The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1909-09-03

fenfy KAUFMAN WGS born old. AT
10 he had the face and figure of a
voter. His skin did not fit his face
1T wrinkled and resembled a piece Of
rawhide that had been left out in the
rain and SUM-.
Henry's father was a freighter on
the Santa Fe trail when %lndepend-
ence was the back door of civilization,
opening on a wilderness. Little Hen.
ry used to ride on the high seat with
MS father, close up to the tail of a
Missouri mule, the seventh of a series
of eight which his father drove in
front of the big wagon and the trail.
er. 1t was the wind Of the west that
tanned the hide on Henry's lace and
made him look old before his time.
AT night they used to range the wag-
n in a ring, in which the freighters
slept.
One night Henry was wakened by
the yells of Indians and saw men fight
ing. Presently he was swung to the
back of a cayuse behind a painted
warrior, and as they rode away the
boy, looking back, saw the wagons
burning-and guessed the rest.
Later the lad escaped and made his
way to Chicago, where he began his
really begins.
It was extremely difficult, in the
early days, to find sober, reliable
young men to man the few locomo.
tives in America and to run the trains.
A large part of the population seemed
to be floating, drifting west, west al.
ways west. So when this stout.
s%houldered, strong-faced youth asked
for work the round-house foreman
took him on gladly.
Henry's boyhood had been so full
of peril that he was absolutely indif.
ferent to danger and a stranger to
fear. He a not even afraid of work,
and at the end of eighteen months
he was marked up for a run. He had
passed from the wiping gang to the
deck Of a passenger engine, and was
now ready for the road.
Henry was proud of his rapid pro
motion, especially this last lift that
| "ouAN CA1D1C III " IdCG dlOus IuS
steel trail, though he recalled that II
had cost him his first little white lie
One Of the rules of the road sait
that a man must be 81 years old be
fore he could handle a locomotive
Henry knew his book well, but he
also knew that the railroad needed
his service and that he needed the
job; so when the clerk had taken his
personal record"-which was only 6
mild way of asking where he would
have his body sent in case he me
the fate, so common at that time on
a new line in a new country-he gave
his age as 20, hoping the master mo
chanic would allow him a year fol
good behavior.
Years passed, as did the Indian ant
the buffalo. The railway reached on
across the Great American Desert
The border became blurred and wa,
rubbed out. The desert was dottet
with homes. Towns began to grow III
about the water-tanks and to bud ant
blow on the threeless plain.
Henry Kaufman became known a.
the coolest and most daring drive
on the road. He "a a good enginec
and a good citizen. He owned hi
home, and while his pay was not VIVA
an engineer draws to-day for the sam
run made in half the time, it vas sui
fcient unto the day, his requirement
and his Wife's taste.
Only n thing troubled him. H,
had bought a big farm not far from
Chicago, for which he was payin,
out of his savings. If he kept well
as he had een all his life, three year,
more on the limited would let him out
Then he could retire a year ahead o
time, and settle down in comfort OF
the farm and watch the trains 20 by
1t would be his salvation, this farm
by the roadside, for the very though
Of surrendering the La Sale to an
other was NORWOOD and gall t,
Henry. But there was the law in TIL,
book Of rules-the Bible of the c., M
G Wand no man might go beyont
the limit set for the retirement o
engine drivers.9 And Henry Haupt
ban, the favorite of the "Old Man.
would take his medicine.
Time winged on, and as often q
Christmas came it reminded the oil,
engineer that he was one year neare
h'~ last trip, for his mother, now sleer
g in the far west, had taught him Il
believe that he had come to her o.
ChistTas eve.
One day when Henry was registe,
ing in the roundhouse he saw a lette
in the rack for him, and carried i
home to read after supper
When he read it he jumped out o
his chair. why, Henry" said hi
wife, putting down her knitting, "wha
ever's the matter, open switch O
red light?"
Worse. Mary, it's the end of tn,
track!"
The old engineer tossed the lette
over to his wife, sat down, street.-the,
his legs out, locked his fingers, an,
began rolling his thumbs, one owe
the other, staring at the stove.
When Mrs. Kaufman had finishe,
the letter she stamped her foot an,
declared it an outrage. She sue
gested that somebody wanted the [.
Sale. WELL" she said, resigning hel
self to her fate, 81 bet l have tina
coach seat out of the cab; it'll max
a nice %tete-a-tete for the front room
Superannuated!" she went on, wit
growing disgust. Il bet you can pu
any man on the division down tire
times in fve!"
It's me that's down, Mary-dow
and OUT,
Henry Kaufman, I'm ashamed {
you! You know you've got four year!