Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1906-03-30
AS THE DISPATCHER SAW 1T.

If you can recolect the blizzard that
Roscoe Conkling went down in one March
day in the streets of New York, II win
give you the date; maybe call to your
mind the storm. I had the River Division
then, and we got through the whole win
ter without a single tie-up Of conse-
quenco until March.
The morning was still as June. When
the sky went heavy at noon, It looked
more like spring shower than a snow
storm; only, over at the government build
ing noticed the black flag splashed with
a red centre flying. 1 hadn't seen It be-
fore for years, and / ordered plows on
everything out after two o'clock.
Even then there was no wickedness
abroad; II was coming fairly heavy in big
flakes, but lying quiet as apple blossoms
Towards four o'clock left the office for
way across the yard when the wind veer-
ed like a scared semaphore had left
the depot in a snow-storm; / reached
the roundhouse in a blizzard
There was no time to wait to get back
| to the keys. 1 just telephoned orders
back from the house. and the boys burnt
the wires, east and west, with warnings.
! When the wind went into the north that
| day at four o'clock, II was murder pure
and simple, with the snow sweeping the
fat like a shroud and the thermometer
waterlogged at zero.
] n
| let-up. BY ten o'clock half OF our wires
were down, trains were failing all over
| the division, and before midnight every
! pillow on the line was bucl5ing snow and
the snow was coming harder. We had
given up all idea of moving freight and
were centering everything on the passen-
| ger trains, when message came from
Beverly that the fast mail was of track
| in the cut below the hill, and / ordered
| out both the rotaries and the wrecking
| gang for the rundown.
1t was a fearful night to make up a
train in a hurry-as much as a mans life
| was worth to work even slow in the yard
night like that. But what limit to sci
to a switchman's courage / never have
known. because I've never known one II
balk at a yardmaster's order.
/ went to work clearing the line, and
forgot all about everything outside the
train sheet till a car-tink came running II
with word that man was hurt in the
yard.
Some men get used to It; never do
As much as 1 have seen of railroad life
the word that a mans hurt always hit,
me in the same place. Slipping into al
ulster, / pulled a storm over my ear.
and hurried down stairs buttoning m,
coat. The arc-lights. blinded in the storm
swung wild across the big yard, and thu
wind sung with a scream through thu
telegraph wires Stumbling ahead, thu
big car-tink led me facing the storm Il
where, between the red and the greer
lamps. a dozen men lowered close to tn
gangway of a switch engine. The mai
hurt lay under the forward truck OF tn
tender.
They had Just got the wrecking trail
made up, and this man, running forwar'
after setting switch, had fiipped tn
tender of the backing engine and slippe'
from the footboard. When I bent owe
him, saw he was against it. He kneN
1t, too, for the minute they shut of an
got to him he kept perfectly still, onl
asking for a priest.
1 tried every way 1 could think OF {
get him free from the wheels. Two OF u
crawled under the tender to try to figur
: 1t out. But he lay so TANNED betwee
the front wheel and the hind one, an
tender trucks are so small and the wheel
so close together that, to save our live:
: we could neither pull ahead nor bac
the engine without further mutilating hin
As / talked to him I took his hand an
tried to explain that we should have
Jack the truck up to free him. He heard
: but his eyes, glittering with shock Xix
the eyes of a wounded animal. wandere
: uneasly while ] spoke; when had dom
! he closed them to grapple with the pail
: Presently a hand touched my shoulder
. the priest had come, and, throwing ope
his coat knelt beside u.s. He was a spar
! self 1 thought for much exposure lik
that--but he didn't seem to mind Wit
. both hands in the snow he got on h
! knees and put his head down behind tn
: wheel close to the mans face. What the
said to each other only lasted a momen
and all the while the boys were keying &
the jacks like madmen to ease the whe
that had crushed the switchman's thigl
When they got the truck partly free, the
lifted the injured man little back whel
we could see his face. They were read
to do more, but the priest, wiping II
. water and snow from the failing man
t lips and forehead, put up his fingers
: check them.
q The wind, bowling through the string
: of freight-cars all about us, sucked II
!, guarded lantern flames up into blue ar
? green filckers in the globes; they lightt
: the priests face as he took of nis HI
. and laid II beside him, and light'
= the switchman's eyes looking steadily l
: from the rail. The snow, curling and edd.
= ing across tn elittle blaze of the lamp
:, whitened everything alike, tender an
: wheel and rail, the jacl1screws the bar
J, and the shoulders and caps Of the me