Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1894-06-01

l4-Y EAR-OLD BOY SOUND ASLEEP.
Doc, feel as though I ought not to 20
out on this run and have had a feeling all
the morning of something ominous i'm
pending.
However,, he decided to go, and con-
TESS to something akin to nervousness
which came stealing over me. Bissell
handed me the orders to run, and my
nerves were not steadied any by the fact
that they were timed 1862 a. m. We: got
along nevertheless without mishap until
reaching Mendoza, where we picked up
long string of empty flat cars. Becoming
curious to know how heavy was the train
we were then pulling asked Conductor
Bissell, who replied, 'Twenty-nine loads,
80 empty flats and the way (caboose).
Mentally reckoning up, here again was
that fateful numbering cars.
about 4 o'clock next morning we
started back toward Galesburg with a
train, nothing eventful transporting until
we reached Altoona, Ills, is miles from
Galesburg. Leaving there, as the engine
passed WEIGH on the station platform he
shouted, TIM going back to see what those
buns are doing In that car of merchan-
disc Four miles farther, at Oneida, no
ticed that WEIGH was not In his usual
place. Search for him was unavailing.
We telegraphed back to Altoona, but he
was not there. Thinking he had got left
and would turn up all right on the next
train, we proceeded on to Galesburg, where
we learned that the next train behind us,
Conductor Frank Cullenbine, had stopped
q mile west Of Altoona and gathered up the
mangled remains of poor WEIGH, who had
fallen from our train, either from mis-
step, a bullet or a blow, which it has never
been ascertained. His watch lay some dis
lance from him on the track, stopped at
1859 p. m. Thus he died, pursued, it
seemed, even to death by that mystic num-
ber-train 50, orders timed 1859, 50 cars
east Of Mendoza, caboose No. SO, and in
death the index on the dial marked 1853,
his birthday, Oct ~. e~
;" But this is not all. Conductor Bissell
became SO impressed with the strange oc-
currence that he resigned, went on the
Denver and Rio Grande, where less than q
year later, at Maysville, Colo, he, too,
was crushed to death beneath the merciless
wheels. Ms. "~..s #
IAN excellent object lesson of the ex-
treme danger in using the single order
system, with small boys to handle such or
ders, is aptly illustrated by fortunately
ending though risky incident occurring
about 1879. The single order system, it
Is necessary to explain, is the displaying
Of the telegraph order signal at given
point, depending on it to hold the ruling
train, and then moving the inferior train
against the ruling train, which is assumed
to be firmly held by the flag. This sys
tenn has given way to the double order
system Of today, which is all but absolute
" safe.
I'VE used single orders on the O. at
that time, and the fact that I am an ex
pert telegrapher as well as mechanic has
caused me often to bless my lucky star
Going east on the seventh section Of No
"A one night, with long string Of Union
Pacific sheep-time guaranteed-We wert
tanning the earth ahead Of No. passen
ger, trying to keep off their time Stop
ping at Galva few minutes to put some
q .dope' and tallow into hotbox, recol
lected that Frank Patterson, the night
operator, had some iced drinking water
The night being quite warm, stepped in
side to get drink, and from force Of habi1
liz listened to the telegraph instrument
DIR. Lamoreux, dispatcher at Galesburg
with his steady, clocklike style, while
I stood and listened, sent this order to Dug
tgans, passing track Office between Galvs
and Kewanec: s
8 ..To Operator Duggans:
Hold seventh Gth) forty four 90 fortwo ex
fras west, Laferty and Merrill; No. forty-on,
GU and No. dfty-five (5). (Signed I'D. b.
Well, Unused, that cooks our goose 70
getting much farther ahead OF No. 4, AMI
I'VE started on. Coming up II sight o
slDuggans, ! expected, Of course, to see TIL
green light displayed holding Us red i
now used instead Of green but nothing
appeared but white lights. Thinking per
haps the doctor dispatcher had concludes
ito let Us skate along ahead of the passen
ger with our sheep, reached for the wins
tie and sounded two blasts OF brakes
Reconsid ering the matter, i recollecte,
lsthat not one time ii ten did the docto
have occasion to reverse his own iudg men
On meeting points, and became suspicion
that omathing was wrong. Shutting Oh
stopped just insid the side track switcl
at the cubb hole TELEGRAPH Ia III,
slely kn;,w ing WHY asI passed the Yitcl