River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1891-07-23

Hsw a Terrific Kansas CyclOn" fiIyed a
Mean Trick On an Ambitious Railroad
Man other wonderfuI aud Al
most Incredible Storie,
Tell you what il Is. gentlemen.
these fast runs are pretty hard on ma
chinery," said Jack O'Connor, gather
ering up his packing tools and address
Ing a group If engineers and tremen
lounging about the pilot Of the loco
motive in the next stall
Who's been making any fast runs
sneered Panhandle Dan.
well, I reckon me and FrliN Me-
Guire made some pretty goud time
on No. . yesterday" replied Jack,
pretty fast. considering we cant fly
vet
Past time on way-frcight?' was
Pete Swanson'S comment.
Now look here. young Teller" eN-
claimed Panhandle Dan. bristiing mp.
.'hajn't I seen the register lcss'n half an
hour ago. and wasn't No. registered
in Just four hour, and twenty minutes
late2 You'd better come oil yer perch
Il hain-t no sort a. doubt but the gen
tleman did make some fast time, in
tcrpolated little man with a husky
voice and a beard the color ~ an un-
baked brick. who was known as The
Corpse Member when ] was rum
min the two-nught-eight ON tine chain
gang one day we had orders To meet
the limited at Ruscdale- We started
on, with time 10 spare, but when we
got within four miles of ROsedale we
buste a cylindcr-head. and by she time
we got her disconnected the limited
was due in two minutes at EOsedale-
The conductor was scared 10 death.
and wanted 10 flag in You list climb
on, Wei git there all right, SAYS I, an
/ pulled 'er open. Mind You, / was
only workin' one side, but got them
thirty-eight loads 70 rollin' 50 fast that
when / whistled for RoSedale. gentle
men. hope Ill never boss an engine
agin IL we wasn't in on side-trariS all
safe before the sound reached town"
Nobody paid any attention 20 the
little man. and Jack resumed Il can
explain that four hours and twenty
minutes all right; that's easy. We left
Milwaukee behind time. and we had
lot o. cars To place at every station.
could do. we were forty minutes late
out Of Waullesau- Felix SAYS 10 me.
kind y sarcastic like, SAYS he. Think
We can make MP IA little time. JacI1?'
We'll. If I can't there's no use any body
else tryiu', SAYS I. / pulled out Of
Waukegan at pretty good jog. Ey
an by looks back and there was Felix /
thrashin' mis- arms of signaling me To
let 'em spin All right young Teller.
thinks |. iii is~t give yuu "A ride. We /
was Just then at the top IT nice big
hill. 80 booked her up and let her 20. 4
Pretty som the telegraph poles were 1
spinning hv 80 fast that I couldn't /
count en-. at.d directly they all began /
To- look lIls., one pole. same a. wheel 1
when il r.ts To goin' right fast look, 4
like il was staudiu still About that time I
noticed that the old 81 wasn't working /.
right. she didn't seem Ia exhaust fast /
enough. In another minute J saw the .
front end begin to bulge oUi. and o. IN +
! kncwed what was wrong. shut of. I
called for brakes, and brought 'em up
Staudiu And. gentlemen. there the 4
81 stood putin and suortin' Like all pos +
S,->-sd about two minutes \ man /
that could hear but couldn't see her /
would u Thought She was gpiu' al least 4
a thousand miles an hour when she /
wasn't movin' an inch. You see, she I
had bon runniu' - fast that she
couldn't clear herself. and the exhaust
steam had most IF II instead IF gettiu I
out through her stack got tangled up
IN tn, "a ttiuw and around the pctticoas 4
pipe till IL was most ready 10 blow her
front end oft / tried two ar three 4
times to get her - rniu'. hut Il was NO /
usc, So finally settled down 80 fifteen 4
miles an hour An that Is wins we was I
late Jack looked at the iiour very
hart and was silent
No one spoke for three minutes when 4
The Corpse. who had oceu amusing him
self by splitting at the newly polished 4
shoes a dudi>h fireman had ventured "a 1
wear inta the round house, remarked. I
Gentlemen lst's be- >ociable. every 1
body take a clldw of his own tobacco
Panhandle Dan east whitening
glance At the speaker. cleared his
thB'at. and began
when was pulling passenger out
ON the X T.. It was my proud lea>t that
in tile three wears I had been on the
ruu had never been late. | always
got over the road according e. the time
card without regard % va>houtS.
wrecks and sich-iu fact, I was build f
ing mp world-beatiug record. until a .
cyclone one day laid me ont - scandal
Gus that resigned as soon a ! got To .
the end Of the run Yes. sir. in three
minutes the record I had bs.en three
years a-buildiu was smashed 50 fine
thar !. :, arch warrant couldn't a-iocated
Nhcrc 1t s'ood. And what made il -
aEErav..tiu was that l had - double
thirtv-siN miles OF road that couldn't
turn in mileage for
~ pu see. we left Salina NJ tvo p. IN.
with the Denver express We got 70
Brookyliie and then u Ellsworth right
ON time Our next stop was At Oakley.
II had been pretty cloudy all afternoon.
and about two miles out OF Ellsworth I
noticed cloud. blacker'n midnight,
that seemed to rise up ont o the prai-
RE about a mile away on the right
hand side Of the track IL hoSsomed
out at the top and started obliquelv to-
ward the track and in the direction we
were going. with roar that sends a
cold chill down nv back when I think
81 Il u this day. I saw that il would
crusS the road about mile ahead and
Just about the time we got there Right
there I made the mistake Of my life I
should have stopped and let that stem
wiuder 20 on; but ! remembered that
i would make u late AT Oakley.
sUrcr.n guns # we did. 50. thiukin' IF
my reeori- pulled her open 70 head
Of the cyclone
Jim DOOlittle was frin' for me then
jam g mes over on my side and looks
al that stem-wiuder a minute. Dan
he says townhearted like its pretty