Show r t THE FAST I MAIL RACE 1 Y LM11 LML1 Lithe JOhnny Jackson hOB tired on a pension roo know who Little Perhaps you dont In that Johnny Jackson Is case you nt once that might ns well be told he Is the of his weight best engineer tie that ever pulled a tbrot and thnt for the Inst his career lief ran tho ten ytars of Cast mat train orthwesternB between Omaha Boono and making a record that best of them the very cannot put In the shade Little Johnny Jackson In trim never rnnning pounds weighed more than ninety and Iw couldnt was so little that ho pull the reverse lever without over tho help of a good brace the fireman or of nerves 11111 1Ie was a bunch of of gray matter however was Little Johnn grit and Jackson and his fearlessness Hiii be the sill of the switch gos flitch shanty after John ny quits drawing a pension Li few days ago W A Gardner vice at president of the Northwestern received nrnvm an i cxprcs Package whIch Proved to be a rather elaborate box klndrllh one of the kind that makes the cPient re think that perhaps a rich rela live has lye sent an antemortem A legacy When ho got the cover off however he discovered a single cigar securely Y wrapped In gold foil and done note up ln aMy a-My dear Mr Gardner note ran tho when you sent me that box of cigars after the first run of the fast mall when wo ran the wheels off the Burlington sas efft you told mo to save two so we could smoke them together when ge got the time Ive got time to burn now and so I send you yours when youve got time Im ready for that smoke Mr Gardner put the cigar In the box locked It up in his desk and the net time he goes to Omaha he is go lug to take It with him Im going to look Johnny Jackson Jack-son up he declared and you can bet that the greatest little engineer that ever climbed onto the footboard and your humble servant are going to en Joy a good smoke and stories swap of old times You ace if it had not been for Mr Gardner Little Johnny Jackson might never have run tho fast mall and If Little Johnny Jackson hadnt I run the fast mall It Is likely that the 1 Northwestern would not have won the greatest GOOmlle train race with a million dollar contract for a purse that was ever run Mr Gardner always al-ways had faith In Johnny Any man with only ninety pounds at his disposal he said who had the grit to back up to a tender loaded with eight tons ot coal and empty It every day Is good enough to run out best train when his time comes Pretty nearly everything depended upon the engineers and the firemen and there were many conferences regarding re-garding the matter Gardner was for Llttlo Johnny Jackson first last t and all the time for the last division into Omaha Other officials said lIes too light We want a man mac who wont have to tie himself Into the seat If we have to roll them at ninety miles or better Ninety pounds wont hold that Job down If ninety pounds wont win It then well lone declared the general manager man-ager And that settled it Tl + story of the fast mall train race between the Northwestern and the Burlington has been often told and needs no repeating The fast mail went Into Boone fifteen minutes late and the fjfliclate and newspaper men on board were In despair all except Gardner I Little Johnny Jackson vas waltlhg to 10 hooked on Gardner climbed Into the cab as the engine I backed down and asked Johnny John-ny what was the best he could do to Omaha Dont know Never had a chance Cd to try answered Johnny I and Gardner Gard-ner began to be sorry 1m had trusted the fast mall to ninety pounds of flesh and bones The general manager looked look-ed at Johnny rather hopelessly end Johnny rlnned If you really want to know what it kill this is to ride fast he said train give mo a special schedule cleat the track and keep your hands off tho emoigeney cord Ill do It snapped Gardner While the train was being Inspected Gardner had the dispatcher annul the fast mall and tie up the line to Omaha Oma-ha Little Jolmnny Jackson slid out of Doono easy like and soon had her scared rabbit lIe let a going like a melancholy wall escape from the whl hard that tlo and hit the tangents so the mail clerks had to brace themselves them-selves against the racks Long before Mi sourl valley was reached Johnny had made up tho lost limo and was fifteen mInutes to the good From Missouri valley Into Omaha It Is a grade all the dIstance and the water tho landscape of that he lUade way past end twentyslx miles tear past the rear enough to make a hardened gen oral was manager dizzy with stUje fright story short Johnny make a long To tho fast mall Into Omaha sO brought far ahead of schedule that newspaper men eat had the Gardner breakfast at the hotel he their In traIn trailed mall fast fore the Q Into the deopt ttnTfc home said the gen When I get he shook hnnds with IS erlll managlr lm going to send Jackson Johnny York and buy you the Lest to New that money can got box of cIgars Ilr Gardner Is which The cigar with JohnnY came smolle waiting to and the little engl that box ont of mall has been saving neer of the fsma It eleven years |