The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1886-07-23

N'',A''S aiitC lili'SFtS. -tli tiilS I)tONt
at once upon the mother. lmmed;-
ately the train fled by. She drove Il,
the hilltop, and in greater agony than
she had ever known watched her sons
race for life. Sometimes all rneine4r
has option OF death for himse! Ia
structlon for Others, but in thl., case
safety for his pursuing train depe.lt,el,
| on safety for himself
Away they went The engine seem.
cd insome mysterious manner to grasp
the situation, and become endowed
with knowledge OF its own danger, US
though it had spoken with the soul OF
the silent man whose hand it held. It
shook all over, and at times seemed
| to hi. itself into the air. On flew the
engine! On flew the pursuing headless
train as if determined on revenge for
lost prey, but in this race the Thun-
derbolt is alive, breathing knowle lge
OF minds mastery over material.
Shrek winds, if ye will, unheeded, for
when the long hill had slipped away,
rs tale that is told, the Thunderbolt
speeds over level stretch up another
hill and rests, while the train gradual
ly slackens OF its own inertia, lags
along to the ioothill and stops. hum
bly, waiting for the Thunderbot to
come back and pull it over. From
watching mother $ heart goes up Il
prayer OF thankfulne>s. In ndeScribing
| that race, the fireman said: "When
| Clay Grouse is dead and laid out, his
face won't be whittier than it was when
he saw that woman gong so steady
down to the crossing ahead Gus. He
gust signed to me- to stand by the coal,
and scarcely moved after that. Once
touched his hand, and good Lord,
it was like ice didn't know until we
made it, that twas his mother, or
reckon I'd been so broken up couldn' t
do nothin', for all the boys think n
heap OF that old lady, and don't You
forget it. Bout twicea week, regular,
she comes to town with a jug of milk
an bag OF doughnuts, mince pie or
roast chicken, and manys the cold
wet night, way out on theplains, we've
blessed her while eating her lunch.
Well / tell ye, l never thought we'd
make it, and | was just as sure we'd
lift that buggy off the track as | am
OF seeing Heaven, and when we ran in
ahead OF her yelled like Comanche.
cold Cash." he never looked toward
her or reckon he'd broke down
He never spoke a durn word the whole
run OF forty miles into Neodesha.
He's mighty proud OF his engine, and
mostly hangs around to see things
made shnin', but that day he ran off
like he hated it, and I'm blamed ef
don't think he was crying. Hewas all
nervous and done up for two or three
days, and | didn't feel pretty much
like a camp meeting myself. You bet
your last life don't want to get into
another race like that, and to this
day you can never get Clay to talk
about it.
Mrs. Grouse says she heard one
whistle, but knowing it was beyond
her sons time to pass, that no other
train was due for some hours on his
track, and deceived by the wind, sup
posing the signal came from the Mis-
souri, Pacific in front, instead of her
sons unexpected train behind her
The thick veil and hood had aided de-
ception. and no knowledge of danger
dawned Until the engine dashed before
her onto thecrossing. The next meet
ing OF mother and son can be best left
to Imagination, but the moral OF this
true tale is Look out for the cross
ing"
p. S.-The chicken-house was duly
repaired.