So that night was always one of anxiety. Trainmen, who often get mixed on a single schedule, are only too likely to do so on a double one!
It so happened, however, that the exciting events of that night were not due to forgetfulness, but to a danger which no one could foresee or guard against, and which is, in consequence, one most feared by railroad men. And it developed the latent heroism2 in two men in a way which is still talked of on the rail, where these tales are passed on from mouth to mouth wherever trainmen congregate3.
The night was a cold and windy one, with a swirl4 of snow now and then, just sufficient to obscure the slippery track ahead, and yet not dense5 enough to cause the engineer to abandon in despair the task of trying to see what he was driving into. As a consequence, Engineer Jim Adams, pulling first section of through freight No. 98, had strained his eyes until they ached, in the effort to descry6 track and signals. More than once his hand had trembled on the throttle7, as he fancied he saw another headlight gleaming through the mist ahead, but which, at the last instant, resolved itself into a reflection of his own. So when an unmistakable red glow did appear there, he waited an instant and batted his eyes savagely8 once or twice before he threw on the brakes.
“It’s the Jones Run bridge!” yelled the front brakeman, who, perched on the fireman’s seat, had seen the glare at the same instant. “Git out o’ here!” And jumping to the floor of the cab, he balanced himself an instant in the gangway and then sprang out into the darkness.
The fireman took one look at the swirling9 flames ahead and followed him. Then the engineer, having set the brakes and closed the throttle, also leaped out into the darkness. But even as he leaped, he suddenly realized that the train had just impetus10 enough to carry it to the bridge. It would stop there, be consumed, and the loss to the company would be thousands and thousands of dollars.
By a supreme11 effort, he landed on his feet, and then, running a step or two, managed to catch the hand-hold on the first freight car, as it passed him. In a minute, he had clambered up the ladder, over the coal in the tender and down into the cab again, where he released the brakes, opened the throttle wide, and started on a wild run for the bridge. In an instant, the flames were around him and he felt the bridge shake and sway, but it held, and the train crossed in safety.
Meanwhile, back in the caboose, a strange scene was enacting12. The brakeman and conductor, who had been cosily13 sleeping in their bunks14, were suddenly thrown out to the floor by a terrific impact, and every loose object seemed to be hurling15 itself toward the front end of the car. It took a minute for them to disentangle themselves and get to their feet again. Then they made a simultaneous rush for the door, just as the brakes were released and the train jerked forward again. The conductor opened the door and started to put his head out to see what was the matter, when he suddenly found himself surrounded by a swirl of flame.
“Gosh all whittaker!” he yelled, and slammed the door shut again. Then he jumped for the box of fusees which every caboose carries.
The brakeman, who was green, was too frightened even to be interested. Otherwise he would have seen the conductor jerk out two fusees, and then, opening the door again, drop off the train just as it cleared the bridge. He scrambled16 down the bank, and, holding the fusees high over his head, plunged17 into the icy water without an instant’s hesitation18, and then, stopping only to light one of the fusees at a glowing ember, raced wildly away down the track, waving it above his head. For he had remembered the second section following close behind; he knew that the bridge would be so weakened that another train could not cross it; feared that, in the swirling snow, the engineer might not see the flames until too late; and instantly took the only effective means to stop the oncoming train.
Stop it he did, of course, and after making sure the bridge could not be saved, both trains flagged their way to the nearest stations to give word of the disaster. Ten hours later, a temporary bridge replaced the old one, and traffic was running as usual.
An investigation19 of the cause of the fire followed a few days later, but nothing definite concerning it could be discovered. It might have started, as so many do, from ashes dropped from the fire-box of a passing train; or it might have been set on fire by tramps, either by accident or design. Orders were at once sent in for an iron bridge to replace the wooden one, so that a repetition of the accident would be impossible.
One thing, however, resulted from the investigation—the indication of possible carelessness on the part of another engineer. Half an hour before the first section of ninety-eight had passed, the evening accommodation had crossed the bridge. It seemed impossible that the fire should have got such a headway in that time, and the presumption20 strongly was that the bridge was on fire when the passenger train crossed it, and that the engineer was not attending to his duties, or he would have seen it. The fireman, engaged in shovelling21 coal into the fire-box, and blinded by the glare of the flames, would probably not have noticed it, and on a passenger train no brakeman rides in the cab; but it could not have escaped the eyes of the engineer if he had been watching the tracks. It was, of course, possible that he had seen it, but had not stopped his train or given warning through some motive22 of hate or personal revenge; and inquiry23, indeed, developed the fact that there was a bitter quarrel of long standing24 between him and Jim Adams, the engineer of first ninety-eight—but this may have been merely a coincidence.
At any rate, Mr. Plumfield hesitated to think that any man would have passed the fire from such a motive, and preferred to believe that the engineer of the accommodation had merely been remiss25. The engineer, a burly fellow named Rafe Bassett, stoutly26 denied that this was the case, and declared that he had noticed the bridge especially and that it was all right.
Something in his demeanour, however, aroused Mr. Plumfield’s suspicions. Bassett was perhaps a trifle too emphatic27 in his denials. At any rate, he was suspended without pay.
The day after this happened, Mr. Schofield paused beside the train master’s desk.
“What was the trouble with Bassett, George?” he asked.
“Well, I can’t say, exactly,” answered Mr. Plumfield. “But he struck me as being not altogether on the square. You know he’s been in trouble before,” and he brought out the little red book.
Mr. Schofield nodded.
