The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1897-11-20
What's the use of talking about

WHAT'S the use OF TALKING aDOuv
him?' says 7. Tell me what we're
going to do. There amt any sort Of
use in trying to run, I suppose?'
"Not the smallest grain,' says Sam.
'rhat fire is due here in about fifteen
minutes, and we might as we'll sit
down quiet and wait for it,
"I saw that Sam didn't consider
that there was. the least bit of a chance
for us, and you can imagine whether
7 was scared or not.
ct did read once,' says Sam,
about chap who was riding on the
prairie and was chased by fire, same
as we are now. He shot his horse
and ripped the hide off and wrapped
himself up in it. The hide being
green, you understand, didn't burn,
and the man came through all right.
It's middling tough yarn, but all the
same it's thing that might have
happened. I was thinking that if the
fire would wait half an hour till my
boiler tubes cooled down, I could pull
them out and we could get into the
boiler, the same as the man got into
his horses hide. But there's no use
in signalling that fire to stop and lay
up on siding for half an hour, just
to suit u.s..
"'There's water in the tender, said
I, couldn't we do anything with that?'
"'Your head, pardner, says Sam,
getting up and going toward the ten
der, 'ain't so far from being level.
Let's see how much water we've got. >
''With that he opened the water
tank and looked in. We're all right
says he. You come along here and
get into that tank with me. Well put
the cover on when the fire reaches us,
and I expect we can stand it for five
minutes or so. It's scheme that lays
way over that fellows horsehide game,
and I shouldn't wonder if it turned
out satisfactory for all concerned,
'"The manhole was big enough to let
man through, and when Sam and I
got into the tank and crouched down
in sort of sitting position the water
came just up to our chins. and we had
about ten inches of head!room. Sam
pulled the iron cover part way over
the hole and said, Now we're pretty
certain not to be roasted. which that
fire is aiming at. It'll be some salts
faction to get the better of it,
"I don't see," said I, that we're
lettering things very much by putting
ourselves in the way of being boiled
instead of roasted
"'I don't suppose said Sam, that
there is any great things to choose be.
tween being roasted or billed or fried,
or, you might say, baked. But that
fire has set its mind on roasting us,
and if we're billed, it'll be disappointed.
Besides, I amt so sure about the
billing. It'll take some time to heat
up this water, and we may pull through,
after ALL.
"Just then the noise of the fire
showed that it was getting close to US,
and Whit Of smoke came into the
tank. Sam pulled the cover on, and
says to me, Just sit and take it easy.
There's air enough here to last us fo1
some time if we don tuseit up talking
IT kept quiet, and said my prayers
to myself. The fire came down on us
with whoop like ten tribes of Injuns,
and the top of the tank was hot in less
than no time. The roaring of the fire
seemed to pass on and away from US
but there was tremendous cracking
going on in our neighborhood, which
showed that the fire was still around
US. We waited and waited, hoping
every minute that the fire would die
out and let us open the tank. The
water kept getting warmer and warm
er, and when I touched the top of the
tank, where the water didn't reach it,
I burned my fingers. The air, too,
kept getting more and more choky,
until was very near my last gasp,
and Sam was about the same. When
he couldn't stand it any longer he
threw off the cover and put his head
out. Then he broke into big laugh
that was little hoarse by reason Of
the choking he had undergone, and he
climbed out Of the tank, calling to me
to follow him, which naturally did
without wasting time.
''The prairie fire was miles away,
and the cracking which we heard was
made by the woodwork Of the tender
and the wreck of the engine cab,
which was all in q blaze. There
wasn't anything to hurt us when we
were once outside the tank, but if we
had stayed in it long enough we should
have been boiled without the least
doubt. We jumped down on the
ground, and stood there to see the
wreck burn, and with the exception
Of my burnt fingers and little hair
that was singed off the top of SANS
head, we were as cool and comfortable
as man could want to be.