, 1889-10-10
CAREER or A WILD ENGINE

u iM'lHulN itNl lhplnI'Ntt MN w ut'
CAREER OF A WILD ENGINE
Dashing Through Crowded Streets,
but without Injury to Amy One.
About o o'clock this morning loco
motive No. SS of the Mort hcrn Central
railway, which is a lrrgo and heavy
engine used as q sNiitor II ood on one of
the tracks lust beyond Lafayette station,
on the northwestern outskirts OF the
city, Engineer Ben fliCkenger, whose
hair has become silvorcd in the employ
OF the company, and whose reputation
as careful man Is of the very best, sat
In the cab with one hand OIL the throttle,
with young Edward Cox, who has been
rallrOading about two years or more,
IA his fireman. About 100 yards above
the station the rails divide, one pair
making a sharp curve to tho lcfo.
The last Philadelphia express known
on tIIc road us "trnin D2, comes rum
| bling around this curve at tOw
minutes after every morning at IA
pretty rapid clip. The railroad people
| in aud about Lafayette station take
special pain, lo give Il clear track TO the
| Philadelphia dyer, but somehow things
went wrong this morning. 1t will re-
| quuc an official examination to deter
mine upOn whose shoulders the blame
U
/ was standing directly ia front and not
| lOO yards from tic headlight of the
/ Philadelphia train when IL swung
around the curve. Engineer flickci
ger took in the situation at glance.
| There was no time To get out of the
way, except by going the same direction
[ as the cSprts. and going very fast.
| The shifting engine was facing west and
/ the express was coming east. Eager
/ to avoid "A sma-hup and possible loss
oi life he tod the fireman to jump from
| the engine.
Then he pulled the throttle the re-
verse way, and himself took flying
| leap, and back ward the engine flew to-
ward the mouth of the tunnel at Fulton
| Flickcngcr made the jump safely, and
| No. SS started down the track ut IL
sprinting clip, .wi;h the Philadelphia
/ flyer close behind, with full head of
| steam uu and not a hand To oller re-
strnint. No, SS, as If eSultant in its
unwOntcd freedom, began her race with
/ u defiant roar and rumble and utter dis
regard Tor consequences. II usually re-
llircs four and half minutes for an
| ordinary train to get through the first
| of the long tunnels between Lafayette
and Union stations, This morning
| No. So made the distance in about
| 30 seconds. Then IT shot into the yawI-
ing mouth of No. section, and all
| the amazed track walker hch,ld was
a cloud of iuky smoke, picked out with
| flaming sparks When thu flying mass
| of uuiyeriug iron, steam and noise
/ flashed out ct thc last tunnel and into
that bowllucung net work ot tracks
Just beyond the Union station, the
/ spectacle, to say at least, WAS unique.
From the smokcstacR poured clouds
of dark smoke, from every valve and
] 81 If..A.t #
| furnace doors were swung aiar by the
. tremendous momentum and the slum.
I bcring fires WCrr famed To white heat
and were sCnGiu; forth tongues of flame.
Siugularly cyough the train stuck to
the track ann flashed through Union
! station just rs the passenger were get
| ting into the nine.Car ycsuuulc train
| about to goto New York. The passengers
/ were streaming through the station
gates and climbing up the platform
Of their train, Suddenly they heard n
/ roar like that Of thunder; then they be-
/ held black mass bclchine forth steam
and smoke, and then nothing but an
I echo of that self same roar and the
/ lingering smoke was left. IL required
| but the traction of minute for the
| runaway 10 swing over the bridge that
opens Jones Falls.
/ Tho rails led her toward Calvert
station. In front and just beyond the
/ last sharp curve i'm her Journey lnomcd
/ ~ the depot The rails passed along
/ North street to Ccutcr, one the busiest
/ thoruughiures in the city, As the - i'd
engine dashed along vehicles on the
line made for tho pavement aud for q
/ timu there was u regular stampede.
| The man vino kept his wits about him
/ was the sWitChmun ut Center street.
. He saw the engine was running Wild,
and then opened tho switch, which sent
the iron monster into IA lot of empty
ears which faced the big meat house Of
f. Nelson, Morris N Co., agents ior
Armour Go, In Il twinkiing the
whole business shot into tho side
/ Oi the warehouse. There was re-
. mcndous rspUrt and "a sound Of crack
ing timbcrs, OF falling bricks and escape.
iuS steam. Then every thing was
,hroudcd in au impcnetrable cloud Of
smoke and dust. Slowly tho smoke
Then the frightened spectators rushed
into the yard. An astonishing sight
met their ga2c, a big ragged hOlo had
been Knocked in the massive wall of the
Nelson, Morris X Co. building. The
front end of the ear ucurc-t the wall
,ulcscOpcd the rear end of the forward
1 car
The III fated engine No. ss lay all
tangled aud twisted and as completely
wrecked ds though she had passed un.
der steam hammer. The rear truck
which had suffered the brlnt OF the
tremendous collision lay full twenty
feet away from the body of the tender,
which was jammed into tho front part of
car 7ls. The cab of the locomotive was
pressed against the roof OF the car,
and scraps OF iron lay scattered about in
every direction, while the brass work
lay about the big black boiler like II
golden serpent. The debris ofthc wreck k
was piled up ON each side of the track
for one loo feet or moro.
The runaway caused the most in
tense excitement throughout the city.
All sorts of reports prevailed with retcr.
cnce to the loss of life, yet sinpularly
enough, though passing through the
crowded stations, "A long tunnel and u
crowded street, no one was injured. The
damage will ont exceed $4,000.
Fifty and Costs.
Hutchinson and Cummins, the men
] ub. rni,bnI ntia 1ouipN nf his wut,,b g., a. a