Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1881-12-16
NO. SO.

which was the other side of the run
Ssrainin' my eyes Though the dark just at
the point of the curve | saw a light SWING
ing back ard and forward slowly across
the track. You know [ was teliin' you
as everything went crooked that night.
Soon az saw that light | knew what it all
was in q mint. It came Oh me with a
rush, like. Ny hair stood on end. blew
breaks, l screams to the fireman: Crazy!
DEVILS Run cuiverts gone, by the Twin
God ~ He jumped n sot the tende
brakes. and slid the wheels in 4 fash. Tbs
brakemen behind didn't answer. hey
were do<in in the cars, reckon. | ble~
brakes agin y it'll blast TO wake the f3ea d.
and threw her over. The drivers ground
and groaned under me, but tie rails were
sleety and slipp ~, and ! was forging
ahead to gulf 500 feet square down, and
$50 human lives behlnd me. | vas tellin
We as No. 90 that night was dead square
ag'in goin' ahead: but wen | threw Ell
back seams like she knew Der biz and how
much laid on her doin' of it well. Wo-
cattankerous cusses wen they don't want
to, but where It's works OF goodness or
mercy call on 'em and they're right there.
No. 90 took hold on that reverse with a
grit never seen in no engine afore. She
put all there was in her into every turn,
and the whole affair took Ii SIS time than
Pm a tellin' Of it till the danger was by.
| When we stopped within twenty feet Of
the light, which was swingin' still, back
J ward and forward, slowly across the
track, SCI to Crazy, "Who's got that
lan5ern?' Knew it couldn't be the track
nan, for wed just met him three miles be-
low, aud 'cept him there was nobody near
ERIN ten miles at that time of night. So
gets down from the machine and runs up
the 20 ID. AS cones up | sees a little
iguie in white. 1t was still a swingin' of
the light, back *ards and forwards, slowly
across the track. He was in his night
gown, just as he got out of bed. hadn' no
hat, and Was barefoot. The sleet had froZ-
in his hair and his nightgown was stiff
with ice. comes up To 'lm-Well, was
TOOK that Way couldn't speak. An he
KEEP swingin' the light. back wards and for
! wards, slowly across the track, and ne seq
40 me, he says, ''You and mes pards, isF't
we?" | 10 ks at i'm mint. HIS eyes
was open and looked queer He WA dea d
fast asleep. Crazy ketches ME or I'd gone
over, which it Were my legs seemed weak
like. Then I Sets down On the rail and
CtaGy picks up the child, N huggin' Of i'm
up busted right out d cryin', he did.
The conductor ard some of the men got
out Of the cars and come where We was.
It. was sieetin' still m CROWN bitter cold
The boys carried tie baby into the baggage
ear, where there was ST owe aid took Off
his night clothes and wrapped lin up in
blankets and great coats. There was q
doctor Oh the train, and he ses if we kin
git in back to bed without wakin' OF i'm
up Traps it wouldn't hurt i'm; but if he
was to wake, what with the wet, n the
cold, n the fright like as not it height
kill lin. So the boys takes i'm up to car
ry i'm to the house. and [ folered along.
but couldn't lev carried Il kitten. The
wake i'm. for it was as much as his life
WAS worth. So Crazy takes i'm. and two
Of 'em folds blanket over I'll 81 keep the
{ slaet off, III one goes ahead with q Ian
/ tern, and two or three more abous with
lanterns, so's to light the way. w EN- we
got to the break it was just as expected,
track. road. culVert, everything gone.
clean as il cut out with knife. The wa
ter was pitchin' down the run six feet
! dep, carryiii' big rocks and boulde1s, that
! bounced and bumped from side to side aud
I! up into the air. clear out of the water. It
over the gap. which was at least twenty
/ feet wide, don t know A tree he'd come
down ard lodged cross-ways, and suppose
| he must Iaee gone ever o that. W en- we
come to it We WAS mast afraid TO try it,
for if you slippe,' off the log it was all day
with you. | didn t like to trust the boys,
and ses to Jake, Cray, you won't drop
the baby, will your" He poin down in
to the break and SEES, Latham, we'd all
been down there. every mothers son Of as,
but fer your little pard. I'd drop my soul
filst''
Well we got i'm home safe at last
Mary was asleep when we got to the house
and Was scared as bad as rue when She
heard v hat Was up. We put i'm back in
his bed and sure enough he never walked
up. Next mornin' til y threw treslis
over the break and traits VAS runnin'
iagiu. But the doctor STAYED with us Jest
out of his own head, you know, but he
Iseemed anxious. Seemed as though he
took to the child. Don't wonder at that.
neither. Most every body did.
! l watched by i'm all that night, aud to-
I yard Gay got out ali his old Christ mas
thugs and set IN on to a table near the
| bed, where he could see '-na the first thing
+: But a fever came on i'm, n wen he woke
up he was cut OF bis head. l speaks to
i i'm and ses, How goes it, Parl?" But
! he didn't know NE. That was rha ksgiv
ing Day, you know, ~ sat there by him,
/ hopi'l' every mint as he might come
round so I'D give i'm his things and we
could hev our holiday just as we used to
do. But he kept gettin' worse from hour
to hour.
! He was sick jest a week and wanderin'
and wild from first to last. | stayed with
i'm Ill tho tirna for hadn,t rritc oorDoh