Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-06-30

and April D. 1858. the date of his birth.
His uncle, Capt. Jesse T. Stevens. was a
famous engineer thirty years ago. and after
John had received his common school edu-
cation and tried school teaching for a
while he decided that he would make en-
cheering his life work. A diligent student,
he became assistant city engineer of Min
nearolis at twenty-one and while hold ng
this position he studied constantly to fit
himself for more ambitious tasks. lie
worked every night while the rest of US
were out playfrg e.. Is the testimony Of a
friend In 1876 he became engineer and
superintendent of surveys of the Sabine Pass
and Northwestern railway, and since that
year, it is said he has built more mites
of railroad than any other man in the
world.
Cowboy Humor.
One day in Texas he made his frst-aiso
his last-attempt to have some fun>w.th a
cowboy. There had been several impromp-
tn hangngs in the nelghboring town of
B, and the topic was naturally upper
most in the young engineers mind He was
sitting on the counter of a grocery store
waiting for a package when a cowboy with
broad sombrero, claHking spurs and bet
full of weapons. came in.
Gimme some raisins'' he said, mstaking
Stevens for the grocer.
How would you like some raisings, like
those over at b" the tenderfoot en-
gineer inquired facetiously.
Such familiarity was bad enough in itself
but the pun was even worse Moreover the
cowboy from B, and two of the VIC
tins of the necktie party had been his
friends. For moment he stared at Stevens
in amaZement and disgust, then he began
making emphatic remarks, and long before
these were concluded Stevens found him
self gazing into revolver muzze which to
his excited fancy seemed to be as big as the
end of sewer pipe. Only the Stevens mag
netism, supplemented by profuse apologies
and the grocer's loud protestations against
having his place 'aH mussed up" saved tie
young engineers life.
Engineering Dangers in the West
From 1870 to 1890 he was assistant or
division engineer with many railroads, in
Guiding the Denver and Rio Grande, Chi
cago, Milwaukee and St. Paul, Canadian
Pacific, Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic,
and Spokane Falls and Northern. While
engaged in building 500 miles of the
Canadian Pacific between Winnipeg and the
Rockies, he got lost in blizzard, wandered
In circle for hours, and was about to
succumb to cold and exhaustion when a
rescue party found him. He has had many
other narrow escapes from death.
While locating and building the Canadian
Pacific his party often traversed narrow
trails along the edges of precipices over a
thousand feet deep In short time sixty
of his pack horses lost their footing and
were dashed to death on the rocks far be-
low Some OF his men shared the same
fate. One of his parties was in charge of
an eccentric Scotchman. mule slipped
and fell over a precipce dragging a man
after him.
MY God! There goes Jim, and he's got
my axe!" cried the Scot.
Discovers Stevens Pass.
In 1890 he went to the Great Northern
and built the road through the Cascade
mountains and across the state of Wash
fngton. This task was a most difficult one.
With two Indian guides and a pack mule,
he plunged into the wilderness to locate tho
line to the Pacific coast, and particularly
to find suitable pass through the Cascade
range. The Indians deserted him, and the
hard-worked mule died, but the plucky
engineer surmounted every difficulty, dis
covered Stevens pass, which was thus
named in his honor, located the line as 1t
now runs, tunneled nearly two miles
through a mountain range, and was made