Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1908-09-23
A WRECK ON THE ROAD
WHAT a Collision Means to the
Man at the Throttle.
PLIGHT OF THE ENGINEER.
The Chances He Has to Take and His
Fate Should He Become Crippled In
a Smashup-There Are Some Thing
Worse Than Physical Pain.

Fate Should He Become Crippled In
a Smashup-There Are Some Thing
Worse Than Physical Pain.
Il just dropped in to tell you thai
the coroner's jury has exonerated yeu
from all blame for the wreck They
are going to hold the block tower
man"
The old engineer turned his pain
drawn face toward me. A white cap
ped nurse gently brushed back the
wild hairs from his forehead.
Thank you, miss" he said, "and you,
too, sir, for the good news. l knew
they couldn't blame it on me, because
it was white at Mentor. Poor Denny,
he'd tell you so, too, if he was alive.
All whitev he shouted when we came
round the curve. and | gave him the
answer, All whitep and pulled her
wide open. Then we struck the emp
ties on the siding, and-well, you know
the rest" He wiped a trembling hand
across his eyes as If trying to blot out
some horrible vision.
His eyes began to sparkle, and bit
Of color flashed into his pale cheeks.
II suppose you fellows think l opened
her up and went into those boxes Just
for fun" A smile fitted over his lips,
and then he grew serious. Say, did 1t
ever come to your mind that an en-
sineer might be as anxious about his
own life as he is about the lives of
those who are riding behind him? My
wife and little one-don't you suppose
my Life counts for something with
themi
Did you ever stop to think what q
collision like that at Mentor means to
the engineer? Just try to figure your
self in his place. He Rides in four
square feet Of cab room, surrounded
by a mass of levers, rods and the like.
Ahead Of him is about three miles of
boiler pipe, carrying 200 pounds Of
steam pressure and enough hot water
to cook the meat Off his bones in a
jiffy. Gathering at his back is 5000
gallons of water and $4,000 pounds of
coal Under him is 100000 pounds
of engine, and behind there is
100000 pounds Of train. Altogether he
is running along ahead Of 100000
pounds Of steel, hardwood and brass
held to an eighty pound rail by three
quarters Of an inch Of wheel fange.
"Why, when one Of those big Rus
sian battleships fred a broadside at
the Japanese the whole thing
amounted only to $4,000 pounds, so the
papers say. And that 24.000 pounds
travelling eight miles minute would
strike a Japanese ship eight miles
away with an impact only one-tenth
of the force we hit the empties al
Mentor.
'NOf course l was the engineer and
they depended on me. There Is al
ways lot Of fine talk about engineers
having the lives Of several hundred
passengers in their hands. That's all
very true, but you don't want to over.
look the fact that the engineers life
Is right there along with the others.
We oA Idhc CAohCcc, toC liam SASW
as well as the passengers. only our
chances are simmer. had one
chance in 500 Of being killed, or one In
twenty-five Of getting right where
am now, but passenger on the train
had one chance in about 3.000,0 900 OF
being killed and one in 10000 OF
being hurt.
T see that lot Of people were killed
and a whole lot more hurt. DOM
want to be a grumbler, but 1t appears
to me that you fellows have kinder
overlooked the fact that both of my
legs are gone. OF course that might
not mean much to you, but II you
realized, as / do, that for the rest OF
my life it is going to be my job to
hobble out into the middle Of some
country road and wave a white flag as
every train goes by-if you could real
lie what that means to an engineer
to hear the hooking toot of the whis
tie as she comes up to the crossing and
to see the sympathetic salute of the
engineer and fireman as they go flying
BY tell you, my boy, there are some
things worse than physical pain"
His eyes filed with tears. The nurse
gently wiped them away and softly
stroked bac': the hair.
II wouldn't talk any more now" she
said.
"All right, MISS" he replied, putting
out his hand to me. II always obey
orders."-B. X. Winslow in New York
Tribune.
A Free Translation.