Year: 1871

THE MURDER IN THE TUNNEL.


ga STORY from Gray. Now, old fellow,
outwith it. You've got an hour yet be.
fore your train starts, and you haven't
yarned to us in an age. Yes, yes, story
from Gray"


Such were the exclamations that met
the individual of that name as he entered
the coZy conductors room of the L. & G.
Railroad, at -.


"Well, boys, am pretty near drained of
my adventures, said Gray" but, if haven't
told you it before, don't mind letting you
hear about an incident that happened to
me out West, before | came among you
boys here. Did / ever tell you of the
murder in the tunnelp Well, then, here
goes, land we will let him tell it in his
own words:


You see, when l was on the old w. &
V. line, in Missouri, | ran what was known
as the Drover's Express, going West, but
which had the name-I suppose in contra
diction to that title-of the gentleman's
wagon, coming East. The drovers, when
coming to market with their cattle, always
went with the beasts on the freight train,
but going home and westward they went
with me.


One night l had an unusually rough
crowd aboard. They were generally rough
enough, but this time they were worse
than usual. had their car (for | kept
them to themselves) placed i'll the rear of
the train, and to prevent their trespassing
into the other cars of my train, or stepping
OIL the platforms, had them locked in.


We started about o'clock in the night,
and as | went through the drovers' car for
my tickets, found mischief brewing al
ready. Each man had provided himself
with bottle or two OF whisky, and the
carousal had begun in real earnest but few
If any of the drovers being sober.


One or two small fights had been begun,
one in particular between tall Kentuckian
and short, thick set Missourian, having
threatened to lead to serious consequent
ces, both men having drawn their knives.
Their friends had, however, separated
them, and had placed them in different
parts of the car, the Kentuckian sitting in
the first seat near the door, in the front of
the car, and the Missourian far back in the
rear. The latter when they were being
parted, had vowed that he would yet kill
the former, but, as both were in hot blood,
the words were not thought much of,
though they helped to sentence him to be
hung afterwards.


AS took up the Missourian's ticket,





life of his opponent, and proposed duel
with bowies in the baggage. car. man.
aged, however, to silence the half mad
dened man, and friend sitting in the
same seat with him, and nearest the aisle
of the car, promised to see that he should
not leave his seat and attack the Ken
tuckian. looked in upon them about 2
o'clock, a. M, and found them all asleep in
drunken slumber. The Kentuckian sat in
the front seat as l had left him, and the
Missourian away in the rear, and also in
his previous position.


There being no more stops to make /
curled myself up in chair in the baggage
car for nap, and dozed comfortably till
awakened by the rattling of the bell-rope
overhead, and the whistle of the engine
calling for the brakes to be put down.
Catching up my lantern opened the car
door and looked out, but found nothing
but darkness the most intense. The train
having stopped, got off and ran to the
engine, asked the engineer in half-asleep
manner where we were and why he had
stoppedP "We're in the Grover Tunnel"
he replied, land | stopped because the
bell-rope was pulled"


The Grover Tunnel was about mile in
length, through which we passed nearly
all the way on halfspeed and with the
steam shut off from the cylinders, there
being down-grade at the entrance, which
was sufficient to nearly give us headway to
carry US through. When the engineer
saw the light at the further end of the
tunnel, however, he was accustomed to put
on steam, and it was just at that time, he
told me, that the bell was pulled, being
the signal for him to stop.


BY this time my brakesmen had been
r1.1A H.. R,,1
ingal the couplings right, and not discover
ing anything wrong externally, gave the
signal to go ahead, as it was dangerous to
stay in the tunnel. AS we came out the
day Wight was just breaking, and, with
brakesman, l started through the train to
find out, if possible, who pulled the bell
rope.


Most of the passengers were asleep in
the forward cars as we passed through, but
some few were awake, who told me that
the pulling of the bell came from behind,
from some of the rear cars. / made the
tlip through the entire train with the eX-
ception of the drovers' car, and yet the
account said the bell was pulled from still
further in the rear. 1t was daylight as the
brakesman and myself crossed on to the
platform of the last car. After unlocking
the door, we essayed to push it open, but
some weight against it prevented us.
With our united strength, however, we
pushed it open, and found the cause of
the obstruction.


Against the bottom of the door lay the
Kentuckian, his body twisted and rolled up
into distorted heap, as if he had been
overtaken by fit Supposing him to be
In drunken stupor, raised him to his
seat, and then began to loose his collar
and neck-tie. AS did so l noticed small
livid blue line running exactly around his
throat, and cutting deeply into the flesh |;
his face also was of deadly hue and
frightened at know not what, sent the
brakesman for a physician whom / knew
was on the train. AS soon as he came and
had handled the Kentuckian, he exclaimed,
"the mans dead-his neck is broken-the
man has been murdered"


Immediately remembered the fight Of
the preceding evening between the now
dead man and the Missourian, and telling
the doctor of my fears that the latter had
kept his word and murdered the Kentuck-
ian, we agreed to make some movement
toward the detection of the murderer.
Going to the rear we found the Nilsson.
rian curled up in his seat, his friend also
being in the outside seat, and both being
apparently asleep


As we looked upon the Mssourian we
heard him mutter, "I'll kill him, I'll kill
him. as If half asleep and awake, We
were turning away when the doctors
. quick eye caught glimpse of something
the man held In his hand and reaching