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NY PUBLIC LIBRARY THE BRANCH LIBRARIES
3 3333 08119 2185
CAB AND CABOOSE
THE STORY OF A RAILROAD BOY
8Y
KIRK MUNROE
AUTHOR OP "UNDER ORDERS," "PRINCE DUSTY," "THE CORAL SHIP/* ETC.
ILLUSTRATED
< ' J >
1 I ' '
I
G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS
NEW YORK & LONDON
Cbe Iknickerbocker
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PU1
C55232S
TIL;
CAB AND CABOOSE
Copyright, 1892
by
Kirk Munroe
Copyright, 1920
by
Kirk Munroe
Published in 1892
Reprinted twenty-three times 1892-1926
Twenty-fifth impression March, 1930
' t
I C I ' I
Made in the United States of America
M
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER. PAO&
I. " RAILROAD BLAKE " . . , . , i
II. A RACE FOR THE RAILROAD CUP ... 8
III. A CRUEL ACCUSATION ... 16
IV. STARTING INTO THE WORLD .... 22
V. CHOOSING A CAREER 27
VI. SMILER, THE RAILROAD DOG .... 34
VII. ROD, SMILER, AND THE TRAMP ... 40
VIII. EARNING A BREAKFAST ..... 52
IX. GAINING A FOOTHOLD 59
X. A THRILLING EXPERIENCE .... 66
XI. A BATTLE WITH TRAMPS .... 71
XII. BOUND, GAGGED, AND A PRISONER ... 79
XIII. How BRAKEMAN JOE WAS SAVED ... 86
XIV. THE SupERitfTENiteNT INVESTIGATES . . 92
XV. SMILER TO THE RESCUE 99
XVI. SNYDER APPLKBY'S JEALOUS? . 106
XVII. ROD AS A BFAK^MAN 115
XVIII. WORKING FOR A PROMOTION . . . .121
XIX. THE EXPRESS SPECIAL 126
XX. TROUBLE IN THE MONEY CAR .... 135
IV CONTENTS.
CHAPTER FAOK
XXI. OVER THE TOP OF THE TRAIN . . . 142
XXIL STOP THIEF ! 148
XXIII. A RACE OF LOCOMOTIVES .... 155
XXIV. ARRESTED ON SUSPICION .... 161
XXV. THE TRAIN ROBBER -LEARNS OF ROD'S
ARREST 168
XXVI. A WELCOME VISITOR 174
XXVII. THE SHERIFF is INTERVIEWED . . .180
XXVIII. LIGHT DAWNS UPON THE SITUATION . .186
XXIX. AN ARRIVAL OF FRIENDS AND ENEMIES . 192
XXX. WHERE ARE THE DIAMONDS ? . . .198
XXXI. ONE HUNDRED MILES AN HOUR ! . . 205
XXXII. SNATCHING VICTORY FROM DEFEAT . .211
XXXIII. A WRECKING TRAIN 217
XXXIV. ROD ACCEPTS THE LEGACY . . .223
XXXV. FIRING ON NUMBER 10 . . . .231
XXXVI. THE ONLY CHANCE OF SAVING THE SPECIAL 237
XXXVII. INDEPENDENCE OR PRIDE .... 245
XXXVIII. A MORAL VICTORY . . . . .252
XXXIX. SNYDETI is FORGIVEN , , . . 258
ILLUSTRATIONS.
THE PURSUIT OF THE TRAIN ROBBER
Frontispiece.
SMILER DRIVES OFF THE TRAMP
FACING PAGE
4*
JUNIPER OBJECTS TO TRAVELLING BY RAIL 68
IN THE HANDS OF THE ENEMY
ROD ASSISTS THE YOUNG MAN TO THE "LIMITED" . .
132
IN THE RAILROAD WRECK
...
214
CONGRATULATED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT . . 228
ROD IS ALLOWED TO HANDLE THE THROTTLE ..... 232
*.KK LAUNCHED HIMSELF FORWARD 1
24O
CAB AND CABOOSE:
THE STORY OF A RAILROAD BOY t
CHAPTER I.
"RAILROAD BLAKE. "
O it, Rod ! You Ve got to go ! One more
spurt and you '11 have him ! There you
are over the line ! On time ! On railroad time !
Three cheers for Railroad Blake, fellows ! 'Rah,
'rah, 'rah, and a tigah ! Good for you, Rod Blake !
the cup is yours. It was the prettiest race ever
seen on the Euston track, and * Cider ' got so badly
left that he cut off and went to the dressing-room
without finishing. Billy Bliss was a good second,
though, and you only beat him by a length."
Amid a thousand such cries as these, from the
throats of the excited bo\s and a furious waving
3 CAB AND CABOOSE.
of hats, handkerchiefs, and ribbon-decked parasols
from the grand stand, the greatest bicycling event
of the year so far as Euston was concerned, was
finished, and Rodman Blake was declared winner of
the Railroad Cup. It was the handsomest thing
of the kind ever seen in that part of the country,
and had been presented to the Steel Wheel Club
of Euston by President Vanderveer of the great
New York and Western Railroad, who made his
summer home at that place. The race for this
trophy was the principal event at the annual meet
of the club, which always took place on the first
Wednesday of September. If any member won it
three years in succession it was to be his to keep,
and every winner was entitled to have his name
engraved on it.
Snyder Appleby or " Cider Apples r> as the boys,
with their love for nicknames, sometimes called
him, had won it two years in succession, and was
confident of doing the same thing this year. He
had just obtained, through President Vanderveer,
a position in the office of the Railroad Company,
and only waited to ride this last race for the " Rail-
road Cup," as it was called in honor of its donor,
"RAILROAD BLAKE." 3
before going to the city and entering upon his new
duties.
!Now to be beaten so badly, and by that young
upstart, for so he called Rod Blake, was a mortifi-
cation almost too great to be borne. As Snyder
left the track without finishing the last race and
made his way to the dressing-room under the grand
stand, he ground his teeth, and vowed to get even
with his victorious rival yet. The cheers and yells
of delight with which the fellows were hailing the
victor, made him feel his defeat all the more bit-
terly, and seek the more eagerly for some plan for
that victor's humiliation.
Snyder Appleby was generally considered by
the boys as one of the meanest fellows in Euston,
and that is the reason why they called him " Cider
Apples " ; for those, as everybody knows, are most
always the very poorest of the picking. So the name
seemed to be appropriate, as well as a happy parody
on that to which he was really entitled. He was the
son, or rather the adopted son, of Major Arms Apple-
by, who, next to President Van derveer, was the richest
man in Euston, and lived in the great, rambling stone
mansion that had been in his family for generations.
4 CAB AND CABOOSE.
The Major, who was a bachelor, was also ons
of the kindest-hearted, most generous, and most
obstinate of men. He loved to do good deeds ; but
he loved to do them in his own way, and his way
was certain to be the one that was contrary to the
advice of everybody else. Thus it happened that
he determined to adopt the year-old baby boy who
was left on his doorstep one stormy night, a little
more than sixteen years before this story opens.
He was not fond of babies, nor did he care to have
children about him. Simply because everybody
advised him to send this one to the county house,
where it might be -cared for by the proper authori-
ties, he declared he would do nothing of the kind ;
but would adopt the little waif and bring him up
as his own son.
As the boy grew, and developed many undesir-
able traits of character, Major Appleby was too
kind-hearted to see them, and too obstinate to be
warned against them.
" Don't tell me," he would say, " I know more
about the boy than anybody else, and am fully
capable of forming my opinion concerning him."
Thus Snyder Appleby. as he was called, because
"RAILROAD BLAJTE." 5
the name " Snyder r was found marked on the
basket in which he had been left at the Major's
door, grew up with the fixed idea that if he only
pleased his adopted father he might act about as
he chose with everybody else. Now he was
nearly eighteen years of age, big and strong, with a
face that, but for its coarseness, would have been
called handsome. He was fond of display, did
everything for effect, was intolerably lazy, had no
idea of the word punctuality, and never kept an
engagement unless he felt inclined to do so. He
always had plenty of pocket money which he spent
lavishly, and was not without a certain degree of
popularity among the other boys of Euston. He
had subscribed more largely than anybody else to
the Steel Wheel Club upon its formation, and had
thus succeeded in having himself elected its captain.
As he was older and stronger than any of the
other members who took up racing, and as he
always rode the lightest and best wheel that money
could procure, he had, without much hard work,
easily maintained a lead in the racing field, and
had come to consider himself as invincible. He
regarded himself as such a ; sure winner of this last
6 CAB AND CABOOSE.
race for the Railroad Cup, that he had not taken
the trouble to go into training for it. He would
not even give up his cigarette smoking, a habit that
he had acquired because he considered it fashion-
ble and manly. Now he was beaten, disgracefully,
and that by a boy nearly two years younger than
himself. It was too much, and he determined to
find some excuse for his defeat, that should at the
same time remove the disgrace from him, and place
it upon other shoulders.
Rodman Ray Blake, or R. R. Blake as he signed
his name, and " Railroad Blake r as the boys often
called him, was Major Appleby's nephew, and the
son of his only sister. She had married an impecu-
nious young artist against her brother's wish, on
which account he had declined ever to see her
again. When she died, after two years of poverty-
stricken widowhood, she left a loving, forgiving
letter for her brother, and in it committed her
darling boy to his charge. If she had not done
this, but had trusted to his generous impulses, all
would have gone well, and the events that serve
to make up this story would never have taken
place. As it was, the Major, feeling that the boy
"RAILROAD BLAKE." }
was forced upon him, was greatly aggrieved. That
the lad should bear a remarkable resemblance to
his handsome artist father also irritated him. As a
result, while he really became very fond of the boy,
and was never unkind to him, he treated him with
an assumed indifference that was keenly felt by
the loving, high-spirited lad. As for Snyder
Appleby, he was jealous of Rodman from the very
first ; and when, only a short time before the race
meeting of the Steel Wheel Club, the latter was
almost unanimously elected to his place as captain,
this feeling was greatly increased.
CHAPTER II.
A RACE FOR THE RAILROAD CUP.
"\ 7"OUNG Blake had now been in Etiston two
JL years, and was, among the boys, decidedly
the most popular fellow in the place. He was a
slightly-built chap; but with muscles like steel
wires, and possessed of wonderful agility and
powers of endurance. He excelled in all athletic
sports, was a capital boxer, and at the same time
found little difficulty in maintaining a good rank
in his classes. He had taken to bicycling from
the very first, and quickly became an expert rider,
though he had never gone in for racing. It was
therefore a great surprise, even to his friends,
when, on the very day before the race meeting,
he entered his name for the event that was to
result in the winning or losing of the Railroad
Cup. It would not have been so much of a sur-
prise had anybody known of his conversation, a
8
A RACE FOR THE RAILROAD CUP. 9
few weeks before, with Eltje Vanderveer, the rail-
road president's only daughter. She was a few
months younger than Rod, and ever since he had
jumped into the river to save her pet kitten from
drowning, they had been fast friends.
So, when in talking of the approaching meeting,
Eltje had said, " How I wish you were a racer, and
-jould win our cup, Rod," the boy instantly made up
his mind to try for it. He only answered, " Do you ?
Well, perhaps I may go in for that sort of thing some
time."
Then he began training, so secretly that nobody
but Dan, a stable boy on his uncle's place and Rod's
most ardent admirer, was aware of it ; but with such
steady determination that on the eventful day of
the great race his physical condition was very nearly
perfect.
He was on hand at the race track bright and
early ; for, as captain of the club, Rod had a great
deal to do in seeing that everything went smoothly,
and in starting on time the dozen events that pre-
ceded the race for the Railroad Cup, which came
last on the programme.
While these earlier events were being run ofl
IO CAB AND CABOOSE.
Snyder Appleby, faultlessly attired, sat in the grand
stand beside his adopted father, and directly behind
President Vanderveer and his pretty daughter, to
whom he tried to render himself especially agree-
able. He listened respectfully to the Major's stories,
made amusing comments on the racers for Eltje's
benefit, and laughed heartily at the puns that her
father was given to making.
" But how about your own race, Mr. Appleby ? n
asked Eltje. " Don't you feel any anxiety concern-
t ng it ? It is to be the hardest one of all, is n't it ? '
Immensely flattered at being addressed as Mister
Appleby, Snyder replied carelessly, " Oh, yes ! of
course I am most anxious to win it, especially as
you are here to see it run ; but I don't anticipate
much difficulty. Bliss is a hard man to beat ; but I
have done it before, and I guess I can do it again."
"Then you don't think Rodman has any chance
of winning?'
" Well, hardly. You see this is his first race, and
experience goes a long way in such affairs. Still, he
rides well, and it would n't surprise me to see him
make a good third at the finish."
Eltje smiled as she answered, " Perhaps he will
A RACE FOR THE RAILROAD CO P. \l
finish third ; but it would surprise me greatly to see
him do so."
This pretty girl, with the Dutch name, had such
faith in her friend Rod, that she did not believe he
would ever be third, or even second, where he had
once made up his mind to be first.
Failing to catch her real meaning, Snyder replied :
" Of course he may not do as well as that ; but he
ought to. As captain of the club he ought to sus-
tain the honor of his position, you know. If he
does n't feel able to take at least third place in a
five-starter race, he should either resign, or keep out
of the racing field altogether. Now I must leave
you ; for I see I am wanted. You '11 wish me good
luck, won't you ? '
" Yes," answered Eltje mischievously, " I wish
you all the luck you deserve."
Forced to be content with this answer, but won-
dering if there was any hidden meaning in it, Snyder
left the grand stand, and strolled leisurely around
to the dressing-room, lighting a cigarette as he
went.
" Hurry up ! ' shouted Eod, who was the soul of
punctuality and was particularly anxious that all the
12 CAB AND CABOOSE.
events of this, his first race meeting, should be
started on time. " Hurry up. Our race will be
called in five minutes, and you Ve barely time to
dress for it."
" Where 's my wheel ? ' asked Snyder, glancing
over the dozen or more machines stacked at one side
of the room, but without seeing his own.
" I have n't seen it," answered Rod, " but I sup-
posed you had left it in some safe place."
" So I did. I left it in the club house, where
there would be no chance of anybody tampering with
it ; for I Ve heard of such things happening, but I
ordered Dan to have it down here in time for the
race.'
" Do you mean to insinuate " began Rod hotly ;
but controlling himself, he continued more calmly,
" I did n't know that you had given Dan any orders,
and I sent him over to the house on an errand a few
minutes ago. Never mind, though, I '11 go for your
machine myself, and have it here by the time you
are dressed."
Without waiting for a reply, the young captain
started off on a run, while his adopted cousin began
leisurely to undress, and get into his racing costume.
A RACE FOR THE RAILROAD CUP. 13
By the time he was ready, Rod had returned leading
the beautiful machine, which he had no.t ridden for
fear lest some accident might happen to it,
Then the race was called, and a pistol shot sent
the five young athletes bending low over their
handle-bars spinning down the course. They all
wore the club colors of scarlet and white; but
from Rod's bicycle fluttered the bit of blue ribbon
that Dan had been sent to the young captain's room
to get, and which he had hastily knotted to the
handle-bar of his machine just before starting. Eltje
Vanderveer smiled and flushed slightly as she noticed
it, and then all her attention was concentrated upon
the varying fortunes of the flying wheelmen.
It was a five-mile race, and therefore a test of
endurance rather than of strength or skill. There
were two laps to the mile, and for seven of these
Snyder Appleby held an easy lead. His name was
heard above all others in the cheering that greeted
each passing of the grand stand, though the others
were encouraged to stick to him and not give it up
yet* That two of them had no intention of giving
it up, was shown at the end of the eighth lap, when
the three leading wheels whirled past the grand
14 CAB AND CABOOSE.
stand so nearly abreast that no advantage could be
claimed for either on**.
Now the cheering was tremendous : but the names
O 7
of Rod Blake and Billy Bliss were tossed from
mouth to mouth equally with that of Snyder Ap-
pleby. At the end of nine laps the champion of
two years had fallen hopelessly behind. His face
wore a distressed look, and his breath came in pain-
ful gasps. Cigarettes had done their work with
him, and his wind was gone. The two leaders were
still abreast ; but Rod had obtained the inside posi-
tion, and if he could keep up the pace the race was
his.
Eltje Vanderveer's face was pale, and her hands
were clinched with the intense excitement of the
moment. Was her champion to win after all ? Was
her bit of blue ribbon to be borne triumphantly to
the front ? Inch by inch it creeps into a lead. Now
they are coming down the home stretch. The speed of
that last spurt is wonderful. Nothing like it has ever
been seen at the wind-up of a five-mile race on the
Euston track. Looking at them, head on, it is for a
few seconds hard to tell which is leading. Then
a solitary shout for Rod Blake is heard. In an
A RACE FOR THE RAILROAD CUP. 1 5
other moment it lias swelled into a perfect roar of
cheering, and there is a tempest of tossing hats,
handkerchiefs, and parasols.
Kod Blake has won by a length, Billy Bliss is
second, Snyder Appleby was such a bad third that
he has gone to the dressing-room without finishing,
and the others are nowhere.
The speed of the winning wheels cannot be
checked at once, and as they go shooting on past
the stand, the exhausted riders are seen to reel in
their saddles. They would have fallen but for the
willing hands outstretched to receive them. Dan is
the first to reach the side of his adored young mas-
ter, and as the boy drops into his arms, the faithful
fellow says :
" You Ve won it, Mister Rod ! You Ve won it
fair and square ; but you want to look out for Mis-
ter Snyder. I heerd him a-saying bad things about
you when he passed me on that last lap, and I 'm
afeerd he means some kind of mischief "
CHAPTER III.
A CRUEL ACCUSATION.
% HE attention of the spectators, including the
A club members, was so entirely given to the
finish of the famous race for the Eailroad Cup, that,
for a few minutes Snyder Appleby was the sole
occupant of the dressing-room. When a group of
the fellows, forming a sort of triumphal escort to
the victors, noisily entered it, they found him stand-
ing by his machine. It was supported by two vests
placed under its handle bars, and he was gazing
curiously at the big wheel, which he was slowly
spinning with one hand.
"Hello, ' Cider'!' cried the first of the new-
comers, " what 's up ? Anything the matter with
your wheel?"
" I believe there is," answered the ex-captain, in
such a peculiar tone of voice that it at once arrested
attention. "I don't know what is wrong, and 1
16
A CRUEL ACCUSATION. IJ
would n't make an examination until some of you
fellows came in. In a case like this I believe in
having plenty of witnesses and doing everything
openly."
" What do you mean ? " asked one of the group,
whose noisy entrance was now succeeded by a start-
led silence.
" Turn that wheel and you '11 see what I mean,"
replied Snyder.
" Why, it turns as hard as though it were running
on plain bearing that had never been oiled ! r ex-
claimed the member who had undertaken to turn
the wheel as requested.
"That 's just it, and I don't think it 's very sur-
prising that I failed to win the race with a wheel in
that condition, do you ? '
" Indeed I do not. The only surprising thing is
that you held the lead so long as you did, and
managed to come in third. I know I could n't have
run a single lap if I 'd been on that wheel. What 's
the matter with it ? Was n't it all right when you
started V
" I thought it was," replied Snyder, " but 1 soon
found that something was wrong, and before I left
1 8 CAB AND CABOOSE.
the track it was all I could do to move it. Now,
I
I want you fellows to find out what the matter is."
A few moments of animated discussion followed,
while several of the fellows made a careful examina-
tion of the bicycle.
" Great Scott ! ' ' exclaimed one ; what 's in this
oil cup ? It looks as though it were choked with
black sand."
" It 's emery powder ! " cried another, extracting
a few grains of the black, oil-soaked stuff on the
point of a knife blade. No wonder your wheel
won't turn. How on earth did it get there ? '
" That is what I would like to find out," answered
the owner of the machine. " It certainly was not
there when I left the club house; for I had just
gone over every part and assured myself that it
was in perfect order. Since then but two persons
have touched it, and I am one of them. I don't
think it likely that anybody will charge me with
having done this thing, seeing that my sole interest
was to win the race, and that if I so nearly suc-
ceeded with my wheel in this condition, I could
easily have done so had it been all right. Nothing
could be more painful to me than to bring a charge
A CRUEL ACCUSATION. 19
against one who lives under the same roof that I do ;
but you all know who had the greatest interest in
having me lose this race. I think you all know,
too, that he is the only person besides myself who
handled my wheel immediately before it. The one
whom I trusted to bring it here in safety was sent
off by this person on some frivolous errand at the
last moment. Then, neglecting other and important
duties, he volunteered to get the machine himself.
He was gone before I had a chance to decline his
offer. That is all I have to say upon this most
unpleasant subject, and I should not have said so
much had not my own reputation, both as a racing
man and a gentleman, been at stake. Now I place
the whole affair in the hands of the club, satisfied
that they will do me justice."
Hod Blake, seated on a camp-stool, with a heavy
" sweater " thrown over his shoulders, and slowly
recovering from the exhaustion of the race, had ob-
served and listened to all this with a pained curi-
osity. He could not believe any member of the
club guilty of such a cowardly act. When Snyder
began to charge him with having committed it, his
face became deadly pale, and he gazed at his adopted
2O CAB AND CABOOSE.
cousin with an expression akin to terror. As the
latter finished, the young captain sprang to his feet,
exclaiming :
" Snyder Appleby, how dare you bring such an
accusation against me ? You know I am incapable
of doing such a thing ! Your wheel was in perfect
condition when I delivered it to you, and you know
it was."
" I can easily believe that the fellow who would
perform the act would be equally ready to lie out
of it," replied Snyder.
" Do you mean that I lie ? '
" That is about the size of it."
This was more than the hot-tempered young ath-
lete could bear ; and almost before the words were
out of Snyder's mouth, a blow delivered with all
the nervous force of Hodman's right arm sent him
staggering back. It would have laid him on the
floor, had not several of the fellows caught him in
their arms.
He was furious with rage, and would have sprung
at Rodman had he not been restrained. As it was,
he hissed through his clinched teeth, " I '11 make you
suffer for this yet, see if I don't."
A CRUEL ACCUSATION. 21
Immediately after delivering the blow, Rod
turred, without a word, and began putting on his
clothes. The fellows watched him in silence. A
minute later he was dressed, and stood in the door-
way. Here he turned and said :
" I am oin home, fellows, and I shall wait there
^D ^3 *
just one hour for an assurance that you have faith
in me, and do not believe a word of this horrible
charge. If such a message, sent by tLe whole club,
reaches me within that time, I will undertake to
prove my innocence. If it does not come, then I
cease, not only to be your captain, but a member of
the club."
CHAPTER IV.
STARTING INTO THE WORLD.
AS Rod finished speaking he left the room and
walked away. He had hardly disappeared,
and the fellows were still looking at each other in a
o
bewildered fashion, when a message was sent in. It
was that President Vandeveer, who was distributing
the prizes for the several races out in front of the grand
stand, was ready to present the Railroad Cup to Rod-
man Blake, and wanted him to come and receive it.
Then somebody went out and whispered to the Presi-
dent. Excusing himself for a moment to the throng
of spectators, he visited the dressing-room, where he
heard the whole story. It was hurriedly told ; but
he comprehended enough of it to know that the cup
could not, at that moment, be presented to anybody.
So he went back, and with a very sober face, told
the people that owing to circumstances which he
v vvas not at liberty to explain just then, it was
v
STARTING INTO THE WORLD. 23
impossible to award the Railroad Cup at that
meeting.
The crowd slowly melted away ; but before they
left, everybody had heard one version or another of
the stoiy told to President Vanderveer in the dress-
ing-room. Some believed Rod to be innocent of the
charge brought against him, and some believed him
guilty. Almost all of them said it was a pity that
such races could not be won and lost honestly, and
there must be some fire where there was so much
smoke ; and they told each other how they had no-
ticed from the very first that something was wrong
with Snyder Appleby's wheel.
Major Appleby heard the story, first from Presi-
dent Vanderveer, and afterwards from his adopted
son, who confirmed it by displaying the side of his
face which was swollen and bruised from Rodman's
blow. Fully believing what Snyder told him, the
Major became very angry. He declared that no such
disgrace had ever before been brought to his house,
and that the boy who was the cause of it could no
longer be sheltered by his roof. In vain did people
talk to him, and urge him to reflect before he acted.
He had decided upon his course, and the more they
24 CAB AND CABOOSE.
advised him, the more determined he became not to
be moved from it.
While he was thus storming and fuming outside
the dressing-room, the members of the wheel club
were holding a meeting behind its closed door. Did
they believe Rodman Blake guilty of the act charged
against him or did they not? The debate was a
long and exciting one ; but the question was finally
decided in his favor. They did not believe him
capable of doing anything so mean. They would
make a thorough investigation of the affair, and aid
him by every means in their power to prove his
innocence.
This was the purport of the message sent to the
young captain by the club secretary, Billy Bliss;
but it was sent too late. The members had taken
no note of time in the heat of their discussion, and
the hour named by Rodman had already elapsed be-
fore Billy Bliss started on his errand. The fellows
did not think a few minutes more or less would make
any difference, though they urged the secretary to
hurry and deliver his message as quickly as possible.
A few minutes however did make all the difference
in the world to Rod Blake. With him an hour meant
STARTING INTO THE WORLD. 2$
exactly sixty minutes ; and when Billy Bliss reached
Major Appleby's house the boy whom he sought
was nowhere to be found.
Major Appleby and his adopted son walked
home together, the former full of wrath at what he
believed to be the disgraceful action of his nephew,
and the latter secretly rejoicing at it. On reaching
the house, the Major went at once to Rodman's room
where he found the boy gazing from the window,
with a hard, defiant, expression on his face. He
was longing for a single loving word ; for a mother 7 ^
sympathetic ear into which he might pour his griefs ;
but his pride was prepared to withstand any harsh-
ness, as well as to resent the faintest suspicion of
injustice.
" Well, sir," began the Major, " what have you to
say for yourself ? and how do you explain this dis-
graceful affair ? r
" I cannot explain it, Uncle ; but "
" That will do, sir. If you cannot explain it, I
want to hear nothing further. What I do want,
however, is that you shall so arrange your future
plans that you may no longer be dependent on my
roof for shelter. Here is sufficient money for your
26 CAB AND CABOOSE.
immediate needs. As my sister's child you have a
certain claim on me. This I shall be willing to
honor to the extent of providing you against want,
whenever you have settled upon your mode of life,
and choose to favor me with your future address.
The sooner you can decide upon your course of
action the better." Thus saying the kind-hearted,
impetuous, and wrong-headed old Major laid a roll
of bills on the table, and left the room.
Fifteen minutes later, or five minutes before Billy
Bliss reached the house, Rod Blake also left the
room. The roll of bills lay untouched where his
uncle had placed it, and he carried only his M. I. P.
or bicycle travelling bag, containing the pictures of
his parents, a change of underclothing, and a few
trifles that were absolutely his own. He passed out
of the house by a side door, and was seen but by one
person as he plunged into the twilight shadows of
the park. Thus, through the gathering darkness,
the poor boy, proud, high-spirited, and, as he thought,
friendless, set forth alone, to fight his battle with the
world.
CHAPTER V.
CHOOSING A CAREER.
AS Rod Blake, heavy-hearted, and weary, both
mentally and physically from his recent
struggles, left his uncle's house, he felt utterly reck-
less, and paid no heed to the direction his footsteps
were taking. His one idea was to get away as
quickly, and as far as possible, from those who had
treated him so cruelly. " If only the fellows had
stood by me," he thought, " I might have stayed and
fought it out. But to have them go back on me, and
take Snyder's word in preference to mine, is too much."
Had the poor boy but known that Billy Bliss was
even then hastening to bear a message of good- will
and confidence in him from the " fellows ' how
greatly his burden of trial would have been light-
ened. But he did not know, and so he pushed
blindly on, suffering as much from his own hasty
and ill-considered course of action, as from the more
2?
28 CAB AND CABOOSE.
deliberate cruelty of his adopted cousin. At length
he came to the brow of a steep slope leading down
to the railroad, the very one of which Eltje's father
was president. The railroad had always possessed
a fascination for him, and he had oft^n sat on this
bank watching the passing trains, wondering at their
speed, and speculating as to their destinations. He
had frequently thought he should like to lead the
life of a railroad man, and had been pleased when
the fellows called him " Railroad Blake " on account
of his initials. Now, this idea presented itself to
him again more strongly than ever.
An express train thundered by. The ruddy glow
from the furnace door of its locomotive, which was
opened at that moment, revealed the engineman seated
in the cab, with one hand on the throttle lever, and
peering steadily ahead through the gathering gloom.
What a glorious life he led ! So full of excitement
and constant change. What a power he controlled.
How easy it was for him to fly from whatever was
unpleasant or trying. As these thoughts flashed
through the boy's mind, the red lights at the rear of
the train seemed to blink pleasantly at him, and
invite him to follow them.
CHOOSING A CAREER. 29
" I will," he cried, springing to his feet. " I will
follow wherever they may lead me. Why should I
not be a railroad man as well as another ? They
have all been boys and all had to begin some time."
At this moment he was startled by a sound of a
voice close beside him saying, " Supper is ready, Mis-
ter Rod." It was Dan the stable boy ; and, as Rod-
man asked him, almost angrily, how he dared
follow him without orders, and what he was spying
out his movements for, he replied humbly : " I ain't
a-spying on you, Mister Rod, and I only followed
you to tell you supper was ready, 'cause I thought
maybe you did n't know it."
" Well, I did n't and it makes no difference whether
I did or not," said Rod. " I have left my uncle's
house for good and all, Dan, and there are no more
suppers in it for me."
" I was af eard so ! I was af eard so, Mister Rod,"
exclaimed the boy with a real distress in his voice,
" an' to tell the truth that 's why I came after you. I
could n't a-bear to have you go without saying good-
by, and I thought maybe, perhaps, you 'd let me go
along with you. Please do, Mister Rod. I '11 work
for you and serve you faithfully, an 7 I 'd a heap
30 CAB AND CABOOSE.
rather go on a tramp, or any place along with you,
than stay here without you. Please, Mister Rod."
" No, Dan, it would be impossible to take you
with me," said Rodman, who was deeply touched by
this proof of his humble friend's loyalty. " It will
be all I can do to find work for myself ; but I 'in
grateful to you all the same for showing that you
still think well of me. It 's a great thing, I can tell
you, for a fellow in my position to know that he
leaves even one friend behind him when he is forced
to go away from his only home."
