The Modern Railway Series No. 1

BRANCH LINE ADVENTURES

Original stories by Andrew Brenner and Helen Farall

Foreword

Dear friends,

our number one tank engine has taken care of his branch line for quite a while now. He may have plenty of experience, but it seems that trouble still turns up for him, even if he can't help it! But time and time again, Thomas has proven to take his mishaps to heart, and still be a really useful engine all the same. Read these stories and see what he has gone through recently.

The author

Thomas' shortcut

One evening, Thomas was sulking in the sheds. "It's not fair! I like to race Bertie, but he's been re-routed," he told Percy and Toby. "What does re-routed mean?" asked Percy. "It means, to go a different way to the one you usually go on," answered Toby. "What's wrong with that, Thomas?" Percy asked Thomas. "Bertie takes a shortcut now, so he always wins," replied the blue tank engine. Then Percy had an idea. "Why don't you take a shortcut too, Thomas? Then you could be re-routed just like Bertie!" Thomas thought that was an excellent idea.

The next day, Thomas was determined. "If Bertie can be re-routed, so can I!" Thomas arrived at Dryaw station, just as Bertie arrived too. As soon as the guard's whistle blew, Thomas rushed away. "Bye bye, Bertie!" "See you soon, Thomas!" called Bertie. Thomas didn't want to lose another race.

Thomas came to a junction where the tracks were already switched. "Maybe that's a shortcut!" Annie and Clarabel didn't agree with Thomas. "We don't think so! We don't think so!" But he only ended up running a longer loop siding and coming back onto his branch line again. "We told you so! We told you so!"

Then, Thomas found another track that led away from the branch line. "Maybe that's a shortcut!" This time, Thomas ended up in an old goods yard. "Oh, bother! That's not a shortcut either!" he said. "We told you so! We told you so!" replied the coaches. By now, Thomas' passengers were grumbling. But Thomas still didn't give up.

Finally, Thomas spotted an old track that led into the woods. "This must be a shortcut!" he puffed as he pushed his way along the overgrown track. Annie and Clarabel were not happy. "Thomas, please! Where are we going?" "Don't worry! This shortcut is going somewhere. We'll be out of the woods, and then-" CRASH! Came the sound of splintering wood as Thomas broke through the rotten buffers. His wheels had come right off the track! "Bother! I'm stuck!" he cried. Now, the passengers were going to be very late indeed. Poor Thomas.

Then, he saw his friend Bertie. "Hello, Thomas! What are you doing in there?" he asked the tank engine. "I was trying to take a shortcut, Bertie," sighed Thomas. "But I've come off the rails, and now my passengers will be late!" "Never mind, Thomas. I could take your passengers for you," suggested Bertie. Thomas' passengers thought that was a very good idea indeed. They boarded Bertie, and he sped off, leaving Thomas alone off the track.

It was almost dark when Harvey came to shunt Annie and Clarabel out of the way, before lifting Thomas back onto the rails again. The Fat controller was very cross. "Your passengers don't like to be late, Thomas. You mustn't wander out of your line." "I'm very sorry, sir," replied Thomas. "I was hoping to find a shortcut. But I will stick to my branch line from now on."

A few days later, Thomas was mended and back on the track again. His coaches were very pleased to see him again. "Thomas! Welcome back! We missed you!" "Thank you, Annie and Clarabel!" replied Thomas. He promised to stick to his branch line in the future. He wouldn't try taking shortcuts again. But Thomas and Bertie still like to have races. And sometimes, Thomas even wins.

The emergency cable

Thomas loves working on his branch line, with his faithful coaches, Annie and Clarabel. They bring many passengers up and down the line to all the stations. There was one passenger who had been travelling through the whole line and getting on and off every station, looking through his binoculars up in the trees. When Thomas met him again at Dryaw station, he asked, "Pardon me for asking, sir, but what kind of inspector are you?" The passenger laughed, "I'm not any kind of inspector. I'm a birdwatcher, and I'm trying to find a very rare bird." Thomas now understood who he was as the birdwatcher boarded the train.

Thomas was hurrying along his branch line, when suddenly, there was cause for alarm. Somebody had pulled the emergency cable, and the guard put the brakes on his coaches. Thomas' driver and fireman applied the brakes on their engine, and the train came to a stop. The guard came up to Annie and opened up the door to see who was responsible. The birdwatcher explained that he thought he had heard the very rare bird he had been looking for, and pulled the emergency cable so that he could see it. "Seeing a rare bird is not an emergency," sighed the guard, and he banged the door shut.

