The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1881-11-04
THE ENGINEERS STORY.

THE ENGINEER'S STORY.
Mayhap, stranger, you hev ben over
the Pennsylvany Central Railroad. As
you may say, was born and brought
up on that line, first as fireman, then
engineer nigh on to twenty years. It's
alters excitin' to run machine, and
wen 1 was fireman l used to think il
was better to be top of one of them
splendid engines than to be President
of the United States. The day they
first put me on the footboard and I took
the lever in my hand and knew it was
my engine, l reckon was the proudest
man between Pittsburgh and Altoona.
l kinder thought that everybody was
:goin' to be out, tibet day, to see how
the train made her run, and you kin
bet all your specie that she went smack
up to the mint, the whole III miles.
But this kind of spirit wore off, after
awhile, N L settled down into a sober
.stiddy goin' man; n they did say that !
wor as safe n reliable a man as they
he'd in the business. hev to say it,
stranger, as there's nobody else to do
it; elsewise you wouldn't know it.
was turned twenty-three wen me
and Mary was married. Twenty-eight
years ago! You hev wife, stranger?
Hewitt got no wife! Well! mayhaps
it's just as well! he'd Mary some
eight years, but it don't seem like no
time, now. 1 left her there in the old
Keystone State, her an the boy. Some
times l think I'd like to 90 back agin,
and see the place where they both lie.
but I suppose l never shall. Don't
seem as if had the heart to do it. 1t
wasn't in any church-yard, you know;
but little way up the mountain there
was green quiet spot among the trees.
and they are there-not more'n 100
feet, say, above the track-and often
wonder if Charley doesn't still dream,
when the New York express thunder
by. that his old father is holding the
throttle.
put up snug cabin by the side of
the road when I had a small clearin' :,
and between whites 1 used to plant
my potatoes and things, enough to
keep us going, and Mary had her
garden. Mary alters took to flowers, as
used to tell her, jokin' like. eos she
was one of the family. Then we had a
COW, and Mary raised chickens.
Our little cabin was in among the
mountains. good ways from any other
house. and l used to sometimes think
that Mary must be lonely, with me
away so much of the time. You see, l
was alters out three nights in the week.
l went up in the daytime, passing my
house at noon, and down again that
night, passing at midnight. But I was
home two or three days in the week,
and alters Sunday. The place where
we lived was a wild region of country,
and the storms we used to have up
there, SO high in the air, was fearful.
I didn't tell you anything about the
boy? No! Well, do you know l took
to him the very first moment. And
that's very curious thing about ba-
bies. Now, I never fancied 'em much,
but l tell you, stranger, it makes all the
difference in the world whether it's your
baby or whether it belongs to somebody
else. I've seen a great many of 'em in
my time, and accordin' to their parents
they was the most uncommon babies;
but l could never see much of it.
used to laugh good deal when people
made such fools of themselves over their
children, but know exactly how it is
now, for 1 suppose l was the greatest
fool over my Charley as ever lived.
Mary named him Charley. That was
after me. Seems to me that boy took
to a locomotive from the time he was
six months old. His mother would sit
out in front of the house, with him in
her lap, when was up at noon, and
she'd kiss her hand and wave the baby
at me. By the time he was three years
old he'd got so that used to take him
up to ride with me. There was water
tank near the house, and when l
stopped to water he was alters there,
and I'd ketch him up'n carry i'm off ten
,or twenty miles, till met another train,
and some of the boys'd carry him back
home: 'Twasn't long afore there was
scarce a man on the road as didn't know
Charley Latham's baby. They'd pick
him up wherever they could find i'm,
and sometimes he'd be gone nearly all
day, but somebody'd set i'm down
-afore night, n he'd come toddlin' home.
Sometimes I'd think it's queer how the
men used to take to that baby.
One of the first things Charley learned
to say, when he was beginnin' to talk.
was this: You see the men on the road
used to call one another ''Pard''-short
for '.Pardner." Charley he caught it,
and he always called me "Pard." 1
don't think he ever called me father or
papa, like other children do; but it was
alters '.Pard." ''You and me is pards,
isn't we?'' he used 10 say. An that's
what we alters called one another, and
he went by the name of Charley Lath-
ANS pard' all over the road.