Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1889-02-06

u
the moon went behind pack o. dark
clouds and, as she had only the light
of the red lamp, she had to almost feel
her way along.
She didn't know what time it was,
and was mortally feared she'd be too
late, 'cus she had over half mile to
60, and that there big trestle to cross,
and pack o. drunken Italians to run
the gauntlet OF.
she had grit, though, as I'm telliu'
ye OF. and she made that old crutch O.
hers work pretty fast till she got down
to the trestle.
Then come a tug o. war, gettin'
over that. She started out on her feet,
but she couldn't see whether her
crutch was strikin' the ties or goln'
between 'em, and before long she made
a misstep, and plump!-went one leg
down between the ties.
She got up pretty badly bruised, and
tried it again, but before she'd gone
far, down she went, and raised big
welt on her forehead from strIkin' 1t
against stringer.
Then she gave it up, and got down
on her hands and knees and crawled
along In the dark feelin' of her way
with her hands.
Finally she got over, but she was
that bruised up from fallin', and she'd
lost so much time kneeIn' OF her way
across the trestle, that she knew she'd
| got to strain every muscle in her body
to get beyond Dugan's in time to stop
| No. 81; and tell ye she Just laid her
self out to get there.
'Twas plain sailin' now It'll she got
down to the telegraph shanty, witch is
| list this side o. the pit, and though
twas almighty dark, Mary made good
| time. and when she got to the shanty,
where the long stretch of straight track
begins, ole 81 wasn't in sight yIt.
She could hear the 'tally-mens' a
singin' and raisin' the OF Ned over in
their shanty. but that didn't stop her.
She only gripped her crutch the harder
and hurried to get by. They's path
along the pit side o. the main track,
between the telegraph shanty and the
east side of the sidIn' where the swamp
begins, and she thought she could get
along better by follerin' that as far as
t'went.
She was a stumping it along as fast
as God'd let her, when of a sudden her
foot hit suthin' layin' in the path, and
she fell head first across it onter the
ground.
The thing grunted and rolled over
and she knew twas a man layin' there,
but he was so drunk he didn't wake up.
MARY was so startled, though. by
the suddensss o. the thing, that before
she knew 1t she let out a yell.
Three or four Italians that was
standin' outside o. the shanty door
heard the screech, and they picked up
some torches, such as they use for
diggin' gravel by at night. and started
over to see what was the mater.
'Mary'd picked herself up. and she
crawled along down the path, hidin'
o. the red lantern under her overskit
It'll she got out o. range o. the torch
light, and when the Italians was all
gathered 'round their partner, layin'
there dead drunk. she lit out for dear
life.
when she got to the end of the path.
she got up on the road bed again, and
hadn't gone more'n forty yard when
she run onto the ties that the tramps
had piled on the track.
Instead of bein' one or two, though,
there was a dozen of 'em, for the feller
meant bizness, an he'd made sure that
there was no way of the train gettIn'
by the ties without runnin' off.
They wasn't all piled up together,
but was laid along one by one.
Mary stopped down and tried to lift
the first one off, , but somehow other
she couldn't make it bulge!
She tried again. but twas no go, and
then she saw that the ties were all
wedged down to the track hy haVln'
two stakes drove slantln' across each
end of 'em.
Just as she was beginnin' to realize
that she couldn't move 'em, she heard
No. 81 whistle for Swartsyille curve,
bout mile IN a half away.
she grabbed the lantern and started
down the track, a-sw.ngin' of 1t from
side to side as she saw SIS headlight
a'loomin' round the curve.
'HereI wat yer doin' with that yeI
red lightl' somebody hollered at her,
and when she looked round she saw a
man get up from the shadder o. the
fence and come a-runnin' arter her.
1T didn't take her no time to guess
that feller was the one who was dom
the wreckin' but she thought she could
keep ahead o. him till she got the
train stopped.
He wasn't goin' ter have it that way
though, and he was a-gainIn' on her at
every step.
She was desprit then. and. cir,
believe GOD was a-guidin' of her and
giyIn' of her strength, for sech weak
creatures as her couldn't stand no such
strain as that lessen they was given
strength from some'eres.
SO, Just as the tramp got within ter
feet of FER and she see she couldn't KEEP
away from him any longer. she stopped
OF sudden and set the lantern down OF
the track.
Then she grabbed her crutch by the
small end, and, swingin' it around, she
brough it down ca-thump on the critter:
head, and be dropped IN his tracks
without kick.
"Twas all done In second, sir, but
at such times as that, every second
that's wasted is worth year of ordinary
time, and when Mary picked up the
lantern again 81 had closed up the gar
between 'em until she thought she never
would be able to stop 'em quick enough.
sDick Richards, the engineer, wa:
lookin' out, though, and when he blew
a short blast on the whistle Mary knew
he'd seen the light, and after she'd sci
the lantern In the middle OF the track
she stepped of on the side OF the road
bed.
Dick put on the air-brakes and
threw the lever over, and 81 gave q
; Jerk like horse a-balkin' on the race
track, and then eased up slow-like, ant
stopped just before she got to the red
light
Dick and Tom Baker and Jacl
Wheeler run up ahead to the Lantern
and found Mary layin' there on tn.
side O. the track, where she'd fell in 1
, faintln' fit when she heard the las
exhaust of 57's engine as it pulled VI
and stopped.
while Jack and Tom was a-takin
Mary back to the train, Dick walked
down the track and found the traml
a-layin' right where he'd fell.
, They picked him up and put him Il
. the baggage car, and the next time h'
, got his wits about him he found himsel
) bein' properly tended to.
He's seTvin' a good long term il
, States prison now, but one thing I'm
sure of, sir, there's honor amoni