The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1900-09-28
The PhantOmFr Freight Express
By j. Percy Ba1nitz.

y
noon, and the engineers reading
room, adjoining the roundhouse Of the
@. & NJ, in Chicago, was filled with q
greater number of loungers than usu-
ally found there on Sundays and holi-
days.
This was accounted for partly by
the state of the weather, but pripci-
pally because Joe Hardin. one of the
Older engineers, had promised to re-
late that afternoon the story of a re-
markable experience he had down on
the Arkansas liHe after he left the
service of the Q. & NJ, during the
strike of '94.
collins and l." he began, after
hustling around for more than month,
managed to get in on the Arkansas
he as fireman and as engineer. Aft
er pulling freights for nearly year
we got a passenger run-hauling SO
and 40, the fast mails between ST. Louis
and Springfield. 1t was s00-miIc run,
and the schedule was eight hours a
mighty fast run when the condition of
the track and the number of stops
were taken into consideration.
Through freight traffic to the
southwest became heavy along toward
the latter part of May, and the oper-
ating department decided to put on a
freight express to carry all goods billed
to points beyond Dallas.
'.The freight express was timed to
leave ST. Louis three hours and ten
minutes ahead of 40, and would take
siding at Rolla to allow us to pass.
"AlI tail-ends on the Arkansas were
protected at night by single red mag
nifyiHg lens bulrs-eye. instead of the
five red lights used on other lines. The
greater the distance away from the
light, the larger it seemed to be. Look
ing down stretch of straight track for
distance of quarter or half a mile
the light looked to be the size of a
clrtwheel, and at range of several
hundred yards it seemed to be the
size Of an ordinary pie-plate-
SWELL. to go on with the story, the
freight express, as T've said. always
took siding for US at Rolla, and I had
become so accustomed to seeing the
big red disk down the long stretch OF
track after passing Dillon that hard
ly noticed it, except for a careless
glance to see whether the train was
on the usual siding.
From Cuba to Knobview the coun-
try is rough, hilly and heavily wooded,
as 1t is about there that the Ozark
rains proper begin, The line is crook
ed between those two stations, and
don't believe there's 1000 feet OF
straight track In the whole eight miles
"The night of the 18th Of July was ex-
.ceedingly hot and oppressive. The air
in the big train-shed was sitting, SO
that Collins and / were mighty glad
when we left ST. Louis and got out into
the open country, where a refreshing
breeze blew in through the cab win
dows.
There's down grade beyond Cuba
and we Numbered along at the rate OF
so miles an hour just this side Of
Knobview there is double reverse
curve, and after striking the second re.
verse end with heavy jar we fairly
leaped around the brow of the densely
wooded hill, and, it seemed to me, right
bang into the big red tail-light of tbs
freight express.
".Great goodness!' shrieked Collins
across the bpiler-head, what was that :?
IF some one had slapped me full in
the face with the coal shovel, ! donr
think I'd "a been more dazed, and the
lights of Knobview station flashed bJ
before could answer.
.sThe cold sweat was oozing from
every pore of my body, and 1 felt veal
and nervous. Trying to compose my
self, / motioned Collins around to my
side of the cab, and asked him what
he had seen.
'Seel See!' he replied in an agitatei
| tone. why, man alivel didn't you thinl
you saw the tail-end light of o1 9TH,
freight express) right on top of US?
was so scared / hadn't strength enough
! to get to the gangway, or I'd "a jumpet
surei But 1t disappeared almost al
soon as saw It'll What do you think i
wasp
"'Yes, thought saw the light, too,
/ admitted. but | guess we were boil
mistaken some trick of the imagina
tion, probablyl You know these new
lights have made both our nerves bi
shakyi'
"When we struck the straight tract
on the other side of Dillon, the tail-en,
light of 81 showed up clear and dis
tinct on the regular siding at Rolla
Neither of us said word, but both o
us did heap OF thinking,
ron the north run the fast mail wa
known as 80, and when / had the Vi
run, John King, an old-timer on tn
Arkansas, had the down run. TIL
passing point for 80 and 40 was a
Newbprg. exactly midway between 81
Louis and Springfield.
"The night after my fright at Knob
lyiew on the up run, King came in witt
40, and as his train pulled slowly o.
to the siding he swung down from tn
engine cab steps, leaving his fremal
to shut off the locomotive, and CON
I ing up to me inquiredi
Joe Hardin, did you ever see, o
ever hear of anyone seeing anything pc
culiar at the reverse curve on the hi
back of Knobview2'
| r.No,' replied evasiveiy, I hav
never heard any person say that the
had heard of anyone seeing anythin
peculiar at that point. What make
you ask such q question:
"'oh, nothing nothing at all! Jus
thought maybe youshad.'
~And he climbed back into his cab.