Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-01
Copyright, 1900. by F. Fl. spearman.)
BY FRANK q. SPA MAN.

The oldest man in the train service didn't
pretend to say how long Sankey had Workeo
for the company.
PAT Francis was a very old conductor;
hut old man Sankey was a veteran when
Pat Francis began braking. Sankey ran
Messenger train when Jimmie Brady was
running-and Jimmie afterwards enhsleo
and was killed In the Custer fight.
There was an odd tradition about SAN
KEYS name. He was a tall, swarthy lei
low, and carried the blood of Sioux
chief in his veins. 1t was in the time Oh
the Black Hills excitement, when railroad
men struck by the gold fever We're aban-
doning their trains, even at way sta
tons and striking across the DIVIDE LOT
Clarks crossing. Men to run the trains
were hard to get and Tom Porter, train
master, was putting in every man he coulo
pick up without reference to age or Color
Porter-he died at Julesburg afterWaro-
was great jollier, and he wasn't afraid OF
anybody on earth.
One day a party of Sioux claltereu
into town They tore around like storm,
and threatened to scalp everything, even 10
the local tickets. The head braves oasneu
in on Tom Porter, sitting In the ulspalen-
er's office upstairs. The dlspatcher was
hiding under a loose plank in the baggage
room floor, Tom, being bald as a sano nun,
considered himself exempt from scapiiis
parties. He was working a game Oh SOIL
taire when they bore down him, and In
terested them at once. That led 10 par
ley, which ended IN Porters h1rlns Ine
whole band to brake on freight trains oId
man Sankey is said to have peen one ol
that original war party.
Now this is merely a caboose story-told
on winter nights when trainmen get stalled
in the snow drifting down from the Sioux
country. But what follows Is better at
tested.
Sankey, to start with, had a peculiar
name. An unpronounceable, unspeiiao!e,
unmana geable name. l never heard 1t; so
l can't give 1t. 1t was as hard to eaten
as an Indian cur, and that name made
more trouble on the pay rolls than all the
other names put together. Nobody at head
quarters could handle 1t; 1t was never
turned in twice alike, and they were always
writing Tom Porter about the thing. Tom
eyplained several times that 1t Sitting
Bulls ambassador who was drawing that
money. and that he usually signed the pay
roll with a tomahawk. But nobody at
Omaha ever knew how to take joke.
The first time Tom went down he was
called in very solemnly to explain again
about the name; and being in a hurry, and
very tired of the whole business, Tom splut-
tered:
Hang It, don't bother me any more about
that name. If you can't read It, make 1t
Sankey. and be done with it,
They took Tom 1T his word. They act
uaIIy did make it Sankey; and that's how
cur oldest conductor came to bear the
name of the famous singer. And more l
may say; good name as it was-and is-the
Sioux never disgraced 1t.
Probably every old traveller on the system
knew Sankey. He was not only always ready
10 answer questions, but, what is much more.
always ready to answer the same question
twice; it is that which makes conductors
gray headed and spells their chances for
hcaven-answering the same questions over
and over again. Children were apt to be
bit startled at first sight of Sankey, he was
IL TQTrr had TIrin
that always made them friends after the
second trip through the sleepers, and they
sometimes ran about asking for him after
he had left the train.
OF late years-and it is this thai hurts
these very same children. grown ever so
much bigger, and riding again to or from
California or Japan or Australia, Will ask
when they reach the West End about the
Icdian conductor
But the conductors who now run the over
land trains pause at the question. checkng
over the date limits on the margins of the
coupon tickets, and, handing the envelopes
back. will look at the children and say,
slowly. He isn't running any more"
II you have ever gone over our line to
the mountains-or to the coast YOU may re-
m, mber at McCloud, where they change
engines and sat the diner in or out. the
pretty little green park to the east of the
depot with row of catalpa trees along the
platform line. 1t looks like glass of sprin 8
water
If it happened to be Sankey's run and
regular West End day, sunny and delight
ful, you would be sure to see standing under
the catalpas shy. dark-skinned girl of
fourteen or fifteen years, silently watching
the preparations for the departure of the
Overland.
And after the new engine had feen
backed champing. down. and harnessed TO
its long string of vestibuled sleapers; after
the air hose had been connected and tie
ar valves Examined; after the engineer had
swung out of his cab. filled his cups, and
swung in again. after the fireman and his
helper had disposed of their slice-bar ard
shovel. and given the tender final sprin-
kle, ami the conductor had walked Ieisurely
forward c7mpared time with the engineer
and cried. IAN abo-o-o-ardr
Then. as your coach moved slowly ahead
you might notice under the receding catal-
pas the little girl waving a paras3I, or a
Handkerchief at the outgoing train-that
Is, at Conductor Sankey; for she was his
daughter Meta Sankey. Her mother was
SDansh. and died when Meta was a wee
bit. Meta and the Limited were Sankey's
whole world
When George Sinclair began pulling the
limited, running west opposite Foley he
struck up a great friendship with Sankey
Sankey though he was hard to start was
full of early-day stories. George, II seemed
had the faculty of getting him to talk per-
haps because when he was pulling San
keys train he made extraordinary efforts
TO keep time-time was a hobby with
Sankey Foley said he was so careful of It
that when he was off duty he let his watch
stop Just 10 save time
Sankey loved to breast the winds and the
Moods and the SHOWS, and If he could get
home pretty near schedule. with every
body else late. he was happy: and In re-
spect Of that, as Sankey used to say, Geor-
gle Sinclair could come nearer gratifying
Sankey's ambition than any runner we
had
Even the fremen used TO observe that
the young engineer. always neat, looked
still neater the days that he took out San
keys train. By-and-by there was an In
PRODUCTION under the catalpas; after that
J. was noticed that George began wearing
gloves on the engine-Eot kid gloves, but
yellow dogskin-and black silk shirts; he
bought them in Denver.
Then-an odd way engineers have of pay
ing compliments-when George pulled into
sown on No. .. If 1t was Sankey's train, the
big skyscraper would give a short, hoarse
scream. most peculiar note, Just as they
drew past Sankey's house. which stood on
the brow of the hill west of the yards
Then Meta would know that No and her
father. and. naturally, Mr.. Sinclair, were
IN again.. and all safe and sound.
When the railway trainmeh held their
division fair at MoCloud there was a lam
tern to be voted to the most popular con-
ductor-a gold-plated lantern with a green
curtain IN the globe. Cal Stewart and Ben
D9scr, who were very swell conductors, and
W he fay and had ttaf nx-