Year: 1869

President OF the road. But he was sensi-
bic old fellow, though quick tempered, and
| stood better with the officers for what
had said. He used to poke heavy fun at
me sometimes, and recommended me to wet
the wheels and they would rust off sooner. ;"


sit is astonishing how reckless some rail-
road men become 1 was on a side track
waitine out of time once, and fellow comes
to me and says, Why don't you go on Z?
Cause my orders are to stay l said rather
sharply"


''He was the new superintendent, young
fellow whom | had never seen because he'd
just come on to the road. He was courting
girl on the line of the road, | afterwards
found out. and had an engagement to go to
ball with her that night, which this lay
over interfered with


$50 he says, very quickly, No they are
not : and when looked surprised, he says,


I'm the superintendent of this road, and [
tell you you We time to get over this bit of
single track and have three minutes to spare
before the down train reaches it. l have
calculated and know. ("


I've got my printed orders, Mr.. Su-
perintendent,' says L, and he broke right
in


Never mind your printed orders, or
der you to go ahead.


| well would not and he was awfully
mad, and swore [ should not run week
longer on that road Probably, after he had
cooled down he would have never said a
| word about the matter, for he was clearly
wrong Three minutes is too close shave
on time when six or seven hundred people S
| lives are interested, and regular printed or
ders are to be obeyed till other regular print
ed orders are issued. But I thought, at
first, he'd complain to the President, and L
was bound to have the first talk, if possible


''The President heard my story and sent
for the superintendent. He denied that he
had ordered me at all, or made any threats.
but said he had told me had ten minutes
TO spare. So it was question of veracity,
and began to think would be sent back
to run my train, and that running train
on that road would not be my business very
| long,


''All at once gentleman who had been
sitting with newspaper held in front of
his face at the back of the Office, came for
ward ~


Mr. President, said he, I happened
to be standing by these two men when they
had that talk. The conductor is right, and
the other mau lies. Ii the train had gone
on had made up my mind to walk back to
he last station the chance of an accident
seemed so great. -


''Then the President ,oas mad"


Why, good heavensl' said he, my
wife and family We're on that train. Mr..
Superintendent, go and draw your wages to
the first of next month, and leave the road
now?'


but sometimes conductor is put in such
a position that the rules won't guide him.
Then the responsibility is very great. | re-
member once being so placed, and L thought
at the time that my hair ought to have
turned white that night with anxiety. ''


''It was when the Hudson River Railroad
was just built. There was no telegraph
along the line then, and everything was
quite primative compared to what 1t Is TOW.
The fagmen had got on sort of a strike
about those days, too, 50 that you trusted
to luck for safe running l was running a
sort of way train between New York and
Poughkeepsie then Running an express
is much pleasanter than running way, you
may easily imagine. An express sometimes
don t stop Cor an hour at time, and, after
you We worked your coaches once, you have
nothing to do but to sit down and earn your
money that easy way. Then, when you
reach the next station, if your brakesmen
mind their business, they can tell you how
many passengers have got INTO each coach,
anu then you are always able to pick them
out, because they have not got the settled
air of the old passengers. But way train
conductor has much harder work. :"


well | ran the train out OF New York
one afternoon, and | had for my driver a
man who was famous for the accurate way
in which he would come up to his stations.
He would stop any named coach almost to
foot where he said he would; but on this
occasion he appeared to have very poor
luck. He ran past his stations and had to
back:.down, and then again he would stop so
short that the engine would be in front of
the station and the rear coach an eighth of
a mile back, and it raining hard, too. Then
he would start up again, just as the passen-
gers were getting out So We kept running
behind time all the while. There was a
sort of lightning express came out of New
York about an hour after US, and we were
gradually working back into its time.


I'VE got near Fishkill, and, having made
an awful bad shot at the depot, said to the
baggage master: Mack has bad luck at
making his stations to-day. Wonder what
is the matter /?


''The baggage master turned round on me
quickly and said:


If you want to know what think, L
think Mack is drunk F"


" 1t can't be, says 1, I never saw him
touch drop of liquor or smell of it in any
way


That is so said the man .hut 7 think