Rockingham post-dispatch. [volume] (Rockingham, N.C.) 1917-1965, 1919-10-02

The strike was called by the motor
men and conductors themselves, at
the end of q turbulent meeting, during
which the men, yielding to the mag
netic influence of Kolb, the oratorieal
agitator, had booed their own officials
and jeered at a letter from the head
Of their national union declaring the
proposed walkout to be Ill advised, IL
not wholly unjustifiable. "You are be-
ing sold Quit" Kolb had shouted. And
somehow he made the men believe
him. Setting tradition and discre-
ton alike at defiance, the trolleymen
streamed out of their hall alight with
the excitement of fight In which they
felt, under the spell Of KOlb. that they
were championing the cause Of all OPP
pressed workers as well as their own.
An hour after midnight the last car
had been returned to the barn, and
next morning not wheel turned on
any of the city lines.
At s 80 that afternoon girl with
Kold-brown eyes and red hair plodded
YEARLY along on the last half mile OF
q two-mile walk between office and
home. All the town was walking. save
q handful of adventurous souls who
took chances on the one occasional
car the traction people had been op-
Grating since noon, defying the jeers
of the mob and the risk Of pebbles
Nung by hoodlums.
But company in misery very slightly
palliated the discomfort Of the unac-
customed tramp that Glory Blair
had been compelled to take with
scarcely an idle minute in it. She
could do very well without any pedes-
trians exercise Immediately before or
after 1t, she thought. ats an outrage,
that's what It isl" she protested.
The worst of 1t was, Glory was wor-
ried about the Job, too. She had be-
gun to suspect that Mcknight, the pro-
prietor by whom she was employed,
might be bit Of wildcatter. Glory
was merely his stenOgrapher. and had
nothing to do with his accounts; but
little things recently had given her the
impression that 1t would not be sur
prising If Mcknight were to close that
Office Of his suddenly, some Of these
days, and fade away. So. altogether,
Miss Blair was in a rather depressed
state at the moment when group OF
uniformed trolleymen, standing on the
corner and scoffing loudly at the ef-
forts of couple of traction company
office men to run a car, caught her
eye.
1t wasn't exactly the group that
caught her eye. It was Ford Bur
sOyne. Ford was one Of the strikers
He hadn't Seen trolleyman very long
he had been a "tech." school man.
and then he had gone across and got
gassed and came back with a brop-
chitis that forbade his staying indoors
the doctors said, for at least tive
years; and meantime his father had
died broke, and Ford had found him
self obliged to quit college and earn 8
living, and do 1t at "Outside work."
All of sudden Ford. who was
laughing as loudly as any Of the
crowd at the unfortunate amateurs OF
the car, realized that Glory Blair was
standing stock still, six feet away
looking at him with an expression HI
had never seen on her face before. HI
left the group instantly.
Glory didn't give him so much al
time to say "How do you do?"
I'm rather glad that CHANGED t.
see you, Mr.. Burgoyne." she said. ant
the chill of establishment was in he
voice. IF some one else had told M
they heard you hooting and black
guarding decent people on the publ
streets, should have refused to be
lieve It,"
"But, Glory" protested Ford, "thos
fellows are just plain strlke-breakers
now surely"
Surely" blazed Glory, interruptin
him, ito be a strike-breaker in thi
kind Of strike is infinitely more cree
table, Ford Burgoyne, than to set
city full of tired, wornout people afoc
In torrid weather like this. But sc
now that I have given my friendshi
to a mere rowdy. who could never, b
any possibility, look at things as l d.
! Just wanted to say that you needn
come to see me this evening-nor eve
Good-by." And Glory Blair, steppin
around Burgoyne, who would have d
tained her If he could, marched 0
with the air of a duchess-and lum
in her throat and an ache In her hea
for she had come to be more the
fond of this tall young fellow, wi
had faced his altered future with
sunny a laugh and so willingly Il
lowed the admonition: "Whatsoev
thy hand findeth to do" q
The strike had been on week. e
company was operating. The pub
was riding when It could. The stri
ers, feeling themselves losing groul
and failing to secure the indorseme
of their own national organization
of other labor unions, had fallen In
an ugly mood. They stood mood
about in groups. There was no mo
z. = T.. ..a.a