Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1893-02-16
Fastest Sleigh Ride On Record.

New YORK Tribune.
If the story did not come to us from
the highest possible authority we could
not believe it. Indeed, we doubt if we
could accept of all of it, anyhow, au-
thority or no authority, were it not for
the fact that long and, we trust, SYM
pathetic study of the Locally Marvellous
as it manifests itself in America has
has brought us to the point where We
can believe most anything. We are far
from rejecting the account of local oc-
eurrence simply on the fimsy ground
that it has every appearance of being a
carefully planned lie. In the little town
of Swanton, Ohio, Just west of Toledo,
lives a young man named Arthur Punk
EFT. He is deeply enamored of a young
lady named Amelia harrison. 1t furth-
er appears that these young people are
very fond of sleigh riding, and the lady
has an especial liking for riding fast, so
the constant endeavor of the devoted
Mr.. Plunkett has been to get the horse
which could make the best time. Last
Saturday afternoon they started ont for
another ride. 81 do hope" remarked
Miss Harrison, "that you haven't got a
pokey horse this time" "I've got the
best horse old Wilkinson has," returned
the young man, proudly. They pro-
ceeded five or six miles into the country
at good rate, though the lady seemed
to think that they might well be going
| s., j 4.
When about half way back it was neces-
sary to cross the railroad track. 1t was
deadly grade crossing of course. aud
just as the horse got fairly on the track
the runner of the cutter caught on
plank of the approach and one of the
traces of the harness broke. At that
very instant the Chicago limited came
around curve not fifty yards away
The horse plunged forward, and broke
the other trace at his shoulder, and DASH
ed away, the thills falling down across
the track. There was no time to even
jump, and young Mr.. Plunkett clasped
the woman he had hoped to make his
wife in his arms and awaited the worst.
So far this is plain Ohio tale which
even child could believe. But now
comes the really extraordinary part
which requires the trained mind of the
specialist for its acceptance. The heavy
train rushed past, sweeping away the
thills and tossing the ends of the broken
traces into the air. Just as the last car
passed, one of these traces fell, and in
some way caught in the coupling chain
which hung below the rear platform. The
trace was still attached to the sleigh,
which gave lurch and bound, lighted
fairly between the rails, bounced into
ahe air again and then settled down and
tore away along the track at the rate of
sixty-five miles an hour, the train being
a little late and attempting to make up
the lost time. A weaker young man
would have lost his head. Plunkett did
not. He kept both arms tightly clasped
around the young lady and asked her if
she were going fast enough to suit her
at last.
Much that is valuable is often lost by
rejecting the simply improbabl; the only
safe rule is to reject nothing. For two
hours these interesting Ohio young peo-
pie skated along behind the Now York
and Chicago limited. The heroic Punk
EFT never relaxed for moment his hold
on the delighted Miss Harrison. We
say delighted because she was having a
sleigh ride at gait which she had long
conceived to be about right. When they
had proceeded some fifty miles the con-
ductor discovered them and came out
on the rear platform ana somewhat
brusquely asked Plunkett why he had
tied on behind without getting permis-
sion. The young man explained the
circumstances. The conductor then de- |
manded two fares, but Plunkett of |
course refused on the ground that he
was not riding on the train. The intel |
ligent official then went forward into the |
baggage car, where he carefully searched |
Though the index of his book of in |
structions for the heads Towing Sleighs, |
Catching on Rear of Train, Skating
Behind-How Punished, and various
others, but finding nothing concluded
that there was no rule against it, and
did not distorb the young people further.
At the end of two hours the train
stopped at Elkhart, Ind, and Plunkett
got out and disentangled the trace. 1t
was now dark, and they were lis miles
from home. The prospect was now en-
couraging. The train went on. Just
then the fast mail, headed east, drew up
on the opposite track. There was only
one thing to do, and he did it. Turning
the cutter around he attached it, under
cover of the darkness, to the rear of the
fast mail In five minutes they were
speeding away to the east. The moon
soon arose and shed soft radiance over
the hurrying landscape. By holding
close to the young lady Plunkett kept ,
her from falling out. The conductor
appeared, but they only laughed at him
md told him to drive faster. In little
,ver two hours they dashed into Swanton
olunkett leaned over and cut the trace,
md they came to stop within two i
blocks of home. They walked over to 2
he Baptist church and were only ten
minutes late for the Young Peoples
Helping Hand meeting.
"Let u.s. says Spencer, examine the '
improbable, for we may find it the
and have the deep pleasure of
lacing it in the proud realm of estab-
ished Fact"
Electric Bitters. 7
This remedy is becoming so well
.nown and so popular as to need no II