The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1911-07-11

o sihlllty n was Your duty 10 MAKE
sure that the dispatcher fully under
stood the situation nc Crosswater ant
10 refuse 20 pull out ahead OF the pas
scnger without something more def
mite than formal permit. Weren'
You taught that? Where did you learr
20 run trains?"
IL was an opening for hard words
but the conductor let Il pass. Some
thing I'm the steady businesslike tone
or in the shrewdly appraisive eyes
turned Bradford the potential mutineeI
into bradford the possible partisan.
IL reckon we are needing roundup
over here on this jerkwater mighty
bad. Mr. Lidgerwood," he said, hall
humorously. But, Lord love you
that's the old 90 chasin' us with the
passenger, and she can't catch Bat
Williams and the GO in month o
Sundays If we didn't have that dog
goned spawned leg under the tender.
She sure couldn't"
I.idgerwood smiled In spite of his an
insisted. meeting his first pupil half
way and as man to man. you might
do this thing ninety-nine times
The sentence was never finished.
The special. tagging little now In def
erence to the smoking hot box. was
rounding one OF the long hill curves
10 the left. Suddenly the air brakes
ground sharply upon the wheels, shrill
whistlings from the 2G6 sounded the
stop signal. and past the end OF the
slowing service car a trackman ran
frantically up the line toward the fol-
lowing passenger. yelling and swing
ing his striped coat like mailman.
Lidgerwood caught fleeting glimpse
Of section gangs green 'slow" flag
lying toppled over between the rails
100 feet TO the rear He called to
Bradford to jump and then ran for
ward TO drag the japanese cook out of
his galley.
1t was all over in moment. There
was time enough for Lidgerwood to
rush the little Tadasu TO the forward
vestibule, TO fling him into space and
to make his own flying leap for safety
before the crisis came. Happily there
was no wreck. though the margin of
escape was the narrowest. Williams
stuck to his post in the cab of the
26G, applying and releasing the brakes
and running as far ahead as he dared
upon the loosened timbers of the cul-
vert, for which the section gangs slow
flag was out. Carter. the engineer on
the passenger train, jumped. but his
fireman was of better mettle and stay.
ed with the machine up to the moment
when the shuddering mass of iron and
steel thrust its pilot under the trucks
OF Lidgerwood's car.
II was an excellent opportunity for
OF the explosive sort, and
when the dust had settled the track
and trainmcn were evidently expect
ing the we'll deserved tongue flashing.
But in crises like this the new super
intendent was at his self contained
best Instead of swearing at the men.
he gave his orders quietly and with the
brisk certainty of one who knows his
trade. The passenger train was to
Keep ten minutes behind its own time
until the next siding was passed, max
ing up beyond that point IL its running
orders permitted. The special was to
proceed on 20ls time to the siding i'm
question, at which point it would side
track and let the passenger precede 1t.
Bradford was in the cab or 266
when Williams eased his engine. and
the service car over the unsafe cul-
vert and inched the throttle open for