" You leaves a-plenty of them a-plenty ! ' ' inter-
rupted the stable boy eagerly. " I heerd Miss Eltje
telling her father that it was right down cruel not
to give you the cup, an' that you could n't do a
thing, such as they said, any more than she could, or
he could himself. An' her father said no more did
he believe you could, an' you 'd come out of it all
right yet. Miss Eltje was right up an' down mad
about it, she was. Oh, I tell you, Mister Rod, you Ve
got a-plenty of friends; an' if you '11 only stay
you '11 find 'em jest a-swarmin'."
At this Rodman laughed outright, and said : " Dan,
you are a fine fellow, and you have done me good
CHOOSING A CAREER. 31
already. Now what I want you to do is just to stay
here and discover some more friends for me. I will
manage to let you know what I am doing ; but you
must not tell anybody a word about me, nor where
I am, nor anything. Now good-by, and mind, don't
say a word about having seen me, unless Miss Eltje
should happen to ask you. If she should, you might
say that I shall always remember her, and be grate-
ful to her for believing in me. Good-by."
With this Rod plunged down the steep bank to
the railroad track, and disappeared in the darkness.
He went in the direction of the next station to
Euston, about five miles away, as he did not wish to
be recognized when he made the attempt to secure a
ride on some train to New York. It was to be an
attempt only ; for he had not a cent of money in his
pockets, and had no idea of how he should obtain
the coveted ride. In addition to being penniless,
he was hungry, and his hunger was increased tenfold
by the knowledge that he had no means of satisfy-
ing it. Still he was a boy with unlimited confidence
in himself. He always had fallen on his feet ; and,
though this was the worse fix in which he had ever
found himself, he had faith that he would come out
32 CAB AND CABOOSE.
of it all right somehow. His heart was already so
much lighter since he had learned from Dan that some
of his friends, and especially Eltje Vanderveer, still
believed in him, that his situation did not seem half
so desperate as it had an hour before.
Rod was already enough of a railroad man to know
that, as he was going east, he must walk on the
west bound track. By so doing he would be able to
see trains bound west, while they were still at some
distance from him, and would be in no danger from
those bound east and overtaking him.
o
When he was about half a mile from the little
station, toward which he was walking, he heard the
long-drawn, far- way whistle of a locomotive. Was
it ahead of him or behind ? On account of the be-
wildering echoes he could not tell. To settle the
question he kneeled down, and placed his ear against
one of rails of the west bound track. It was cold
and silent. Then he tried the east bound track in
the same way. This rail seemed to tingle with life,
and a faint, humming sound came from it. It was a
perfect railroad telephone, and it informed the lis-
tener as plainly as words could have told him, that
a train was approaching from the west.
CHOOSING A CAREER. 33
He stopped to note its approach. In a few mmutea
the rails of the east bound track began to quiver
with light from the powerful reflector in front of its
locomotive. Then they stretched away toward the on-
coming train in gleaming bands of indefinite length^
while the dazzling light seemed to cut a bright path-
way between walls of solid blackness for the use of
the advancing monster. As the bewildering glare
passed him, Rod saw that the train was a long, heavy-
laden freight, and that some of its cars contained
cattle. He stood motionless as it rushed past him,
shaking the solid earth with its ponderous weight,
and he drew a decided breath of relief at the si^ht
o
of the blinking red eyes on the rear platform of its
caboose. How he wished he was in that caboose,
riding comfortably toward New York, instead of
plodding wearily along on foot, with nothing but
uncertainties ahead of him.
CHAPTER VI.
SMILEB THE KAILROAD DOG.
AS Rod stood gazing at the receding train he
noticed a human figure step from the lighted
interior of the caboose, through the open doorway,
to the platform, apparently kick at something,
and almost instantly return into the car. At the
same time the boy fancied he heard a sharp cry of
pain ; but was not sure. As he resumed his
tiresome walk, gazing longingly after the vanishing
train lights, he saw another light, a white one that
moved toward him with a swinging motion, close to
the ground. While he was wondering what it was,
lie almost stumbled over a small animal that
stood motionless on the track, directly in front of
him. It was a dog. Now Rod dearly loved dogs,
and seemed instinctively to know that this one
was in some sort of trouble. As he stopped to pat
it, the creature uttered a little whine, as though ask
34
SMILER THE RAILROAD DOG. 35
ing his sympathy and help. At the same time it
licked his hand.
While he was kneeling beside the dog and trying
to discover what its trouble was, the swinging white
light approached so closely that he saw it to be a
lantern, borne by a man who, in his other hand, car-
ried a long-handled iron wrench. He was the track-
walker of that section, who was obliged to inspect
every foot of the eight miles of track under his
charge, at least twice a day; and the wrench was
for the tightening of any loose rail joints that he
might discover.
" Hello ! r exclaimed this individual as he came
before the little group, and held his lantern so as to
get a good view of them. "What 's the matter
here ? "
" I have just found this dog," replied Rod, " and he
seems to be in pain. If you will please hold your
light a little closer perhaps I can see what has
happened to him."
The man did as requested, and Rod uttered an
exclamation of pleasure as the light fell full upon
the dog; for it was the finest specimen of a bull
terrier he had ever seen. It was white and brindled,
36 CAB AND CABOOSE.
its chest was of unusual breadth, and its square jaws
indicated a tenacity of purpose that nothing short
of death itself could overcome. Now one of its legs
was evidently hurt, and it had an ugly cut under
the left ear, from which blood was flowing. Its
eyes expressed an almost human intelligence; and,
as it looked up at Rod and tried to lick his face, it
seemed to say, " I know you will be my friend, and
I trust you to help me." About its neck was a
leathern collar, bearing a silver plate, on which was
inscribed : " Be kind to me, for I am Smiler the
Railroad Dog."
"I know this dog," exclaimed the track- walker,
as he read these words, " and I reckon every railroad
man in the country knows him ; or at any rate has
heard of him. He used to belong to Andrew Dean,
who was killed when his engine went over the bank
at Hager's two years ago. He thought the world of
the dog, and it used to travel with him most always ;
only once in a w^hile it would go visiting on some
of the other engines. It was off that way when
Andrew got killed, and since then it has travelled
all over the country, like as though it was hunting
for its old master. The dog lives on trains and en-
SMILER THE RAILROAD DOG. 37
gines, and railroad men are always glad to see him.
Some of them got up this collar for him a while ago.
Why, Smiler, old dog, how did you come here in
this fix ? I never heard of you getting left or falling
off a train before."
"I think he must have come from the freight that
just passed us," said Rod, " and I should n't wonder,"
he added, suddenly recalling the strange movements
of the figure he had seen appear for an instant at
the caboose door, " if he was kicked off." Thea he
described the scene of which he had caught a glimpse
as the freight train passed him.
" I 'd like to meet the man who 'd dare do such a
thing," exclaimed the track- walker. " If I would n't
kick him ! He 'd dance to a lively tune if any of us
railroad chaps got hold of him, I can tell you. It
must have been an accident, though ; for nobody
would hurt Smiler. Now I don't know exactly
what to do. Smiler can't be left here, and I 'm
afraid he is n't able to walk very far. If I had
time I 'd carry him back to the freight. She 's side-
tracked only a quarter of a mile from here, waiting
for Number 8 to pass. I 'm due at Euston inside of
an hour, and I don't dare waste any more time.
38 CAB AND CABOOSE.
" I '11 take him if you say so," answered Rod, who
had been greatly interested in the dog's history. " I
believe I can carry him that far."
" All right," replied the track- walker. " I wish
you would. You '11 have to move lively though ; for
if Number 8 is on time, as she generally is, you
have n't a moment to lose."
"I'll do my best," said the boy, and a moment
later he was hurrying down the track with his M.
I. P. bag strapped to his shoulders, and with the
dog so strangely committed to his care, clasped
tightly in his arms. At the same time the track-
walker, with his swinsino; lantern, was making
7 O O ' O
equally good speed in the opposite direction. As
Rod rounded a curve, and sighted the lights of the
waiting freight train, he heard the warning whistle
of Number 8 behind him, and redoubled his exertions.
He did not stop even as the fast express whirled
past him, though he was nearly blinded by the
eddying cloud of dust and cinders that trailed
behind it. But, if Number 8 was on time, so was
he. Though Smiler had grown heavy as lead in his
aching arms, and though his breath was coming in
panting gasps, he managed to climb on the rear
SMILER THE RAILROAD DOG. 39
platform of the caboose, just as the freight was pull
ing out. How glad he was at that moment of the
three weeks training he had just gone through with.
It had won him something, even if his name waa
not to be engraved on the railroad cup of the Steel
Wheel Club.
As the boy stood in the rear doorway of the
caboose, gazing doubtfully into its interior, a young
fellow who looked like a tramp, and who had been
lying on one of the cushioned lockers, or benches,
that ran along the sides of the car, sprang to his
feet with a startled exclamation. At the same
moment Srniler drew back his upper lip so as to dis-
play a glistening row of teeth, and, uttering a deep
growl, tried to escape from Rod's arms.
" What are you doing in this car ! and what do
you mean by bringing that dog in here ? ' cried the
fellow angrily, at the same time advancing with a
threatening gesture. " Come, clear out of here or I '11
put you out," he added. The better to defend him-
self, if he should be attacked, the boy dropped the
dog ; and, with another fierce growl, forgetful of his
hurts, Smiler flew at the stranger's throat.
CHAPTER VII.
BOD, 8MILER, AND THE TRAMP.
"TTELP! Murder! Take off your dog !" yelled
JL A the young tramp, throwing up his arm to
protect his face from Smiler's attack, and springing
backward. In so doing he tripped and fell heavily
to the floor, with the dog on top of him, growling
savagely, and tearing at the ragged coat sleeve in
which his teeth were fastened. Fearful lest the dog
might inflict some serious injury upon the fellow,
Rodman rushed to his assistance. He had just seized
hold of Smiler, when a kick from the struggling
tramp sent his feet flying from under him, and
he too pitched headlong. There ensued a scene
which would have been comical enough to a
spectator, but which was anything but funny to
those who took part in it. Over and over they
rolled, striking, biting, kicking, and struggling. The
tramp was the first to regain his feet; but almost
40
ROD, SMILER, AND THE TRAMP. 4!
at the same instant Siniler escaped from Rod's
embrace, and again flew at him. They had rolled
over the caboose floor until they were close to its
rear door ; and now, with a yell of terror, the tramp
darted through it, sprang from the moving train,
and disappeared in the darkness, leaving a large
piece of his trousers in the dog's mouth. Just then
the forward door was opened, and two men with
lanterns on their arms, entered the car.
They were Conductor Tobin, and rear-brakeman
Joe, his right-hand man, who had just finished
switching their train back on the main track, and
getting it again started on its way toward New
York. At the sight of Rod, who was of course a
perfect stranger to them, sitting on the floor, hatless,
covered with dust, his clothing bearing many signs
of the recent fray, and ruefully feeling of a lump on
his forehead that was rapidly increasing in size, and
of Siniler whose head was bloody, and who was still
worrying the last fragment of clothing that the
tramp's rags had yielded him, they stood for a
moment in silent bewilderment.
" Well, I '11 be blowed ! " said Conductor Tobin at
length.
42 CAB AND CABOOSE.
" Me too," said Brakeman Joe, who believed in
following the lead of his superior officer.
"May I inquire," asked Conductor Tobin, seat-
ing himself on a locker close to where Rod still
sat on the floor, " May I inquire who you are ?
and where you canie from ? and how you got here ?
and what 's happened to Smiler ? and what 's came
of the fellow we left sleeping here a few minutes
ago ? and what 's the meaning of all this business,
anyway ? '
"Yes, we 'd like to know," said the Brakeman,
taking a seat on the opposite locker, and regarding
the boy with a curiosity that was not unmixed with
suspicion. Owing to extensive dealings with tramps,
Brakeman Joe was very apt to be suspicious of all
persons who were dirty, and ragged, and had bumps
on their foreheads.
" The trouble is," replied Rod, looking first at Con-
ductor Tobin and then at Brakeman Joe, " that I
don't know all about it myself. Nobody does except
the fellow who just left here in such a huriy, and
Smiler, who can 't tell."
Here the dog, hearing his name mentioned, dragged
himself rather stiffly to the boy's side; for now
T
S
H
Cc,
O
to
(4
w
-
S
Cfl
i
ROD, SMILER, AND THE T&. 43
the excitement was over, his hurts began to be
painful again, and licked his face.
" "Well, you must be one of the right sort, at any
rate/' said Conductor Tobin, noting this movement,
"for Srniler is a do^ that does n't make friends
o
except with them as are."
" He knows what 's what, and who 's who," added
Brakeman Joe, nodding his head. "Don't you,
Smiler, old dog ? '
" My name," continued the boy, " is R. R. Blake."
" Railroad Blake ? " interrupted Conductor Tobin
inquiringly.
" Or t Runaway Blake ' ? ' asked Brakeman Joe
who, still somewhat suspicious, was studying the
boy's face and the M. I. P. bag attached to his
shoulders.
" Both," answered Rod, with a smile. " The boys
where I live, or rather where I did live, often call
me ' Railroad Blake,' and I am a runaway. That is,
I was turned away first, and ran away afterwards."
Then, as briefly as possible, he gave them the
whole history of his adventures, beginning with the
bicycle race, and ending with the disappearance of
the young tramp through the rear door of the
44 CAB AND CABOOSE.
caboose in which they sat. Both men listened witli
the deepest attention, and without interrupting him
save by occasional ejaculations, expressive of wonder
and sympathy.
" Well, I '11 be blowed ! " exclaimed Conductor
Tobin, when he had finished ; while Brakeman Joe,
without a word, went to the rear door and examined
the platform, with the hope, as he afterwards ex-
plained, of finding there the fellow who had kicked
Smiler off the train, and of having a chance to serve
him in the same way. Coming back with a disap-
pointed air, he proceeded to light a fire in the little
round caboose stove, and prepare a pot of coffee for
supper, leaving Rodman's case to be managed by
Conductor Tobin as he thought best.
The latter told the boy that the young tramp, a?
they called him, was billed through to New York, to
look after some cattle that were on the train ; but
that he was a worthless, ugly fellow, who had not
paid the slightest attention to them, and whose only
object in accepting the job was evidently to obtain
a free ride in the caboose. Smiler, whom he bad
been delighted to find on the train when it was
turned over to him, had taken a great dislike to the
ROD, SMILER. AND THE TRAMP. 4$
fellow from the first. He had growled and shown
his teeth whenever the tramp moved about the car,
and several times the latter had threatened to teach
him better manners. When he and Brakeman Joe
went to the forward end of the train, to make ready
for side-tracking it, they left the dog sitting on the
rear platform of the caboose, and the tramp appar*
ently asleep, as Rod had found him, on one of the
lockers. He must have taken advantage of their
absence to deal the dog the cruel kick that cut his
ear, and landed him, stunned and bruised, on the
track where he had been discovered.
"I 'm glad he 's gone," concluded Conductor
Tobin, " for if he had n't left, we would have fired
him for what he did to Smiler. We won't have
that dog hurt on this road, not if we know it. It
won't hurt him to have to walk to New York, and
I don't care if he never gets there. What worries
me, though, is who '11 look after those cattle, and
go down to the stock-yard with them, now that
he 's gone."
" Why could n't I do it ? " asked Rod eagerly,
I 'd be glad to."
" You ! " said Conductor Tobin incredulously
CAB AND CABOOSE.
" Why. you look like too much of a gentleman to be
handling cattle."
" I hope I am a gentleman," answered the boy
with a smile ; " but I am a very poverty-stricken one
*ust at present, and if I can earn a ride to the city.
just by looking after some cattle, I don't know why 1
should n't do that as well as anything else. What I
would like to do though, most of all things, is to live
up to my nickname, and become a railroad man."
" You would, would you ? " said Conductor Tobin.
Then, as though he were propounding a conundrum,
he asked : " Do you know the difference between a
railroad man and a chap who wants to be one ? '
" I don't know that I do," answered the boy.
" Well, the difference is, that the latter gets what
he deserves, and the former deserves what he gets.
What I mean is, that almost anybody who is willing
to take whatever job is offered him can get a
position on a railroad ; but before he gets promoted
he will have to deserve it several times over. In
other words, it takes more honesty, steadiness, faith-
fulness, hard work, and brains to work your way up
in railroad life than in any other business that I
know of. However, at present, you are only going
JROD, SMILER, AND THE TRAMP.
along with me as stockman, in which position 1 am
glad to have you, so we won't stop now to discuss
railroading. Let 's see what Joe has got for supper,
for I 'in hungry and I should n't be surprised if you
were."
Indeed Rod was hungry, and just at that moment
the word supper was the most welcome of the whole
English language. First, though, he went to the
wash-basin that he noticed at the forward end of the
car. There he bathed his face and hands, brushed
his hair, restored his clothing to something like
order, and altogether made himself so presentable,
that Conductor Tobin laughed when he saw him,
and declared that he looked less like a stockman
than ever.
How good that supper, taken from the mammoth
lunch pails of the train crew, tasted, and what de-
licious coffee came steaming out of the smoke-black-
ened pot that Brakeman Joe lifted so carefully from
the stove ! To be sure it had to be taken without
milk, but there was plenty of sugar, and when Rod
passed his tin cup for a second helping, the coffee-
maker's face fairly beamed with gratified pride.
After these three and Smiler had finished their
48 CAB AND CABOOSE.
supper, Conductor Tobin lighted his pipe, anc!,
climbing up into the cupola of the caboose, stretched
himself comfortably on the cushioned seat arranged
there for his especial accommodation. From here,
through the windows ahead, behind, and on both
sides of the cupola, he had an unobstructed view out
into the night. Brakeinan Joe went out over the
tops of the cars to call in the other two brakeman of
the train, and keep watch for them, while they went
into the caboose and ate their supper. They looked
curiously at Rod as they entered the car ; but were
too well used to seeing strangers riding there to ask
any questions. They both spoke to Sniiler though,
and he wagged his tail as though recognizing old
friends.
The dog could not go to them and jump up to be
petted because Rod was attending to his wounds.
He carefully bathed the cut under the left ear, from
which considerable blood had flowed, and drew its
edges together with some sticking plaster, of which
he always carried a small quantity in his M. I. P.
bag. Then, finding one of the dog's fore shoulders
strained and swollen, he soaked it for some time in
water as hot as thr animal could bear. Aftei
ROD, SMILER, AND THE TRAMP. 4$
arransnnsr a comfortable bed in one corner of the car,
~ O *
he finally persuaded Smiler to lie there quietly,
though not until he had submitted to a grateful
licking of his face and hands.
Next the boy turned his attention to the supper
dishes, and had them very nearly washed and wiped
when Brakeman Joe returned, greatly to that stal-
wart fellow's surprise and delight ; for Joe hated to
wash dishes. By this time Rod had been nearly
two hours on the train, and was so thoroughly tired
that he concluded to lie down and rest until he
should be wanted for something else. He did not
mean to even close his eyes, but within three
minutes he was fast asleep. All through the night
he slept, while the long freight train, stopping only
now and then for water, or to allow some faster
train to pass it, rumbled heavily along toward the
great city.
He could not at first realize where he was, when,
in the gray of the next morning, a hand was laid on
his shoulder, and Conductor Tobin's voice said :
u Come, my young stockman, here we are at the end
of our run, and it is time for you to be looking after
your cattle/' A quick dash of cold water on Ms
50 CAB AND CABOOSE.
head and face cleared the boy's faculties in an in-
stant. Then Conductor Tobin pointed out the two
stock cars full of cattle that were being uncoupled
from the rest of the train, and bade him go with
them to the stock-yard. There he was to see that
the cattle were well watered and safely secured in the
pen that would be assigned to them. Rod was also
told that he might leave his bag in the caboose and
come back, after he was through with his work, for
a bit of breakfast with Brakeuian Joe, who lived at
the other end of the division, and always made the
car his home when at this end. As for himself,
Conductor Tobin said he must bid the boy good-by,
as he lived a short distance out on the road, and
must hurry to catch the train that would take him
home. He would be back, ready to start out again
with the through freight, that evening, and hoped
Rod would come and tell him what luck he had in
obtaining a position. Then rough but kind-hearted
Conductor Tobin left the boy, never for a moment
imagining that he was absolutely penniless and
without friends in that part of the country, or in the
great city across the river.
For the next two hours Rod worked hard and
ROD, SMILER, AND THE TRAMP. $(
faithfully with the cattle committed to his charge,
and then, anticipating with a keen appetite a share
.of Brakeman Joe's breakfast, he returned to where
he had left the caboose. It was not there, nor could
he find a trace of it. He saw plenty of other cabooses
looking just like it, but none of them was the one
he wanted.
He inquired of a busy switch-tender where it
could be found, and the man asked him its number,
He had not noticed. What was the number of the
train with which it came in ? Rod had no idea.
The number of the locomotive that drew it then ?
The boy did not know that either.
"Well," said the man impatiently, "you don't
seem to know much of anything, and I 'd advise you
to learn what it is you want to find out before you
bother busy folks with questions."
So the poor fellow was left standing alone and
bewildered in the great, busy freight-yard, friendless
and hungry. He had lost even the few treasures
contained in his M. I. P. bag, and never had life
seemed darker or more hopeless. For some moments
he could not think what to do, or which way to
turn.
CHAPTER VIII.
BARKING A BREAKFAST.
IF Rod Blake had only known the number of tha
caboose for which he was searching, he could
easily have learned what had happened to it. Soon
after he left it, while it was being switched on to a
siding, one of its draw-bars became broken, and it
had been sent to the repair shop, a mile or so away,
to be put in condition for going out again that night.
He had not thought of looking at its number,
though ; for he had yet to learn that on a railroad
everything goes by numbers instead of by names.
A few years ago all locomotives bore names, such as
Flying Cloud," " North Wind," etc., or were called
after prominent men ; but now they are simply
numbered. It is the same with cars, except sleepers,
drawing-rooms, and a few mail cars. Trains are also
numbered, odd numbers being given to west or
south bound, and even numbers to easi or north
52
EARNING A BREAKFAST. 53
bound trains. Thus, while a passenger says he ia
going out by the Chicago Limited, the Pacific
Express, or the Fitchburg Local, the railroad man
would say that he was going on No. 1, 3, or 5, as
the case might be. The sections, from three to eight
miles long, into winch every road is divided, are
numbered .0 are all its bridges. Even the stations
are numbered, and so are the tracks.
All this Rodman discovered afterwards; but he
did not know it then, and so he was only bewildered
by the switchman's questions. For a few minutes
he stood irresolute, though keeping a sharp lookout
for the hurrying switch engines, and moving cars
that, singly or in trains, were flying in all directions
about him, apparently without any reason or method.
Finally he decided to follow out his original plan of
going to the superintendent's office and asking for
employment. By inquiry he found that it was
located over the passenger station, nearly a mile
away from where he stood. "When he reached the
station, and inquired for the person of whom he was
in search, he was laughed at, and told that the
" super v never came to his office at that time of day,
nor until two or three hours later. So, feeling faint
54 CAB AND CABOOSE.
for want of breakfast, as well as tired and somewhat
discouraged, the boy sat down in the great bustling
waiting-room of the station.
At one side of the room was a lunch-counter, from
which the odor of newly-made coffee was wafted to
him in the most tantalizing manner. 'W hat would n't
he give for a cup at that moment? B^.'^ere was
no use in thinking of such things ; and so he reso-
lutely turned his back upon the steaming urn, and
the tempting pile of eatables by which it was
surrounded. In watching the endless streams of
passengers steadily ebbing and flowing past him, he
almost forgot the emptiness of his stomach. Where
could they all be going to, or coming from ? Did
people always travel in such overwhelming numbers,
that it seemed as though the whole world were on
the move, or was this some special occasion ? He
thought the latter must be the case, and wondered
what the occasion was. Then there were the babies
and children ! How they swarmed about him ! He
soon found that he could keep pretty busy, and win
many a grateful smile "from anxious mothers, by
capturing and picking up little toddlers who would
persist in running about and falling; down ricjht in
EARNING A BREAKFAST. 55
the w^y of hurrying passengers. He also kept an
eye on the old ladies, who were so flustered and
bewildered, and asked such meaningless questions of
everybody, that he wondered how they were ever to
reach their destinations in safety.
One of these deposited a perfect avalanche of
little ba c x packages, and umbrellas on the seat
beside him. Several of them fell to the floor, and
Rod was good-naturedly picking them up when he
was startled by the sound of a clear, girlish voice
that he knew as well as he knew his own, directly
behind him. He turned, with a quickly beating
heart, and saw Eltje Vanderveer. She was walking
between her father and Snyder Appleby. They
had already passed without seeing him, and had
evidently just arrived by an early morning train
from Euston.
Rod's first impulse was to run after them ; and,
starting to do so, he was only a step behind them
when he heard Snyder say : " He must have money,
because he refused a hundred dollars that the Majoi
offered him. At any rate we 11 hear from him soon
enough if he gets hard up or into trouble. He is n't
the kind of a
56 CAB AND CABOOSE.
But Rod had already turned away, and what he
was n't, in Snyder's opinion, he never knew.
He had hardly resumed his seat, when there waa
a merry jingle on the floor beside him, and a quan^
tity of silver coins began to roll in all directions.
The nervous old lady of the bags and bundles had
dropped her purse, and now she stood ^ ; ng at hei
scattered wealth, the very image of despair.
" Never mind, ma'am," said Rod, cheerily, as he
began to capture the truant coins. " I '11 have them
all picked up in a moment." It took several minutes
of searching here and there, under the seats, and in all
sorts of out-of-the-way hiding places, before all the
bits of silver were recovered, and banded to their
owner.
She drew a great sigh of relief as she counted her
money and found that none was lost. Then, beam-
ing at the boy through her spectacles, she said ;
"Well, thee is an honest lad; and, if thee '11 look
after my bags while I get my ticket, and then help
me to the train, I '11 give thee a quarter."
Rod was on the point of saying, politely : " I shjJl
be most happy to do anything I can for you, ma'am;
but I could n't think of accepting pay for it," when
the thought of his position flashed over him, A
EARNING A BREAKFAST. 57
quarter would buy him a breakfast, and it would be
honorably earned too. Would it not be absolutely
wrong to refuse it under the circumstances ? Thus
thinking, he touched his cap, and said : " Certainly I
will do all I can to help you, ma'am, and will be
glad of the chance to earn a quarter."
When the rid lady had procured her ticket ? and
Rod had received the first bit of money he had ever
earned in his life by helping her to a comfortable
seat in the right car, she would have detained and
questioned him, but for Iier fear that he might be
carried off. So she bade him hurry from the car
as quickly as possible, though it still lacked nearly
ten minutes of the time of starting.
The hungry boy knew well enough where he
wanted to go, and what he wanted to do, now. In
about three seconds after leaving the car he was
seated at the railroad lunch-counter, with a cup of
coffee, two hard-boiled eggs, and a big hot roll before
him. He could easily have disposed of twice as
much ; but prudently determined to save some of
his money for another meal, which he realized, with
a sigh, would be demanded by his vigorous appetite
before the day was over.
To his dismay, when he asked the young woman
58 CAB AND CABOOSE.
behind the counter how much he owed for what he
had eaten, she answered, " Twenty-five cents, please."
He thought there must be some mistake, and asked
her if there was not ; but she answered : " Not at all.
Ten cents for coffee, ten for eggs, and five for the
roll." With this she swept Rod's solitary quarter
into the money-drawer, and turned to wait on
another customer.
" Well, it costs something to live," thought the
boy, ruefully, as he walked away from the counter,
" At that rate I could easily have eaten a dollar's
worth of breakfast, and I certainly sha'n't choose
this for my boarding place, whatever happens."
CHAPTER IX.
GAINING A FOOTHOLD.
1 CHOUGH he could have eaten more, Rod felt
decidedly better for the meal so unexpectedly
secured, and made up his mind that now was the
time to see the superintendent and ask for employ-
ment. So he made his way to that gentleman's
office, where he was met by a small boy, who told
him that the superintendent had been there a few
minutes before, but had gone away with President
Vanderveer.
When will he be back ? " asked Rod.
a Not till he gets ready," was the reply ; " but the
best time to catch him is about five o'clock."
For the next six hours poor Rod wandered about
the station and the railroad yard, with nothing to
do and nobody to speak to, feeling about as lonely
And uncomfortable as it is possible for a healthy and
naturally light-hearted boy to feel. He strolled into
60 CAS AND CABOOSB.
the station twenty times to study the slow moving
hands of its big clock, and never had the hours
appeared to drag along so wearily. When not thus
engaged he haunted the freight yard, mounting the
steps of every caboose he saw, in the hope of recog^
nizing it. At length, to his great joy, shortly before
five o'clock he saw, through a window set in the
door of one of these, the well-remembered interior
in which he had spent the preceding night. He
could not be mistaken, for there lay his own M. I. P.
bag on one of the lockers. But the car was empty,
and its doors were locked. Carefully observing its
number, which was 18, and determined to return fr-
it as quickly as possible, Rod directed his steps
once more in the direction of the superintendent's
office.
The same boy whom he had seen in the morning
greeted him with an aggravating grin, and said:
"You 're too late. The l super' was b ere half an
hour ago ; but he 's left, and gone out over the road.
Perhaps he won't be back for a week."
" Oh ! ' exclaimed Rod in such a hopeless tone
that even the boy's stony young heart was touched
by it.
GAINING A FOOTHOLD.
tt f s it R. R. B. ? " he asked, meaning, " Are you
on railroad business ? '
"Yes," answered Rod, thinking his own initials
were meant. (
" Then perhaps the private secretary can attend to
it," said the boy. " He 's in there." Here he pointed
with his thumb towards an hmer room, " and I '1!
go see."
In a moment he returned, saying, " Yes. He
says he '11 see you if it 's R. R. B. 5 and you can
go right in."
Rodman did as directed, and found himself in a
handsomely-furnished office, which, somewhat to his
surprise, was filled with cigarette smoke. In it, with
his back turned toward the door, and apparently
busily engaged in writing, a young man sat at one
of the two desks that it contained.
