Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1895-01-23
THE DISPATCHER.


died trains by wire, and I would not GO
no idea Of how it wears on man. Some
stand it better than others, but it wrecks
every ones nerves sooner or later.
When was appointed night dispatch
err on this road I thought was tho big.
gest man in Missouri. I took to smoking
Is cent cigars and wearing So hats. had
a well developed case Of swelled head and
showed it all over me. A few months OK
perienoe with faithless operators, tricky
trainmen and arrogant superiors, however,
took the conceit out of me, and began to
realize just how big job it was to handle
o heavy train wire and give satisfaction.
The fact is, the man who can please all
hands has yet to be born. There are times
when some train must be delayed, and it's
often case of Hobson's choice. The
trainmen who wait curse the dispatcher
into the middle of purgatory and back
again, and those who get advantage brag
about the run they made.
lone night the road was fairly hot with
trains when came on duty. ! wondered
how in thunder l should ever get the pas
scnger train through without delay. There
over the whole length of the. road and
moro between stations. worked like
beaver. 1t was in the old days of what are
known as single orders, when each
train received separate order, which must
be sent to each one concerned singly You
will easily see how in the rush of business
single order might be incorrectly trans
mitted and trains leave stations under
conflicting orders, which would certainly
bring them together unless corrected.
Nowadays the most progressive roads all
use orders so worded that two trains or
moro receive them at the samo time, and
thus the risk Of error is lessened. That
system was hardly known in my time,
and we worked on the perilous single Or
der plan.
"a double header left the foot of the
mountain about midnight, holding an Or
der giving it tho right to Summit. About
IS minutes ahead of it was fast freight.
The latter had an engine numbered 427,
and the double train had engines 842 and
327. You must remember l was working
every minute trying to keep the freights
out of the way of the night passenger
trains.
"Along toward morning train was
ready to go down the mountain, and l
gave the order to run wild and wait for
engine 427 at Summit. In some way or
other the double train following slipped
my memory completely. I have thought
since I must have got mixed on the two
numbers, 427 and 327. At any rate, when
the operator at Summit reported tho two
trains leaving it came over me with the
suddenness and pain Of galvanlc shock
that had given what we call lap order.
1.-THE horrible feeling that seized me
often makes me shudder when think OF
it now. My hand fell from the Key, limp
and ncrveless. Something seemed to cast
blur before my eyesso could not read
the orders before me- The blood rushed to
my head, and my temples beat Ike trip
hammers. But only for second. Like
q flash seized the key and asked the oper-
ator to stop the down train. 1t was zoo
late. 1t had gone. Then tried to reach
the double train, but 1t, too, had passed.
the last telegraph Office, and knew no
earthly power could prevent those trains
from striking hard, for the grade Is nearly
90 feet to the mile up there.
Il sent for the chief dispatcher lmmeol-
ately and told him the situation. lie was
an old hand at the business, ana an affair
of this kind fretted his nerves almost TO
tho point of insanity. He added nearly
100 per cent to my agony OF mind. Ho
would sit down ana look the Tram sneeu
over and seem to devour the fatal orders
with his eyes, then jump up with o ges-
ture Of despair and say, BY gosh, that's
too bad' Then he would pace up ana
down the floor, repeating to himself:
That's too bad, too bad. Ihey ~ strlke
as sure as the world, returning always 10
pore over the train sheet and order BOOK.
I could have screamed with the aw1ui
strain Of nervous suspense. confidently
believe that nothing but lack OF courage
and the curious fascination kept me from
rushing out and jumping into the river,
Is feet below.
II felt absolutely certain that some OF
those men would be killed. Had both
trains been single tho drivers might posi-
bly, see each others headlights In timo to
jump. but was sure the men on tho sec
ond engine of the double header would go
into tho wreck all over and die as sure as
fate 1t has become fashionable nowadays
to disbelieve in O physical hereafter.
don It know anything about that, but do
know that II mental torture be the lot OF
those who sin in this life, after our &C.
counts are audited, should prefer to take
my chances with tho old fashioned style of
punishment
Suddenly both relays opened with
snap. Tho chief looked at me with per-
fectly Understandable expression and went
to the switchboard without word. We
both knew without telling what it meant.
The trains had struck, and the piled up
wreckago had broken the wires down We
tested for tho break and soon located it