Evening Republican, Volume 59, Number 66, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 April 1917 — FREAK ACCIDENTS’ARE CITED [ARTICLE]

FREAK ACCIDENTS’ARE CITED

Stone Thrown by Boy Cut Off Engineer's Finger “Shorty" Run Over Without Being Hurt ■ The Into Len Marshall, engineer, lost a finger in a peculiar way. He was running his engine through the country east of Dover, N. H.. his right hand was on the throttle, and his left hand rested on the sill of the cab window, with his fingers outside. A .boy standing on the railroad embankment, threw h stone at the engine, and the stone struck Marshall's middle finger, cutting ft off at the lower joint. A Boston business man. who served 25 years in the train service of the .Florida, Tampa & Key West railroad, tells that he worked in the freight train service, during the “link and pinhitch" days.” for 20 years without sustaining any injury, a rare thing in those days. He received his first injury In the railroad service after being promoted to the position of passenger conductor. While collecting tickets in the “Jim Crow” car one day, a drunken passenger seized the conductor’s thumb In his mouth as he put his hand out for the ticket. It required the efforts of the whole t ruin crew to pry. tlie passenger’s mouth open to release their conductor. One night when “Shorty," a diminutive yawl brakeman, -attempted to board the front end <*t a he missed his footing and went under. “Cut to pieces I” I said as I ran toward the spot. The engine' kept moving, as the engineer did not see Shorty trying to jump on the footboard from the ■middle of the track (a forbidden and dangerous practice). I reached the spot just as the shifter passed over Shorty's body. The shifter had no sooner cleared, when to my surprise Shdrty jumped up from the middle of the track and started to run after the shifter; yelling at the top of fils voice: “Walt for me, you fool!” Shorty was so small that when he went down he cleared the brake rigging of the engine, consequently he was uninjured.