The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1897-09-17
RACING WITH FIRE.

Inc TRAIN was crossing d NasJ prdlrle
The single line of rails ran as straight rs
If it had been drawn with a ruler from
one horizon to tho other. On each side the
coarse grass, green with tho tint of spring,
waved breast high. There was no sound
except the monotonous beat of the wheels
as they passed from one rail TO the next
and the steady swish of the grass as it bent
before the rushing wind of the train.
WAS sitting on the platform of the OBJ
seryation car with half dozen other pas
sengers. The conversation fell upon prairie
fires, and each man had his say.
1T was along in 1874 when this road
was building and l was one If the engi
neer's assistants" spoke up griZzled
hard featured man who had taken but lit
tie part in the conversation. 1--WE began
Mt the western end, down by Bucephalus,
and we had laid cut about 40 miles of
track in a straight line right across the
prairie, and had got To within, say, ten
miles from where we are at this identical
minute 1t was an easy job, for we just
laid tho SlCgpCrs down on the ground and
spiked tho rails To them, calculating to
ballast the track when we got good and
ready. had ii big gang of IrishmCn I'M
der me, and we used To average IA milo a
day of track laying. One July we had Il
strike among the lnhorers, and all hands
quit work was down mt BuCephalus at
the time, and the chief engineer asked me
TO take locomotive over the line and see
If the strikers had done any damage before
they left us.
Il started out in the morning with no
body except the engineer in charge of the
locomotive, l agreeing to take turns with
him III shoveling coal and watching the
engine. We came along slow and easy, for
the track was too rough for any fast run
ming, and about neon we got to where it
ended There were no signs that the strik-
ers had mcddled with the track, and as
it was u pretty hot day Sam and l, after
we had had our lunch, lay down alongside
of the engine in the shade of the cab and
took "A nap.
Il woke up little before 2 O'Clock, and
as was filling pipe and making up my
mind to wake sam and to start for home
big wolf holted out from the high grass
and ran across the track not two yards
from us His tail was between his legs
and the foam was dripping from his
mouth, and he was making about as good
time as any wolf ever made before or since.
He never SO much rs looked at me, and
NItIl nt Idu NdulslGu L CillIGtl -ttIl anu
told him lad seen mad wolf While
was speaking about dozen prairie dogs
rushed past us, and then there came an
other wolf and couple of hares. All OF
| them were doing their level best, and they
paid no more attention to US than II we
had been couple of corpses.
L" What on earth is the meaning of this
circus;' says !. Are those animals just
M oh ShiT, or 10 thprp
somebody after them?'
sam didn't answer, but l saw that he
looked scared. He sprang up. and climb
| ing Gil his engine looked over the prairie
to the eastward. Then he sang out TO Inc
| to get into the cab quicker than lightning
| and started to open the draft and set the
fires blazing.
What is itS' l began to ask as
| climbed.into the cab. But l didn't need
to finish my question. 1 could see for my
self what was the matter. The whole
prairie east of us, as far as ! could see, was
| in blaze, and rs there had been a strong
east wind all day, and the fire wasn't more
than three or four miles away, | calculat-
| ed it would be down on US in very few
minutes.
Hadn't We better start q fire and burn
some of this grass off before the fire gets
| here | asked Sam. You see, l had read
| about that way OF stopping prairie fire,
| and knowing that Sam had been born and
| bred on Tie prairie calculated he would
| know all about it.
Better start hellr says Sam. Can't
| you SEQ that the wind has all gone down
| here, though It's blowing gale where the
| fire is? Held on now, for I'm going to
| open her out, and we're going to do some
| tall running.
| with that he pulled open the throttle,
| and the engine started with big jump,
| rs if she had just seen the fire and was
| badly scared. We went down the track
| for about mile at pretty good gait, and
| then we had to stop while sam frightened
a nut in the connecting rod.
Do you mean to run away from the
| FREE 1 asked.
II calculate to try it., said Sam, since
| it's our only chance, but 1 don't much be-
| lieVe that we can run as fast on this track
MS the fire can. That fire is coming on at
[ the rate of 20 miles an hour, and whether
this engine will keep on the rail ut any
such rate rs that have my doubts. Hello!
| Here come the snakes.
| well, we started on again, running
| over snakes by the dozen. We had lost
1 only about two or three minutes by stop
| ping, but the fire seemed to have gained
l on us about half the distance that it had
| Eeen when we first saw it, and we were
near enough now to hear tho cracking
| and the roaring of tho flames. l saw the
| fire strike big tree. and if you'll believe
| it that tree burst as if it had been filled
| with gunpowdcr and vanished clean out
! of sight in less than minute after the
z 81. l..
| drawing toward the fire. but we could see
| by the way the flames acted that IA high
| east wind was bringing the fire down on
4 us at an awful rate. The flames would
| shoot up 30 or 40 feet into the air and
| wave just as if they were hurrahing at the
| prospect of catching us.
| Our engine WAS doing at least25 miles
| an hour, and was swinging from side to
side and humping over the Johnston we
| didn't have any hshplatcs III those days
| us if she was bound to jump the track. We
| had uutrun the snake procession, and the
| only live thing we could see was a coyote
| who was Looping down the track 80 yards
| ahead Of us without so much ms turning
| his head to see what was after him.
80 How long will the track stand this
| sort of thing says to Sam as he finished
! shUvcling fresh coal into the fire.
| Don't know says he It's IS
| miles from here to the Wachusetts river,
| and if we can get across the bridge ahead
| Of the fire there is a fair chance that it
| won't cross. l don't much believe that we
will fetch the bridge, hut if we don't it
won't be because l don't drive this yer en-
CINE fer all she's worth We're dead men
| if she Jumps the track, and were dead
| men if we stop short IF the river, so we
| might rs well let her go and take our
chances
Sam hung on to the lever and hung
| on To the edge of the cab window Neither
| Of us could have kept our feet without
| hanging on to something. l am free to
say that first along l was pretty badly
| scared, but when the engine didn't leave
| the track for all her slcwings and jump
ings l began to think she would carry us
/ through. So far as l could see, the fire
didn't gain any on lis. but then we didn't
seem TO be ginning anything to speak of
OH the fire.
Presently Sam swore in general sort
| of way and sung out to me to rake up the
| fire. did so, and then, supposing that
something must have dissatisfied him, /
asked him what was the matter
"'That derned coyotes the matter, said
| he. we don't gain an inch on him. and
l do most everlastingly hate to be beat by