The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-02-02
STOP!
By Myta Alice Little.
Copyright, 1922, by Wheeler Syn
dirata Inc

By Myta Alice Little.
Copyright, 1922, by Wheeler Syn
dictate, Inc)
This story is going to be about a
girl and a railroad-and a few 9TH
er things.
Ralpha Thomas - the girl =
through school, and home in Bren-
ton, living on the sleepy, beautiful
street with colonial houses on both
sides, had been wishing for two
'9ouB9SueA q q1IA sSuIQl
The things hadn't come, but the
Eastern Branch railroad had, sud
denly 1t had also bought and paid
for its right to cross Brenton's aris-
tocratic thoroughfore, Staid old fam
lies Notwithstanding, and in so do
ng had incidentally and quite I'M
consciously tied itself up with Raj
pha Thomas two wishes.
First, Ralpha wanted something
to happen, anything most, from a
balloon ascension to a new kind of
cereal; and, second, Ralpha wanted
to prove somehow that she could
do something besides eat, sleep.
look pretty, and play lady for her
doting father and mother. So, she
went hunting, found something in
teresting - unusually interesting
made plans, and put them up to
her father, with results as follows:
tits preposterous, A Brenton
Thomas doing such thing! Why,
it's worse than your last threat to
act for moving pictuTes!" said
father. his fingers meeting precise
ly over patched knees. Ralpha
pumped herself on the patches.
tits not fair to lose all the fun
on earth because you're a Brenton
Thomas, dad" she pleaded
Have you spoken to your moth
er about it?''
Mother said it was n joke. and
I'd soon get over it. She said no.
body but men-er-tended railroad
crossings, anyway. l won't get over
it, though. Henry Jones. the cross
ing man, can't-wcrk-any longer,
men are scarce-and-"
Here l have looked forward to
your marriage to some prosperous
let US say. writer, and now you're
daring to think of being Across
ing tender!" groaned the squire.
Exactly" beamed RaIpha. "a
crossing tender. Sit in the dinky
little crossing house by the hot lit
tie stove. Then, when the train
whistles, dash out and hold up the
sign with Stop on it."
Stop" said Squire Thomas.
Exactly" said Ralpha. stop
everything that's likely to get in
the trains way. 1t isn't as if there
were lots of trains, either. I'd be
on duty at z, of at Z at night. Time
off at noon. Nice salary. Bigger,
later, maybe, if-well, if" Raj
pha had the grace to blush, though
at the time her father did not know
why she blushed.
Father tried another tack. "You
do not consider the lives that would
be in your hands, Ralpha. You are
fippant. You'd have to do more
than listen for whistles. What that
young Jones put such notions into
your head for"
Henry Jones is all right" said
Ralpha Thomas. emphatically.
What did he leave his crossing
job for, then? Good job-for him!
What did he come to Brenton for
in the first place? Where did he
come from?"
Ralpha eyaded the question. "Oh,
please, dad" she pleaded. Let me
just trye
mo, Ralpha. no."
But, being Ralpha, she did, of
course. In fact, in a couple of
days Squire Thomas found himself
telling two of his best friends that
daughter thought it would be an
interesting experiment, the author
tiles considered her dependable, a
godsend, as it were. and SON
and on. So all Brenton was con-
verified. thought it was a jolly idea
liked to see the bright-haired girl
the black and white stop"
at the little crossing. and called at
the little gray house and told her
so.