Most of them were nineteen or twenty,
and it was the same in the other coaches. After the first depression
their spirits rose. The temper of youth showed strongly. They were
eager to see Baltimore, but the train stopped there only a few minutes,
and they were not allowed to leave the coaches.
Then the train turned towards the west. The drizzle of rain had now
become a pour, and it drove so heavily that they could see but little
outside. Food was served at noon and afterward many slept in the
cramped seats. Dick, despite his stiff position, fell asleep too.
By the middle of the afternoon everybody in their coach was slumbering
soundly except Sergeant Whitley, who sat by the door leading to the
next car.
All that afternoon and into the night the train rattled and moved into
the west. The beautiful rolling country was left behind, and they were
now among the mountains, whirling around precipices so sharply that
often the sleeping boys were thrown from the seats of the coaches.
But they were growing used to hardships. They merely climbed back again
upon the seats, and were asleep once more in half a minute.
The rain still fell and the wind blew fiercely among the somber
mountains. A second engine had been added to the train, and the speed
of the train was slackened. The engineer in front stared at the
slippery rails, but he could see only a few yards. The pitchy darkness
closed in ahead, hiding everything, even the peaks and ridges.
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