"RIGHT-AWAY' STORIES.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVI, Issue 120, 18 May 1912, Page 2

"RIGHT-AWAY' STORIES.

MILE-A-MINUTE LOCOMOTIVES

(All Rights Reserved.)

(By "Will -.Lawson.) "Mile-a-minute engines!'' exclaimed Bill* the engmeman, "you bet yon- . life,, we've got them here, right . are they likpP" the Stranjpr ' like this Old Q-" Bill ioplied. At that moment theguorj gave the ' 'right-awny' 'and Old Q. puffed out on to the open road with twenty-five Avaggous jolting behind her. Quickly sho gathered speed, sailing away V.long a straight, clear path through the sun-bathed cornThe fireman had given the Stranger his seat to make his first ride on the engine as comfortable f.s possible. At first the unusual expedience, the no.wa &nd tho array of ge:w, kept toe •■ Stranger dilent. Presently he askeq - "What does a. mile-a-mmute_ ■*&}}. "It's hot stuff," Bill replied.. "Wish this whs one those en"Well, Old Q. isn't too slow. Think she'd hit 60, Johnny?1' , . "Nothing surer," Johnny the Ih<?--nwui said. ■ ~ At the end, of the long level, tne line dip ped ona slight grade and we at on «s straight us a die, heading TjjSouthland, for ■■■away.- y: ; . Old Qi wins buzzing &long, lurcmng - jv little, swinging along at a good SO miles speed. At the ©rest her speed began to increase. On the grade, Jia-11 ■opened the throttle wider, and'iiyj started down at a swifter pace. More —wider—the wheels sy.ng a madder song. The knock of them at the rail, joints became *'. long, heavy roar. The Stranger felt that his world was a thing of the ,paat; this was the .final flight through-sp&ce; «nd Johnny at tho fire w««/his-'future -guardian.- A weird scream from the whistle mar»ce rl a crossing, passed in a. flash. I Then --'- the engine seemed: to go mad. . There ••■>■■ wjiir Mo intelligible sound from the wheels, only 4t dreadiul maudlin npros.r in which maniac voices yelled arid wirved. Old Q. rolled and'leaped, .swung and leaped," The ,rails stref>^|iing away, in the distance could surely never carry this monster that screvim--ed through six.cc. She was indep'>n d<ent of their support and guidance. The Stranger cautiously put his hec>(i through the {small window to W»U <ihea4. He' jerked it, back with a jgnsp, for the gale cut like a knife Bill, with eyes glued on the trnoic upver moved or BT>pke. , Johnny was firing hard. This, thought tii'? Stn^ngor, is .the limit of speed ;-nofcU, ing on earth——The engine staggered violently, and! Johnny fell against the coal and lay there grieving, and Bill opened the throttle widkar-

'Ten minutes later the Stranger, having finished, an operation which mepessitatod an overhauling from the cap of the now--pacified Old1 Q., Bill saidr

"That's sixty miles an hour; yoa'vo tjustcdi the mile-ia-ininute speed., How <db you h"ke it?"

"Horrid!" the sea-sick Stranger answered. "That speed h^is; often been run in New Zealand authorised and ny authorised1. Wait till we get to fchi.s siding, and-I'll tell you about it. ' Old,Q. came to rest with her pilot "hanging over the <mryO' of the sklinfr which her long train ■filled. There M:& ■waited.for the Ohristchurch.-express \c pass.- » "The fsujt runs," Bill said, "are siot often tallced! about,'-but they're' ivin. all the same. Take the Bluff-Inver-'cavgill line, 17 miles. Time-table shows'.-45: to 55 minutes for this trip/,. It's been done in 17 minutes by :i

spocial carrying Joe Ward, authorisod too. Unauthorised runsi?—well, v\e do those when we're behind: time ni'd the curves will r.310w it; a mile -iminute is ssfe enough if there aren't any cunres, eveii on tliis nairo%.v gauge. A-good'Hteiny yeai-s ago, I foiv get exactly, "put you^ an look up tue -date of tho wreck of a bice ship ;:* Fortroso. Happenecl! on a. Saturday, and thea-e was no telegraph to Inver■osirgill. A form-hand rode all night to the .nearest telephone office, jui'.l: sent the news to Invoroargill. But ihere were no steamers there ,ls«g. enough to go to the assLstanoe of the ship, so they Itcyd! to get Word to Dnn©din. The. wir©'-ran to Clinton, halfway, where, messages-'-were repeated 4o Dimedin, and Clinton was closed or? Sunday. After a while' it was decided to send' a.n" engine through with tl;i« ••news. The trouble wao that none,of tlie way .stationsl knew she .was coming. Just one \w:ggon was hitched on to keep her on the rails o.nd to steriy: "lier. She had the right-away, and by gum! she took it. Stationmasters drowsing their Sunday away Mere by a yell in the distitnee, and maybe rushod out in time to oee her go pvi^t like a streak of luck with the ■■■waggon' flying fc-fter her. They did the 66 miles in 90 minutes, which was allowing for 4.11 shucks when they passed the stations. , Only a little bit of an engine, too." "Saye1 the ship?" the Strangor askedi.

"Lord! only 'knows," Bill answer "But they woko Clinton up,' I Lell you*. Then," he continued, "the;-» wus another life and death aifair. A

•chap at I\tii'lie v, near Tinuwu, had m: arm tsifcen off, and' was bleeding to -death. Case of get him to the' hospital or v let him die. One of il>e squatters planked-down £50 guarantee for a special to Timaru, «nd'-they got him into a van on a stretcher and hooked tin one of the little X- engines that used to run the express on this very line A daa-e-devil driver wuson that X., and he let her jro. right eno;ugh. Thirty-nine miles to Timaru, it was, &nd tha-t^ chap \va3 snug in bed at the hospital in 55 minutes. Gave liim a clear line, ot course; you can't--do these things with get-out-o'-my-way express trains shoving you into, every siding on the road."

Old Q. snorted in agreement. "But these are only yarns," the Stranger objected. "Give ine-.,50m0 facts and figures." ''Hard to get," Bill said. "I see some in a paper the other day," Johnny the fireman chipped in ; lie pulledl a so jap of pr.per out of -Ms |>ockot. "Between Otaki and Longburn, in 1892, Engine No. 10 ran at the speed of 60.6 miles per hour, ajid maint;tined it over a distance ojj several tnjles. Name of diriver, J. Fryer; *ice--nan, J. Taylor. Also on engine, Mr J. E. Fulton, maiwiger of compaiiv; Mr J. Miirchbiinks, onfcineer, and Mr Rou-s Martin, journalist." "There you tun," said Bill, "thnt'o <*nonf;h f:vcts for you, oh?" Mile-a-minwto, ssjfe as Imunes." A wailing , whistle s-aimded, nn? roiind the curve swept the express Tnafc Old Q. the hip: A. engine thnnd.ored. n flutter of cr.vruiges followed; and-the black hulk of the yans.; : ;. - ~|