The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1892-02-16
RAILROAD.
An Elk Conductor Relates Some
Interesting Stories.

other casualties when City Clerk V. p
Hart. whose missing leg bears evidence
of his having done railro I'd service,
said in reply to a statement made by
one Of the party, that corpses made
no impression on him:
"Well gentlemen ! can't say as
much and yet l suppose l have had
as many horrifying experiences
as anyone. Several years ago when
I was conductor on freight line run
ming out Of Chicago a young man
came to me and and begged for po-
sition as brakeman. He said he was
twenty-one but ! knew he falsifed.
He was not over eighteen years old.
Being in need of a man | engaged
him. We had halted at the fourth
station to get water wher The engi-
neer who began to oil the wheels,
suidenly started back in hpr-
r,r. BY the wierd light of the
engineers lantern / saw the
cause of the strange action. Under
neoth the wheels was a human
head its CHASTITY eyes vide o: en-. l
recognized it as the boy brakeman.
Thst engineer was a man whose hair
Was gray in the service, and yet he
actusl y staggered back and tainted.
II was the m st ghasily. soul-harrow-
i,g sight l ever SAW. We picked up
by pi. cemeai the human fragments,
put them on board aud carrie them
into the depot.
Who the boy was we have not as
cerisihed to this day.
can see those CHASTITY eyes gleam-
ing at the stars to-aigh as plainly as
! did four years ago.
The Spectacle Is MIR + d on my
mind forever.
At another TIM on tn same run a
poor fellow WIS uncoup'lng ears while
the train was il m ton wlen | hap
pened t. ,opk in his direction AMI saw
the brakeman fall. 1 signaled the
engineer To- stop aud weIu-hed franti-
cally to the spnt. Well sr his b pdy
had actually b Ell ma he'd betw zen
the It's, his legs We're III she'd OFT To
his body and h,s scalp h'i hi- face. |
pniled it back over the head aud pat
my cap on it t. keep it il pace then
rushed into the depot aud wired
back to headquarters. Order was
given tn return as fast as was safe
We put The b dy in The cabpOse,
h.rched ii t. the engine then folio wed
the widest ride ever had. We
went Ihisty-six miles at a irigbtiu,
rate of speed but it seemed that We
were hours making the run. In the
mean line the poor MN was pleading
tor us To remove his boots, saying
they hurt his feet. then again he
won d ask how much further the dis
lance was. "Oh, if | can only see
Maggie" this was his wife's name
"Ob, f | cun only see Msggie before
| die :" he would grosn piteously.
just as We pulled into the station
the brakeman died having literally
bl d to death. The ciboose II 'or
seemed to me to How with blood.
carried the news to his wife. Then
ensued scene which | will no; at
temp. to de cribs.
Some men don't seem to mind these
thing. but 1 couli never reconcile
myself to such hide1us sights.
| can't account for it only on the
groun OF my first experience with
the dead | remember when hut Il
child. little girl died. ! was in the
room where the body lay c1tiinel aud
was told to kiss her. | had zen oih.rs
do the same and complied when To-
no sooner had nv own me in con-
tact with those cold and cl,mmy
lips than | was seized with horrors
never felt before nor since. Has ut
3 years old, mad nU con option of
death and thought the dad girls lips
would feel The same as others but when
| touched item was impressed with
a realizing sense of what death meant
that makes me shudder even now.
But pshaw! I'm a fool said the
big hearted railroader.as he attempted
t. suppress his emotions. Tn'prove
this. Mt three weeks ago when | was
sick in bed picked up trainman's
jnurnsl and was reading a poem
written by an old lady. The poem
went on To til how at church one day
the organist was absent and the
preacher was calling for some
one 70 PLAY. No one
seemed to heed the call when a mis-
cradle specimen OF humanity darkened
the door just as the preacher called
for The last time He was ragged and
half intoxi-sted but taking in the
situation st ggered to tie organ amid
the mutiled SCOTS of the congregation
who thought it an outrageous sacri-