The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-05-15
TREATED HIS
ENGINE KINDLY
washington Post.)

Yes. sir said the fat engineer Il
always made it a point to be friendly
with my engine, same as a good team
ster is kind to his horses, nctbey SEEM
ed to appreciate it. Sometimes l get
one that is dyspeptfc, with a perpetual
crouch, like some human bein's, but 1t
amt long before 1 have 'em SOS they'll
eat out of my hand.
Now, there was the 1888 When / got
her she was like an unruly child, but
after / had run her spell n used her
firmly. but gently, Iettin' her know /
was boss, she fell to workin' like a
charm.
IT always put up a holler if / sus-
picioned the yardmaster was putin on
more cars than the 1133 could handle,
especially at such times as thought the
old girl was off her feed. 1t sure stood
me in good stead. for whenever I got
into a tight place m needed to shove
her little bit to make a meetin point,
she'd never lay down on me once.
Now. Nance I'd say to her when
was oilin' 'roun'. we've got to be in
Congers in just so many minutes. Do
your prettiest. on the same plan as a
good driver hands his horse a1nice red
apple before he urges him to draw a
heavy load up a tedious hill. An say,
when I'd give her steam she whirl her
train along at twentieth century limited
speed.
One night durin' heavy snOwstorm
/ pulled down through the yards with
orders to go out over the Old Pike
branch single track short cut we use
when the main line is pretty well
clogged up with traffic. | laid at the
tank till No. II came in a little late.
After No. IL pulled in 1 opened the
Al - eli N
slowed n slid aroun', never movin' an
inch.
"'Come on. Nance. get on the job
said to her We've got to make Seeley' 5
crossn by S:45. There's no time to be
whittlin' here
My kind words had no more effect
than a safety razor at a darby picnic.
She just simply wouldn't move.
with her thrashin' N slippin' aroun'
she finally uncoupled the air hose be
tween the tender N the engine. l had
to get down under the tank n fuss
aroun' five minutes to get 'em hitched
up again.
"Ali this while the good old engine
was wheezin' m whinin' aroun' like q
faithful dog / read about in a book
whose master was about to take a
walk along a path in which an ambush
had been laid for him. The dog KEEP a
tuggin n whinin' aroun his master
until the man gave up his walk n his
life was saved.
THE old 1133 seemed to be sayin' to
mo: Now. Pop. there's danger OUT
there ahead. I wouldn't go if | were
YOU An pretty soon l got supersti-
tiors bunch that evil was lurkin' in our
path. n l determined to lay right in
that sidin' m await developments, not
withstandin' the comments of the crew
that I was trainin' for a job as janitor
of an old ladies home an other rude
remarks.
'''Old Nance never acted this way
with me before / said. n there must
be somethin dom. I'm not goin' to
bulge
I'm about three minutes we heard a
Icing whistle in the darkness to the
westward, N lon behold you. along
comes an extra eastbound freight in
over the single track. I had orders to
meet EN- at See1ey's sidin'-
Now. Just consider what would have
happened if that 1132 had not in some
way got a line on that little black man
ahead of u.s. I certainly would have
gone I'D that branch for all it was worth
i'm order not to lay the extra out at
SeeIey's. N we would have met head
on in the blindin' snowstorm- L tel
YOU it pays to be kind"