The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1884-08-20
AN IMPROMPTU RACE.
TRIAL OF SPEED BETWEEN TRAINS.
An Incident on the New York Central Bail
road, Not Rare, but Lively-The
Mischief Woman
Wrought.
Buffalo ExpTess.1


Is there anything that will send the
blood down TO his toes and up. again to tht
crown Of his foolish Uranium sooner thanan
impromptu race Of some kind, let 1t be any
sort of chance contest, from short strife
between plow-nags to an all-night struggle
between Mississippi steamers? Peopla
are getting tired of the cut-and-drie'
snatch games" and "trials of speed"
where the "inside" knows beforehand how
they are to come out. The poor "contest-
ants" in such cases, whether bone and
muscle ofhuman or quadruped makeup,
have little chance of proving their relative
rights to the position of flttest.
1t was on rather dull day some tim"
ago that the New-York Central noon traii
was making its usual run from Buffalo to
the Falls. There wasn't anything so very
strange in this, and the passengers werc
making the usual shifts to kill time-look.
ing at the water that was losing its hold oil
Lake Erie and making ready for its mad
plunge towards Lake Ontario, or glancing
at the morning papers or each other, or
nothing at all, for any purpose or none, a
seemed the whim Of the moment. Perhaps
somebody had observed that after leaving
Tonawanda the train was increasing its
speed until 1t fairly few toward the great
cataract, and perhaps, II so, they were wise
enough to guess the reason; but 1t was not
until the train was about to pull up 40 La
Sale that the real situation was generally
discovered. At that critical moment th'
fact dawned on the devoted occupants OF
the Central tEain-made doubly horrible
because of the suddenness with which II
had flashed upon them-that the Erie train
was just behind, on its east-side track, and
was closing up the space between the two
at rate that was dangerous to tho Cen.
trails laurels, providing 1t had any.
The glum passenger on the front seat
hadn't taken in the state Of affairs. yet,
and was greatly puzzled and somewhat
annoyed to observe the usually quiet car
suddenly lose its appearance of good
manners and become as noisy as a bar
room on election day. Everybody else
was as unsteady. OF equilibrium as II jus,
landed on a spring board; the darkey in u
rear corner who had sat as dumb as an
oyster until now began TO chatter like u
magpie, the veriest old lady on board al
once resumed the long-forgotten spright.
illness Of maiden Of seventeen, and more
than one set of equity toes danced from a
new source of sxhileration. The Central
train had halted at LaSalle TO take lady
on board who didn't seem TO take in thu
situation. Everybody on the train wa
suddenly manifesting a lively interest in
the lady's movements, but she wouldn',
have hurried on board for fortune. Per.
haps she knew that people were comtinG
her every step and enjoyed the hold she
had on the situation. Before she swung
upon the platform the Erie train dhshe1
past, with every soul on board up at e
window or hanging fast outside eithel
squirting at the beaten Centrals with
wicked leer or grinding an imaginary
coffee.mill in derision Of their help
lessness. The very car wheels SCENE,
to be darting out little curled-up tongue.
of scorn at such slow pokes as tIose o
the other track. II tho designing lad
passenger had only gone to the Erie dept
so that both trains would have had I
stop! The passenger who would not hav,
given her FIVE 10 induce her to 20 owe
there would been voted miscreAnt an
unworthy a place in the human family
But the Mischief was done and % woma
had done it--as. usual. There wasn't an
help for It but to pull out and inish Il
trip with the victorious Erie train rattlin
on ahead and having It's own way in IL
race. But there was ono bit of satisfa,
tion. II the leading train was FIRST II mui
stop first and let the other 90 on to its Fal
depot, which was farther down strehn
Here was again chance TO get even at I'll
bridge, as the Erie must make detou
about the town before proceeding directl,
on its way.
uBut history stops abruptly here tt
veracious narrator OF the above droppe
of with his grlpsack at the Pals, and !
the series of stirring encounters, by virtu
Of which he managed TO escape the affec
tionate embraces of dsinterested publ,
was able to make his way down town, an
70 about his business. This rare succes
so drove all thought Of the railroad rae
from his head that he faihedto inquire th
result Of 1t.