" Well, sir," said this individual, without looking
up, in a voice intended to be severe and business-like,
but which was somewhat disguised by a cigarette
lield between his teeth, u What can I do for you ? r
" I came," answered Rod, hesitatingly, " to see i!
the superintendent of this road could give me any
employment on it. w
62 CAB AND CABOOSE.
The words were not out of his mouth, before the
private secretary, wheeling abruptly about, disclosed
the unwelcome face of Snyder Appleby.
" Well, if this is n't a pretty go ! '" he exclaimed,
with a sneer. " So you Ve come here looking for
work, have you? I 'd like to know what you
know about railroad business, anyhow? No, sir;
you won't get a job on this road, not if I can help
it, and I rather think I can. The best thine for
o
you to do is to go back to Euston, and make up
with the old gentleman. He's soft enough to for-
give anything, if you 're only humble enough. As
for the idea of you trying to be a railroad man, it 's
simply absurd. We want men, not boys, in this
business."
Too surprised and indignant to reply at once to
this cruel speech, and fearful lest he should be
unable to control his temper if he remained a
moment longer in the room, Rodman turned, with-
out a word, and hurried from it. He was choked
with a bitter indignation, and could not breathe
freely until he was once more outside the building,
and in the busy railroad yard.
As he walked mechanically forward, hardly noting
GAINING A FOOTHOLD. 63
in the raging tumult of his thoughts, whither his
steps were tending, a heavy hand was laid on his
shoulder, and a hearty voice exclaimed : " Hello,
young fellow ! Where have you been, and where
are you bound ? I Ve been looking for you every
where. Here 's your grip that I was just taking to
the lost-parcel room."
It was Brakeman Joe, with Rod's M. T. P. bag in
his hand, and his honest, friendly countenance
seemed to the unhappy boy the very most welcome
face he had ever seen. They walked together to
caboose Number 18, where Rod poured into the
sympathizing ears of his railroad friend the story of
his day's experience.
" Well, I '11 be bio wed ! " exclaimed Brakeman
Joe, using Conductor Tobin's favorite expression,
when the boy had finished. " If that is n't tough
luck, then I don't know what is. But I '11 tell you
what we '11 do. I can't get you a place on the road,
of course ; but I believe you are just on time for a
job, such as it is, that will put a few dollars in your
pocket, and keep you for a day or two, besides giv-
ing you a chance to pick up some experience of a
trainman's
64 CAB AND CABOOSE.
"Oh, if you only will! " began the boy s
gratefully.
tt Better wait till you hear what it is, and we see
if we can get it," interrupted Joe. " You see the
way of it is this, there was a gent around here awhile
ago with a horse, that he wants to send out on our
train, to some place in the western part of the State.
I don't know just where it 's going, but his brothel
is to meet it at the end of our run, and take charge
of it from there. Kow the chap that the gent had
engaged to look after the horse that far, has gone
back on him, and did n't show up here as he prom
ised, and the man 's looking for somebody else,
" We '11 just go down to the stock-yard, and if he
has n't found anybody yet, maybe you can get the
job. See ? "
Half an hour later it was all arranged. The gen-
tleman was found, and had not yet engaged any one
to take the place of his missing man. He was so
pleased with Rod's appearance, besides being so
thoroughly satisfied by the flattering recommenda-
tions given him by Brakeman Joe, and the master of
the stock-yard, who had noticed the boy in the
morning, that he readily employed him, offering him
dollars for the
GAINING A FOOTHOLD. 65
So Rod's name was written on the way-bill, he
helped get the horse, whose name was Juniper, com-
fortably fixed in the car set apart for him, and then
he gladly accepted the gentleman's invitation to dine
with him in a restaurant near by. There he received
his final instructions.
5
CHAPTER X.
A THRILLING EXPERIENCE.
BETWEEN the time that Rod took charge of
Juniper, and the time of the train's starting,
the young " stockman," as he was termed on the
way-bill, had some pretty lively experiences. Before
the owner of the horse left, he handed the boy two
dollars and fifty cents, which was half the amount
he had agreed to pay him, and a note to his brother,
requesting him to pay the bearer the same sum at
the end of the trip. After spending fifty cents for
a lunch, consisting of crackers, cheese, sandwiches,
and a pie, for the boy had no idea of going hungry
again if he could help it, nor of paying the extrava-
gant prices charged at railroad lunch-counters, Rod
took his place, with Juniper, in car number 1160,
which was the one assigned to them. Here he
o
proceeded to make the acquaintance of his charge;
and, aided by a few lumps of sugar that he had
66
I THRILLING EXPERIENCE. 67
obtained for this purpose, he soon succeeded in
establishing the most friendly relations between
them.
Suddenly, while he was patting and talking to
the horse, car number 1160 received a heavy bump
from a string of empties, that had just been sent
flying down the track on which it stood, by a switch
engine. Juniper was very nearly flung off his feet,
and was greatly frightened. Before Rod could quiet
him, there came another bump from the opposite
direction, followed by a jerk. Then the car began
to move, while Juniper, quivering in every limb,
snorted with terror. Now came a period of " drill-
ing," as it is called, that proved anything but
pleasant either to the boy or to the frightened
animal. The car was pushed and pulled from one
track to another, sometimes alone and sometimes in
company with other cars. The train of which it
was to form a part was being made up, and the
K drilling" was for the purpose of getting together
the several cars bound to certain places, and of
placing those that were to be dropped off first
behind those that were to make the longest runs.
Juniper's fears increased with each moment, iintf
68 CAB AND CABOOSE,
at length, when a passenger locomotive, with shriek
ing whistle, rushed past within a few feet, he gave
a jump that broke the rope halter confining him,
and bounded to the extreme end of the car. Rod
sprang to the open door not with any idea of
leaving the car, oh, no ! his sense of duty was too
strong for that, but for the purpose of closing it so
that the horse should not leap out. Then he ap-
proached the terrified animal with soothing words,
and caught hold of the broken halter. At the same
o
moment the car was again set in motion, and the
horse, now wild with terror, flew to the other end,
dragging Rod after him. The only lantern in the
car was overturned and its light extinguished, so
that the struggle between boy and horse was con-
tinued in utter darkness. Finally a tremendous
bump of the car flung the horse to the floor; and,
before he could regain his feet, Rod was sitting on
his head. The boy was panting from his exertions,
as well as bruised from head to foot ; but he was
thankful to feel that no bones were broken, and
hoped the horse had escaped serious injury as well
as himself.
After several minutes of quiet he became satisfied
oo
O
2?
S*
->-
T
-H
J
O
at
Z
P
A THRILLING EXPERIENCE- 69
that that last bump was the end of the drilling, and
that car number 1160 had at length reached its
assigned position in the train. Still he did not think
it safe to let the horse up just yet, and so he waited
until he heard voices outside. Then he called for
help. The next moment the car door was pushed
open, and Conductor Tobin, followed by Brakeman
Joe, entered it.
" Well, I '11 be everlastingly blowed ' r cried
Conductor Tobin, using the very strongest orra of
his peculiar expression, as the light from his lantern
fell on the strange tableau presented by the boy and
horse. " If this does n't beat all the stock-tending I
o
ever heard of. Joe here was just telling me you was
going out with us to-night, in charge of a horse, and
we were looking for your car. But what are you
doing to him ? '
" Sitting on his head," answered Rod, gravely.
" So I see," said Conductor Tobin, " and you loot
rery comfortable ; but bow does he like it ? '
" I don't suppose he likes it at all," replied the boy ;
" but I could n't think of anything else to do." Then
he told them of the terror inspired in the animal by
the recent drilling ; how it had broken loose and
JO CAB AND CABOOSE.
dragged him up and down the car, and how he came
to occupy his present position.
" Well, you 've got sand ! " remarked Conductor
Tobin admiringly when the story was finished.
" More 'n I have," he added. " I would n't have
stayed here in the dark, with a loose horse tear-
ing round like mad. Not for a month's pay I
would n't."
" No more would I," said Brakeman Joe ; " a
scared hoss is a terror. "
Then they brought some stout ropes, and Juniper
was helped to his feet, securely fastened and soothed
and petted until all his recent terror was forgotten.
To Rod's great delight he was found to be uninjured,
except for some insignificant scratches ; and by his
recent experience he was so well broken to railroad
riding that he endured the long trip that followed
the utmost composure.
CHAPTER XL
A BATTLE WITH TRAMPS,
AFTER quieting Juniper, and having the satis-
faction of seeing him begin to eat hay quite
as though he were in his own stable, Rod left the
car and followed his railroad friends in order to learn
something about getting a train ready for its run.
He found them walking on opposite sides of it,
examining each car by the light of their lanterns, and
calling to each other the inscriptions on the little
leaden seals by which the doors were fastened.
These told where the cars came from, which informa-
tion, together with the car numbers, and the initials
showing to what road they belonged, Conductor
Tobin jotted down in his train-book. He also com-
pared it with similar information noted on certain
brown cards, about as wide and twice as long as
ordinary playing-cards, a package of which he earned
In his hand. The destinations of the several cars
72 CAB AND CABOOSE.
could also be learned from these cards, which are
called " running slips." Each car in the train was
represented by one of them, which would accompany
it wherever it went, being handed from one con-
ductor to another, until its final destination was
reached.
At length, about ten o'clock, through Freight
Number 73, to which car number 1160 was
attached, received its " clearance," or order to start,
from the train-dispatcher, and began to move heavily
out from the yard, on to the main west-bound track.
Juniper now did not seem to mind the motion of the
car in the least ; but continued quietly eating his
hay as though he had been a railroad traveller all
his life. So Rod, who had watched him a little
anxiously at first, had nothing to do but stand at
the open door of his car and gaze at what scenery
the darkness disclosed. Now that he was beginning
to comprehend their use, he was deeply interested
in the bright red, green, and white lights of the
semaphore signals that guarded every switch and
siding:. He knew that at nisrht a white lio;ht dis
O o ~
played from the top of a post, or swung across the
track in the form of a lantern, meant safety, a red
A BATTLE WITH TRAMPS. 73
light meant danger, and a green light meant caution*
If it had been daytime he would have seen thin
wooden blades, about four feet long by six inches
wide, pivoted near the top of the same posts that
now displayed the lights. He would have learned
that when these stretched out horizontally over the
track, their .warning colors must be regarded by
every engineman ; while if they hung down at aix
angle, no attention need be paid to them.
Being a very observant boy, as well as keenly in-
terested in everything to be seen on a railroad, Rod
soon discovered that the semaphore lights also ap-
peared at intervals of a few miles along the track, at
places where there were no switches, and that these
always moved as soon as the train passed them. He
afterwards discovered that these guarded the ends
of the five-mile blocks, into which the road was
divided alonoj its entire length. Each of the stations.
o o
at these points, is occupied by a telegraph operator
who, as soon as the train enters his block, displays a
red danger signal behind it. This forbids any other
train to enter the block, on that track, until he re-
ceives word from the operator at the other end of
the block that the first train has passed out of it
74 CAB AND CABOOSE.
Then he changes his signal from red to white, as a
notice that the block is free for the admission
of the next train. This "block system," as it is
called, which is now in use on all principal railroad
lines, renders travel over them very much safer than
it used to be before the system was devised.
After watching the semaphore lights for some time,
and after assuring himself that Juniper was riding
comfortably, Rod spread a blanket, that Brakeman
Joe had loaned him, over a pile of loose hay, placed
his M. L P. bag for a pillow, and in a few minutes
was sleeping on this rude bed as soundly as though
he were at home.
Some hours later the long, heavily laden train
stopped at the foot of the steep grade just east of
Euston, and was cut in two in order that half of it
might be drawn to the top at a time. Rear Brake-
man Joe was left to guard the part of the train that
remained behind, and he did this by walking back
a few hundred yards along the track, and placing a
torpedo on top of one of the rails. Then he went
back as much farther and placed two torpedoes, one
a rail's length behind the other.
These railroad torpedoes are small, round tin boxes,
A BATTLE WITH TRAMPS. 75
about the the size of a silver dollar, filled with per-
cussion powder. To each is attached two little
straps of lead, which are bent under the upper part
of the rail to hold the torpedo in position. When it
is struck by the ponderous wheels of a locomotive,
it explodes with the sound of a cannon cracker. The
explosion of two torpedoes, one directly after the other,
is the signal for caution, and bids the engineman
proceed slowly, keeping a sharp lookout for danger.
The explosion of a single torpedo is the signal of
immediate danger, and bids him stop his train as
quickly as possible. Thus Brakeman Joe had pro-
tected his train by arranging a cautionary signal,
which would be followed immediately by that of
danger. Before his train started again he intended
to take up the single torpedo, leaving only those call-
ing for caution, to show that the freight had been
delayed. In the meantime he decided to walk back
to the cars left in his charge and see that no one was
meddling with them.
Rod was too soundly asleep to know anything of
all this, nor did he know when an ugly-looking fellow
peered cautiously into his car, and said, in a low tone '
here ain't it. It must be the one ahead/
76 CAB AND CABOOSE.
The first thing of which he was conscious was hear
ing, as in a dream, the sound of blows, mingled with
shouts, and a pistol shot, and then Brakeman Joe's
voice calling : " Rod ! Rod Blake ! Help ! quick ! "
An instant later the boy had leaped from the car,
and was by his friend's side, engaged in a desperate
struggle with four as villainous-looking tramps as
could well be found ; though, of course, he could not
judge of their appearance in the darkness. Joe was
wielding the heavy oak stick that at other times he
used as a lever to aid him in twisting the brake
wheels; but Rod was obliged to depend entirely on
his fists. The skill with which he used these was
evidently a surprise to the big fellow who rushed at
him, only to receive a stinging blow in the face,
which was followed by others delivered with equal
promptness and effect. There were a few minutes
of fierce but confused fighting. Then, all at once.
Rod found himself standing alone beside a car the
o
door of which was halfway open. Two of the tramps
had mysteriously disappeared ; he himself had sent
a third staggering backward down the bank into a
oo o
clump of bushes, and he could hear Brakeman Joe
chasing the fourth down the track.
A BATTLE WITH TRAMPS. 77
^L few minutes later the locomotive came back,
sounding four long blasts and one short one on its
whistle, as a recall signal for the rear flagman. It
was coupled on, and some one waved a lantern, with
an up-and-down motion, from the rear of the train, as
a signal to go ahead. The engineman opened the
throttle, and the great driving wheels spun round
furiously; but the train refused to move. He
sounded two long whistle blasts as a signal to
throw off brakes. Then a lantern was seen moving
over the tops of the cars, the brakes that had been
holding them, were loosened, and the signal to go
ahead was again waved. After this the lantern
disappeared as though it had been taken into the
caboose, and the train moved on.
Its severed parts were re-united at the top of the
grade, and it passed on out of the block in which all
these events had taken place, before Conductor
Tobin, who had wondered somewhat at not seeing
Brakeman Joe, discovered that the faithful fellow
was missing. He was not on top of any of the cars,
nor in the caboose, and must have been left behind.
Well, it was too late to stop for him now, Freight
Number 73 must side-track at the next station, to
78 CAB AND CABOOSE
allow the night express to pass, and it had already
been so delayed, that there was no time to lose.
When the station was reached, and Conductor
Tobin had seen his train safely side-tracked, he went
to look for Rod Blake. He meant to ask the boy to
take Brakeinan Joe's place for the rest of the run, or
until that individual should rejoin them by coming
ahead on some faster train. To his surprise the
young stockman was not in car number 1160, nor
could a trace of him be found. He, too, had dis-
appeared and the conductor began to feel somewhat
alarmed, as well as puzzled, by such a curious and
unaccountable state of affairs.
CHAPTER XII.
, GAGGED, AND A PEISONEB.
WHEN Rod Blake was left standing alone
beside the train, after the short but sharp
encounter with tramps described in the preceding
chapter, he was as bewildered by its sudden termin-
ation as he had been, on awaking from a sound sleep,
to find himself engaged in it. He knew what had
become of two of the tramps, for one of them he had
sent staggering backward down the embankment,
oo o
and Brakeman Joe was at that moment pursuing
the second ; but the disappearance of the others was
a mystery. What could have become of them?
They must have slipped away unnoticed, and taken
advantage of the darkness to make good their es-
cape. " Yes, that must be it ; for tramps are always
cowards," thought the boy. "But four of
ought to have whipped two of us easy enough."
8O CAB AND CABOOSE.
Then he wondered what the object of the attach
could have been, and what the tramps were after.
All at once it flashed into his mind that the M. S.
and T. car number 50, beside which he was stand
ing, was filled with costly silks and laces from France
which were being sent West in bond. lie had over-
heard Conductor Tobin say so; and, now, there was
the door of that very car half-way open. The tramps
must have learned of its valuable contents in some
way, and been attempting to rob it when Brakeman
Joe discovered them. What a plucky fellow Jce
was to tackle them single-handed.
" 1 wonder if they got anything before he caught
them ? ' thought the boy ; and, to satisfy his cunos
ity on this point, he went to his own car for the
lantern that was still hanging in it, and returned to
car number 50, determined to have a look at its in^
terior. As he could not see much of it from the
ground, he set the lantern just within the open door*
way, and began to climb in after it. He had hardly
stepped inside, and was stooping to pick up his lan-
tern, when he was knocked down by a heavy blow,
and immediately seized by two men who spraug
from out of the darkness on either side of him.
BOUND, GAGGED* AND A PX/SONB& 8 1
Without a word they bound his wrists with a stout
bit of cord, and, thrusting his own handkerchief into
his mouth, fastened it securely so that he could not
utter a sound. Then they allowed him to rise and
sit on a box, where they took the precaution of pass-
ing a rope about his body and making it fast to an
iron stanchion near the door.
Having thus secured him, one of the men, holding
the lantern close to the bov's face, said in a threat-
/ *
ening tone : " Now, my chicken, perhaps this '11 be a
lesson to you never to interfere again in a business
that does n't concern you."
" Hello ! r exclaimed the other, as he recognized
Rod's features, " if this ere hain't the same cove wot
set the dog onto me last night. Oh, you young wil-
lin, I '11 get even with you now ! '
With this he made a motion as though to strike
the helpless prisoner ; but the other tramp restrained
him, saying : " Hold on, Bill, we hain't got no time
for fooling now. Don't you hear the engine coming
back ? I '11 take this lantern and give 'em the signal
to go ahead, in case that fool of a brakeman does n't
turn up on time, which I don't believe he will." Here
the fellow chuckled meaningly. "You," he con-
82 CAB AND CABOOSE.
tinued, " want to stay right here, and begin to pitch
out the boxes as soon as she starts, and the rest of
us '11 be on hand to gather 'em in. You can easy
jump out when she slows up at the top of the grade.
You want to be sure, though, and shut the door be-
hind you so as nothing won't be suspected, and so
this chap '11 have a good, long ride undisturbed by
visitors ; see ? '
If Rod could not talk, he could still hear ; and, by
paying close attention to this conversation, he formed
a very clear idea of the tramps' plans. They meant
to rob car number 50 of as many of its valuable
packages as Bill could throw from it while the train
was on the grade. He felt satisfied that they had, in
some way, disposed of Brakeman Joe. Now, they
intended to get rid of him by leaving him in the
closed car, helplessly bound, and unable to call for
assistance. What would become of him ? That car
might be going to San Francisco for aught he knew,
and its door might not be opened for days, or
even weeks. It might not be opened until he was
dead of thirst or starvation. What tortures might
he not suffer in this moving prison ? It seemed as
though these thoughts would drive him crazy, and
BOUND, GAGGED, AND A PRISONER. 83
he realized that if he wished to retain his senses and
think out a way of escape, he must not dwell upon
them.
So he tried to think of plans for outwitting the
tramps. The chances of so doing seemed slender
enough ; but he felt certain there must be some way.
In the meantime one of his assailants had left the car,
very nearly closing the door as he did so for fear lest
somebody might come along and notice it if it were
wide open. He had taken the lantern with him, the
train was in motion, the young tramp called Bill was
already preparing to carry out his part of the pro-
gramme and begin throwing out the boxes. Sud-
denly, like a flash of lightning, a plan that would
not only save the car from being robbed, but would
ensure its door being opened before he could die of
either thirst or hunger, darted into Rod's mind.
He knew that the car door closed with a spring
latch that could only be opened from the outside.
He knew that no one could board the train, now
that it was in motion, to open the door. Above all
he knew that if the young tramp were shut in there
with him he would not suffer long from hunger and
thirst before raising his voice and making his pres-
84 CAB AND CABOOSE.
ence known to outsiders. Rod could reach the door
with his foot. A quick push, the welcome click of
the latch as it sprang sharply into place, and the
plan was carried out.
It took Bill, the young tramp, several minutes, to
find out what had happened, and that the door could
not be opened from the inside. When he finally real-
ized his position he broke out with a torrent of
yells and threats against his recent companions. It
never occurred to him that Rod had closed the door.
He imagined that it must have been done from the
outside, by one of his fellow thieves, and his rage
against them knew no bounds. If he had for a
o
moment suspected the captive, whom he regarded
as helplessly bound, he would undoubtedly have
directed his fury towards him, and Rod might have
suffered severely at his hands. As it was, he only
yelled and kicked against the door until the train
began to slow up at the top of the grade. Then, fear-
ful of attracting undesirable attention, he subsided
into a sullen silence.
While these things were happening to Rod, Brake-
man Joe was suffering: even greater misfortunes. His
o o
left arm had been broken by the pistol shot, that was
BOUND, GAGGED, AND A PRISONER. 8$
one of the first sounds of the fight by which the young
stockman was awakened ; and when he started in
pursuit of the %ing tramp, he was weaker than he
realized, from loss of blood. The tramp quickly dis-
covered that he could easily keep out of his pursuer's
way. Judging from this that the Brakeman must be
either wounded or exhausted, he gradually slackened
his pace, until Joe was close upon him. Then spring-
ing to one side, and whirling around, the tramp dealt
the poor fellow a blow on the head with the butt of
a revolver, that stretched him senseless across the rails
of the west-bound track. After satisfying himself
that his victim was not in a condition to molest him
anfain for some time to come, and brutallv leaving
/ o
him where he had fallen, directly in the path of
the next west-bound train, the tramp began leisurely
to retrace his steps toward Freight Number 73, it
the plunder of which he now hoped to take a part
CHAPTER XIII.
HOW BRAKEMAN JOE WAS SAVED.
FOE, ten minutes Brakeman Joe lies insensible
and motionless, just as lie fell. His own train
has gone on without him, and now another is approach-
ing. Its shrill whistle sounds near at hand, and the
rails, across which the helpless form is stretched,
are already quivering with the thrill of its coming.
There seems no earthly help for him ; nothing tc
warn the controlling mind of that on-rushing mass
of his presence. In a few seconds the tragedy wila
be over.
Suddenly, crack ! crack ! two loud reports ring out
sharply above the roar and rattle of the train, one
just after the other. The eugiuemau is keenly alert
on the instant; and, with one hand on the brake
lever, the other on the throttle, he peers steadily
ahead. The headlight, that seems so dazzling, and
to cast its radiance so far, to those approaching it, in
86
HOW BRAKEMAtf JOE WAS SAVED. 87
reality illumines but a short space to him who sits
behind it, and the engineman sees no evidence of
danger. There is no red beacon to stop him, nor any
train on the track ahead. He is beginning to think
the alarm a false one, when another report, loud and
imperative, rings in his startled ear. In an instant
the powerful air brakes are grinding against the
wheels of every car in the night express, until the
track is lighted with a blaze of streaming sparks. A
moment later the rushing train is brought to a stop,
inside half its own length.
Even now nobody knew why it had been stopped,
nor what danger threatened it. It was not until the
engineman left his cab, and discovered the senseless
form of Brakeman Joe lying across the rails, less than
a hundred feet away, that he knew why he had been
signalled. The wounded man was recognized at once,
as belonging to the train ahead of them ; but how he
carne in that sad plight, and who had placed the
warning torpedoes to which he owed his escape from
death, were perplexing questions that none could
answer.
Very tenderly they lifted him, and laid him in the
baggage car. Here Conductor Tobin found him a
88 CAS AND CABOOSE.
few minutes later, when, to his surprise, the night
express, that generally whirled past him at full speed,
slowed up and halted beside his own train, standing
on the siding. " Yes," this was his brakeman, one of
the best and most faithful fellows in the service ;
but how he got where they found him, or what had
happened, he could not explain. He had lost another
man off his train that night, a young fellow named
Rodman Blake. Had they seen anything of him ?
" No ! well, then he must have thrown up his job
and gone into Euston where he belonged. Good-
night." In another minute only a far-away murmur
among the sleeping hills told of the passing of the
night express.
Brakeman Joe was placed on the station agent's
little cot bed, and the doctor was sent for. That
was all they could do, and so Freight Number 73 also
pulled out, leaving him behind. A minute later,and
it too was gone, and the drowsy echoes answered its
heavy rumblings faintly and more faintly, until they
again fell asleep, and all was still.
Through the long hours of the night Rod Blake
sat and silently suffered. The distress of the gag in
his mouth became wellnigh intolerable, and his wrists
HOW BRAKEMAN JOE WAS SAVED. 09
swelled beneath the cords that bound them, until he
could have cried out with the pain. He grew thirsty
too. Oh, so thirsty ! and it seemed as though the day-
light would never come. He had no idea what good,
or even what change for the better, the daylight
would bring him ; but still he longed for it. Nor
was the young tramp who shared his imprisonment
at all happy or comfortable. He too was thirsty,
and hungry as well, and though he was not gagged
nor bound, he suffered, in anticipation, the punish-
ment he expected to receive when he and his wicked-
ness should be discovered. Thus, whenever the
train stopped, a sense of his just deserts terrified him
into silence ; though while it was in motion his
ravings were terrible to hear.
At length the morning light began to show itself
through chinks and crevices of the closed car. Con-
ductor Tobin and his men reached the end of their
run, and turned the train over to a new crew, who
brought with them a fresh locomotive and their own
o
caboose.
Still the young tramp would not give in. The
morning was nearly gone, and Rod was desperate
with suffering, before he did, and, during a stop,
90 CAB AND CABOOSE.
began to shout to be let out. Nobody heard him,
apparently, and when the train again moved on, the
situation of the prisoners was as bad as ever.
Now the fellow began to grow as much alarmed
for fear he would not be discovered, as he had pre
viously been for fear lest he should be. In this state
of mind he decided that at the next stop the shouting
for help should be undertaken by two voices instead
of one. So he removed the gag from Rod's mouth,
and cut the cord by which his wrists were bound.
The poor lad's throat was dry and husky ; but he
readily agreed to aid in raising a shout, as soon as
the train should stop.
In the meantime the arrival of Freight Number 73
was awaited with a lively interest at the very station
it was approaching, when this agreement between the
prisoners was made. It was aroused by a despatch,
just sent along the line by the agent in whose charge
Brakeman Joe had been left. The despatch stated
that he had recovered sufficiently to give a partial
account of what had been done to him by a gang of
thieves, whom he had discovered trying to rob car
number 50. It requested the first agent who should
see Train Number 73, to examine into the condition
HOW BRAKEMAN JOE WAS SAVED. 9 1
of car number 50, and discover if anything had been
stolen from it. It also stated that Brakeman Joe was
very anxious concerning the safety of a young stock-
man, who had been on the train, and assisted him
to drive off the thieves ; but who had not since been
heard from.
Thus, while the imprisoned inmates of car number
50 were waiting with feverish impatience for the
train to reach a station at which it would stop, the
railroad men belonging to this station, were waiting
for it with a lively curiosity, that was wholly centered
on car number 50.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE SUPERINTENDENT INVESTIGATES.
AT length a long-drawn whistle from the locomo-
tive attached to Freight Number 73, warned
Rod and his fellow-prisoner that the time for them
to make a combined effort for liberty was at hand.
It fv^o notified the curious watchers at the station
of the approach of the train for which they were
waiting. The trainmen were surprised at the unusual
number of people gathered about the station, and the
evident interest with which their arrival was regarded.
o
At the same time those composing the little throng
of waiting spectators were amazed, as the train drew
ap and stopped, to hear loud cries for help proceeding
from a car in its centre.
"It's number 50 !" exclaimed one, "the very car
we are looking for."
o
" So it is ! Break open the door ! Some one it
being murdered in there ! v> shouted other voices, and
a rush was made for the car.
THE SUPERINTENDENT INVESTIGA TS. 93
As its door was pushed open, by a dozen eager
hands, a wretched-looked figure, who had evidently
been pressing closely against it, and was unprepared
for such a sudden movement, pitched out headlong
into the crowd. As he staggered to his feet he tried
i'o force his wav through them, with the evident
i/ O
ktention of running away; but he was seized and held.
For a moment the whole attention of the spectators
was directed toward him, and he was stupefied by
the multitude of questions showered upon him at
once. Then some one cried. " Look out ! There 's
another in there ! ' and immediately poor Rod was
roughly dragged to the ground. " Take them into
the waiting-room, and see that they don't escape
while I examine the car. There may be more of the
gang hidden in there," commanded the station agent.
So to the waiting-room the prisoners were hustled
with scant ceremony. As yet no one knew what
they had done, nor even what they were charged
with doing; but every one agreed that they were
two of the toughest looking young villains ever seen
in that part of the country.
During the confusion, no one had paid any attention
to the arrival, from the west, of a locomotive drawing
94 CAB AND CABOOSE.
a single car. Nor did they notice a brisk, business-
like appearing man who left this car, and walked,
with a quick step, toward the waiting-room. Every
one therefore looked up in surprise when he entered
it and demanded, in a tone of authority, " What 's
the trouble here ? r
Instantly a murmur was heard of, " It 's the super
intendent. It's the l super ' himself"; and, as the
crowd respectfully made way for him, a dozen of
voices were raised in attempted explanation of what
had happened. As no one really knew what had hap-
pened, no two of the voices told the same story ; but
the superintendent catching the words " murderers,
thieves, tramps, brakeman killed, and car robbed,"
became convinced that he had a most serious case on
his hands, and that the disreputable-looking young
fellows before him must be exceedingly dangerous
characters. In order to arrive at an understanding
of the case more quickly, he ordered the the room to
be cleared of all except the prisoners, the station
agent, and the trainmen of Freight Number 73, whom
he told to guard the doors.
He first examined the conductor, who was as sur-
prised as any one else to find that he had been
THE SUPERINTENDENT INVESTIGA TES. 9$
carrying two passengers of whom he knew nothing
on his train. He had no information to give, except-
ing what Conductor Tobin had told him, and what
the superintendent had already learned by telegraph,
of Brakeman Joe's condition. The other trainmen
knew nothing more.
