New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1892-05-18


when he began starring on the stage
in a play called con Hand, and used
big six-sheet stands OF bills for his
country billing, the center sheet having
a big red hand and Thompson" en-
blazoned thereon, they gave him his
subsequent title.
His play was amarvel of astounding
dramatic strength and with red fire
extending from the wingslike moisture
from well-pressed clay. The towns
afflicted by ''On Hand were mostly
located in Central Illinois, even as far
down as Egypt. Thompson had a
charming wife and q pretty golden
haired little girl that he frequently,
when her mother consented, farmed
out to "Uncle Toms Cabin" troupes
to play Little Eva.
These two formed his family gods,
and likewise his family goods, for he
had no other property. With this
little literary overture allow me to in
troduce the saddest episode in the
Thompson family.
Have you ever been down in Central
Illinois? Well, for black mud, big
eorn-felds, horse trading poor rail
ways and general cussedness, the
small town and country contributing
thereto in Stark, Plarid, Tazewell and
similar counties have long ranked
high. And it was down there some
fifteen or sixteen years back that old
"On Hand" received his last curtain
call.
The Rock Island and Peoria Rail
way is a shortfeeder to the Great
Rock Island Route, and in the days
speak Of was an independent trunk
line of 90 miles in length, tapping a
pretty rich coal country, but so gen
orally "hard up that receivers were
as common as rotten ties, and every
mile OF the road was stanchly sup
ported by able bodied mortgages.
Remember, I'm speaking of CHOSE
days"
Well, one lovely spring day it was
discovered by the On Hand Dramatic
Company that they were short OF bill
ing matter, and John Thompson left
his Thespians sheltered in the shadow
Of a country hotel and started for
Peoria to replenish his printing. He
kissed his pretty little wife goodbye,
and under the somewhat unusual car
ess managed to borrow SIS the poor
little woman had saved up and kept
concealed from her husband. Then
John started. He spent the day in
Peoria meeting very convivial fellows,
singing old songs, practicing atthe bar
until it was too late to take the even
ing passenger train, SO he started out
ito make a night OF it. ~ --.'
1t was with trembling limbs, sick
stomach, but q fat bottle of whisky
that "On Hand Thompsongot on to
freight caboose early the next morn
ing away up at the yards" near the
roundhouse. He was en- route for the
town where Mollie and the baby wait
ed for him.
The road winds about the hills and
bluffs back of Peoria, thereby giving a
continuous grade for nearly six miles,
The actor and his load lay sluggishly
along a bench in the caboose, and aft
er the railroad wit of the brakeman
had ratified carelessly over his form,
he was left in peace to sleep and dream
1t was against the rules, but they
did it just the same. The conductor
had his breakfast in q pail and sat on
the fireman's seat in the engine cab,
and the head brakeman was idly
swinging around on the wheel of the
Second-car-b back brake. Then the
hind brakeman, whose place while the
train is in motion is supposed to al
ways bein the cupola of the caboose
Clambered out and started across the
tops of the freightcars for a confab
with his chumbs forward. That was
bad man for Son Hand Thomp-
son. s.a.a
Suddenly the engineer, conductor
and crew felt the part OF the train
Oh unleashed greyhound, and with
startled look the experienced engin-
eer leaned away out OF his cab and
said:
Good gracious, Pete, we've broke
in two"
The conductor was only vaguely
alarmed. There had on other occa-
sions been similar accidents, but moth
ing serious had happened.
''Nosey;s on the caboose. He'll set
her sliden' en- then we'll go back en-
catch the old sash an blind factory, -
said the ICON" taking q bite from his
plug of tobacco and beginning to climb
down from his comfortable seat.
The forward part of the train had
shot around a curve and the conduc.
tor now noticed that the engine was
pulling but five box and two hatcars.
Then he mentally ran over the full
train complement and decided that IL
frelghtcars and a caboose composed
the cutoff
By the time they had set several
brakes and reversed the engine, the
conductor learned that the forward
part of the train held his two brake
men. You idiots, he cried that train
will start backward and no power
: hereabouts can stop its career until
it turns bottom side up somewhere in
the yards.
On the run started the conductor
and his crew around the curve between
tWo high bluffs, and when 10 minutes