The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1897-02-03
AN ENGINEERS STORY.
Thrilling Occurrences In the Life If
Man who Holds tAe Throttle.


me by an engineer of the Southern
Railroad:
The 18th of December, 1892, was
dreary night. I fastened on my over
alls, lit my lantern and proceeded to
make my way, the best l knew how,
down to the round-house, where my
engine was being cleaned to start out
on her regular run. The town of Sal
isbury, n. C., as I passed down its
lonely streets, seemed desolate and de-
serted. Now and then light beamed
through the window Of an old manse
were the only signs Of life that this
old historic place gave to the outside
world this dreary night. After turn
ing several streets. l soon found my
self in front Of the shops; where I was
to find the object most of all priced
and loved by me as it is in human
power to love material thing, my en-
CINE. The steady pour of rain, which
had been descending for three days,
seemed now to increase with double
fury. Here I met the hostler, who
was preparing to carry Bulah (for that
was the pet name of my engine) around
to the station for me. ''This is an
awful night, Jim," said the bostler,
"to 60 out on thirteen" I only an
swered with a shudder and passed on.
Thirteen was the vestibule limited be-
tween Salisbury and Paint Rock which
was due to leave the first named sta
tion at one o'clock a. M, reaching
Asheville shortly after daybreak.
had been promoted to this run not
two months before, the complaint
against the former man being that he
could not make the time. The sched-
ule had still been cut since that time
and / was now to make Paint Rock by
one hour earlier so as'to make connec-
tion with the East Tennessee Virginia
and Georgia going north.
| had wont to bc reckless during my
younger days as an engineer and it
was mainly through this and the strict
attention to all duties that was pro-
luUlcu w GllIS luu.
I had secured my rubber coat down
to the shops anc was making my way
slowly back over the wrecked car
trucks which lay scattered here and
there over the yard, when I was sud-
denly met by the foreman of the
shops. 4 am sorry to tell you, Jim"
said he, "but l will have to send shop
hand out with you tonight, as Char
ley is very i'll and sends me word that
be will be unable to make the run. [
will give you Joe Heiser, as I think
he knows the tracks better than any
negro I have just now in the shops
I made no answer to the foreman, but
nodded my head in assent, ard made
my way up toward my engine through
the storm which now seemed to be
setting in with redoubled fury.
l had thought more than once that
some i'll omen would befall me this
dreary night. Now to add to this,
Charley was sick and I had to make
this trip with an inexperienced fire.
man. However. Joe was a good dar-
key and I felt assured that he would
give me but little trouble.
But the thought of Charley sick
ness hung over me like a black veil, to
increase the horrors of his awful
night. Charley McCree was an Irish
lad who came to this country when
but sixteen summers. He had finally
landed in Asheyille and applied to the
Southern (then the Richmond and
Danville Railroad) for work to fire an
engine. By chance, he made his first
trip with me from Asheville to Spar
tanburg, and I liked him SO much that
l determined to keep him if possible.
l succeeded we'll and soon began to
look upon the boy as younger broth
er. The lad, through the kindness
shown him, became greatly attached
to me, and we were not long becoming
fast friends.
I could not help thinking of Charley
now. Should I go to see him? I did
not have time enough, for we were due
to leave then in seventeen minutes.
But what if the boy should die before
I returned! I knew not what to do;
yet there was only one thing-get on
my engine. put out into this dreary
night and soon find myself flying over
the mountains of Western North Car
olina.
l soon arrived at my engine at the
van of a baggage, a mail and express,
two day coaches and two Pullman
sleeping cars, making six coaches in
all, very heavy train for my Pet to
climb these mountains with, yet she
was more than enough for her task.
After oiling and examining the differ
ent parts of my engine, had only to
await the arrival of the northbound
vestibule from Charlotte to Washing
ton and thence, after the transferring
Of baggage and passengers, to pull out
on this dreary ride.
The time soon passed, one fifteen a.
m. The vestibule had been due twen-
ty minutes and till no signs of her yet.
The wires were all down between
Charlotte and Salisbury, so no report
of her had been received since depart
ing the former city. We waited one
drcary hour with no sounds but the
beating of the rain and the continual
up and down motion of the piston in
the air pump Of my engine painting as
the tired hound after the chase and is
now resting in the shade. Thus we
waited an hour and ten minutes, and
my Conductor walked up to me and
said that we could get no orders from
the dispatchcrs and SO with clear
ancc card We would pull out on our
run. He walked slowly back to the
rear end of the train, and it was not
long before the sound of "All aboard
and the blow of the air whistle an
nounced the beginning of the fearful
ride.
] mounted upon my box, placed my
reverse lever in the last notch and
cracked my throttle. The drivers
lightly slipped, but catching myself
again, Bulah soon walked away from
the station, down through the yard
and out into the dark night. My
headlight was burning unusually dim.
This remarked to Joe, but he said it
was hard to keep it lighted at all: l
pulled my reverse lever up three
notchcs and T could feel Bulah fairly
ily over the rails as if she had no load
at all. My trip for the first part went
Ii W. LII ,nrcnl Stntasyilln Ihn