The station agent told of the despatch he had
received, of the finding of the lads in car number 50,
and that its contents were apparently untouched.
Here the superintendent dismissed the trainmen,
and ordered Freight Number 73 to go ahead. Then ?
with new guards stationed at the doors, he proceeded
to question the prisoners themselves. As Bill, the
tramp, seemed to be the elder of the two, he was the
first examined. In answer to the questions who he
was, where he came from, and what he had been
doing in car number 50, Bill said, with exactly the
manner he would have used in addressing a Police
Justice :
" Please yer Honor we 's pards, me an' him is, an'
we 's bin tendin' stock on de road. We was on de
train last night when it was attackeded by a lot of
fellers who was beatin' de brakemau. We went to
help him, an 1 was chucked inter de car, an' de door
CAB AND CABOOSE.
locked on us. We 's bin tryin' to get out even since,
me an' him has, yer Honor, but we could n't make
nobody hear us till we got here. We 's nearly dead
for food an' drink, yer Honor, an' we 's honest, hard-
working boys, an' dat 's de truth if I die for it, yer
Honor. He 'd tell yer de same, but fer a bit of a
difference me and him had when he swore to git even
wid me. So maybe he '11 lie now ; but yer Honor
can depend on what I 'm "
"That will do," interrupted the superintendent.
Then turning to Rodman he asked, " What have you
to say for yourself ? '
"If you '11 please give me a drink of water I ? 11 try
to tell all I know of this affair," answered the boy
huskily, now speaking for the first time since he had
Seen taken from the car.
When the water was brought, and Bill had been
O '
given a drink as well as himself, Rod continued, "I
WSLS a stockman on that train in charge of a horse "
o
" Jest as I was a-tellin' yer Honor," murmured Bill.
" And there was a fight with tramps, who attempted
to rob the car in which we were found."
Here Bill nodded his head approvingly as much
to say " I told you so.''
THE SUPERINTENDENT INVESTIGA TES. 97
* But this fellow was one of them, and he helped
make a prisoner of me, and to bind and gag me. He
would have thrown the freight out of the car to those
who were waiting outside to receive it, if I had n't
succeeded in closing the door, and locking us both
in"
" Ooo ! did n't I tell yer Honor he M maybe lie on
me ? " protested Bill.
" Keep quiet ? ' commanded the superintendent
sharply, and then to Rod he said: "How can you
prove your statements ? '
" I can prove that I was bound and gagged by
these marks," replied the boy, pointing to the sides
Df his mouth which were red and chafed, and hold-
ing out his swollen wrists for the superintendent's
inspection. "And I can prove that 1 was travelling
in charge of a horse by this." Here Rod produced
the note from Juniper's owner, asking his brother to
pay the bearer two dollars and a half upon the safe
delivery of the horse.
" I have a paper too," broke in Bill, fumbling in
his pockets. From one of them he finally produced
a dirty note, signed by a Western cattle dealer, and
authorizing one Bill Miner to take charge of certain
98 CAB AND CABOOSE.
stock about to be shipped over the New York and
Western railroad.
The superintendent read the two notes, and looked
at the two young fellows. In general appearance one
was very nearly as bad as the other ; for, though Rod
did not realize the fact, his clothing and person were
so torn and dirty from the fight of the preceding night
and his subsequent rough experience, that he looked
very nearly as much of a tramp as Bill himself.
" I wonder which of you I am to believe, or if
either is telling me the truth?' said the superin-
tendent dubiously, half aloud and half to himself.
CHAPTER XV.
SMILER TO THE KESCUE.
AT that moment a small dog walked into the
room, wagging his tail with an air of being
perfectly at home there. Hod was the first to notice
him, and his eye lighted with a gleam of genuine
pleasure.
"Smiler ? Smiler, old dog ! " he said.
The next instant Smiler was licking his face and
testifying to his joy at again meeting this friend, in
the most extravagant manner. Suddenly he caught
sight of Bill, and drawing back his upper lip with an
ominous growl, would have flown at the young
tramp had not Kodman restrained him.
"That settles it, so far as I am concerned,"
exclaimed the superintendent, with a relieved air,
" Any one that Smiler recognizes as a friend must
be an honest fellow ; while the person whom Sinilei
calls an enemy, must have given him good cause foj
C 552 32*' 99
TOO CAB AND CABOOSE.
his enmity, and is to be regarded with distrust by all
railroad men. Now, I am going to carry you two
chaps to the Junction where Conductor Tobin and
his crew are lying off to-day. There, I have no
doubt, this whole matter will be explained satisfac-
torily to me and to one of you, as well as with perfect
i
justice to you both."
Snriler, who had reached this station on a passenger
locomotive, now attached himself resolutely to Rod,
and followed him into the superintendent's private
car, here he was made as cordially welcome as he
would have been in the humblest caboose on the
road. Some of his enthusiastic admirers declared
that Snriler owned the road; while all admitted that
there was but one other individual connected with
it, whose appearance was so uniformly welcome as
his, and that was the paymaster.
Now, there was a marked difference shown between
the treatment of Smiler's friend, and that of his
enemy. The former was invited to sit down with
the superintendent and eat dinner, which was
announced as ready soon after they left the station ;
but Bill was consigned to the care of a brakeman
o
who received strict orders not to give him a chance
SMILER TO THE RESCUE. IOI
to escape. He was given a substantial meal of course ;
for Mr. Hill the superintendent was not a man who
would permit anybody to suffer from hunger if he
could help it. Here the courtesy extended to him
ended, and he was treated in all respects like a
prisoner. Most of the time he rode in sullen silence ;
but occasionally he broke forth with vehement pro-
testations of his innocence, and of the truth of the
story he had told.
Rodman, on the other hand, was treated with
marked consideration ; for, not only was he a friend
of Smiler's, but the more Mr. Hill talked with him
the more he believed him to be a gentleman, as well
as an honest, truth-telling lad, who had, by a brave
and prompt action, saved the railroad company a
large amount of property. He was confirmed in his
belief that Rod was a gentleman, by his having asked
to be allowed to wash his face and hands before
sitting down to dinner. The lad was shocked at his
own appearance when he glanced into a mirror, and
the superintendent smiled at the wonderful change
made by the use of soap, water, and brushes, when
he emerged from the well-appointed dressing-room of
the car.
102 CAB AND CABOOSE.
While they sat at table Mr. Hill drew the lad's
story from him, including the manner in which he
had obtained Smiler's friendship, and his desire to
become a railroad man. Rod did not however
mention the name of President Vanderveer; for he
was desirous of winning success by himself, and on
his own merits, nor did lie give his reasons for
leaving Euston.
When the locomotive, drawing the superintend-
ent's private car, and displaying two white flags in
front to denote that it was running as an " extra r
train, drew up, a couple of hours later, at the Junction,
Rod was asked to remain in the car for a few
minutes, and Bill was ordered to do so. Then Mr.
Hill walked over to caboose number 18, in which,
as he expected, he found Conductor Tobin and his
two brakemen fast asleep, with bits of mosquito
netting spread over their faces to keep off the flies.
Conductor Tobin was greatly confused when he
discovered who was shaking him into wakefulness.
o >
and began to apologize for having been asleep.
" No excuses are necessary, Tobin," said the other
kindly. " A man who works as faithfully as you do
at night, has a perfect right to sleep in the daytime.
SMILER TO THE RESCUE. 103
I would n't have disturbed you, but that I wanted to
ask if you were acquainted with a young fellow
named Rod Blake."
Yes, indeed ! Conductor Tobin not only knew the
lad, but was, at that moment, quite anxious con-
cerning him. He had learned by telegraph from
Brakeman Joe, further particulars of the occurrences
of the preceding night, including Rod's splendid
behavior during the fight with the would-be thieves.
Since then nothing had been heard from him, and
the conductor greatly feared that the brave young
fellow had met with some harm.
" Do you consider him a person whose word is to
be trusted ? ' asked the superintendent.
" "Well, sir," answered Conductor Tobin, " I have n't
known him long, seeing that I first met him only
night before last ; but I Ve already seen enough of
him to be willing to take his word as quick as that
of any man living."
" That is saying a good deal," laughed the super-
intendent, "but I believe you are right. If I am
any judge of character, that lad is an honest fellow."
Then he explained how, and under what circumstances
he had met Rod, and ending by asking,
104 CAB AND CABOOSE.
sort of a railroad man do you think he would
make ? '
u First-rate, sir ! He seems to me to be one who
knows when he is wanted, and who always turns up
at the right time."
" Then you would n't mind having him on your
train, while Joe is laid by ? '
" I should be proud to have him, sir, and to be the
one to start him on the right track as a railroader.' 1
" Very well, we will consider it settled, then, and
I will send him over to you. I wan<r you to do the
best you can by him, and remember that from this
time on I take a personal interest in his welfare,
though of course you need n't tell him so."
Rod was more than delighted when Mr. Hill re-
turned to the car, and offered him the position of
brakeman on Conductor Tobin's train. He promptly
and gladly accepted it, and tried to thank the
superintendent for giving it to him ; but that gentle-
man said : " Never mind expressing any thanks in
words. Express them by deeds instead, and re<
member, that you can win a certain success in rail
road life, by keeping on as you have begun and by
always being on time."
SMILER TO THE RESCUE. IO$
Thus Rod secured a position ; a humble one to be
sure, but one that he had sought and won wholly
by merit. When Snyder Appleby heard of it he
was filled with jealous anger. He declared that
there was not room for both of them on that road, even
if one was only a brakeman, and vowed that if he
could manage it, his adopted cousin should find it
harder to keep his position than it had been to win it
CHAPTER XVI.
SNYDER APPLEBY'S JEALOUSY.
ILL MINER, the tramp, underwent some novel
mental experiences on the day that Rod ob-
tained his position. In the first place the young
fellow, whom he had treated so badly, came to him
while the superintendent was interviewing Conductor
Tobin, and said :
" Look here, Bill, you and I suffered a good deal
together last night, and you know it was mostly
your fault that we did so ; but I '11 forgive you foi
my share of the suffering if you '11 only confess tht,
whole business to the superintendent. He is bound
to find out all about it anyway; for he finds out
everything ; but he '11 think a good deal more of you
if you own up like a man. I would like to be your
friend ; but my friends must be honest fellows, who
are willing to work for a living, not tramps and
thieves. Now shake hands, and make up your mind
to do what I have asked you."
106
SNYDEX APPLEBY'S JEALOUSY. IO/
Mr. Hill's return interrupted the conversation at
this point ; but it left Bill in an unusually reflective
state of mind. ISTo gentleman, such as his late com-
panion in captivity evidently was, had ever shaken
hands with, or asked a favor of him before. In all
his hard young life no one had ever proposed that
he should try honesty and hard work. Ever since
he could remember anything, his associates had
advised dishonesty, and the shirking of work in
every possible way. Yet, now that he thought of
it, he had worked hard, all his life, at being dishonest.
Now what had he to show for it ? Nothing but rags,
and poverty, and a bad reputation. He wondered
how it would seem to be honest, and do honest
work, and associate only with honest people. He
had half a mind to try it, just out of curiosity. The
idea of he, Bill the tramp, being an honest workman,
and perhaps, even getting to be called "Honest Bill,"
struck him as so odd that he chuckled hoarsely over it.
" What are you laughing at ? " demanded the
brakeman who stood on the rear platform of the car
to prevent his escape, and who looked suspiciously
in at the door to discover the meaning of this novel
sound from his prisoner.
108 CAB AND CABOOSE.
Nothing," replied Bill.
"Well, I wish I could get so much fun out of
nothing as you seem able to," said the brakeinan,
who was particularly down on tramps. " I reckon the
super '11 give you something to laugh about directly
that won't seem so funny," he added significantly.
But Bill did not mind this. He was too busy
with his own thoughts. Besides he was used to
o
such speeches, and was also listening to something
else just at that moment. He was listening to the
conversation between Rod and the superintendent.
It certainly was a fine thing for a boy to be talked
to as the greatest man he had ever known was now
talking to his one honest friend, and to be offered
O '
such a position too. How he would like to be a
brakeman ; and, if he were one, how well he would
know how to deal with tramps. He wondered what
Mr. Hill meant by being u on time." Perhaps it
meant bein^ honest.
o
Then Rod left the car, giving him a nod and a
smile as he did so. A moment later it was ao;ain
o
whirling away toward New York, and the superin-
tendent, coming to where the young tramp was
sitting, said : " Now, sir, I 'm ready to attend to your
SAT YDER APPLES F'S JEALOUS Y. 1 09
case. Are you willing to tell me what you know
about this business of robbing our freight trains ?
Or do you prefer to stick to your lying story and go
to prison for it ? '
" I '11 tell you all I know, if you '11 give
me a job for it," answered Bill, with a sudden
resolution to try for Rod Blake's friendship, and at
the same time to make a good bargain for himself if
he could.
Regarding him keenly, the superintendent said :
" So you want to be paid for being honest, do you ? '
Well, I don't know but what you are right. Honesty
is well worth paying for. So, if you will tell me,
truthfully, all you know of this business I promise
you a job that will earn you an honest living, and
that you can keep just so long as you work faith-
fully at it."
" Honesty again. How often these gentlemen use
the word, and how much they seem to think of it,"
thought Bill. However, as it seemed to promise
something different from anything he had ever
known, he determined to try it, and see what it
would do for him. So he told, in his awkward
fashion, all that he knew of the gHng of tramp
1 10 CAB AND CABOOSE.
thieves, who had been for some time systematically
robbing freight trains at several points along the
road, and Mr. Hill listened to him with the deepest
interest.
As a speedy result of this confession a freight
clerk in the main office of the company, who had
been giving secret information to the thieves, was
discharged the very next day. Brown, the chief of
the company's detectives, learned where and how he
could discover the places where the stolen goods
were hidden, and was thus enabled to recover a
large portion of them. And Bill Miner, no longer
Bill the tramp, found himself doing honest work, as
a locomotive wiper and assistant hostler, in a round
house, at a salary of one dollar and twenty-nine
cents per day.
Certainly Rod Blake's influence was being felt on
the New York and Western railroad.
After his conversation with Bill, the busy super-
intendent found time to stop his flying car at the
station where Brakeman Joe lay suffering from his
wounds, to speak a few kindly words to the faith-
ful fellow, praise his bravery, and assure him that
his full pay should be continued until he had
SNYDER APPLEBY'S JEALOUSY. Ill
entirely recovered from his injuries and was able to
resume duty.
Late that afternoon the private car finished its
long journey in the station at the terminus of the
road, and Mr. Hill hastened to his own office. The
moment he opened the door of the inner room a
cloud of cigarette smoke issued from it, and a frown
settled on his face as he hesitated a moment on the
threshold. His private secretary, who had been
comfortably tilted back in the superintendent's own
easy chair, puffing wreathes of smoke from a
cigarette, started to his feet. " We did not expect
you t< return so soon, sir " he began.
" Evidently not," interrupted Mr. Hill dryly ;
"You are the young man recommended to me by
President Vanderveer, I believe ? "
" Yes, sir."
" Well, sir, you will please to remember for the
future, that neither in this office, nor in any other
belonging to the company, is cigarette smoking
among the qualifications required of our employees.
If you must smoke during business hours, I will
endeavor to fill your position with somebody who is
Dot under that necessity."
112 CAB AND CABOOSE.
For the next half hour Snyder Appleby sat at his
own desk, for once in his life hard at work, and
feeling that he had been decidedly snubbed if not
actually insulted. He was even meditating the
handing in of his resignation, when the superin-
tendent a<rain addressed him, but this time in a
O '
much more friendly tone.
" You are from Euston, I believe ? r
Yes, sir."
" Do you happen to know a young man from
there named Rodman Blake ? r
" Yes, sir. I have an acquaintance there of that
name," replied Snyder hesitatingly, and won lering
what possible interest the "super' could have in
Rod Blake. " The fact is," he added with an
assumed air of frankness, "the young person in
question is a sort of adopted cousin of my own ; but
circumstances have arisen that lead me to consider
him an undesirable acquaintance."
" What are they ? ' inquired the superintendent
bluntly.
" It would hardly be becoming in me to state
them," replied Snyder, wishing he knew why the
other was making these inquiries. "I should be
8
SNYDER APPLEBY'S JEALOUSY. 11$
very sorry to say anything that might injure the
young man's future prospects."
" Had they anything to do with his leaving
Euston, and seeking employment on this road ? '
( 'Yes, sir; I think they had," admitted Snyder
with apparent reluctance.
" Then I consider it your duty to tell me what
they are," said Mr. Hill; "for I have just given
young Blake the position of brakeman, and if there
is any reason why he is unfit for it I should like to
know it."
This aroused all the jealousy in Snyder's nature
and he answered : " Well, sir, if you put it in that
light, I suppose I must tell you that Blake's uncle,
with whom he lived, turned him from the house
without a penny in his pocket on account of his
connection with a most infamous piece of rascality.
But I beg that you will not question me any further
on the subject. It is most painful to me to speak
of even a distant connection in the terms I should
be obliged to use in referring to Rodman Blake.
President Vanderveer knows the whole history of
the affair, and can give you full information
regarding it."
114 CAB AND CABOOSE.
" The President has gone West on a business trip
that will occupy some weeks," replied Mr. Hill, " so
I could not ask him even if I were inclined to trouble
him with so trifling a matter. I shall certainly
investigate it, however, and if I find this young
Blake to be a person of such a character as you
intimate, I shall as certainly discharge him."
CHAPTER XVII.
BOD AS A BBAKEMAN.
IK the meantime Rod, who was happily ignorant
of this conversation, had been warmly welcomed
in caboose number 18. There Conductor Tobin and
the two brakemen listened with intense interest to
all he had to tell them of his recent experiences.
They in turn informed him of Brakeman Joe's con-
dition, and of how the torpedoes had saved him
from being run over by the night express.
He found his M. I. P. bag in the caboose where
Conductor Tobin had been keeping it until he should
hear from him. The conductor also handed Rod a
ten dollar bill, that had been left for him by the
brother of Juniper's owner, as a reward for his
gallant struggle with the terrified horse in the
closed car, and the subsequent care of him.
Peeling very rich and independent with this
amount of money, of his own earning, at his disposal,
Il5 CAB AND CABOOSE.
Rod at once bought for himself a blue checkered
shirt and pair of overalls, a cap, a pair of buckskin
gloves with which to handle brake wheels, one of
the great tin lunch-pails such as railroad men carry,
and a blanket. Thus equipped he felt he was ready
far any emergency. To these purchases he added a
supply of provisions, and a basket of fruit that he
intended to leave for Brakeman Joe when they
should pass the station at which he was.
The train that they were ordered to take came
along shortly before sunset. When it again pulled
out, drawing caboose number 18, and with Hod
Blake, brake-stick in hand, standing on the " deck "
of one of its rear cars, there was no happier nor
prouder lad than he in the country. How he did
enjoy the novelty of that first ride on top of a freight
train, and what a fine thing it seemed, to be really a
railroad man. The nisrht was clear and cold : but
o -
the exercise of setting up brakes on down grades,
and throwing them off for up grades or level
stretches, kept him in a glow of warmth. Then
how bright and cosy the interior of the caboose, that
was now his home, seemed during the occasional
visits that he paid it.
ROD AS A BR AXEMAN.
Before the night grew dark, Conductor Tobin
showed him how to place the two red lanterns on
its rear platform, and the lights that showed red
behind, green in front, and green at the side, on its
upper rear corners. Then he was asked to make a
fire in the little round stove, and prepare a huge pot
of coffee for the train crew to drink during the
night. When there was nothing else to do he might
sit up in the cupola, on the side opposite to that
occupied by Conductor Tobin ; but on this first
night he preferred taking his own lantern, and
going out on " deck," as the top of the cars is called.
Here he was too far from the locomotive to be
annoyed by its smoke or cinders, and he loved to
feel the cool night air rushing past him. He enjoyed
rumbling through the depths of dark forests, and
rattling ovei bridges or long trestles. It was strange
to roll heavily through sleeping towns, where the
only signs of life were the bright lights of the
stations, and the twinkling red, green or white
semaphore lights at the switches.
Some of the time he amused himself by holding
his watch in hand, and counting the clicks of the
car wheels over the rail joints ; for he remembered
Il8 CAB AND CABOOSE.
having read that the number of rails passed in
twenty seconds is almost exactly the number of
miles run by a train in an hour. If it had been day
time he mi^ht also have noted the number of tele-
o
graph poles passed in a minute, and calculated the
speed of the train, by allowing thirty-five poles to
the mile.
All this time, however, he was under orders to
keep a watch on the movements of the brakemen
ahead of him, and to set up, or throw off, brakes on
at least two of the six cars under his charge, when-
ever he noticed them doing so. He was surprised
to learn that it was by no means necessary to put on
all the brakes of a train to cheek its speed, or even
to stop it, and that the application of those on a
third, or even a quarter of its cars answered every
purpose. He also soon learned to jump quickly
whenever brakes were called for by a single short
whistle blast from the locomotive, and to throw
them off at the order of the two short blasts that
called for brakes to be loosened. At first he thought
it curious that the other brakemen should run along
the tops of the cars, and wondered why they were
always in such a hurry. He soon discovered though
ROD AS A BRAKEMAN. Iig
that it was much easier to keep his footing running
than walking, and safer to jump from car to car
than to step deliberately across the open spaces be-
tween them.
Once, during the night, when he and Conductor
Tobin were seated in the caboose eating their mid<
night lunch, the later began to sniff the air suspi-
ciously, and even to Rod's unaccustomed nostrils,
there came a most unpleasant smell. " Hot box ! *
said Conductor Tobin, and the next time they
stopped, they found the packing in an iron box
at the end of an axle, under one of the cars,
blazing at a furious rate. The journals, or bearings,
in which the axle turned, had become dry and so
heated by friction as to set the oil-soaked cotton
waste, or packing, with which the box was filled, on
fire. The job of cooling the box with buckets of
water, and repacking it with waste, and thick, black,
evil-smelling oil was a dirty and disagreeable one,
as Rod quickly learned from experience. He also
realized from what he saw, that if it were not done
in time, the car itself might be set on fire, or the
axle broken off.
These, and many other valuable lessons in rail*
1 20 CAB AND CABOOSE.
reading, did Rod Blake learn that night : and wheix
in the gray dawn, the train pulled into the homg
yard, with its run completed, he was wiser, moit
sleepy and tired, than he had ever been before in all
his life,
CHAPTER XVIIL
WORKING FOB A PKOMOTTOIT.
OR several weeks B,od Blake continued to lead
the life of a brakeman on Conductor Tobin's
train. Although it was a very humble position,
and though the life was one of constant danger and
hard work, he thoroughly enjoyed it. Blessed with
youth, health and a perfect physical condition, he
even found pleasure in the stormy nights, when the
running boards that formed his pathway over the
roofs of the swaying cars were slippery with sleet,
and fierce winds tried their best to hurl him from
them. He experienced a wild joy in battling with,
and conquering, gales that forced him to crawl along
the storm-swept " deck " on hands and knees, clinging
tightly to the running boards, often with lantern
extinguished, and making the passage from car to
car through pitchy darkness. On such nights how
warm and cheerful was the interior of the caboose,
121
122 CAB AND CABOOSE.
when at rare intervals he found a chance to pay it
dripping visits ! How welcome were the cups of hot
coffee from the steaming pot on the glowing stove,
and how the appreciation of all its comforts was
intensified by the wildness of the outside night !
By his unfailing cheerfulness of disposition, his
promptness to answer any call, and on account of
his splendid athletic training, the lad rapidly ex-
tended his circle of friendships, until there was not
a trainman on the division but had a word of greet-
ing, or a friendly wave of the hand for him, as they
met at stations or were whirled past each other on
the road. During the leisure " lay-off " hours at either
end of the run, he gave them boxing lessons in the
caboose. These proved so popular as entertainments
that on such occasions the car was always crowded
with eager pupils and enthusiastic spectators. In
fact, before he had been a month on the road, Rod
Blake had attained a popularity among the rough,
but honest and manly, fellows who shared his labors,
only approached by that of Smiler himself. With
this wise animal he was also such a prime favorite
that the dog was now more frequently to be seen on
his train than on any other.
WORKING FOR A PROMOTION. 12$
After working as rear brakeman, under Conductor
Tobin's especial care, long enough to become
thoroughly acquainted with his duties, Rod was, at
his own request, transferred to the forward end of
the train. Here he had charge of the six or eight
cars immediately following the locomotive. This
was not nearly so pleasant a position as that at the
rear end ; for now, while running, he seldom had a
chance to visit the caboose, and when on duty he
was directly in the path of the very worst of the
smoke and cinders. Then too the work here was
harder than anywhere else on the train ; for, in ad-
dition to his regular duties as brakeman, he was
expected to assist the fireman at water stations, and
by shovelling coal down from the rear end of the
tender so that it was more easily within his reach.
It was for this very reason though that Rod sought
the place. He did not wish to remain a brakeman
very long, nor even to become a conductor ; but he
did want to learn how to run a locomotive, and looked
forward with longing anticipation to the day when
he might fill the proud position of engineman. So
he shovelled coal with a hearty good-will, and seized
every opportunity for riding on the locomotive, and
124 CAB AND CABOOSE.
carefully watched the movements of the men who
managed it. Sometimes he asked questions, but not
often ; when he did they were of such a nature that
the answers were of practical value to him.
From many years of riding in a locomotive cab,
where, with the constant rattle and roar, conversation
is very difficult, the engineman, Truman Stump, had
become a most reticent man, who rarely spoke
unless it was necessary. He had thus gained the
reputation of being ill-tempered and morose, which
was exactly what he was not. Everybody admitted,
though, that he was a first-class engine-driver, and
O ' O
one who could always be relied upon to do exactly
the thing in an emergency.
This man took a liking to the bright-faced young
brakeman from the very first ; and, when Rod began
to appear in his cab, he watched him with a real,
but concealed interest. One day when it was
announced that Milt Sturgis, the fireman, was about
to be promoted and get his engine, everybody
wondered who would take his place, and how a new
man would get along with old True Stump.
Another bit of news received on the train at the
the same time, was that Brakeman Joe had fully
WORKING FOR A PROMOTION. 12$
recovered from his injuries, and was ready to resume
his place. While Rod was glad, for Joe's sake, that
he was well enough to come back, he could not help
feeling some anxiety on his own account, now that
he would no longer be needed as brakeman. This
anxiety was unexpectedly relieved by the engine-
man; who, while standing beside him at a water
station, turned and said :
" Joe 's coming back."
o
"Yes; to-morrow."
" Milt 's going to leave."
So I hear."
" How would you like to fire for me in his
place ? "
" I," exclaimed Eod in astonishment, " Why, I
should like it very much if you think I know enough
for the job."
All right, I '11 fix it"
CHAPTER XIX.
THE EXPRESS SPECIAL.
NOTHING further was said at the time con
cerning Rod's most cherished scheme and
as Brakeman Joe reported for duty that very day
Rod was at a loss to know what he should do next.
He doubted if Trueman Stump could command suf-
ficient influence to secure his appointment as fire-
man before he had undergone a preliminary training
as wiper and hostler in the round-house, though he
felt that he already possessed experience as valuable
as any to be gained in those positions. Still it was
a rule that firemen should be taken from the round-
house and Rod knew by this time that railroad rules
are rarely broken.
Of course he could not retain Joe's position now
that the latter had returned to it, and he would not
if he could. No indeed ! Joe's face still pale from
his long confinement was too radiant with happiness
THE EXPRESS SPECIAL. 12?
at once more getting back among his old friends and
associations for Rod to dim it by the faintest sugges-
tion that the honest fellow's return to duty was likely
to throw Mm out of a job. So he congratulated Joe
upon his recovery, as heartily as any one, and retold
the story of his plucky fight with the thieving
tramps to the little group of railroad men gathered
in caboose number 18 to welcome him back.
As they were all talking at once and making a hero
of Brakeman Joe they were hushed into a sudden
silence by the unexpected entrance of Mr. Hill the
Superintendent. Merely nodding to the others this
gentleman stepped up to Brakeman Joe with
extended hand, saying cordially :
"Good evening, conductor. I am glad to see you
back among us again. I hope you are all right and
will be able to take your train out on time to-night."
" Sir ! I " stammered the astonished Joe.
" You must be mistaking me for Conductor Tobin,
sir."
" Tobin ? oh no ! I know him too well ever to
mistake any one else for him. I take you to be Con-
ductor Joseph Miller of the through freight, whose
promotion has just been posted, to take effect imme<
128 CAB AND CABOOSE
diately. I have also assigned two new men to your
train, with orders to report at once. Here they
come now.'
This announcement fell like a bomb-shell; and
the cheer of congratulation that Joe's friends at
tempted to raise was checked, half-uttered, by the
distressed look on Conductor Tobin's face. Could
it be that he had heard aright ? Was it possible
that he was thus unceremoniously thrown out of
work to make a place for his former brakeman ? His
expression was quite as bewildered as that of Brake
man Joe, and the Superintendent, noticing it,
allowed an amused smile to flit across his own face.
" Don't be alarmed, Tobin," he said, reassuringly ;
" the Company can't very well spare your services,
and have no idea of doing so. If you can make it
convenient I should like to have you take out num-
ber 29 to-night, and, as you will need an extra hand,
I have decided to send young Blake on the same
train; that is, if it will be agreeable to you to
have him."
Number 29 ! The Continental Express Company's
Special ! Why, only passenger conductors had that
train ! What could Mr. Hill mean ?
THE EXPRESS SPECIAL. I2Q
" It 's all right, Tobin," continued that gentleman,
noting the other's embarrassment ; u your name has
gone on to the passenger list, and if you do as well
there as you have with your freights I shall be more
than satisfied. I hope this change strikes you as
being one for the better also ? " he added, turning
to Rod.
"Yes, sir, only " began Rodman, who was
about to say something concerning his desire to be
made a fireman, when he suddenly remembered that
Trueman Stump had requested him not to speak of
it just yet.
" Only what ? " asked Mr. Hill, a little sharply.
" I was afraid I had n't experience enough," an-
swered Rod.
