The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1879-08-15
YARNS BY A TRAINS CREW.

4 newspaper correspondent dishes up
the following queer stories told not long
since in a flying baggage car between
Philadelphia and New \ Ork:
THE TRACKMEN.
1 occupied the top of a trunk in a baggage
at the rear of a way train from Philadel-
phia on the Pennsylvania Railroad, the other
night, and every one of the train hands spun
a yarn before we reached Jersey City. The
general conversation was started by my ask
ing the occupation Of a man ] saw on the
track carrying a bag and white light, and
walking along with his eyes on the ground.
He looked like geOlOgiSt examining the
soil. was told that he was track walk
er, and that the railroad employs many
men-One to every three mieS-tO patrol the
track night and day, after the English plan.
These track walkers carry q wrench, ham
mer, spikes switch KEY, anG what not
They examine every inch of the rails, par
ticularly the joints, repair whatever gets out
of order, and undo any Instructions that
may have been erected with miSchievous in
tent
"And are obstructions sometimes found
by them - the conductor was asked
More frequently than you'd think was
that officials reply. THAT very man you
asked about found a rail tied across the
track twice in twenty -four hours, just above
Bristol station. Hefound ties piled up more
thar once near curve, and as for loose rails
they are found every night Generally,
loose rails are i'm the natural order of events.
''What does he do at night when he comes
across an obstruction - was the next queS-
ton.
'He signals the endangered train" was
the repy..
''Yes but his light is a white one
''Wen, he carries a red glass cover to put
over the white shade the conductor made
reply.
He Is armed the conductor interrupted
Stories of fights in which railroad men
took part, We're suggested and narrated.
WINDOW BREAKERS.
One was about conductor of the New
jersey Southern in Jim FiSk'S time when
the biggest train loads ever seen in New
Jersey were carried down to Monmouth
Park. ROughS were not uncommon, and a
custom rOughs had was that of breaking
car door panes. These lights cost about
dollar and a half, but the companies charged
three dollars for them as protective meas
ure The conductor referred to reported a
number of broken door panes, and told Su-
perintendent kimball he could neither get
the money nor arrest the rouglis. men
lick the -- Mr.. kimball replied. -
'.Do You order me to lick any man | catch
breaking glass 90 asked the conductor,
frail fellow of consumptiVe tendency. Il do,
replied the Superintendent "Nell, that's
ali / want to know" said the conductor
That night the plucky train handler was
brought into the general Office at Long
Branch mass of cuts and bumps, and black
and blue all over. He was unable To walk.
Il saw n man break glass and hit him a
clip in the nose. said the conductor That
is all. except that he was 2oo-pound Fourth
ward bruiser, with hands like triphammcrs,
and he wiped the floor with me, pounded
my head ON the seat irons, and jumped on
my stomach for 10 minutes
TRAMPs.
TraInpS were considered in a story told
by the news agent. lie said that at u sta
tion on the Pennsylvania division a horde
of trampS captured and filed the depot and
threatened to kill those who offered to
diSIodCe them. They lounged on Che bench
eS smoked, SwOre and fought. y bright
idea sieZed the station agent. 1t was winter
time. He went into the tTamp-inyaded sit
ting-room and pretended to poke the fire.
The poker was three-quaTter. inch bar, five
feet long. While he fuddlcd with tie damp
er he left the poker buried in the hot Goals.
The trampS applauded his hospitality. lie
whistled cheerfully and ratified the damper.
Suddenly he SpTaug to- his feet, drew out the
poker three feet of which was at white
heat and swinging it right and left he yelled
at the panic-stricken trampS few Of
them went out by the door, but the ma ioTity
plunged through the windows. In less than
so seconds the statFn agent was monarch of
all he surveyed.
THE IOWA FARMER.
\ brakeman told = queer yarn about a
wealthy old miScreaut in Iowa, a farmer,
who did not fence his land properly, Yet
.
railroad beat him in the courts, and he
l treasured up the hardest feelings against
/ the company. One day a rail was tied
/ across the track near the old farmers land,
and the first passenger tram that came
! along was wrecked Ii was believed at the
time that the farmer had tied the rail To the
track Many persons were killed, and all
the bodies but that of an aged woman were
identified The first day after the accident
the old farmer did not go to the town where
in this body awaited burial, but on the fol
lowing morning lac visited the pOStOtticc and
received word that his sister was coming on
from the East to visit him lie rushed u
the morgue and identified the body Of the
unknown lady aS that of his sister. In les
than a year he became raving maniac, ant
i'm his rawlings admitted that he had wrecked
the train.
Another story was told of a stupid lamt
that was seen to run between the wheels Oi
a IA pidlV moving locomotive near Sunbury.
The engineer suffered pang OF regret, fo
he was tender-heaTted and wouldn't ruI
over a snake If NE could help it. He looked
back over the road for the corpse of the un
fortunate lamb TO his astonishment IN
saw the lamb leap from the track belun,
the last car and run off wagging it, tail. l
had passed under all the cars and was unin
, jured.
THE MURDERoUs ENGINE.
Many persons are killed on doube-tracl
road ~ stepping from one track to the otl
er, avoiding n train they see and hear, an
: being killed 10y one that they do not think Z
look out for Almost every engineer OF ol
dinarv experience has killed his man, an
; some have killed many Railroad men neN
er speak of killing men or animals on tn
road but of striking them-which, how
- ever. generally amounts to the same thing.
\ story was told of Hudson river eng
! neer who killed Il man that suddenly steppc
i'm front Of his engine. lie had been watcl
! ing the man and saw his face as he crosse
z over the track and walked into the cngin
n The man was blind. The engineer caught
glimpse of the victim face a. lac was struel
I Ills eXprcSSinn was one of terror. ii
: scream was heard above the pounding Of u
: engine. The sight haunted the engineer "a
J. til he quit the business. Every night at q
II spot that scene was enacted. lie took
e dav train but at noon the apparition hau
Y ted the spot. lie even went into the SerNI
"a of another company, yet ut unexpected M
! mentS the spectre of the blind mau scent
"a to start up in the track, to throw hiS arr
IL over his head wildly, To scream, and Ia
n crushed under the locomotive. II was mo
tllah the engineer could b2ar.