Mexico weekly ledger. (Mexico, Mo.) 1855-1956, 1881-02-24
and the steam raised continually. 9

and the steam raised continually, 90
that she kept her speed, and passed
the station like . streak Of light In
i've minutes. Now came nine miles
like the last, over which che kept
pace with her time, and passed the
station in seven and half minutes.
Here for twenty miles We had q twen-
ty foot grade 70 encounter, but the
worst Of it all was at this place We
would have to stop for wood. was
just going to speak to Roberts about
it, when I looked around and saw
him filling the tender from the coach
with wood which had been placed
there before starting, while he had
gone after me.
/ believe We would have made this
ten miles with the same speed as be-
fore, but through the carelesness of
the fireman the fountain valve on the
left-hand side of the engine got open
ed, and the water ran 10 the boiler 20
fast as to run the steam down to 100
pounds before I discovered where
the difficulty was. At first Roberts
did not appear to notice the decrease
ofspeed, and KEEP: at work at the wood
for dear life. But presently he look
ell up, apd seeing that the speed had
decreased, he shouted: ''Harry, We
are stopping!" and then coming over
to where I was, he said: ''Why,
here We have been ten minutes on the
last ten miles, and believe We will
come to q dead stand if something is
not done! The speed is continually
Stacking. What is the matter?" /
explained the cause. He was appar-
emily satisfied with my explanation,
and, having tied down the safety
valve, he climbed over the tender,
exborting me to ''put her through. for
Gods sake, or we are all beggars to-
gether!"
just then we passed the next sta
ton, having made nine minutes 10
the eight miles. We were now more
than half over the road, but We had
lost nearly ten minutes time and had
only left twenty seven minutes to do
thirty-seven miles in. I had shut
the water off from both my pumps a
little distance back, when / discover
ed what was the matter, and she was
now making steam finely down O
light grade. From less than one
hundred, with which we started over
that ten-mi.e stretch, she had two
hundred pounds before we finished it,
and as the gauge indicated no higher
than that, and the valve was tied
down, could not tell how much over
two hundred pounds she carried; but
certainly carried none the less tie re-
mainder of the journey. And we'll
she might carry such an enormous
head of steam, for passing over that
ten miles 10 eight minutes there lay
ten miles of five-fe upgrade and
fourteen miles of twenty feet to the
mile depression between US and c.,
and it was now thirteen minutes to IL
O'Clock.
Now the engine was hot in earnest.
The furnace-door, smoke-arch, and
chimney we're all red, while she SEEM
ed to fly onward as if the very evil
one himself operated her by machin-
cry. Six minutes carried Us owe:
that ten miles, and We darted by the
last station that had lain between US
and c -. Now we had fourteen
miles to 60, and my time indicated
fifty-three minutes past IL o'clock.
''If live," said I to myself, II will
make it, And We plunged down
that twenty-foot grade with all steam
on. Persons who saw the train on
that wild run said it was soon after
they heard the first sound of her ap-
proach, when the strange object,
which looked as if it was fame of
FIRE, dar,ed by, and then the sound
Of its travelling died away in the dis
lance, that they could hardly con-
vince themselves they had really seen
anything. 1t seemed more like the
creature of a wild dream than a sober
reality.
And now let me tell you that no
engine ever beat the time we made on
those fourteen miles. Those great
wheels, seven feet in diameter, spun
around 80 quick thst you couldn't
begin to count the revolutions. The
engine barely seemed to touch the
track she flew along, and although
the track was as true as il was posi-
BILE for it to be, she swayed fearfully,
and sometimes made such prodigious
ijolts that it required considerable
skill for one to keep his feet. Nc
engine could hold together if crowd.
ed to greater speed.
! Well, just as came to stand.
still in the depot 1T c. the big
} clock doomed out IL, and the steam
boat was getting her steam on. Rob
} erts got on board in time and nothin.
to spare. But he saved the money
He found it hid away in some ole
boxes, as Aldrich had directed him
!.
i 4 Cincinnati Conversation.
They were talking of literatur
. when she remarked: