Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1877-07-20
reasonable interfered with in the gentle
sport of blacting their eyes or kicking their
ribs, is not recorded.-Ihe Gaiaty.
Chased BY a Train on Fire.


From the New York Sun.
I've bsen down the bank more'n once an
had few bad smashups in the twenty years
I've run locomotive but the closest call
ever had was tho time | was chased from
Mayville to Brocton Junction 10y an oil tram
all afire | KIN almost feel my hair turn
white when / think OF at"
He was one OF the ol est engineers on the
Lake Shore road. and VAS riding me On his
engine from Brocton to Dunkirk.
Il was on the Buffalo, Cory x Erie road
then. 1t was in lSG9-August the seventeenth.
The bit o track twixt Mayville and Brocton
is about the crookedest an steepest stretch
there is in the country. It's ten miles from
one place to t'other, but the twists III the
road makes it fourteen. The grades so
crooked that it's a standin' Joke among tn
boys that the enginell butt the cabonse Ger
tain. The road runs down into the Pennsyl-
vana oil country, an heaps o petroleum is
run over it. That night bout o'clock was
gettin' ready { leave tn summit with box
car, six oil cars an two passenger cars. The
latter was full. Tn box car had two valua-
BILE trottin' horses in it. | got tho signal
from the conductor to 20 ahead, and started
her up. We was under tol'ble headway when
see flames burst out'n one o the oil cars.
whistled down brakes. The passenger ears
was cut loose, an the brakes put on. We
cut the engine and box car of from the burn
in cars, an thinkin' the brakeman d stop
them. pulled on slowly down the hill.
But pretty soon | see ] was in fix. The oil
cars wasn't stopped, an they came tearin,
down the grade after us, an fore l could
give my engine speed 'nough to git out'n the
way, HEIRLOOM. they came 'ginst the box car,
smashin' in one end. an knockin tn horses
an their keepers flat on tn floor. Its n
mighty wonder tn shock didn't knock til On
gine off the track, an it did give her n awful
husselin. But she settled down t her work,
s if she knowd that we was bound to have a
race for life.
Lord, how them flames roarcd, every IN
fernal ear was atire now, an tn heat Twas ter
BILE. | could hear them hosses fairly scream
, with terror. Both tn keepers clumb up t
tn end O. tn car next t III engine. | could
see by the back-light of the furnace that
their faces was as white as chalk, and they
hollered to me: "For Christs sake, Jake,
give her more steam They didn't know
that had pulled her clear open and was
tearing down that eighty foot grade at nearly
eighty miles an hour. She went so fast, so
help me God, that she quit pumping. We
shot around them curves like a streak of
lightning, nm every time We would strike one
1t seemed as if we must 60 over. When the
oil cars struck us, We made gap of about
ten feet between them and us, and We couldn't I
increase it to save our souls.
poor Jimmy Keenan, was my fireman. He
WAS crazed for about minute, when the
burning cars hit us and kept so close in our
wake. He tried to jump Oh, but grabbed
him and held him till he came up himself,
and he stuck to the old gal like man. jim
m uOt Killed " nipEipp "a Ott the
track ahead OF an express train near Cory IL
year or two afterward. He saved the young
one, though.
1t was dark night, and though felt the
chances was we would never get TO Brocton
alive. | couldn't help but be struck with the
scene. Here was us thundering along faster
nor any engine ever went in this country
afore or since, through woods and on the
edge of high rocks, expecting every minute
to be hurled OFF the track and be carried
home TO our wives crushed and mangled ont
of all knowing of us. The horses was stamp
ing about in the box car. neighing in Il way
that sounds in my ears yit when | git to
thinking of this. The keepers told me af-
terwarls that they couched down in n full
corner of the car. almost swelterng in dan
ger of being trampled to death 10y the horses.
Through the broken end of the ear they
after us, and it seemed to them they said,
as if they were gaining on us every second.
Oh, Lord, what sight them oil cars was
Thousands and thousands of gallons of oil,
with the comhustihlest parts of 1t still III IT,
n burning all at once, and rushing down the
mountain like tremenJis meteor, on II
night us dark rs pitchl The blaze was more Il
sixty feet high, and lit up the crooked road
and the woods and mountains for miles
around The whole heavens was illuminated,
and from Brocton they said the sight of this
great blaze, tearing along like II demon,
now hid for second by cut or piece of
woods, and then leaping out again and Jump
in up towarde the sky like Il huge mountain
of fre-why they said it was Jest grand and
gorgeous. The light was great that the
boys see us swooplng along ahead of the
mass of flying flames an they know'd what
war up. They knowed there wns a race Cor
life agoing ON down that mountain, and they
knowed the chances was agin the ones that
was chased.
.sOf course, the whole thing commenced
and was over in good deal less time an I've
been Il tellin of it. When | see the lights of
Breton Junction it struck me all of a sudden
the Cincinnati express on the Shore road
must be about due there from the West.
looked out at my watch. 1t only lacked one
second OF the express trains time at Brocton.
We'd been thinking all along that to save
ourselves the switch at the junction must 10
opened to let us in on the Shore track where
the track is level and We could git away from
the burning cars. The switch, of course,
was closed, and now, even II the switch-man-
opened it on my signal, there was danger of
crashing into the express. To add to this
fearful situation, / see freight train from
the east pulling like the devil possest to git
inter the switch at Brocton, out of the way
Of the due express.
"'Good Godr says |, Jimmy. what II We
dog'
This all took place inside of five seconds.
'.IIoller for the switch Says Jimmy.
That's our only chance,
So whistled for them to open the switch.
Lord, what shrek that engine gave, Seem
ed as if it knew our chances were slim and
its whistle was Jest one yell of agony,
'Supposing they don't open the switch.
Jimmy: said l. Hot as it was, l could feel
the cold sweat stand out on my forehead and
ooze out all over he. l know | was as pale
MS sheet, for could feel it. Jimmy had
been married Jest a week afore and | knowed
how much he thought of that little woman of
his'n. | had II wife and seven children. 1t
was kinder an ole thing with me, but there
WISH nv aPo' W me Inv 'H"' ii'''' ~ '
mine ana IL contents;
IL they doh turn 'he s"i'ch' '"'A' says
Jimmy Soou-nye!
lie STUCK OUT MS hhnu, hno" "ht' nv
meant ke'eh'u hu'd "i ms mana, anu We
we was sweeping like the wind toward the
station WIN the piazii' ueV,i "hiy zen ieet
behind me. Ahd' thank "oh. they diu 'uth
The switch anu We shot Ill On ihe Hhofe 'iaeh'
tore by the depot hke rocket ana on
thr"ush the to"h' ana up Oh ,he toau' We
kho".u iheh that the express h"" peeh ""ih
ed OF our approach We soon ou'H'fippe"
the burning cars; th'y loN,he thT momentum,
oi the grade We slowed our ntnvo "'n gu
up ny u'Siots' niiu S'"llcu "'hi" nun
dfed yards oi the express 'hnt laN III the
irach' waiting iof the uIshot "i the race'
Jimmy ana me sot on pn' 'ho meNt we
hhoWeu we uluh KNOW hothihS we inliit-
eu uehu away an" wheh we come 10 "hs n"ih
Oh us hoIhe' haie anu souhu' "ut 'eriiply
shook up, now tell you.
l.nE ~