The record-union., 1897-10-03
A DARING ENGINE RIDE.
How Charles Croeker Saved the
Central Pacific Railroad.

zone of the most exciting and dam
gerous rides I ever had was made ON
a locomotive in California in the 60s,''
said an old resident of San Francisco
TO a washington Star writer, who
had been speaking of the remarkable
/ GOODNESS exhibited by two men while
riding behind runaway horse
1.-THE ride to which / refer happened
shortly after Charles Croclzer and
few other men inaugurated the Central
Pacific Railroad The tracks of the
road had been laid as far as Newcastle,
and the company was in debt and de-
spondency. and L. I. Robinson, who
then owned the old original railroad
from Freeport to Folsom, was laughing
in his sleeve at what he called the
Dutch Flat swindle.' The stages then
weat from Folsom TO the great min
ing camps of Nevada, especially to Vir-
ginia City, and it was the boast of the
Freeport and Folsom road that the
Central Pacific would never be built
beyond Newcastle.
''Well, one morning Charles Crocker
left San Francisco on the steamer
bound for Freeport with three gentle
men, including myself. When the
steamer had reached Freeport the mail
and newspapers from San Francisco
for Virginia City were Immediately put
aboard the Freeport and Folsom train,
which then hurried away on it's jour
ney. a spirited team was waiting for
Mr.. Crocker and his companions, and
we quickly left the steamboat, got into
the coach and were driven rapidly off
for Sacramento City. Arriving there,
we found an engine and coal tender
waiting for us at the Central Depot,
and Mr.. Crocker gave orders to the
engineer to run the locomotive at every
pound of steam she could carry to
Newcastle
when we started all of us, with the
exception of Mr.. Crocker, who stood at
the back of the engineer, were seated
in the tender on various Jumps of coal
and wood, and it didn't take US long
to realize, from the awful jolting and
swaying of the engine, that the road
was unballasted, and in a very poor
condition for speeding. Much to our
relief, after we had crossed beyond the
American River and our arms fairly
ached from our exertions to hold on
and keep ourselves from being thrown
out of the tender, the engineer sud-
denly lowered his rate of speed and at
the same time informed Mr.. CroclIer
that it would be extremely dangerous
to run any farther at the rate we had
been going.
''Mr. Crocker looked annoyed and
said: Nonsense! If you are afraid,
you had better get off the engine
He then took hold of the lever and
pulled it to the farthest limit. Of
course, we all thought that Mr.. Crocker
was crazy, and that the engine would
soon jump the track. But Mr.. Crocker
would not listen to remonstrances,
never moved a muscle, and stood at the
lever until we were all scared out of
our wits, and the engine, painting and
throbbing like huge wild beast en-
veloped in a cloud of escaping steam,
reached Newcastle. Here we were hus-
tied into a waiting coach and driven
away At each ten miles between that
town and Virginia City there was a
relay Of horses. AT various points along
the mountain roads even the drivers
were afraid to obey Mr.. Crocker's or
ders and in two instances he took
the reins himself and whipped the
teams into a lively gallop.
THE result of the whole exciting,
wild and dashing race was that Charles
CroclIer presented in the business Of
flee of the Virginia City Enterpris'
a copy of the San Francisco Bulletin
and some mail matter twelve hours
before the mail agent on the opposition
railroad had reached the city. That
was the death blow to the F'reeport
and Folsom road, and the salvation
of the Central Pacific