The Boss Who Was Kicked Off His Own Train
A classic local anecdote about a prominent contractor getting a taste of his own medicine.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
While building the famous Stampede tunnel, contractor Nelson Bennett issued a strict order forbidding anyone from riding on the cars. One day, Bennett, dressed in old overalls and a worn coat, jumped onto a car to ride out of the tunnel. The driver, not recognizing him, ordered him to 'get off o' there' immediately. Bennett asked if he knew who he was, but the driver remained adamant, telling him to 'skip.' Bennett complied and walked out. Upon reaching the mouth of the tunnel, he met his superintendent, Nat Turner. When the driver was confronted, he offered to quit on the spot, but Bennett refused, instead complimenting the man for his strict adherence to the rules.
“Naw, I haven't, but you get off o' this car P.D.Q.; d'ye hear? Skip.”
The Stampede Tunnel was a major engineering feat of the Northern Pacific Railway. This story serves as a piece of local industrial folklore, highlighting the hierarchy and rigid labor rules of the era's massive infrastructure projects.
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