The Logan County banner. [volume] (Logan, W. Va.) 1889-1903, 1891-02-12

n y uSbICe Vi bue supreme CCuFL IL not
more taciturn than the average railroad
engineer And, not unlike the eminent
jurists, when once his habitual reserve
is cast aside no Is a yeritable mine OF
anecdote and wit.
A Washington Star Reporter one
afternoon during the past week ran
across ono of these knights OF the
Throttle" in the neighborhood of the
round house" on Virginia avenue, and,
as luck. would have 1t, the salvation
Git, is the ply car is designated in the
= railroader's parlance, had just arrived
and he was in good humor and talka-
i've
Come, John, you won't 60 out on your
run for two hours yet. Tell me about
some of the tight places you've been in
since becoming an engineer"
Well, young man, we don't like to
talk about these things. but, as you
appear to be anxious for story, dom t
qfnd telling you one.
al Tell me about that long red scar
aAthere under your chin. That must
have been quite wound"
That was rather hard one, but
fair in comparison with my other breaks
and bruises. As you know, have
pulled throttle on the Baltimore &
Potomac road ever since the first rail
was laid. Railroading to-day is child's
play to what 1t was then. Now our
greatest risk is broken rail or axle;
then it was dozen different things to
keep us alert. chief among them being
washouts, insecure trestles and mis-
takes in telegraph orders incidental to
single-track road Overwork always
played prominent part, and it was
owing to the. latter fact that this scar
adorns my meat-chopper.
1T was during the busy days of the
Inauguration of Garfield, and all the
sleep the boys had secured for week
was only cat-naps. l was coming north,
out OF Washington, on the evening of
Inauguration day, and ex-President
Hayes occupied private car on the rear
of my train. The cars we're crowded to
their fullest capacity, and with this re-
sponsibility upon me l believe l. could
have done without sleep for month.
All the cars were in Washington or
bound north, the engines coming south
generally being empty-that is, without
cars. The engineers Of these empty en-
gines would momentarily relax their
vigilance, owing to the lesser RESPONSE
bility, and it was during ono of those
MOMENTS that got into the highest
place and received the closest call of
my life. I=received orders to,pass two
empty engines coming south at Severn,
small telegraph station about thirty
miles north OF Washington, and that
they would take the siding for me. My
engine was doing nicely and we were
licking It along at a pretty lively gait.
when, just as turned the Severn curve,
Hip bang came the two engines into me,
and When l woke up two weeks had
passed, an engineer and baggage-master
z had been buried, three locomotives and
= half-dozen cars smashed into splinters,
ana llay on my back in the hospital
With a leg, an arm and three ribs
broken and my under jaw almost torn
OIL. The engineer OF one OF the south
pound engines had relaxed his vigl-
lance for hardly more than. minute,
ran by his siding, and his life paid the
:. forfeit
Why didn't jump? Holy smoke,
young fellow, that never entered my
mind, ! reversed my engine. put ON the
air and by that time we were piled up
and was unconscious. The COOL Lord
only knows why my railroadins days
didn'tend there, but they didn't, and |
flatter myself that, i can make time
-. with any of the boys"
'-'=5-,'How about that little acciden. out at
McGruder's curve; weren't yo, mixed
up in that affair? 1t occurred a GOOD
while ago, but never heard the par
tieulars.o
We'll, / should say / was mixed up in
that affair. IL al nv davs ~ railroad-
ing that was the luckiest accident with
the queerest trimmings / have ever
known. The little details that i am 20
ing to-tell you in connection with the
affair came to me some time after their
occurrence.
This time / was coming south ON the
New York express, and was due in
WaShington at 1880 at night. / had
aboHt twelve cars Allied with passengers
behind me. AT that time there was q
telegraph station about a quarter of a
mile north Of the curve called .Wil-
SONS .''-Tbe- ~eynress oenora11v had a
clear track and orders were never
given it only when 81 great Importance.
a