New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-12-31
THE ENGINEERS STORY.

THE ENGINEERS STORY.
Mayhaps, stranger, you hev run over the
Pennsy lvsny Central railroad. A. YOU
may say, was born and brought up or
that line, tirst as fireman and then engineer
nigh on to twenty year. lbs sllers excitin
to run mschine, and when WAS firems 4
used to Il lux it was better, 10 be top OF
one of them splendid engines than to be
Pr sident of the United States. The day
they first put me on the foot board and
took the lever in nv hand and knew it wxs
my engine, reckon ! was the prOudest
man between Pittsburg and Altoona.
kinder thought that ever body was goin' to
her ron, and you kin bet all yer specie THAT
she went smack mp to the mint, the whole
hundred and seventeen mile But this
Bind of spirit wore of after awhile, n
Settled down into sober. stiddy g0in' man
n they did say that wor q safe n relis
BILE man ~ they he'd in the business l new
70 say it. stranger, a. there's nobody else
60 do il; else a Use you wouldn't know It.
I was turned twenty.th three wen me and
Mary was married. Twenty-eiRht years
agoi You hev . wife, straDgerS Hevn't
got NO wife. Well. msyhaps it's Just az
we'll. l he'd Mary some eight years, but il
don't seem like no time now. l left her
there in the old Keystone State. her an the
boy. Sometimes l think I'd like to 20 back
agin and see the place where they both lie,
ba' snppose never shall. DoD'tyseem a.
~ had the heart to do it, It wasn't in any
church yard, you know; but little way up
the noun there was green, quiet spot
among the trees, and they are there-not
nore'n hundred feet. say. above the track,
and often wonder il Charlie doesn't still
dream, when the New York express thun-
ders by, that his old father is holding the
throttle.
Iput up q snug cabin by the side of the
road wteie had small clearin', and be-
tween whites used to plant my pots
and things, enough TO keep us going, and
Mary had her garden Mary alters took to
fowers, as used to tell her, iokin' like, COS
she was one of the family. Then wa had q
COW, and Mary raised chickens. and never
see no person could do as much with chick
ens as Mary could. jest seemed like those
hens we're alters strainln' of themselves
lsyin' eggs You never see nOthin' pay
stricter attention to business than what
they did. Never standin' about and fuOlin'
around, but alters at it. An then they'd
cot and hatch incredible. Mostly two broUds
year, aud brought 'en all up.
Mary raised the COW. One of the neigh
bors civ it to her wen it was calf, and abe
made much of it. used to tie it to
stake near the cabin wen it was little
thing, for it to eat grass. Mary didn't
know much about things then. che was
young like, and one day she thought ehr'd
put the calf in the stable. told her she'd
Now calf, you know, is the most deceivin'
animal in the world. 1t. don't look az if it
ehed any strength. and yet it'll upset full
krown man. So Mary unties the rope and
&arts for the ehed, snd the calf kicked up
khs,heels and away he went Mary held on
to the rope and away she went-thrown
down, Tollrd Overland there was 9 con.
fusion Of CALF and calico all over the place.
There wstp't NO bones broken, hut May
was the most smsEed girl you ever saw.
That Calf grew up to Do KNOWN COW.
She used to run ont on the track Just on
purpose to frighten people. Shed STAY Oh
till the train was clO-e mp, but never got
hS The men soon all got to know her
AID didn't mind her. But whenever . new
engineer came along and saw her, he'd
whistle brakes, and raise . rumpus, oft. q
bringing the train TO = deep stop. But sb.
walked of just ut thu right time and seemed
to understand the joke.
Our little cabin WAS in among tho noun
tains. q good ways from any other house,
ard used to sometimes think that Mar,
must be lonely, with me away so much oi
the time. You see, l was alters out three
nights in the week. l went up in the Day
time, passing my house at noon, and down
again that night, passing at midnight. But
] WAS home IwD or three DAYS in the week
and alters Sunday. The place where We
lived was wild region of country. and the |
storms we used to have up there, SO high III
th. air, was fearful. |
/ didn't tell you anything about the boy
H.! Well, do yUn know, took TO him TIE I
very first moment. An thai's very curl |
Gus thing about babies Now, l never
fancied 'em much, buE tell you, strange,
it makes all the difference in the woru |
whether it ia your baby or whether 1t he. |
longs to somebody else I've seen grea,
many of 'em IN NY time, and accOr.'in' 10
their paren they was the most uncommon
babies; hut l could never see much of il. |
used to laugh a good deal when people
made such fools of themselves over their
Children, but l know exaGtly how j.
10 now, for l suppose / was the greatest
fool over my Charley as ever lived.
Mary named i'm Charley. That was after
me. Seems 10 me that boy took to loco
motive from the tune he was six mon hs
old. His mother would set out in trout
was up ~ noon, and sbo'd kiss her
hand and wave the baby At me BY the
time he was three years old he'd got 20 that
I used to take him up to ride with me.
There was water tank near the house, and
when l stopn-d 10 water no VS. sler-
there, and ketcb him up u carry I'M II |
Ten or twenty miles, tilt l met another
traia, and SOME of the boys'd carry him
back home. 'TSssn't long afo'e there wss
scArce q man tue road Ms didn't know
Charley LA,bam's baby They'd pick i'm
mp wherev they could find i'm, aud some.
u Des h. be gone nearly all day, bn
set I'm down af0re night. N
red c,,ns toddiln' nom. Sometimes !
IbiDk it's qle-r how ID. M n used to tx.
10 that b b.. There we i-Il-rs just Ar
'Ough as orars-biakt m.n, that'd ge,
Trunk and G. z. win lquor and cut "r
'hOOt II an quicker u l enin'; n s.ctiOn
Ia hem mOart ihs tben sec,in,
nm wire lightly hard rsse- What frr
lsh,in' add qnafrelih' rmy'd beat S-m
ddi An yet hers wasn'5 one o them
baps H. would spsat Gro + VOID to NY
'Aby. TIry Was all fond ut ',m, and ~ |
-, bhGy Eook {, imp rim nn i'm. WHY, |
hero't be "a III ,-s quicker n rh- dropoi ".
at
There waf Bill Wsle' l"n didn't know
ii Ws'p't. III yo"9 N! . course u
idu'i. ID al ,ov l. T. siten "prn IN
naYd 10. Tuo # N,er spoke at:.rt,
icked i'm up Is !. u. so crus', o.
AGO ~, --u,,. II h. ~ / IL - wa p,.-r -.
o'''i A. II ia r-.p Uiss, II He dom hev j
" !ei-tiobs, au1 br Was 50 SOC agin every b