"That is a matter of which I claim to be the
best judge," replied the Superintendent, with a
smile. " And if I am satisfied of your fitness for the
position you certainly ought to be. Now, Tobin,
look lively. Number 29 must be ready to leave in
half an hour. Good-night and good luck to you."
Thus Conductor Tobin's long and faithful service,
and Brakeman Joe's suffering, and Rod Blake's
strict attention to duty were all rewarded at once,
130 CAB AND CABOOSE.
though in Rodman's case the reward had not taken
exactly the shape he desired. Still, a promotion was
a promotion, and where there were so many com-
petitors for each upward step, as there always are on
a railroad, it was not for him to grumble at the form
in which it came.
So as the young railroad man gathered up his few
belongings, he gratefully accepted the congratulations
of his friends. A few minutes later he bade freight
conductor Joe good-bye, and in company with pas-
senger conductor Tobin he left caboose number 18
with much the same feeling that a young scholar
leaves his primary school for one a grade higher.
Number 29 was a peculiar train, and one thatE,oc!
had often watched rush past his side-tracked freight
with feelings of deep interest, not unmixed with
envy. It always followed the " Limited," with all
the latter's privileges of precedence and right of
way. Thus it was such a flyer that the contrast be-
tween it and the freight, which always had to get
out of the way, was as great as that between a
thoroughbred racer and a farm-horse. It was made
up of express cars, loaded with money, jewelry,
plate, and other valuable packages, which caused it
THE EXPRESS SPECIAL. 1 3!
to be known along the road as the " gold mine." In
its money-car was carried specie and bank notes
from the United States Treasury, and from Eastern
banks to Western cities. Thus it was no unusual
thing for this one car to carry a million dollars'
worth of such express matter. Each car was in
charge of a trusted and well-armed messenger, who
locked himself in from one end of his run to the
other, and was prepared to defend the valuables
entrusted to his care with his life. Thus number 29
was one of the most important as well as one of the
very fastest trains on the road ; while to run on it
was considered such an honor that many envious
glances were cast at Rod as he stood on the platform
beside it awaiting the starting-signal.
There had been no time for him to procure the
blue uniform suit, such as the crews of passenger
trains, with whom he now ranked, are required to
wear ; and as the jumper and overalls of a freight
brakeman would have been decidedly out of place
on an express special, Rod had hastily donned his
best suit of every-day clothes. Thus as he stood
near the steps of the single passenger coach that was
attached to the train in place of a caboose for the
132 CAB AND CABOOSE.
accommodation of its conductor and brakemen, he
was not to be distinguished from the throng of pas-
Ben gers hastening aboard the " Limited " on the
O o
opposite side of the platform.
For this reason a young man, with a stout leather
travelling bag slung on his shoulder, paid no atten-
tion to the young brakeman, as after a hurried
glance up and down the platform, he sprang aboard
and entered the coach.
With a bound Rod was after him. " Hello, sir ! '
he cried ; " you must have made a mistake. This is
not a passenger train."
" No ? ' said the other coolly, and Rod now
noticed that he wore a pair of smoked glasses. I
thought it was the " Limited."
" That is the ' Limited,' across the platform,"
explained Rod politely.
" Are you sure of it ? *
" Certably I am."
" What makes you think this is not it ? ' asked
the other with a provoking slowness of speech as
though time was no object to him, and he did not
care whether the " Limited r started without him
or not.
ROD ASSISTS THE YOUNG MAN TO THE "LIMITED." (Page 133.)
THE SPECIAL EXPRESS, 133
"Because I belong on this train and it is my
business to be sure of things connected with it,
replied Rod," still speaking pleasantly.
" Oh, you do, do you. Are you its conductor 2 *
" No, sir, but I am one of its brakemen."
" Are there any more like you ? '
" Yes, sir, there is another like me. I sha'n't need
his help though to put you off this train if you
don't get off, and in a hurry too," answered Rod
hotly, for he began to suspect that the young man
was making fun of him.
" Oh, come now ! ' said the passenger mildly,
" don't get excited, I 'm perfectly willing to go. It
was a very natural mistake for a blind man to make.
You may be blind yourself some day, and then
you '11 find out."
"I did n't know you were blind, sir," exclaimed
Hod apologetically and instantly regretting his
harshness toward one so cruelly afflicted. "I am
very soriy, and if you will allow me, I will see you
safely aboard the ' Limited.'
The young man accepted this offer, explaining at
the same time that while he was not totally blind,
his sight was very dim. So Rod helped him off one
134 CAB AND CABOOSE.
train and into the other, striving by every attention
to atone for the abruptness with which he had
spoken before learning of the other's infirmity. As
he took the stranger's hand to guide him down the
steps of the coach he noticed that the large diamond
of a ring worn by the latter, had cut its way through
the back of one of his kid gloves.
A moment later the " Limited ' pulled out, and
in a few minutes the express special, laden that
night with a freight of unusual value, followed it.
CHAPTER XX.
TROUBLE IN THE MONEY CAB.
T NTIL after midnight the run of the express
V> special was without interruption or incident
Thus far it had made but two stops. The second
of these was at the end of the freight division where
Conductor Tobin had been accustomed to turn over
his train to a relieving crew and spend the day.
With such a flyer as the special, however, his run
was now to be twice as long as formerly, so that he
and Rod looked forward to doing a hundred and
fifty miles more before being relieved. There was
but one other brakeman besides Rod, and as there
was little for either of them to do, save to see that
the rear end lights burned brightly, and always to
be prepared for emergencies, time hung rather
heavily on their hands.
Thanks to automatic air brakes, the life of a pas-
senger brakeman is now a very easy one as compared
135
136 CAB AND CABOOSE.
with the same life a few years ago. The brakeman
of those days, almost as greasy and smoke begrimed
as a fireman, spent most of his time on the swaying
platforms between cars amid showers of cinders and
clouds of blinding dust. At every call for brakes
he was obliged to spring to the wheels of the two
entrusted to his care and set them up by hand with
the utmost exercise of his strength. He was not
o
allowed to remain inside the cars between stations,
and the only glimpses he got of their scant comfort
was when he flung open their doors to call out the
names of stations in his own undistinguishable jar-
gon. He was invariably a well-grown powerfully
built fellow, as rough in manner as in appearance.
To-day, on all passenger trains and on many
freights as well, the automatic brakes are operated
by compressed air controlled by the enginenian.
By a single pull of a small brass lever within easy
reach he can instantly apply every brake on his
train with such force as to brins: it to a standstill
o
inside of a few seconds. The two small cylinders
connected by a piston-rod on the right hand side of
every locomotive just in front of the cab form the
air-pump. It is always at work while a train is
TROUBLE IN 1 THE MONEY CAR. 137
standing still, forcing air through lengths of rubber
hose between the cars and into the reservoirs located
beneath each one. As brakes are applied by the
reduction of this air the engineman's lever merely
opens a valve that allows the imprisoned force to
escape with a sharp hissing sound. If a train should
break in two the connecting lengths of rubber hose
would be torn asunder, and the outrushing air would
instantly apply brakes to the cars of both sections
bringing them to a speedy standstill.
Thus the brakeman of to-day, instead of being the
powerful, cinder-coated and rough-voiced fellow of a
few years back, may be as slim and elegant as any
of the passengers under his care provided he is
polite, wide-awake, and attentive to his duty. Clad
in a natty uniform, he now spends his time inside
the car instead of on its platform. He has reports
to make out, lamps and flags to look after, and in
cases of unexpected delay must run back to protect
his train from any other that may be approaching it.
Formerly it was necessary to have as many brake-
men on a passenger train as there were cars, while
now it is rare to find more than two on each train.
So Rod had very little to do in his new position.
138 CAB AND CABOOSE.
and soon after leaving the second stopping-place of
his train, was sitting near the forward end of the
coach with his head resting on the back of a seat,
gazing at the ceiling and buried in deep thought.
Conductor Tobin and the other brakeman were seated
some distance behind him engaged in conversation.
Rod was thinking of what an awful thing it was
to be blind, and this chain of thought was suggested
by a glimpse of the young man with smoked glasses,
whom he had assisted on board the " Limited "
some hours before, standing on the platform of the
station they had just left. He had evidently
reached his journey's end and was patiently waiting
for some one to come and lead him away or at least
this was what Rod imagined the situation to be. In
o
reality, that same young man, with unimpaired eye-
sight and no longer wearing smoked glasses, was on
board the express special at that very moment. He
had sprung on to the forward platform of the money
car undetected in the darkness as the train left the
circle of station lights and was now on its roof
o
fastening a light rope ladder to a ledge just above
one of the middle and half-blazed doors of the car,
o
A red flannel mask concealed the lower half of hia
TROUBLE IN THE MONEY CAR. 139
face, and as he swung himself down on his frail and
fearfully swaying support he held a powerful navy
revolver in his right hand. He was taking frightful
risks to win a desperate game. Failing in his effort
to conceal himself aboard the very train he intended
to rob, he had taken passage on the " Limited " as
far as its first stopping-place and had there awaited
the coming of the Express Special. Thus far his
reckless venture had succeeded, and as Rod sat in
the coach thinking pityingly of him, he was covering
Ae unsuspecting messenger in the money car with
his revolver.
What would I do if I were blind ? " thought
Rod. " I suppose uncle would take care of me ; but
how humiliating it would be to have to go back to
him helpless and dependent. How thankful I should
be that I can see besides being well and strong and
able to care for myself. I will do it too without
asking help from any one, and I '11 win such a name
for honesty and faithfulness on this road that even
Uncle Arms will be compelled to believe whatever
I may tell him. I wonder if Snyder could have
put that emery into the oil-cup himself ? It does n't
seem as though any one could be so mean."
I4O CAB AND CABOOSE.
Just here a slight incident interrupted the lad's
thoughts so suddenly that he sprang to his feet
unconsciously his eyes had been fixed on the bell-
cord that ran through the entire train to the cab of
the locomotive. It had hung a little slack, but all
at once this slack was jerked up as though some one
had pulled the cord. This would have been a signal
to stop the train, and if the train were to be stopped
at that point something must be wrong. A back-
ward glance showed Conductor Tobin and the other
brakeman to be still quietly engaged in conversation.
Neither of them could have pulled the cord. Bod
stepped to the door and looked out. The train was
tearing along at a terrific speed, and the rush of air
nearly took away his breath. There was no sign of
slackening speed and everything appeared to be all
right. The next car ahead of the coach was the
money car. At least Conductor Tobin had thought
so, though none of the trainmen was ever quite sure
which one of the half dozen or more express cars it
was. Its rear door was of course closed and locked,
but some impulse moved Rod to clamber up on its
platform railing and peer through the little hole by
which the bell-cord entered. He could not see
TROUBLE IN THE MONEY CAR. 141
much, but that which was disclosed in a single
glimpse almost caused his heart to cease its beating.
Within his rano;e of vision came the heads of two
o
men evidently engaged in a struggle and one of them
wore a mask over the lower part of his face. The
next instant Rod had sprung down from his perilous
perch and dashed back into the coach shouting
breathlessly :
" There's a masked man fighting the messenger in
the money car ! "
CHAPTER XXL
OVER THE TOP OF THE TRAIN.
AT Rodman's startling announcement Conductor
Tobin sprang to his feet, reached for the bell-
cord, and gave it two sharp pulls. A single whistle
blast from the locomotive made instant reply that
his signal was received and understood. So promptly
was it obeyed that as the conductor and his two
brakenien ran to the front platform to swing far out
and look along the sides of the express cars ahead
of them, the grinding brakes were already reducing
the speed of the flying train.
Suddenly a pistol shot rang angrily out, and a
bullet crashed into the woodwork close above Rod
Blake's head. He and the conductor were leaning
out on one side while the other brakeman occupied
the opposite one.
"Give the signal to go ahead at once, or I'll
come back there and blow your brains out ! "
OVER THE TOP OF THE TRAIN". 143
came in a hoarse voice from a side door of the
money car*
" All right, I '11 do it ; only don't shoot," shouted
Conductor Tobin in answer, giving the desired
signal to the engineman, by raising and lowering his
lantern vertically, as he spoke. At the same time he
said hurriedly to the brakeman on the opposite side
of the platform, and thus concealed from the robber's
view :
"Drop off, Tom, and run back to number 10.
Telegraph ahead to all stations, and we '11 bag that
fellow yet ! "
The man did as directed, swinging low and giving
a forward spring that landed him safely beside the
track, though the train was still moving fully twenty
miles an hour.
The engineman, though greatly puzzled at receiv-
ing Ijie signal to go ahead immediately after being
ordered to stop, had obeyed it, thrown off brakes,
and the train was again gathering its usual headway.
" Now Rod," said Conductor Tobin, as the other
brakeman disappeared ; " I want you to make your
way over the top of the train to the engine, and tell
Eli what is taking place. Tell him to keep her wide
144 CAB AND CABOOSE.
open till we reach Millbank, and not to give her
the " air " till we are well up with the station. It 's
a tough job for you, and one I hate to send you on.
At the same time it 's got to be done, and after your
experience on the freight deck, I believe you are the
lad to undertake it. Anyway, you '11 be safe from
that pistol when once you reach the cab."
" But I don't like to leave you here alone to be
shot," remonstrated Rod.
" Never mind me. I don't believe I '11 get shot.
At any rate, this is my place, and here I must stay.
Now move along, and God bless you."
There was a strong hand-clasp between the con-
ductor and brakeman, and then the latter started on
the perilous journey he had been ordered to under-
take. It was no easy task to maintain a footing on the
rounded roofs of those express cars as they were hurled
on through the night at the rate of nearly a mile a
minute ; while to leap from one to another seemed
almost suicidal. Not more than one brakeman in a
thousand could have done it ; but Rod Blake, with his
light weight, athletic training, and recent experience
combined with absolute fearlessness, was that one.
His inclination was to get down on his hands and
OVER THE TOP OF THE TRAIN. 145
knees and crawl along the slippery roofs. If lie had
yielded to it he would never have accomplished the
trip. He believed that the only way to make it was
by running and clearing the spaces between cars with
flying leaps, and, incredible as it may seem, that is
the way he did it. He had kicked off his shoea
before starting, and now ran with stockinged feet.
The occupants of the cab were as startled by his
appearance beside them as though he had been a
ghost, and when his story was told the engineman
wanted to stop the train at once and go back to the
assistance of the imperilled messenger. Rod how-
ever succeeded in persuading him that, as the mess-
enger 's fate was probably already decided, their only
hope of capturing the robber lay in carrying out
Conductor Tobin's plan of running at such speed
that he would not dare jump from the train until
a station prepared for his reception was reached.
When the engineman finally agreed to this, and
before he could utter the remonstrance that sprang
to his lips, Rodman clambered back over the heaped-
up coal of the tender, swung himself to the roof of
the forward car and began to retrace his perilous
journey to the rear end of the train. He argued
that if Conductor Tobin' 5 * place was back there
CAB AND CABOOSE.
exposed to the shots of a desperate man, his brake-
man's place was beside him. Even if Rod had not
been a railroad boy, or " man," as he now called him-
self, his natural bravery and sense of honor would
have taken him back to that coach. Ever since he
had enlisted in the service that demands as strict
obedience as that required of a soldier and an equal
contempt of danger, this lad was doubly alert to
the call of whatever he regarded as duty. There is
no service in the world, outside of the army, so
nearly resembling ifc in requirements and discipline
at that of a railroad. It is no place for cowards nor
weaklings ; but to such a lad as Rod Blake it adds
the stimulus of excitement and ever-present danger
and the promise of certain promotion and ample
reward for the conscientious performance of every-
day duties.
So Rod, feeling in duty bound to do so, made his
way back over the reeling roofs of that on-rushing
train to the side of his superior officer. As he
scrambled and slipped and leaped from car to car
he fully realized the imminent peril of his situation,
but was at the same time filled with a wild exhila-
ration and buoyance of spirits such as he had never
before known.
OVER THE TOP OF THE TRAIN. 147
Conductor Tobin, standing just inside the coach
door with pale face and set lips, was amazed to see
him. For a moment he fancied the lad had been
daunted by the task imposed upon him and had
turned back without reaching: the locomotive.
o
When he realized that Rod had not only made the
perilous trip once, but twice, his admiration was un-
bounded, and though he tried to scold him for
his foolhardiness the words refused to come. He
shook the young brakeman's hand so heartily instead
that the action conveyed a volume of praise and
appreciation.
Now, as they watched together with an intense
eagerness for the lights of Millbank they became
conscious of a yellow glare, like that of an open
furnace, streaming from the side door of the money
car.
" The scoundrel has set the car on fire ! ' gasped
Conductor Tobin.
" Don't you think we ought to break in the door
with an axe and make a rush for him ? ' asked Rod.
Before the other could reply a long, ear-splitting
whistle blast announcing their approach to a station
sounded from the locomotive.
CHAPTER XXIL
STOP THIEF !
AS Train Number 29 dashed up to the Millbank
station and was brought to a stop almost as
suddenly as a spirited horse is reined back on his
haunches by a curb bit, the many flashing lanterns
guarding all approaches, and the confused throng of
dark forms on its platform told that Brakeman Tom
had performed his duty and that its arrival was
anticipated.
The abruptness of this unexpected stop caused
the messengers in the several cars to open their
doors and look out inquiringly. At the same time,
and even before it was safe to do so, Conductor
Tobin and Rod dropped to the ground and ran to
the door of the money car. The glare of firelight
streaming from it attracted others to the same spot.
There were loud cries for buckets and water, and
almost before the car wheels ceased to slide on the
148
STOP THIEF! 149
polished rails a score of willing hands were drench-
ing out the fire of way-bills, other papers, and a
broken chair that was blazing merrily in the middle
of its floor. The flames were already licking the
interior woodwork, and but for this opportune stop
would have gathered such headway inside of another
minute as would not only have destroyed the car
but probably the entire train.
The moment the subsiding flames rendered such a
thing possible, a rush was made for the inside of the
car, but Conductor Tobin calling one of the express
messengers and the engineman who had come run-
ning back, to aid him, and telling Rod to guard the
door, sternly ordered the crowd to keep out until he
had made an examination. From his post at the
doorway Rod could look in at a sight that filled him
with horror. The interior of the car was spattered
with blood. On the floor, half hidden beneath a
pile of packages, lay the messenger, still alive but
unconscious and bleeding from half a dozen wounds.
The brave right hand that had tried to pull the bell
cord had been shattered by a pistol ball, and the
messenger's own Winchester lay on the floor beside
him. Broken packages that had contained money,
I5O CAB AND CABOOSE.
jewelry, and other valuables were scattered in every
direction, while the open safe from which they had
come was as empty as the day it was made.
The trainmen became furious as one after another
of these mute witnesses told of the outrages so re-
o
cently perpetrated, and swore vengeance on the
robber when they should catch him. They ran-
sacked every corner of the car, but search as they
might they could discover no trace of his presence
nor of the method of his flight. The man had left
the car as he had entered it taking the precaution
of removing his rope ladder as he went.
The baffled searchers had just reached the conclu-
sion that he must have leaped from the train in
spite of its speed and of Conductor Tobin's watch-
fulness, when Rod, who from his position in the
doorway could look over the heads of the crowd
surrounding the car called out:
" Stop that man ! The one with a leather bag
slung over his shoulder ! Stop him ! Stop thief !
He is the robber ! '
In the glare of an electric light that happened to
shine full upon him for a moment, Hod had seen
the man walk away from the forward end of the
STOP THIEF f 151
car next ahead or the one they were searching as
though he had just left it. He was not noticed by
the bystanders as all eyes were directed toward the
door of the money car. To the young brakeman
his figure and the stout leather bag that he carried
seemed familiar. As he looked, the man raised a
kid-gloved hand to shift the position of his satchel,
and from it shot the momentary flash of a diamond.
With Rod this was enough to at once establish the ,
man's identity. Although he no longer wore smoked
glasses Rod knew him to be the man who, pretend-
ing partial blindness, had first boarded the Express
Special, then taken passage on the " Limited," and
whom he had seen on the platform of the last station
at which they had stopped. How could he have
reached Millbank? He must have come by the
Express Special, and so must be connected with its
robbery.
All these thoughts darted through Rod's head
like a flash of lightning, and as he uttered his shouts
of warning he sprang to the ground with a vague
idea of preventing the stranger's escape. At the
game moment the crowd surged back upon him, and
when he finally cleared himself from it he saw the
152 CAB AMD CABOOSE.
man backing down the platform, holding his would-
be pursuers in check with a levelled pistol, and just
disappearing from the circle of electric light.
A minute later two frightened men were driven at
the point of a revolver from the cab of a freight loco-
motive that, under a full head of steam, was stand-
ing on the outer one of the two west-bound tracks.
They had hardly left it in sole charge of the robber,
by whom it had already been uncoupled from its
train, before it sprang forward and began to move
away through the darkness.
Rod, who was now well in advance of all other
pursuers, instantly comprehended the situation. His
own train stood on the inner west-bound track and
he was near its forward end. The robber with his
blood-stained plunder was disappearing before his
very eyes, and if lost to view might easily run on for
a few miles and then make good his escape. He
must not be allowed to do so ! He must be kept
in sight !
This was Rod's all-absorbing thought at the
moment. Moved by it, he jerked out the coupling-
pin, by which the locomotive of the Express Special
was attached to its train, leaped into the cab, threw
STOP THIEF! 153
over the lever, pulled open the throttle, and had
started on one of the most thrilling races recorded in
the annals of railroading, before the astonished fire-
man, who had been left in charge, found time to
remonstrate.
" Look here, young fellow ! what are you about ? "
he shouted, stepping threateningly toward Rod.
" We are about chasing the train robber, who has
just gone off with that engine on number four track,
and you want to keep up the best head of steam you
know how," was the answer.
u Have we any orders to do so ? "
"You have, at any rate, for I give them to you."
" And who are you ? I never saw you before
to-night."
o
" I am Rod Blake, one of Tobin's trainmen, and if
you don't quit bothering me with your stupidity
and go to work, I '11 pitch you out of this cab ! '
shouted Rod savagely, in a tone that betrayed the
intensity of his nervous excitement.
The man had heard of the young brakeman and
of his skill as a boxer, though he had never met him
before that night, and his half-formed intention of
o /
compelling the lad to turn back was decidedly
154 CAB AND CABOOSE.
weakened by the mention of his name. Still he
hesitated. He was a powerful fellow with whom in
a strus^le Rod could not have held his own for a
oo
minute, but he was clearly lacking in what railroad
men call " sand." Suddenly Rod made a move-
ment as though to spring at him, at the same time
shouting, " Do as I tell you, sir, and get to work at
once I n
CHAPTER XXXII
A RACE OF LOCOMOTIVES.
IN any struggle between two human beings, the
one possessed of the more powerful will is cer-
tain to win. In the present case, Rod Blake's will
was so much stronger than that of the fireman that
the burly fellow obeyed his order, turned sullenly
away, and began to shovel coal into the roaring
furnace.
Their speed was now tremendous, for though Rod
knew but little about the management of a loco-
motive engine, he did know that the wider the
throttle was opened the faster it would go. So
lie pulled the handle as far back as he dared, and
soon had the satisfaction of seeing the dark form of
the fugitive locomotive disclosed by the glare of
their own head-light. Now if he could keep it in
sight, and so force the speed, that it would be impos-
sible for the robber to jump off until some largt
155
15O CAB AND CABOOSE.
station was reached, Rod felt that all would yet
go well.
Suddenly the runaway seemed to stop. Then it
began to move back toward them. In another in-
stant they had dashed past it, but not before two
pistol bullets had come crashing through the cab
windows. A bit of splintered glass cut Rod's fore-
htad and a little stream of blood began to trickle
down his face. Without heeding it, he shut off
steam, reversed, opened again, and within half a
minute the pursuers were rushing back over the
ground they had just covered.
Again the train robber tried the same game, again
the two locomotives flew by each other, and again
pistol balls came singing past Rod Blake's ears. As
for the fireman he had flung himself flat on the floor
of the cab. Rod could hardly believe that he had
not been hit by one of those hissing bullets, but as
he felt no wound he a^ain reversed his engine and
o o
again dashed ahead.
Now they gained steadily on the fugitive. His
steam was giving out, and he had neither the time
to renew his supply nor the knowledge of how to do
so. The pursuit was decidedly hotter than he had
A RACE OF LOCOMOTIVES.
anticipated, and had not been checked in the least
by his pistol shots, as he had hoped it would be.
He must try some other plan of escape, and that
quickly. He did not know how many men were on
that fiercely pursuing locomotive, nor whether they
were armed or not. He only knew that within an-
other minute they would overtake him. He formed
a desperate resolve, and a moment later Rod Blake
thought he saw a dark form scrambling from a ditch
beside the track as they flew past. When they
reached the " dying " locomotive of which they were
in pursuit and found it abandoned, he knew what
had taken place. The train robber had leaped from
its cab and was now making his way across country
on foot.
" We must follow him ! " exclaimed Rod.
" You may if you are such a fool ; but 1 '11 be
blowed if I will," answered the fireman.
There was no time to be lost in argument, neither
was Rod sure that those locomotives ought to be
left unguarded. So, without another word, he
dropped to the ground and started on a run across
the fields in the direction he was almost certain the
fugitive had taken.
158 CAB AND CABOOSE.
The young brakeman soon came to a wagon road
running parallel to the railway. Here he was
brought to a halt. Which way should he go ? To
attempt to continue the pursuit in either direction
without some definite knowledge to act upon seemed
foolish. If he could only discover a house at which
to make inquiries, or if some belated traveller would
only come that way.
" ' Belated traveller ' is good," mused Rod as hid
eye caught a faint glow in the eastern sky. " Here it
is almost to-morrow while I thought it was still
to-day. What a wild-goose chase I have come on
anyway, and what should I do if I overtook the
robber ? I 'm sure I don't know. I won't give it
up though now that I have started in on it. Hello !
Here comes some one now. Perhaps I can learn
something from him. Hi, there ! '
The sound that had attracted the lad's attention
was that of a rapidly galloping horse, though it was
so deadened by the sandy road that he did not hear
it until the animal was close upon him. The light
was very dim, and as Rod stood in a shadow neither
the horse nor its rider perceived him until he started
forward and shouted to attract the latter's attention.
A RACE OF LOCOMOTIVES. 159
In an instant the startled animal had sprung to
one side so suddenly as to fling its rider violently to
the ground, where he lay motionless. The horse
ran a short distance, then stopped and stood trern
bling.
Horrified at the result of his hasty action, Rod
kneeled beside the motionless man. His head had
struck the root of a tree and though the boy could
not discover that he was seriously injured, he was
unconscious. In vain did the distressed lad attempt
to restore him. He had little idea of what to do,
there was no water at hand, and to his ignorance it
seemed as if the man must be dying. He lifted one
of the limp hands to chafe it, and started with
amazement at the sight of a diamond ring that had
cut its way through the torn and blackened kid
glove in which the hand was encased.
Could this be the very train robber of whom he
was in pursuit? Where, then, was his leather
satchel ? Why, there it was, only a few feet away s
lying where it had fallen as the man was flung to
the ground. Incredible as it seemed, this must be
the very man, and now what was to be done ? Was
ever a fellow placed in a more perplexing situation
l6o CAB AND CABOOSE.
He could not revive the unconscious form. Neither
could he remove it from that place. Clearly he
must have help. As he arrived at this conclusion
Rod started on a run down the road, determined to
find a habitation and secure human aid.
CHAPTER XXIV.
ARRESTED ON SUSPICION.
AS Rod started on his quest for assistance the
riderless horse, which had begun to nibble
grass by the roadside, lifted his head with a snort
that brought the lad to a sudden halt. Why not
make use of this animal if he could catch it ? Cer-
tainly his mission could be accomplished more
quickly on horseback than on foot. He started
gently toward it, holding out his hand and speaking
soothingly ; but the cautious animal tossed its head
and began to move away. "How much he resem-
bles Juniper," thought Rod. " Here, Juniper ! Here
June, old fellow ! " he called. At the sound of his
name the horse wheeled about and faced the lad
in whose company he had recently undergone such a
thrilling experience. The next instant Rod grasped
the animal's halter, for it had neither saddle nor
bridle, and Juniper was evidently recognizing him.
161
1 62 CAB AND CABOOSE.
As the young brakeman was about to leap on the
horse's back it occurred to him that the leather bag,
which was undoubtedly filled with valuable plunder
from the rifled express car ought not to be left lying
in the road. No, it would be much better to carry
it to a place of safety. With this thought came a
recollection of the pistol shots so lately fired by the
man at his feet. Would it not be well to disarm
him lest he should revive and again prove dangerous
before assistance could be found and brought to the
o
place. Rod believed it would, and, acting upon the
thought, transferred two revolvers from the train-
robber's pockets to his own. Then, after dragging
the still unconscious man a little to one side beyond
danger from any wagon that might happen along,
the lad slung the heavy satchel over his shoulder,
scrambled on to Juniper's back and galloped away.
The road was a lonely one, and he rode more than
a mile before reaching a farm-house. Here the
excited lad rapped loudly on the front door and
shouted. No one was yet astir, and several minutes
passed before an upper window was cautiously
opened and a woman's voice inquired who was there
and what was wanted
ARRESTED ON SUSPICION. 163
Rod began to explain his errand ; but after a few
words the woman called to him to wait until she
could come down, and then slammed the window
down. To the young brakeman's impatience the
ensuing delay seemed an hour in length, though in
reality not more than five minutes elapsed before
the front door opened and the woman again
appeared.
" Now, what were you trying to tell me about
men dying in the road ? ' she asked sharply.
As Rod was about to reply there came a sound
of galloping horses and a shout from the place
where he had left Juniper fastened to a fence
post.
" There he is ! "
" Now we Ve got him ! "
" Throw up your hands, you scoundrel ! r
" Don't you dare draw a pistol or we '11 fill you
full of holes ! "
These and a score of similar cries came to the
ears of the bewildered lad as half a dozen horse-
men dashed up to the front gate, and four of them,
leaping to the ground, ran towards him while th
others held the horses.
1 64 CAB AND CABOOSE.
He was too astonished even to remonstrate, and as
they seized him he submitted to the indignity as
quietly as one who is dazed.
The woman in the door-way regarded this start-
ling scene with amazement. When in answer to her
eager questions the new-comers told her that the
young desperado whom she had so nearly admitted
to her house was a horse-thief, who, but a short
time before, had stolen the animal now tied to her
front fence, at the point of a revolver from the man
who was leading him to water, she said she would n't
have believed that such a mere boy could be so
great a villian.
