Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1870-02-03
THE WARNING AT THE
BRIDGE.

In the year 1861 l was Superin
teudent ot the Hewrich and Rocky
River railroad.
1t was a line which did good
run of business, connecting as il
did great city with a aourishine
back country, and we ran a pretty
good number of trains over the
rails in the course of twenty-four
hours, -~ v
The daily trains were run every
hour, but after nine in the evening
there was only one train, until the
steamboat accommodation at half
past three in the morning.
This intervening train was the
Belport mail. 1t was made MP at
Belport, and ran as far as Clinton,
express all the way.
Belport was the large city of
which | have spoken, and it was
there that my office was located,
for the business Of the road was all
settled and arranged at that end of
the line. 3''3 lf ''+
or course | give fictitious names,
and the reader need not expect to
find Belport on any railway map.
The IL 80 train, or the midnight
mail, as it was more frequently des-
ignated, was run by Earl Rogers,
young man of seven or eight-and-
twenty, who had been employed on
the road for several years.
He was the best engine driver
on the corporation, and for that
reason he had been selected for the
train, it being expedient to place
men of the best Judgment on the
train, because there was a better
lookout required by night.
Earl, taken in all, was one of the
finest fellows l ever saw.
Frank, handsome, generous to a
fault, and well educated.
He had fallen into the ayocation
of an engineer more from his love
of excitement and danger than any
thing else, perhaps; and if there
was ever any particularly perilous
business to be done, Earl Rogers
was always our man. lIH<
For some time he had been des-
perately in love with Laura Domain,
the daughter of rich old fellow,
just on the other side of Rocky
River, a half dozen miles beyond
Belport.
This love was fully returned, for
Laura was a noble-bearted girl, and
did not care for wealth or ambi,
ton when weighed in the balance of
love; but old Domain and she were
two, and there was no probability
of his ever giving his consent.
He had set his heart on her mar
rying Prince Carlton, young blood
Of the vicinity, reputed wealthy
and of an old family.
Demain's opposition naturally
made the lovers more determined,
and they only waited an increase
of Earl's salary to be married, in
spite of papa Domain Earl was
a faithful fellow, and l was doing
my best to get an advance for him,
with every probability Of success
Somehow ! took a strong inter.
est in Earls love affairs
! am an old codger, and love
are rather out of my line,
my forte being the calculation ofac-
counts, the regulation of freight
rates and the management of busi-
ness so a5 to secure the fattest divi-
lends to stockholders.
Perhaps my interestin Earl's love
for Laura might be because l most
cordially detested Prince Carleton,
He was always "blowing" our
-Oad, finding fault with the rate of
speed, with the grade, with the car
'iages, with the ventilation, with
everything in short, for nothing
suited him.
Then upon one occasion be and
had a few words, neither very
pleasant nor very choice, and he
rad called me an old scoundrel, and
had returned the compliment with
interest After that we were worse
'riends than ever.
One dark rainy night il Novem-
YER, Just after the nine o'clock had
,een got of, and l was sitting in |