Thomas tried to start back up again, but then there was a screeching sound. Annie had developed a flat spot after being dragged along with her brakes on. Now her wheel wouldn't turn. So all the passengers had to squeeze in one coach, and Annie had to be uncoupled and left behind. "Don't worry, Annie. We'll get you fixed in no time. I promise!" Thomas didn't like having to leave her behind, and he was cross that the birdwatcher had pulled the emergency cable. The passengers felt cross, too.

And so did the Fat Controller. "The emergency cable must only be pulled, when there is a genuine emergency," he boomed. "I'm really, really sorry. I don't know what I was thinking. I promise I'll never do it again," apologized the birdwatcher. The Fat Controller gave him a fine for improper use, and sent him on his way.

Annie was soon taken to the Steamworks. Unfortunately, there weren't any wheels her size in stock. So Thomas had to travel up and down his branchline with only one coach. "I miss Annie," sighed Clarabel. "So do I," whispered Thomas. "And all because of one passenger pulling the emergency cable. I hope we never see that silly man again!" But Thomas did see him again. He was waiting on the platform at Dryaw station. "I'm not going to stop for him!" he huffed. "But you have to stop, Thomas!" exclaimed Clarabel. "You always stop at the station!" "I don't have to if I don't want to. Why should I?" replied Thomas firmly.

Thomas ran straight past the platform without stopping. Suddenly, he felt another cause for alarm. Someone had pulled the emergency cable again. The birdwatcher was still on the platform, so it couldn't have been him. "I say! That was my stop right there! I need to get off the train!" called an indignant passenger. "Oh, goodness me! I'm sorry!" replied Thomas. Luckily, Clarabel's wheels were not damaged, so Thomas backed up to the station to let the lady off the train, and let the birdwatcher get on.

This time, the Fat Controller was cross with Thomas. "You must stop at every station, Thomas, and pick up every passenger, whether you're in a bad mood or not," he told Thomas sternly. "Yes, sir," replied Thomas. "The man may have pulled the emergency cable when he shouldn't have, but he apologized for it, and I think he learned his lesson." "I'm sorry, sir. And I've learned my lesson too."

At last, Annie got a new wheel and came back to work with Thomas and Clarabel. "Thanks for getting me fixed, Thomas. How did Victor find the right wheel for me so fast?" said Annie. "I told him, it was an emergency!" smiled Thomas. And they enjoyed themselves for the rest of the day. And what about the birdwatcher? Well, he was able to find the rare bird he had been looking for, thanks to Thomas.

Lost property

On a nice, sunny morning, Thomas was feeling excited. The inspection team was coming to Sodor and they would be looking at everything. The Fat Controller had told Thomas the previous day that he would be the first engine to be inspected. This made him feel proud and boastful, much to Percy and Toby's dismay. "You're not the only one being inspected, Thomas," said Percy. "He's right, you know," agreed Toby. "And besides, you wouldn't want to cause trouble on your inspection." "Oh, you worry too much. I am sure to make them proud, you wait and see!" replied cheeky Thomas. Percy and Toby exchanged looks of annoyance to each other.

Thomas arrived at Knapford station with Annie and Clarabel, where the Fat Controller and the inspectors were waiting. They got on board, and Thomas was ready to start. "Remember, you have a lot of jobs to do, Thomas," warned Annie. "So you must take care to be really useful," put in Clarabel. "Don't worry, you two. What could possibly go wrong?" said Thomas as he puffed out of the station. But apparently, something could go wrong. He started too quickly, and jerked his coaches forward. "Oops, sorry!"

But that wasn't the only thing that went wrong for Thomas. When it got stuffy, Annie's window was stuck and couldn't open up. When some schoolchildren boarded the train, they pulled the emergency cable and caused Thomas to stop in the middle of the line. He even had to stop to let a herd of cows pass through. Thomas tried his hardest to make up for lost time, but everything seemed to be against him that day.

Finally, Thomas' inspection was over. The inspectors got out of the train with great indignation. The Fat Controller didn't feel too good. "I'm sorry about all the delays, sir," sighed Thomas. "Oh, nothing you could've done, Thomas," said the Fat Controller kindly. "Anyway, I have to go. You're not the only engine being inspected today," he added as he went off to board another train with the inspectors. "Good luck, sir!" Thomas called. Then he remembered Percy and Toby's words that morning, and felt sorry for himself, as he went off to take care of the rest of his jobs.

It was much, much later, when Thomas returned to Knapford station after delivering all of his jobs. "Thomas, look what we've found after you left! More lost property!" said the stationmaster. Thomas' fireman examined the lost item. "That watch belongs to the grumpy inspector," he exclaimed. "We'd better take this back to him immediately," agreed Thomas' driver.

Thomas set off to find the inspectors and return the gold watch. Finally, Thomas found them, inspecting Gordon and the express. Thomas raced after Gordon as fast as he could. "I must stop Gordon! I must!" he panted.

