The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1886-10-21
THE ENGINEERS STORY.
RY SUSAN COOLIDGE.

"oS"
"This is, about it," said John Scott,
the engineer, az the train slowly crest
ed a long, gradual grade. you're
atop of the Rocky Mountains now,
ma'am."
Emily Vaughn looked to right and
to left, and was conscious of a feeling
Of disappointment. She had pictured
the top of the Rocky Mountains as
something quite different from this.
Here were no frowning heights or sud-
den CULTS, only a wide rolling plateau.
some distant peaks which did not
look very high, and far ahead glimpse
of lower levels running down into the
plains. 1t seemed hardly worth while
to come so far for so little.
"Really!" she said. but where are
the mountains? They don'tlook near
ly go high as they did yesterday"
NATURALLY, ma'am," responded the
engineer, "things don't appear SO high
when you're SO high as they are. We're
atop you know"
"But there's no look-off, no wonder
full distance, as from the top OF Mount
Washington. I confess l am disap-
pointed"
"It's kind Of queer," said John Scott,
with q dry chuckle, chow folks from
the east keep abiding to that ERE
little hill as if 1t were the standard OF
measurement. We don't think so
much OF it this way. Why ma'am,
you're about 1000 feet higher this
minute than if you was at the top of
that little shuck of a Mount Washing
ton that they all think so much Of"
Miss Vaughn smiled, but she expert
enced a shock, nevertheless. The New
England mind does not easily accus-
som itself to hearing it's sacred mount
ain thus lightly spoken against.
"Have you ever seen Mount Wash
ington?" she asked.
"Oh, bless you, yes!" replied John
Scott, cheerfully. II was raised over
to Fryeburg, and grew up alongside
of it. l thought it was a pretty big
concern when I was a boy, but now"
He closed the sentence with a short,
expressive laugh.
Miss Vaughn changed the subject.
She was not offended. She had grown
to like this rough, goodnatured engi-
neer in the course of three days jour
ney, during which, favored as a rela-
tive of the directors Of the road, she
had several times been privileged to
ride, as now, in the engineers cab, for
a better view of the country.
"Have youbeen long On this road?"
she asked.
"Pretty near ever since it opened.
I run the third through train that
come out from Chicago, and I haven't
been off the line since, Winter or
Summer, except for three months,
when l was laid up with q broken
leg"
"This must look very differently in
Winter" said Miss Vaughn, noting
the treeless distances, and the SHOWS
still glinting on the higher peaks to
the left.
~iou may believe it doesl That
first year, when the sno w-sheds wasn't
built, it was terrible. I was running
that train that stuck in the snow
seven days-perhaps you'll remember
about it; it was in all the papers.
shan't ever forget that, not If l live
to be as old as my grandfather, and
he didn't die till he was ninety odd"
"Tell me about 1t" said Miss Vaughn,
persuasively, seating herself on the
high side bench of the cab, with that
air Of attention which is 80 enticine
to the story teller; amusements are
lew and far between in the long mo-
Aotony OF the overland journey to Cal
nornia; besides which, Miss Vaughn
dearly loved q story.
ssThere amt much to tell" said
John Scott, with something of the
feeling which prompts the young vo-
salist to complain of hoarseness. II
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