The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1916-07-15
A RAILROAD
SOMNAMBULIST
Curious and Nerve Wrecking
Experience Of an Engineer.

Speaking of railroad mems over
work." said the veteran locomotive en-
gineer, 1--WE were good deal more
overworked thirty years ago than You
are now. The nearest l ever came to
being killed was-when l was young
ster just starting in as an engineer
from running one night into locomo-
tive standing dead on the main track.
The engineer and fireman OF the en-
CINE we butted were so dead tired that
they had gone to sleep there.
"But l had an experience once to
beat that" he continued after biting
OF a chew. "It was when was rum
ming the night express on the r., d.
and N. usually had all the rest
needed. but at the time Of the accident
at Tomkinsville everything was disar-
ranged, and my sleep was cut consid'
erably short 1t was two days after
the accident that my old friend Bob
Williams told me he was ordered to
the other end of the line to take the
train that l met In the middle of the
night He was to run it regularly
thereafter and was going down with
me. He started in tho cab with me.
but mt the first stop we made In about
nm hour he said he would go back into
the baggage car. rig himself up some
sort of bunk and go to sleep. told
Frank Curtis. my stoker. that ! wish
cd Bob would offer to spell me at the
throttle for awhile. as was mighty
~. hN rv,4ah
body would spell him. for he was both
sleepy and tired.
1--WE made midnight stop at B.. and
just as we were pulling out who should
climb into the cab but Williams. With
out n word lie took the throttle out OF
my hand. and understood that he pro-
posed to take my place for awhile. The
stoker was sitting OIL the cab seat pull
ing the bell. and. ordering him of.
took his place. while he went back into
the tender and threw himself on the
coal kept on pulling the bell. trying
to keep awake. but 1t was no use.
went to sleep, though l thought I was
awake, for l heard the bell and was
conscious of ringing It. l suppose
was both asleep and awake. like sol
diers are sometimes in battle when
they've been marching and fighting for
a long while without rest. There must
have been some wakefulness in me or
l couldn't have kept my narrow sent.
for we were rafting along at express
speed, and the road wasn't straight
either.
How long 1 was In this condition
don't know, but a big lurch woke me
up, and there on a semaphOre ahead
was the red.' Starting up, looked
over where. Williams had been, and
what do you suppose--he wasn't there.
nor any one else The engine was tear
ing along like mad at its own sweet
will through stations, over crossings
and bridges, past sidetracked trains,
and there was the red staring us In
the face. jumped for the throttle
and slowed down. then whistled down
the brakes, for you must know that
was before the day of the air brake. I
glanced around for Frank and saw him
laid out on the coal heap sound asleep.
I yelled at him and woke him up.
well. speak of a mans marrow
freezing with horror. My whole body.
was frozen with horror. My teeth
chattered, and shivered all over. We
were approaching N. and l knew that
since / had given up my place to Bob
we had run eighteen miles. How much
of that time we had been without an
engineer l didn't know. but / found
out that II hadn't been Weakened up
by the lurch Just in time to catch sight
of the red we would have been tele-
scoped into passenger standing on
the track Mt the next station ahead.
"But Bob Williams-what could have
happened to him? Something, Of
course, or he wouldn't have left his
post. could think of nothing unless
he had become unconscious, fallen to
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