“Yes, I know,” he said. “I’m afraid this is going to make trouble,” he added, after a moment. “You know Bassett is a great brotherhood28 man, and is one of those big-mouthed agitators29 who are always talking about the wrongs of labour. His lodge30 is calling a special meeting to-night to consider his case.”
“Is it?” asked Mr. Plumfield, grimly. “Well, I suppose there’ll be a grievance31 committee to wait on me in the morning.”
And there was. Scarcely had he seated himself at his desk next day, when three engineers, cap in hand, appeared at the door and requested an audience.
“All right, boys; come in,” said the train master. “What’s the trouble?”
“It’s about Bassett,” explained the spokesman. “He’s laid off, I hear.”
“Yes,” said the train master. “Laid off till further notice.”
“What for?” asked the spokesman.
“For knowing more about the burning of the Jones Run bridge the other night than he’s willing to tell.”
“Do you mean he set it on fire?” inquired one of the men, incredulously.
“Oh, no; but I think he ran past it after it was on fire and didn’t stop to put it out, as he should have done.”
“Does Bassett admit it?”
“No, of course not.”
“Why should he run past the fire?”
“Maybe he was asleep and didn’t see it.”
“And have you any evidence?”
“Well,” said the spokesman, twirling his cap in his hands, “all I can say is that that’s mighty34 poor evidence, it seems to me. We had a meetin’ at the lodge last night, and we was appointed a committee to see you and demand that Bassett be reinstated at once.”
“All right,” said Mr. Plumfield, “I’ll consider it.”
“And when can we have our answer?”
“This afternoon at three o’clock,” answered the train master sharply.
“All right, sir,” said the spokesman of the committee, and the three men filed out.
Mr. Plumfield looked over at Allan, after a moment, with a little laugh.
“I’m afraid those fellows have got me,” he said. “I’m morally convinced that Bassett’s crooked35, but there’s no way to prove it. I’m afraid I’ll have to back down. I made a mistake in suspending him in the first place, but the man’s manner irritated me.”
And so, that afternoon, when the committee reappeared, it was informed that Bassett had been reinstated as requested.
They filed out with ill-concealed triumph on their faces, and Mr. Plumfield felt uncomfortably that his mistake had been a serious one. In gaining a victory, Bassett had enthroned himself more firmly than ever in the confidence of his associates.
Three hours later, in the dusk of the early winter evening, Mr. Plumfield left his office and started toward his home. As he crossed the tracks, and came opposite a saloon which occupied the corner nearest the station, the door suddenly swung open and two or three men stumbled out. They were talking loudly, and as they came under the glare of the street lamps, Mr. Plumfield saw that one of them was Bassett. The engineer saw him at the same moment.
“Why, here’s the train master,” he cried, lurching forward. “Well, so ye had t’ crawfish, didn’t ye, me bird? An’ well fer ye ye did!”
“Bassett,” said Mr. Plumfield, quietly, “you’re drunk. Take care, or you’ll get a dose a good deal worse than the last one.”
“Oh, I will, will I?” cried Bassett, coming closer. “Well, you jest try it! You jest try it!”
“All right,” said Mr. Plumfield. “You don’t need to report any more. You’re not in the employ of the P. & O. any longer.”
“Ain’t I?” cried Bassett. “Well, we’ll see what the boys say to that! You heerd this, boys—”
But without waiting to hear more, Mr. Plumfield went on his way. This time, he felt, he would have to stick to his decision, no matter what happened. And he felt, too, that he was right.
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1
technically
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| adv.专门地，技术上地 | |
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heroism
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| n.大无畏精神，英勇 | |
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congregate
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| v.(使)集合，聚集 | |
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swirl
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| v.(使)打漩，(使)涡卷；n.漩涡，螺旋形 | |
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dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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descry
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| v.远远看到；发现；责备 | |
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throttle
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| n.节流阀，节气阀，喉咙；v.扼喉咙，使窒息，压 | |
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savagely
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| adv. 野蛮地，残酷地 | |
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swirling
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| v.旋转，打旋( swirl的现在分词 ) | |
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impetus
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| n.推动，促进，刺激；推动力 | |
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supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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enacting
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| 制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的现在分词 ) | |
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cosily
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| adv.舒适地，惬意地 | |
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bunks
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| n.（车、船等倚壁而设的）铺位( bunk的名词复数 )；空话，废话v.（车、船等倚壁而设的）铺位( bunk的第三人称单数 )；空话，废话 | |
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15
hurling
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| n.爱尔兰式曲棍球v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的现在分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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scrambled
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
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plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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hesitation
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| n.犹豫，踌躇 | |
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investigation
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| n.调查，调查研究 | |
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presumption
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| n.推测，可能性，冒昧，放肆，[法律]推定 | |
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shovelling
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| v.铲子( shovel的现在分词 )；锹；推土机、挖土机等的)铲；铲形部份 | |
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motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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remiss
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| adj.不小心的，马虎 | |
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stoutly
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| adv.牢固地，粗壮的 | |
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emphatic
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| adj.强调的，着重的；无可置疑的，明显的 | |
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brotherhood
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| n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊 | |
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agitators
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| n.（尤指政治变革的）鼓动者( agitator的名词复数 )；煽动者；搅拌器；搅拌机 | |
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lodge
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| v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆 | |
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grievance
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| n.怨愤，气恼，委屈 | |
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formulate
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| v.用公式表示；规划；设计；系统地阐述 | |
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frankly
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| adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说 | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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