Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1883-08-31
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RUNNING An
ENGINE NIGHT AND DAY.

Tn Yes, engineers 90 1000 tQ6lE
nerve" said Old Throttle, especially
one who has night run all the time.
You zee, In the night time an engineers
eyes, thoughts and all are confined to a
very small space, it's nearly or quite
dark inside the cab, and II his engine Is
workin' all right, csrryin' her water,
good lots OF steam, and the fireman
wide awake and lively, that engineer
don't have much to do with his eyes,
only look ont ahead over the little space
made bright by the headlight, and his
thoughts are naturally confined to what
his eyes take in. In the daytime it's
different; he can look around and see
lots that's goin' on. He notices that
this deld Of Eaters looks good, and won
ders il his little patch at home will turn
eut as we'll he sees Teller fishin, and
remembers the last mees of trout he
caught in the Shohola he sees woman
and baby in the little white house near
the big curve. and his thoughts fly back
and he wonders what they are dein' just
tendin' to his business strictly,
changed, and his vision and the
thoughts, az said, are confined to the
small spot made visible and distinct by
the headlight, and his ideas naturally
follow the rails. He remembers that the
culvert just ahead IL the very spot that
vas washed out last spring, and moth
ing left under the ties and rails for if
teen feet; true his engine jdnped the
chasm and only Ave cars loaded with
express matter and baggage went down
"a 1870 av,,o oho<1 and v,ilo1 nm ton ~
each other, but it might have been the
ten cars Of smigrants that were coupled
In the rear, and il isn't pleasant to think
Of what might have been. Just around
the curve 10 the place where his engine
struck drav-head some careless brake
man had left laying ON tire track, his
engine only turned over on her side, and
fortunately the air brakes had % stop
ped the train that no further damage
waa done, bat he shudders a. he recalls
the sensations be experienced while the
engine Was turning over and crushing
its mad way through the ties. and it
isn't pleasant to think Of. He flies over
huge embankment at a pace Of forty
miles an hour, and thinks OF the feel.
ings that were his on certain trip LAST
winter when q side-rod came crashing
through the side IT the cab while pass
ing over this same embankment. La
the cut lust ahead 10 where, on the last
trip, q watchmAn intent ON Watching a
train ON the opposite track had for
gotten the express was due, and
the horror and agony depicted on his
fAoe as the pilot threw him high in the
air will never be forgotten, neither will
his mangled and stained body, picked
M and cared for as eoOn AZ the train
could be stopped. And 20 on nearly
every mile OF road something Of this
kind il brought TO mind a. his thoughts
follow the circle of light ahead, which
flashes and changes constantly, nov
shining on q bridge. nov showing an
snbankmeut. flashing it, rays nov on
hsuse and now through trees aud foli-
aoe, and il the man Is easily wsrried or
bothered he gets very nervous, indeed,
and vishes he was al the end Of his trip.
Anywhere, OF of the rail. I've known
men 20 give up the best trains on the
road, and big pay. because they had to
run in the night time, and take trains
that were much harder to run, and
poorer pay, simply because the latter
run in daylight. Yes, engineers do
sometimes get frightened and lose nerve.
and il II not to be wondered AZ when We
think OF his standing one hand on the
throttle and the other on the revere
lever, with bis thoughts going back 70
incident and acci lent Of hts bosy and
stgaight lins Of ths road. NJ revealed By
~ headlight Of his engine. '--Fof ysr-
els 0assfts.