Los Angeles daily herald., 1874-07-10
Jumping the Gap.

Taylor's Fast Life on the Modern Highway.
Tom Potts, well-known locomo-
tive engineer in England and the
States, is the self-accredited hero of
the following wonderful story of sue
cessful daring. L will narrate it as
nearly as can in his own words. /
have heard him tell it often:
"Well, gentlemen, I'll say you'll
think it's lie. but can't help that;
you have asked me to tell it, and all l
can say is if you'd been in my place
you'd have seen it.
81 had been driving the Witch for
about seven months, and sweet thing
she was. L never was half as fond of
any engine as l was of her. She was
the kind of machine q man only gets
once in lifetime.
"She made her steam quick, was
easy on fuel, started off lively, and
went like deer. Her cylinders were
sixteen-inch, her stroke twenty-five,
and her drivers seven feet six, and she
was as kind to handle as baby.
"To see her run with heavy load,
light and gay, was enough to shame
the Juno, Venus and Helen and other
eighteen-inch machines.
"She never wanted fixing up. We
nus was alWdyS SOlbS III diiu OuJ VI
the shop to be titivated, and if there's
anything don't like, it's an engine
that all the time wants to be titivated,
She was always ready and willing for
work. Why, bless you! she was only
washed out for the sake of cleanliness
she didn't need it bit.
"She was the tidiest thing 1 ever
seen-seemed as if dirt wouldn't stick
to her.
Well, what I am going to tell
came off years ago, before L LETT the
old country, and it was one of the best
railroads-single track then, though
it's got three now, and four in some
spots.
Well, the Witch and were put on
the malone of the fastest trains,
and they went like sixty in them
days,
"The engineer was fined shilling
for every minute he lost. He burst
not go slow for fog, unless he wanted
to lose his days pay. He had to keep
going, and see things before he got in
sight of 'em.
1--WE were running north one dark
ish wintry day, and we were making
our best streaks. / should. reckon we
were going about fifty miles an hour.
1 was saying to myself: 'She's going
her prettiest,' when we suddenly shot
ahead, as if we had been shot out of
cannon.
II knew what that meant; we had
broke loose, we hadn't a car behind
us. The coupling had broken between
tender and first coach.
CHOW we flew, to be sure 1 whis-
tied the guard to brake up the train.
How we bounded along!
~ could make out no objects along
side--we seemed to go faster and
faster; we must have gone as fast as
one hundred miles an hour!
"It was straight piece of track for
some miles. l did not shut Off steam
directly after we broke, for l didn't
want the train to run into us, which
might happen if thev did not hear me
whistle Tor brakes.
at was lucky | kept her going, for
just as l had had about enough of such
flying, man started out about six
hundred yards before us holding u red
flag:
"Thero was nothing in the way, so
/ knew something must be wrong with
the track.
You might as we'll have tried to
stop whirlwind as the Witch in that
distance. Her speed was frightful.
"There wasn't much time to think,
and, as we could not stop, the faster
we went the better, so gave her what
more steam there was. She seemed to
have some 'go' in reserve, for we shot
past the red flag like flash.
saw men standing horror-struck.
"'Bill,' l said, quick! Get on the
choke and see what's ahead
He looked, and went deadly pale,
tottered and fell back in a faint.
"By this time l could see plain
enough what was wrong.
"There was gap in the track where
a bridge had gone down.
"You can't fancy my feelings just
then. Going to death-death, swift
and terrible-at about two miles q
minute-getting nearer, nearer! l
thought of my wife and child-nearer!
An instant more-the gap.
"God have mercyu I shrieked.
Dwell, would you believe it? that
engine just cleared that gap!
at was fifteen feet across, and
about sixty feet deep.
"She jumped that gap like q stag,
and, what's more, she struck the rails
all right on the other side, and kept
right along, just as if she had not no
ticed the gap!
81 stirred Bill up, and, with both of
US at the brake, we managed at lastto
step the Witch
"She was on tear that day, but I
never dreamed she'd jump the gap
that's fact"