The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-11-20


sarily ticklish, but it'll be all right to-
morrow night
Thanks. Well, good day: 1 shall
trust you to win my bet for me, and
will drop i'm later this week with your
money.
I'VE shook hands warmly; | thank
ed him cordially. and ne went on. !
laughed very heartily in my glee. That
G25 was as good as mine. We should
have won in any case; but now-you
may be sure | was in earnest when |
spoke to our driver and stoker the next
day. They. like me, felt a warm glow
of satisfaction at the prospect, and we
were none the less pleased at our final
orders. before setting out, from one of
our chief officials:
d" do your best
Amid a storm of cheers from the
many spectators on the platform that
night, we set out from Kings Cross
here for Aberdeen. our train consist
ed of the engine and tender-our very
best, l need scarcely say with five
coaches and the guards van. The eX-
act number of passengers | can hardly
give. but should say there were about
thirty-two. ! had, of course, a full list
of all stoppages, times and likely con-
tingencies already made out.
I'VE were not long in getting up
full steam. We passed through Peters
borough at the rate of seventy-twO
miles an hour, about n minute before
we were nominally due. On through
Grantham, DonCaster and Selby, till we
arrived at York, still in front of our
time table by about two and a half
minutes.
stoppage at York and we rushed along
toward Newcastle, through Darlington
and Duran. As you know we always
felt uncertain about this piece of road
between York and Newcastle, the traf-
fiC is so heavy: but on this occasion,
to my great delight, there was not the
slightest need for "a diminutiOn of
speed, and YOU may b. sure it was
with mutual CUngratulation and smi-
ing faces that the driver and myself
saw, as we drew up at Newcastle plat
form for a ten minutes stay, that we
We're actually five minutes before any
record time for this journey.
well. to shorten my tale. all went
well to Edinburgh. over the Forth
bridge over the Tay bridge and through
Dundee, until we began to get within
measurable distance of Aberdeen. |
found. on referring to my watch, that
now, just before entering on this piece
of single line which | have previously
spoken Of, we were about fifteen min
uteS before our expected time. All
was going well, our speed being now
nearly eighty miles an hour
I'VE entered on this last portion of
our journey and had gone about
| couple of miles. when ! fanCicd | felt
slight slackening of our speed. Be
| fore another mile had been covered
this was more plainly evident, and
when l heard those portentious whis-
ties of the engine l knew that the sig
nails We're against us. 1t was most an
! noying to be thus pulled up-almOst at
the very last lap, so to speak.
| Whatever could the signal man be
thinking Of? His instructions had been
very strict. Our train gradually slack
ened speed until it came to a dead stop
| at that wretched signal. As no notice
was taken Of our repeated whistling,
| was about to go forward myself to the
| signal box to see what was the matter
| when I saw the signal man waving a
white light. We advanced slowly to-
ward him. He protested, in reply to
! MY dISlS query, llltil Ht SlSIdltu lIle
! line as being clear for the last half
| hour, but l assured him that the sig
nal was against us. He promised to
see to it, and inquire into this awkward
affair and we resumed our journey,
soon attaining good speed again.
| But though we dashed into Aber-
| deem with much putting of the engine
| at least four minutes before our ap-
| pointed time, we were too late. That
| miserable stoppage on the single line
| had killed us and we found that the
| London and Northwestern train had
| beaten us by three minutes Had it
not been for that unexplained Contre-
temps a short time before we should
have beaten them easily. AS 1t was,
we broke the record, but the glory of
| victory was not ours.
| There was, of course, an immediate
inquiry into the cause of the delay, and
it was found. on examination, that the
| signalman was not to blame, as the
signal wires had been tampered with
during the early morning, since the
passing of the last train northward, an
| hour or so before. Hence the signal
| would not work when the lever was
pulled. The signalman recollected hav-
ing seen a gentlemanly fellow walking
near the line the day before, and TAX
ing a stroll that way later in the even
| ing, but he was not at all sure he could
| recognize him again. Doubtless the
| company might have offered a high
reward for any information, but as all
efforts of Scotland Yard detectives
failed to elucidate the whereabouts of
the gentleman, IL seemed of little use
so to do.
1T certainly struck me as rather
curious on my return south, a day or
two afterwards, that | had no call or
letter from my former visitor, denounc-
ing me for having led him astray, even
in ignorance. / must say | felt both
ashamed and humbled-half afraid, so
to speak-for the next day or two at
the prospect of meeting him.
1T was about fortnight or so later
that ! received a letter from New York.
l opened it and read as follows
Dear Mr.. James-Thanks to your
Information as to which was the most
ticklish' portion of your line to Aber-
deem, we were enabled to carry out our
plan successfully. You see that we had
bet that the London & Northwestern
would win, not the Great Northern, and
so took steps town our wager. You will
excuse the little fib i told you as to
backing your line, won't you? also that
about belonging to the firm os B-&
Co., ch? / am sorry you lest your
promised reward-ha! ha!-but there
are three G5 notes inclosed as a sola-
tium, one for each of you, with my
best thanks You will pardon my last
piece of advice, Mr. James-don't an
to strangers. Good bye. My futur