The Republican., 1890-12-12
FORTY MINUTES LATE.
How and Where an Engineer Lost
His Left Ear.


1.-THE most fearful accident that over
happened on locomotives" echoed the
engineer, looking round at me. The
brave man was member of my parish,
and l was sitting at his tea-table. After
moments thought, he pushed back
his chair, for the frugal meal was fin
ished, and looked hard at his wife. 1t
was q curious gaze of his honest eyes,
and the lady met his glanccs with an
almost pathetic entreaty: "Do not tell
itr' written on her kind face.
"She don't like to think of it." he re-
sumcd, laughing; at the same time he
shook back the long hair that fell in
waves over the left side of his brow, un-
covering a bluShing scar and revealing
that he had been dismembered Of an
ear. But l am not so bad looking
fellow, after ALL" he said. In fact, he
was singularly fnc-looking.
at is one of those memories" his
wife interrupted, rising that one fears
to recall. But, thank God, it will be no
more likely to occur again for the tell
ing of it, and he may tell it while put
the boy to bed, upstairs"
at was one of those accidents that
nothing can prevent" resumed the en-
gineer. mo foresight can guard against
the hidden flaw which the best of steel
sometimes hides in its own false heart.
The best crank or Shaft ever forged will
sometimes break on a steamer in mid
ocean. So of a connecting-rod on
pair of drivers. Now think the thing
am going to tell you is the most ter
rifle accident that can happen on loco
motive, because it is the worst | ever
experienced. 1t worked the most havoc
and scared me more than any other |
ever went through. | can not get over
the dread of it even now, and probably
never shall. Still another man might
single out another as the worst"
My friend still runs, as he did that
almost fatal day, the fastest train that
speeds between two large cities. At
one end of it's fight the train is obliged
to traverse a long tunnel. Millions of
people pass through that tunnel yearly
in safety. But if they knew the hair
breadth escapes of the first few years,
and especially during its construction,
ONOAA nv" ShNJ Nv llOU dl w SIO 81
comfortably; but the best of applia ances
have somewhat lessened tho dangers.
when we were ready to leave the
depot at -, the new general manager
of the division came along down the
platform with the agent, and was intro
duced to me. | pulled off my greasy
cap, and was about to get down, when
he said: Never mind;' that he was
going to run in with us. OF course, |
offered him his choice of seats. as you
wouldn't to your own father; for who
ever rides in the cab, he must take
stand up or the freman's box, if the
fellow is good-natured enough to offer
it. A big officer, like tho manager. was
different, however, and l gave him any
thing. To tell the truth, | was relieved
to know his errand was only to ride; for
this English gentleman, a kinsman of
our big owner, had been turning up lots
of good men. He seemed to think we
Americans couldn't mako fast time, and
he forgot that our machines and cars
are heavier, our roads not so straight as
the English.
"'We are forty minutes late,' he said.
as he straddled in front of his fire-box
and consulted his watch. This occurs
about every day, my man, more or less,
and it's about time the blamed practice
was stopped
"'Tratfic is heavy in October, SIR
said, trying to smile my prettiest.
"'Can you drive this machine in on
time?' he kind O growled at me.
II gave him real Yankee stare back
for moment and then my blood was
up. That was ten years ago, before
had any wife and babies. 1t is wife,
babies, ten years and ditch or two that
takes tho daredevil out of locomotive
engineer. At first man knows no
fear, but any of the aforementioned
things kind O. tempers him down. He
can't keep his pluck up as at first, do
what he will. My wife, by the way, was
expecting me to come round with the
minister to be spliced week from that
very day. She had sent out some we'd
dug cards-rather snowy for humble
folks to do. The wedding had to be de-
ferred," and he tried to smile as he re-
ferred to that incident, though it was
evident that the remembered tragedy
was beginning to overshadow his own
manly face, as it had his wife's before
she left us. "Well, pastor, l just
frowned on the Englishman, and said:
IF you'll choose which seat you'll take
and let my fireman get in some of his
work, we'll show you what the Saga
more can do when she Is mad
''I will take the stoker's box he
said; that's English for fireman. you
know. And he climbed up rolling a
cigarette and lighting it with funny
kind of foreign machine in his hand.
81 started her easy, felt my cars all
got hold. 1t was before tho days of
solid trains and couplers. We pulled
ten cars. We had run of seventy-four
miles schedule time two hours / was
to run it in one hour and twenty min
utes. There were to be three slow-ups
and one dead halt at a drawer. That
would give me most Of the miles in
about sixty seconds / often go that
for a mile or so; every fast train does