Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1914-10-01

nostrfis a. he stepped ost 10 spssk
with the guartz. and ~ he stood ,hsr-
waiting for tire fall daylight the mas
ter mechanic joined him
He was q frIlbIooded. round-headed
little man with determined views on
life. and he began the day. as usual
with his private opinion Of Mexicans.
They were the same uncom plimentsry
remarks to which he had given voice
on the day before. for the rebels had
captured one OF his engines and he
knew It would come TO come harm.
"A fine bunch Of hombres. yes" he
ended. and may the devil ny away
with them, They took No. . at the
summit yesterday and I've been lis
tening ever since. Her pans are all
burned out and we've been feeding
her bran like q COW TO keep her from
leaking steam. II some ignorant Mex
gets hold Of her you'll hear a big noise
--that1l be the last OF No. 9-her
boiler win burst like a wet bag.
IF I was running this road there'd
be no more bran-not since what saw
over at Aguascalientes on the Cen
trail. One OF those bum, renegade en-
giue drivers had burned out No. 1t3.
but the rebels had ditched four OF our
best and we had TO send her out. Day
after day the boys had been feeding
her bran until she smelled like dis
tillery. The mash was oozing out OF
her as Ben Tyrrell pulled up to the
station, and a friend Of his that had
come down from the north took one
sniff and swung up into the cab.
Ben came down at the word he
vhispered-for they'd two OF 'em
blowed up in the north--and they sent
out another man. Hadn't got up the
hill when the engine exploded and
blew the poor devil to hell! asked
Tyrrell what his friend had told him.
but he kept It to himself until he could
get his time. It's the fumes, boy
they blow up like brandy-and old No.
! is souri,
She'll likely blow up. too. But how
can we nx her with these ignorant
Mexican mechanics7 You should have
been over at Aguas the day they hred
the Americans.
"'No more Americanos.' says Ma
dero, let 'em all out and hire Mexi-
cans! The national railroads OF Mex.
leo must not be In the hands of for
eigners.'
$50 they fred US all in day and
put a Mexican wood-passer up IN the
cab OF old No. 313. He started TO pull
a string of empties down the track.
threw on the air by mistake. and
stopped her on n dead-center. Pulled
out the throttle and heiwouldnt go.
so he gave 1t up and quit
Called in the master mechanic then
Ia Mexican. He tinkered with her
for an hour, right there on the track
until she went dead on their hands
Then they ran down switch engine
and took back the cars and called on
the roadmaster-a Mex He cracked
the nut--built a shoo-fly around No
313 and they left her right there on
the main track. Two days later an
American hobo came by and set down
and laughed at 'em. Then he throws
on the brakes, gives No. BIB boos'
paet the center with a crowbar. ant
runs her TO the roundhouse by gravity
When we left Aguas on handcar thai
hobo was running the road.
"Ignorantest hombres in the world
these Mexicans. Shooting a gun OF
running an engine, it's all the same
they've got nothing above the eye
brows."
That's right" agreed Bud, who hat
been craning his neck; but WHAT
that noise up the track?"
, The master mechanic listened. an'
when his ears, dulled by the clangor o
the shops, caught the distant roar h
turned and ran for the house.
cit up. Ed" he called to the road
, master, they're sending a wild ca
down the canyon-and she may b
loaded with dynamite!"
Dynamite or not" mumbled tn
|. grizzled roadmaster, as he reused u
, from his couch, there's derailer
! put In up at kilometer seventy the frs
thing yesterday morning. That1l SEN
y her into the ditch!"
Nevertheless he listened intently
4 cooking his head to guess by tn
sound when It came to kilomete
a seventy.
!, cTo BE coNTINUED)