The Arkansaw traveler., 1888-02-25
A STATION AGENTS ADVEN
 TURF.
New York Sun.


 were continually late. The last pas- senger train on our road passed me, according to schedule, at 10: 30 p. m. The next one passed at 2: 20 a. m., and it was supposed that the intervening time belonged to me. If the night freight was on time, and did not get call on the instrument, and if there was no special on the line, and if dozen other things did not occur, could sleep from II to 6. It may have occurred that my sleep was unbroken five nights in year. On all other nights I was turned out from one to three or four times. The night freight should reach me at 12: 05-five min- utes after midnight. She never left or took up car at my station, leaving that for the day freight, but made stop of seven or eight minutes for coal and water. If there was a special on the line, or if there had been an accident, the freight might have to side-track and wait, but such thing was rare.
 As rule, I was always asleep when the freight came in, but somehow or other knew of her arrival. 1 knew of it without waking up, and next morning could have told whether she was late or on time. Twenty eight minutes after her time a passenger train on the other road made the crossing. This crossing was eighty rods above the station, and, while had nothing to do with the trains on the other roads, I naturally kept track of them, and knew whether they were late or on time. On this particular night 1 went to bed at lO 45, and was asleep before II. At 12: 20 I suddenly awoke. The night freight had not come in: 1 had been sound asleep, but knew she had not. She was fifteen minutes overdue, and yet my call had not been sounded. This to me meant some sort of acci- dent between me and the next station, which was eleven miles away. I at once called for the station, but the and looked out. There was fine rain and dense fog.
 Freight trains are seldom on schedule time, and had known them on our line to be an hour late without worrying over the fact. However, on this night l was all worry. The train and the fog, the crossing, the fact of my waking up as had, the failure to raise the agent at the station above, these things made me terribly uneasy, and at 12 25 lighted my lantern, put on my rubber coat, and started up the line on a run. I had not gone forty rods when heard hissing of steam, and two or three minutes later could see the glare of headlight through the fog. In couple of minutes more found our midnight freight-twen- ty-two loaded cars and big locomo- tive-and she was standing directly on the crossing of the roads.
 I began to shout as soon as l had made out the locomotive, but no one answered me. pushed along to the cab, climbed up, and found the en- gineer and fireman on the floor of the tender, arms around each other, and fast asleep or dead. At that moment the passenger train on the other road whistled for the crossing.
 am telling you, sir, that I lived year for every minute in the next five or six. I knew very little about an engine, though I had seen how they were reversed and how the throttle was worked. If anything was done I must do it, and do it quickly. Why did not pull ahead l do not know. It struck me that must back up, and flung over the bar, gave her steam, and she began to move. The steam had run down, and we moved at snaiPs pace, and even when I pulled her wide open the engine scarcely had power to back the heavy train. We did move. however, although 1t was foot by foot. I could hear the roar of the passenger train, and knew that every second was hastening ter rible calamity, but did not leave the engine. Back! back! back! we crawied, and of sudden great light flashed in my eyes, there was crash, and saw cars moving in front of me and disappearing into the darkness. What had happened? Well, I had backed the freight until the locomo- tive of the passenger train only car ried away the pilot as it crossed our line. That was all the damage done, and no passenger had a suspicion of his narrow escape from an awful smash-up.
 When the train had disappeared and could realize the situation, be- gan to investigate. I ran back to the caboose, but no one was to be found. shouted and screamed, but soon found that I was all alone. Then, climbing back into the cab, sc:sht to arouse the engineer and his fire man. Dead? No, Drunk as two