Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1874-07-25
JUMPING THE GAP.

Tom Potts, well known locomotive
engineer in England and the States, is
the self-accredited hero of the follow
ing wonderful story of successful dar-
ing. viii narrate it as nearly as l
can in his own words. | have heard
him tell it often
well, gentlemen, I'll say you'll
think it's lie, but cant 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.
Il had been driving the Witch for
about seven months, sweet thing she
was. never was half as fond of an
engine as [ was of her. She was the
kind of machine a 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 six
teen inch, her stroke twenty-five; and
her drivers seven feet six, and she was
as kind to handle as baby.
ITO see her run off with a heavy
load, light and gay, was enough to
shame the Juno, Venus and Helen,
and other eighteen inch machines.
She never wanted fixingup. Venus
was always goingin and out of 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 a bit.
''She was the tidiest thing that | ever
seen-seemed as though dirt wouldn' t
stick to her.
well, what I'm going to tell came
off years ago, before l left 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.
We'll, the Witch and | were put
on the malone of the fastest trains
and they went like sixty in them days.
The engineer was fined a shilling
for every minute he lost. lie burst
not go slow for fog, unless he wanted
to lose his days pay. He had to keep
going right along, and see things before
he got in sight of EN-.
I'VE were running north one darkish
wintry day. and were making our best
streaks. | should reckon we were 60
ing about fifty miles an hour.
Il was saying to myself, she's going
her prettiest, when we suddenly shot
ahead. as if We had been fired out Of a
cannon.
Il knew what that meant; we had
broke loose, we hadn't a car behind US.
The coupling had broken between ten
der and first coach.
How we flew, to be sure | whistled
the guard to brake up the train. How
we bounded along!
Il could not make out no objects
alongside-we seemed to get faster and
faster; we must have got as fast as one
hundred miles an hour.
1T was straight piece of track for
some miles. | did not shut off steam
directly we broke, for | didn't want
the train TO run into us, which might
happen If they did not hear me whistle
for brakes.
1T WAS lucky | kept her going; for,
just as | had about enough of such
flying, a man started out about six hun
dred yards before us holding a red flag,
There was nothing in the way. so
knew something must be wrong with
the track. You might as well 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 reverse,
for we shot past the red flag like a
flash.
Il saw men standing horror-struck
Bill, | said, quick Get on the
coke. and see what's ahead.
He looked. and went deadly pale
tottered. and fell back in faint.
by this time | 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, min
ute-gettiug nearer! | thought of my
wife and child-near An instant
mOre-the gapl
God have mercy, | shrieked.
We'll, would you believe it? that
engine Just cleared that gapl
1T was fifteen feet across, and about
sixty feet deep.
She jumped that gap like 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
noticed the gapl
/ stirred Bill up, and, with both Of
us at the brake, we managed at last to
stop the Witch.
she was on a tear that day, but /
never dreamed she'd jump the gap
that's fact 7Gylor'S Fast Life on