Evening star., 1940-11-03
Fifty Years Ago
In the Star
1T was remarkable journey, that of
the distinguished guests of Washington

the distinguished guests of Washington
to the unveiling of the
A Memorable Jeannette Monument at
journey Annapolis Thursday"
says The Star of No
vember /, 1890. 1T was journey long
to be remembered, to be photographed
on the mind Of each one present, to be
told to posterity. There were four cars
on the train. two vestibuled parlor cars
and two Of the ordinary sort, drawn by a
locomotive. 1t was not one of the brass
bound, well-polished engines that make
fast time and run into things, but one of
the somber- -hued oily, dirty affairs that
by long training has formed a habit Of
going too slow to run into anything.
There were about IS people on board,
4 jolly party OF officers. civilians and
newspaper men, and the start from the
Sixth Street Station was made under the
most favorable Of auspices. The train
had hardly crossed the Eastern Branch
Bridge before a superstitious naval ON
Ger, with a pale face and disordered
necktie, rushed through one of the par
lor cars and announced in horror -strick-
en- tones that something dreadful had
been discovered. When he could be
Gained sufficiently to tell his tale ii was
learned that in the rear car was a
Jonah, veritable hoodoo, who would be
sure to cause disaster before the day was
over. 1t was embodied in the person of
Uncle William Moran, the venerable
registrar of the Navy Department, who
was then on board q railroad train for
the first time in 2l years.
when this fact became known there
Young ran from car to car in q frantic
effort to locate the pipe line But for
few miles all went well and it seemed
as though the hoodoo had been quenched.
Then the train began to go slower and
slower, and slower yet, until it came to
a standstill. At first no one imagined
that anything was wrong. as the popu-
lar theory was that the train had mere.
ly been sidetracked in order to allow an
other one to pass. But the minutes went
by and nothing happened, and finally
brakeman went rushing through the
train with one Of those pretty red-paint-
ed axes that are used as wall decora-
tions in railway cars.
This was the signal for alarm and the
heads that were poked from the windows
beheld the wondrous spectacle OF man
bearing the uniform Of q great and
glorious corporation chopping down =
rail fence that the engine might have
fuel. Many were the guesses as to the
cause Of the trouble, but from the wild
mass Of rumors that we're brought back
from the engine it soon became plain
that the poor old tired-out engine had
gone to sleep. Her steam gage showed
less than Ave pounds pressure, her crate
bars hung YEARLY down out of the fire.
box into the ashpan, and her crew were
doing their best to convert rails from
the fence into motive power.
when men began to ask, with tear
full eyes, where they were 1t was learned
that the train had stranded q mile from
Odenton. At last q shout was heard, .
nv, VAC cAAoAC va y NohAAAA8 VI
had been sighted. The conductor ran
down the tracks to meet 1t and after
some minutes Of bargaining induced the
engineer to push the excursionists into
the junction and out of danger. The
steam gage did not do better than IS
pounds and that even only on spurts.
More rails were chopped, woodpiles were
razed to the ground and the naval engi-
neers on the train gathered around the
engine and discussed the situation.
Another half hour Of waiting, another
train in sight! This, too. was freight,
but pride had long been lost and at last
the engineer swung his two or three
boxcars upon . switch and pulled the
excursionists around 10 Is to get ahead
Of them. The painting, shuniins mon
ster that had lost its breath was side
tracked, all aboard was shouted and
the run for Annapolis against time was
started.
"A telegram. however, had been sent
ahead from Odenton for the ceremonies
to 60 on without waiting for the party.
but such was the extraordinary speed
Of the relief engine that the train Of
excursionists arrived ut the
ceremony two hours late, simultaneously
with the dispatch"