Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1889-11-13
HE M.iDE 4 Fast RUN.
Thrilling Narrative Of Remarkably sv


i limo Made BY Freight Train.
i A crowd OF railroad engineers and con.
ductors were seated in a bar room on
Main street yesterday evening, and while
slipping their beer. filed in the interim be.
tween drinks by relating fairy tales OF fast
runs made during Their railroad careers.
One OF them, q erizz'ed old engineer, whose
bronzed lace and wrinkle-furrowcd brow
implied 9 life time ofse.vics behind the
boilsr-head, after listening to the nara ion
ii several incredulous stories OF last runs,
in response to an invitation, consented to
relate chunk Of his experience. Tiltinp
his chair back and knocking the ashes
from his fragrant Havana, he sailed in as
follows: fs
You ducks talk about the Union Pa.
eifie being crooked and full of reverse
curves down about Big Hole river. 1 will
admit that she's rather crooked, but
ouce run kid engine over on a narrow
gauge road In Iowa, running from Des
Moines to Gainesville, Missouri. Crooked
why say, there are places on that road
where the engin er OF freight train in pass.
ing around the curves could reach back
and steal che~ OF tobacco from the con.
duetor's coat hanging in the way car,
fit, en car lengths behind and that isn't all.
I've smashed around curves on that line
and found the nose Of the pilot trying to
shake hands With the rear draft iron of the
way car OF my own train. Fact.
"But the fastest riding ever did was
over on the middle Iowa division of the
Chicago, Burlington 4 Quincy, between
Ottumwa and CrestOn. / made Q trip on q |
cattle train over that line years ago. That
WAS in the palmy days OF Tom Potter,
when every body got hump on themselves.
We lett Creston late and stole the clock
out OF the division station. We had
y twenty.6ve-mile order, with instructions
to lose no time. As l remarked. we stole
about week out OF the .diyision station l
and trusted to luck and reckless running /
TO make IT, Well, starting out OF the yards.
hooked the old $40 down to eight inches /
and gave her about two.tbirds of q throt.
tie. You'd ought to see her move. l al.
ways thought that engine could think,
and when / saw the index on the stea m
gauge crawl around to 145 pounds, Just
dropped the lever forward another notch
to see what she'd do. Well, you will swear
her ears back and lit out ior Alton hill like
a sOalded dog. When we struck the foot OF
the grade she was dancing, and I swear I
thought she'd knock the hill down.
Passin' around the curve the old 500
Sass ridin' On one side. looked lack
occasionally to see if they were all
comm. and when we'd whip around
. sharp curve ! could see sparks fly from
the way car. and every once In q while 1
pbscrved the paint scaling off the sides of
the box cars, for We were leaving q
She was novin' 80 fast that her siderods
ook ed like broad mists OF steel, and it is
L Tact We whipped all the leaves Of tine
Trees along the right of way. 1t siug.d
The HAIR of the cattle on the train and
eft our sha :ow toddlin' along two mules
behind. Passing Alton We weru tiy-
ny. You can judge how we hit out when
relate what Occurred. There was crate
and tub OF butter on the depot platform,
'wenty feet from the track. The suction
d t at train pulled them III, and drew
hem in behind the way car. The crate
ost it's grip at Dead Mans crossing, and
lying aside, Knocked down iour panels Of
ence. Tie tub OF butter stuck to Us and
vas finally drawn under the way
;ar. where 1t rested on thI
'ruck, and melted away cooling
III hot box. But we got through all
light and Tom Potter gave mo u medAl-n,i t
For being the most gifted railroad liar
II the century. l suppose" put Ia Mon.
ANA Central engineer, as he pounded on
he table and hollsred" for another beer {
II had intended telling story myself" d
. e:aarked q conductor, but guess we had .
'etter 60 into ths back shop for repairs
Ind let that old scrap pile, Jim's $50 have 9
he right-oiway on the main STEM" Ii
The meeting broke up for the evening, | I
md the great railroad liar sauntered out
'hoIly unconscious OF having murdered the
ruth and taxed the credulity Of his asso.
iates.