The Washington times., 1914-07-19

forgot about II, It would get mo into
trouble. OF course. they knew it would
get them into trouble, too, but didn't
have to mention that. Would you be-
! lieve ii, In q weeks time 1t was the
rarest thing for me to have to remind
anybody about that rule. Everybody
had been educated to the point of un-
derstanding and remembering It Incl
dentally. I think it's one Of the best
rules for safety we have"
Winter Days Hardest.
what weather il the hardest on the
crossing MANI" the interviewer asked
Allaband. as the officer leaned back
and stretched his legs to get the kinks
sunny days. the freezing ones, the
windy days, or the rainy ones?'
Tho worst day of all for me Is tho
cold one. with the wind driving snow
till 1t sttngs like whip. Such a day Is
keep his wits about him every second.
The people are all bundled up, and they
rush along with their heads down and
go II blind across the car tracks. The
divers and motorists are numb and
the snow blinds their eyes. and alto
gether the policeman doesn't have
much time to think about his own trou-
bles. He is too busy keeping other
folks out of trouble.
THE hot days used TO be bad Cnes
for us till we got the big umbrellas
about a year ago. They are life-savers.
They keep US dry in an ordinary shower
and make our work much easier"
In what way does days work tire
you most"'
my eyes. and right through my tenn
pies here" was the quick response
"All day I must be looking. looking.
Looking away UP the street. this way
and that, to see how the cars and auto
mobiles are lined up. looking close at
hand to sea that the motorman sees
that little girl rushing in front Of his
car, and that that man sees that
Eleventh street car coming around the
curve While I am looking / must be
thinking about two or three things at
once, for probably there Is woman
from Bloomington asking me how 10
get to her daughters house in Mt
Pleasant, and maybe the daughter lives
on one of those new little streets
block long. So when the day Is over my
eyes often burn and my mind ls tlred.
But I find 1t a great life and an In
teresting one
Learns To Read Minds.
i've stood out there and watched
people SO long that I've come TO be
something of a mind reader. Ill see
couple standing on a corner. ana II
know what they are going TO DO before
they do themselves. I can tell from the
I
he is going directly across the street or
whether he is coming up TO ask me
something.
Only yesterday this mind reading. I
believe, saved q little girls life. There
was a family of five got Off a Ninth
street car. The father was carrying
baby and the mother was leading Two
children, one about seven and the otner
about three years old. The mother let
60 Of the younger one for a minute ana
then made q dash across the track IN
front of the car Just as it started up.
OF course, the impulse of the three
year-old was to follow its mother. and
Just before it started I saw what was
going to happen. l yelled at the motor
man SO loud they heard me clear down
at the Pension office, and he stopped
the car not six inches from the child.
That's Just a sample of what happens
nearly every day.
ITS the people on foot that give the
crossing policeman the most trouble.
Tho motorman, the automobile driver,
and the teamster are all keeping look
out when they come to corner. but
curb without paying any attention to
what's going on around him
The worst thing at my corner Is the
Eleventh street cars that turn there
from Ninth to G street, and in that
connection I've noticed a funny thing.
When ] yell. Around the curve! Look
OUT, as [ generally do, nine people out
of ten will look up the straight stretch
of track, instead of watching the curve.
and there have been some close calls
there in consequence"
AlIaband is on duty eight hours every
day. For one week he works from
a m. till D. m. and the next week
night Because their work demands