The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1879-05-03

| clasped the door for support, not knowing
what had happened She looked out in
to the night. stunned and terrified.
There was nothing-nothing. save
vast cloud of dust, white and ghostly in
the night. All a CLEAN, a flare of light.
1t shone through the curtain of dust as
it drifted away before the wind. There
were hurrying footsteps, shouts, cries for
help and groans. The dust disappeared,
| and the end of an overturned car stood
out in the bright light. The flames shot
up higher. The wreck grew in horrid
proportions. All. it was on fire.
1t is peculiar feature of American life
! that new and unexpected circumstances
are always met and controlled by spirit
of organization that creates out of the
men and materials at hand the mastery
| of events. In half an hour after the first
crash as the train left the metals, the
frightened passengers were comfortably
housed in the empty cars of the freight
train. A carload of lumber had been
despoied to make seats for the whole and
beds for the injured. The freight engine
on the siding was used to drag the wreck
away from the up line, and its tank water
and steam had been used to put out the
| fire. In an hour the freight engine. in
charge of the express people. started
away with its dreary load, the well in the
forward cars, the injured on beds ofhay
robbed from the freight, in the next cars.
the dead behind.
Darkness and silence fell on the lonely
way-Station. 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 round the stove in the
switch-house. For long time nothing
was said. There are times when speak
ing seems impertinent Events become
too big for words. Then one of the men
spoke and said:
They did say it were the President
who were killed in the forward sleeper.
Mary Britton glanced at Samson Gil
der. He was silent and self-absorbed,
and his face gave no indication that he
needed this remark At that moment
the door opened and Jack Cinder came
in, bringing in his hand a new track-lay
er's bar. He brought it to the light and
held it before them all.
Do you see that, boys? | found it
under the smashed sleeper. It's a new
bar. and The men looked at the bar
for moment in apparent indifference,
and said nothing. The keener feminine
mind sprang to intuitive conclusions.
Her thoughts leaped from a terror to a
| defence.
1t was the tramp. lie stole the bar
and wrecked the train.
"Mebbe he did. and mebbc he didn' t.
This do know: Samson Glider was wish
ing the President into the ditch. This is
his bar. and he was out on the line just
before it happened
The coroner's jury called to 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 i'll the woods near the
line. and had been caught by the section
master and his men. Every one at once
said. 1.-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. He had seen the
disaster from the woods, and had then
run away lest he be caught. Alter some
time he had come back to find the bar he
had dropped in the woods 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 CentreviIlc papers,
who were present, called Mary Britton to
the telegraph that message might be
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 against
the president.
| Weeks passed, and then the trial came
on at the court house at Centreville.-
Samson Glider had been committed to
answer a charge of willfully wIecking
railroad train.
Mary Britton lived years i'll those few
weeks. She could not believe Samson
had committed SO great wrong. Yet
every thing 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 back
ward and forward over all this hundred
times in search of something to prove
him innocent. daily sending and receiv-
| ing messages. One morning, as size sat
thinking bitterly of the SORROW that had
invaded her life, her eyes fell on an old
newspaper fallen under desk. She
picked it up and opened it, The Iron
! 7rade Rerie~. She eagerly turned to the
second page. All. why had she forgot
ten these pictures? Strange black fig
ures. etchings Uf iron. .nature-printed
Given this slight clew, her mind leaped
| to a brave resolve. She would bring sci
enee to loves rescue. How. she could
not tell. She had a vague idea of what
might be done, ard, asking her father
to attend t" the telegraph, she ran hast
lily out on the line and down the road
toward the village. Stopping at a Ger
tain house, she found a young girl who
was a good operator, and at once hired
| her 90 take her place at the station
Before night she had taken every dollar
she had in the ~orid ffq,n the savings
bank. and was on her way to the pily.
The moving cars seemed to drag too
slowly Why had ai'a fingered 50 long
idle. and Samson in danger?
The day of the trial came on At the
trial I'll the testimony that we already
know. and i.Ich more of less import
ance. had been offered by the prosecu-
ton. The defence set up the previous
good character of the prisoner and that
| seemed about all that could be said.
Macy B.i,tGn had given her testimony
| early i'll the t,iii, ari that seemed all
that she could do. She had i.4le 60 say,
but was not Yet ready to speak, All the
morning she had sat in the crowded court
room Watching the clock, and waiting
| and looking for some one, a strong and
brave helper, to come to her assistance
At the last ntiE?nnt she spoke to the
counsel, and asked for slight. delay.
| There might be yet other Witnesses
! The defence began to talk against time,
and 2 messenger was sent to hasten the
tagging aid.
The knight arrived. : Gale thin-faced
young man i'll glasses appeared ana de-
manded to give his testimony. Behind
him came a marvellous array-men with
strange tools, lanterns of singular con-
Struction, bars u.d rGds of iron. and a
number of gentlemen who hecI.,e.i 10 hl
prosperous merchants and manufacturers.
| There came also an old German and a
! farmer from Barstow'S. The young man
! spoke to Mary Britton with the utmost
Difference. and she consulted with him
for a moment. ana ii,elt presented him to
Samson : counsel.
Samuel Mayer then testified that at the
request of Miss Britton he had planned one
side or caah of the two bars till a smooth
surface had been Obtained. \ portion of
this surface on each bar had then been
rtDhpd with acid and from tbiS ctcb;n,,