Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1893-08-17
ONE ENGINEERS EXPERIENCES.
He Has Killed Twenty-Five Persons, but IL
Regarded rs a Safe Man.

He Has Killed Twenty-Five Persons, but Ii
Regarded as Safe Man.
'T,nfayette Truman, engineer Of the
Erie train that ran into the eastern
Illinois train, has killed % men, said
C. r. Mccullough, brother engineer
of the Chicago and Erie road, at the
Clifton, but" he continued, in no
case was he to blame, and in every
case he has been exonerated by the
jury. Mostof these killings were at
railroa1crossings and in other similar
accidents where the engineer could
not be held responsible. He is only
young man, but / want to relate
two experiences of his which show
him to be possessed of marvellous
presence OF mind
In October, 1890, he was engineer
of a train that was dashing through
burning forests near Lima, o., at tho
rate of 60 miles an hour That night
the sky was concealed by black storm
clouds, and before the burning dis
trict was reached the darkness from
the window of the cars seemed i'm
penetrable. Then, as the train pro-
ceedcd, the horizon became hazily
red. AS the train sped on nearer, the
blood red clouds appeared to be tum-
bling about unanimously, asifitwere
a sea of fire buifeted by angry winds.
Atlength the train seemingly plunged
into the heart of this forest of fire.
There was a straight stretch Of
track continuing for seven miles. AS
the train dashed along, the fire sprang
up in sheets from cracking, falling
trees on either side, and above was a
canopy of shifting, eddying red smoke.
Down the track, beyond the reach of
the headlight. there was only a red
blur. a bridge spanning deep river
was ahead somewhere. Suddenly,
Immediately in front, Truman saw a
shower Of big sparks fly upward. In
an instant he was reversing his en-
CINE, and the train was brought to a
stanslstill just on the edge of the
river. 1t had flashed over him When
he saw the sparks that the bridge
was burning, and that a spar had
fallen, sending up as it went down \
show of light. He saved the train
and the lives of 500 passengers. There
is not one engineer in a thousand who
would have arrived at the conclusion
so quickly that the additional transi-
tory light was from the bridge burn
ing. They would have supposed it
was ali inconsequcntial part Of the
phenomena and plunged on to de
structiOn.
THE other incident, while not sir
rounded by the popular herolike
aspect lent by the forest fire and the
run through 1t, was no less heroic
and showed far greater presence Of
mind This was in Ohio, too, near
Hepburn His train this time was
running at about the same rate, 60
miles an hour, when the rods on each
side of the engine broke, instantly
killing the fireman and wrocking
the cab. Truman, to save hnns"lf,
jumped into the tender. And there
he was isolated as il were. the broken
rods flying madly and heating dcafcn-
ingly, and it was impossible for him
to reach an airhrakc with the train
going at that speed. He il only &
young man, hut he did something
then that many old engineers have
since told me they would never hay"
thought Of He got ont his pocket
knife and cut the hose, thereby ap-
plying the automatic brake, and sly
cceded in stopping the train. Iwould
rather ride lehinl that man, con
cludcd Nh. Mccullough, than any
engineer in the United States Chi
cayo Inter Ocean.