Sunday Washington globe., 1902-04-13
AN OLD ENGINEER
Opens the Valve and Tells His
Experiences.
VARIETY OF IDIOTS
Who Play Horse and Monkey Tricks
with the Trainmen-The Results
Are Generally Disastrous to Some
body EIse-A Deserved Thrashing
Given LOut by the Fireman. Etc,
Etc.

The other day found a locomotive engi-
neer seated on pile Of ties near his great
Rodman engine, which was steamed up
ready to make dash across the country. I
handed him cigar and told him ] wanted
some facts connected with his experience as
a runner.
Well" replied the engineer, IF you
could see with my eyes the things that
have seen throughout thirty years Of rum
ming an engine you would wonder why our
asylums are not over-supplied with inmates.
A man will come driving along toward
railroad crossing. One of the inmates Of
the vehicle will see the train and call the
drivers attention to it. The driver will
. then whip his team into a run, cross the
track just ahead of the train and then stop
A and watch us pass by They simply take
| desperate chances to cross ahead of US,
4 while if he had driven along at the rate he
was going when they FIST saw the train, we
would have gotten out of their range before
they would have reached the crossing.
This thing happens many times in a month,
and causes more accidents than you would
imagine. It is no use to try to make jury
believe that it was the fault of the teamster,
Of course
When women and children are about to
cross ahead Of US, we are scared every time.
The woman will stop few feet from the
track and turn around TO watch us approach;
she will forget all about her smaller child
rem, and while she watches US come along
the little fellows walk right ahead and onto
the track Nine times out of ten where
children accompanying their parents are
killed by the cars at crossings it is because
IL
of the children
"Oue of the worst fools with which we
have to deal with is the idiot who will try
to stay on the track just as long as posi-
BILE He will pretend that he does not hear
the train, and of course we know that he
does. Just as we get right on to him he
will jump to one side and laugh. never
see.this done without wish coming in my
heart that the simpleton had fallen and lost
leg. We kill great many pedestrians
throughout the railroad world just from
this one cause. So many idiots will treat
US this way, and we make sudden stops so
many times, only to be laughed at by the
pinhead who has done it, that we finally
conclude to pay no more attention to it,
and then some unfortunate creature pays
the penalty for all their foolishness. Of
course the villagers say that engineer on
engine so and so was the cause of old Mr.
So and So being killed on the track near
town, when the real cause of il has been
that a number of their smart young women
and men have continually been doing Just
as the old man was at the time he was
caught Instead of different legislatures
spending their breath framing laws to MAKE
a railroad pay for pig they kill it would
be better sense to pass laws making it a
penitentiary offense for person knowingly
to remain on the track as near as 100 feet
to an approaching train.
Another kind of fool is that one who
will get out Of his wagon as the train ap-
proaches, leave his wife to hold the lines,
while he gets as close to the train as possi-
bic in order to get better look at it. This
is almost daily occurrence. and while the
team becomes unmanageable and runs of
with the wagon and family the fool husband
waves his hand to every man in sight on
the train only to look around after the
train has passed to see his children scattered
over the sagebrush. l know a rushing train
as it dashes over the country must be a
beautiful sight for the rural character, but
look at it does not pay for a runaway team
with a man s family in it.
II said while ago that the biggest fool
was that one who would stay on the track
as long as possible, but don't believe he
is any worse than that one who will pretend
to you that there is something serious
ahead of you. He will point down the
track and make all sorts Of knowing
gestures and signs. He pretends that there
is a horse in a culvert, bridge gone, or
something like that OF course, our train
ing Is such that all matters of that kind
must be pondered over in a moments
time. We are compelled TO consider IT,,
and the fool by the track may be giving
il Just al a time when something critical is
being considered in matters Of our meeting
orders Many a wreck is caused primarily
from this source and while the engineer
gets discharged for the wreck which has
cost several lives perhaps the real cause of
it was the unnecessary and lying signal
given by the idiot near the track Of
course we do not see anything 100 feet from
the right of way, but then these smart idiots
stand right near and give their signs After
while so many like this deceive us that it
is like the boy who was looking after the
sheep. When the cry Of the wolf comes
in earnest we pay no attention to it.
Another idiot that is pretty plentiful is
the one who puts things on the rail-nails
and small iron articles and the like Of
to much within themselves, but children
will see that done and hear older ones tell
Of it, and after while some little fellow
puts on a larger thing, and wreck is the
result The idiots who have been In the
habit Of putting small articles on the rail
could not be made to believe that they we're
the primary cause of the wreck, oh no; but
they are, just the same.
Il ran across a fool just the other day
that seemed to be something new. At least
il was the FIRST time anything like it was
ever played on me. It was at a blind
siding, where our fast train did not stop,
and he wanted to stop US so he could get
on. AS we pulled inside of the switch
there was a man with his foot apparently
caught in the frog. This is a horrible
affair, and Of course / slowed down and
stopped just in time to save the poor fell
low, only to have him laugh an idiotic
laugh and make a run for the coaches Ny
fireman was big, husky fellow, and l sent