Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-09-20

without any apology, ana II tooh iotS VI
coal to square the account
In few minutes they were pounding
along up through the Narrows. the track
there follows the high bench between the
the river bed, thirty feet below the grade
on the other.
1t is not an inviting stretch at any time
with a big string of gondolas behind. But
division where an engineer would want
side rod to go wrong; and just there anu
then Georges rod went very rong indeed.
Half way between centers the big steer
bar his side, dipping then fast you
couldn't have seen 1t even in daylight
snapped like a stick of licorice. The hind
end ripped up into the cab like the nose of
a sword fish, tearing and smashing with
appalling force and fury.
George McNeal's seat burst under him
as If stick of giant powder had exploded
He was damned against the cab roof like
link pin and fell sprawling, while the
through the cab with every lightning rev
olution of the great driver from which 1t
swung.
1t was a frightful moment. Anything
thought or done must be thought and done
at once. 1t was either to stop that train
and quickly-or to pound along until the
pa jumped the track and lit in the river
with thirty cars of coal to cover it.
Instantly so Dad Hamilton afterward
told me-instantly the boy. scrambling to
his feet, reached for his throttle-reached
for 1t through rain of iron blows, ana
staggered hack with his right arm hang ng
like broken wing from his shoulder. And
back again after it-after the throttle with
his left slipping and creeping carefully TINS
time up the throttle lever until, stralning
and twisting and lodging, he caught the
latch and pushed it tightly home, Dad
whistling vigorously the while for brakes.
Relieved of the tremendous head on the
cylinder, the old engine Gained down
enough to let the two men collect them
tt,A Dlrnc n
the long train was brought up standing,
and George, helped by his fireman. dropped
out of the cab, and they set about discon-
necting-the engineer with his one arm
the formidable ends of the broken rod.
1t was slow, difficult piece of work to
do. In spite of their most active EFFORTS.
the rain chilled them TO the marrow Inc
train crew gave them much help as will
ing hands could which wasn't much; but
by every man doing something, trey got
things fixed, called in their fiagmen just
before daybreak, and started home. When
the sun rose, George, grim and silent the
throttle in his left hand, was urging the
old engine along on a dog-trot across the
Blackw0od flats; and so, limping in on o3e
side, the kid brought his train into the
GAINESVILLE yards, with Dad Hamilton I'M
able to make himself helpful enough, I'M
able to show his appreciation of the skill
and the grit that the night had disclosed
in the kid engineer.
The hostler waiting in the yard sprang
and was just in time to lift limp boy out
of the old fremans arms and help Dad
get him to the ground-for George had
tainted.
When the 244 reached the shops a few
minutes later they photographed that cab
1t was the worst case of rod-smashing we
had ever seen; and the West End shops
have caught some pretty tough-looking CABS
in their day.
The boy who stopped the cyclone and
saved his train and crew lay stretched on
the lounge in my Office waiting for the
company surgeon. And old Dad Hamil-
ton-crabbed, irascble old Dad Hamilton
flew around that boy exactly like an ex-
cited old rooster first bringing ice, and
then water, and then hot coffee, and then
tanning him with a time table. 1t was
worth a small smash-up to see it.
The one sweep of the rod which caught
Georges arm had broken it in two places
and he was off duty three months. But it
was a novelty to see that boy walk down
to the post office, and hear the strikers step
up and ask how his arm was; and to see
old Dad Hamilton tag around GAINESVILLE
after him was refreshing. The kid engi-
neer had won his spurs.