Part 25 (2/2)

Although in sore trouble, he could not neglect his greater duty, but exclai with a loud voice to his son, ”Lie down,” he laid hold of the switch, and saw the train safely turned on to its proper track His boy, accustomed to obedience, did as his father commanded him, and the fearful heavy train thundered over hiers drea on that turnout, what terrible anguish their approach had that day caused to one noble heart The father rushed to where his boy lay, fearful lest he should find only a ratitude he found him alive and unharue, to reason whether it were best-death, and fearful mutilation of body, would have resulted The circu of Prussia, who the next day sent for the man and presented him with a medal of honour for his heroiso at a railway station a gentleman actually followed a person with a portht to be his, but the fellow, unabashed, entleman returned to inquire after his, and found, when too late, that his first suspicions were correct

THE BLACK REDSTART

A railway carriage had been left for some weeks out of use in the station at Giessen, Hesse Darmstadt, in the month of May, 1852, and when the superintendent cae he found that a black redstart had built her nest upon the collision spring; he very hue in its shed until its use was imperatively demanded, and at last attached it to the train which ran to Frankfort-on-the-Maine, a distance of nearly forty miles It reht back to Giessen, and after one or two short journeys caain to rest at Giessen, after a period of four days The young birds were by this ti that the parent bird had not deserted her offspring, the superintendent carefully removed the nest to a place of safety, whither the parent soon followed The young were, in process of tied and left the nest to shi+ft for themselves It is evident that one at least of the parent birds must have acco aside the difficulty whichfor every carriage that arrived at Giessen, the nestlings would have perished fro their stay at Frankfort, for everyone who has reared young birds is perfectly aware that they need food every two hours Moreover, the guard of the train repeatedly saw a red-tailed bird flying about that part of the carriage on which the nest was placed

STOPPING A RUNAWAY COUPLE

Captain Galton who soovernment railway inspector, in one of his reports relates the following singular circuine-driver of a train, had engaged to run away froed to leave by a train this ence of her intended escape; and having ot into the train, they contrived, whether with or without the assistance of a porter is not very clear, to turn the train through facing points, as it left the station, into a bog” The captain does not pursue the subject further in his report, so that we are left in ignorance as to the success of the plan for stopping a contee

A MADMAN IN A RAILWAY CARRIAGE

We subjoin fro occurrence which took place July 4th of that year:-”In one of the third-class co's Cross Station at 915 ply-built ard look, took his seat about three minutes before the train started He was accoe by a woman, whom he afterwards referred to as his wife, and by a man, apparently a cab-driver, of both of whom he took leave when the train was about to start It had scarcely done so, when, on putting his hand to his pocket, he called out that he had been robbed of his purse, containing 17, and at once began to shout and gesticulate in a reatly alarmed his fellow-travellers, four in number, in the sa violence for some time, and then made an attempt to throw himself out of theHe threw his arms and part of his body out of the , and had just succeeded in placing one of his legs out, when the other occupants of the carriage, who had been endeavouring to keep hi foiled in this attempt, he turned round upon those who had been instrule, which-notwithstanding the speed the train was running at-was heard in the adjoining compartments, the sailor was overcome by the united exertions of the party, and was held down in a prostrate position by two of their nule and shout vehemently, and it was not till soed to bind his hands and strap hiers in the compartment felt themselves secure

This train, it h, a distance little short of eighty e; and as the scene we have been describing began immediately after the train left London, the expectation of having to pass the time usually occupied between the two stations (one hour and fifty reeable While the struggle was going on, and even for soet the train stopped The attention of those in the adjoining co handkerchiefs out of the , and by-and-by a full explanation of the circuh the aperture in which the lahts both couard was e to another for a short distance, but it was found impossible to continue it, and so the occupants of the compartments beyond the one nearest the scene of the disturbance could learn nothing as to its nature, a vague feeling of alarh a succession of shouts of 'Stop the train,' ers, was kept up On the arrival of the train at Peterborough the man was released by his captors and placed on the platform No sooner was he there, however, than he rushed with a renewed outburst of fury on those who had taken the chief part in restraining his violence, and as he kept vociferating that they had robbed him of his money, it was soot to interfere-indeed, it seeo on in the train As remonstrances were made from all quarters to the station-reed, after being furnished with the nae, to hand hieneral impression on those itnessed the sailor's fury see under a violent attack of deliriu hard for some days Had there been only one or even two occupants of the compartment besides himself, there seele would have ensued, as he displayed iine of an ordinary railway train broke down midway between two stations As an express train was ers were urgently called upon to get out of the carriages A countryman in leather breeches and top-boots, who sat in a corner of one of the carriages, co blanket, obstinately refused to budge In vain the porter begged hi the express would reach the spot in a minute, and the train would in all probability be dashed to pieces The traveller pulled an insurance ticket out of his breeches pocket, exclai, ”Don't you see I've insured h, and sunk back into his corner They had to force him out of the train, and an instant afterwards the express ran into it

A NEW TRICK

A novel illustration of the ingenuity of thieves has been afforded by an incident reported from the continent For so froe train, and which, notwithstanding all research and precautions, continued to disappear in a very mysterious manner The secret which the inquiries set on foot had failed to discover was at length revealed by a rather a box, on one side of which ords equivalent to ”This side up,” had, in disregard of this caution, been set up on end in the goods shed Some time afterwards the employes were not a little startled to hear a voice, apparently proceeding fro the hearers to let the speaker out On opening the lid, the railway officials were surprised and a on his head In the explanation which followed, the felloanted to account for his appearance under such unusual circuiven into custody, and it was soon found that the thieves had adopted thisthe the absence of the employes they had let themselves out of the box which they at once filled with any articles they could lay their hands on, refastened the lid, and then decamped But for the unfortunate inability of human nature to endure an inverted position for an indefinite period, the ingenious authors of the sche time without detection

A TRAIN STOPPED BY CATERPILLARS

_Colonies and India_ quotes frohbourhood of Turakina an ar across the railway line, bound for a new field of oats, when the train ca verine, and suddenly the train came to a dead stop On exaine had beco-they could not grip the rails The guard and the engine driver procured sand and strewed it on the rails, and the train e caterpillars in thousands had crawled all over the engine, and all over the carriages inside and out