The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-01-24
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Sankey naQ worked IOT the COLI
ttgMIN pany Pat Francis was a very
- old conductor: but old man Sank
ey was a veteran when Pat Francis began
braking. Sankey ran a passenger train
when Jimmy Brady was running-and jim
mic afterwards enlisted and was killed in
the Custer fight
There was an odd tradition about Sank
eys name. He was tall. swarthy fellow,
and carried the blood of a Sioux chief in
his veins. 1t was In the time of the Black
Hills excitement, when railroad men struck
by the gold fever were abandoning their
trains, even at way-stations, and striking
across the divide for Clarks crossing. Men
to run the trains were hard to get, and
Tom Porter, trainmaster, was putting in
every man he could pick up, without ref
erence to age or color.
Porter-he died at Julesburg afterwards
was a great jollier. and he wasn't afraid
of anybody on earth.
One day a war party of Sioux clattered
into town. They tore around like storm,
and threatened to scalp everything. even to
local tickets. The head braves dashed in
on Tom Porter, sitting in the dispatchers
office, upstairs. The dispatcher was hid
ing under a loose plank in the baggage
room floor; Tom, being bald a sand
hill, considered himself exempt from scalp
ing parties. He was working a game OF SOL
taire when they bore down on him, and
interested them at once. That led to a
parley, which ended in Porters hiring the
whole band to brake on freight trains. Old
man Sankey is said to have been one Of
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, unspellable, un-
manageable name. never heard it; so
can't give it. 1t was as hard to catch as
an Indian cur, and that name made more
trouble on the payrolls than all the other
names put together. Nobody at headquar-
ters could handle It,: it was never turned
in twice alike, and they were always writ
ing Tom Porter about the thing. Tom
explained several times that it was Sit
ting Bulls ambassador who was drawing
that money, and that he usually signed the
payroll with a tomahawk But nobody at
Omaha ever knew how to take a joke.
The first time Tom went down he was
called in very solemnly to explain again
about the name; and being in 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 1t,
make ii Sankey, and be done with it,.
They took Tom at his word. They actual
ly did make it Sankey: and that's how our
oldest conductor came to bear the name
OF the famous singer. And more may say;
good name as it was-and is-the Sioux
never disgraced it.
Probably every old traveller on the sys-
tenn knew Sankey. He not only al
ways ready to answer questions. but, what
is much more. always ready to answer the
same question twice: it is that which makes
conductors gray-headed and spoils their
chances for heaven-answering the same
question over and over again. Children were
apt to be a bit startled at first sight of
Sankey-he was so dark. But he had a
very quiet smile, 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 that 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
Indian conductor.
But the conductors who now run the over
land trains pause at the question, check
ing over the date limits on the margins of
the coupon tickets. and. handing thu en-
velopes back, will look at the children and
say, slowly, He isn't running any more. /"
If you have ever gone over our line to
the mountains or to the coast you may re-
member at McClou1 where they change
engines and set the diner in or out, the
pretty little green park to the east of the
depot. with a row of catapa trees along
the platform line. 1t looks like a glass OF
spring water.
| If it happened to be Sankey's run and
a regular West End day, sunny and de-
lightful. you would be sure to see stand
ing under the catalpas a 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 beer
backed. champing down, and harnessed to
it's long string OF vestibuled sleepers; after
the air hose had been connected and the
air valves examined; after the engineer
! had swung out Of his cab, filed his cups
and swung in again; after the fireman and
his helper had disposed of their slice-bal
| and shovel, and given the tender a fina
/ sprinkle, and the conductor had walked
leisurely forward, compared time with the
| engineer, and cried, "All abo-o-ard!' then
as your coach moved slowly ahead, yor
| might notice under the receding catalpas
the little girl waving a parasol. or a hand
kerchief, at the outgoing train-that is
| at Conductor Sankey; for she hi:
daughter, Meta Sankey. Her mother was
| Spanish and died when Meta was a we,
| Bit Meta and the Limited were Sankey's
| whole world.
When George Sinclair began pulling the
Limited running west opposite Foley HI
struck up a great friendship with Sankey
Sankey. though he was hard to start, was
full of early-day stories. George, i
seemed had the faculty of getting him t.
| talk perhaps because when he was pull
ing Sankey's train ne made extraordinar!
with Sankey. Foley said he was so care
full of it that when he was off duty he LEI
his watch stop just TO save time.
Sankey loved TO breast the winds and tn
Goods and the SHOWS. and if he could ge
home pretty near on schedule with every