The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1879-11-21

freight engine in charge of the express
people started away with its dreary load,
the well in the forward cars, the injured
on beds of hay robbed from the freight
in the next cars, the dead in the last of
all.
Darkness and silence fell on the lonely
way statioH, and save where the black
wreck lifted its mangled bones against
the sky, there was nothing to mark the
disaster except the pale faces of the men
who gathered around the stove in the
switch-hOuse. There are times when
speaking seems impertinent. Events
become too big for words. At last one
of the men spoke, and said
They did say it were the president
with was killed in the forward sleeper"
Mary Britton glanced at Samson Gil
der. He was silent and selfabsorbed, and
his face gave no Indication that he heed
ed this remark. AT that moment the
door opened, and Jack Cinder came in,
bringing in his hand a new track-layer's
bar. He brought it too the light and
held it before them all.
DO you see that boys? | found it
under the broken sleeper. It's new bar,
and"
The men looked ut the bar for mo-
ment in apparent indifference, and said
nothing. The keener feminine mind
sprang to intutitive conclusions. Her
thoughts leaped from a terror to de-
Tense in minute of time.
at was the tramp. He stole the bar
and wrecked the train"
"Mebbc he did, and mebbe he didn't.
This / do know: Samson Glider was Il
wishing the president into the ditch,
| This is his bar, and he was out on the
line just before it happened"
The cDrOppr'S inrV called tn consider
the death of Thomas Starmore and 9th
ers, killed at Barstow's siding on the
night of the 25th of February, met at the
switch house and heard the evidence of
| the persons who were known to have
been present at the time of the disaster.
| Even the tramp had been captured. He
was seen prowling in the woods near the
line and had been caught by the section
master and his men. Every one said the
tramp did it, but the tramp had in his
hand another bar, just like the bar found
under the train. He admitted having
stolen the bar from the railway compa-
ny. He had seen the disaster from the
| woods, and had run away lest he be
caught. After some time he had come
back to find the bar he had dropped in
his flight. He had the bar with him
| when caught. He could prove all this,
because the bar was rusty from lying in
the snow.
The reporters of the Centerville papers
who were present called Mary Britton to
the telegraph that message might be
dispatched. One of them placed a pa
per before her:
"a tramp has been found who admits
having stolen the bar, but it is plain that
he did not use it. All the evidence goes
to show that the engineer wrecked the
train, out of spite to the President"
These words Mary BrittOn sent off by
wire to the whole United States, while
her lover sat near, already in the shadow
of advancing calamity. The operators
who read off these words in distant cit
les heard every word distinctly, little
knowing the terrible trial under which
they were dispatched. Never in after
life did she forget that message.
Gentlemen" said the coroner, ''this
case seems to warrant me in referring
the whole matter to the grand jury for
| further examination"
Weeks passed, and then the trial came
on at the court house Centreville.
Samson Glider had been committed to
answer q charge of willfnlly wrecking Il
| train.
Mary Britton lived years in those
| few weeks. She could not believe
that Samson had committed so great a
wrong Yet everything was against
him. Track-layers' bars were abundant
enough. He could easily have found
one about the place, and with it have
drawn the spikes from rail-. Her
mind went backward and forward over
all this a hundred times in search of
something to prove him innocent. She
still attended to her duties at the station,
sending and receiving messages. One
morning, as she sat thinking bitterly
| of the sorrow that had invaded her life,
her eyes fell upon an old newspaper
| fallen under her desk, the Iron Trade Re
view. She picked it up, opened it, and
turned to the second page. All! why had
she forgotten those pictures? Strange,
black figures, etchings of iron, nature
printed. Given this slight clew, her
| mind leaped TO brave resolve. She
would bring science to loves rescue
idea of what might be done, and asking
her father to attend to the telegraph, she
ran hastily out on the line, and down the
road toward the village. Stopping at q
certain little house, she found girl who
was good operator, and at once hired
her to take her place at the station.
Before night she had taken every dol
lar she had in the world from the savings
bank, and was on her way to the city. The
cars seemed to drag too slowly. Why
had she fingered so long and Samson In
danger
The day of trial came on. All the
testimony that we know, and much o
less importance, had been Offered by the
prosecution The defense set up the
previous good character of the prisoner
and that seemed all that could be said.
Mary Britton had given her testimony
early in the trial; she had more to say
but was not to speak All the morning
she had sat in the crowded cout room
watching the clock, and waiting for one
brave defender to come to her assistance
At the last moment she spoke to the
counsel and asked for slight delay
There might be yet other witnesses. The
defense began to talk against time, and /;
messenger was sent TO hasten the tagging
aid.
The knight arrived. A pale, thin-faceC
young man IN glasses appeared and de
manded TO give his testimony BehinC
him came a marvellous array-Incn witt
strange tools, lanterns of peculiar con
struetion. bars and rods of iron, a mum
Der of gentlemen who seemed to be pros
porous merchants and manufacturers
There came also an old German Jew ant
a farmer from BarstOw'S. The young
manRspoke to Mary Britton with the ut
EuOct hclCLI0CCr eAAla SuC IOnohAhC0 Will
him for a moment and then presented
him to Samson,s counsel.
! There was a slight murmur of surpriS'
at this demonstration, aid then Samue
Mayer was duly sworn. He testified tina
he was an expert in metals. He had ex
amined the bar found under the wrecked
car, and was prepared to prove tina
though il was used in wrecking thetrain
IL was not the one purchased by Samson
Glider With the permission of thu
court, he would like To have the room
daFkened, that with the aid Of a lanterI
he might project same nature priBteS
pictures Of the iron used IN making tin
bar.
The prosecution objected. What sci
entific jugglery was thiss The old Ian
tern dodge familiar in cases of forgery
The court Overruled the objection, ant
the young man produced some pieces o
cloth, which his assistants spread owe
the windows, till the room became quit
dark. A gas JET was lighted, and in th'
dim light other men set up screen ana
| iime-Iight lantern rs forSantern projec
t9.noa In n WonderfulEA short tim