Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1877-09-12
Story Of the Engineer.

Leu ine put my name uOWn HrSJ--l eau
stay long l'
1t was red ribbon meeting, and the man
was locomotive engineer, bronzed and
strong, and having eyes full of deep deter
mination lie signed his name in bold,
plain hand, tied red ribbon in his button
hole, and as he left the hall he said
AS the Lord looks down upon me, I'll
never touch liquor again"
Have you been hard drinker ?" queried
a man who walked beside the engineer
"No. Fact is, was never drunk in my
life. I've swallowed considerable whskey,
but never went for enough to get drunk.
shouldn't miss it or be the worse off for an
hour if all the intoxicating drink in the
world was drained into the ocean"
But you seemed eager TO sign the pledge"
80 was, and I'll keep it through thick
and thin, and talk temperance to every man
on the road"
"You must have strong reasons p
"Well, if you'll walk down to the depot
III tell you story on the way. 1t hasn't
been in the papers, and only a few of us
know the facts. You know | run the night
express on the B road We always
have at least two sleepers and coach, and
sometimes we have as many as two hundred
passengers. It's a good road, level as
floor, and pretty straight though there is
bad spot or two. The night express has the
right o. way and we make fast time. It's
no rare thing for us to skim along at the
rate of fifty miles AN hour for thirty or forty
miles, and we rarely 20 below thirty. One
night pulled out OF Detroit with two sleep
ers two coaches, and the baggage and mail
cars. Nearly all the berths in both sleepers
were full, and most of the seats in the
coaches were occupied. Ii was dark night,
threatening all the time to rain, and lone
some wind whisted around the cab as we
left the city behind. We were seventeen
minutes late and that meant fast time all
the way through.
"Well," he continued after moment,
everything ran along all right up to mid
night. The main track was kept clear for
US; the engine was i'll good spirits, and we
ran into D as smooth as you please.
The express coming east should meet us
fifteen miles west OF D, but the opera
tor at the station had Jailed to receive his
usual report from below. That was strange,
and yet it was not, and after little consul
tation the conductor sent me ahead. We
were to keep the main track, while the other
train would run in on the side-track. Night
after night our time had been so close that
we did not keep them waiting over two
minutes, and were generally in sight when
they switched in.
"When we left D. we went ahead at
rattling speed, fully believing that the
other train would be on time. Nine miles |
from D. is the little village of Parto. |
There was a telegraph station there, but the
operator has no night work. He closed his |
Office and went home about nine o'clock and |
any messages Oh the wires for him were
hal1 ahova nr bulou until navt ,noru;nc,
When | sighted this station | saw red
lantern swinging between the rails. Greatly |
astonished, pulled up the heavy train aud |
got a bit OF news that almost lifted me out
of my boots. 1t was Gods mercy, as plain
as this big depot. 1t was the operator who
was swinging the lantern. He had been
reused from sleep by the whistles of loco
motive, when there wasn't one within ten
miles of him. He heard the toot toot ! |
toot while he was dressing, and all the
way as he ran to the station, thinking he
had been signalled Lo there was no train
there. Everything was as quiet as the grave.
The man heard his instrument clicking
away, and leaning his ear against the win
dow he caught these words as they went
through TO ID -
For Gods sake, switch the Eastern ex-
press off quick Engineer on the Western
express crazy drunk, and running mile
minute /"
"The operator signalled us at once. We |
had left D. nine miles away and the |
message couldn't have caught us anywhere
except at Parto. Six miles further down
was the long switch. 1t was time we were
there, lacking one minute. We lost two or
three minutes in understanding the situation
and in consulting, and had just got ready to
tnh IN. ghara xnyl.at h..aI
light OF the other train came into view.
Great heavens but how that train was fly
ing. The bell was ringing, sparks flying
and the whistle screaming, and not a man OF
US could raise a hand We stood there on
the main track, spell-bound as it were. There
wouldn't have been time anyhow, either to
have switched in or got the passengers out.
1t wasn't over sixty seconds before that
train was upon u. prayed to God ior "a
breath or two, and then shut my eyes aud
waited for death, for hadn't the strength
To get out OF the cab"
"Well, sir, Gods mercy was revealed
again. Forty rods above US that locomotive
jumped the track and was piled into the
ditch in an awful mass. Some of the
coaches were considerably smashed, aud
some OF the people badly bruised, but no one
was killed, and of course our train escaped
entirely. Satan must have cared for Big
rom, the other engineer. He didn't get
bruise, but was up and across the fields like
a deer, screaming aud shrieking like mad
tiger. 1t took five men to bind him after
he was run down, and to-day he is the worst
iunatic in the state"
Tom was good fellow" continued the
engineer, after pause, and he used to
take his glass pretty regularly. | never saw
him drunk, but liquor kept working away
on his nerves till at last the iremens caught
hin when he had a hundred and fifty lives
behind his engine lie broke out all OF a
sudden. The fireman was thrown oil the
engine, all steam turned on, and then Tom
danced and screamed and carried on like u
6end. He'd have made awful work, sir, but
for Gods mercy. Pm trembling yet over
the way he came down for us, and I'll never
think of it without my heart jumping for
my throat. Nobody asked me to sign the
pledge, but | wanted my name there. One
such night on the road has turned me against
intoxicating drinks, and now that I've got
this red ribbon on can talk TO the boys
with better face. Tom is raving as | told
you, and the doctors say he'll never get his
reason again. Good night, sir-my train
| goes in ten minutes"