Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-08-26

was the sleeping car passenger and he
looked as II he had been through half q
dozen wars.
Mr.. Conductor he spluttered. your in
fernal road Is SO rough that can't sleep
little bit. Twice Two been pitched out Of
my berth to the floor in the last fifteen
minutes. I never had such time in my
iife Maybe there's something the mat
ter
1.-THE conductor took his lantern and
started back. My friend and myself stayed
where we were for awhile. Then we noticed
that the bell cord was being terked vio-
lently and that the engineer was whistlins
for brakes. Then the train came to a stop,
and after about five minutes waiting we
too, went back to see what was the matter.
1t was as dark as tar and raining pitch
forks. and the whole train crew was out
side with lanterns.
1.-The sleeper was of the rails and had
been for how far We never knew. It had
been pumping over the ties all the time
that poor passenger had been pitched about,
and had the train gone ECO feet more before
stopping there would have been a very
serious accident. for the wheels were within
six inches of the ends Of the ties. If the
wheels had left the ties, the sleeper
would have gone down q high and steep
embankment. and as the coupling had been
strong enough to haul the sleeper over the
ties. It would undoubtedly have pulled tie
whole train Off the rails
Thunderbolt and Oil Car.
dCClueHlS are always Verifying,
even to railroad veterans" put in the west
ern man, but the scaredest railroad crew
I ever heard of was running freight on
the Flint and Pere Marquette a year or two
before the consolidation that made it the
Pere Marquette system.
1T had been warm. muggy, damp day,
and all hands were in a highly Disagree
able frame Of mind by shutdown. 1t seemed
to them all that about the worst lot that
could n being to
bump along mile after mile, running slow
freight. 1t looked very much like a thun-
derstorm. and by o'clock. when it began
to drizzle slowly. as 1t sometimes does at
deepest gloom had enveloped the whole
crew.
",rhe train was climbing a long heavy
grade when the lightning began. to play. A
bridge had Just been crossed and the engi-
neer was growing in an ugly way at the
fireman, because the rails were getting
slippery and the steam was running down a
bit.
"Refore the fireman could growl back a
great white hole opened in the very zenith
and a long, straight. vertical Hash OF nght-
ming shot down towarG the eartn with
deafening, terrifying explosion that 1airly
raised the hair OF poth engineer aiiu III
man.
HALF a second later there was another
explosion, muffied somewhat, but more mar
raising than the first. Hardly had the White
light of the great lightning flash faded out
before a bright red glow began to shine out
from about the middle Of the train. and at
the same time, the engineer could tell by
the feel of the train that part OF 1t had
broken away.
"'Billr he called out to the fireman, there
was an oil car In the middle OF the train
and the lightning has struck it. Every man
on the back end OF the train mas been
killed!
Conflicting Reports.
".Guess you're right, JIM replied the
fireman III pull out to the next station
and wire in said the engineer. as soon as
he had pulled himself together; and so ne
did Meanwhile the conductor, who was
alone in the caboose the tralnmen being
scattered along the train On the tops OF
the cars, had come to the conclusion that
he alone of the entire crew had survived
the lightning stroke. and he, lantern In
hand. started back to flag any train that
might be following and also to wire In TO
division headquarters about the accident.
THE engineer got his dispatch IN nrst. OF
course. 1t read:
"'Train struck by lightning. All rear cars
destroyed. Conductor and most OF crew
killed
''This caused a great stir in the super 8
office, of course, and wrecking train was
ordered made up. Before 1t could be got
ready additional confusion was caused by
the dispatch from the conductor. which
read:
LIGHTNING has destroyed front end OF
train and bridge. All killed but me-
LAS a matter of fact, none of the crew
was killed, the trainmen having been near
enough to the engine to escape the force OF
the lightning They were SO scared that
they were not able to reach the engine Till
after the engineer had sent his wire. The
conductor got the worse of 1t, for either the
lightning or the explosion knocked him NAT
on his back and he was unconscious for
some time before he was able to start back
with his lantern. The oil car and the
bridge, over which 1t was passing at the
moment, were completely destroyed.