The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1911-01-12
ENGINE IS HIS LIFE
VETERAN ENTHusEs OVER HIS
LOCOMOTIVE.
Only When Hand is on the Reverse
Bar, He Says, Does He Really
Feel Existence ID Worth
Having.

Seeing the sights mere the Otner
day was veteran engineer who at
the age of fifty-six has been serving.
on express trains for 20 years, says
writer in the Chicago Post. To the
question, How does it feel to run
mile-a-minute train?" he answered:
Feel? Man, that's the only time
live. When / climb up on the high
seat, jam my cap over my eyes and
reach for the reverse bar I'm not the,
man you see now. I've fed on the
excitement SO long that I'm fend for
it nova regular speed dope Many
night I've driven my train-and
made time, too-when it was showing
SO hard I'd have to run ahead while
we were taking water to see if the
headlight was still burning. My
smoke and couldn't tell it from the
cab--nothing ahead but a wall of
black. Sometimes we wouldn't know
we were moving, except for the toss
ing Of the engine on the track.
did you know that an engine has
a hearth" he rambled on. You've
seen doctor feel a patients pulse
when he wants to find out what's the
matter with his works? Well, that's
the way we do it, too. When we rush
through the black night, maybe with
death just around the next curve, we
don't just sit with our hands on the
throttle, as the engineers do in the
story books. Reverse bar, that's it.
Reverse Bar, Engines Heart.
"The reverse bars the engines
Iheart. We never let our fingers off
1T. 1t beats with the engines life
and when anything's wrong it beats
fast or slow or it jumps beat, like
an old guys heart Then we know,
we shut off steam and climb down to
see."
''Is it true that engines vary and
men get attached to different ones?''
True? Course it's true. Engines
are just like women-some are con
trary all the time and some are agree
able all the time. Some smile and
then put poison in your coffee. Some
you beat and some you kiss My old
S9-latest type, biggest made, one O.
three-Why, I'm married to her and
! wouldn't give her up for half my
pay. I've had her three years now.
When she goes I'll go too"
Don't you feel the responsibility
when you're pulling trainload of
passengers"
Talks Up to the "oId Man."
That's what the old man asked
me once. 1 never stopped to think
Of it, l answered him.
What? he yelled, jumping up and
banging down his fist. You didn't?
And why didn't your
"'Cause If l did I'd go crazy
told him. There's only me and my
''smoke" in sight, and when we're
running through fog or storm or snow
I look across at where he's shovel
Ing coal, calm like, and say to my
self There's only you and Danny
here. Danny is going ahead with his
work. Now you're going to do the
pcuuOB nnu yOu dAA SO1AS " Ll14lLh
about anything else You're going to
bring yourself and Danny through,
and if you two come through the rest
will follow"
Has Killed Seven.
did you ever kill anybody"
The engineer stopped and counted
Slowly on his fingers. Seven" he
said "And sometimes dream about
them-one in particular woman.
She stepped right in front of US from
behind freight. l reversed and drew
The air, but it didn't do any good, and
we cut her down as l looked. I'll
never forget it.
Il could retire tomorrow if wanted
to and draw a pension until I die. In
ia years I'll have to quit, if l last
that long. l know l won't last long
hfterward."
The interstate commerce act will
not allow the engineer of an express
train to work more than 16 days in
any one month, the engineer ex-
planned. He had worked his allotment
of days early in the month and was
enjoying vacation in Chicago at the
roads expense.