Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1895-08-17
LOCOMOTIVES SEEM TO KNOW.

LOCOMOTIVES SEEM TO KNOW.
Ensineer Teiis Of a Sample accident 4.
Rai1rosding.
II will tell you about one Of the
strangest freaks Of a locomotive that
ever occurred In my experience on the
road" said Harmon p. Butler, the best.
known Southern Pacific engineer In
California, the other day. 1T happen.
ed In the summer Of 1884, when was
pulling freight from Tucson, Ari., 10
Los Angeles. and have never come
across anybody who could give an q.
PLANTATION Of my experience. and have
never been able to see through II my.
self. You may draw your own conclu.
sions.
1.-THE night had my experience was
dark and stormy. 1t was In the period
Of peculiar storms and cloudbursts
down In Arizona. was ordered from
Tucson for the overland express that
left there at midnight. The fireman
seemed to be slower than ususd, and
he had q great time getting his coal
placed In the tender. The locomotive
hostler at the roundhouse had forgot
ten to Ak the oil valves. and the boiler
never made steam 10 slowly. To make
matters worse, the train dispatcher
kept us in the station plump hour past
the regular leaving time, and Just be.
fore we started the conductor came to
me and said the general superinten.
tent was on board the train and would
60 way through with Us. Well, we pull.
ed out Of the station with my mind
made up to reach our destination on
time II the wheels would stay under
her. Az soon as were out Of Tucson
I put on all the steam and let her 90.
But she didn't seem to move at half her
usual speed, and then she didn't make
steam well, either. began to be impa-
tient, and scolded the fireman for NOT
doing good work with his nre. He
seemed to try his best, but It was no 20.
She would not steam well, In spite Of
his exertions. Then the pumps began
to be troublesome. One Of them stopped
working altogether. and the other bs.
came more ineffective every minute. Il
began to dawn on me that making up
time was out Of the question.
"When We left Maricopah we were
one hour and ten minutes late, and the
conductor had just made o remark
that nettled me quite little. I asked
him II there were any orders at Mari.
copah. He answered.: None except IA
try to get to Yuma In time for dinner,
which was pure sarcasm, for II We
made our running time We would get
there In time for breakfast Well, my
heart was clean down In my boots, and
when shut of the steam going into
Big Wells found the water 10 low IN
the boiler that something had to b
done for the pump before we could
leave the station, ~ there was then
heavy grade to climb for several miles,
I informed the conductor that w
would be delayed fifteen or twenty min.
utcs with the work Of taking down one
Of the pumps. and then proceeded with
the work. We were just about ready
to start again when I heard the sharp
whistle Of an engine. and, looking up,
I saw q special tourist excursion train
from Southern California approaching
from the very direction In which va
were going. When the train pulled Into
the station We found that the telegraph
operator ut Maricopah had neglected
to give 10 meeting orders for this train.
Had II not been for the pumps We
would have rushed on to what would
probably have been ono Of the most
terrible collisions In the history Of rail.
roads.
"Now comes the remarkable part Of
the story. From the time We left Biz
Wells both pumps worked like o charm
bear In mind that I found nothing
whatever the matter with the pump
that had taken down, and there wal
apparently no reason for Ito not work.
ing--and the old engine seemed to dart
along with twice her usual speed. Grad
ually she began to pick up time again
and In the next dfty miles we made up
fifteen minutes, which was lightning
speed In those days. There were Just
nineteen minutes to make up In the last
twenty miles In, and I need not say
that We pulled into our destination OF
time. Here was an instance Of Z
cranky engine saving q collision that
would probably have resulted In o great
loss Of life and property."-New Yorl
SUN.