Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1863-03-04

In the year 49, Was runhthS on
engine on the ---road. My en-
cine was named the Racer, and
aracer" she was TOO; her driving wheels
were seven feet in diameter, and she
could turn them about as fast as was
necessary, ] can assure you. My reg
ular train was the "mornng express,
leaving the upper terminus of the road
at half past four, running sixty miles IN
an hour and forty five minutes, which,
as | had to make three stops, might
with Justice be considered pretty fast
travelling.
There were on the line numei Gus
draw-bridges which were liable to be
opened at all hours, but more especially
about day. To be sure there were men
stationed at every bridge, and IN fact
every half mile along the road, whose
special duty it was to warn approaching
trairs of danger from draw bridges, OBJ
structions on the track, dc, but the class
of men employed in such duty was not
noted for sobriety. and the wages PAID
were not sufficient to secure peculiarly
intelligent or careful class, so the conf ience
] was compelled to place IN them was
necessarily burdened with mush dlstrust
These men were provided with white
and red signal lanterns, denotlng torpe
does aud coIored flags, and the rules of
the road required them to place torpe
do on the rail and show red signal
both on the bridge and at q fog station"
distant half mile from the bridge,
before they opened the draw. At all
times when the draw was closed they
were to show white light or flag at this
"fog station This explanation will, |
trust, be sufficient to enable every rea-
Ger to understand the position in which |
found myself in the grey" of one Sep
TENDER morning.
l left the starting point OF my route
ten minutes behind time. The fog was
more dense than ever remembered
having seen it. 1t enveloped everything.
| could not see the end Of my train,
which consisted of five ears filed with
passengers. Tho ''headligbt' which |
carried on my engine illumjred the flee
oy cloud only few feet, 50 that | was
running in the most utter darkness. |
did not like the look Of things at all, but
my ''orders" were positive to use all due
exertions to make time. SO blindly put
ting II V trust in the miserable twenty
dotlar-a month men who were the
agents along the road, darted head
long into and through the thick AID, to
all mortal vision, impenetrable fog. The
Racer behaved nobly this morning; she
seemed gifted with the wings of the wind
and rushed thunderi"g'y on, making
such time as astonisbed even me, al
most native and to the manor born,
Everything passed off right. | had
made up seven minutes of my time,
and was within ten miles of my journeys
end. The speed at which | travelled had
exhilerated me. That pitching into dark
ness, blindIy trusting to men that | had
at best but weak faith in, had given my
nerves an unnatural tension, SO | resolved
in my mind to run the remaining ten
miles at whatever rate Of speed the Racer
was capable Of making. | gave her steam
and away we flew. The fog was SO thick
that | could not tell by passing objects
how fast we ran but the dull, heavy and
Oppressive roar, as we shot through rock
cuttings and tunnels, the rocking and
straining of my engine, and the almost
inconceyable We ocity Mt which the driy-
ing wheels revolved, told me that my
speed was absolutely awful.
did not care, though [ was used to
that, and the rules bore me out; besides
| wanted to win for my engine the title
of the fastest engine on the road which |
knew she deserved. So | cried " On,
on p | had to cross one draw draw
bridge which, owing to the Intervention
Of high hill, could net be seen from
the time we passed, the "fog station"
until we were within three or four rods
of it. | watched closely for the fog
station" signal. 1t was white. "All
right 60 ahead my beauty" shouted
|, giving at the same time another jerk
at the " throttle" and shot into the "cut."
In less time than it takes me to write it,
we were through, and there dimly seen
through rift in the fog, glimmered with
to me actual ghastliness, the danger sig
nal-a red light. 1t seemed to glare at
me with almost fendish maignancy.-
Stopping was out of the question, even
had | been running slow had not even
time to grasp the whistle cord before we
would be in, and giving one long ing,
lingering thought to the bright world,
whose duration to me could not be reck-
oned in seconds even, shut my eyes and
waited my death, which seemed as abso-
lutte and inevitable rs inglorlons. 1t was
but an instant of time, but an age of
thought and dread. and then--I was
over the bridge.
A drunken bridge-tender had, with
accursed stupidity, hoisted the wrong
light, and my adventure was but scare,
but bali dozen such were as bad as
death. s4i
TWAS three weeks before | ran again,
and | never after .mads up time in fog.
NEUTRALITY AND FREEDOM OF THE
Press IN FRANcE.-A correspondent
communicates to the Boston Transcript