Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1898-10-20

water plug. Admonishing the fireman
to hurry, he jumped down and oiled, |
finding, TO his great relief, all bearings
stone cold. In spite of their haste. he
left here 1A minutes late, and she be-
haved so badly that he arrived at the |
next station two minutes late. He was
only half way yet, and the prospect
was pretty blue. The next station was
a junction from which three engines
ran on a branch out to some coal
mines. One of them would be there
when he arrived. He telegraphed
ahead to have her ready for him, his
engine being disabled. His conductor
and old friend, Phil Howard, as well
as every man on the train, knew that
Jake's record was in danger at last.
As there was seldom any baggage at
W, and none to put off this trip,
Howard told the baggagemaster to-
! jumpdown and uncouple the engine the
moment she stopped, saying he would
take on any baggage that might be
| there, in order to save time. =
The baggagemaster uncoupled the
air hose. but, before he could pull the
| pin, Howard called to him: "Never
mind that now, Jim; come up, here's
funeral to co.
| While the train crew were busy
loading the casket the station agent
| handed Jake message which read:
| mo engine here. Have forwarded your
message to Lelands.'
| Lelands had been the end of the di-
| vision before modern methods com
| PEELED the company to lengthenit out &c
200 miles. There was big roundbouse
| there, and plenty of engines. The
| deferential care with which a casket
| must be handled caused them to leave
! W three full minutes late-the
| limit. Neither Jake nor Howard knew
that the baggagemaster had uncoupleC
the air hose, and in the hustle at the
station that worthy had failed to OBJ
serve that no change of engines had
been made. So Jake pulled out with
| no brakes on the train, and determined
to lose no more time if it was humanity
possible to avoid it.
The roundhouse foreman at Lelands
received an order to have an engine
| ready to take train 10 on it's arrival.
She was due in 25 minutes, and, Won
dering what could have happened tc
"Old Reliable" as Jake was popularity
called, he got his whole force on the
| jump. Within five minutes of los ar
irving time he had an engine.
coaled, watered, and with her safety
valve simm ering at 40 pounds to the
square inch, standing on the main
track in charge of hostler, just beyond
the station. 1t was a mighty good job
we'll and quickly done.
| After leaving W, the "ST' be
Ibaved a little better; she had thrown
out much of the offending matter, and
would stand pushing bit; but at her
best she had never made up quite a
minute between there and Lelands-
and she was far from being a her best
| now.
When he reached the summit of the
hill from which he could look down
into Lelands, a mile away, he knew
| he would arrive there only 21s min
utes late-technically on time. He
knew to an inch how far he could use
steam, and it was with a sigh of relief
that he shut her off and dropped the
lever down. He blew for the station
glanced curiously at the airbrake
+, gauge-which showed the proper
pressure-and leaned YEARLY 5ut the
| window with his hand on the brake
valve.
AS the train rolled rapidly down the
grade he applied the brake-gently.
to slow it up. He felt at once that il
had no hold. He glanced in alarm at
the gauge. and turned the valve all the
way around. The truth flashed over
him with a paralyzing chill. He had nc
brake!
He set his teeth grimly, and the gray
eyes flashed with determination as he
l l.. 49, I.
lever and horsed her over into the
back motion. There was a great big
chance that his time had come. AS he
reached for the whistle cord to blow
call for brakes-more for the infor-
nation of the man on the engine ahead
than from any faith in the hand brakes
he told his fireman to jump.
That single sharp blast of the whistle
sent a chill to the heart of every rail
road man who heard it. Jake was
hour, and no brakei
The hostler leaped from the extra
engine and ran half way across the
yard. The telegraph operator showed
Il blanched face at his window, and
tried to think whether he had made a
| mistake.
The brakeman feared to venture out
| on the car platforms to set the brakes
Phil Howard, the veteran railroader,
understood his friends wild appeal for
help. Regardless of probable conse-
quences, he jumped to a brake wheel
But the onward rush of ten heavy Pull
mans is not to be checked by a single
| hand brake.
With a crash and d roar ''s7" ran her
nose under the other engines tender;
she threw it-a crumpled and battered