" It 's the truth though," affirmed the man who
acted as spokesman. " Is n't it, Al ? '
"Yes, siree," replied Al, a heavy-looking young
farm hand. " An more 'n that, he fired at me too
afore I 'd give up the 'orse. Oh, yes, he 's a bad un,
young as he looks, an hangin' wouldn't be none too
good for him."
" I did nothing of the kind ! ' cried Rod, indig-
nantly, now finding a chance to speak. " This vs an
outrage, and
ARRESTED ON SUSPICION.
" Is this the fellow, Al ? r asked the spokesman,
interrupting the young brakeman's vehement protest,
" Of course it is. I 'd know him anywhere by
that bag slung over his shoulders, an he 's got pistols
in his pockets, too.' 7
" Yes, here they are," replied the leader, thrusting
his hands into Rod's coat pockets and drawing forth
the two revolvers. " Oh, there 's no use talking,
young man. The proof against you is too strong.
The only thing for you to do is to come along quietly
and make the best of the situation. Horse thieves
have been getting altogether too plenty in this part
of the country of late, and we Ve been laying for
one to make an example of for more 'n a week now.
Its mighty lucky for you that you did n't tackle an
armed man instead of Al there, this morning. If you
had you 'd have got a bullet instead of a horse."
" But I tell you," cried Rod, " that I took those
things from a man who was flun^ from that horse
o o
back here in the road about a mile. He is ~"
^Tiiave n't any doubt that you took them," inter-
rupted the man, grimly, " the same as you took the
horse."
1 66 CAB AND CABOOSE.
"And I only made use of the horse to obtain
assistance for him the more quickly," continued
Rod. " I left him stunned by his fall, and he may
be dead by this time. He will be soon, anyway, if
some one does n't go to him, and then you '11 be
murderers, that 's what you '11 be."
" Let us examine this bag that you admit you
took from somebody without his permission, and
see what it contains," said the man quietly, paying
no heed to the lad's statement, So saying, he
opened the satchel that still hung from Rod's shoul-
ders. At the sight of its contents he uttered an
o
exclamation of amazement.
" Well, if this don't beat anything I ever heard
of!"
The others crowded eagerly about him.
" Whew ! look at the greenbacks ! ' cried one.
" And gold ! ' shouted another.
" He must have robbed a bank ! '
" There '11 be a big reward offered for this chap."
"He 's a more desperate character than we
thought."
" A regular jail-bird ! '
" There 's blood on some of these bills ! *
ARRESTED ON SUSPICION. l6?
He ought to be tied."
This last sentiment met with such general ap
proval that some one produced a bit of rope, and
in another moment poor Rod's hands were securely
bound together behind him.
CHAPTER XXV.
THE TRAIN ROBBER LEARNS OF ROD'S ARREST.
TELL you the man who did it all is lying
A back there in the road ! " screamed Rod,
furious with indignation at this outrage and almost
sobbing with the bitterness of his distress. " He is a
train robber, and I 'm a passenger brakeman on the
New York and Western road. He made an escape
and I was chasing him."
" Just listen to that now," said one of the men
jeeringly. " It 's more than likely you are the train
robber yourself."
u Looks like a brakeman, does n't he ? ' sneered
another, " especially as they are all obliged to wear
a uniform when on duty."
" He 's a nice big party of men, he is. Just such
a one as the railroad folks would collect and send
in pursuit of a train robber," remarked the leader
ironically. " Oh, no, my lad, that 's too thin. If
168
THE TRAIN" ROBBER LEARNS OF ROD'S ARREST. 169
you must tell lies I M advise you to invent some
that folks might have a living chance of believing."
" It 's not a lie ! ' declared Rod earnestly and
almost calmly ; for though his face was quite pale
with suppressed excitement, he was regaining con-
trol of his voice. " It 's the solemn truth and I 'm
willing to swear to it."
" Oh, hush, sonny, don't swear. That would be
naughty," remonstrated one of the men, mockingly.
Without noticing him, Rod continued : " If you
will only take me back about a mile on the road I
will show you the real tram robber, and so prove
that part of my story. Then at Millbank I car.
prove the rest."
11 Look here, young fellow," said the leader, harshly,
" why will you persist in such nonsense ? We have
just came over that part of the road and we did n't
see anything of any man lying in it."
" Because I dragged him to one side," explained
Rod.
" Oh ? well, you '11 have a chance to show us your
man if you can find him, for we are going to take
you back that way anyhow. Come on, fellows, let 's
be moving. The sooner we get this young horse-
CAB AND CABOOSE.
thief behind bolts and bars the sooner we 11 be rid
of an awkward responsibility."
So poor Rod, still bound, was placed on Juniper's
back, and, with one man on each side of him, two in
front and two behind, rode unhappily back over the
road that he had traversed on an errand of mercy
but a short time before.
As the little group disappeared, the woman in
whose front yard this exciting arrest had been made
turned to hasten the preparations for her children's
breakfast that she might the sooner visit her nearest
neighbors and tell them of these wonderful happen-
ings. She was filled with the belief that she had had
a most remarkable escape, and was eager to have her
theory confirmed.
When she finally reached her neighbor's house
and burst in upon them breathless and unannounced,
she was somewhat taken aback to see a strange
young man, wearing a pair of smoked glasses and
having a very pale face, sitting at breakfast with
them. The woman of the house informed her in a
whisper, that he was a poor theological student
making his way on foot back to college in order to
save travelling expenses, and though he had only
THE TRAIN ROBBER LEARNS OF ROD'S ARREST. I /I
stopped to ask for a glass of water they had insisted
upon his taking breakfast with them.
Then the visitor unburdened herself of her budget
of startling news, ending up with : " An' I knew he
was a desp'rate character the minit I set eyes onto
him, for I 'm a master-hand at reading faces, I am.
"Why, sir," here she turned to the pale student by
whose evident interest in her story she was greatly
flattered, " I could no more take him for the honest
lad he claimed to be than I would take you for a
train robber. No, indeed. A face is like a printed
page to me every time and I 'm not likely to be
fooled, I can tell you."
" It is truly a wonderful gift," murmured the
young man as he rose from the table and started to
leave the house, excusing his haste on the plea of
having a long distance still to travel.
a What a saintly expression that young man has ! ' !
exclaimed the visitor, watching him out of sight,
" and what a preacher he will make ! '
At the same moment he of the smoked glasses
was saying to himself : " So that is what happened
while I lay there like a log by the roadside, is it '{
Well, it 's hard luck ; but certainly I ought to be able
CAB AND CABOOSE.
to turn the information furnished by that silly woman
to some good account."
In the meantime poor Rod was far from enjoying
a morning ride that under other circumstances would
o
have proved delightful. The sun shone from an un-
clouded sky, the air was deliciously cool and bracing,
and the crisp autumn leaves of the forest-road
rustled pleasantly beneath the horses' feet. But the
boy was thinking too intently, and his thoughts
were of too unpleasant a nature for him to take note
of these things. He was wondering what would
happen in case the train robber should not be
found where he had left him.
He was not left long in suspense, for when they
reached the place that he was certain was the right
one there was no man, unconscious or otherwise, to
be seen on either side or in any direction. He had
simply regained his senses soon after Rod left him,
staggered to his feet, and, with ever increasing
strength, walked slowly along the road. He finally
discovered a side path through the woods that led
him to the farm-house where, on account of his
readily concocted tale, he recoived and accepted a
cordial invitation to breakfast.
THE TRAIN ROBBER LEARNS OF ROD'S ARREST. 173
As for Rod, his disappointment at not finding the
proof of which he had been so confident was so
great that he hardly uttered a protest, when instead
of carrying him to Millbank or any other station on
the line where he might have found friends, his
captors turned into a cross-road from the left and
journeyed directly away from the railroad.
In about an hour they reached the village of
Center where the young brakeman, escorted by half
the population of the place, was conducted through
the main street to the county jail. Here he was de-
livered to the custody of the sheriff with such an
account of his terrible deeds, and strict injunctions
as to his safe keeping, that the official locked him
into the very strongest of all his cells. As the
heavy door clanged in his face, and Rod realized that
he was actually a prisoner, he vaguely wondered if
railroad men often got into such scrapes while
attempting the faithful discharge of their duties.
CHAPTER XXVI.
A WELCOME VISITOR.
TO be cast into jail and locked up in a cell is
not a pleasant experience even for one who
deserves such a fate ; while to an honest lad like
Rodman Blake who had only tried to perform what
he considered his duty to the best of his ability, it
was terrible. In vain did he assure himself that his
friends would soon discover his predicament and
release him from it. He could not shake off the
depressing influence of that narrow room, of the for-
bidding white walls, and the grim grating of the
massive door. He was too sensible to feel any sense
of disgrace in being thus wrongfully imprisoned ;
but the horror of the situation remained, and it
seemed as though he should suffocate behind those
o
bars if not speedily released.
In the meantime the sheriff, whose breakfast had
been interrupted by the arrival of the self -appointed
174
A WELCOME VISITOR.
constables and their prisoner, returned to his own
pleasant dining-room to finish that meal. He was a
bachelor, and the only other occupant of the room
was his mother, who kept house for him, and was
one of the dearest old ladies in the world. She was
a Quakeress, and did not at all approve of her son's
occupation. As she could not change it, however,
she made the best use of the opportunities for doing
good afforded by his position, and many a prisoner
in that jail found occasion to bless the sheriff's
mother. She visited them all, did what she could
for their comfort, and talked with them so earnestly,
at the same time so kindly and with such ready
sympathy, that several cases of complete reformation
could be traced directly to her influence. Now her
interest was quickly aroused by her son's account of
the youthful prisoner just delivered into his keep-
ing, and she sighed deeply over the story of his
wickedness.
"Is it certain that he did all these things,
Robert ? ' she asked at length.
" Oh, I guess there is no doubt of it. He was
caught almost in the very act," answered the sheriff,
carelessly.
I7<5 CAB AND CABOOS&.
u And thee says he is young ? '
" Yes, hardly more than a boy."
" Does thee think he has had any breakfast ? "
" Probably not ; but I '11 carry him some after
I Ve been out and fed the cattle," answered her son,
who was a farmer as well as a sheriff.
" Is thee willing I should take it to him ? "
o
" Certainly, if you want to, only be very careful
about locking everything securely after you," replied
the sheriff, who was accustomed to requests of this
kind. " I don't know why you should trouble
yourself about him though, I '11 feed him directly."
" Why should we ever trouble ourselves, Robert,
about those who are strangers, or sick, or in prison ?
Besides, perhaps the poor lad has no mother, while
just now he must sorely feel the need of one."
Thus it happened that a few minutes later Rod
Blake was startled from his unhappy reverie by the
appearance of an old lady in a dove-colored dress,
a snowy cap and kerchief, in front of his door. As
she unlocked it and stepped inside, he saw that she
bore in her hands a tray on which a substantial
breakfast was neatly arranged. The lad sprang to
his feet, but faint from hunger and exhaustion as
A WELCOME VISITOR.
he was, lie cast only one glance at the tempting tray.
Then he gazed earnestly into the face of his visitor.
Setting the tray down on a stool, for there was no
table in the cell, the old lady said : " I thought thee
might be hungry my poor lad, and so have brought
thee a bit of breakfast."
" Oh, madam ! Don't you know me ? Don't you
remember me ? ' cried Rod eagerly.
Although startled by the boy's vehemence, the
old lady adjusted her spectacles and regarded him
carefully. " I can't say that I do," she said at
length, in a troubled tone. "And yet thy face bears
a certain look of familiarity. Where have I ever
seen thee before ? '
" Don't you remember one morning a few weeks
ago when you were in a railroad station, and dropped
your purse, and I picked it up, and you gave me a
quarter for seeing you safely on the train ? Don't
you ? I 'm sure you must remember."
The old lady was nervously wiping her spectacles.
As she again adjusted them and gazed keenly at the
boy, a flash of recognition lighted her face and she
exclaimed, " Of course I do ! Of course I do ! Thee
is that same honest lad who restored every cent of
178 CAB AND CABOOSE.
the money that but for thee I might have lost ! But
what does it all mean ? And how came thee here in
this terrible place ? '
Rod was only too thankful to have a listener at
once so interested and sympathetic as this one.
Forgetful of his hunger and the waiting breakfast
beside him, he at once began the relating of his
adventures, from the time of first meeting with the
dear old lady down to the present moment. It was
a long story and was so frequently interrupted
by questions that its telling occupied nearly ap
hour.
At its conclusion the old lady, who was at once
smiling and tearful, bent over and kissed the boy on
his forehead, saying :
" Bless thee, lad ! I believe every word of thy
tale, for thee has an honest face, and an honest
tongue, as well as a brave heart. Thee has certainly
been cruelly rewarded for doing thy duty. Never
mind, thy troubles are now ended, for my son shall
quickly summons the friends who will not only
prove thy innocence and release thee from this place,
but must reward thy honest bravery. First, though,
thee must eat thy breakfast and I must go to fetch
A WELCOME VISITOR. 179
a cup of hot coffee, for this has become cold while
we talked."
So saying the old lady bustled away with a re-
assuring little nod and a cheery smile that to poor
Rod was like a gleam of sunlight shining into a dark
place. As she went, the old lady not only left his
cell door unlocked but wide open for she had
privately decided that the young prisoner should not
be locked in again if she could prevent it
CHAPTER XXVtt
THE SHERIFF IS INTERVIEWED.
WHILE this pleasant recognition of old ac-
quaintances was taking place in the jail, the
sheriff was sitting in his office and submitting to be
interviewed by a young man who had introduced
himself as a reporter from one of the great New
York dailies. He was a pleasant young man, very
fluent of speech, and he treated the sheriff with, a
flattering deference. He explained that while in
the village on other business he had incidentally
heard of the important arrest made that morning
and thought that if the sheriff would kindly give
him a few particulars he might collect material for
a good story. Pleased with the idea of having his
name appear in a New York paper the sheriff
readily acceded to this request and gave his visitor
all the information he possessed. The young man
was so interested, and took such copious notes of
ito
THE SHERIFF IS INTERVIEWED. l8l
everything the sheriff said, that the latter was
finally induced to relax somewhat of his customary
caution, and take from his safe the leather bag that
had been captured on the person of the alleged horse-
thief. The sheriff had opened this bag when he
first received it, and had glanced at its contents, of
which he intended to make a careful inventory at
his first leisure moment. As this had not yet arrived,
he was still ignorant of what the bag really con-
tained. He knew, however, that its contents must
be of great value and produced it to prove to the
reporter that the young prisoner whom they were dis-
cussing was something more than a mere horse-thief.
While the sheriff was still fumbling with the
spring-catch of the bag, and before he had opened it,
there came the sounds of a fall just outside the door,
a crash of breaking china, and a cry in his mother's
voice. Forgetful of all else, the man dropped the
bag, sprang to the door, and disappeared in the hall
beyond, leaving his visitor alone. In less than two
minutes he returned, saying that his mother had
slipped and fallen on the lowest step of the stairway
she was descending. She had broken a cup and
saucer, but was herself unhurt, for which he was
1 82 CAB AND CABOOSE.
deeply grateful. As the sheriff made this brief
explanation, he cast a relieved glance at the leather
bag that still lay on the floor where he had dropped
it, and at some distance from the chair in which the
young man was sitting.
Again he took up the bag to open it, and again
he was interrupted. This time the interruption
came in the shape of a messenger from the telegraph
office, bringing the startling news of the recent train
robbery and the daring escape of its perpetrator.
The sheriff first read this despatch through to him-
self, and then handed it to his visitor, who had
watched his face with eager interest while he read
it. The moment he had glanced through the des-
patch, the young man started to his feet, exclaiming
that such an important bit of news as that would
materially alter his plans. Then he begged the
sheriff to excuse him while he ran down to the tele,
graph office, and asked his paper for permission to
remain there a few days longer. He said that he
should like nothing; better than a chance to assist in
o
the capture of this desperate train robber, which he
had no doubt would be speedily effected by the
sheriff. He also promised to call again very shortly
THE SHERIFF IS INTERVIEWED. 183
for further information, provided his paper gave him
permission to remain.
The sheriff was not at all sorry to have his visitor
depart, as the despatch just received had given
new direction to his thoughts, and he was wonder-
ing if there could be any connection between the
train robber, the young horse-thief, and the bag
of valuables that lay unopened on his desk. He
glanced curiously at it, and determined to make a
thorough examination of its contents as soon as he
had written and sent off several despatches containing
his suspicions, asking for further information and
requesting the presence at the jail of such persons as
would be able to identify the train robber.
As he finished these, his mother, who had been
preparing a fresh cup of coffee for Rod, entered the
office full of her discovery in connection with the
young prisoner and of the startling information he
had given her. She would have come sooner but for
the presence of her son's visitor, before whom she
did not care to divulge her news.
Although the sheriff listened with interest to all
she had to say, he expressed a belief that the young
prisoner had taken advantage of her kindly nature,
1 84 CAB AND CABOOSE.
to work upon her sympathies with a plausible but
easily concocted story.
" But I tell thee, Robert, I recognize the lad as
the same who helped me on the train the last time I
went to York."
" That may be, and still he may be a bad one."
" Never, with such a face ! It is as honest as
thine, Robert. Of that I am certain, and if thee will
only talk with him, I am convinced thee will think
as I do. Nor will thee relock the door that I left
open ? "
" What ! r exclaimed the sheriff ; " you have n't
left his cell-door unlocked, mother, after the strict
charges I gave you concerning that very thing \ '
"Yes, I have, Robert," answered the old lady,
fcalmly ; " and but for the others I would have left
the corridor-door unlocked also. I was mindful of
them, though, and of thy reputation."
" I 'm thankful you had that much common-sense,"
muttered her son ; "and now, with your permission,
I will take that cup of coffee, which I suppose you
intend for your young protege, up to him myself."
" And thee '11 speak gently with him ? '
" Oh, yes. I '11 talk to him like a Dutch uncle."
THE SHERIFF IS INTERVIEWED. 185
Thus it happened that when the door at the end
of the jail corridor was swung heavily back on its
massive hinges, and Rod Blake, who had been gazing
from one of the corridor windows, looked eagerly
toward it, he was confronted by the stern face of
the sheriff instead of the placidly sweet one of tho
old lady, whom he expected to see.
"What are you doing out here, sir? Get bacfe
into your cell at once ! " commanded the sheriff in
an angry tone.
" Oh, sir ! please don't lock me in there again.
It does n't seem as though I could stand it,"
pleaded Rod.
The sheriff looked searchingly at the lad. His
face was certainly a very honest one, and to one old
lady at least he had been kindly considerate. At
the thought of the ready help extended by this lad
to his own dearly-loved mother in the time of her
perplexity, the harsh words that the sheriff had
meditated faded from his mind, and instead of
uttering them he said :
u Very well ; I will leave your cell-door open, if you
give me your promise not to attempt an escape."
And Rod promised.
CHAPTEK XXVIIL
LIGHT DAWNS UPON THE SITUATION.
ON leaving Rodman the sheriff was decidedly
perplexed. His prisoner's honest face had
made a decided impression upon him, and he had great
confidence in his mother's judgment concerning such
cases, though he was careful never to admit this to
her. At the same time all the circumstances pointed
so strongly to the lad's guilt that, as he reviewed
them there hardly seemed a doubt of it. It is a
peculiarity of sheriffs and jailers to regard a prisoner
as guilty until he has been proved innocent. Never-
theless this sheriff gave his mother permission to
visit Rod as often as she liked ; only charging her to
lock the corridor-door both upon entering and leav
ing the jail. So the dear old lady again toiled up
the steep stairway, this time laden with books and
papers. She found the tired lad stretched on his
hard pallet and fast asleep, so she tiptoed softly away
again without wakening him.
LIGHT DAWNS UPON THE SITUATION. l8/
While the young prisoner was thus forgetting his
troubles, and storing up new strength with which to
meet them, the sheriff was scouring the village and
its vicinity for traces of any stranger who might be
the train robber. But strangers were scarce in
Center that day and the only one he could hear of
was the reporter who had interviewed him that
morning. He had gone directly to the telegraph
office where he had sent off the despatch of which
he had spoken, to the New York paper he claimed
to represent. In it he had requested an answer to
be sent to Millbank, and he had subsequently en-
gaged a livery team with which he declared his
intention of driving to that place.
Center, though not on the New York and Western
i O
railway, was on another that approached the former
more closely at this point than at any other. To
facilitate an exchange of freight a short connecting
o o o
link had been built by both roads between Center
and Millbank. Over this no regular trains were run,
but all the transfer business was conducted by
specials controlled by operators at either end of the
branch. Consequently the few travellers between
the two places waited until a train happened along
1 88 CAB AND CABOOSE.
or, if they were in a hurry, engaged a team as the
reporter had done.
Soon after noon the owner of Juniper, the stolen
horse, accompanied by the thick-headed young farm
hand from whom the animal had been taken, appeared
at the jail in answer to the sheriff's request for hia
presence. These visitors were at once taken to
Rod's cell, where the young prisoner greatly refreshed
by his nap, sat reading one of the books left by the
dear old lady. His face lighted with a glad recog-
nition at sight of Juniper's owner, and at the same
moment that gentleman exclaimed :
" Why, sheriff, this can't be the horse-thief ! I
know this lad. That is I encm^ed him not lon^
O O
since to bring that very horse up here to my brother's
place where I am now visiting. You remember me,
don't you, young man ? '
" Of course I do so, sir, and I am ever so glad to
see some one who knew me before all these horrid
happenings. Now if you will only make that fellow
explain why he said I was the one who threatened
to shoot him, and stole Juniper from him ? when
he knows he never set eyes on me before I was
arrested, I shall be ever so much obliged."
LIGHT DAWNS UPON THE SITUATION. 189
" How is this, sir ? ' inquired the gentleman, turn-
ing sharply upon the young farm hand behind him.
" Did n't you tell me you were willing to take oath
that the lad whom you caused to be arrested and
the horse-thief were one and the same person ? '
" Y-e-e-s, s-i-r," hesitated the thick head.
" Are you willing to swear to the same thing now ? r
" N-no, your honor, -that is, not hexactly, Some*
way he don't look the same now as he did then."
" Then you don't think he is the person who took
the horse from you ? '
" No, sir, I can't rightly say as I do now, seeing as
the man with the pistols was bigger every way than
this one. If 'e 'ad n't been 'e would n't got the 'orse
so heasy, I can tell you, sir. Besides it was so hearly
that the light was dim an' I didn't see 'is face good
anyway. But when we caught him 'e 'ad the 'orse
an' the bag an' the pistols."
" When you caught who ? '
" The 'orse-thief. I mean this young man.*
" And you recognized him then ? r
" Yes, sir, I knowed 'im by the bag, an' the 'orse."
"But you say he was a much larger man ih
this one."
190 CAB AND CABOOSE.
" Oh, yes, sir ! He was more 'n six foot an' as big
across the shoulders as two of 7 im."
Rod could not help smiling at this, as he recalled
the slight figure of the train robber who had appro-
priated Juniper to his own use.
" This is evidently a badly-mixed case of mistaken
identity," said the gentleman, turning to the sheriff,
"and I most certainly shall not prefer any charge
against this lad. Why, in connection with that same
horse he recently performed one of the pluckiest
actions I ever heard of." Here the speaker narrated
the story of Rod's struggle with Juniper in utter
darkness and within the narrow limits of a closed
box-car.
At its conclusion, the sheriff who was a great
admirer of personal bravery, extended his hand to
Rod, saying: "I believe you to be the honest lad
you claim to be, and an almighty plucky one as well.
As such I want to shake hand with you. I must
also state that as this gentleman refuses to enter a
complaint against you I can no longer hold you
prisoner. In fact I am somewhat doubtful whether
I have done right in detaining you as long as I have
without a warrant. Still, I want you to remain with
LIGHT DAWNS UPON THE SITUATION. 19 1
as a few hours more, or until the arrival of certain
parties for whom I have sent to come and identify
the train robber."
" Meaning me ? ' asked Rod, with a smile. He
could afford to smile now. In fact he was inclined
to laugh and shout for joy over the favorable turn
his fortunes appeared to be taking.
" Yes, meaning you," replied the sheriff good-
humoredly. " And to show how fully persuaded I
am that you are the train robber, I hereby invite
you to accompany us down-stairs in the full exercise
of your freedom and become the honored guest of
my dear mother for whom you recently performed
so kindly a service. She told me of that at the
time, and I am aware now, that I have not really
doubted that you were what you claimed to be>
since she recognized you as the one who then
befriended her. I tell you, lad, it always pays in one
way or another, to extend a helping hand to grand-
fathers and grandmothers, and to remember that we
shall probably be in need of like assistance ourselves
some day."
CHAPTER XXIX.
AN ARRIVAL OF FRIENDS AIH) ENEMIES.
I^HUS it happened that although Rod had eaten
his breakfast that morning in a prison cell he
ate his dinner in the pleasant dining-room of the
sheriff's house with that gentleman, the dear ok*
lady, an 3 Juniper's owner, for company. It was a
very happy meal, in spite of the fact that the real
train robber was still at large, and as its conversation
was mostly devoted to the recent occurrences in
which Rod had been so prominent an actor, his
cheeks were kept in a steady glow by the praises
bestowed upon him.
Directly after dinner Juniper's owner took his
departure and soon afterwards a special train arrived
from Millbank. It consisted of a locomotive and a
single passenger coach in which were a number of
New York and Western railroad men. They came
in answer to the sheriff's request for witnesses who
192
AN ARRIVAL OF FRIENDS AND ENEMIES. 193
might identify the train robber. Among these new
arrivals were Snyder Appleby who had been sent
from New York by Superintendent Hill to investi-
gate the affair, Conductor Tobin who, after taking
the Express Special to the end of his run, had been
ordered back to Millbank for this purpose, his other
brakernan who had hurried ahead at the first oppor-
tunity from the station at which he had been left,
the fireman of the locomotive with which Rod had
chased the robber, and several others.
As this party was Ushered into the sheriff's private
office its members started with amazement at the
sight of Rod Blake sitting there as calinly ? as though
perfectly at home and waiting to receive them.
Upon their entrance he sprang to his feet filled
with a surprise equal to their own, for the sheriff
had not told him of their coming.
" Well, sir ! What are you doing here ? ' de-
manded Snyder Appleby, who was the first to
recover from his surprise, and who was filled with a
sense of his own importance in this affair.
" I am visiting my friend, the sheriff," answered
Rod. at once resenting the other's tone and air.
/ o
" Oh, you are ! And may I ask by what right you f
194 CAB AND CABOOSE.
a mere brakeman in our employ, took it upon your-
self to desert your post of duty, run off with one of
our engines, endanger the traffic of the line and
then unaccountably disappear as you did last night
or rather early this morning ? '
" You may ask as much as you please," answered
Rod, " but I shall refuse to answer any of your
questions until I know by what authority you ask
them." The young brakeman spoke quietly, but the
nature of his feelings was betrayed by the hot flush
that sprang to his cheeks.
" You '11 find out before I 'm through with you,"
cried Snyder savagely. " Mr. Sheriff I order you to
place this fellow under arrest."
" Upon what charge ? " asked the sheriff. " Is he
the train robber ? r
" Of course not," was the reply, " but he is a thief
all the same. He is one of our brakemen and ran
off with a locomotive."
"What did he do with it 2 " asked the sheriff, with
an air of interest.
" Left it standing on the track."
o
" Oh, I did n't know but what he carried it off
with him. Did he leave it alone and unguarded ? "
AN ARRIVAL OF FRIENDS AND ENEMIES. 195
Snyder was compelled to admit that the engine
had been left in charge of its regular firemen ; but
still claimed that the young brakeman had com-
mitted a crime for which he ought to be arrested.
o
" I suppose you want me to arrest that firemai*
too ? " suggested the sheriff.
"Oh, no. It was his duty to accompany the
engine."
" But why did n't he refuse to allow it to move ? n
" He was forced to submit by threats of personal
injury made by this brakeman fellow. Is n't that
so ? " asked Snyder ? and the fireman nodded an
assent.
The sheriff smiled as he glanced first at the burly
form of the fireman and then at Rod's comparatively
slight figure. " Can any of these men identify this
alleged locomotive thief ? " he asked.
" Certainly they can. Tobin, tell the sheriff what
you know of him."
Blazing with indignation at the injustice and
meanness of Snyder's absurd charge against his
favorite brakeman, Conductor Tobin answered
promptly : " 1 know him to be one of the best
brakemen on the road, although he is the youngest
196 CA AND CABOOSE.
He is one of the pluckiest too and as honest as he is
plucky. I '11 own he might have made a mistake in
going off with that engine ; but all the same it was
a brave thins: to do and I am certain he thought he
o o
was on the right track."
"Do you know him too?' asked the sheriff of
the other brakeman.
" Yes, sir. I am proud to say I do and in regard
to what I think of him Conductor Tobin's words
exactly express my sentiments."
" Do you also know him ? ' was asked of the
fireman.
" Yes, I know him to be the young rascal who ran
me twice into such a storm of bullets from the train
robber's pistols that it 's a living wonder I 'm not full
of holes at thh blessed minute."
What else did he do ? "
" What else ? Why, he jumped from the engine
while she was running a good twenty mile an hour,
and started off like the blamed young lunatic he is
to chase after the train robber afoot. Wanted me
to go with him too, but I gave him to understand I
was n't such a fool as to go hunting any more inter-
views with them pistols. No, sir ; I stuck where 1
AN ARRIVAL OF FRIENDS AND ENEMIES. 197
belonged and if lie 'd done the same he would n't be
in the fix he 's in now."
" And yet," said the sheriff, quietly, " this ' blamed
young lunatic/ as you call him, succeeded in over-
taking that train robber after all. He also managed
o o
to relieve him of his pistols you seem to have dreaded
so greatly, recover the valuable property that had
been stolen from the express car, and also a fine
horse that the robber had just appropriated to his
own use. On the whole gentleman, I don't think
I 'd better arrest him, do you ? '
CHAPTER XXX.
WHEEE ARE THE DIAMONDS ?
