Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1874-03-26

| j
was in a tunnel half mile long, and
about in the middle, where the way was
a little sunk from the level.
Our party, which consisted of six, had
picks, shovels and great levers, and we had,
besides, four of those naphtha lampspor,.
| able gas some people call them-same as
you've seen used at fairs or stalls in the
busy streets; and in this fashion we
walked early to the mouth of the tunnel.
There was one thing l couldn't help
noticing about the men of our gang, and
that was the peculiar dull, heavy way
with which they moved arm or leg, while
| their heads seemed to be never at rest.
They'd good cause for it, though, as l soon
learned, every man working at railway
jobs having to divide his time in two,
half being for the job on hand, half being
taken up in looking out for danger.
We hadn't gone fifty yards into the tun-
mel, which got blacker and closer, and
more wet and reeking with damp, at
every step, before l began to hear dull,
heavy roar We were walking on the
righthand side between the metals, so as
to meet any train upon the line, and my
first movement was to step on to the other
line" four-f FOOT we call it-so as to be
.
| "Here, hold hard!" shouted the leader
of our gang, and he laid hand on my
shoulder and dragged me back for l
| hadn't seen that there was another train
| coming into the tunnel, and that it was
dashing up swiftly, giving us just time to
| creep back in the holes left in the tunnel
| wall, like doorways, here and there, be-
| fore it went by with rush.
Ip,t l,al, Il
| through its all being so new to me-any-
| felt that scared l could hardly hold the
pick l had brought with me.
What would Polly feel if she knew |
pleased that | had not told her what it
| was had TODD.
The next minute we were making on
| further into the tunnel, but we had not
| gone far before there was the loud hollow
| roar coming again through the darkness
! then like couple of faint stars we could
see the engine-lights; the word was given,
and we got into the man-holes once more
Then the faint stars gerw and grew till
they flashed and glimmered on the wet
brick walls-grew and grew till they
seemed coming to burn us up-and then
there was roar and flash, and the
whole train was by, and we were all
walking on.
1t was very slow work, for there was a
train about every three minutes and we
had to get into a safe place pretty well
half a minute before it passed. Long
enough, you'll say; but it was
the custom with the men to get
out of the way in good time, to
be on the safe side; so that, counting both
ways, think seven trains passed us be-
fore we got to the place where we were to
begin.
To a new hand it was dismal, cellar
like place the air smelt burnt and foul,
as if the engines had used it up half-a.
dozen times over, leaving only bad
steam in its stead. Our lamps were hung
up on iron rods we brought with u.s. and
stuck in the six-foot way between the two
lines, and there we stood ready to begin
1t puzzled me to think how we should
ever get the job done, for it seemed as if
we should be able to give about halfa
dozen strokes with a pick and then leave
Off and ours was likely to be longish
bit of work, for the line had settled, so
that what we had to do was to clear away
the ballast, then with the long levers
bodily hoist up length of rail and the
wood sleepers it rested on, and shovel the
gravel underneath.
Well, it was like this for hour after
hour: just few strokes of shovel or pick,
and then the shrek of an engine and its
two bright eyes glowing in the distance,
and seeming for all the world to me there
in the darkness like the horrors of fever
or nightmare, or something Of that kind.
| couldn't get myself to think and feel
that it was real | kept expecting
to wake up in bed to attend on Polly,
or on one of the children that was
| sick | couldn't, of course, make out
| what that hollow roar or those two bright
| flaming eyes had to do with it, but there
| they were, seeming to fascinate me- as
| they came nearer and nearer the noise
grew louder and louder and then the
train dashed by, seeming to take my
| breath with it, leaving me crouching close
to the Shiny wall, as if longing to force my
| self into it, till the CANCERS voice reused
! me into knowing where l was with his
| husky voice and his Get on, my lads"
How | got through that day l never
seemed to know; but though | breathed
| freely when outside the tunnel and took
| all the reckless jokes of my mates in good
part, there was regular load at my
heart, and l could only think of going in
next day with sort of shudder, for I'd
got it into my head that one of those
trains would be the death Of me, and the
shrek of the engine and the hollow roar
of those coming and of those going away
rang in my ears till l got to my own
| door
l found Polly very bad, though she
wouldn't own to it. Her face was burning
and her eyes looked bright and unnatural
| but she would have it that she was going
on all right, and, in spite of the pain /