Johnstown High School - Spectator Yearbook (Johnstown, PA)

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THB SPECTATOR - 5 fall of the bracing, running toward the cut, the long heavy train rushing swiftly on over the glistening rails, all lit up by the weird, white glare of the flashing sky,-nature could not have provided a hmore terrible setting for the last act in the assistant engineer's life. Nor was the scene silent. The droning of the rain on the roof of the shanty, the swish of the whirling wind as it lashed the dripping trees, the rumble of the on-rushing train, and above it all the uneven roar of thunder, punctuated by crashes so terrific in force that it seemed the earth itself must be shattered by the concussion, all the forces of nature joined in one wild pan- demonium of sound. Suddenly above the roar of the tempest there came the shrill cry ofthe engine-whistle and the scream of the brake- shoes. The engineer had seen the wreckage in the cut, but too late. No power on earth could have stopped that train then. ln the crash that followed the great stone bridge and even the mountains themselves trembled. And at the point where the train crashed into the wreckage, Mitchell lay. I did-what was right, groaned Campbell, as he sank into a chair before the operator's desk. Outside the tempest still raged, the open door banged in the force of the wind, and on the desk a telegraph sounder clattered unheeded. From Sunnyside to a Texas Ranch BY F. L. M. '10 ASHINGTON IRVING, if he should revisit this world to-day, would be greatly surprised to see the present surroundings of the furnishings of his home at Sunnyside. In order to find much of his silver and china- ware, he would have to travel from his seat on the Hudson, over miles and miles of Texas prairie owned in his day, not by the United States, but by Mexico. He would find himself not in the midst of culture and refinement, but with men of a much wilder and more restless nature.

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4 THE SPBCTATOR west-bound train would crash into the east end of the cut and so would not endanger his friend's life. Hurry, Walt! cried Nlitchell, seeing what was pas- sing in Campbell's mind. It is a sure loss of a hundred lives against the possible loss of one. Still Campbell hesitated. For God's sake, pleaded Mitchell, do vi hat is right. Go! Campbell went. By this time the rain was falling in sheets and the blinding flashes of lightning and deafening crashes of thunder all combined to make the situation more terrible. Thru the rain Campbell dashed up along the path that led to the sig- nal tower. Half way up the ridge a new sound forced itself upon his blurred senses. Unconsciously holding his breath, he turned to look behind him. A flash of lightning lit up the valley below. A fast freight, east-bound, had passed the signal bridge and was running at full speed toward the cut. He was too late to save his friend's life. But No. 29 might yet be stopped. With a groan he turned and ran on toward the top of the ridge. A hundred yards from the tower, he slipped on the wet clay and fell. Blind- ly he staggered to his feet and ran on. What if No. 2Q had already passed the signal on the other side of the ridge? Throwing open the door of the shanty he rushed to the electric switch that controlled the signals. A twist of the wrist and the lights on both east and west-bound sema- phores changed from white to red. Glancing from the east window he saw No. 29 with her two mighty engines and eleven long Pullmans slide to a stop beneath the semaphore arm, every wheel locked and a stream of sparks shooting from every brake-shoe. Turning again to the west side he looked down along the ridge. To his dying day that scene will remain as clear as a photograph in Campbell's mind. The lightning had become almost continuous and its wavering, blinding glare lighted up the whole mountain side, The rain-soaked, wind-lashed forest along the sides of the valley, the gray sheets of rain swirlingin the eddying gusts of the wind, the Clearwater foaming thru the piers and false-work of the bridge, the crowd of laborers and engineers, roused by the

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6 THE SPECTATOR The change in the environment of household furnish- ings as well as many of Irving's personal effects, such as his smoking jacket, the sleeves of which tell tales of long pondering over his works, is due to the transference of Sunnyside from the direct heir to another more distant member of the Irving family. When this heir sold the New York estate, and moved to a great ranch in Texas, he car- ried with him as much as possible of the furnishings used at Sunnyside by his famous great-uncle. The Irving crested silver appears every day on the ranch-house table. The great writer would be amused to see a fortunate cowboy, who happens to be taking a meal at the ranch- house, pick up a fork, examine it closely, and say, What cattle-brand is this? Irving might be interested to know that his elegant china stands just above a shelf full of the commonest Mexican pottery. In fact, this luxurious silver and china contrasts so greatly with its present surroundings, that one can not help but feel that it is out of place in its new home on a Texas cattle-ranch. The Mystery BY ALBERT WALTERS '10 U UCK REED awoke from a troubled sleep with a start. At first he was greatly bewildered, his head swam, something caught in his throat, his eyes smarted. Yes, it was smoke, the dormitory was alire! The boy grew excited as this truth slowly dawned upon him. Something must be done, that quickly. ln a moment he had unlocked his door, was racing down the long corridor, knocking on the doors as he hur- ried by. Finally he reached the Hre alarm. He touched the electric button, the gong clamored. By the time he was making his way back to his room a score of wondering pajama-clads pounced upon him, asking where the fire could be. You idiots, in the dorm, of course. Waken up, isn't there smoke coming out of my door? he screamed at them.