River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1890-07-10
A VICIOUS LOCOMOTIVE.
A Murderous Engine That Has Kille
Twenty-Seven Men.

A Murderous Engine That Has Killed
Twenty-Seven Men.
There is particularly vicious engine
on the East Tennessee road.
1t has killed twenLy-seven men, and
engineers and firemen feel supersti-
tious dread whenever they have to take
a run on the rails with this man-killer.
81 sometimes feel, said a grizzled old
stoker few days ago, that there is a
murderous spirit in that engine. She
killed two men before she got on the
rails. While she was being steamed up
in the shops, plug blew out and two
mechanics were scalded to death. Then
it was brought South and sent out on
it's first run. She mounted the rails aud
plunged down an embankment, killing
her engineer and fireman.
''Soon afterward she was fixed up and
put on the road again. She ran for q
while all right, until one night the en-
gineer that was driving her saw head
light bearing down on him and tried to
reverse the lever and run back; but the
engine acted like mule and wouldn't
aswer to the throttle. She went whirl-
ing on and crashed into the oCher train.
Five men were killed in the two engine
boxes.
'sBut / can't remember half the devil
try that engine has played. Once she
seemed to go into the dumps while on
the road and just wouldn't be managed.
She acted as if the devil were in her
cylinders. Whenever the engineer
pulled open the throttle she would
storm down the track like a hell-cat,
and it was like stopping a bucking
bronco to get her down to quiet pace.
IAN emigrant train was running
ahead, and the engineer of the man
killer had orders to look out for it.
After run of an hour or so he came in
sight of the emigrant train as it rum
bled slowly up a heavy grade; then it
disappeared over the crest and this
devil OF an engine went charging up
and over about a innate behind. The
engineer expected to see the emigrants
away down the rack. but they had slowed
up and were only few hundred yards
ahead Down went the engine below
ing like mad, and as soon as the emf
grants heard il, out they streamed as
fast as they could. But the old hell
cat could outrun the Flying Dutchman,
and there was no stopping her She
rushed down, eating up the space be-
tween her and her prey. Eager faces
we're looking out the windows of the
passenger-car ahead, and the engineer,
fireman and coaler, when they found
that they could not check the speed of
the engine, stood at the doors ready for
a leap.
They had to take it pretty soon.
Already the emigrants were leaping
from the steps and rolling down the
sides of the embankment. The engine
men waited till the last moment before
the crash, and leaped for life-but were
all killed.
81 am afraid to say now zlSuy lives
were lost as the engine tore into that
train packed with emigrants, but it
swelled the list of the men that the old
brute had killed
mo matter what road she is on-and
she has been on a great many-she has
kept on killing the men who stood at
her throttle. We all feel little nervous
when we have to run her, for when you
steam her up it seems to put the devil
in her. Atlanta Constitution.
why stands this crowd in the public street,
Is the Nations fate at stake:
An anxious look lies in ev'ry eye
As tho each heart must break.
What means this rushing OF anxious meni
what means that cheers loud roar?
There's a baseball game betwixt rival