Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-11-25
RABBITS FEET"
Their Virtue Among Railroad Men.-.
Fatal Six White Cats...Tigers'
Ears as Charms.
IArkansaR Traveler.l

ct can't go out to-day" said an engineer,
stepping from his cab.
"Why!" asked the conductor, who hap
pened to be standing near
look there" and the engineer pointed to
cat lying on the coal
"What difference does that maker
$50 much that would risk my life if I
were to go out. Don't you know that it is a
warnings do if you DON'T and he refused
to have anything to do with the engine
This was an exhibition of the popular super
stition among railroad men. Although sens
ible men, practical, and many Of
them well educated, yet so strong
is their superstitious belief that
no reasoning can convince them of their silly
weakness. The different roads have differ
emit superstitions, and different means of coun
teracting threatened evil. On the railroads in
Arkansaw nearly every engineer, fireman
and brakeman, carry rabbits feet This pre-
caution, it Is affirmed, prevents serious acct
dents. Some time ago, on one of the roads
running into Little Rock, two trains col
ided, killing two engineers. These two men,
against better judgment, neglected their rab-
bits feet. A disaster was predicted by a
brakeman on each train, and the fact that it
came was an indisputable argument in favor
of the rabbits foot
A few days ago, the writer was riding on a
locomotive with well-known engineer. The
train was running very rapidly, and the en-
gineer. who was very communicative, sud-
denly became silent.
Il don't like this" he said.
"Whatn'
''The way feel" and he grew pale. He
looked ahead with eagerneSs and after re-
naming fixed for few moments, shut Off
steam and whistled "down brakes
''What's the mattera"
"Didn't you see itF'
"Whaty"
THAT cat cross the track
When the engine stopped he got of. and
approaching the place where he said the cat
had crossed, began to rub himself with rab-
bits foot After continuing this for some
time, he rubbed the rail with the foot, mum
bled strange jargon and went back to his
engine
You may regard it as foolish" he said, as
we again flew along, "but you see know. If
| hadn't seen that cat we would have had an
accident by this time There was a time when
laughed at it, but have learned better. Some
time ago a cat crossed the track in front of
me. My fireman begged me to stop and let
him rub the rail, but laughed at him. He
vowed that we would have an accident, and,
sir, before we had gone five miles further the
engine jumped the track and did considerable
damage. / barely escaped being killed, and
since then l have carried a rabbits foot.
When six white cats cross the track, nothing
can prevent calamity; that is, if the engi-
neer keeps on, but if he gets off everything
may be all right"
"Do the conductors believe in the rabbit
foot theory2"
"Many of them do. Sometimes new man
boots at the idea, but after a while he is con-
WINGED and gets him a foot. On some roads
an owl claw is necessary, and stin on others
nothing but the tip end of coons tail will
answer"
"How is this discovery nader
"Always by the Oldest engineer. When q
new road is built, the Oldest engineer on the
line can determine what to use The more
dangerous the road, the scarcer are the
charms. know one road in Mississippi where
nothing but piece Of tiger ear will answer
In consequence of this, accidents are very
frequent. A friend of mine ran on the road
and never had an accident. He went to a
circus one night and cut off the tip end of a
tigers ear. The beast howled terribly and
died within fifteen minutes The rabbit
foot is the standard, and, as rule,
will do for narrow gauge roads. On the
eastern roads, beef bone is the thing. When
road becomes known as beef bone road,
it is regarded as the best Next is the goat
bone, then the rabbit foot, then the owl
claw, then the coon tail, then the mole nose
and lastly the tiger ear"
Did you ever run on mole nose roadg'
Eyes, for little while, but the company
was doing great deal to put the road in
good shape and it soon became rabbit foot.
have recently heard that it has become a
goat bone"