The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1896-01-24

their fate but now 1t seemed the only
Chan5. left 10 MS.
''Shnll we Jump, Frank?" asked.
| "You forget the girls, was a Y he said
| Ind not forgotten them, bun now l re.
| necte'l that even If they had the courage
to attampt 1t The risks were too great, and
besides ono of the two was no longer capa
| bio OF deciding for herself. And so WE
could only sit ST i'll and await, with what
| equanimity we could command, the fate
upon which we were rushing.
Meanwhile Harry Armstrong, our driv,
| er, had reached the top of High Bank, and
| from the too quick action of his brake had
! learned that something unlocked for had
happened to his train. The next turning
showed him that he had broken away and
that his engine had only few trucks be.
/ hind it. He took what was probably the
only safe course, that of putting on steam
and going ahead as fast as he could.
"There is break away" he shouted
as he steamed into the siding, "and 90
wagons Of coal are tearing down the
! banks"
"Sigpal against the up train" called
out the station master. II hear her COM
ing"
"But the goods will run into her
farther down the line in any case.''
1--WE must throw the goods off the rails
Heaven help the poor guards We can do
nothing for Them
"There are two others besides the
guards" urged one of the men on the en-
CINE.
And a hundred in the up train.
Sharp with a hammer. We must spike
the back road points. 1t may send them
into the river, but 1t must be risked."
The spike was driven home.
Bring the iron chairs, was next called
out
pile of these lying beside the line was
seized upon and hurriedly number of
them thrown across the metals. Then the
men ran back out of the way of danger,
for the roar of the "down" train was upon
them. Out of the black darkness, like a
streak still blacker, rushed the long line
of doomed wagons and then came the
dreaded crash, heard for miles round,
drowning the noise of the gale, now at its
height.
The wrecked train lay in one indistin.
guishable mass of iron and coal and splin-
tered wood. The first wagons had driven
over the chairs and fallen into the ballast,
where they lay overturned, serving by way
of buffer to those behind them. Anx-
iously, and with many forebodings of evil,
was the scene of destruction searched for
the wreck of the guards van. No trace
of 1t was to be seen.
l mist now take up the story of the
runaway at the point where 1 left it off.
was sitting as If in dream when light
hand was placed on my arm, and Mary
Applegarth g voice sounded loud and shrill
in my ear.
"Wake up she cried. "Think if
there's no plan to let go the van from the
first wagon. Can't you get at the coup
lingsp The woodwork is very Old"
found she had already reused up her
father, who, like me, had abandoned hope
In another moment had the hammer
out of the locker. Frank, picking up
shaCkle hook, drove it through the end of
the van just above the coupling and soon
had large opening made; then, easing
off the van brake, we knocked out with
the hammer the bolt which attached the
first truck to us. The loaded wagons
seemaSf0o race away from us as we gradu-
ally ~ on the brake again, and we felt
that danger was past.
We Vaveled slowly down the bank until
we saw red light ahead. 1t was one of
The men sent from the station after the
rain had been wrecked. He had come on
As ordered, but with no hope of finding
any of us alive.
I made up my mind that very night to
make match of it with Mary Applegarth
I she would have me. We were married
! few months after, and all my mates
,alled 1t "a runaway match. "-London |
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