Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-07-15

Kingston special dispatch to the Gin
cinnati Enquirer: The experience of En-
gineer David Jackson in the storm dur
ing his run from Kingston to Campbell
Hall. over the Waikiki Valley Railroad,
is a marvellous one.
Jackson is a freight engineer and had
nearly finished his homeward trip when
overtaken by the storm. 1t travelled in
the same direction in which he was going,
and in a spirit of dare-deviltry he at
tempted to beat it home. The elements
evidently took umbrage at his temerity,
and a bolt of lightning struck the track
behind them.
A fiery ball followed the rails in the
wake of the flying train, seemingly in no
hurry to overhaul it for a distance of
three. or four miles. The engineer and
his badly frightened companions resOrted
to all sorts of desperate measures to in
crease the speed of the train. The iron
monster. under a full head of steam and
straining every nut and bolt, responded
nObly to their efforts and ged to
hold its own for the distance mentioned.
At last, when the lightning WAS almost
upon them, Jackson was struck with a
happy thought. He determined to slack
the train, throw a switch and sidetrack
the destroyer. The lightning, which APP
parently raveled but a trifle faster thar
the train, rapidly overhauled them while
they were slowing up. and was almost
upon them, when the fireman dropped off
the engine, and, %grasping the switch IAN
die, threw it over with scarce a second to
spare. The story herewith is given as
Engineer Jackson tells it:
1--WE lay over in the siding at Spring.
town for No. 2 to go by. and while we
were waiting l saw a big black cloud
forming up on top of the S~haWanSunks.
I knew a storm was coming, and l was
anxious to get home in front of it. SO af-
ter Two had 1eft us ba wing a c1aa, track
/ let her open and started. We had just
got nicely under way when the front end
of the storm hit US.
w had a light, mixed train of emp-
ties, and We're getting over the ground
pretty fast. seeming to hold our own
against the cyclone. which doomed up
mighty black a mile or two behind us. I
wanted to be sure we were keeping our
end uD, and I tore a piece of paper and
dropped II out of the cab window. The
wind caught it and hurried it ahead of
the engine, and ! knew we weren't ira
yelling fast enough. Then l spoke to my
fireman, and l told him to chuck some
resinous wood that we happened to have
INTO the fire and open up the draughts.
Just then | saw Charley Morton. the
conductor, crawling over the tank. His
face was winter than a new boiled shirt.
and he shook so he nearly lost his hold.
"For Gods sake. Dave, throw her open
wide he said; lightning hit the track
and is coming down behind us
II couldn't believe him first off, but
then / didn't think he was joking, for
Charley is the most solemn ticket punch
er on the line. We rounded a curve just
outside of Gardiner at that moment, and
hanging out of the window and looking
backward l saw it for myself. About half
a mile behind a ball of fire was bowling
along on the outside rail of the track. 1t
seemed about the size of a & barrel,
and was coming end on. Every rail
length it would bound in the air for six
or eight feet. 1 opened the throttle wide
and took another look, thinking perhaps