Year: 1879

How One Train Passed Another on n Single


Track on the Union Pacific.


The Beloit wis Free Press says that
DR.. 81. P. Strong, brother of the general
superintendent of the Chicago, Burling'
ton and Quincy railroad, who has re-
Gently returned from Colorado, tells the
following exciting story:


Last Saturday our train was running
from Denver to Cheyenne, to connect
with the Union Pacific, at Cheyenne.
When within 18 miles of Cheyenne and
about thirty-fve miles of Greeley, and
while running up ten-mile grade, one
of the axles OF the tender breke, and the
whole train, with the exception of ou1
car, was thrown from the track and badly
iammed up: The assistant superintendent
of the road happened to be on board,
and, as we surveyed the ruins, he told us
that there was no engine at Cheyenne
that could be sent to our assistance, and
we must look to Greeley, and that we
were probably booked for an eighteen
mile walk to Cheyenne, where we would
have to remain over Sunday.


While thinking of our hard luck, !
happened to look back over the road,
and observed that we had been running
on nm up grade for long distance, and
at the same time I remembered that
about fifteen minutes before we had
jumped the track we met train on q
side track going to Denver. A thought
struck me that there was q way out OF
our dilemma. I turned to the engineer
and asked him if there was any up grade
toward Greeley. He said that there was
only one-a heavy one, about eight miles
back. After that it was all down grade.
I called for crowbars instantly, and two
or three train men ran out thirty or forty
rods on to the prairie and dug up the
bars. You see, the railroad company
have coupling irons, crowbars and such
things coached in the ground all alor 6
the road, so as to have them ready for
use at any time. They have to keep
them under the ground, because the air
is so rarified that iron and all the coarser
metals, wheA exposed to it's action, very
soon lose their density, the particles
separating and the metal becoming like
so much sand, without strength, and
perfectly worthless. While the boys
were after the crowbars, explained to
our party that believed we could pry
our car loose from the coupling with the
train, and having down grade, we
could catch the train we had met. We
soon had the car uncoupled with the
aid of crowbars, and dozen or more of
us started on the car. She glided along
faster and faster, gathering speed every
second.


Not only familiar with the grades. the
only fear I had was that our car would
not gain sufficient momentum to over
come the up grade, though, of course, I
hoped it would. We very soon struck
it, and I assure you watched the pro-
gress of the car with a good deal Of in
terest And it just made it and that was
all. We jumped off and pushed her a
little, and down we started on twenty
five mile down grade. I looked ahead
and several miles off could easily see the
train We were after, but it was almost
instantly shut out from sight by our
suddenly running into dense mass Of
flying gasshoppers, evidently seeking to
alight on the ground. We had all been
standing on the platform to this time,
but when we met those grasshoppers we
were driven into the car, MS they struck
our faces with the force of hailstones.
Looking through the windows we could
see nothing but grasshoppers, 80 thick
were they, and only now and then could
We get glimpse of the ground even.
After minute or two became little
anxious, rs I knew we were going very
fast, and, as I had engineered the brake,
I started up from my seat, and tying a
heavy handkerchief about my face, went
out to the platform and seized the brake.
For minute it wasn't clear in my mind
whether I could hold out against the
pelting of the 'hoppers or not, but sud-
denly, when was about whipped, our
car emerged from the swarm, and as
soon as realized it I tore the handker-
chief from my face and looked out for
the train, with my hands on the brake /;
ready to avoid running into it. I felt
queer, when, in looking, I couldn't sec
that train, and when took one look
around and saw that our chr was running
on bare ground, with the track about
twenty-five rods off to my left, I tell you
the cold shivers ran up and down my
back to considerable extent. If man
ever put "down brakes. it was MI. I
laid right back and frightened that brake
wheel three more cogs than had ever
been done by the stoutest man on the
road. She stopped, and as I opened
the car door to call out the crowd, I
heard m engine whistle "down brakes. "
I jumped off to the ground, and, looking
backward toward the sound, saw that
engine slowing up behind us on the
track.


I hadn't word to say. I began to
think that I would like to get out of that
country right away, and be tucked up in
my little bed at home until I got well.
The other fellows were soon jumping out
on the ground, and they were astonished
rs was. We started for the train,
which had now come to n standstill, the
conductor shouting rs we came up:
"Well, boys, You did that pretty well. "
Says 1: "See here, mister, we're
strangers in this country, and though
we've had some experience in the East,
we'll be blamed if we know what you
mean when you say we did that pretty
we'll" "Why, taking your car past us,
of course. We were afraid some green
horn was managing your car when we
saw it coming down the grade, before
the 'hoppers struck us. We knew, how
ever, we were leaving you hopper bed
to do the trick on" Well, to come to
the point, the train ahead of us had
mashed so many dead 'hoppers on to the
road bed that it was filled up full, even
with the rails, SO that when our car got
along it slid right off the rails, and the
ground was so hard and even that it ran
close on to four miles before I put on
the brakes and stopped her, and while
she was running those four miles we
passed the train we were trying to over
take, the dense mass of flying 'hoppers
preventing us from seeing it MS We
went by.


In conversation with the conductor
afterward learned That it was quite a
trick of the engineers on the Union