The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1885-05-12
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A RACE WITH FIRE.
Eighty Miles an Hour Over q Crook.
ed Track. = p95o
Dunkirk IN. VI Special.

months ago On the 7ih inst he died.
He was nearly sixty years old, aid one
of the oldest engineers in the United
States. His story Of the awful ride is
this:
SIN 1869 was running a train on the
Buffalo, Cory 4 Erie Railroad The
track from Prospect or Maysville Sum
nit to Brocton junction is so crooked
that, while the distance is actually only
ten miles, the curves make it by rail four
teen. The grade for the whole distance
is over seventy feet to the mile. About
nine o'clock on the night Of August II,
we reached the Summit with a train Of
two passenger cars, six oil-cars and q
box-car. The latter contained two vel.
liable trottiDg horses and their keepers
with them, on their way, believe to
Chicago. There we're fifty or sixty pas
sengers in The two cars. I got the sig
nal from the conductor to start and pull.
ed out. We had got under considerable
hesdway, when, looking back, l saw an
oil-car in the middle OF the train was on
Gre.
Irevereed The engine and wbistled for
brakes. Tue conductor and brakeman
jumped off They uucoupled the pas
senger cars and set the brakes on them
and brought them to stop. Suppos-
ir g that brakes on the burning oil-cars
would also be put op, I called to the
brakeman on tie box-car 10 draw the
coupliDg-pin between that Car and the
head oil-tank, backing so that he could
do. it, intendipgsto run far enough to
save The box-car and the locomotive
As ran down the bill alter the pin had
been drawn, what was nv horror to see
that the burning cars were following me
at speed that was rapidly increasing
The men had not succeeded 10 putting
on The brakes. saw that the only thing
that could be done was to run for it to
Brocton, and the chances we're that we
would never reach there at the speed
which we would be obliged to make
around those sharp, reverse curves where
we had never run over twenty miles an
honr. When / saw the flaming cars
for the whole six were on fire at the time
after me, and only few feet
away, I opened the throttle. The oil
cars caught me, though, before l got
away They came with full force against
the rear OF the box-car, smashing in one
end and knocking the horses and their
keepers fiat on the fpor. The heat was
almost uncomfortable, and to do my best
I couldn't put more than thirty feet be-.
tween the pursuing FIRE and ourselves -
By the light from the furnace, as The fire.
man opened the door to pile in the coal,
caught sight OF the face of one of the
horsemen, he having crawled up to the
grated opening in the end. 1t was as
pale as death, and be begged me for
Gods sake to give her more steam l
was giving h,r then all the steam she
could carry, and the grade itself was
sufficient to carry US down at the rate OF
fifty miles an hour.
We were laundering along at light
ming speed, and only few PAGES behind
Us that fiery demon in full pursuit -
There were fifty thousand gallons of oil
in those tanks at least. and it was all in
flames, making a wing avalanche OF five
hundred feet long. The flames leaped
into the AIR nearly one hundred feet
The roar was like that OF some great
Now and then tank would
explode with noise like cannon, when
q volume Of fame and pitchy smoke
would rise high above the body of fame
and showers Of burning oil would De
scattered about 10 the woods. The whole
country was lighted up for miles around.
Well, 1t wasn't long. going at the rate
we made, before the lights of Brocton
came in sight down the valley. The re
lief / felt when these came in view was
short lived, for l remembered that Train
Eight on the Lake Shore would be at
the junction about the time we would
reach it. . ght was the Cincinnati ex.,
press. Our only hope all along the race
had been that the switchman 1.-THE june
tion would think far enough to open the
switch there connecting the cross-cut
track with the Lake Shore track and let
us run in On the latter, where the grade
would be against US, if anything, and
where We would soon get out oil. the way
OF the oil cars. The switch would be
closed now for the express. and our last
hope was gone unless the express was
late or some one had sense enough to
flag the express While we were think
ing of this we saw the train tearing
slong toward tie junction. Could we
reach the junction, get the switch, aud
The switch be set back for The express
before the latter got thereY II not.
there, would he an inevitable crash, in
which not only we, but scores oieothers
would be crushed to death. All this
conjecturing did not occupy two sec-
onds, but in these two seconds lived
years. 'Good'God!' / said to my fire.
nan, swhat are we to 6oT The fireman
promptly replied-and he was brave
little fellow-that l should whistle for
The switch and take the chances. did
30. That whistle Was one prolonged
yell of agony. 1t was q Shrek thai
seemed to tell US that our brave old en-
gine knew our danger and had its fears.
Neither the fireman nor nyself spoke
another word. Thanks be to God, the
engineer on the express train, seeing us
iearing down that mountain with an
eighth Of q mile OF fire in close pursui,
of us, knew in moment that only one
hing could ssve US. He whistled for
brakes, and gos. his train on stand-snlla
not ten feet from the switch. The
,witchman now answered our signal. and i
we shot on the Shore track and whizzed \
on by the depot and through the place
like rocket. The burning cars follow
ed US, of course, but their race was rum,
They had no propelling power now, andF
in three hours there was nothing left of
them but smoking ruins.
my fireman and l were so weak when
We brought our locomotive to q stop
that we could not get out of our cab.
The two horsemen were unconscious in
the box-csr. The horses we're ruined =,