Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1890-04-18

shut up mis- smithy and went out to
try to walk off the fever that burned
within him. Proceeding along the
path by the side of the railway, his
heart filed with bitter hatred, the
idea of taking terrible revenge on
Duffy gradually shaped itself in
his mind. At first he tried TO shut his
ears to the suggestion OF the tempt
err; but little by little he grew famil-
iarized with the ilea, until he got so
demoralized that he began to think
in a speculative way how he could
best avenge himself upon the engine
driver. Duffy's train always passed
the station, going east, about 1880
in the evening. Shortly before it
came the 1927 passenger train. The
device of placing an obstruction on
the line suggested itself only to be
Immediately set aside. At this point
in his meditations, the sound OF a
signal going down suggested to him
the idea of tamping with the signals.
He returned home and retired to
rest. Tossing restlessly on his bed,
he was revolving in his mind his va
rious schemes of revenge, when dia-
bolical idea struck him OF a plan
whereby he would be able to accom-
plish his object without leaving any
trace of foul play, so that
the whole blame of the catas-
trophe would fall upon Duffy,
who would not survive to tell his side
of the story, oreven if he did, and as
serted his innocence, would not be
believed. Armstrong noticed that if
the counterweight at the bottom OF
the signal-post were lifted up, it
would allow the signal arm to GU
down, just as if it had been lowered
by means OF the lever in the signal
cabin, the wire between the cabin
and the counterweight remaining
motionless all the time; while rs soon
as the counterweight was lowered
again, no trace woLhd remain OF the
signal having been touched. By
adopting this mode of lowering the
signal, the objection to his last men
toned plan would be done away with.
The only danger would be that the
pointsman might notice that the
signal was down; but that was not
likely, Us the fitting of the counter
weight would not affect the lever in
the signal-boX, and it was improba-
BILE that the signal-man's eyes would
be drawn toward the signal when he
was not either lowering itor pullingit
up. Thisplan would enable Armstrong
to get some distance away, and so
prevent suspicion fastening upon
him; and the tact of the signal being
found all right alterward would pre-
clude all possibility OF a suspicion OF
the signal having been tempered
with.
Armstrong had begun his specula-
tions with the view only OF discover
ing how he could be avenged on Duffy,
il he wished to avenge himself. The
successful issue OF them in plan Sc
curing at once death to his rival and
immunity from detection to himself
was the cause OF his resolving to go
further. Thus, by imperceptible de-
grees, he had been drawn into plot
ting to murder.
In an almost gleesome mood he
rose in the morning and FASTENED
along the embankment to the signal
which he proposed to use for his
dreadful purpose. The signal stood
atabout the deepest part of long
rock-cutting. and was planted on the
slope of a small embankment above
the cutting. An examination OF
the place satisfied Armstrong that
the best plan to adopt would be
to attach long cord to the counter
weight, and, taking the cord in his
hand, to climb the signal post, SO as
to command long stretch of the
line and to able to lower the signal
arm ut the right moment; for to be
n moment too soon or too late would
be fatal to his plan.
His plan was now matured; but n
long period OF waiting elapsed before
an opportunity of carrying it into
effect presented itself. With the pa
thence and perseverance OF wild ami
NAL waiting for it's prey, he betook
himself evening after evening to the
signal by various roundaboutroutes,
30 dS lO llSuTe uHdU ITO OIle WOulu
know that he went to the same place
every day, affixed his cord to the
CONFERENCE.-THE and waited-only to
see the passenger train dash past
without slackening speed and pass
the dstance-signal withoutstopping.
At length, when the days had crept
in considerably, and thus rendered
the evenings more suitable for the
carrying out OF his plan, as one even
ing he listen ID anxiously in the dusk
to the sound OF the approaching
passenger train. thrill of pleas
ure shot through him, he noticed
that it was -lackening speed. TAX
ing the cord in his hand, he climbed
rapidly up the signal-post, and was
overjoyed TO find the passenger train
stopping just on the station side of
the distance signal. Trembling with
excitement, he turned in the direction
whence the goods train would come
and anxiously waited the sound of
its approach. Several seconds, which
to him seemed hours, elapsed before
there was any sign OF the approach
OF the poods train. The passenrer