Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-08-26
CRANE AT THE THROTTLE.
The Congressman Recalls a Thrilling
Episode of His Career as an Engineer.

From the Pttsburg Press
Congressman Crane Of Texas, who ran about
tile Capitol the other day in seersucker coat
and profuse perspiration, swearing in we'll
chosen Texan that he would kill an obnoxious
correspondent, was today in high good humor,
spinning yarns to a coterie OF brother men,
bers.
In my young days." said the Congressman,
II was an engineer on the Santa Fe railroad.
Do you fellows know what a trying thing it is
to be locomotive engineer2 Well, can tell
you that it will do a mans nerves more harm
than anything else in the world. Alcohol and
tobacco are mere triaes in comparison, even If
they be used to excess. didn't stay very long
In the business. like excitement, but running
cannon ball express whose scheduled time
was sixty miles an hour is a little too much
even for me. But the three months time
that ran No. rs was not sufficient
for me to realize the injury it was doing
reason that led to my abandonment Of the
throttle forever.
II had only been on, as / have said about
three months, when by some carelessness or
viciousness one of the engines known as a
mountain climber got away with full steam on
and started down the road on a message of
death and destruction. l had just finished
long run and was preparing to go home when
the train dispatcher rushed wildly out of the
office and told me the news. The track had
been cleared. he said, and there was nothing
to stop the mad rush of the runaway locomo-
tive until it should dash into the station at
Galveston and plough its way through
bricks and mortar until both the building
and locomotive were ruined l had plenty of
nerve then, and l suppose by your laughing
you think have lost none of it, but am free
to confess that would not now dare to under
take the task that successfully accomplished
that day. Perhaps il was the excitement and
enthusiasm Of the moment which led me to
volunteer to lasso that locomotive. l always
smile when I recall the look Of incredibly
that met my confident assertion that I could
catch and arrest the mad fight Of the runaway.
but was so confident that they gave me a
hearing. and finally secured the services of a
sturdy Irish lad as fireman.
In less than three minutes after the dis
patch had been received l was on my engine.
with steam slowly coming up again. and pull
Ing out as rapidly as possible to meet the on
coming terror. 1t was impossible for the train
dispatcher to give me any accurate idea as to
where the runaway was. The best he could do
was 70 say that 1t had passed a small station
about seventy-fve miles up the road some ten
minutes before, moving at the rate of about
ninety miles an hour. few minutes more
and with steam up had my engine moving at
the rate OF sixty miles an hour and going
straight at the runaway on the same track. /
when, as near as l could calculate the run
away had done thirty-seven and a half miles
and had covered twenty-five. II my calcula-
tons were correct there were still some twelve
and half miles between us, but you can inag-
Inc that the last five miles covered running
direct at the oncoming monster were anything
but pleasant Well reversed my engine and
started running away. gradually increasing nv
speed until we settled down to a comfortable
thirty miles an hour, the Irish lad meanwhile
keeping on terrific amount of steam We
might have run into almost anything, for did
not look ahead at all. MY eyes were strained
until they panied me looking up the track for
the runaway. 1t might have been ten minutes,
more or less--it seemed like years to me.
FINALLY we heard the rumble and the roar oY
the monster. 1t didn't take her long to heave
in sight, and she was coming humming. For
the first time, l confess, lost my nerve. 1t was
only momentary however, and then opened
my throttle and away we went. There was a
GOOD mile OF straight track between us when
first caught sight Of her; then we turne
curve and she was out Of sight if not out of
hearing. When she did come she had gained
on US pretty nearly half mile. / shut o fl
steam trifie and when we struck level piece
OF track but quarter of a mile separated us.
1 told Irish To keep up PRESSURE and the way
he did it it's wonder the boiler of 76 didn't
burst. She kept getting nearer and nearer
and 1t was all could do to keep from throwing
wide the throttle and speeding away
FINALLY she closed in upon Us, and l assure
you that so nearly equal had J. succeeded in
making the speed that the shock was little, if
any, greater than that felt upon the coupling
Of two cars. did not hesitate an instant. but
damned down the steam valve tight-a difficult
task even for an athlete, as l then was-and
from there swung myself upon the runaway.
1t was the work OF scarcely half a minute to
Chamber in the cab and jab down the steam
valve there. We ran possibly mile before we
came to standstill, and by that time was as
Imp as rag and shaking like a man with the
ague. A good drins Of whisky fetched me
around IN few minutes. We coupled the en-
gines, and IN half an hour had them both safely
housed in Galveston.
That was my last experience as a iocomo-
tive engineer. You could never get me to steer
. cab again."