The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1883-05-02


Hoosiers for ten miles each side of the
track when running at night. ! re-
member a funny thing connected with
Old Pestilenes, as called him. / had
rollioking fireman named Jack
Flaherty, now on the Burlington, 1 be-
lieve. and he used to be up to all sorts of
deviltry. He managed to rig up
sort Of sliding-plug for the whistle
valve and he could play Yankee
Doodle, Home, Sweet Home and lots
Of other tunes by working the fiue up
and down. You've heard these steam
calliopes? Well, It was on the same
principle. We went into a town called
Goodland one night, and Jack opened
her wide, trying to let off little sur
plus steam anyway. and he gave 'em
I ankee Doodle in the most paralyzing
way you ever heard. Every one
rushed out of their homes, and still we
lay on the side track, me making up
steam and Jack working the plug and
rattling out the national tune in Theo-
dore Thomas style. But slack up here.
Throw her over in the corner and let
her pound along. If amt clean for
getting what was trying to tell you
about this woman that came on the
road as an engineer. was handling
'Old Pestilence, and was just stepping
up into the cab at the roundhouse in
Logansport, ready to hook on to an
extra bound west. had knocked the
cut plug out Of my pipe--for
| never smoke on the engine
when young and very hand
some fellow came up to me and says:
Well, old Roxie, how is the Panhandle.
l want to catch on right away En-
gineer?" Well, / should murmur. 1
just came off the "Punkin' Vine."'
That was the way the boys had labeled
the old Logansport, Charlottesville &
Southwestern road in them days. You
see, they used to fall behind on sched-
ule time, and keep losing, so the en-
gineers got suspended. 1t was hardly
their fault, though. The track was
fearful But when the engineer found
out how late he was he used to open
the throttle wide an skip across the
cornhelds when big curve occurred,
an there were many of them. too.
Thus they used to gain time for mo-
ment. Then when time was made they
would push ahead. That's the way it
came to be styled the "Punkin' Vine"
"But I'm slipping away from my
story Of the young feller again. When
he told me ne wanted 'run,' i hap
pened to think had heard Master Me-
chanlc Clark speak of needing more
engineers next week, an told the
youth so. Well, he caught on, and got
a regular stock run for awhile.
"My, i can remember yet how he
looked as he came down the first day
to take out No. 80, another old-timer.
He had on a fine suit of broadcloth,
but carried Russia leather valise,
with trim new Overalls and jacket to
put on over his clothes. His smooth
face, black eyes, full red coral lips and
short clipped hair attracted great at
tention. He went at his work Of making
ready to take out his engine very de-
liberately and calmly. He was the
nine days wonder of the road for a
while. This was partly from his al
most feminine beauty and from the
skill with which he handled the engine
given him. Matters went along in this
shape for several weeks. Bill Schaeffer,
as the newcomer styled himself, was
out one beautiful June day at the other
end of the line, bringing in a huge
extra, which had a short handed crew
aboard. A strange engineer had drifted
into the roundhOuse that morning
while Bill was out, and had asked, on,
the strength of good references, for
some work. Mr.. Clark at once sent
him out on passenger run, as he
claimed TO know the road from having
run there two years before. The regu-
lar man on the passenger run was sick.
Well, the passenger met Bill's extra at
L., half way over, and iC was nearly
g o'clock. There was a regular
freight in one end of the side
track, and Bill's train was trying to
push its nose in on lot of
box-cars on the track that seemed
loose. The intention was to clear for
the passenger. Bill, wanting exercise,
suppose from being cooped up all
day in the hot little cab, had gone
ahead on the loose cars and was riding
on top of the furthest one. He was
apparently not noticing anything. or
attempting to set brake on the car.
The passenger engine with the new
man was on the main track waiting to
clear. The side track had bad down
grade, sloping heavily toward the
switch of the main track Beyond
this the latter had terrible heavy
grade west. Anything cut loose and
started down this incline would be
going at little the liveliest speed yet
seen before many yards had been
passed. The grade extended for three
miles straight away, when curve was
reached and a trestle-work bridge
broke the monotOny of the track.
"Well, every one was looking back
toward the east end of the switch to