Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1872-10-18
JOHNNY BARTaOLoMEw,s
DASH.

The passage Of the train from Reno
yesterday morning through the burn
Ing tunnel the other side OF the Ameri-
can Flat, will have to stand recorded
as one Of the most brilliant rs we'll rs
fortunate dashes ever made under such
circumstances. johnny Bartholomew,
one Of the best engineers that ever
mounted u locomotive, had, on this
particular occasion, happened to
change Off with Charley Mccormick,
the regular engineer OF the Z" Reno"
therefore was the hero of this occasion.
There was 10 trustv Waterman or any
body else to give warning Of the i'm.
pending danger, and tho train was
around the curve and into the tunnel
before the fire could be seen. The
tunnel Is $50 feet In length, aud tho
fire being at the opposite end, there
was little time for thinking or acting
and not enough for stopping. The
deep red roaring flames and dense
black smoke were ahead, and 1t looked
like attempting n mad rush through
tophet, but there was no other way tor
1t. The lives Of the passengers aud all
hands were Ill the care Of johnny
Bartholomew, aud nobody knew it
better than he. His first Impulse was
to reverse the engine and whistle down
brakes, but his quick conclusion was
that that wouldn't do, SO with u rcso-
lutte jerk Of the lever he threw her
wide OPEN" The Reno gave All angry
snort and rushed madly forward like a
freed racer with whirlwind speed right
through the fiery mass. Johnny held
last to the lever, closed IN eye, held
his breath aud tried to think of some
prayer n he passed In his checks, for
lie Imagined he could feel the hot rails
bending like lead under the wheels,
aud both felt and heard the blazing
timbers and other fallen o%bstructioLS
Oh the track being dashed aside by the
trusty cow-catcher. The women pas
Sengers screamed, and even the stout
e~st-hear;ed men Quivered with sudden
fear as they dashed through the fierce,
hot light, but In another Instant the
terrible gauntlet was passed aud they
safely slowed down in the cool, gray
morning daylight beyond.
Dirt, stones and blazing bits Of tim
Der Oh the ~cow-catcher, aud the shower
vi burning Goals covering the train,
showed how dangerous were the OBJ
structlons so safely passed, yet they
had rushed through so quickly that the
paint OIL the passenger coaches was not
even scorched. Johnny cannot rush
IN engine through that tunnel to-day,
for every timber throughout It's entire
length burned out rs clean as a shot
gun, aud huge cavings OF earth aud
rock render 1t impossible for many
days to come. Had the train stuck or
been wrecked amid the fiery obstruc-
tions, the fierce firmes, cavlny earth
aud sutfocating smoke Of that under
ground passage, u more horrible, more
notwithstanding calamity than ever be-
fore recorded might have occurred, but
thank Heaven it didn't.
"Thc machine and all 10 In nv hands,"
Says brave Johnny Bartholomew,
$50 here goes, IS the case now stands,
For I'm bound TO roll 'em through.
He jerksd the lever, opened wide
Tue Kissing throttle valve,
For he couldn't afford on such . ride
To do things up BY halves.
They plunged right through that burning hell.
The Reno snUrted Keno"
says Johnny: "Old gal, you done Il well,
And brsvely, too A. lse know"
He wiped the c!uders from hi. eye,