The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1923-01-26
1900 YEARS OF
CHRISTIANITY
And A Woman IA Years Old
Loses Her Life Hurryirg To
A Mill Whistle.

over her head and pulled about
her face to protect it from the
biting blasts that swept the
right Of wa of the rail road,
hurrying down the tracks of
the railroad in response to the
blast of a factory whistle that
told her that she was late to-
her work and might be dockcd
for a few minutes loss Of time,
Mrs. Julia Jennings, "A years
old was struck by a Norfolk
Southern passenger train near
the Elizabeth City Cotton Mills
Tuesday morning and instant
ly killed.
1t happened that Norfolk South
crn train WAS on time. For 2S years
the poor old woman had crossed those
tracks four to six times day, every
working day in the year; more than
thirty thousand times in her life she
had crossed those tracks between her
home and her work. But Tuesday
morning she was tr:flc late. the
whistle of the cotton mill waS scream
ing; it WAS II minutes past six and
by the rules of the mill she should
have had her breakfast, had her
house in order and been Al her post;
the whistle WIS screaming and there
were the railroad tracks still between
her and the mill. Wrapping her
faded coat tighter about her face,
Drawing the cold wintry wind. hurry
ing. thinking only of her job and the
few precious moments shc might lose,
she crossed the tracks at the moment
when Train No. t was due to pass.
And the train that is 80 often hours
late was on time this morning. The
engineer jammCd his throttle. put on
the emergency brakes and shut his
cyes-tOO late. The fender of the
onrushing locomotive caught the frail
old woman and tossed her into the
air. and then the iron wheels cut
her in pieces.
The victim of the tragedy on the
railroad tracks near the cotton mills
Tuesday morning was the oldest en-
ployc Of the cotton mills. She tied
the first end on L spooling frame
when the milI began operations in
1N95. She had worked in the mills
ever since. She had raised a family
of children. five of whom had gone
out into the world and made homes
for themselves. But she kept right
on in the mill. providing for herself.
battling bravcly to maintain little
home of her own. Sh" perhaps
dreaded the day when her fingers
might become pal>icd and her eyes
50 dim that she could not hold her
place in the >p'ndlcS. Younger people
with laughing faces and bright eyes.
in whom red blood ran strong and
whose joints knew no aches. were
waiting to take her place. That is
why she hurried 50 when the whistle
warned her that She was late for her
work. She did not want to lose her
Job: she didn't want to be forced into
idlcncSS. to be a dependent upon chill
drcn who were struggling for them
selves. She WAS eager to work.
work. work until the end; she dreaded
the thought of being laid off by the
boss of the mill. The boss Of the mill
wuS chcatcd: the Boss Of the Unl-
verse laid her of in his own way.
Julia Jennings. three score and four
years old. lays under the sod tonight
resting from her labOrs, ncvcrmOrC to
worry about losing her job, never
again to have run to Il screaming
whistle. They found twcnty-onc dol
lars and Il few cents in pocket OF
her dress when they pulled her re-
mains out from meath the wheels OF
/ ia, 5.IrS