K< \7ES, sir. I think he ought to be arrested,"
A said Snyder Appleby in reply to the sheriffs
question, " and if you refuse to perform that duty I
shall take it UDon myself to arrest him in the name
of the New York and Western Railway Company
of which I am the representative here. I shall also
take him back with me to the city where he will be
dealt with according to his deserts by the proper
authorities." Then turning to the members of his
own party the self-important young secretary added :
" In the meantime I order you two men to guard
this fellow and see that he does not escape, as you
value your positions on the road."
" You need n't trouble yourself, Snyder, nor them
either," said Rod indignantly, " for I shaVt require
watching. I am perfectly willing to go to New
York with you, and submit my case to the proper
198
WHERE ARE TfTE DIAMONDS / 199
authorities. In fact I propose to do that at any
rate. At the same time I want you to under-
stand that I don't do this in obedience to any orders
from you, nor will I be arrested by you."
" Oh, that 's all right,' 7 replied Snyder, carelessly.
u So long as we get you there I don't care how
it is done. Now, Mr. Sheriff," he continued, "we
have already wasted too much time and if you will
take us to see the bold train robber whom you say
this boy captured single-handed and alone, we will
finish our business here and be off."
" I didn't say that he captured the train robber,"
replied the sheriff. " I stated that he overtook him,
relieved him of his pistols, and recovered the stolen
property ; but I am quite certain that I said nothing
regarding the capture of the robber.
" Where is he now ? ' asked Snyder.
" I don't know. This lad left him lying senseless
in the road, where he had been flung by a stolen
horse, and went for assistance. Being mistaken for
the person who had appropriated the horse he was
brought here. In the meantime the train robber
recovered his senses and made good his escape.
That is, I suppose he did."
200 CAB AND CABOOSE.
" Then why did you telegraph that you had tha
train robber in custody, and bring us here to identify
him ? " demanded Snyder sharply.
" I did n't," answered the sheriff, with a provoking
smile, for he was finding great pleasure in quizzing
this pompously arbitrary young man. " I merely
sent for a few persons who could identify the train
robber to come and prove that this lad was not he.
This you have kindly done to my entire satisfaction."
" What ! " exclaimed Snyder. " Did you suspect
Rod, I mean this brakeinan, of being the train
robber ? '
" I must confess that I did entertain such a suspi-
cion, and for so doing I humbly beg Mr. Blake's
pardon," replied the sheriff.
" It would n't surprise me if he should prove to
be connected with it, after all, for I believe him to
be fully capable of such things," sneered Snyder.
At this cruel remark there arose such a genera]
i~j
murmur of indignation, and the expression of Rod's
face became so ominous that the speaker hastened to
create a diversion of interest by asking the sheriff
what had been done with the valuables recovered
from the robber.
WHERE ARE THE DIAMONDS f 2O
" They are in my safe."
" You will please hand them over to me/
"I shall do nothing of the kind," retorted the
sheriff, as he drew the stout leather bag from its
place of security. " I shall hand this bag, with all
its contents, to the brave lad who recovered it, and
entrust him with its safe delivery to those authorized
to receive it."
So saying, the sheriff handed the bag to Rod.
Snyder turned pale with rage, and snatching an
unsealed letter from his pocket, he flung it on the
table, exclaiming angrily : " There is my authority
for conducting this business and for receiving such
O O
of the stolen property as may be recovered. If you
fail to honor it I will have you indicted for con-
spiracy."
" Indeed ! 1 said the sheriff, contemptuously.
" That would certainly be a most interesting pro-
ceeding for you." Then to Rod, to whom he had
already handed the bag, he said : " If you decide to
deliver this property to that }^oung man, Mr. Blake,
I would advise you to examine carefully the contents
of the bag in presence of these witnesses and demand
an itemized receipt for them."
2O2 CA^ AND CABOOSE.
" Thank you, I will," replied Rod, emptying the
contents of the bag on the table as he spoke.
There was a subdued exclamation from the rail-
road men at the sight of the wealth thus displayed
in packages of bills and rolls of coin. Rodman
requested the sheriff to call off the amount contained
in each of these while he made out the list. At the
same time Snyder drew from his pocket a similar
list of the property reported to be missing from the
express messenger's safe.
When Rod's list was completed, Snyder, who had
carefully checked off its items on his own, said :
" That 's all right so far as it goes, but where are the
diamonds ? '
" What diamonds ? ' asked Rod and the sheriff
together.
" The set of diamond jewelry valued at seven thou-
sand five hundred dollars, in a morocco case, that has
been missing ever since the robbery of the express
car , rl was the answer.
...
" I know nothing of it," said Rod.
" This is the first I have heard of any diamonds^
remarked the sheriff.
* Has the bag been out of your possession since
WHERE ARE THE DIAMONDS? 2O$
the arrest of this person ? " asked Snyder, hesitating
for a word that should express his feelings toward
the lad who had once beaten him in a race, but who
was now so completely in his power.
" No, sir, it has not," promptly replied the sheriff.
" You have opened it before this, of course ? "
" Yes, I glanced at its contents when it was first
placed in my keeping, but made no examination of
them, as I should have done had not other important
matters claimed my attention."
" How long was the bag in your possession ? "
asked Snyder, turning to Rod.
" About half an hour, but "
" Was any one with you during that half hour ? "
interrupted the questioner.
" No ; but as I was going to say "
" That is sufficient. I don't care to hear what you
were going to say. Others may listen to that if they
choose when the proper time comes. What I have
to say regarding this business is, that in view of this
new development I am more than ever desirous of
delivering you into the hands of the proper authori-
ties in New York. I would also suggest that your
short and brilliant career as a railroader has come to
2O4 CAB AND CABOOSE.
a disgraceful end more quickly than even I suspected
it would."
" Do you mean to say that you think I stole those
diamonds ? " demanded Rod, hotly.
" Oh, no," answered Snyder. " I don't say any-
thing about it. The circumstances of the case speak
so plainly for themselves that my testimony would
be superfluous. Now, Mr. Sheriff, as our business
here seems to be concluded, I think we will bid you
good-by and be moving along."
" You need n't bid me good-by yet," responded the
sheriff, " for I have decided to go v/ ; th you."
" I doubt if I shall be able to find room for you in
my special car," said Snyder, who for several reasons
was not desirous of the sheriff's company.
" Very well. Then you will be obliged to dis-
pense with Mr. Blake's company also, for in view of
the recent developments in this case I feel that I
ought not to lose sight of him just yet."
CHAPTER XXXI.
ONE HUNDRED MILES AN HOZTR J
THE sheriff's concluding argument at once pre-
vailed. Snyder was so eager to witness his
rival's humiliation and to hear the Superintendent
pronounce his sentence of dismissal from the com-
pany's employ, that he would have sacrificed much
of his own dignity rather than forego that triumph.
As matters now stood he could not see how Rod,
even though he should not be convicted of stealing
the missing diamonds, could clear himself from the
suspicion of having done so.
Neither could poor Rod see how it was to be
accomplished. For mile after mile of that long ride
back toward New York he sat in silence, puzzling
over the situation. In spite of the attempts of the
sheriff and Conductor Tobin to cheer him up, he
grew more and more despondent at the prospect of
having to go through life as one who is suspected.
305
206 CAB AND CABOOSE.
It was even worse than being locked into a prison
cell, for lie had known that could not last long,
while this new trouble seemed interminable.
The lad's sorrowful reflections were interrupted by
an ejaculation from the sheriff who sat beside him.
On that gentleman's knee lay an open watch, at
which he had been staring intently and in silence
for some time. He had also done some figuring on
a pad of paper. Finally he uttered a prolonged
Wh-e-w ! "
Both Eod and Conductor Tobin looked at him
inquiringly.
"Do you know," he said, "that we have just
covered a mile in forty-two seconds, and that we are
travelling at the rate of eighty-five miles an hour ? r
" I should n't be surprised," replied Conductor
Tobin, quietly ; "I heard Mr. Appleby tell the engine-
man at the last stop that if better time was n't made
pretty soon he 'd go into the cab himself and show
'em how to do it. The idea of his talking that way
to an old driver like Newman. Why, I don't be-
lieve he knows the difference between a throttle and
an injector. A pretty figure he 'd cut in a cab!
Newman did n't answer him a word, only gave him
ONE HUNDRED MILES AN HOUR t 2O/
a queer kind of a look. Now he 's hitting her up for
all she 's worth, though, and, judging from appear
ances, Mr. Appleby wishes he 'd held his tongue."
Snyder certainly was very pale, and was clutching
the arms of his seat as though to keep himself from
being flung to the floor during the frightful lurchings
of the car as it spun around curves.
" But is n't it middling dangerous to run so fast ? "
asked the sheriff, as the terrific speed seemed to in-
crease.
" Not so very," answered the Conductor. " I don't
consider that there is any more danger at a high rate
of speed than there is at forty or fifty miles an hour !
If we were to strike a man, a cow, a wagon, or even
a pile of ties while going at this rate we 'd fling the
obstacle to one side like a straw and pay no more
attention to it. If we were only doing fifteen or
twenty miles though, instead of between eighty and
ninety, any one of these things would be apt to
throw us off the track. I tell you, gentleman, old
man Newman is making things hum though ! You
see he has got number 385, one of the new compound
engines. He claims that she can do one hundred
miles an hour just as well as not, and that he is the
2O8 CAB AND CABOOSE.
man to get it out of her. He says he can stand
it if she can. He made her do a mile in 39 seconds
on her trial trip, and claims that about a month ago
when he was hauling the grease wagon 1 she did
4 r ^ miles in 2^ minutes, which is at the rate of 98.4
miles an hour. 2 His fireman backs him up, and says
he held the stop-watch between stations. The pay-
master was so nearly scared to death that time that
Newman was warned never to try for his hundred-
mile record again without special orders. Now I
suppose he considers that he has received them and
is making the most of his chance."
o
" It 's awful ! " gasped Snyder, who had drawn near
enough to the group to overhear the last of Con-
ductor Tobin's remarks. " The man must be crazy.
Is n't there some way of making him slow do\\n ? '
" Not if he is crazy, as you suggest, sir," replied
Conductor Tobin, with a sly twinkle in his eyes, "It
would only make matters worse to interfere with
him now, and all we can do is to hope for the best."
"It 's glorious ! " shouted Rod, forgetting all his
troubles in the exhilaration of this wild ride. " It 's
1 Pay -car.
2 This time has actually been made by an American locomotive on
an American railroad. K. M
ONE HUNDRED MILES AN HOUR I 2OQ
glorious ! And I only hope lie '11 make it. Do
you really think a hundred miles an hour is within
the possibilities, Mr. Tobin ? "
" Certainly I do," answered the Conductor. " It
not only can be done, but will be, very soon. I
have n't any doubt but what by the time the Co-
lumbian Exposition opens we shall have regular
passenger trains running at that rate over some
stretches of our best roads, such as the Pennsylvania,
the Reading, the New York Central and this one.
Moreover, when electricity comes into general use as
a motive power I shall expect to travel at a greater
speed even than that. Why, they are building an
electric road now on an air line between Chicago
<_>
and St. Louis, on which they expect to make a hun-
dred miles an hour as a regular thing."
" I hope I shall have a chance to travel on it,"
said Rod.
" I have heard of another road," continued Con-
ductor Tobin, "now being built somewhere in
Europe, Austria I believe, over which they propose
to run trains at the rate of one hundred and twenty-
five miles an hour."
Here the conversation was interrupted by Snydei
210 CAB AND CABOOSE.
Appleby, who, in a frenzy of terror that he could
no longer control, shouted " Stop him ! Stop him !
I order you to stop him at once ! '
" All right, sir, I '11 try," answered Conductor
Tobin, with a scornful smile on his face. Just as he
lifted his hand to the bell-cord there came a shriek
from the locomotive whistle. It was instantly fol-
lowed by such a powerful application of brakes that
the car in which our friends were seated quivered in
every joint and seemed as though about to be
wrenched in pieces.
As the special finally came to a halt, and its occu-
pants rushed out to discover the cause of its violent
stoppage, they found the hissing monster ? that had
drawn them with such fearful velocity, standing
trembling and panting within a few feet of one of
the most complete and terrible wrecks any of them
had ever seen.
CHAPTER XXXII.
SNATCHING VICTORY FKOM DEFEAT.
THE wreck by which the terrific speed of the
special had been so suddenly checked was
one of those that may happen at any time even on
the best and most carefully-managed of railroads.
The through freight, of which ex-Brakeman Joe was
now conductor, had made its run safely and without
incident to a point within twenty miles of New
York. It was jogging along at its usual rate of
speed when suddenly and without the slightest
warning an axle under a " foreign " car, near the rear
of the train, snapped in two. In an instant the car
leaped from the rails and across the west-bound
tracks, dragging the rear end of the freight, includ-
ing the caboose, after it. Before the dazed train-
hands could realize what was happening, the heavy
locomotive of a west-bound freight that was passing
the east-bound train at that moment crashed into
212 CAB AND CABOOSE.
the wreck. It struck a tank-car filled with oiL
Like a flash of lightning a vast column of fire shot
high in the air and billows of flame were roaring in
every direction. These leaped from one to another
of the derailed cars, until a dozen belonging to both
trains, as well as the west-bound locomotive, were
enveloped in their cruel embrace.
Conductor Joe escaped somehow, but he was
bruised, shaken, and stunned by the suddenness and
awfulness of the catastrophe. In spite of his bewild-
erment, however, his years of training as a brakeman
were not forgotten. Casting but a single glance at
the blazing wreck, he turned and ran back along
the east-bound track. He was no coward running
o
away from duty and responsibility, though almost
any one who saw him just then might have deemed
him one. No, indeed ! He was doing what none
but a faithful and experienced railroad man would
have thought of doing under the circumstances ;
doing his best to avert further calamity by warning
approaching trains from, the west of the danger
before them. He ran half a mile and then placed
the torpedoes, which, with a brakeman's instinct, he
still carried in his pocket.
SNATCHING VICTORY FROM DEFEAT. 21 3
Bang-bang ! BA^G ! Engineman Newman, driv-
ing locomotive number 385 at nearer one hundred
miles an hour than it had ever gone before, heard
the sharp reports above the rattling roar of his train,
and realized their dread significance. It was a close
call, and only cool-headed promptness could have
checked the tremendous speed of that on-rushing
train in the few seconds allowed for the purpose.
As it was, 385's paiat was blistering in the intense
heat from the oil flames as it came to a halt and
then slowly backed to a place of safety.
Conductor Joe had already returned to the scene
of the wreck and was sending out other men with
torpedoes and flags in both directions. Then he
joined the brave fellows who were fighting for the
lives of those still imprisoned in the wrecked
caboose. Amon^ these were Rod Blake, Conductor
o /
Tobin, and the sheriff. Snyder Appleby had turned
sick at the heartrending sights and sounds to be
seen and heard on all sides, and had gone back to
his car to escape them. He did not believe a soul
could be saved, and he had not the nerve to listen
to the pitiful cries of those whom he considered
doomed to a certain destructlou.
214 CAB AND CABOOSE.
In thus accepting defeat without a struggle,
Snyder exhibited the worst form of cowardice, and
if the world were made up of such as he, there would
be no victories to record. But it is not. It not only
contains those who will fi^ht against overwhelming
o o o
odds, but others who never know that they are
beaten, and where indomitable wills often snatch
victory from what appears to be defeat. General
Grant was one of these, and Rod Blake was made of
the same stuff.
Again and again he and those with him plunged
into the stifling smoke to battle with the fierce
flames in their stronghold. They smothered them
\vith clods of earth and buckets of sand. They cut
away the blazing woodwork with keen-edged wreck-
ing axes torn from their racks in the uninjured
caboose and in Snyder Appleby's special car. One
by one they released and dragged out the victims, of
whom the fire had been so certain, until none was
left, and a splendid victory had been snatched from
what had promised to be a certain defeat.
There was a farm-house not far away, to which
the victims of the disaster were tenderly borne.
Here, too, came their rescuers, scorched, blackened,
IN THE RAILROAD WRECK. (Page 215.")
SNATCHING VICTORY FROM DEFEAT. 21 5
and exhausted ; but forgetful of their own plight in
their desire to further relieve the sufferings of those
for whom they had done such brave battle. In one
of the wounded men Rod Blake was especially
interested, for the young brakeman had fought on
with a stubborn determination to save him after the
others had declared it to be impossible. The man
had been a passenger in the caboose of the through
freight, and was so crushed and held by the shattered
timbers of the car that, though the rescuing party
reached his side, they were unable to drag him out.
A burst of flame drove them back and forced them
vo rush into the open air to save their own lives.
Above the roar of the fire they could distinguish his
piteous cries, and this was more than Rod could
stand. With a wet cloth over his mouth and axe
in hand he dashed back into the furnace. He was
gone before the others knew what he was about to
attempt, and now they listened with bated breath to
the sound of rapid blows coming from behind the
impenetrable veil of swirling smoke. As it eddied
upward and was lifted for an instant they caught
sight of him, and rushing to the spot, they dragged
him out, with his arms tightly clasped about th r
fil6 CAB AND CABOOSE.
helpless form lie had succeeded in releasing from it*
fiery prison.
At that moment the young brakeman presented a
feorry picture, blackened beyond recognition by his
dearest friends, scorched, and with clothing hanging
in charred shreds. By some miracle he was so far
uninjured that a few dashes of cold water gave him
strength to walk, supported by Conductor Tobin, to
the farm-house, whither the others bore the uncon-
scious man whom he had saved. The lad wished
to help minister to the needs of the sufferer, but
those who had cheered his act of successful bravery
now insisted upon his taking absolute rest. So they
made him lie down in a dimly-lighted room, where
the sheriff sat beside him, and, big rough man that he
was, soothed the exhausted lad with such tender
gentleness, that after awhile the latter fell asleep.
When this happened and the sheriff stole quietly
out to where the others were assembled, he said
emphatically :
" Gentlemen, I am prouder to know that young
fellow than I would be of the friendsnip of a
president."
CHAPTER XXXIH.
A WRECKING TRATKT.
WHILE Rod ] ay in a dreamless sleep, which is
the best and safest of remedies for every ill,
mental or physical, that human flesh is heir to, a
wrecking train arrived from New York. With it
came a doctor, who was at once taken to the farm-
house. He first looked at the sleeping lad, but
would not allow him to be wakened, then he turned
his attention to the victims of the disaster, whose
poor maimed bodies were so sadly in need of his
soothing skill.
During the long hours of the night, while the
doctor was busy with his human wrecks, the gang of
experienced workmen who had come by the same
train, was rapidly clearing the wreck of cars from
the tracks and putting them in order for a speedy
resumption of traffic. The wrecking train to which
they belonged was made up of a powerful locomo-
317
2l8 CAB AND CABOOSE.
tive and three cars. The first of these was an
immensely strong and solid flat, supporting a small
derrick, which was at the same time so powerful as
to be capable of lifting enormous weights. Besides
the derrick and its belongings the flat carried only a
few spare car trucks.
Next to it came a box-car, filled with timber ends
for blocking, hawsers, chains, ropes, huge single-,
double-, and treble-blocks, iron clamps, rods and
bolts, frogs, sections of rail, heavy tarpaulins for the
protection of valuable freight, and a multitude of
other like supplies, all so neatly arranged as to be
instantly available.
Last, and most interesting of all, came the tool-car,
which was divided by partitions into three rooms.
Of these, the main one was used by the members of
the wrecking gang as a living-room, and was provided
with bunks, a cooking-stove and utensils, and a
pantry, well stocked with flour, coffee, tea, and
canned provisions. The smaller of the two end
rooms contained a desk, table, chairs, stationery and
electrical supplies. It was used by the foreman of
the wrecking gang, as an office in which to write his
reports, and by the telegraph operator, who always
A WRECKING TRAIN. 219
accompanies a train of this description. This opera-
tor's first duty is to connect an instrument in his
movable office with the railroad wire, which is one
of the many strung on poles beside the track. From
the temporary station thus established he is in con-
stant communication with headquarters, to which he
sends all possible information concerning the wreck,
and from which he receives orders.
In the tool-room at the other end of this car
was kept everything that experience could suggest
or ingenuity devise for handling and removing
wrecked cars, freight, or locomotives. Along the
sides were ranged a score or so of jack-screws, some
of them powerful enough to lift a twenty-ton weight,
though worked by but one man. There were also
o /
wrenches, axes, saws, hammers of all sizes, crowbars,
torches, lanterns, drills, chisels, files, and, in fact,
every conceivable tool that might be of use in
an emergency.
In less than three hours after the arrival of the
wrecking train at the scene of the accident on the
New York and Western road, the disabled locomo-
tive, which had lain on its side in the ditch, had
been picked up and replaced on the track. Such of
22O CAB AND CABOOSE.
the derailed cars as were not burned or crushed
beyond hope of repair had also been restored to their
original positions, scattered freight had been gath-
ered up and reloaded, all inflammable debris was
being burned in a great heap at one side, the tracks
were repaired, and so little remained to tell of the
disaster, that passengers by the next day's trains
looked in vain for its traces.
The first train to go through after the accident
was Suyder Appleby's special. The private secre-
tary had visited the farm-house to insist that Rod
Blake should accompany him to New York ; but he
was met at the door by the watchful sheriff, who
sternly refused to allow his sleeping charge to be
awakened or in any way disturbed.
" You need n't worry yourself about him," said
the sheriff. u He '11 come to New York fast
enough, and I '11 come with him. We '11 hunt the
Superintendent's office as quick as we get there, and
maybe you won't be so glad to see us as you think
you will. That 's the best I can promise you, for
that young fellow is n't going to be disturbed before
he gets good and ready to wake up of his own ac-
cord. Not if I can help it, and I rather think I can."
A WRECKING TRAIN. 221
"Oh, well," replied Snyder, who in the seclusion
of his car had heard nothing of Rod's brave fight.
" If he is such a tender plant that his sleep can't be
interrupted, I suppose I shall have to go on without
him, for my time is too valuable to be wasted in
waiting here any longer. But I warn you, sir, that
if you don't produce the young man in our office at
an early hour to-morrow morning the company will
hold you personally responsible for the loss of those
diamonds."
So saying, and ordering Conductor Tobin with
the other witnesses to accompany him, the self-
important young secretary took his departure, filled
with anger against Rod Blake, the sheriff who had
constituted himself the lad's champion, the wreck by
which he had been delayed, and pretty nearly every-
thing else that happened to cross his mind at that
moment.
As for Rod, he slept so peacefully and soundly
until long after sunrise, that when he awoke and
gazed inquiringly about him, he was but little the
worse for his thrilling experiences of the previous
night. His first question after collecting his
scattered thoughts was concerning the welfare nf
222 CAB AND CABOOSE.
the man for whom he had risked so much a few
hours before.
"The poor fellow died soon aftei midnight/'
replied the sheriff. " He did not suffer, for he was
unconscious to the last, but in spite of that he left
you a legacy, which I believe you will consider an
ample reward for your brave struggle to save him.
At any rate, I know it is one that you will value as
long as you live."
CHAPTER XXXIV.
BOD ACCEPTS THE LEGACY.
" T SH A'N'T accept it," declared Rod. " I could n't
A take a reward for trying to save a man's life.
You could n't yourself, sir. You know that all the
money in the world would n't have tempted you
into those flames, while you were ready enough to
go on the simple chance of saving a human being
from an awful death. I 'm sure you must feel that
way, and so you know just how I feel about it. I
only wish he could have known it too, and known
how willingly we tried to save him. If he only had,
he would n't have thought of offering us a reward.
Did you find out who he was ? '
" Yes, I found out," answered the sheriff, with a
queer little smile. " I found out, too, that he was
some one whom you knew quite well and were
deeply interested in."
" Some one I knew ! ' cried Rod, in surprise, al
223
224 CAB AND CABOOSE.
the same time taking a rapid mental note of all his
railroad friends who might have been connected
with the accident. " Who was he ? Was he a rail-
road man ? '
"No, he was not a railroad man, and I can't
tell you his name, but if you feel strong enough, I
should like to have you come and take a look at
him."
"Of course I do," replied Rod whose curiosity
was now fully aroused. " I feel almost as well as
ever I did, excepting a little shaky, and with a
smart here and there in the burned places."
As the two entered an adjoining room, Rod's
attention was instantly attracted by the motionless
form, covered with a sheet, that lay on a bed.
Several persons were engaged in a low-voiced con-
versation at one end of the room ; but at first the
]ad did not notice them. He was too anxious to
discover which of all his friends lay there so silently,
to heed aught else just then.
As he and the sheriff stepped to the side of the
bed, the latter gently withdrew the covering and
disclosed a peaceful face, from which every trace of
grime and smoke had been tenderly removed.
ROD ACCEPTS THE LEGACY. 22$
Rod instantly recognized it. It was the same that
he had last seen only the morning before lying by
the forest roadside more than a hundred miles away.
In a tone of awed amazement he exclaimed, " the
train robber ! "
" I think that settles it, gentlemen," said the sheriff,
quietly, and turning to the other occupants of the
room who had gathered close behind Rod. " We
thought it must be the train robber," he continued,
addressing the latter " because we found the missing
diamonds in a breast pocket of his coat ; but we
wanted your evidence to establish the fact. I have
also recognized him as the alleged reporter who
interviewed me yesterday morning, and who was
accidentally left alone for a minute with the leather
bag in my office. The moment I discovered that the
diamonds were missing I suspected that he must
have taken them, but thought it best to keep my
suspicions to myself until I could trace him. I
learned that a man answering his description had
boarded the east-bound freight somewhere this side
of Millbank and telegraphed Conductor Joe Miller
to keep him in sight. By making use of Mr. Apple-
by's special I hoped to overtake and pass him before
226 CAB AXD CABOOSE.
he reached New York. I thus expected to be on
hand to welcome aiid arrest him at his journey's end,
and by so doing relieve you of all suspicion of
being anything but the honest plucky lad you have
proved yourself. At the same time I looked for-
ward to taking some of the conceit out of that young
sprig of a secretary. That all my calculations were
not upset by last night's accident was largely owing
to you, for I must confess that, but for the shame
of being outdone in bravery by a mere slip of a boy,
I should have given up the fight to save this man
long before the victory was won. Of course the
evidence of his crime would have vanished with him,
and we should never have known for a certainty
what had become of the train robber or the diamonds.
Some persons might even have continued to suspect
you of being connected with their disappearance,
ivhile now your record is one that any man may well
envy. AVas I not right then, in saying that this poor
fellow had left you a reward for your bravery that
you will value so long as you live ? '
" Indeed you were," answered Rod, in a low tone,
" and it is a legacy that I can most gratefully accept
I wish he rnisrht have lived, though. It is terribla
D ' O
ROD ACCEPTS THE LEGACY. 22?
to think that by following him as I did 1 drove him
to his death."
" You must not think of it in that way," said one
of the other witnesses of the scene, taking the lad's
hand as he spoke, and at the same time disclosing the
well-known features of Mr. Hill, the Superintendent,
" You must only remember that you have done your
duty faithfully and splendidly. Although I should
not have approved the course you took at the outset,
the results fully justify all that you have done, and
I am very proud to number you among the employees
of our company. You have certainly graduated with
honors from the ranks of brakemen, and have fairly
won your promotion to any position that you feel
competent to fill. It only rests with you to say
what it shall be."
a If the young man would accept a position with
us," interrupted another gentleman, whom Rod knew
to be a superintendent of the Express Company, " we
should be only too happy to offer him one, that
carries with it a handsome salary and the promise of
speedy promotion."
" No, indeed ! You can't have him ! ' exclaimed
Mr. Hill. " A railroad company is said to be a
228 CAB AND CABOOSE.
soulless corporation, but it has at least soul enough
to appreciate and desire to retain such services as
this lad has shown himself capable of rendering. He
has chosen to be a railroad man, and I don't believe
he is ready to switch off on any other line just yet.
How is it, Blake ? Have you had enough of rail-
roading ? '
"No, sir," replied Rod, earnestly. "I certainly
have not. I have only had enough of it to make me
desirous of continuing in it, and if you think I could
make a good enough fireman, I should be very glad
to take Milt Sturgis' place on number 10, and
learn to run a locomotive engine under Mr. Stump."
" A fireman ! r exclaimed Mr. Hill, in surprise.
" Is that the height of your ambition ? '
"I think it is at present, sir," replied Rod,
modestly.
" But I thought you knew how to run an engine. It
looked that way yesterday morning when you started
off with the one belonging to the express special."
" I thought I did too, sir ; but by that very tria)
I found that I knew just nothing at all about it. I
do want to learn though, and if you have n't any
one else in view "
CONGRATULATED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT. (Pa$f 227.)
ROD ACCEPTS THE LEGACY. 22$
" Of course you shall have the place if you want
it," interrupted Mr. Hill. " Stump has already
applied for you, and you should have had it even
if all the events of yesterday had not happened. I
must tell you though, that Joe Miller wants to
resign his conductorship of the through freight
to accept a position on a private car belonging to
a young millionaire oil prince, and I was thinking
of offering you his place."
" Thank you ever so much, sir ; but if you don't
mind, I would rather run on number 10."
"Very well," replied the Superintendent, "you
have earned the right to do as you think best. Now,
as the track is again clear, we will all go back to
the city in the wrecking train, which is ready to
start."
When Mr. Hill entered his office an hour later
his secretary handed him a report of his investiga-
tions in the matter of the express robbery. This
report cast grave suspicions upon Rod Blake as hav-
ing been connected with the affair, and advised his
arrest. Snyder had spent some hours in preparing
this document, and now awaited with entire self
complaisance the praise which he was certain would
230 CAB AND CABOOSE.
reward his efforts. "What then was his amazement
when his superior, after glancing through the report,
deliberately tore it into fragments, which he dropped
into a waste-basket. At the same time he said :
" I am pleased to be able to inform you, Mr.
Appleby, that the property you describe as missing
has been recovered through the agency of this very
II dman Blake. I must also warn vou that the com-
pany has no employee of whose integrity and faithful-
ness in the performance of duty they are more assured
than thev are of hi-. As vou have evidently failed
/ i
to discover this in your dealings with Mr. Blake
and as vou have blundered through this invested-
v n ~
ti n from first to last, I shall hereafter have no use
r your services outside of routine office work."
Tl \ying. Mr. Hill closed the door of his private
office behind him, leaving Snyder overwhelmed with
bewilderment and indignation.
CHAPTER XXXV.
FIRING ON NUMBER 10.
