Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1869-09-17
Tar1LLIxc RAILROAD INCIDENT,
. Pace For Life ON n R~nilrond-An En.
a rineer Chnsed By Fire nc Seventy Mtlea

A Race For Life ON n R~nilroad.AI En.
Sn Hour-A Thrilling Nnrrntiye.
correspondence Grand Rapids (Mich9 Easle.1
To make it an Ineligible matter to
the reader, let me say that the Buffalo,
CORY and Pittsburg road intersects the
Lake Shore road at this place. The
station at the junction is called Broeton.
Now let it be understood that from this
point to Mayville, at the head of Chau-
%tsuqua Lake, o distance OF only about
10 miles, O train Is carried oyer an
elevation of 700 feet. From the station
to the summit the grade is about 80 feet
to the mile, with curves which increase
the distance by four miles. 1t is over
this road that the immense quantities of
petroleum are brought.
On Tuesday evening, about 9 o'clock,
a train consisting Of six oil cars and two
passenger cars reached the summit on
its way to the junction. Hero, by some
cause as yet unexplained, one Of the
oil tanks took FIRE. The passenger cars
were ut once detached, and the brakes
stopped them. Next the oil cars were
cut of, aud tho locomotive, tender and
box car, containing two valuable horses
and two men, passed down the road, tho
engineer s~upposiug that the brakemen
on the oil cars would arrest the course
of those, but what wa his horror, on
looking back, to see the six cars in
pursuit of him down the grade, envel-
oped in flames. They not only pursued
but overlook him, striking the box car
with iuconceivable force, knocking the
horses aud men fat upon the floor, and
yet almost m~iraculously not throwing
the engine from tho track.
1t was now with the engineer o race
for life, and be gave the engine every
ounce Of steam. Looking south from
the place of my residence at that terri
BILE juucture; one Of the most magnificent
spectacles was witnessed that o man
sees in a lifetime. A sheet of intensely
bright flame, co feet high, was seen
coming down that southern slope, appa-
rently with the speed Of a meteor, and
really very near the speed of q hurricane
$50 miles an hour), for pursued and
pursuer few over the course, or rather
down it, and around the curves, at the
rate of more than 10 miles an hour, as
the engineer declares, and as everybody
can believe who witnessed the spectacle.
The heavens were illuminated, the land
scape was lit up as by the MONDAY light.
Onward and downward flew the engine,
and behind it flew and Numbered the
hugo frey demon. Twice its prodigious
weight was driven agains! the fugitive,
as if instinct with o purpose to drive 1t
from the track. 1t seemed as X TO tue
heroic engineer and fireman there was q
perfect environment Of peril. The
speed of the engine vas such that 1t
ceased to pump then again, tho Gin
cinuati express was due At the junction
\ at this time. The engineer OF the Oil
train whistled "open SWITCH" and
shaking hands with the fireman, they
babe each other farewell, knowing that
their lives depended on the opening OF
the Lake Shore switch by their friends
below, aud this was to imperil the e1-
press train coming down from the West
with its living human freight. The &C.
gincer on this train saw the fire when it
first broke out at the summit, and sup
posing he could clear the junction be-
fore the flaming terrier reached 1t, he,
too, put his engine to the utmost speed
ON a level grade. A mile short Of the
junction he SAW that the effort was q
vain one, for the flying conilagration
had rushed out upon the Lake Shore
track, and was running onward in the
direction of Duukirk. lie checked the
onward course of his own train, and
brought it to n staudstill. 1t did not
proceed until 3 o'clock in the morning.
The case took in another danger, and
it was imminent. A heavy freight train
was coming up the Lake Shore road.
All l will say Of tho escape of this Is
that it did escape to the side track, and
only escaped by the last minute Of pos
sibility.
Running on to q safe distance from
the depot, the engineer Of the oil train
detached his engine and left the six cars
to consume. He says his situation was
fully realized by him. He expected to
lose his life. At every moment he e1-
pccted tho engine to leave the track.
He saw he was going at a perilous rate
of speed, but there was no help for ii.
Tho demon was behind him, and he de-
clares that it looked like n demon.
With that fondness or real affection for
his engine which these men display, he
said, az thought everything Of my en-
CINE, and was determined to stay by it
to the last" The fireman made ono at
tempt to escape by jumping from the
tender, but the engineer restrained him.
| Altogether the occurrence was a remark
able one, and. in part remarkable for
this, that no lives were lost. The
brakemen on the oil cars had gone back
to the passenger cars, when the oil cars
started. 1t was we'll they did. Unless
those roar cars had been detached and
stopped, their inmates would have been
hnrnnd "a daafb