Chapter 87: Mike's Whistle

Mike, Bert, and Rex were waiting at Arlesburgh station one morning for Mr. Duncan to give them their jobs for the day. Suddenly, they heard a strange noise. It was a loud, wheezing sound.

"Good lord! Whatever is making that racket?"

Just then, Duck drove his engine into the station. He looked rather embarrassed. When he pulled the whistle cord, the noise came again.

"Having problems, Duck?" Rex teased.

"Shut it, Rex. I was working late last night filling in for Thomas on the mail run, and I used my engine's firebox to cook an egg for supper. Some of it must have gotten stuck, and now the whistle won't work properly. But the Steamworks doesn't have any spares, and Sir Topham Hatt says it's good enough to work, so now I'm stuck with people laughing at me all day."

Within a few minutes, Duck left for the top station, his whistle still making the strange noise. Bert and Rex laughed, but Mike just snorted.

"Poor Duck," he sniffed, "I'm surprised Sir Topham Hatt has even allowed him to be seen in public with all of that racket he's making. If an engine can't whistle properly, then the driver shouldn't even try to make it."

"Then why do you?" Rex asked cheekily.

"Why do I what?"

"Try to make your engine whistle properly?"

"You're just jealous! My engine's whistle sounds like a beautiful masterpiece of music."

"Mike, if my engine had yours's whistle, I would lose it the first chance I got."

"You would do no such thing! An engine's whistle is important. It let's people know we're coming and to stay clear of the tracks. An engine that doesn't have a proper whistle isn't a proper engine at all."

Before the argument could continue, Mr. Fergus Duncan approached the shed.

"Ah, gentleman, good to see that you're all ready for work. Mike, since you seem to be the most eager to get working, I'll send you on the first passenger run."

"B-but sir-"

"No butts, Mike. I know you don't like passenger runs, but Rex is working in the ballast mines all day and I can't have you two getting into a fistfight. Please, just do as you've been told."

And Mike did, but he wasn't happy about it. He grumbled as the passengers got into the coaches and he started off. The passengers had grown used to his attitude, but even they were surprised by his actions.

"I know he doesn't like passenger trains," commented the guard, "But even this is unusual for him."

"They're jealous, they're jealous," Mike grumbled. As he drove on, he saw Rex coming around the bend. This gave him a nasty idea. Just as his signal was about to change to red, he opened the throttle and blasted his engine's whistle, scaring Rex to a stop and Mike rushed through.

"Rail hog!" Rex shouted, but Mike paid no mind. He thought he was being clever.

Throughout the journey, Mike blew the whistle at any chance he could. He startled Willie the farmer on his tractor, The Thin Clergyman on his bike, he even managed to scare crows away from a field of corn better than the scarecrow could. He was having such a blast that he didn't notice that the whistle was getting loose.

However, he did hear a rattling sound on the return journey.

"Hmm, the valve may loose," he thought to himself, "I'll tighten it at the next station."

He never got the chance. As they passed Willie's farm, they were stopped by a cow that had strayed onto the line.

"Move, Bessie!" Mike shouted, "I've got a train to take. Go back to your field."

The cow ignored him. Mike blew his whistle. No effect. He blew it louder. The cow didn't budge. He blew his whistle as loud as he could…

WHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSH!

The cow didn't move, but the whistle flew straight up, and landed in the field.

Once Willie had gotten the cow into the field, he helped Mike look for the whistle, but they had no luck.

"It's no use, Mike," said the guard, "Duck can't wait forever."

"But it's not safe for an engine to work without a whistle," Mike said.

"The passengers will have to whistle for us," said the guard.

For the rest of the journey, Mike didn't make a sound, but his passengers did. They whistled at all the points a whistle was required. It worked well enough, but Mike was embarrassed nonetheless.

Mike hoped that the workshops would have a spare whistle, but he was disappointed to find out that they did not.

"You will shunt in the yards until we can get a spare," said the Small Controller, "It serves you right for being such a crosspatch."

Later that night, Mike wearily drove his engine into the sheds. As he headed for bed, he heard Bert and Rex talking in the sheds.

"Bert! Whose engine is this?"

"That's Mike's. Can't you tell?"

"It looks like Mike's engine. But it can't be Mike's."

"And why not."

"Because Mike's engine is a proper engine. This engine doesn't have a whistle, making it an improper engine."

Mike ignored them, and headed straight for bed.