The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1889-09-22
THE HEADLIGHT GHOST
4 Thrilling Story Of Life on the Iron
Rail
BY WALTER wELLMAN.
complete in this Iss,.e.)

Ward was unhappy. Jasper was loco
motive engineer on the Burlington road,
and had trod the footboard of an engine
as fireman and driver since his mustache
first grew on his STRIPPING chin. His
career had been one Of such evenness and
calm, so much quiet life within himself;
such absence of incident or accident, that
his steady temper had been rarely stirred
by joy or sorrow. His first grief had
come to him ten years or more before,
when his wife died suddenly while he was
away on his engine. He had never mar
ried again, nor seemed to care much for
society or company or anybody or any
thing saving only his son Jack, and, of
course, his engine, for which he had
half dozen pet names. Jack wanted
to be o locomotive engineer like his
father, and often coaxed to be taken out
to learn to fire; but Jasper would not
listen to this go to school, boy" he
said, "and learn to be something in the
world. An engineer isn't much" Yet if
anybody else had said this, which nobody
would in Jasper Wards presence--at least
nobody who knew him-Jasper would
have been very much grieyed. He was
proud of his calling; proud of his record
on the foot board. Thirty years had he
stood there, and in all that time not one
accident more serious than the fracture of
a connecting rod piston bar had occurred
to him. Not one life intrusted to his care
had been lost, nor even jeopardized. For
twenty years Jasper had run the same
train, an accommodation, and all the
people up and down that division of the
line knew Jasper Ward and his locomo-
tive as well as they did their own door
yards. His face at the engine window
was SO familiar that to miss it for day
or two was to take something out Of the
daily life of the people who. dwelt near
the tracks.
But now Jasper was unhappy when he
should have been most content, for he
had finally relented and taken jock with
him on the locomotive His old fireman
had been promoted to an engine, and
Jack had thereupon begged 80 hard that
his father finally applied to the master
mechanic for permission to take the boy
on and make an engineer of him. 1t was
a happy day for Jack when the master
mechanics reply was received; but not so
with old Jasper, for the message con-
tanned these words: ''IIl give you new
engine, too, Take out No. 451 tomorrow.
With your own boy on and shining new
engine, the official could not resist the
temptation of adding, unbusinesslilke
though 1t was-he wouldn't have added
an unnecessary word to anybody except
old Jasper--'you will be quite gay again,
aud Will be having all the young men
envying YOU" The master mechanic
meant well. but 1t was sad blow to
Jasper "a new engine~ he exclaimed,
somewhat bitterly; what have | done
that should have my old pet taken away
from met Well, If the old engine isn't
good enough to run along yet awhile,
why, suppose the old engineer will have
to go too, pretty soon. This is the begin
ming Of the end, sure. They'll lay the
old man off before the year is out"
His sorrow was greatly increased when
he boarded the new engine and found that
she was equipped with one Of the new
electric head lamps, with which the com
pany was experimenting. Nor was that
the worst OF it, The whistle of the new
machine was harsh. coarse whistle as
unlike the sweet tones of the old whistle
as anything could be. The first sound of
it nearly drove Jasper wild. "They'll get
me off the road now" he exclaimed; II
can't run an engine with headlight like
that on it and such a whistle. They'll lay
the old man off, but they can't say no
hasn't made time. They can't say that"
Making time is sort of hobby with all
good locomotive engineers. With Jasper
~ WIS u ulalld AL 6IRlQ6cT ISL
worth o cent unless he can get in on
schedule nineteen times out of twenty"
he used to say. and man con always
make time If he has the nerve. Let man
get the least bit timid, SO that he pulls up
for everything that he doesn't like the
looks of. for every speck on the track, CT
for every down grade, and he'll never
make time. Let her go, let her go, " he
advised Jack; don't be afraid OF any
thing. When you start out on run make
up your mind that you are going to make
time or die trying Don't be afraid of the
ditch. II it is your fate to be ditched
and stop there you can't get away from it
by shutting off steam evsry time she be-
gins to jump little or you imagine you
see something on the track. You'll i'm
agine you see fifty things ahead in one
night, and If you go To shutting off for
them you'll never make time, never in
the world, boy"
And in good truth the old man was as
brave as his words. He was known along
the road as runner against everything
but red lights. But from the very first
day on the new engine he was changed
man. All his old confidence seemed to
leave him, and he became instead nervous
and timid He blamed it all on the new
locomotive, and particularly on the cleo
trio head lamp.
Jack. he said, as they were running
along one day shortly after the new
engine had been put in use, "this ma
chine isn't going to bring me any good
7Rck. know that. I'm getting nervous,
Ihd am afraid to let her out ON the down
grades. That brilliant light is running
my eyes, and something will happen one
of these days. Jack, you had better leave
the road. Go and learn to be black
smith. An engineer doesn't amount to
much"
And as his pride in his own calling and
career was aroused by these words, he
nudged the throttle open little farther,
and the old look of satisfaction came upon
his stern face. But this was only for q
anoment. Timidity and discomfort were
becoming more than ever marked In him,
and Jack found his father anything but
a cheerful running mate. But Jack didn't
mind that. He loved his father dearly,
and did tbs best he could to comfort and
cheer him.
You'll be all right in day or two,
father" he said; "the machine is new
and the light is brighter than you are &C.
Icustomed to, but you'll like them both
before long"
''No, l won't" the old man replied,