Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1893-04-15
o \ THE AhEGAZAM.
A Cd AAPsic STORY or A THRILLING
RAlLRoAo WRECK.

" werH ltunS IA the smoking car
Of NJ Site3rr and the conversation un-
pta~| |u.h r0nsH 5t4.iel into the ques-
tinu E lHofi wreel;~ II WAS strange.
ta MAI {ti- sn.nid In. tor We were all
cid ht44- Il travelling That sort Of
prop K s"d'nu talk ttFut wrecks. but we
wcr' ~""u ~ TIE TIN x of II, every man
nE ~ telling hi~ experiences 80 spoke
tauI r ti.tfi t. whose mind this story
was brought ty The occurrence of sew
etai |nli wreck TO- thr east We were
tih N.ltug from utlr tuwn Ia anpther-l
wpu| sly where On roAd / will call
'hc AtrSa2aln. hecau>e don't want 10
mak bad friends of the railroad people
iut the cNt tsrieuee i worth telling, for
I'll Ileyer totsot it If | live 10 be a thou
sant years aud "a day old There was
one his fellow ia the smoke.-a drum
mer who evidently was kicker. AT all
evet|t~ he did not like the Alegazam
road Why said hc. II wouldn't sur
prls' me a bil II we We're 10 70 smash
befuF the night Is over | never ride
on Il Nis ruad without huying ten dollars
word of accident policy Oh, this Ale
gazam Is "A beauty II there was n
horsF ear line alongside of it | would
take that. The big drummer was get
ting to he a nuisance III the converse
ton.
A the end of every horrible tale he
woul u brighten mp and say That isn't
marker 10 what will happen some day
ON he Alegazam Mark my words.
This road is Il hoodoo IL there ever was
one. 0ur cigars We're smoked out as
cigars viii be smoked out. and we re-
tired for the night, lie drummer's
berth was only few numbers from
mine aud as he got into bed he poked
his dead out between the curtains and
said ~ a holrse whisper, Let your body
hang half ont the window so you'll be
on h and when II strikes and then turned
in and. | don't doubt. went sound to
sleel never looking for an accident, not
with standing all his talk
Now, a railroad wreck is funny
thin4 continued Mr. Hart Every
body thinks hiss the last man out and
the last 10 hear the shock. and conse-
qnently thinks there's no hope for him.
People don't stop to consider that in
nine ynine ont Of "A hundred wrecks the
danggc is all done at once or not at all.
And this case IL a good exemplar |
sleeT soundly but lightly when travel,
and am ready walker when there is
any unusual npiae--that Is. nolse not
causR Rd by the travel of the train over
tine rails This night | turned In
with smile nj my drummer's ) fears and
wits fast asleep iii ten minutes. The
ruiz l-dub.dub OF the wheels sung me
into u sound slumber, and I'm sure |
don know how long IL lasted until |
WAS awakened by IA combination of three
things, and pretty thoroughly awakened
AT / nat. First the train had stopped
and here was no rattle. Then heard
voice cry ont in the ~ ghf outside:
For Gods sake stop that enginer
\ nj then following that up almost
insta antaneonsly there WIS great crash
ing Sound af breaking glass. That was
all. Following tins there WAS silence
80 profound that could hear my watch
ticking under my pillow What dia 1t
meaiIt 4 Thousand questions rushed
into my head III the second Of time that
fOllnR wed the breaking OF the glass. But
before Ind time 10 get out Of the berth
a yo ce rang through the car in tone
the ] Ike of which | never heard before
and hope never 10 hear again.
Jump for your lives
i have heard and seen some queer
things ia my day hu' before heard
that voice | never knew what horror
meal The feeling Of nuns whole
life was concentrated into that voice,
and Il struck into my nerves a4 might
streak of lightning that had no power to
kill
AS / Jumped Ia the ground and
rushAd up the track | SAW approaching
onr train ON the same track coming TO
meet our engine. the headlight of an
other locomotive That headlight and
the dark outlines of the engine behind |
il locked to me like some horrible mon
ster from another world. 1t was more
than a simple piece Of machinery. The |
thing WAS alive. and seemed To be- about |
ten q mes as large as 1t really was The |
impression had of II then was the most |
singular feeling | ever knew, and can't |
describe it. Everything had been done |
SO quickly, and ! was - terribly excited /
that / WAS not for some seconds that ! /
motto I'd ! was the first man in the train /
that had got out The strange engine /
slid Bloug the rails until II was within I
few feet Of ours and stopped Then the t
people began coming out.
why, in the interval that eIapsed be-
tween the cry of Jump for your liyesr |
and 1e time the passengers We're alarmed /
and had begun To come Dut. thou.
sand trains might have been wrecked.
Near y all the passengers We're now ont
side Lnguiring into the cause of the
trouble In my inquiries discovered
the dause of the crashing glass. The
man n the berth next mine had heard
the brakes put on, had heard the first
outcrs and. thinking thai trouble waa
ahead, simply bolted through his win
dow. carrying the glass with him. He
was not even scratched We learned
that. through an error IN switching at
a statio up the road, the strange engine
had sid down our track just IN time 10
see otr headlight and for both engines
TO step twenty feet short of collision.
"Bht the funniest part Is To come.
Long after the first rush was over a win
dow Af onr sleeper wnz broken through,
and our friend the drummer diyed
through il head first t. the ground. He
had Just learned thai We We're going 10
be wrecked. aud he didn't want 10 take
any chances. And IN his flight from the
window To the RroliTi | heard him say