Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1912-05-04

"RHE division superintendent on
d the western end of the K. and
n L. road had not risen from the
ranks. If he had he would
have been more popular with the force
under him. He had obtained his place
through influence" and nineteen times
out of twenty such men are cordially
hated
The X and L. had no use for women
telegraphers. 1t had long been the rule
of the road to turn all such applicants
down in the curteSt manner. In some
way that seemed mysterious to the
other operators on the division a young
lady had taken charge of. the Office at
Stapleton- The place was only a ham
let, 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 oc
CURED, 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 helped
| the president out of a hole. She had
learned telegraphy at school, and this
was her first place. A hundred miles
down the line lived her widowed moth
| er. and the girl was working for the
| support of both.
1t was a bit strange that Charles
| Morton, the new division superintend
| ent, had been in power six months be-
fore he saw 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 de-
| lay.
She was told plainly that his division
had no use for her. He was not rum
ming a kindergarten. At the end Of
twenty days she would be replaced
Within an hour it was known the
length of the division that Miss VIII
liams had got the sack because she
| was a mere woman.
For inefficiency'' was the report
made at headquarters, and that went
in each case The president of a rail-
road never sees reports of such trifing
! affairs and would not read them If
they were placed under his eyes. It
therefore followed that the president
| of the K. and L. knew nothing of what
| had happened
Fifteen of the twenty days allowed
her to finish her month had passed. 1t
was early spring, and there were con-
slant rains. The track gang was
watching the big bridge and deep cut
| The K. and l. office at Marion, the
next one east, was run on the same
schedule. At 6 o'clock in the evening
of the fifteenth day the track gang
| came in and reported all safe At z
| the passenger train whizzed by with
out stopping, and ten minutes later the
| girl was ready to go home. AS she
stepped out into the rain and darkness
an affrighted hobo appeared and called
out:
| Say, now, me pardner is buried un-
der about 1900, 900 tons of dirt back
dere in de cut"
do you mean that one of the banks
| has caved in?' was asked
.More'n an acre of 1t. TIN take a
whole week to dig me pardner out
Better git de telegraph workin'. II a
| train runs into dat heap you won't find
muffin but splinters left
The girl turned and ran back to the
Office, and as soon as she could light a
lamp she began calling for Marion
| The through freight was due soon aft
er g. 1t must be notified and held Her
tor was or duty, as he had a right to
b. There was no telephone service