The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1900-09-28
Re sped on to St. Louis, arriving there

perfect control, ready TO STOP instant
ly with a turn of the emergency air
valve.
1--WE were coming out of the cut at
the north end of the reverse curve,
when, like a flash, big, red tailend
light sprang out of the darkness in
the center Of the tI&ck about $50 yards
ahead. slowed down until we were
barely moving, all the while whistling
for signals, but got no answer. just as
we were coming to full stop. the light
wavered and faded away.
"sPull out, Joe! Pull out quickP
yelled Collins. Jerking his head In the
cab window, it may be hold upI l
thought / saw a man run along the
edge of the cut on my side!
II yanked open the throttle valve,
and we steamed on at our regular rate
ef speed, passing 81, as we always did,
at Rolla.
This business is making me twist
ed in my brain bin,' remarked Collins,
and, confound it, I'd like to know
what it neans!'
"'Well,' said l. king evidently had
d 6lltlluI GADCl1OICC ld6t OAkA Abs AAOAA
whathe said to me at Newburg. When
we pass him there tonight I'll put the
same question to him that he did to
me, and see what he has to say
ION meeting King at Newburg I
walked up to him, and asked, in Sc
rious tone: John King, did you ever
See anything peculiar at reverse curve
back of KnobviewT
HE looked at me steadily for a
moment, and / saw the pupils of his
piercing gray eyes expand and con-
| tract alternately, as the fitful fame
from his torch danced before his face.
eyes, i did see something mighty
queerat that point, he returned, slow
ly. and rather think you have, too
81 toid him of my two experiences
with the phantom light, and said that
| the reason ! had evaded his question
| the night before was because feared
being laughed at, and th2t as Collins
and / were comparatively new men
on the liEc it was just possible some
joke was beinS played on us. But now
that he had ZEN, very likely, the same
| thing, and couldn't understand It,,
why, was convinced there must be q
mystery about it, sure enough.
"'Well,' King remarked, thoughtful
ly, as you say that the first time you
| saw the light it was just around the
hill on this end of the curve, and that
tonight it was at the north end,
while last night I saw it just back of
| the hill, believe that there is sci
entific reason for it. Now, I'll tell my
| fireman to keep quiet about the mat
| ter, and you make Collins keep his
| jaw shut, and I'll get a lay-of short
| ly and investigate the thing. My
| fireman gets the next vacant engine,
and whenever lay off he takes my
run, so he will be able to keep the
matter quiet. I'll tell him to arrange
to have his fireman stocking when they
/ strike the reverse curve, and with the
furnace door open in his face he
couldn't see town on fire. dead
ahead.
"sAnother thing, Hardin! No one
else has reported seeing the light, and
we've only seen it on the down run.
Now there isn't train of any kind on
the whole division ahead Of 40 as far
south as Lrocker, except 9l, which
| hasn't been laid out minute since
it has been put on, and which, if it
was laid out, would be protected by
torpedo signals, so we certainly know
that the light is no tail-end signal.
Until we can fathom the mystery /
reckon we'd better call this jack-a-
lantern the Phantom Freight Express,
in view of the fAct that both of US at
irst thought we were plugging
into 91'
"One Sunday night King told me at
Newburg that he had gotten week
of, beginning the next day, and that
he was going to start his investiga-
lstion at once. He said he would make
Newburg his headquarters, and would
report to me as soon as he was able
to find some tangible reason for the
phenomenon
eThe following Thursday night when
nearing Rolla we were tagged by a
whitelantern swinging violently across
the track, and when we came to a stop
King mounted the cab steps. He set
tied himself behind me on the narrow
seat, and, slapping me on the back.
said:
'.Move on. old man, 1 can say all
I've got TO tell you before we reach
Newburg. was just coming back
from an investigation tour when you
came along. and thought I'd tell you
I've about as good as caught the
ghost; but I'm not going to tell you
what it is until I'm absolutely sure
that I've found it.
sYop say you first saw the light
ON the night Of the 18th Of Iply2 Now
then, think minute! The leaving
time Of 81 from St. Louis up until that
night had been $40, but owing to the
through freight ON the Valley road be.
/ ing late SO frequently the schedule OF
81 was ept down o half hour
That fact, Of course, yop know, but
the telegraph operator at Rolla told
me Tuesday night that il kept 81
hustling to make the switch there or
/ time, and that he had often heard AZ
whistling for Knobview when the
freight was pulling in on the north
end of the siding. That was the first
xlew found, but as 1t was In line with
an idea that had formed regarding
the mystery / felt encouraged.
"'Do you see what I'm driving at
MOI Oh, wenl hardly thought
, you'd catch on. won't say more now
J except that if my experiment works