The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1890-03-08
AN EXCITING RUN.
a Beaver Engineers Race with a
CiOudburSt.

George Davis is one of the oldest
and bcst-known engineers in Denver.
lie commenced in 1870 on the old
Denver Pacific, and was firing for
Ed. IIoskins on old No. 80 when
the engine brought the first passen-
ger train to Denver in 1870. In
1872 he was given charge of IN en-
ginc and continued III active service
on that line until recently, when,
owing to sickness, he was obliged to
lay off but the company, appreci-
ating his valuable services, has him
employed in the Union Depot cX-
aiming train hands rs TO their
knowledge Of train rules and duties.
George had the reputation of be-
ing one of the fastest runners on the
road, and on one occasion, when
pulling President Adams car,
speed indicator in the car indicated
seventy miles an hour for n short
distance, but George thinks the
fastest time he ever made was on
the afternoon of July IL, 1875, when
lie ran race with Hood in Sand
creek and beat it Ivy just seventy
seconds. George can tell the story
best, however.
1t was during the time we were
having so many Hoods, and the
bridge over Sand creek had been
washed out few days before, and
the track ran down over the sand in
| the bottom of the creek. which was
always dry except when there was a
| flood.
ave were an hour late that after
noon, and when we reached Eaton,
forty-eight miles from Denver, we
were just taking water ut the tank
when ID. b. Keller, who was the
agent ut that place then, came run
ming out to me with message,
which read:
"'Make all possible haste to
Denver. Water coming down Sand
creek
1.-The message was signed by Col.
Fisher, the superintendent, and l
knew il meant get there, and the
way l damned the old machine 60
ing over the track that afternoon
was a caution. We had no air.
brakes in those days, and had six
stops to make, but were only sixty
four minutes from Eaton to Sand
creek.
"When we reached the bank of
the creek it was nearly dusk, but
l could sec the water coming only q
few rods above, foaming and roar
ing, solid wall six feet high, full
of timbers and wreckage from the
Kansas Pacific bridge few miles
above, and l thought at first / would
not chance it., but just as l was
about to blow for brakes, l caught
sight of Col. Fisher on the other
side waving his hat to me to come
on, so l pulled her wide open and
we plunged down in the hole and
wriggled up the other side just az
seconds before the water struck the
track and wiped it out of existence
| Will
81 stopped as quick as l could
after we got over, and if you evel
saw delighted set of passenger:
they were there. You see, they
didn't know anything about it unit
we were down in the creek bottom
when they saw the water coming
Scared? Well, you can bet they
were. They had been uneasy al
the way from Eaton, and had beer
coaxing Ed. IIoskins-hc was thu
conductor-to make me stop run
ming so fast, but when we swung
down into the creek bottom at TIT
rate of fifty miles an hour they knew
something was up, and when the,
caught sight of the flood they saw
right away what the matter was
They got out on the bank and actet
foolish, cheering mo and throwing
their hats in the air and shakin.
hands with me and saying 600
bless you! and all that sort o
thing. Oh, we had big time Their
for q while, and it was days before
we could run trains across the crecl
| ouoiu - nanyar NowS