| Show FAMOUS HEADLINE LINE HUNTER W aad 1 il JB L i T v am L 4 t tie the wrong train by FLOYD FLOTD GIBBONS YOU OU know boys and girls hope is a wonderful thing and ill be doggoned if I 1 know what the human race would do without it when things look the blackest when it seems to you that you a chance to pull through then its hope that keeps you going until your luck turns or things begin to straighten themselves out I 1 hope has saved many a life and im going to tell you about one life it saved today the life of a man who got himself into a horrible situation just by taking the wrong train the man is joe of chicago one evening late katein ln november in the year 1907 joe was standing on the platform ot of the railroad station in the little town of 0 tyrone okla waiting for a train it was a cold night and joe shivered and pulled his coat tighter about him as he paced up and down that platform it the local train joe was waiting for no 1 the local but it was late that evening unknown to joe it had been sidetracked to let no 3 the limited pass it at last a train came in sight and began to slow down that must be the local joe thought the other trains never stopped at little stations like tyrone the engine came up to the depot platform moving very slowly a string of cars along behind the vestibule doors of the cars were still closed but joe thought the train would stop in a few seconds and then those doors would open to save himself a walk down the platform he swung aboard one of the cars standing on the little ledge that protruded from below the closed door and at the same time grabbing the two hand holds on either side but the train come to a stop instead it tolled rolled right on past the station platform and began to pick up speed when joe should have acted he knew right away that he had made a mistake realized that he had hopped on the golden state limited instead of the local 1 I should have jumped from the train right there he says but I 1 was waiting for a better place to do it we were gliding over switches and spur tracks at the moment and I 1 was afraid I 1 might trip on them and turn an ankle goin going too fast for joe to jump yes joe might even have broken a leg if hed jumped there and got his feet feel tangled up with those switches and spurs but what he did do nearly earned him a broken neck by the time the train cameto a suitable spot in which to jump it was going so fast that joe DARE jump inside of two minutes it had picked up its full speed and was clipping off the miles at the rate of sixty or more an hour and there joe hung digging his toes into a little ledge hardly more than an inch wide on a bitter cold night while the wind tore at him and 41 Z his plight was well nigh hopeless threatened to wrench him loose he pressed Ws his face to the glass door but he rap on it the wind was so strong that he dare let go of either one of the hand holds he yelled yelled at the top of his voice but the train was making so much noise and the wind whipped his voice away so fas that no one heard him joe began wondering it if he could hang on until the train reached hooker the next station a few miles away then with a sickening sensation in the pit of his stomach he realized that this train even hesitate at hooker its next stop was dalhart tex ninety miles BEYOND hooker and he knew darned good and well that he could never hang on that long hope was all he had left the concussion of the air on my body he says was forcing me back against the rear hand hold it was bitter cold I 1 envied every person on that train whether it was a baby in a comfortable berth or a bum on the rods beneath the train joes plight was pretty well nigh hopeless but hopelessness stop a guy from hoping and hope was all joe had left now he began hoping the train would for some reason stop at hooker the train rain rolled on now it was just a mile outside of hooker now it was coming into the town it passed hooker without even slowing down and zipped right along toward Guy guymon the next station on the line then joe began hoping the train would stop at guymon it was a pretty forlorn hope but it gave joe something to live for we ran over some pretty rough country in the twenty miles between looker hooker and guymon he says there were a couple of high trestles dandy places for a fellow in my position to commit suicide if he minded to stick it out and see the natural outcome of the adventure but joe dive off of any trestles hope was still with him telling him the train might stop and joe played along even though he knew hope was a doggone liar and it would be a mir miracle acle it if that train stopped anywhere between there and dalhart then came the he miracle joes hands were getting stiff with the cold and he was having difficulty hanging on around the curves he knew that when they passed guymon he be able to play that game of hope much longer so soon his numbed hands would let go and hed just drop off they were approaching guymon now and joe figured his time on ea earth rth was just about up the train was roaring down on the station when suddenly the miracle happened the brakes began to grind the train began to slow down and up ahead joe could see a red light and the arm of a semaphore set at the stop signal si enal hey stopped at the depot and several men ran out to take joe down from his insecure perch 1 I was stiff as a board he be s says y s my y eyes were full of cinders and my face black as coal I 1 was frole frozen n I 1 was taken into the depot thawed out questioned and on my luck when I 1 asked what made her stop they showed me a message someone at hooker had seen me and wired ahead and the message read man seen hanging on front steps side fifth coach of golden limited stop her 0 service |
