The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1876-04-28
A woMAN,s RAILRoADINe.
Lehigh Valley Engineers Story Of Ride
Over the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Lehigh Valley Engineers Story Of Ride
Over the Blue Ridge Mountains.
The Sunday World says: At White
Haven we had dinner, and engines and
engineers were changed. 1 found my
sell here on one OF the finest locomotives
ever built for any road, and in the COM
pany OF one of the brightest of engine
drivers. The ride thenceforward was
one to remember through a lifetime.
A great food had swept through the
valley here not many years ago. The
Lehigh, swollen with its many tributary
streams and reinforced by the giving
way OF dam after dam with their vast ac-
cumulation of lumber and debris, soon
became Irresistible; and from W hfte Ha-
ven TO Easton The waters, rising thirty
feet, ravaged both banks. Men, women
and children were crushed and drowned
without other warning than The roar of
wave that rose at the rate OF thirty
feet in nine minutes.
The vision OF this flood in the midst of
storm and darkness, and the ecuoes of
despairfng cries, were easily conjured
up as the Locomotive doomed along JAM
Cling its bell under the cliffs. In little
Whiie the road quilted the valley tor the
mountain, and we began the long ascent
through the heart of the Pennsylvania
w
one of the historical and typical scenes
OF the continent.
The grade was steep; the engineer
opened the valve, regulated his engine
in all respects, smoked, and asked me
to slep over and SIT on his side of the
locomotive.
"IRs all clear sailing for few miles
now," said he; tive shall not meet any
thing. It's tug up hill"
"What gradew
"From one hundred to one hundred
and iorty-eight leet to the MILE"
"Tnat's the reason, then. Jhatyou have
| these heavy engines~
"Yes."
''Is this grade thought by railroad men
to be very steepW
"WeIl,o said the engineer, slowly,
| "pretty steep-yes. You know that in
| old times, in England, grades of thirty
\ 10 forty feet to the mile were thought to
be heavy. Grades OF seventy to eighty
4 leet were thought to be impracticabie. ]
| can remember reading all abb ut it. Tney
1 didn't understand then what grip a
| heavy iron wheel has got on an iron ra il,
| and how much a good locomotive could
! pull II you only gave her fuel and time
| They found 1t out afterward. I hear
| they've got in England and France
| grades Of one hundred and thlrty-tWo to
i one hundred and ninety-six feet to the
4 mile, and even the Baltimore q ONO
/ Railroad has grades OF one hundred and
fourteen feet e The mile. The grades on
II the Pacific railroads, and oni nat Rocky
/ Mountain Railroad nam Denver City TO
| the mines, are worse tnan any yet. Inis
grade don't seem very bad, does iii
1 And, besides, just look at that vieWt
| Away TO the south stretched the bleak
l Pennsy lvania wilderness, uninhabited
| save by u few Woodman, the panther,
4 phe deer, and the boar, The solitude
1 seemed like that of desert, and The
| straIning, ascending locomotive like a
gigantic, wheezy pioneer.
| "Ine,e's right down romance. or
tragedy, or whatever you may cali il. },
4, ,aid the engineer, ''altacued to this
nn.,. And l was The least OF hero in il.
AS tn gre was a woman in it, though. /
must tel. you that am married man. },
"All rigliss. Go ahead with the story -
"One night b bout four years ago. ana
lust about this month";" the engin Ger
continued, 81 was gong down this hill
with considering the season) a pretty
ueayy train. Al Wilkes barre, over
see, "a young lady had got aboard of nay
engine. She wanted a night ride. al, d
was put on by tue Superintendent. She
| Nas a perfect Lazy, and ner mother was
in one of the cars back. 10 tell the
honest truth as | have often said to nv
Wite), L never saw a more DeautifiIl
OF game looking girl. She was very
sman-sized, dressed in what my vile
calls complete taste, and her figure was
80 good, and her hands SO small, and
ner ways so frank and artless, that
almost wished she WAS my daug guter.
Her lace, though, was what can't give
you an idea OF. 1t was the most beauti-
lul lace ever saw. II had," proceeded
The engineer, warming, "all the intelli-
gence 0t a Woman's and the simplicity
Of chid's. And she was 80 spfightly
and Iovable altogether, and asked SO
many questions, that, although ] had
never had u woman on the engine but
once before, invited her over here TO
| my seat. anu explained to her all about
now locomotive is run. ] showed her
now to manipulate the lever which ad.
mits more OF less steam TO the cylinders;
now the reverse lever is worked; how
the tests of water ana steam are
made. 1 showed her how to blow the
whistle and ring the bell, and explained
how tue brakes were blown down,
and how warnings were given ON the
approach W croSStnk5' 0ub LOOK IL all
m, and" said The engineer, stretch
ing mis- arm across the boiler and clutch
ing my sleeve, sit was the best lesson
ever gave. Right up around ycnqer
about Two miles from here, just as / was
nandling the reverse lever we struck a
stone Or something on the track ut 8
O'Clock at night. / was a bending
down at the time (the girl was sitting
where you are, on my cushi0n9, and
quicker than lightning the lever few
Jack and struck me in the eye and
knocked me-well, Pll be did II, know
where. Any way it didn't make M much
difference for a minute or two, for " as
| lust stunned. AS we were on the down
grade, with no need Of fuel, the fireman
was back in the baggage car, and when
| came to, this young girl was holding
| on TO my head and tanning me with her
10y OF alhat. lit wasn't two seconds be-
lgofe knew what was to pay. The en-
gipe and the whole train had started
down This hill at The rate 0i sixty miles
IN hour, tried to spring up and
reach the lever. My right arm
| and side and right leg were
numb. Ny face and even my tongue
ware 90 paralyzed h- the blow