Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-06-30
STICKING TO THEIR POSTS.
Ers ineers Who Face Danger with Small
Chance of Coming Out Alive.

"Yes, I've been pretty badly scared
several times since | began railroad
INC. fifteen years ago." said an old
freight conductor tc Kansas City
Star man. land don't really know
which one was the worst. although, of
course, l always thought the last was.
We're ali of us human, and if a man
tells YOU he don't get scared railroad
inc don't YOU believe him. I've seen
lots in the papers about heroic engi-
neers who stayed at their posts and
sacrificed their lives trying to save
others. When you show me one man
that takes those chances for humanity's
sake, as they say, I'll show you 100 who
stayed Just because they were scared
to Jump or didn't have time.
a man thinks mighty quick some
times, but he doesn't always have time
to think of anybody that's behind him.
When a fellows running across the
country a mile minute in pitch dark
and all of sudden a big headlight
flashing in his face or a pair of red
lights show up in front, he is mighty
apt to forget what the papers will say
about hero at his post. If he can
Move at all he shuts off and throws
her over and plugs her with one hand,
Wprking the air just because it's
sttond nature and he can't help HIM
sef It's what they call mechanical,
ana a man will do it without really
Knowing what he's doing. Then he'll
ju .1p if he can.
Talking about these heroes, I'm one
of hem myself. I've BIG reputation
up lorth as man who'd stick to his
pos, 1t was when | first went to rail
roaGing. I'd been raised in my superin-
tendent's family, and when got old
enough | went to firing on the Mil
waukee. About three months after
I'd opt a regular run was out on
freight over night. We'd had a rush
and ! was pretty tired, and about -
the head brakeman took the fire for
awhile and l went to sleep. was sit
ting on the front end of the seat, dead
to the world, when a couple of red
lights on the tail end of a caboose
showed up. The freight ahead of US
had broken in two and we caught the
hind end in a cut. The engineer shut
off, but he didn't have time to throw
her over and plug her, and he and the
brakeman both jumped without even
waking me up.
1--WE hit the caboose pretty hard, I
tell you, but, instead of breaking her
up or ditchin@, the pilot went under
the car and raised it right up till it
slid halfway up the boiler The shock
woke HE up, but I was only half awake
then. She was moving along slow yet,
and when I saw the red lights on the
caboose the first thing that struck me
was that we were on a siding and that
the engineer had got off, leaving the
engine in forward motion and she had
leaked or sprung her throttle and gone
into another freight on the siding ahead
of us.
q jumped over to the engineers side
ana threw her over and plugged her
hard. 1t didn't take much to stop her,
and | stood there for a minute COM
menting profanely on the engineers
leaving her in forward motion; and
yet if had been wide enough awake
to think of jumping you bet your
sweet life some other fellow would have
been the hero and I'd tried to beat the
engineer and brakeman out of the cab
window"