Morning journal and courier., 1890-05-15
THREE DOOMED LOCOMOTIVES. A Travelling Railroad Mans Story of How Fate Saved Him From Each

l live to be travelling railroad man for @ hundred years I'll never make fourth at tempt. I'll tell why.
 'In the summer of 1875 was making a trip over the Erie railway. On my way east had to stop at Lackawaxen. I got through my business there, and met ss the depot an old friend of mine, Doc. Taller, an Erie freight engineer. He was waiting for orders to pull out, OF his way to Port Jervis. His train stood at the station, and he ex- pected to be able to go ahead as soon as his locomotive had finished taking water. He asked me to ride as far as Port Jervis in the engine cab with him, as the express train l wss waiting for would not be at Lsckawaxen for two hours. As we were talking, Fuller got his orders, and I walked with him to his engine. He got into the cab and followed him. Just as he was pulling the throttle open ths telegraph operator at the station came running to the engine, shouting to me that he had telegram for me. The engine was then moving. I seized the telegram, go to Scranton the next day. I bade my old friend good-by, and jumped off of the locomotive.
 "While I was sitting at the hotel at Lsckawaxen couple of hours later, the news came that Doc Fuller's engine had exploded few miles west of Port Jervis, and that Fuller, his fireman, and the flag maa of the train, who was riding on the en- zine, were all killed. The news was too true. The three men were literally torn to fragments, and were scattered for hundreds of feet are around. Scarcely splinter of the locomotive was left. That was the first in- stance on record of locomotive boiler ex- ploding while the engine was running. l was terribly shocked at the fate of my friend, and my thankfulness for the telegram that saved me from the same death may be imag. ined.
 '.I had no inclination or cause to be pas senger on a locomotive from that time until one day in February last I was on busi- ness trip over the Baltimore and Ohio road, and found myself laid up at the little sta tion of Benwood. I was all through, but there was no way to get anywhere else for half day, except by way of freight train, which ran by the station at about four miles an hour. When 1t came along I recognized Al. Cunningham as the engineer. He hailed me, and without a moments thought or hesi- tation I jumped on the step and climbed in the cab. | had no sooner done 30 than George Divine, the conductor of the train, came out of the telegraph office with orders and stood waiting for the caboose at the end of the train to come along. He discovered me and shouted:
 "sHello! You're just the man want to see! Get of and wait for the caboose.'
 
 the caboose as 1t came along. I had scarcely reached the platform before the whole train and everything in the town was shaken by the most tremendous explosion ever heard. The train stepped with jam. I hurried from the car with the rest, and ran forward. never saw such sight. All that was left of the locomotive was the driving wheels and truck. The track was torn up for rods, and cars that stood on switches in the yard were battered to pieces by the flying parts of the locomotive that were hurled on all sides. We of course thought that Cunningham and his fireman had been torn to shreds, when what was our surprise to zee Cunningham coming out of field 200 feet from the scene of the explosion at one side of the track. Several ran to meet him, and found that, although he had been buried headlong through the air and landed in the field seu- enty yards away, he had scarcely scratch upon him. His fireman was found two cars lengths back. He was lying on the hind end of the boiler, with the cab upside down over him. He WAS not badly hurt. That explosion was the second one on record of @ locomotive while iu motion, and 1t was the most miraculous one as to harmlessnes to life would have been if had not been so oppor- tunely called out of this cab am not pre- pared to say, but I was entirely satisfied that had been in the oaboose at the time of the explosion instead of in the locomotive l cab.
 "A week or ten days ago was in Susque. l hanna, on the Erie railway, and went to Lanesboro, g mile below, at the foot of the Starrucca Viaduct, to have a good view oi that stupendous piece of masonry from be- low. While there I walked to the station oi 1 the Albany and Susquehanua railroad, and there, with his locomotive on a switch, found an engineer acquaintance named James Morgan. He told me he was waiting for the fast express to pass, and asked me to get in the cab with him and see the flyer whizz by. I got in the cab, but then re- get off east on the Erie, and had not mo- | ment to lose in getting back to Susqushan na, I go. off the engine and was walking away, when heard the fast express coming. I stopped mechanically to see it approach | and was thunderstruck to see Engineer
 Morgan jump for his lever and start his en. zine ahead, all steam on. The engine rushed forward. The siding was short, and ended l at high embankEent overlooking Starruc ca Creek. It didn't take me three seconds to see what was the matter. The switchmar | had failed to turn back the switch when he 1 let Morgan in from the main track. Morgan had discovered the fact. There was nothing | to keep the express from running on the sid | ing right behind him ifMorgan was out of tht
 way, the engineer of the express train coulc stop his train with the air brakes and aver 1 disaster. If Morgan's locomotive stood il l the way, a collision that would undoubtedly l cause much loss of life would result. Mor gan did not hesitate a second. He drove hi l locomotive ahead to the end of the switci
 and beyond it. It was hurled down the higl embankment, and turned bottom side up il the creek. The express train and it's humaI l freight were saved. Poor Morgan was taken
 unconscious, from the wreck of his en 1 zine, and I hear that he died the sam night.
 l II hadn't the nerve to write my importan
 letters that night. had escaped thre times from death on locomotives, and ther and there took vow never to make an other attempt to ride on locomotive. ol
 even get aboard one !! am superstitlonl
 be tempting fste, and that would not escape l aoain O