IN regard to Rod Blake's new appointment, noth-
ing more was said that day ; but, sure enough,
he received an order the following morning to report
to the master mechanic for duty as fireman on engine
number 10.
Proud enough of his promotion, the lad promptly
obeyed the order ; and when that same evening he
climbed into the cab of number 10, as the huge
machine with a full head of steam on stood ready to
start out with Freight Xumber 73, he felt that one
O f
of his chief ambitions was in a fair way of being
realized. He tried to thank Truman Stump for
getting him the job; but the old enginernau only
answered " Nonsense, you won the place for yourself,
and I 'm glad enough to have such a chap as you.
The only trouble is that you '11 learn too quick, and
be given an engine of your own, just as you are
231
232 CAB AND CABOOSE.
getting the hang of my ways. I won't teach you
anything though, except how to fire properly, so you
need n't expect it."
That is what he said. What he did was to take
every opportunity for showing the young fireman
the different parts of the wonderful machine on
which they rode, and of explaining them to him in
the clearest possible manner. He encouraged him
to ask questions, often allowed him to handle the
throttle for short distances, and evidently took the
greatest pride in the rapid progress made by his pupil.
Since first obtaining employment on the railroad,
Rod had, according to his promise, written several
times to his faithful friend Dan the stable boy on
his uncle's place with requests that he would keep
him informed of all that took place in the village.
Dan sent his answers through the station agent at
Euston, and Rod had only been a fireman a few
days when he received a note which read as follows :
" DEAR MR. ROD :
"They is a man here, who I don't know, but who is asking
all about you. He asked me many questions, and has talk
with your uncle. He may mean good or he may mean bad, I
don't know which. If I find out ennything more I will let you
know. Yours respectful,
" DAN."
CO
o
=4
3
a
o
FIRING Off NUMBER JO. 233
Rod puzzled over this note a good deal, and won-
dered who on earth could be making inquiries about
him. If he had known that it was Brown the rail-
road detective, he would have wondered still more.
He finally decided that, as he was not conscious of
having done anything wrong, he had no cause for
worry. So he dismissed the affair, and devoted his
whole attention to learning to be a fireman.
o
Most people imagine it to be a very simple matter
to shovel coal into a locomotive furnace, and so it
is; but this is only a small part of a fireman's re-
sponsibility. He must know when to begin shovel-
ling coal, and when to stop ; when to open the blower
and when to shut it off ; when to keep the furnace
door closed, and when to open it; how to regulate
the dampers ; when and how to admit water to the
boiler; when to pour oil into the lubricating cups
of the cylinder valves and a dozen other places;
when to ring the bell, and when and how to do a
multitude of other things, every one of which is
important. He must keep a constant watch of the
steam-gauge, and see that its pointer does not fal!
below a certain mark. The water-gauge also comew
in for a share of his attention. Above all, he must
learn, as quickly as possible, how to start, stop, and
234 &* B AND CABOOSE.
reverse the engine, and bow to apply, or throw o
the air brakes, so that he can readily do any of these
things in an emergency, if his engineman happens
to be absent.
In acquiring all this information, and at the same
time attending to his back-breaking work of shovel-
ling coal, Rod found himself so fully and happily
occupied that he could spare but few thoughts to
the stranger who was inquiring about him in Euston.
After a few days of life in the cab of locomotive
number 10, he became so accustomed to dashing
through tunnels amid a blackness so intense that he
o
could not see a foot beyond the cab windows, to
whirling around sharp curves, to rattling over
slender trestles a hundred feet or more up in the
air, and to rushing with undiminished speed through
the darkness of storm-swept nights, when the head-
lights seemed of little more value than a tallow
o
candle, that he ceased to think of the innumerable
dangers connected with his position as completely
as though they had not existed.
There came a day, however, when they were
recalled to his mind in a startling manner. It was
late in the fall, and lor a week there had been a
FIRING ON NUMBER IO. 2$$
steady down-pour of rain that filled the streams to
overflowing, and soaked the earth until it seemed
like a vast sponge. It made busy work for the sec-
tion gangs, who had their hands more than full with
landslides, undermined culverts, and over-flowing
ditches, and it caused enginemen to strain their eyes
along the lines of wet track, with an unusual careful-
ness. At length the week of rain ended with a storm
of terrific violence, accompanied by crashing thunder
and vivid li^htnino^s. While this storm was at its
o o
height, locomotive number 10, drawing a heavy freight,
pulled in on the siding of a station to wait for the pass-
ing of a passenger special, and a regular express.
Truman Stump sat on his side of the cab, calmly
smoking a short, black pipe ; and his fireman stood
at the other side, looking out at the storm as the
special, consisting of a locomotive and two cars,
rushed by without stopping. As it was passing, a
ball of fire, accompanied by a rending crash of
thunder, illumined the whole scene with an awful,
blinding glare. For an instant Rod saw a white
face pressed against one of the rear windows of the
flying train. He was almost certain that it was the
face of Eltje Vanderveer.
236 CAB AND CABOOSE.
A moment later the telegraph operator of that
station came running toward them, bareheaded, and
coatless, through the pitiless rain. The headlight
showed his face to be bloodless and horror-stricken.
" Cut loose from the train, Hod ! ' he cried in a
voice husky and choked with a terrible dread.
"True, word was just coming over the wire that
the centre pier of Minkskill bridge had gone out
from under the track, and for me to stop all trains,
when that last bolt struck the line, and cut me off.
If you can 't catch that special there 's no hope for
it. It 's the only thing left to try."
Without waiting to hear all this Rod had instantly
obeyed the first order, sprung to the rear of the
tender, drawn the coupling-pin, and was back in the
cab in less time than it takes to write of it. Tru-
man Stump did not utter a word ; but, before the
operator finished speaking, number 10 was in
motion. He had barely time to leap to the ground
as she gathered headway and began to spring for-
ward on the wildest race for life or death ever run
on the New York and Western road.
CHAPTER XXXVI,
THE ONLY CHANCE OF SAVING THE SPECIAL.
SO well did Truman Stump and his young fire-
man understand each other, that, as locomotive
number 10 sprang away on her race after the special,
there was no necessity for words between them. Only
after Rod had done everything in his power to ensure
a. full head of steam and paused for a moment's
breathing-spell, did he step up behind the engine-
man and ask, " What is it, True ? "
" Minkskill bridge gone ! We are trying to catch
the special," answered the driver, briefly, without
turning his head. It was enough ; and Rod instantly
comprehended the situation. There was a choking
sensation in his throat, as he remembered the face
disclosed by the lightning a few moments before,
and realized the awful danger that now threat-
o
ened the sunny-haired girl who had been his play-
mate, and was still his friend. With a desperate
237
238 CAB AND CABOOSE.
energy he flung open the furnace-door, and toiled to
feed the roaring flames behind it. They almost
licked his face in their mad leapings, as their scorch-
ing breath mingled with his. He was bathed in
perspiration ; and, when the front windows of the
cab were forced open by the fierce pressure of the
gale, he welcomed the cold blast and hissing rain
that swept through it.
Number 10 had now attained a fearful speed, and
rocked so violently from side to side that its occu-
pants were obliged to brace themselves and cling to
the solid framework. It was a miracle that she kept
the track. At each curve, and there were many of
them on this section, Rod held his breath, fully
expecting the mighty mass of iron to leap from the
rails and plunge headlong into the yawning black-
ness. But she clung to them, and the steady hand
at the throttle opened it wider, and still a little
wider, until the handle had passed any limit that
even the old engineman had ever seen. Still the
young fireman, with set teeth and nerves like steel,
watched the dial on the steam-gauge, and flung coal
to the raging flames behind the glowing furnace-
door.
THE ONL Y CHANCE OF SA VING THE SPECIAL. 239
Mile after mile was passed in half the same num-
ber of minutes, and outside objects were whirled
backward in one continuous, undistinguishable blur.
The limb of a tree, flung to the track by the mighty
WUK 1 , was caught up by the pilot and dashed
against the head-light, instantly extinguishing it.
So they rushed blindly on, through a blackness in-
tensified by gleams of electric light, that every now
and then ran like fiery serpents along the rails, or
bathed the flying engine with its pallid flames.
They were not more than two miles from the
deadly bridge when they first saw the red lights on
the rear of the special. The enginenian's hand
clutched the whistle lever; and, high above the
shriek of the storm, sounded the quick, sharp blasts
of the danger signal. A moment later they swept
past a glare of red fire blazing beside the track. The
enginemen of the special had not understood their
signal, and had thrown out a fusee to warn them of
his presence immediately in front of them.
" I '11 have to set you aboard, Kod," shouted Tru-
man Stump, and the young fireman knew what he
meant. He did not answer ; but crawling through
the broken window and along the reeling foot-board,
240 LAB AND CABOOSE.
using his strength and agility as he had never used
them before, the boy made his way to the pilot of
the locomotive. Crouching there, and clinging to
its slippery braces, he made ready for the desperate
spring that should save or lose everything.
Foot by foot, in reality very quickly, but seem-
ingly at a laggard pace, he was borne closer and
closer to the red lights, until they shone full in his
face. Then, with all his energies concentrated into
one mighty effort, he launched himself forward, and
caught, with outstretched hands, the iron railing of
the platform on which were the lights. Drawing
himself up on it, he dashed into the astonished group
standing in the glass-surrounded observation-room,
that occupied the rear of the car, crying :
" Stop the train ! Stop it for your lives ! '
Prompt obedience to orders, without pausing to
question them, comes so naturally to a railroad man,
that President Yanderveer himself now obeyed this
grimy-faced young fireman as readily as though their
positions had been reversed. With a quick move-
ment he touched a button at one side of the car, and
instantly a clear-voiced electric bell, in the cab of
r
d
o
fa
fa
a
M-i
3J
3
a
o
2
THE ONL Y CHANCE OF SA VING THE SPECIAL. 241
the locomotive that was dragging his train toward
destruction, rang out an imperative call for brakes.
The engineman's right hand sought the little brass
" air " lever as he heard the sound. With his left
he shut off steam. Ten seconds later the special
stood motionless, with its pilot pointing out over the
Minkskill bridge.
President Vanderveer had not recognized the pant-
ing, coal-begrimed, oil-stained young fireman who had
so mysteriously boarded his car while it was running
at full speed ; but Eltje knew his voice. Now, as
her father turned from the electric button to demand
an explanation, he saw the girl seize the stranger's
hand. It 's Eod, father ! It 's Rodman Blake ! "
she cried.
" So it is ! " exclaimed the President, grasping the
lad's other hand, and scanning him closely. " But
what is the matter, Rodman ? How came you here ?
Why have you stopped us, and what is the meaning
of this disguise ? "
o
A few words served to explain the situation.
Then the President, with Rod and the conductor
of the special, left the car, lanterns in hand, to go
6
242 CAB AND CABOOSE.
ahead and discover how far they were from the
treacherous bridge. As they reached the ground
they were joined by Truman Stump, who had
slowed the terrific speed of his locomotive at the
moment of his fireman's leap from its pilot, and
brought it to a standstill close behind the special.
In a voice trembling with emotion the old engine-
man said :
" It was the finest thing I Ve seen done in thirty
years of running, Rod, and I thank God for your
nerve."
A minute later, when President Vanderveer real-
ized the full extent of the threatened danger, and
the narrowness of their escape, he again held the
young fireman's hand, as he said :
" And I thank God, Rodman, not only for your
nerve, but that he permitted you to be on time. A
few seconds later and our run on this line would
have been ended forever."
After a short consultation it was decided that the
special should remain where it was, while locomotive
number 10 should run back to the station, where its
train still waited, bearing a message to be telegraphed
to the nearest gang of bridge carpenters.
THE ONL Y CHANCE OF SA VING THE SPECIAL. 243
How different was that backward ride from the
mad, breathless race, with all its dreadful uncertain-
ties, that Truinan Stump and Rod Blake had just
made over the same track. How silent they had
been then, and how they talked now. How cheerily
their whistle sounded as they approached the station !
How lustily Rod pulled at the bell-rope, that the
glad tidings of number 10's glorious run might the
sooner be guessed by the anxious watchers, who
awaited their coming. What an eager throng gath-
ered round the old locomotive as it rolled proudly up
to the station. It almost seemed conscious of having
performed a splendid deed. Long afterwards, in
cab and caboose, or wherever the men of the N. Y.
and "W. road gathered, all fast time was compared
with the great run made by number 10 on that
memorable ni^ht.
o
The storm had passed and the moon was shining
when the station was reached. Already men were at
work repairing the telegraph line, and an hour later
a bridge gang, with a train of timber-laden flats,
was on its way to the Minkskill bridge. Number 10
drew this train, and Rod was delighted to have this
opportunity to learn something of bridge building.
CAB AND CABOOSE.
He was glad, too, to escape from the praises of the
railroad men ; for Truman Stump insisted on telling
the story of his young fireman's brave deed to each
new crew as it reached the station, and they were
equally determined to make a hero of him.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
INDEPENDENCE OR PRIDE ?
SMILER, the railroad dog, appeared on the scene
with the bridge gang, though no one knew
where he came from ; and, quickly discovering Rod,
he followed him into the cab of locomotive number
10. Here he took possession of the cushion on the
fireman's side of the cab, and sat on it with a wise
expression on his honest face, that said as plainly as
words : " This is an important bit of work, and it
is clearly rny duty to superintend it." Rod was
delighted to have this opportunity of introducing
the dear dog to Eltje, and they became friends imme-
diately. As for the President, Smiler not only con-
descended to recognize him, but treated him with
quite as much cordiality as though he had been a
fireman or a brakeman on a through freight.
Rod got a few hours' sleep that night after all,
and in the morning he and Engineman Stump accepted
2A5
246 CAB AND CABOOSE.
an invitation to take breakfast with President Van-
derveer, his daughter, and Smiler, in the President's
private car. This car had just returned from the
extended western trip on which it had started two
months before, when Rod was seeking employment
on the road. As neither Eltje nor her father had
heard a word concerning him in all that time, they
now plied him with questions. When he finished
his story Eltje exclaimed :
" I think it is perfectly splendid, Rod, and if I
were only a boy I would do just as you have done !
Would n't you, papa ? '
" I am not quite sure that I would, my dear," an
swered her father, with a smile. " While I heartily
approve of a boy who wishes to become a railroad-
man, beginning at the very bottom of the ladder and
working his way up, I cannot approve of his leaving
his home with the slightest suspicion of a stain rest-
ing on his honor if he can possibly help it. Don't
you think, Rodman," he added kindly, turning to the
lad, " that the more manly course would have been
to have stayed in Euston until you had solved the
problem of who really did disable your cousin's
bicycle ? '
INDEPENDENCE OR PRIDE? 247
" I don't know but what it would," replied the
young man, thoughtfully ; " but it would have
been an awfully hard thing to do."
" Yes, I know it would. It would have been
much harder than going hungry or fighting tramps or
capturing express robbers ; still it seems to me that
it would have been more honorable."
" But Uncle turned me out of the house."
" Did he order you to leave that very night, or did
he ask you to make arrangements to do so at some
future time, and promise to provide for you when
you did go ? '
"I believe he did say something of that kind,"
replied Rod, hesitatingly.
" Do you believe he would have said even that the
next morning ! '
" Perhaps not, sir."
" You know he would n't, Rodman. You know,
as well as I do, that Major Appleby says a great
many things on the impulse of the moment that he
sincerely regrets upon reflection. He told me himself
the morning I left Euston how badly he felt that
you should have taken his hasty words so literally.
He said that he should do everything in his power
248 CAB AND CABOOSE.
to cause you to forget them the moment you returned,
as he hoped you would in a day or two. He gave
Snyder instructions to use every effort to discover
you in the city, where it was supposed you had
gone, and provided him liberally with money to be
expended in searching for you. I am surprised that
Snyder has not found you out before this, especially
as you are both in the employ of the same company.
Did n't you know that he was private secretary to
our superintendent ?
" Yes, sir ; I did," replied Eod, " and " He
was about to add, " And he knows where I am " ;
but obeying a more generous impulse, he changed it
to " and I have taken pains to avoid him."
" I am sorry for that," said the President ; " for if
he had only met you and delivered your uncle's
message you would have been reconciled to that
most impetuous but most kindly-hearted of gentle-
men long ago. Now, however, you will go home
with us and have a full explanation with him, will
you not ? '
" I think not, sir," replied Rod, with a smile. " In
the first place, I can't leave Mr. Stump, here, to run
number 10 without ^ fireman, and in the second I
INDEPENDENCE OR PRIDE? 249
would a great deal rather wait until I hear directly
from my uncle that he wants me. Besides, I don't
want to give up being a railroad man ; for, after the
experience I have gained, I am more determined than
ever to be one."
" It would be a great pity, sir, to have so promis-
ing a young railroader lost to the business," said
Truman Stump, earnestly, "and I do hope you won't
think of taking him from us."
"I should think, papa, that you would be glad to
have anybody on the road who can do such splendid
things as Rod can," said Eltje, warmly. " I 'm sure
if I were president, I 'd promote him at once, and
make him conductor, or master of something, instead
of trying to get rid of him. Why, it 's a perfect
shame ! r
"I Ve no doubt, dear, that if you were president,
the road would be managed just as it should be. As
you are not, and I am, I beg leave to say that I have
no intention of letting Rodman leave our employ,
now that he has got into it, and proved himself such
a valuable railroad man. He sha'n't go, even if I
have to make him { master of something,' as you sug<
geut, in order to retain his services. All that I want
250 CAB AND CABOOSE.
him to do is to visit Euston and become reconciled
to his uncle. I am certain the dear old gentleman
has forgotten by this time that he ever spoke an un-
kind word to his nephew, and is deeply grieved that
he does not return to him. However, so long as Rod-
man's pride will not permit him to make the first
advances towards a reconciliation, I will do my best
to act as mediator between them. Then I shall
expect our young fireman to appear in Euston as
quickly as possible after receiving Major Appleby's
invitation, even if he has to leave his beloved num-
ber 10 for a time to do so."
"All right, sir, I will," laughed Rod, "and I thank
you ever so much for taking such an interest in me
and my affairs."
" My dear boy," replied the President, earnestly,
" you need never thank me for anything I mly do
for you. I shall not do more than you deserve;
and no matter what I may do, it can never cancel
the obligation under which you and Truman Stump
placed me last night."
" It looks as though you and I were pretty solid
on this road, does n't it, Rod?" remarked the
INDEPENDENCE OR PRIDE f 2$ I
engineman, after the bridge had been repaired, and
they were once more seated in the cab of locomotive
number 10, which was again on its way toward
the city.
a lt does so," replied the young fireman.
CHAPTER XXXVItt
A MORAL VICTORY.
THE special was the first train to cross the
Minkskill bridge after it was repaired and
pronounced safe, and as it was followed by all the
delayed passenger trains, the through freight did not
pull out for more than an hour later. As the special
moved at the rate of nearly three miles to the freight's
one, and as it made but one stop, which was at
Euston, where Eltje was left, President Vanderveer
reached the terminus of the road in the evening;
while Rod Blake did not get there until the fol-
lowing morning.
After devoting some time to the discussion of im-
portant business matters with Superintendent Hill,
the President suddenly asked : " By the way, Hill,
do you happen to have a personal acquaintance with
a young fireman in our employ named Rodman
Blake?"
A MORAL VICTORY. 253
<l Yes, indeed I have," replied the Superintendent,
and he related the incidents connected with the first
meeting between himself and Rod. He also told of
the imputation cast upon the lad's character by his
private secretary. " In regard to this," he said, " I
have been awaiting your return, before taking any
action, because my secretary came to me with your
recommendation. After Brown finished with the
matter of the freight thieves, I sent him to Euston
to make a thorough investigation of this charge
against young Blake, and here is his report."
President Vanderveer read the report carefully,
and without comment, to the end ; but a pained ex-
pression gradually settled on his face. As he handed
it back, he said, " So Brown thinks Appleby did it
himself?"
" He has not a doubt of it," replied Mr. Hill.
" Well," said the President, I am deeply grieved
and disappointed ; but justice is justice, and the inno-
cent must not be allowed to suffer for the guilty, if
it can be helped. I am going to Euston to-night, and
I wish that, without mentioning this affair to him,
you would send Appleby out there to see me in the
morning."
254 CAB AND CABOOSE.
" Very well, sir," replied the Superintendent, and
then they talked of other matters.
In the meantime, during the long run in from the
Minkskill bridge, Rod had plenty of time to think
over his recent interview with President Vanderveer.
He recalled all the kindness shown him by his uncle,
and realized now, what he had not allowed himself
even to suspect before, that a selfish pride had been
the motive of his whole course of action, ever since
that unfortunate bicycle race. Pride had driven him
from his uncle's house. Pride had restrained him
from letting that uncle know where he was, or what
he was doing. Even now, though he knew that his
dear mother's only brother was willing and anxious
to receive him again, pride forbade him to go to him.
Should he continue to be the slave of pride, and sub-
mit to its dictates ? or should he boldly throw off its
yoke and declare himself free and independent?
"Yes, I will," he said aloud; I won't give in to
it any longer."
"Will what, and won't what?" asked the engine-
man, whose curiosity was aroused by these words.
Then Rod told him of the struggle that had been
going on in his mind, and of the decision he had just
A MORAL VICTORY. 255
reached. When he finished, the other exclaimed:
" Right, you are, lad ! and True Stump thinks more
of you for expressing those sentiments than he did
when he saw you board the special last night,
and that is saying a good deal. To fight with one's
own pride and whip it, is a blamed sight harder thing
to do than anything else that I know of in this world."
They had already passed Euston, and Rod could
not have left his post of duty then, even if they had
not ; but he determined to return on the very first
train from the city, and seek a complete reconcilia-
tion with his uncle.
The day express had already left when the freight
got in, and so he was obliged to wait for an excur-
sion train that was to go out an hour later. It was
made up of several coaches and a baggage car ; but
Rod did not care to ride in any of these. He al-
ready felt more at home on the locomotive than on
any other part of the train, and so he swung himself
into the cab, where he was cordially welcomed by
the engineman and his assistant. They were glad of
the chance to learn from him all the particulars of
what had happened up the road during the great
storm, and plied him with questions.
CAB AND CABOOSE.
In spite of their friendliness, and of his recent res-
olution, Rod could not help feeling some uneasiness
at the sight of Snyder Appleby sauntering down the
platform and stepping aboard the train just as it
started. He hoped his adopted cousin was not going
to Euston. That is just where Snyder was going,
though ; and, having missed the express which he
had been ordered to take, by his failure to be on
time for it, he was obliged to proceed by the " ex-
cursion extra." He was feeling particularly self-im-
portant that morning, in consequence of having been
sent for on business by the President, and he saun-
tered through the train with an offensive air of pro-
prietorship and authority. Not choosing to remain
in one of the ordinary coaches, with ordinary excur-
sionists, he walked into the empty baggage car, and
stood looking through the window in its forward
o o
door. The moment he spied Rod, comfortably seated
in the cab of the locomotive, all his old feeling of
jealousy was aroused. He had applied to the engine-
man for permission to ride there a few minutes be-
fore Rod appeared, and it had been refused. Now to
see the person whom he had most deeply injured, and
consequently most thoroughly disliked, riding where
he could not, was particularly galling to his pride,
A MORAL VICTORY. 2$?
During the first stop made by the train, he walked
to the locomotive, and, in a most disagreeable tone,
asked Rod if he had a written order permitting him
to ride there.
" I have not," answered the young fireman.
" Then I shall consider it my duty to report both
you and the engineman, for a violation of rule 116,
which provides that no person, except those employed
upon it, shall be permitted to ride on a locomotive
without a written order from the proper authority,"
said Snyder, as he turned away.
This unwarranted assumption of authority made
Rod furious ; and, as he looked back and saw Snyder
regarding him from the baggage car, he longed for
an opportunity of giving the young man a piece of
his mind. His feelings were fully shared by the
other occupants of the cab. While they were still
discussing the incident, the train plunged into a
tunnel, just east of the Euston grade. Here, before
it quite reached the other end, it became involved in
one of the most curious and startling accidents known
in the history of railroads*
CHAPTER XXXIX.
SNTDER IS FORGIVEN.
AS the locomotive was beginning to emerge from
the blackness of the tunnel, and those in its
cab were just able to distinguish one another's faces
by the rapidly increasing light from the tunnel's
mouth, there came an awful crash and a shock like
that of an earthquake. A shower of loose rocks fell
on, and into, the cab. The locomotive was jerked
backward with a sickening violence, and for a
moment its driving wheels spun furiously above the
track. Then it broke loose from the train, and
sprang forward. In another moment it emerged
from the tunnel, and was brought to a standstill,
like some panting, frightened animal, a few yards
beyond its mouth.
The occupants of the cab, bruised and shaken,
stared at each other with blanched, awe stricken
faces. They had seen the train behind thtm swal-
258
SNYDER IS FORGIVEN.
lowed by a vast tumbling mass of rock, and believed
themselves the only survivors of one of the most
hideous of railroad disasters. Only Rod thought he
had seen the end of the baggage car protruding
from the crushing mass, just as the locomotive be-
came released and sprang forward.
" The tunnel roof has caved in," said the engine-
man with a tone of horror ; " and not a soul can have
escaped beside ourselves. All those hundreds of
people are lying in there, crushed beyond recognition.
Oh, it is terrible ! terrible ! " and tears, expressive of
the agony of his mind, coursed down the strong
man's cheeks. Partially recovering himself in a mo-
ment, he said, " There is nothing left for us to do
but go on to Euston, report what has happened, and
stop all trains."
Rod Blake agreed that this was the engineman's
first duty ; but declared his intention of staying be-
hind, and of going back into the tunnel, to see if
there was not some one who might yet be saved. In
vain they urged him not to, and pointed out the
danger as well as the hopelessness of the attempt.
He was certain that the end of the baggage car could
be reached, and remembered the figure he had seen
2<X> CAB AND CABOOSE.
standing in it, as they entered the tunnel. He felt
no trace of resentment against Snyder Appleby now ;
only a great overwhelming pity, coupled with the
conviction that he was still within reach of help.
Finally they left him; and, armed with an axe
from the tender, the young fireman again entered the
dreadful darkness. Loose stones were still falling
from the roof of the tunnel, and more than one of
these struck and painfully bruised him. The air was
stifling with clouds of dust and smoke. Only the
lad's dauntless will and splendid courage enabled
him to keep on. All at once the splintered end of
a car assumed shape in the obscurity ahead of him.
He heard a slow rending of wood, as one after
another of its stout timbers gave way, and then,
above all other sounds, came an agonized human cry.
How Rod cut his way into that car, how he found
and dragged out Snyder Appleby's mangled form,
or how he managed to bear its helpless weight to the
open air and lay it on the ground beside the track,
he never knew. He only knew, after it had been
done, that he had accomplished all this somehow,
and that he was weak and faint from his exertions.
He also knew that he had barely escaped from the
SNYDER IS FORGIVEN. 261
baggage car with his precious burden, when it was
wholly crushed, and buried beneath the weight of
rock from above.
Snyder had been conscious, and had spoken to
him when he found him, pinned to the side of the
car by its shattered timbers ; but now he lay in-
sensible, and apparently lifeless. Rod dashed water
in his face, and in a few minutes had the satisfaction
of seeing a faint color flush the pallid cheeks. Then
the closed eyes opened once more, and gazed into the
young fireman's face. The lips moved, and Rod
bent his head to catch the faint sound.
"The cup is fairly yours, Rod; for I put the
emery in my wheel myself. Can you forgive **
was what he heard.
Rodman's eyes were filled with tears as he an-
swered, " Of course I forgive you, fully and freely,
old man. But don't worry about that now. Keep
quiet and don't try to talk. We '11 soon have you
at home, where you '11 be all right, and get over
this shake-up in no time."
A bright smile passed over Snyder's face, and
glorified it. Then his eyes closed wearily, never
again to be opened in this world. When help came,
262 CAB AND CABOOSE.
and the poor, torn body was tenderly lifted, its spirit
had fled. His faults had found forgiveness, here,
from the one whom he had most deeply injured. Is
there any doubt but what he also found it in the
home to which he had gone so peacefully, and with
so happy a smile lighting his face ?
Strange as it may seem, Snyder Appleby was the
only victim of this curious accident ; for the entire
mass of falling material in the tunnel descended on
the baggage car, of which he was the sole occupant.
The hundreds of excursionists in the coaches were
badly shaken up, and greatly frightened by the
sudden stopping of the train; but not one was
seriously injured.
President Vanderveer first heard of the accident
at Major Appleby's house, where he was engaged in
an earnest conversation with that gentleman, about
his nephew and his adopted son. While they were
still talking, a carnage drove to the door, bearing
Rod Blake and the lifeless form of him whom the
young fireman had risked his life to save.
After the Major had listened to the story of the
lad who brought to him at the same time joy and
grief, the tears streamed down his furrowed cheeky
SNYDER IS FORGIVEN. 263
and lie exclaimed, " My boy ! my dear boy ! the
pride and hope of my old age ! Forgive me as you
have forgiven him, and never leave me again."
" I never will, Uncle," was the answer.
At Snyder's funeral the most beautiful floral
tribute was an exact copy of the Steel Wheel Club's
railroad cup, in Parma violets, with the inscription,
woven of white violets, " Forgive us our Trespasses."
Directly behind the coffin, the members of the club
marched in a body, headed by their captain, Rod
Blake, whose resignation had never been accepted.
As for the young captain's future, the events on
which this story is founded, are of too recent occur-
rence for it to be predicted just yet. That he will
become a prominent railroad man, in some one of the
many lines now opening before him, is almost certain.
He finished his apprenticeship with Truman Stump,
on locomotive number 10, and became so fully com-
petent to act as engineman himself, that the master
mechanic offered him the position. At the same
time President Vanderveer invited him to become
his private secretary, which place Rod accepted, as
it seemed to him the best school in which to study
the higher branches of railroad management. He ia
264 CAB AND CABOOSE.
still one of the most popular fellows on the road,
and his popularity extends to every branch of the
company's service. Even Smiler, the railroad dog,
will leave his beloved trains for days at a time, to
sit in the President's office, and mount guard over
the desk of the private secretary.
Not long ago, when the chief officer of the road
was asked to explain the secret of Rod Blake's uni-
versal popularity, he replied: "I'm sure I don't
know, unless it is that he never allows his pride to
get the better of his judgment, and always performs
his duties on time."
THE END.
'* o
