Tom put the last of the fuel into the fire. Brown closed the dampers and
glanced at the steam gauge. He shook his head savagely. "If we only had
some of that fuel we used on the freight car!" he exclaimed.
"More important to burn the bridge," answered Tom. "I wish Andrews would
stop around this bend and fight 'em."
The _General_ was thundering down upon the station at Ringgold. The men
stood in the tender gazing silently back, watching for the _Texas_ to come
around the curve.
"There!"
Tom looked down the track. The Texas, pushing the smoldering freight car
before her, was still after them! The Ringgold station flashed past, with
the bewildered agent looking first at one locomotive and then at the other.
The General whipped around the curve.
"Slow down, Knight!" ordered Andrews. "Jump off, men. Scatter and make your
way back to the lines!"
Knight shut the throttle and allowed the _General_ to lose speed. Tom,
Andrews, and Brown stood aside while the men filed from the tender into the
cab. The first stood on the step for a moment, then jumped. Tom saw him
strike the trackside and go sprawling. The second jumped ... the third ...
the fourth....
"Get ready to reverse the engine, Knight," said Andrews.
Pages:
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151