The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-11-26
running LOCOMOTIVE.
stories From the Experiences of an
old Engine Driver.
From the Chlcaro Tlmes-Hcrlla

Nouiu rather run an engine IMAM eat.
The man who made that assertion might
easily be pardoned for a prediction for
engines, as he has filed the position of To-
connective engineer on the Northwestern
road for forty-four years, being probably
the Oldest man in that position on the
road, as well as the one who has served
the longest term as engineer making the
greatest average of consecutive miles
However. il may b, possible that there is
another older and longer employed Turk
ing IN ambush 10 rise up and contradict
inns statement, much as George Washing
ton nurses appear like comets at regular
intervals and claim distinction on the
ground of association with orr first prasi-
dent.
Augustus H. Preston is pointed ont as
the OLDEST locomotive engineer on the
northwestern road, and SAYS himself that
mas record dates further back than that of
any or mis- contemporaries He lives i'm a
peasant home of his own in Oak Park
anu can almost step from the cab of his
engine 10 his own hearthstone at the end
pl his gay run. He is red and weather.
beaten Ike a sailor, has the rolling walk
OI one When his engine is from under him.
put nus eyes is as keen, his hand as STEADY
as tnat OF the young man who takes ont
ms hrSt locomotive He can see n rat on
.he track. II may be too late for the rat
- iSN'ht Will not die unQOtiCp6
logged the memories of some turkeys
to-day said MIR. Preston. as he settIod
nlmseiI comfortably for chat" | blew
tne whistle and gave them a chance for
chelr HVes' Now, you wouldn't think that
lows and dumb animals would hear
warning OF that sort. or If they did hear
IL Ildt Ihey would heed ii. But they do
a. IN many uog has been gnawng a bone
on the track and when | would whistle
nm on he'd drop 1t and run for dear life
pose" N''"sei' sup
you must have killed many dogs in the
course OF years on your long runs?'
es' dog that haunts the road always
comes 10 At sooner or later. They get reoIs-
Tess aIter while. | used to see a fine dog
at one of my way stations that would conc
70 my CAB and bark around it and race
with me when l got steam up. And one
Gay he missed his calculations and rot nm
uer the wheels and they took him ont
IN Two pieces. | was lonesome for that
Dog Tor long time. But il isn't dogs that
worry an ensineer-it's people who ought
TO nave more sense"
Ihen came the inevitable question
Rave you ever killed mann"
Yes, answered Mr. Preston calmly
several men, or rather the engine killed
them. You can't stop an engine as easily
as you can wheelbarrow. although peo-
Ihere Is something peculiar, / will admit
about engines. There was 1O3 she killed
TWO or three men, so that we had to change
her to another division to get her out of
the notion of killing people. She misbe-
haVed there worse than ever and finally
ran ran INTO culVert and killed her engineer.
She was bad engine"
why do they call an engine shop,
Because she is a bearer of hurdens >,
sald the old engineer thoughtfuIly: II
ooht know any better reason Then en-
glnes are cranky, like some folks. Some
days they run as smooth as oil. then thew
20 ana get smashed up. There was the
Nevada-one of the old engines with
names-we give them numbers now We'll
the Nevada would get into a smashun
TWO or three times a year. 1t is impos-
4 slple TO tell what an engine will do newt
I put II is always the unexpected have
had my enjine jump the track without a
second s warning, and took me over with
her. Meanness? No. il was sometime
that disagreed with her. She gave a i1nnn
and went over and over with the tank
The next time she ran into an omen
switch L got out all right. and nolsodv
was hurt had a collision at ITnion
In McHenry county, when / was going
at forty-five miles an hour. I Jumped and
rolled OF on the frozen ground. What did
L think? Bless you, one doesn't think
on such occasions. That was a close cal
for me-"
1t was suggested to Engineer Preston
that In romances of the rail there was AL
ways the ghost of a man or woman who
had been killed to haunt the engine on
that particular bend in the road
Il never saw any ghost nor ANYTHING
that resembeld one. And no one was ever
killed by carelessness on my part, so my
conscience Is clear. / have saved many a
life by frightening folks off the track.
and once / had an experience with n child
that nearly turned my head gray She
was creeping through some bushes in the
road from a bit of a decllvity. and iust
as l sighted her the little head was across
the first rail. There was only one thing
to do, and / did 1t. l swung myself down
and dropped in front of the pilot and
caught her from the track as the train
ran by There wasn't a dry stitch on me
for 1t was nip and tuck between life and
death. The train stopped and gave the
child into her mothers arms-they lived
a few feet from the track And would
you believe it, that child was killed two
years later by another engine and a new
engineer on that same spot.
''You see," continued Mr.. Preston "you
can't run dead against fate The first
man I killed laid down on the track for
that very purpose. 1t was this side of
Blackberry. The pilot lay lower in front
struck him and rolled him over there
wasn't much left for an inquest. The next
time killed a boy. He drove on the
track in a sleigh. That was near WAYNE.
1t Is all over before one can speak-much
less act. Women are especially careless
about stopping on the tracks and stand
ing there to say goodbye to a friend. or
to see If a train Is coming. / don't believe
they would do it if they knew how 1t dis
tresses the engineer-he is always the one
who is blamed when anyone is killed"
Mr.. Preston is proud of the fact that he
made the fastest time ever made in Illinois.
40 miles in two hours and thirty-flve min
utes, between Chicago and Clinton, Iowa.
This was on the famous fast train of the
Jarrett and Palmer train from New York
to Chicago in twenty-one hours on the
Pittsburg and Fort Wayne road, making
the entire distance from New York to San
Francisco in eightyfour hours Being
asked how he felt going at the rate he did.
the old engineer smiled.
ct did not feel at all. l was not paid to
feel. was there to break the record for
fast travel and did Il. 1 knew my engine
flew along like bird. and everything
hummed. / could never recall a sensation