Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1894-12-26
The STORY THE BRAKEMAN TOLD
now A WILD YOUNG MAN TOOK
TO pRAiSiNo.
Disowned ny His Wealthy Father
because lie Had Gone wrong-rhe
Accident and Dcath--The sobbinG
Sweetheart.

Gathered In tho roundhouses here
aud in other cities. when trainmen get
together, many an interesting. sad, or
amusing story is told, and the brake
men especially. are good story tel ers
Here Is one that was told last night
not thousand miles from Fort WORTH
It was SO quiet outside that when
abe long freight train would come 10
standstill with an abrupt, awkward
Jerk, we could almost hear the big,
drifting fakes as they fell. Not breath
Oh air was stirring and the big. round
moon Uttered down through the snow
storm with SOFT whitened light that
fevealed near by objects In strange,
ghostly sort OF way. Tho soft-coal
fire that spluttered ftfully In the old
fashioned. cast iron upright stove lack
ed cheer enough to break the spell Of
the outside air. without knowing pre-
clseiy why, wo sat mostly In silence or
muttered an occasional monoSyllnbic
observation us to how Hoon we might
reach Jersey City We were four houra
behind time. and somewhere back of
us we knew was the West Shore ex-
prese. likewise behind time. and en-
deavorlng TO make up something OF
Its lost run,
sitting in the little red caboose In
the rear OF the big freight train, rum
bling along through blind fog OF
SNOW, with n flying express q our heels,
gave an uncanny aensatlon that i, for
one. did not relish in the least. The
drummer who had boarded the train
nj Newburg sat incorrectly ON pile OF
grips, which afforded him softer seat
than the hard wooden benches strung
along the side OF the car. a couple OF
shippers anxlously discussed the pros
pecta for getting their stock 10
market without having them half froz-
en- to death.
AT the entrance OF Joe, the brakeman,
however the glum little party seemed
TO thnw at once. He swung down of
the roof OF the last box car and In
through the door In n CHEEKY, whole
some sort OF fashion that warmed us at
once.
Joe" said one OF the shippers. "be
We going TO reach Jersey city before
Christmas?"
isn't this good enough for you to
live In? How'd you like to be bral,-
ing tonight"
"Tnlnt no snap; that's fact" the
shipper assentod.
mo; you bet II amt" said Joe. do
clalyely. hut this ain't patching to
what II Is sometimes"
Something Ia the manner IN which
Joe carefully hlled h q cob pipe, took
u bit Of stick from the floor poked n
into the FIRE and lit his pipe slowly
and thoughtfully, indicated that a story
was coming.
STRANGE" said Joe at last, with
ruminnnt look into tho fire. and long,
steady pun at his pipe, somehow to-
night reminds me OF the day ufore
Christmas tw0 years ago. That was
when we brought Johnny lialnea home,
Guess you must "a known Johnny"
he added, turning to the shipper"
Nope. Heard OF him Go on. Joe.
what was the story?'
mot much OF a one" said Joe. de-
preeailngly. Just a brallemans yarn,
only IT'S n little bit out COT the COM
mon run. Tho first day that
ever saw Johnny Hnincs | thought he
wna about the abandonment lad / ever
set eyes on, He came up on No. 9
on her FIRST trip. We used to meet
ottcn up and down the road aud rot TO
Know each other pretty well. He was
one OF those ladies' with n fresh,
pink and white complexion. and Jolly
laugh that made you warm up to him
az once He was straight and strong.
and when he used to stand Jaunllly
on top Of the car, the train going forty
miles nm hour and he not seeming to
think II was moving at all there wasn't
girl along the rond that hadn't n
smile for him MS he went by The lad
was nnSlous TO stick. and worked hard,
and, MS he Kept his mouth shut pretty
close Il was d long time before we
found out anything about who he was.
Ho had little ways about him that
made us think once IN q while that
ne hadnt been brought IN to work,
and his hands At frat were az soft and
white as girls. Onr OF tho fpllowa
told ua story OF how Johnny belonged
70 a good family, but got Kicked out
Tor some reason or other, but we al
ways thought he made IL. and In fact
we never did ana out his story until
that nlght mean the nlght we took
him home"
Joe stopped, pulled vigorously AZ his
pipe Tor "A few minutes, blinkod rather
nusnnlouely several times. and finally
the rather husity volcc went on;
1T seems that the lad'a name wasn't
Hainea at all. He took that TO conceal
hl9 own. HIS Nrstnamc really was
Johnny, though. and, na that was what
everybody called HAN. the lant didn't
sem TO make so munh difference. When
ne first came on the road he was A lit
Tie nnat 20, and his open, hoylRh WAYS
made some OF tho fellows E,iy him aud
want TO play trlciSa on him at first.
But Il didn't take them long to find ont
mat he Ind plenty OF mpttlc. A gang
or us were laying around the Albany
rcuudhousc one day. waiting for train
TO be made up. when 'BHl' Lawson hc-
ran to nNg him and see IL he couldn't
get light out OF him. II seems thew
had some trouble down the road. ana
when 'Bnl' had offered to nght Johnny
has refused. He titled 70 keep out Of
blifs way. but when 'Rlll' said h. was
AFRAID. Johnny turned aud walked
kguare'y up tn him ana said quietly:
iou tNke that bnck' never know
Just how I, WAS DONE but Bin made
bone sort OF fclpt, ana tho next mo-
mcnt the bin. hnllting lubher was lying
on the ground. 'Bili Didn't seem to
Know what hit him. But he went AZ
Johnny with snch savage look that
? lhd without genuine pluck would have
turned feather, But whtn 'Bln' lay
sprawllng on the ground second time
we found out that Johnny was q acl-
entine boxes There was an ugly CLEAN
IN 'Blll's eye whom he got up. and rs
he sot close UP 10 Johnny all Of 4 sud-
Den ne fburlshed n hig jsick knife he
Always onrricd. How he t,ot II nut OF