The Last Narrow Gauge Train Robbery. Robert K. Swisher Jr.

He knew the routes, and the speeds at which the trains ran. When it was time for him to find work, it was natural for Matthew to join the railroad. When both his mother and father were killed in a fire, Matthew left Kansas, moved to Durango, Colorado, and became the chief engineer for the narrow gauge railroad that ran up and over the passes to Silverton and Ouray hauling out the gold and silver. It was different coming from the plains of western Kansas to the mountains of Colorado, and coming from the large engines of the long trains to the small narrow engines of the mountains. But, he loved the line. It was the most beautiful run in the country.

      In Durango, he married a Colorado girl and had two children: Bill, who was killed in Vietnam, and James, who died in a car wreck in California, trying his best not to work for the railroad. Three weeks after James’ death, his wife died in bed, without suffering, a lost and bewildered look on her face. A year later, the narrow gauge shut down and Matthew finished his railroad work in Texas. After retirement, he moved to New Mexico with its sun and warmth, and he grew old and lonely. Erasing the sound of the engines and the flashes of his family that appeared before his eyes, he was tough, not asking for anything, sitting, growing older, waiting to die.

      With his retirement fund, he moved into an old folk’s home and began to remember about life. This led to his job with the Chama train. When this happened, he discovered that he was the last narrow gauge man in the country. Matthew was