped down and swings from the
plate.
The invention Is for the old fashioned
lock and key combination. which is still pop
ular in smaller towns and cities and much
in use on the back doors of the city apart
tnent houses