The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1911-08-22

InHA AohhD IOM ROh d45 nhD A4011s
on the line, fat as pancake all around
and not tree In sight The salary
is only $50 month. But there is a
little house the agent may live in with
out paying any rent"
Tom sighed
"See here. young man." continued
the superintendent, my advice to all
persons in your condition is to make a
beginning. A chip on bank never
moves. But let boy throw it into a
puddle. Some day it rains, the chip
is washed into runnel; the runnel
takes It to creek; the creek carries
it to the river. Maybe it gets strand.
ed on the way. Never mind; 1t will
rain again, and another food Will start
It on
Tom was impressed with this, and.
going to Sallie, he told her Of the offer
and what the superintendent had said
She shuddered. but agreed that II Tom
would take the position she would go
to w. with him.
They found the station even more
desolate than had been described
The house furnished them by the COM
pany was dilapidated farmhouse
nearly mile from the station. They
would have preferred the latter to live
in. but 1t was a one story building
only fitted for railway use. Tom was
an ingenious fellow and at once took
steps to bring the house and station
nearer together by means Of the tele-
graph. He had no extra apparatus
and knew that If he asked the com
pany to send him one for his and his
wife's benefit be would get snubbed
So he invented a reason. He wrote the
superintendent that the station, being
a long distance from those on either
side. afforded excellent opportunity for
train robbers to make it base of
operations.
They might easily capture 1t and use
1t and the telegraph as they saw fit.
but if he had wire stretched to his
house he might communicate with his
wife and she could send out warn.
ing.
The superintendent referred Toms
letter to the fourth vice president, who
had the disposing Of such acquisitions
in his keeping. and his letter was re-
turned with the following indorse
ment:
Disallowed. Captured station agents are
not permitted to send messages to any
one. They are always suppressed.
The superintendent. however, who
had a strategic eye. saw that Toms
suggestion was good one and com
mended him for it. but the superin-
tendent was powerless in the depart
ment of the fourth vice president.
This agreement with him frightened
both Tom and his wife. and they saved
enough money from his salary to order
the apparatus at their own expense
Tom put it in and placed several keys
In different positions to be used with
out being observed.
A year elapsed, during which Tom
and Sallie used the telegraph line be-
tween house and station for messages
very different from those of life and
death For awhile they were simply
Dinner is nearly ready. DEAR" "All
right; I'll be with you in ten minutes"
Or I'm awful lonely; can't you come
home for awhile before No. 8 arrives?"
Yes. sweetheart ! WILL" But after
awhile 1t was ''Oh. dearie, the baby
has taken four steps all by his own
self" After that the messages flying
between them were principally about
infantile matters.
But Toms strategic intuition, which
he had not been conscious of as such.
at last proved correct. One night he
was at the station waiting for the
1915 train to pass. after which he
might go home to sleep till 6 in the
morning. He was sitting before his
telegraph instrument trying to keep
awake when suddenly there appeared
a masked face at the window opposite
him and revolver pointed at his head.
His hands were In his pockets. Of
which he could see the man covering
him took cognizance and considered
satisfactory, since to put finger on
the telegraph key Tom would need to
withdraw them.
But here is where Toms foresight
came in. He had arranged key on
the floor under the table. He at once
called Sallie. She was not used to get
ting messages at night. since Tom did
not like to awaken her If she was
asleep. So. suspecting something wrong.
she at once put out her hand to a stand
beside the bed and answered the call.
Instantly Tom replied:
"Robbersr'
Since Toms original reason for con-
Meeting the house and the station by
wire had grown from desire to keep
his wife from loneliness to q real pro-
vision against robbers. Sallie had long
possessed instructions what to do in
case she received such message
This one was so unexpected that she
thought for a moment that Tom was
instituting a trial practice. but she
knew he would not do that and at
once called the station on either side
OF W.. giving Toms message. Replies
came at once, assuring her that as
sistance would be sent her husband as
soon as possible. Then she heard a
message stopping the 1918 train Tom
had been waiting for at the next sta