Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-10-30
THE TANNING OF RED BUTTE
WESTERN.
BY FRANCIS LYNDE.
0oeyrsa. isas b. ch.aes su,snr. sons,
BY FRANCIS LYNDE


dissusted,y. ''Timanyoni had his red
hight out. and when I asked for Orders
ne sale he hadn't any-thought maybe
we'd want to ask for 'em ourselves, being
as We was running Wild
80 ne thoughtfuliy stopped US to give
wrathful scorn. What did YOU do?"
oh. as long as he had done 1t, had
him call up the Angels dispatcher to f1ad
out where We were at. We're ON .Ofs
time. you know-ought to have met her
here.
Why didn't we?' asked the superin-
tendent, taking the time card from its
pigeon hole and glancing at train 2O4's
schedule.
''Shs was late out of Red Butte; broke
something and had. to stop and tie 1t up:
lost q half hour maxim her getaway
Then we reach Little Butte before 2oI
gets there's that it,?
That's about the way the night dis
patcher has it ciphered out. He gave the
Timanyoni plug operator hot stuff for
holdin' us up"
Lidgerwood shook his head The art
less simplicity Of Red Butte Western
inexcusably hard
Does the night dispatcher happen to
know Just where 204 is at tbs present
momentT' he inquired. with gentle irony.
Bradford laughed
I'D be willing to bet a piebald pinto
against 2 no-account yaller dog that he
don't. But l reckon he won't be likely
to let her get past Little Butte. comm
this way. when he has let US get by
Timanyoni goin' t'other way"
That's all right. Andy; that Is the way
you would have right to figure 1t out
u you were running special on nor
maliy healthy raiiroad-you'd be justified
IN running to your next telegraph sta
ton, regardless. But the Red Butte
Western is an abnormally unhealt thy .ail-
road. and you'd better feel your way
pretty carefully, too. From Point Of
Little Butte. Tell Williams to watch n 10.
2O4's headlg and II he sees It, to take
the tn, siding At Silver switch. the old Wire
Silver spur"
Bradford nodded. and when Lidgerwood
reimmersed himself In the Gait. eman's
claim papers went forward to share VIII
liams' watch in the cab Of the 266.
Twenty minutes farther on the train
slowed again. made momentary stop.
and began to screech and grind heavily
around q sharp curve. Lidgerwood looked
out OF the window at his right. The
moon had gone behind huge hill, q Ian
tern was pricking a point In the shadows
some little distance from the track, and
sne t1mulsuous river rive: W. was no longer
He shut his desk and went to the rear
Platform. projecting himself into ths
group OF sightseers just as the train stop
ped tor the second time.
ster. looking up at the dark mass Of the
hill, whose ferested ramparts doomed
black In the near foreground.
AT Silver switch" replied Lidgerwood
and when the bobbng lantern came
What is 1t. Bradford?
1.-THE passenger, reckon" was the
answer. WILLIAMS thought he saw 1t as
we came around Point o Rocks. and h.
up some and let 'em get past Little Butte
without q meet order
For moment the group on the raileI
Platform was silent, and in the little in
teryal 2 low. humming sound made itself
muir. coming from al; points Of the COM
pass at once. as it seemed, and ninng tne
sun night air with its vibrations.
Williams was rieht" rejoined the SUI
perntendent. sharply. shes comingr
And ven as h. spoAe the White ola . o1
an e.ectric headlight burst into full view
on the shelfllke cutting along the north
ern face OF the great hill. prfcking out
the smallest details of the waiting spe-
eial the closed switch and the cleaning
lines of the rails.
with this powerful spotlight to project
its cone of dazzling brihiance upon the
scene, the watchers on the led plat
saw every detail in the swift outwol king
of the tragic spectacle for which the hill
facing curve was the stage setting.
When the oncoming pass, niger train
was within three or four hundred yards
OF the spur-track switch and racing to-
ward it at full speed. q man. who seemed
to the onlookers to rise up out of tue
ground in the trains path, ran down the
track to meet the uprushing headlight,
waving his arms frantically In the stol
signal. For an instant that seemed an
age, the passenger engineer made no sign
hen .an.e short sharp whisl. e-sui ca n,
spewing Of sparks from rail head and
tire at the clip of the emergency brakes
crash as Of the ripping asunder of the
mechanical soul and body. and q wrecked
train lay tilted at an angle OF forty five
degrees against the bank OF the hillside
cutting.
tTo be continued tomorrow)