At last, Thomas caught up with Gordon at Kellsthorpe station. "Sir! Sir! I have to speak to you immediately!" gasped Thomas. "You really don't have to call me sir, Thomas," said Gordon. "I wasn't talking to you, Gordon," replied Thomas feeling annoyed. "Whatever is the matter, Thomas?" asked the Fat Controller as he and the inspectors got off the express. Thomas' driver and fireman explained what had happened and presented the inspectors with the lost gold watch. "We didn't want you to get in any more trouble after all the delays this morning," added Thomas. "Well I never!" cried the inspector. "I didn't even realize my watch was missing, Thomas! Thank you!" "You're very welcome, sir," smiled the tank engine.

"This watch was given to me to celebrate twenty years of working for the railway company. I'd have been very sad if I lost it!" he explained. The Fat Controller was also very proud of Thomas for taking the initiative and coming to find them. "You're not only a really useful engine," said the inspector. "But a very kind one, too!" Thomas beamed. The inspector promised to give Sodor a glowing report, and Thomas and his coaches would receive a special mention. Gordon groaned with jealousy. "Thank you, sir! I suppose I'd better get back to my branch line!" And Thomas puffed away with a great feeling of triumph and pride.

Thomas the babysitter

One day, Thomas was on his last journey on his branch line before he, Annie and Clarabel could take a break before their next journey. One of their passengers was a mother with a baby. As soon as Thomas stopped at Dryaw station, the baby started crying. Toby came by. "Hello, Thomas. Whatever is that awful noise?" he exclaimed. "I've got a baby on board, Toby, and I don't know why it's crying," replied Thomas. "Has anyone tried singing a lullaby?" suggested Henrietta. "That's a splendid idea, Henrietta!" said Annie, and she began to sing. It didn't seem to work. But as soon as Annie finished her song and Thomas puffed out of the station, the baby stopped crying.

But when Thomas stopped at a signal to let Percy pass by with a goods train, the baby started crying again. Annie and Clarabel started singing the lullaby. And again, the baby stopped crying when Thomas began puffing his way forward. Thomas realized that he was the one calming the baby down. Every time Thomas had to stop at a station or signal, the same thing happened. Thomas, Annie and Clarabel couldn't understand it.

At last, the mother and her baby got off at Ffarquhar station. Then Thomas went to turn round on the loop, ready for his return to Knapford. "Thank goodness. The journey back should be a lot more peaceful without the- oh no!" Thomas gasped as he saw the mother with her baby at the platform. They both got on board, and the baby fell asleep again as soon as Thomas left Ffarquhar.

"I know what to do! Every time I stop, the baby starts crying. So, I won't stop at all!" Thomas said, thinking that he was being very clever. "That's a terrible idea, Thomas!" replied Annie. "What about the passengers?" "And you'll get into trouble with the Fat Controller!" added Clarabel. Thomas sighed, realizing that it was not a good idea after all. "I suppose you're right."

So Thomas stopped at every station. And the baby started crying every time he stopped.

By the time Thomas got to Knapford, everyone was exhausted. Annie and Clarabel were looking forward to having their break before the next journey, as the passengers got off the train. But Thomas was watching her trying to calm her baby. "Sir, sir, permission to miss my break please, sir?" he asked the Fat Controller. "Oh? Whatever for?" he asked Thomas. "I want to make a special journey, without stopping, so the baby and its mother can both get some rest," he continued. Annie and Clarabel were worried. They were sure that Thomas' idea wouldn't work. But the Fat Controller thought it was a grand idea. "I think it's very kind of you, Thomas. Well done. You go ahead."

So Thomas travelled on his branch line with the mother and her baby on board. He didn't stop at any stations. And whenever he passed another engine or bus, he would shush them, to prevent any disturbance. The baby remained asleep the whole journey. And so did his mother.

Finally, they were back at Knapford, where someone was waiting for them. "Thank you for babysitting all morning, Thomas," thanked a workman. "That's my wife and son you've been looking after." Thomas couldn't believe it. "It think this is the longest either of them have slept for days," the workman continued. "We haven't even picked a name for him yet, we've all been so tired." "I'm not surprised! I never knew babies were so demanding," said Thomas.

Then the Fat Controller came towards him. "Excellent work today, Thomas. And you, Albert, I think you deserve a week's holiday, so you can help out with your little boy," he said. "Oh, thank you, Sir Topham! Perhaps, we should name him in honour of today. Do you agree, darling?" Albert asked his wife. "Oh, yes! We must call him, Thomas!" she replied. Thomas was delighted. "Thank you again for all your help!" she called as the family left the station. "My pleasure!" called Thomas. Thomas was sorry that Annie and Clarabel missed their break. But his coaches couldn't hear him. They were fast asleep. I think it was worth it. Don't you?