The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1901-12-26
"A Tale of a Tramp Who
Saved a Train And Earned a
Dinner. y -

S'SN@Nse.e~"e.e.N.e.e.e.e.A~
even read part of the number on the
end door of the forward car.
He shut his eyes for a moment. Just
as his car, near the last of the train,
reached the grade summit. "Jerk, jerk;
let her CO." he said to himself, for
motion and speed meant good things
galore to him now. A sharp rasp and
crack did not reach his ear, as he
slowly opened one eye moment later.
kind o. funny" he soliloquized, as the
one eye travelled up to the CLINT of
moonlight, 81 could a sworn see them
car numbers awhile ago." Instead he
only saw now clear patch of starry
dark blue sky, and over the glamour of
all the sheen of moonlight. And then
the truth came to him, and jumping to
his feet, he staggered toward the end
door, as he yelled: "She's broke!-she's
broke in two, in the middle of Dead
Man's! But only the wheels heard his
warning cry as they ,mockingly shrieked
back their answer: "We're free! We're
free!' and gathered fresh momentum
for their rush down the grade.
With feet braced on the car side, and
doubled up like jackknife, Jim
strained at the jammed door. III his
poor, simple way he knew he ought to
do something what? And as his
body curled out through the open
space, the brakeman back in the rear
observed to the conductor that "they
were over, and the old man would hit
her up and make up some time"
The frosty night air struck Jim fierce
ly, while the piercing breeze tossed his
tattered coat over his ears, as he
squirmed his way to the top of the car,
where he lay second or two to get his
breath. Then through instinct he
reached for brake wheel, set it, rolled
his way back, set another--then another.
BY the time he had reached the eighth
Car, the twinkling lights of Mayton
gradually lOOmed into view around the
curve. He set his teeth hard, as he
glanced slightly to his left, for there
dead down the track, half peeping at
him as yet, shone the big eye of the
mogul on the flyer. His heart stood
still for an instant, while with arms
hanging down and lurching from side
to side, he stared ahead in dazed and
|
whirling clay banks, and then his gaze
settled on the heaving car decks under
his feet. The spirit of some grim old
ancestor of a finer strain must have
looked out of his eyes at that moment,
for braclng himself, and with clenched
hands thrust forward, he muttered,
"pll stick and die game-we're goin'
right into her anyway"
But Jim's work had began to tell,
and as the broken rear end swung
around into the short level stretch
ahead, that marked the outer limits of
Mayton, the momentum was lessened.
The caboose passed with short rattle
over the first switch, Jim's head car,
that he had just reached once more,
glided gently past the flyer waiting
safely on the siding and into the
broken humber and drawbar of it's old
fellow, which had just halted with it's
companions and engine in front of the
little depot.
Jim, more from a relaxation of nerve
and revulsion of feeling caused by
the awful fear and horror he had
undergone in the last few moments,
literally rolled off his car, plump into a
knot of excited railroad men as they
rushed together. The separated crew
of the freight train soon joined them,
and explanations followed. The super
intendent of the division who happened
to be on the night passenger, stood in
the center of the now increasing crowd
with hands in his pockets and queer