Railway Adventures and Anecdotes: Extending over More Than Fifty Years
History
Railway Adventures and Anecdotes: Extending over More Than Fifty Years
Railroads
“When he got into difficulties, Mr. Small, the district agent, offered
him the amount which was due to him according to his measured work. He
had over 100 men to pay, and Mr. Small offered him the money that was
coming to him, according to the measurement, but he would not have it,
nor would he let the agent pay the men. He said he would have the money
he demanded; and he brought all his men into the town of Orduna, and the
men regularly bivouacked round Mr. Small’s office. They slept in the
streets and stayed there all night, and would not let Mr. Small come out
of the office till he had paid them the money. He attempted to get on
his horse to go out—his horses were kept in the house (that is the
practice in the houses of Spain); but when he rode out they pulled him
off his horse and pushed him back, and said that he should not go until
he had paid them the money. He passed the night in terror, with loaded
pistols and guns, expecting that he and his family would be massacred
every minute, but he contrived eventually to send his staff-holder to
Bilbao on horseback. The man galloped all the way to Bilbao, a distance
of twenty-five miles, and went to Mr. Bartlett in the middle of the
night, and told him what had happened. Mr. Bartlett immediately sent a
detachment up to the place to disperse the men. This Carlist threatened
that if Mr. Small did not pay the money he would kill every person in the
house. When he was asked, ‘Would you kill a man for that?’ he replied,
‘Yes, like a fly,’ and this coming from a man who, as I was told, had
already killed fourteen men with his own hand, was rather alarming. Mr.
Brassey and his partners suffer a great amount of loss by their contracts
for the Bilbao railway.”
HOW TO BEAR LOSSES.
During the construction of the Bilbao line, shortly before the proposed
opening, it set in to rain in such an exceptional manner that some of the
works were destroyed. The agent telegraphed to Mr. Brassey to come
immediately, as a certain bridge had been washed down. About three hours
afterwards another telegram was sent, stating that a large bank was
washed away; and next morning, another, stating the rain continued, and
more damage had been done. Mr. Brassey, turning to a friend, said,
laughingly: “I think I had better wait until I hear that the rain has
ceased, so that when I do go, I may see what is left of the works, and
estimate all the disasters at once, and so save a second journey.”
No doubt Mr. Brassey felt these great losses that occasionally came upon
him much as other men do; but he had an excellent way of bearing them,
and, like a great general, never, if possible, gave way to despondency in
the presence of his officers.
RAILROAD INCIDENT.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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