Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1884-11-23

PRESENCE OF MIND.
How . Plucky Nswsboy saved Q
Train at 1uldraugh's Hill, ".
Thrilling Incident which Oes
Cured During the War.A
Score OF Lives saved b.
Timely Act.

| AAasC1y ACbo
louisville Courier Journal
In coversation with prominent physician
the other day, the subject Of railroad acct
dents and escapes came up.
"One OF the most remarkable instances Of
presence Of mind OF which I have ever
heard said he, was related to mo by Col
John ID. Wickliffe not long ago It's short
story, and l don't mind telling you
The time the incident occurred was during
the war 1t was on the L. & N. railroad.
near the Muldraugh's Hill tunnel. At that
time the science Of running trains was in q
very elementary state. The practice was to
run them all one way at time In the
morning the trains would be started from
Nashville to Louisville, and in the evening
they would be run back. They went in sec
tions, as it were, from half q mile to two or
three miles apart, a little nearer or a little
farther, as circumstances might occasion.
"Coi. Nlcklife one evening was one of a
party OF officers and others who made up q
train to Nashville. They were preceded by
another tram, and at distance Of about q
mile third one followed. They pulled out
from the depot at late hour and made as
good time as possible when fairly on the
road. Everything went smoothly enough
till the tunnel was reached, when the first
train was halted by signal just Before en-
fering. Upon investigation it was found
that freight train had broken down in the
passage.
Here was an awkward pickle The second
train halted, and the news spread among the
passengers. A few got off the train and
went forward to the wreck, others clustered
on the platforms Or crowded together in the
cars. The prospect Of reaching Nashville
soon grew smaller and beautifully less by
rapid degrees. II was hardly as bad as being
caught III a western snow storm, and there
was no propect Of starvation, but the outlook
was not comforting. How long it would take
TO remove the wreck no one knew The pros- |
pect was that it would take several hours. |
and here they were, a hungry lot Of passen- |
gers, with no hope Of a Tennessee breakfast |
or dinner, perhaps not even supper. They !
fretted and fumed, aud the more thew |
funnel and fretted the hluer and more saw |
age they became. From grumbliny thew 1
proceeded rnpidiv , growing. and il the air /
was not blue with profanity il was because
that is only figure of speech.
They were IN the full tide of this chaariu
when every man ceased with the suddennesy
Of an electric shock. Iialf-smoked cigars
dropped from nerveless fingers, and those
between bloodless lips ceased to he drawn. A
Wild thrill OF horror swept through every
heart. lnstinctively each looked at his
neighbor and saw imprinted in his white face
the image Of his own mortal fright
Every one who has been over the road
knows how steep is the grade OF Muldraugh's
hill To climb it the engineers put on every
ounce Of steam and take Off the brakes till
the friction is reduced 70 a minimum The
is but a short distance from the tun.
mel, and deep curve in the track hides an
approaching train till within few hundred
yards.
up this incline, but hidden by that curve.
was heard the putting Of the third train. The
ponderous engine WINS laboring calamity and
trawing the long string Of cars behind her as
,asly as trotter the light sulky Of his
iriver. The summit was reached, and with
/ wild shrek Of delight the train sprane
around the first curve and darted upon the
-restle-work The momentum gained in the
Upward struggle carried it across with race
iorse speed, and the track quivered and
tretched beneath its eager tread The cold
light air vibrated with the puffing.of the en-.
zine. and the bills echoed and re-echoed the
bricks of the whistle. The train was not |
wo minutes distance from the second sec.
ion when first heard
The horror-stricken passengers in front
we're caught in trap. The rear train had
been totally forgotten and it was now bear
ng down upon them. bringing death and
orture nearer and nearer To their faces with J
ach feeting instant. Not a man stirred to
vert the doom. and it seemed that no man
ould with the utmost efforts. They could 7
emain there to be ground and crushed and
ahmed into a mass Of bleeding, writhing
ulp or few could spring of the platforms
YER the mountain side on the left. On
ther hand death stared them in the face.
oldiers they were, nearly all Of these men.
nd they were Injured to scenes of violence,
ut this was too much. The mortal fright +
Irned them TO unreasoning animals, incapa-
le Of motion.
Al that awful moment, "a newsbOy, with
reat bundle of papers, dashed like mad
trough he car to the rear The men
ielded an in,tant's passage. and he was but
moment in reaching the rear platform
ow he managed it no one knew, but he had 4
hipped out a match and had bundle of
apers in flames just as the headlight Of the
tvancing engine appeared around the curve.
is entire stock famed up, and he waved
nd shouted, his face and form Lit up as per-
APPS was Casabianca's on that fatal day at
trafalgar. The engineer saw him just in :"
me He reversed his engine and put on
axes 50 rapidly that his train simply
impod against the one in front The pluck
nj presence IF mind Of the iioy had saved :
ores of lives. 4
About five minutes after the passengers !
aliz,d that they were saved n collection
As taken up among the officers, and the
wsboy was made richer by 500 I wish
at could recall his name, but it is doubt
if il will ever lie known. Those were =
ormy times, and things were less noticed 4
EN- than now. hut he was none the less
TO-"