The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-12-24

off the gas; we lit our pipes, cooked OF
heels ON the boiler butt, and listeIi'
in comfort TO the bowling blast witho1
AS sat and pulled ON my fragrant
brierwood, my gaze became riveted {
the only thing visible. the steam gaug
like spectral face suspended in Il
center of the uniform 'blackness.
soothing hum OF the blower, the warm
and sense of coZineSS, combined WI
the hypnotic effect Of my fixed ga2
set me TO dreaming.
Tomorrow would be Christmas, az
mother was with us. 1t was her iir
visit since my marriage. Katie, h
poor little heart a-tiutter at the pro
pect of visit from that dreaded
spectOr general, her mother-in-law, h.
shaved herself nearly to death. Ihrc
year-old Bob had nearly wrecked u
mothers wonderful patience by his Pc
siStent efforts to render her labor fulfil
and | had fingered" on the runs for
month. to make sure of being home
this, the greatest Christmas that eYe
was. For wonder, / had not figure
in vain. Every thing had come out e
actly as l had hoped It would. | won
get home early enough for Christm;
dinner, and late enough to preclude t.
probability Of being sent out again
fore the next day.
A curling wreath Of blue smoke floJ
ing across the face of the gauge ARE
ed the selfish course of my thought
arid directed them to the boy on t.
other side OF the cab. Harry Merry
had been Oh the road only couple
months, most of which time he IA
been firing for me. He was brigh
pleasant and willing. 1t now occurrt
TO me that l rather liked him, but tn,
l knew absolutely nothing about M
1t wasn't SO very many years ago tn
I was a strange boy on this same ros
myself; and this was Christmas eve.
made a pretefse of getting a light +
my pipe at the gauge lamp, and lean,
across the boiler.
"Nhere are you going to spei
Christmas, Harry! shouted above Il
noise of the gale and the Stating OF t
curtain.
The fire sglowed brightly i'm the bowl
his pipe once, twice before he answere
He leaned against the boiler on his Sc
so that ] could barely discern his fe:
lures in the dim light, and replied chez
lessly:
80, in the board'n' house. | CUES
Where else? They're agoin' to ha
roast turkey am cranberry sauce q
plum pudd'n', hear"
soon knew his story-a stepmoth
three months after his own mothel
death. and, / mentally added, a redhea
ed stepson. He had picked UP a gener
idea OF firing while beating his way
here from Wisconsin, and, happening
arrive ut our reund house just as !
man was urgently needed, he caught o.
They're calm us, he conclude,
and, giving the bellrope jerk, he ste.
ped down to hook up his fire.
When / got coupled UP and he stel
ped up in the cab again, l said:
I'VE expect to have little time
to our house tomorrow, Harry, and
should like to have you come up al
take dinner with u.s.
Thank you, Alec" he REPLIED; =
will
There was an inch of snow ON t.
rails when got my orders to run
an extra, keeping out of the way of
regular trains.' But Davis, the COZ
duttor, said he had a nice, light-ru1
ming train, cars all loaded with whist
broonls and straw hats. | was ga.
enough to hear it, for there were II.
miles of iron, slippery with the fallin
snow, between old 1S's pilot and homt
Ii | averaged the maximum Of freigh
train speed go miles per hour | wout
arrived home by 8 O'Clock in the morn
ing; but it was a bad night, | woul
never be able to keep them going at tina
gait, so | promised myself not to kici
if got home by noon; a very liberia
allowance.
1t was hard pull out of Tabor
Junction. When the yardmaster hal
pened to be feeling just right, he woul
let one of the switch engines get in be
hind a train and give her shove 70
half or three-quarters of a mile Blu
Davis was no crony of his, so we didn
get it.
1t was a fearful night The gal
howled, and the snow drove horizontal,
like sand blast. The wind was on til
fireman's side, which made it possibl,
for me to look out. But all could Sc
was an impenetrable white screen
made visible in one small spot by til,
headlight. l had been easing the
throttle when she slipped--for l would
need all the sand l had before | go
home-until she nearly stalled. Tha
wouldn't do, so l gave her bare tast,
and leaned out to hear the gratifying
crunch of it under the wheels.
Harry gripped my shoulder anc
shouted:
merry Christmasr'
l wished him the same and many O.
EN-, and noticed that it was just II b1
the engine clock. She hadn't slipped
since | gave her the sand, but was puff
ing along with suspicious freedom: for
we were not up the grade yet. / tote
the brakeman to go back on top of the
train and see if the cabo0se was coming,
lie went off growing, but he went
which was the main thing From the
back of the tender he gave me what |
expected and dreaded--a signal that the
train had broken in two. / whstled the
flag back to protect the rear and KEPT
on.
took the cars / had to the next sid
ing. four miles away. / had two more
cars than the siding would hold. ]
backed them all in hard against the stor
block. Then / cut the two head cars
off, pulled them out of the switch. ane
backed down the main track with them,
until the engine was behind the two
head cars in the siding. 81 had the
brakeman cut these two off. and /
tke,A- L.