The star of the north. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1849-1866, 1861-11-06


and of rising importance The nearest
down station Of any size was Leicester,
about forty miles distant. 1t happened one
dark but clear November evening that Mark
Hibberd and were lounging about our
favori:e engine house, chatting 10 one and
another OF the drivers who were busy oil
! ing aud cleaning their respective locomo-
lives. Old Hi5berd's "FireAy" was there
with steam up, an order having come du>
ring the afternoon that Marks ather was 10
be in readnes 20 take ':special' down to
Leicester a, eight O'Clock precisely. Hib.
/ berd himself was not there, though it was
i ther half past seven, and Mark said casu
! ally, IN answer 10 question from old Bob
! Jacobs, his fireman. that be hoped his faith
| er was not on the lush :" but he had been
down 10 the Railway Arms again that after
| noon for the first time during Tie last three
months
We were standing on the foot plate as we
| talked, and steam having been up some
! time and the water in the boiler some what
low, | said to Jacobs Bob, you'll have 10
run her down to the crossing and back
time or two TO fill up the boiler" il being
! necessary, must tell you, to put an engine
in motion before the pumps which feed her
| with water can work.
"Righl you are, Mss'r Cnarley,n said
Bob 'but do you and Mas'r Mark take
her down TO the points and back again while
light my lamps and fill my oil can"
Here was Que of line little chances we de-
lighted in. II wanted exactly twenty min
ules to eight when Mark turned on steam,
and we slided slowly out ,oi The engine-
| house, leaving old Jacobs trimming the
| "Firefy's" lamps We had run backward
and forward over The hundred yards of rails
between the crossing and the house when
| Marks evil genius prompted him to ex
claim
say, Charleyilei's run over The points
and down The line for half a mile or so; we
can be back easy by eight o'clock"
No sooner said than done When we
reached the points drooped of and open.
! ed ihe switches, thus shifting tie engine on
the up-line, upon which we proposed TO in
! dulge ourselves in some two or three min
ules gaiop, and then return.
| Now in acting thus, you must underslsnd
! that we did no,biug whatever involving any
/ dan ger from ordinary sources, and were in
all human probability perfectly safe from
mshs2
/ The next Iain was an up.expre.s, not
/ due al Couislan I'll $50, but which did no,
stop at Allonoy. Nothing could possibly
follow Us from behind for we were on The
up line OF rails, and as we should be back
again before eight o'clock, there was of
course no danger 10 be appTshended from
the coming tram. Hibberd, on our return,
/ had only to ship his lamps and start on the
down line for Leicester
Our programme, however, was deranged
in way we little expected. Prudent, if
bold, we did not allow The delights Of our
gallop TO deiain us too long, and it wanted
some minutes 10 eight when we passed the
crossing on our way back TO the engine
house; we had sackend speed on approach
ing the points, and were travelling slowly
and quietly, when Mark shouted 10 me,
l
Swallow" coming out at a lick, and no
mistake ~ In a moment we had stopped
and reversed the ''Firehy," and we began
to move slowly ahead down the up line
again greatly wondering hat il all migh,
mean, bUl not in the least alarmed for our
safety, since we had only 10 allow the
Swallow" gradually TO overtake Us, and
when she saw us (Which, as we had no
lamps, was not so easy both engines might
return together. Mean While the giant be-
hind Us came on al such rapidly increas.
ing speed that we were unwill:ngly obliged
to lravel faster az well We shouted and,red
TO attract attention from her driver, but iG
vain. and we presently began to think hat
something must be wrong. At length Marx
whispered. Charley, -yon may take my
word for il that's the Governor, and he's
mad drunk. Like enough he's go, on the
first engine thai came to hand and don't
know al this momen, if he's on the upper
or down line or what he's doing-he's the
very devil after he's been drinking" Here
was pleasant situation.
/ twas just or The stroke of eight O'Clock {;
/ in another ten minutes at farthest the up
express would pass Aionby on lis way to
/ Coulston before US therefore was the GER
( lainty of collision, and behind us an engine
already running at great rate, which in
creased with every minute, and driven by
man mad drunk-uhai was TO be done
7 1t was case in which moments are pre-
cious, and decision must be the work OF a
second OF time.
'Let Us run for AIlonby," said Mark at
once, with his hand upon the regulator
Keep the whistle open all the way. and