The Coalville times. [volume] (Coalville, Utah) 1894-1923, 1902-01-10
DEAD MEMS Sc
BY J. PERCY BARNITz.
Copyright. 1901. BY Daily Story Pub. Coz

Section -Four was the longest section
on the Third Division OF the G. and ].
Railroad. Il was 80 long and so many
fatalities had occurred on that stretch
Of road. that the management decided
TO call Il the Middle Division. think
ing thereby 20 escape the odioua name
Of Dead Mems Section which II was
called by railroad men the country
over But call q what they would. the
management could not free that par
tlcular portion Of their line from the
gruosomo appellaton.
The sections on the C. and ]. are
not eight or ten-milo stretches OF
track, as is the case on Eastern lines.
but Instead a hundred and ntty-milo
stretch Is the usual section on this
important link IN the Great Trans
Continental Route" and which ira
verses the Lone Star state from the
Red River to the Rio Grande.
Henry Fortune was made division
superintendent at Folgcr, tho terminus
OF Section Three. and the headquar.
tors for the new Middle Division. And
he said always. that II was anything
but good fortune when he was pro-
NOTED TO that position. for until his
appointment at FolgoF he had never
known that tho cup OF life could be so
full OF trouble.
Freight brakemen only-with few
fxceptions-w the ones whom Death
Ioemed to single out as his victims.
And the majority OF those who were
killed met their deaths by falling be-
meath the cars while the trains were
running eastward between Gregson's
and Warm Springs.
Because OF the "hoodoo." which rail-
road men said was on Dead Mems
Bection." II was almost impossible to
secure reputable employees for the
freight service Of the operating de-
partnent OF the Middle Division. Az
a consequence the personnel OF the
freight tralnmen on that division was
composed literally Of the scum OF the
earth. And, therefore. II II not 70 be
wondered at that the life OF Henry
Fortune. superintendent. was not n
happy one. Tho difficulties he expert
eneed In handling the polygenous
/ freight crews were legion; but they
we're as nothing compared 70 tho de-
pressing fact that IN spite Of all pre-
csutiona Death hold the Middle Divi-
uion In a nrmer grasp than ever.
Although the Middle Division passed
through a land OF weary desolation.
whieh. with Ia nlnt-llko soil; It's
doubtless. unbroken monotony OF
plains, was enough IN Itself to depress
the lpirits OF almost any man. yet the
superintendent never for moment
supposed that any OF his men com
aittsd suicide,
There we're but few men In his em-
ploy that did not use liquor. But
liquor could hardly be held account
able for the strange fatalities on "Dsad
Mems Section" Other trainmen EN-
ployed on tho division besides freight
brakemen drank just ~ hard. and yet
there we're no more accidents among
them than Usually occur on the ordl-
nary railroad.
One nlfht in early January the
"Mexican Flyer" was wrecked between
Warm Springs and Gregson's. The
superlntendent accompanied the
wrectlng train to the scene OF the dis
astet II was wretched night. A
hosgy storm OF sleet and rain beat
deem with chilling force on that bar
r,n waste OF land. and Henry Fortune
made Il his nrst duty to see that the
ppahtsnEsrs were taken TO Gragson's.
and there made "a comfortable
a. posalbio In the miserable adobe
building bearing the name Of "rho
Rangers Rest"
The proprietor or this squalid hos
tslry OF the Texas plains was a singu-
lar individual. He was a tall. lank.
slnihtsr-lookins hali-breod. whose
bsady oTss seemed to glow with a
malignant passion. A semi-nute he
was unabls 10 artlculate intslllElbly,
bat ssuld understand perfectly all thar
was said to him. There was something
about the man that fascinated Henry
Fortune, a. he watched his shlfty. cat
like movements, while dispensing the
vile, yellow-looklng whisky over his
bar 10 the motley crowd OF cowboys
gathered IN the foul-smslllnE. earth