Stranded in Dickey

The three engines were no longer needed in Leadville, as the 74, 75, and 76 were the only power needed for handling freight to and from Climax. The C&S did not want to have to carry any locomotives on standard gauge cars needlessly. These engines were all needed for scrapping operations and cleanup. The immediate goal was to get them out of Leadville.
Two engine crews were called from Como to move the engines for only one day. They left Leadville early one morning, and were only able to reach Dickey in that one day. The crews were met in Dickey and returned to Como (where all of them lived) by car, and they didn't return for the engines for some time. At that time, not all details of scrapping operations were known, and there may still have been some abandonment appeals which had not cleared.
Even the short time that the engines were left in Leadville without daily trains over the line, many of the grade crossings had become filled in with dirt. Many grade crossings required to be dug out so the engines could pass and there were rocks and other debris to remove. This sort of activity was documented by many photographs once the engines resumed their journey to Como. By then things had become much worse.
#8 was hauled dead to Como (all the way from Leadville), and was, as stated, used to clear stray rolling stock with #69 out of Como. #71 was left for use on the West end under contract to the scrapper. The enginemen were C&S men, but the contractor paid the C&S for lease of the engine and payment of the crew.
The short answer to the question is because the C&S was only willing to dispatch engine crews for one day out of Leadville.
This information came largly from Doug Schnarbush, who fired #71 on both segments of the trip, and later for the scrapper. My comment about appeals was from Ed Haley.
I discussed this with both men about 20 years ago.