Year: 1870

would have never said word about
the matter, for he was clearly in the
wrong. Three minutes is too close
shave on time when six or seven hun
dred peoples lives are interested, and
regular printed orders are to be obey
ed till other regular printed orders
are issued. But l thought at first
he'd complain to the President, and |
was bound to have the first talk if
possible.


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


All at once a gentleman who had
been sitting with a newspaper held in
front of his face, at the back of the
Office, came forward.


'Mr. President said he, Il happen
ed to be standing by these two men
when they had that talk. The con-
ductor is right and the other man
lies. If the train had gone on | had
made up my mind to walk back to the
last station, the chance of an accident
seemed so great


Then the President was mad.


why, good heavens, said he, my
wife and family were on that train
Mr.. Superintendent, 90 aud draw
your wages to the first of next month
and leave the road now


But sometimes a conductor is put
in such position that the rules won't
guide him. The responsibility is We
ry great. | remember once being so
placed, and l thought at the time that
my hair ought to have turned white
that night with anxiety.


1t was when the Hudson River
Railroad was just built. There was
no telegraph along the line then, and
everything was quite primitive COM
pared to what it is now. The flag
men were on a sort of strike about
those days too, so that you trusted to
luck for safe running. | was running
a sort of way train between New
York and Poughkeepsie. Then run
ming an express is much pleasanter
than running a way you may easily
imagine.


An express sometimes don't stop
for an hour at a time, and after you
have 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 sta
tion, if your brakemen mind their bus
mess they can tell you how many pas
T sengers have cot into the coach, and
then you are always able to pick them
out, because they haven't the settled
air of old passengers. But way
train conductor has much harder work


Well, | ran the train out Of New
York one afternoon, and had for the
driver of the train a man who was IA
nous for the accurate way in which
he would come up to his stations. He
would stop any named coach almost
to a foot of where he said be would,
but on this occasion he seemed 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 mile back, and it rain
ing hard, too. Then he'd start up
again just as the passengers were get
ting 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 in
to its time.


We got near FiShkill, and having
: made an awful bad shot at a depot, l
said to the baggage master, Mack
} seems to have bad luck at making his
stations to-day. Wonder what's the
: matter p


: The baggage master turned around


4


: IF you want to know what | think,
5 | think Mack is drunk


e 1t can't be, says |, 4 never saw
= him touch a drop of liquor or smell
). of it in any way


S That's so, said the man. But
: think he's drunk to-day. He was il
d this car little while ago, and he pick
r ed up all the brakemen's lanterns ani
e slung them in a bundle at me. dodg
n ed and they went back to the engine.
e didn't like the idea of drunker


engineer, but had to laugh at the fat
e of the lanterns. If had known hov


| was going to groan over their fat,
It soon, | should not have laughed then
:, When got above Fishkill, though


I'd let those who got on at one of tn,
2 little stations ride free to the next


while | rode on the engine and inves


tigated. So | got on the Corning
h and Mack looked black enough, in


stead OF civil as usual. l joked hin


about his bad luck in making stations
g and he growled out a curse. | aSke,
E. him if he knew how nearly he had 60
n back into the lightning express time
1T and he said he knew his own bus
le ness. The man was evidently drum
l. and surly. | happened to put m
| hand down under the cushion of th
At seat, and felt q bottle. Pulling tn
y cork out, smelled whiskey, and qu
ID etly threw it overheard. But Mac
ID saw me and cursed me for destrovin


his property.


le What did you throw that bottl
lie away for it wasn't your rum?' sal
a he, at the end Of an awful swear.


III tell you why said l; 1 al


conductor Of this train, and you ar
n too drunk to do your business righ


and you would get worse and wors
a if you had a bottle


IN Then he grinned a savage sort of
d. grin, and quieted down into a silel
Of state, but he looked dangerous abol
I'd the eyes.


Ill You're conductor of this train al
f. you? I'll show you how much yc