The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1915-01-21

drawing room door fast to the bars |
across the aisle. It'll take her some |
time to get out, now, without assist
ance."
Ten minutes more had passed before
the two grimy and perspiring gentle
men succeeded in placing the hand car
upon the tracks.
"It's a swell little hand car" Bar
Gus observed grimly: mo wonder they
threw it away"
whats the difference how it looks,
as long as it will go?"
but will it?" Barcus doubted.
Somewhere far back along the line a
locomotive hooted mournfully.
TITS got to!" Alan replied, helping
Rose aboard. "If we can only get out
Of sight before they get here"
Don't worry" Barcus advised:
that's freight whistle"
Maybe you can distinguish the
whistle of a freight from that Of pas
senger train-I don't say you can't;
but I'll take no chances on your iudg-
ment being good. Hop aboard here II
you're coming with us!
Slowly the hand car stirred on It's
grease-hungry and complaining axles;
slowly 1t gathered momentum and
surged noisily up the track as Alan
and Barcus, on opposite sides of the
handlebar, alternately rose and fell
back; slowly it mounted the slight
grade to the bend in the track, rounded
it, lost sight of the stalled Pullman
on the siding and began to move more
swiftly on a moderate down grade.
Behind 1t the thunder of an ap'
preaching train grew momentarily in
volume, lending color to the theory OF
Mr.. Barcus that what they had heard
had been the whistle of a freighter
rather than of the light engine. But
just as Alan was about to advocate
leaving the tracks and taking the hano
car with them, to clear the way for the
train, it's rumble began to diminish
grew less and beautifully less, and was
stilled.
What do you make of that?" Alar
painted across the racking bar.
"The obvious" Barcus returned
THE freight has taken the siding t
wait for some other through train t.
pass. Well have to look sharp and b.
ready to jump"
The grade became a trace NOR
steep; the car moved with less reluc
tance.
Let co." Alan advised: 9TH coas
down the balance of this incline-an
we'd better save our strength"
But they had barely regained thei
breath and mopped the streamin
sweat away from their eyes when
second whistle, of a different tone
startled both back to their task.
Catching the eye Of Barcus Ala
nodded despairingly.
Afraid it's all up with us now" h
groaned; that sounded precisely lik
the whistle of the light engine"
Sure it did!" Barcus agreed. g,
wouldn't be us If we had any bette
luck. The saints be praised for th'
grade!"
For all its age and decrepitude tt
hand car made very fair pace at tt
urge of the two who rose and sagge
again without respite on either sic
| the handlebar; and the grade was ha
| PLY long, turning and twisting like
j snake through the hills.
A little grace was granted ther
moreover, through the circumstan'
las they afterward discovered) tn
'r the light engine had stopped at Il
siding long enough to couple up Urine
IL Pullman-thus automatically ceasil
to be light engine, and becoming
III special.
III 1t was fully quarter of an hour
III fore the growing rumble Of the latt
IN warned the trio on the hand car, ju
as it gained the end Of the grade a.
at addressed itself to level though tt
At tuous stretch of track.
a And at this point discovery Of t
Ia switch of a spur line that shot
au southwark into the hills furnished AL
al with his independent inspiration.
eo Stopping the hand car after it h
Gu jolted over the frogs, he jumped doV
set the switch to shunt the pursuit
ne to the spur, and leaped back up
ns the car.
ol Hardly had they succeeded in wo
III ing the hand car up round the shoulC
of the next bend when the special to
the switch without pause and the r.
of it's progress, shut of by an int
vening mountain, was suddenly still
to a murmur.
'ce But even so, there was neither r
'eu for the weary nor much excuse
self-congratulation; the rumble of
III special was not altogether lost to he
ing when the thunder Of the fret
replaced and drowned 1t out
= OF a sudden, releasing the ham
'u' bar, Alan stood up and signed to F
Gus to initiate his example.
ere "Well-?" this last painted, when
A@%t @ had obeyed.
sn' Jump off-leave the hand car VIII
l. it is-they'll have to stop to clear it
the track"
us: "And them"
aru "Tn buy a lift from them If It ia
my last dollar in the world" A
promised. Its our only hope
tne can't keep up this heartbreaking b
nAs ness forever-and it can't be long
Oh fore Trine and Marrophat disco
anu their mistake!"
tie