St. Paul daily globe., 1890-11-10
ION A FAST FREIGHT.
The Wild Trip Of a Heavy Train Down
a Steep Grade.
ONE EXPERIENCE ENOUGH.
II Was a Close Call for the Engineer
and His Fireman, Who Tells
the Story.

DetrOlt free PreSS.
Each man settled back into his seat.
and the boys began their yarn-splnning.
Railroading was the subject, and each
had something to say of terrible wrecks
or hair-breadth escapes.
IL railroaded some myself" said
stranger sitting over by the door, and
who so far had taken no apparent in
terest in the stories told by the boys.
81 quit several years ago, after some
years of hard W ork, for ] was firing, and
you all know that's no child's play. /
amt ashamed to say that our trip took
all the ambition out of me. / was on
the Santa Fe road, running between
Las Vegas and Wallace, and part of
ourrun was over the Glorietta mountain.
the pass by which the road crosses the
Rocky mountains.
''From the top Of the pass to Lamy
junction was forty-fiye miles, and the
grade 1S5 feet to the mile. The road is
carried through canonS and along the
mountain side, and in no place is there
a quarter of mile of straight track
until you get down to Canon Siding,
From there to the junction is six miles
OF pretty straight track, but the same
on freight cars in them days. and the
boys used to have to set 'em up pretty
tight to keep from going down too fast.
Any OF you been over that part of the
road?" and the speaker looked inQuir-
ingly at his audience.
II have" said tall, powerful-look-
ing brakeman, land would not care to
twist On that mountain. 1t beats any
thing ever worked on, and Eve been
on some tough mountain roads,"
''It was in the WINTER" said the
stranger, resuming the story. II was
firing for George Young. Our engine
great weight alone | attribute our
escape. Freight traffic was very heavy
OH the road at this time and nearly
every train was in two sections. We
would run two sections on the top of
the hill, and then one engine would take
both sections down the mountain.
"On the day Of which L speak we left
Las Vegas before daylight, pulling the
first section of a heavy train, and made
it all right to the head of the pass. We
were the first train over the road that
day, and about two inches of snow had
fallen, so the track was pretty slippery.
When the other train had arrived we
made the two sections in one, and were
ready for our trip down the mountain.
The other engine helped us over the
pitch of the hill, and then ran back to
Las Vegas. We had hardly got over the
hill when the train began running
pretty fast. and George Whistled for
brakes. while l set the tank break as
hard as / could. We could see the
three brakemen dong their best to
check the train, but their efforts were of
no avail. for when three miles from the
"
miles an hour, and could do nothing to
check our headlong speed.
Just below the Wylie bridge is
curve, and then we saw that the cabooSe
was gone. Seeing that they could not
check the train, the brakemen had
crawled back TO the caboose and pulled
the pin, thus severing their connection
with the train, knowing that they could
soon Stop the caboose with the power
full brake with which it was supplied.
They had left us to our fate, expecting
to find us somewhere at the bottom of
the canon, as it did not seem possible
that we could keep the track at the high
speed we had now attained. Relieved
of the cabeose the speed of the train in-
creased, and the swing of the engine
made il hard for us to keep from being
thrown out OF the cab.
"Our only chance lay i'll staying with
the engine, as jumping was out !of
the question. On the one hand was the
canon, 500 feet deep.and on the other rose
the mountain like the wall of house,
and we would roll under the train and
he cut to pieces. All this time George
had kept the whistle going. and this, to-
getler with the roar of the train, could
be heard fifty miles Off. 1t was cold
morning, but neither of us needed an
overcoat, for the perspiration stood on
our faces in large drops. we MAY pull
through yet shouted to George. He
made no reply. but the look of despair
Oh his face showed me he did not be-
lieve it.
I'VE were now running at the rate of
sixty miles an hour, and it seemed to
me that the engine would leave the
track every moment. At Canon Siding
was gravel bank where the gravel
train used to load UP between trains,
and In loading the fiat cars stood on the
main track just below the switch What
my feelings were as we neared the end
of the canon and shot around the last
curve into the straight track cannot
describe, for there, on the main line,
stood the gravel train of seven cars and
the engine nowhere in sight. We after
ward learned that she had gone back to
the junction for water while the cars
were being loaded.
''This they had plenty Of time to do.
according to the time card, but we
were nearly an hour ahead Of time. The
flats were left in charge of young man
named Webber, a new arrival from the
East. As soon as he saw us coming he
jumped Oh the cars and let off the
brakes, and the cars began to move at
rate that soon unlOaded what gravel
they had on board. On dashed the fly
ing freight train. past the gravel bank
and the group of frightened laborers,
while half a mile ahead the flats were
| skipping along with the speed of an ex-
| press train. Webber was holding on to
| brake wheel, once in While looking
| back at the train that seemed to pursue
him like fate.
"Thc six miles to Lamy Junction were
| covered in less than as many minutes.
and we rushed like cyclone through
the yards and past the side-track where
| the work train had sought safety not
five seconds too soon. The flats were
| now about 100 yards ahead. About two
miles below the junction was rise in
the grade of about eighty feet to the
mile. The length of the grade was about
| three miles, and we had strong homes, if
| nothing happened, Of stopping her be-
| fore we got to the top. 1t was evident
| the fats could hot 60 much further at
the terrible rate they had attained, for
they were jumping three feet clear of
| the track, and the only wonder was that
| the couplings held. Suddenly like
| flash the head car jumped the track and
| the rest followed like flock of
sheep, and with an awful crash
piled up. into kindling. burylng
| poor Webber. under the pile. II
| came so suddenly that before l could
| realize what had happened the wreck