The Republican., 1896-06-11
THREE TELEGRAPH STORIES.
Showing How Much Depends on
the Railroad Operator.
Ono of Them Made Up for a Blunder by
Saving the Limited - An Accident
Where Accidents Were Deemed
An Impossibility.

Said the telegrapher: Jones was
night operator at a town near Altoona,
on the Pennsylvania railroad. He had
lost great deal of sleep and was very
tired. The night wore along and trains
were few. 1t was hard to keep awake.
Finally the operator in the signal tower
EeXt to the west reported No 4, the cx-
press, passing east. The track was
clear and Jones pulled the white signal
and waited for No. 4. He had almost
fallen asleep when he was aroused by
the roar of the train as No swept past
the white signal. He saw the red lights
at the rear of the train as she disap-
peared around the curve and he re-
ported her to the operator at the sig
nal tower next east and west. Then he
waited TO hear that she had passed the
tower east. Three or four minutes was
all it should have taken her TO reach that
tower, but he waited long after that and
no word came to him. He called up
Smith, the opeator there, and asked
him if No. had passed. Smith said
No They talked ovey the wire and
been wrecked between the two towers.
AT about that time the train dis
pateher called up and asked anxiously
where No. 4 was. Jones said that she
had passed his tower,and Smith was sure
that she had not passed his. Every body
was wide awake now, for the train was
certainly lost, and lost train is
patcher thought that she might have
slipped past without Smith seeing her,
the towers ali along the road beyond de-
clared that she had not passed them.
A freight going west was stopped at
Jones' tower and the conductor was
asked if he had seen No. between the
two towers. He said that there was no
sign of her.
Then the perspiration began to stand
out on the operators and dispatchers.
The track between the two towers lies
along the river. a high stone wall sup
ports it. The only possible explanation
seemed to be that No. had gone over
the wall into the river. She could not
have gone up into the air. Nearly an
hour had passed. The river seemed the
only place where she could be. The
freight conductor received orders to
uncouple his engine and run back
slowly. He ran back past two towers,
but could see nothing of No. on the
track or in the river. There was not
even a displaced rail where she could
have gone over the wall. Then he was
ordered to run slowly west, to see how
things looked there. About half way
between Jones' tower and the one west
or him the express was found, with
broken cylinder head. She had never
passed Jones at all. Jones had dreamed
it, although he declares to this day that
he was wide awake all the time.
zones was in bad repute for time,
but he was not discharged, as he was
good man, and his mistake had not
caused a wreck. He redeemed him
self within few weeks. BY his pres
ence of mind and quick action he saved
the limited. That was an unusual case
also 1t was the train dispatcher's mis-
take, so far as 1 know, but he may have
been misled by some one else's blunder
One day the limited was going east in
two sections. 1t is very, very seldom
that the limited runs in more than one
section. A freight was lying in front
of Jones' tower waiting for the limited
to pass. The train dispatcher sent out
an order saying: No. 4 (the limited)
will run 40 minutes late That gave
plenty of time for the freight to get to
the next siding. The message should
save read: Second No. will run 40
minutes late The first section was on
time. Jones handed the order to the
conductor of the freight, who went
down out of the tower and started his
train on to the main track.
Just as the big freight engine began
pulling the telegraph instrument began
ticking, and Jones read a report saying
that the limited had passed the
tower above. 1t was just around the
curve, not a mile and half away. 1t
was a question of seconds. There was
no time to run down the stairs, and
it was no use to drop the red signal.
The engine had already passed. There
was no time to think. Jones grasped
his ink bottle and his red flag. He ran
out on the balcony in front of the
tower and threw the ink bottle at the
engine. Then he waved the red flag
and yelled with all his might. The bottle
struck the cab and attracted the engi-
neer's attention. He looked up and saw
Jones waving the red flag and yelling
like a madman. Just at the same mo-
ment they both heard the shrill scream
of the limited's whistle as she ap-
preached the curve.
"The engineer did not stop to ques-
tion what it was. The engine was clear
out on the main track. He reversed
the engine and sent her humping back
against the heavy train. The forward