Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1897-12-23
FIELDS OF ADVENTURE.
THRILLING INCIDENTS AND DARING
DEEDS ON LAND AND SEA.

man of the Train-Brave Action of a
United States Consul in Smyrna.
CDR. Depew's suggestion that the
wreck of the Buffalo special at Garri-
sons the other night was possibly the
work of train wrecSers who were after
the $3.50, 900 or more in the safes of
the express company in the express
car recalls to me-" said an old railroad
man who had seen good deal of SER
vice in the West, ga desperate attempt
of gang of road agents to hold up
the Overland Flyer, east bound, on
the Union Pacific road, near Rawlins,
Wyo., in the fall of 1883. This at
tempt was frustrated by the unexpect-
ed action of the head brakeman.
SIT will be remembered about this
wreck at Garrison's that just before
the crash came the engineer shut off
steam and started to apply the air, at
the same time letting go three sharp
whistles. 1t occurs to me that it is
possible that he saw the train robbers
ahead of him and thought that they
were tramps on the track and that he
was in danger of hitting them. He
may have shut off and whistled and
they may have got off the track. Then
he may have opened the throttle and
gone ahead to the disaster. In that
case the train wreckers saw the terri
BILE effect of their use of dynamite and
realized that the only thing for them
to do was to get out of the country as
quickly as possible, all chance of booty
having gone into the river with the
train.
1.-The affair near Rawlins was just
about as nervy as an attempt to hold
up the Buffalo special would have
been. 1t was understood that there
was $3.50, 900 coming east in the ex-
press car cf the Overland Flyer that
day. Overland Flyer-No. 2, as she
was known on the train schedule of
the Union Pacifc--was the biggest
train on the road, the only fast
through passenger from the Pacific
coast. She usually carried from nine
to eleven coaches, including the
sleepers, and was always heavily
loaded, so that road agents attempt
ing to rob her had to reckon on hold
ing up or standing off good many
men, and in that country, where near
ly every man carries gun, 1t was
risky piece of work.
"Four miles this side of Rawlins
there was tank where No. 2 used to
stop every night for water. She
reached there about half past in the
morning. The night on which this
attempt at robbery was made was
clear starlight night in August. No.
pulled up at the tank and the en-
gipeer jumped down to oil around,
while the fireman climbed out on the
tender and turned on the water.
There were two baggage and express
cars, a smoker, two passenger coaches
and fou- sleepers on the train. As the
train stopped the head brakeman
dropped flo, and, with his lantern
swinging on his arm, walked over to the
engine to gossip with the engineer.
Just as he set his lantern down beside
the engineer two men rose out of the
ditch with rifles. One commanded
the engineer to throw up his hands
and the other covered the fireman,
who was standing upon the coal in the
tender. But there was nobody to
cover the brakeman. He was the I'M
looked-for chance on which the plans
of the train robbers went to pieces.
Incidentally it demonstrated the fool
ishness of endeavoring to pull off a
hold up with rifles instead of revol-
vers. With gun, as Western men
call the revolver, one man can cover
several others, but with rifle
he can cover only one, because
anybody can always tell whether the
rifle is pointed at him or not.
GAS these two men covered the en-
gineer and fireman the rest of the
gang scattered along down the train
were beginning preparations for the
actual work of robbing the express
car. When the brakeman took in the
situation he calculated softly to him
self, We'll, this is no place for me,
and stopped over as if to pick up his
lantern. 1t happened that right be-
side the lantern lay big. lump of
coal. The brakeman saw it, recog-
nized his opportunity and took it. He
picked up the lump OF coal instead of
the lantern, and, as he straighted up,
swung round with all his force, hit the
fellow who was covering the engineer
on the head and STAYED in his skull.
The man fell with groan, and the
other bandit let go at the fireman
standing up on the tender.
"The engineer took in the situation
in an instant. He dropped his oil can
and jumped into his cab, aud, with his
heavy torch, smashed his cab lights.
The fellow who had been covering the
fireman shot once at the engineer and
then turned to the brakeman, who, in
stead of following the engineer into
the cab, had started to run back to the
front platform of the first baggage
car. Just as the brakeman climbed
up on the car bullet from the train
robbers rifle caught him in the hip,
but he hung on.
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