The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1857-02-25

the officers here had turned the switch as
usual, we should be hurled into eternity
in one fearful crash. saw a f,sh-it
was another engine--l closed my eyes
but still we thundored on ! The officers
had seen our speed, aud knowing that we
could not baad up in that distance, they
had changed the switch, so that we went
on.
But there was sure death ahead if we
did not stop o ,ly fifteen miles ahead
was the town of Schwartz, on the Nistuln,
and at the rate we were going we should
be there in few minutes, for each min
ute carried us over mile The shreks
OF the passengers now arose above the
crash of the rails, and 10 ore terrific than
all else arose the demoniac yolls of the
mad engineer
'Merciful boavensr gasped the guards
man, there's not a moment of time TO
lose Schwartz is close by But hold,
he added, let's shoot him =
At that moment tall, stout German
student came over the platform where we
stood, and we saw that the mad man had
his heavy pistol aimed at us Ii grasped
heavy stick of wood, and with stead
mess Of nerve which | could not have
commauded, lie hurled it with such force
and precision, that he knocked the pistol
from tho maniac's hand. saw the
movement, aud on the instant that the
pistol fell. [ sprang forward, aud the
German followed me. | grasped the
man by the arm, but | should have been
nothing in his mad power had | been a.
lone. He would have hurled me from
tue platform, had not the student at tha,
moment struck him upon the head with
stick of wood which he caught as he
came over the tender.
Kroller settled down like dead man,
and on the next Instant shat off the
steam and opened the valve As the freed
steam shreked aud howled in its escape,
the speed began to decrease, and in
taw minutes more the danger was passed
AS l settled back, entirely overcome at
tue wild emotions that had RACED within
inc, we began to turn the river and be.
fore | was fairly recovered, the fireman
had stopped the train iu the Station
house at Schwartz
Mar in kroller still insensblo, was
taken from the platform aud as We car.
rled him to III, guard-room, ono of the
guard recognized him, and told US that
he had been there about two weeks be-
fore.
'ile came said the guard, 'aad sworc
that an engine which stood near here
was his. He said it was ono he had
made to GO to the moon in, and that it
had been stolen from hun. We seut for
more help to arrest hn. and he fed
WELL | replied. with shuidcr, L
wish he bad approached me in the same
way but be was more cautious at Dant.
zic.'
At Schwartz we found an engineer TO
run the engine TO Brrmberg and having
taken out the western mail for the next
northern train to take olong,wc saw that
kroller would be properly attended to
aud then started on.
The rest of the "trip was ran is safety.
though | could see that the passengers
were not wholly at ease, and wou!d not
be uutil they were entirely clear of the
railway. A heavy purse was made up
by them for the German stadent aud he
accepted it with much gratitude, and |
was glad of it for the current of gratti
tude to him may have prevented far
different current, which might have
poured upon my head, for having engag-
ed malman to run railroad train.
Bot this is not the end M,rtin
Kroller remained nsensibie from the ef.
fects of that blow upon the head nearly
two weeks, and whom he recovered from
that he was sound again-his insanity
was all gone. saw him about three
weeks afterwards. but Le had no recoi.
lection of me. He remembered nothing
of the past year, not even his mad freak
Oh my engine.
But | remembered it,and | remember
it still and the people need never fear
that shall be imposed upon again by a
crazy engineer.