Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1915-06-25
ENDOWED WITH LIFE?
OLD ENGINEER HAS IDEA ABOUT
LOCOMOTIVES.
Study of TeIepathy Convinced Him
That His Notions When He Was
Handling the Levers Were
Pretty Nearly Correct.

After 80 years at the throttle in the
service of one of the great trunk lines
going out Of New York, Sylvester P.
Ames, locomotive engineer, retired re-
Gently and prepared himself to loaf
away the remainder of his life.
He found it impossible to loaf, how
ever, and yearned for hobby or some
thing else that would compensate him
for the loss of rattle and roar so long
part of his existence A friend sug-
gested a study of telepathy, in which
he was deeply engrossed. Ex-Engi-
neer Ames I ok the tip, went to the
New York public library, surrounded
himself with the works of Lodge and
Pedmore and other kindred authors
and soon became known as telepath,
ic fan"
The other evening an old-time friend
called at the Ames fiat in Brooklyn
and thought to spend an hour or two
in game of cribbage, of which the
old engineer was at one time very
fond. No use. Ames was surrounded
by a wall of books covering the subject
of thought transference, hallucina-
tons, haunted houses and phantasms.
The visitor touched on old times on
the railroad hoping to get Ames away
from the spirits. He got him away
but in an odd fashion. The old engi-
neer closed up his books and turned
to his friend with the following:
do you know, Bill, since I been
studying these telepathy books I'm
more'n ever convinced that locomo-
tives are alive the same as we are
alive. always had notion that way,
but / used to keep it to myself for
fear that folks would laugh But
when I read the statements of rep
utable people whove seen ghosts, and
one in particular where lady's pet
mare let her know by vision that a
bad shoe had played havoc with her
hoof, / feel certain that inanimate
things as we'll as animate things think
and feel.
When l was running the old 826
| often noticed that just before we met
and passed the S27 my locomotive
would act in a peculiar way. She
wouldn't run so steady. Sort of nerv.
GUS in her drivers. She and the 1927
were turned out of the shop the same
day and they were put on the same
run, only working in opposite direc'
tions.
So, as l tell you, whenever /, on
the S26, neared the 827 coming the
opposite way noticed queer culver
all through her. When we got within
a quarter of a mile of each other the
S26 Kissed and chugged blame sight
more'n she ought to and so it kept VI
till we had passed each other, wher
my locomotive settled down to her reg
ular common-sense average way o.
behaving.
Il know now, since I've read these
books, that S26 was just sending {
message to S27 through space. re
member l wrote letter to Pete Riley
the man who ran S27, asking him-o
course in joking way, as l didnt
want to be joshed-if 827 acted queel
on him at any time. He answered me
and sure as you live, he declared tina
S27 acted like an old fool dummy OF
switch engine whenever he neared ant
passed me on the line Without ;
doubt these locomotives were com
municating with each other.
Eyes, sir, the books make a lot o
things plain that just seemed unex
plainably queer in the old days. | re
call that whenever on a stormy nigh
old S26 pulled us into the termina
right on the tick of the clock as pc
timetable, | used to swell up will