The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1876-03-25
A story of the Valley II. II.

A story of the Valley II Il.
The racy correspondent of the N. y.
World has been "doing" the Lehigh
Valley, and gives the following account
of his trip fIom White Haven to the
summit Of the mountain, with the story
of the engineer as told to him on the
way up the mountain on the most
picturesque line OF railroad in Ameri-
ca !"
At White Haven we had dinner, and engines
ana engineers were changed. 1 found mvaeli
here on one of the finest locomotives ever built
Tor any road, and in the company of one Of the
brightest of engiue-drivers. The r1de thence
forward was ore to remember through life
time
A great food had swept through the valley
here not many years ago The Len1gh, swollen
with Its MANY tributary streams ard reinforced
10y the giving way Of dam after dam with Their
ylst accumulatiOn OF lumber aud debris, soon
tuonme irresistible and from White Haven TO
Enston the watars, rising tnlrty feet, ravaged
both banks. Men, women ana children were
eLushen ana Drowned without other warning
tnnn tle roar OF wave that rose at tho rate of
thirty feet in llne minutes. The vision If this
Hood in the midst of storm and darkness, and
the echus Of despalring Crles, were easily con.
jared up ns the locomotive doomed along lang.
Ing its bell under the cliffs. in n lit 10 while
tne 10ad quilted the vale for the mountain
and we beoan the long ascent through the
heart Of the Pennsylvanja wilderness to n
height which OverloOk- one of the historical
The Grade was steep; the engineer opened
the valve, regulated his engine IN all respects,
slnOkei, und asked me to step over and SIT on
mis- side Of the locomotive.
''I's all clear sailing for few miles now, I"
said he /; eve shall not meet anything. It's q
tug up hill"
From iOl to lis feet 60 the mile"
That's the reason. then, that you have those
heavy ennginesp
81. "is this grade thought by railroad men to be
"Well," said the engineer, slowly 'pretty
ateepyeS. You know that in old times, in
England, GRADES Of thirty to fort feet to the
mi were thought TO be heavy. Grades of sew.
enty to eighty feet were thought to be imprac-
tcable. ! can remember reading all about it.
They didn't understand tb III what grip n
heavy iron wheel ms got on an iron refl. and
only gnve her fuel nnd time. They found it out
afterwards. hear they've got in ENGLAND ana
F!ance grades l52 to 1875 feet to the mile, and
even the Baltimore and Ohio railroad has
grades ia feet rhe grades OH the Pacific rail.
oads, and on that Rocky Mountain railroa I
from Denver city, TO the mines. are worse than
any vet This grade don't seem very bad. does
nj And besides, jast look at that view |"
Away to the south st! etched the bleak Penn
svlvania wilderness, un nhabited save by few
wOod-men, the panther, the deer and the bear.
The solitude seemed like that of desert, and
the strainine ascending locomotive like gigan-
"Tnere's right down romance, or tragedy, or
whatever Won ~ y call IT." sad the engineer,
hero in IT. AS there was woman in it though,
must tel you thnt I'm married man"
&" All r.ph6. Go ahead with the story"
- On" night about four years ago, and Just
ABOUT this mo th," the engiuGer continued, I"
WIS coming down this hlll with considering the
scasOn) pretty heavy train At Wiikesbarre
over in IL is vall'y-whlch yOu'u soon sce-a
Oung lady had got aboard OF my engine. She
wanted night ride and was put on by the
SuUeiinl endent she was perfect lady, and
her mother was in one Of the oars, back TO tell
the honest truth (as L have often sad to my
looking CIR. She was very small sized dressed
IN what my wife calls complete taste, and her
figure was so gOOd and her hands so small. and
her ways so frank and altless. thai almost
wished she was NY daughter. Her face, though,
WAS whnt can't g We you an idea of. 1t was
the most Ietuttul face that ever saw. II
had" proceeded the eneil.er, warming, all
| the intelligence OF q wOmans and the simplicity
Of a chId's. And she was so sDI1ghtly and lOv.
a@Dle @ ait0gether ana ASKED SO many questions
| that, although had never had woman on the
| engine but once before. invited her over here
| to my seat, and explained to her all about how
| n locomotive is run showed her how to mani.
| puiate the lever which limits more OF less
steam to the cylinders; how the reverse lever Is
worked how the tests Of water and steam are
| made showed her how to blow the wh ste
| and ring the hell.nd explained how the brakes
| were blown down, and how warnings were
gwen on the approlch to crossings. She took
1t all IT, and," SAID the engineer, stretching his
| arm across the boiler, and clutching nv Sleeve
"it w.s the best lesson ever gave. Right up
around yOnder about two miles from here, inst
| aI l was handling the reverse lever, we struck
a stone or something on the track at nine o'clocy
| at hight. was Attending Down at the time ltLe c
| girl was sitting where you are, on my cushionl
| ana quicKer than lightning the lever flew back
| and struck me in the eve and knocked Newell
make % mueh difIeIencc for minute or two ~ oi fo1
| l was Just stunned. AS we were on the down
| grade with no need OF fuel, the fireman was
| back IN the baggage cur, and when came to-
| this young giTi was no ding on tO my head and
| tanning me with her toy OF u hat 1t wasn't
| two seconds before kueT what was to pay
TafFiVn ornd fhn rhfln fpgfu had afa tal
down tais hIll at the rate of sixty miles an hour
| tried 10 sprlng up ana reach the lever. MY
ti,ht IT,, J. al arm ana slue ali1 Ilgnt ieg We're hpno
| Wy thce ana even my tongue were so paralyzeo
| ny the blow had received that 1 could hardly
| speak. was so desperate that (noto to attract
| the girls attention to the danger than for any
| thing esel grabbed her hat with my left hanC
and threw 1t outside OF the locomotive, and theI
manageq to beckon her ear down close to my
"'rrain's go ng too fast Well be in he'll II
| yOu don't turn the lever r.
| "She understood me IN au instant; and it was
| time The engine was rocking swlying, grind
| ing and sturrying down the track ike q beast
| with great bounds. Every second expected II
ding at the rate Of seventy miles an hour. Bu1
| that hit thing sprang up here. clutched the
| lever, mOtIoned which way she should shove o.
pusl 1t, got my nod, and reversed tho wheels
| Ike little man. Then she whlsled do VI
| brakes-there was no need OF that, for the boyi
| had put on every brake already. Inside OF {
mi and half she stopped the train and theI
| she knet down all trembling and crying -anJ
| now what do you think she saidP
| i can't guess"
| 8 said she! Mr., 1 feel as If shOul(
| faint. Havn't you got some camphOr, or a littlj
whisky y And as sure as you hive she did tam
| right away theEe-rght down in front of tha
| fire boX-right ON top Of me The fireman ant
| conductor came IN and TOOK her back TO be
mother, and the fireman had run the train
| down TO White Haven"
Soon after the engineer had flushed this littl
story the train arrived-at the summit OF tn
| mountain. Z
|
| considerable damage was done at Readinj
| MonCa, nigh by the hi N wind Five hundrei
| feet of the shedding NJ tne new passenger de
pot OF the ReaOhng Railroad Company wa
blown down, shortly before nine O'clock, au'