Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-01-20
know nothing of her until we landed a

go down in the smoking-car as usual, but
another fancy, suggested suppose by
the originator of all evil, siezed me. No
need to laugh. Satan, believe, has quite
as much to do with accidents and misesy
and death, as with sin. Why not: How
ever, my fancy, diabolical or not, was to
go down on the engine with Biakeley
[ hunted up the fireman and talked to
him for an hour. Then I went to the
engineer.
| 'Blakeley,' said, Jones (the fireman.
wants to night off,
| .sOff! o, no doubt. He's taking to
drink, Jones. He must have been drink
| ing when he talked of that. It's impos-
sible'
ST explained to Blakely that Jones had
a sick wife, or a sweetheart or something
and finally owned that I had an uncon-
durable desire to run down the road on
the engine, and that knowing my only
chance was to take the freman's place
had bribed him to give it to me. The
fact was that in my idleness and the
overworked state Of my brain l crayed
excitement as confirmed drunkard does
liquor.
"Blakely, saw, was angry and exceed
ingly annoyed. He refused at first, but
finally gave way with a grave civility,
which, almost made me ashamed of my
boyish whim. l promised to be the
price Of tiremen.
"SThen you'll have to be treated as one
Mr.. Santley,' said Blakely, CURLY. l
can't talk to gentlemen aboard my en-
gine. It's different from here, on the
platform, you'll remember. I've got to
order and you to obey, in there, and that's
all there's of it.
go, understand, SAID, thinking that
it required little moral effort to obey, in
the matter Of shovelling coal. If could
have guessed what that shovelling coal
was to cost me! But all day l went about
thinking of the fiery ride through the
hills, mounted literally on the iron horse
ut was in the middle of the afternoon
when the train rushed into the station. I
caught a glimpse of Jane on the passen-
ger car, with Charley, magnificent in his
red green plaid, beside her. She nodded
a dozen times and laughed, and then hid
behind the window, fearing her husband
should see her. Poor girl! 1t was the
second great holiday of her life, she had
told me, the first being her wedding day.
The train stopped ten minutes. It
was neither an express nor an accommo-
dation train, but one which stopped at
the principal stations on the route Sci
insgrove, Sunbury, etc.
II had an old patched suit on, fit, as |
supposed, for the service of coal-heayer;
but Blakeley, when l came up, eyed it
and my hands sardonically. He was in
no bettertemper. evidently, with amateur
fremen then he had been in the morning.
"'All aboardp he said, gruftiy. You
take your place there, Mr.. Santley. You'll
put in coal just as call for it, if you
| please, and not trust to your own .judg-
ment'
ellis tone annoyed me. 1T cannot re-
quire much judgment to keep up a fire
under boiling pot, and not make it toe
hot. Any woman can do that Ill her own
Kitchen
He made no reply, but took his place
on the little square box where the greater
part of his life was passed | noticed
that his face was tluahed, and his irrlta.
ton at my foolish whim was certainly
more than the occasion required. /
watched him with keen curiosity, won
dering if it were possible that he could
have been drinking as he had accused
poor Jones of DOING
1T strikes me as odd" interrupted Fer.
rers, THAT you should not only made al
intimate companion Of this fellow, Stanley
but have taken so keen an interest in his
tempers and drinking bouts. You would
not be likely to honor any of us with such
attention"
mo. have something else to do.
was absolutely idle then. BlakeIey and
his family for the time made up my
world. AS for the friendship, this was
an exceptional man, both as to integrity
and massive hard sense The knowledge
that comes from books counts with me
but for little, compared with the exper.
fence and contact with facts fer forty
years. I was honored by the friendship
of this grimy engineer. But the question
of his sobriety that day was serious
one. A man in charge of train with
hundreds of souls aboard, felt ought to
be sober, particularly when was shut W
in the engine with him.
Just rs we started slip of paper was
handed to him, which he read and threw
down.
"Do you run this train by telegraph !
asked, beginning to shovel vigorously.
Yes. No more coal
{" Isn't that unusual?'
eyes. There are two special trains on
the road this afternoon
is 1t difficult to run train by tele.
graph? said presently, simply to make
conversation. Staring in silence at the
narrow slit in the gloomy furnace or out
at the village street, through which we
slowly passed, was monotonous
NO, not difficult. | simply have to
obey the instructions which | receive at
each station
. But if you should happen to think
the instructions not right?'
Happen to think! I've no business
to think at all When the trains run by
telegraph the engineers are SO many ma
chimes in the hands of one controller, who
directs them all from central point. He
has the whole road under his eye IT they
don't obey to the least title their orders,
1t IS destruction to the whole
"'You seem to think silent obedience
the FIRST and last merit in railway MANI
Eyes, dryly.
81 took the hint and was dumb.