Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-06-10
A VERY CLOSE CALL.
The Veteran Engineer. John Kelley
Has One.
Dragged Under his Engine so Feet
he Escapes With Probably Only
Slight Injuries.

The veteran John Kelley, of the Cable
bra nch of the R. 1. & P. railway, had
about as narrow an escape from fright
full death as is apt to happen in q life
time, this morning
After bringing his ira; from Cab,e at sos
he backed his engine down to the round
house, as Is his custom. where it was
turned and then backed up again as far
as Seventeenth street to await the signal
to back on up and take the train out as
soon as it was made up. When the loco>
motive, No. 10, stopped, Engineer Kelley
dismounted from the cab to go up towr
to attend to some business. telling the
fireman, Robert Knight, to back up when
he received the signal from the ysrdman
that the train was ready. He then
started to walk up the tracks, and had
proceeded only about half way through
the block when he stepped over onto the
Peoria tracks to avoid a switch engine
which was coming up the G, B. & Q
track closely paralleling it. In the mean
time, unknown to Mr.. Kelley. his fireman
had received the signal to back up and he
proceeded to do so, and before the en-
| gineer realized his danger, the tender of
his engine struck him in the back and
knocked him down. The brake beam
caught his clothing, and he was held in
peril directly under the locomotive and
dragged distance of fully so feet. He
gave the alarm TO the fireman to stop, and
he succeeded IN reversing the engine be-
| fore the wheels struck the helpless man
who was at the mercy of his own !ocomo-
tive
Engineer Kelley was at once taken
from mis- perilOus position by Officer
Etzsl and others who happened to witness
the accident, and carried into a
side room in Lothsr Harms res,
taurant, Second avenue and Seven>
teenth, and Superintendent Sudlow, Train
Dispatcher Greenougb. DR.. W. 4. Paul,
J. S. Gilmore, Father Thomas Mackin
and others were soon by his side. From
his appearance it was feared Mr. Kelley
had sustained serious injury, though he
maintained composure and declared that
he was not. badly hurt. From the exam.
ination byiDr. Paul. who dressed the
wounds.,,it was apparent that none of
| them were serious, although there is. of
course, the possibility of the development
of internal in iuries later. The left side
of the face and scalp was badly torn and
bruised, the ear confused, " nile the hands,
arms and breast were considerably LAGER.
ated. After sthe injuries had been
dressed, Mr.. Kelley was conveyed in q
carriage to the Peoria depot, and this af-
ternoon taken to his home at Gable. Fire
man knight is temporarily in charge of
the veteran engineers locomotive.
Engineer Kelley is probably the Oldest
| locomotive engineer running into Rock
Island. He has been in the service of the
| r. / & P. ever since the road was started
and on the Gable branch ever since it was
opened He was originally in the em'
ploy Of the Rock Island road and manip-
ulated one of the first engines that ever
came into Rock Island, 81 years ago. His
escape this morning was as marvellous as
il was thrilling, and Officer Etzel who
witnessed it. and finally succeeded in at
tracing the fireman's attention, says if
the engine had run another foot the en-
ginee-'s body would have struck the
wooden crossing at Seventeenth street
and very likely have been thrown under
the wheels.
When the fireman, who head nothing
ofthe engineers cries--owing 10 the noise
the c., B. & Q. switch engine was max
ing-until Officer Erzel gave him the
alarm, found that q man was under the
engine, he came very near faintiug
When be saw the PROSTATE form was that
of his engineer and CAB companion. MS
grief and distraction knew no bounds.