Litchfield enquirer. [volume] (Litchfield, Conn.) 1829-current, 1851-04-17
For the E.Quirrr.
Adventures Of an Engineer IN l849.


NIT Of Mount Lafayette lnnmcd up amrng
The leadOn clnutIs and Tile deeply d ift-s
cd SHOWS spread far ever lie valley. For
three Gays I'll. It nm had obsiiuci all
passage hy highway and railway and still
ii tagged ~iih undated violence. Many
travellers. and large Quantities of mer-z
"handiS", having been collected ~ ~ sta
lion 81 "Ic OF The m, 81 nol thrrn rail catls
IN tie State. and c.r,v train having tren
DETAINED and completely blork"d'd by
the storm. final efie I WAS to be made
I" clca' The track. and To roniinm. the
business Of the road. As | WAS at that
lime the engineer M she most powerful
locomotive in the vicinity, was ~ course
summoned; and with the assistance ..f ten
handy fellows, and two additional l"cn>
motives OF less capacity than my own. I
p,cpm ed TO open the road and c"ntid'ni~
! iy expected to see the other terminus
before the close Of day. The three en-
ginrs being connected, they were fired.
oilrd. and thoroughly prepared for u
hard pull. Every vent was turned. aid
every screw made fast extra canvass
and tools were p divided, and the tend
-'s we've pi'.1! ful' Of dry, fat pine: W.
" soon, thee silver streams "f vapor
began to shoot from the three main safe
" valves, and the induces OF the steam
gauges fell ,apidly toward the higher
numbers. We seemed TO be able {"
-u,mnunt all obstacles, and to penetrate
hot only the snews but the granite hills
| themselves. sf
Al six o'clock, A. NJ. under the lea OF
an immense snow plough, we com nc".
rcd slowly !" open IL wide fur'ow tire
The d'itls, and soon we parted and ,um.
Died about tie huge heaps at the u t"of
zen miles an hour. My engine. the "un-
Gle SAM" which took the lend, was a
machine o, 20 horse power. weighing
rs tons. Her drivers were six feet, her
length thirty feet. and her valve gear
was fine and successful specimen 'f'
= LUX motion" The other twocngines
were nf 20 tons each. with 2 foot
drivers, aud the common ecu, oh'' valve.
Each engine was new blowing away un.
der the pressure Of nearly 100 lbs. 10
The square inch. and occasionally u rapid
succession Of puffs from The escape pipes
IL the smaller machines would tel! too
plainly that the snow was growing hard.
er and the track more icy. Having at
lc"g'h emerged-from u valley sheltered
10y lofty mountains, through which the .
road lay mostly on the side Of steep
'ocHy banks.we approached Al more open
cnun,y. which ab"unded in long. deep
cuts. and here for the first lime we ex-
pc.i'nc.d the fury Of the blast and the
k""""s.s q ,hs s 'sS : ai This Tbs engine be-
even on the FIRE pan. Our speed ut
lrngth began rapidly to diminish. and
soon. ON entering II cut which was drift. Z
ed full ten ieet deep, our powerful mas
chimes were totally unable TO proceed,
aud We came to dead stop not ten
miles from home. The steam was up.
nc never, 10 The highest point. end br
several simultaneous backward and for
war,i m"> cments. - we're e. length ex.
heated an1 ran back some eighty rods.
Ne again ,ev-rssi. and ~ III, speed of
ten ml,ss o. hour. rushed At the elemv.
The sue "f the change was got without
CT, Tor the entire snow plough aud
ali 1T Umcle Sam we've buried in the
liii. and ,h",. &c our c"npany who
Ns.cmM ON ,hc look out. brought up
sain>t the boilers.
BY bad digging and repeated r-vsf.
ing and emLHg Of the locomotives. We
serc a Gle in the course Of ,sO hours To
rues,. but I" onr reg ct found ,hct,ack
II the snow plough off lee the tack
nd completely mc bed in ice and snow.
by II . and Of j'nl,sercS. end l~.ers. tho
nuck sasnplactd. and by twelve o'clock
We a.c.r,ained thst we had penetrated
We half nf tie drift. ate, "a hsa "
Inner aud . short isst, ss oil comm M
ed "a pnrti-l opening 81 the s,.s,ge by
and. thsolrifts s.IsS o. he { th.t We
,..s >a,i id "f the inability of the en-.
.u,c, /" ~ en lb.m it'll ~Eely. Til,
dos Il ii. csbankmeat protected u'
om the lull fu y OF tIss eel |. and did
.rn. d,..ss, in'",spern'd eth stores
nd ~t,.'ling. he Yankee fo',,) fol
One thee hours proved vv'y etftrtNt'.
and not u. all disag,eeable. Having
cleared the truck. al the engines. oiled
up. aid !..cIsd lalf mile. we reversed
and prepared for a tremendous plunge.
Al the rate of fiiteea miles an hour, we
entered the Drift, The scsne Was indeed
exciting The lighter snow WAS flying
nll directions. while the heavier cakes
we,e piled up and thrown aside in The
u,mos, confusion; the engines were struse.
Cling aud st,aining every jsirt the dli-
vc,s Nee occasionally slipping. thus
.endnr 10 III den columns Of smoke
ind Steam. and that slnill terlifs n.,ise
! hich ths ,.p.d escapes always produce,
,h,. ,a;,.jr valves were kissing furiou>ly
he be-. wete ringing by the struggles
II IN, engines; and The engineers wers
pkj,s liz ,a,i"..s levers with all dill.
srnet. We nee Just abe TO clear The
p.>sa.e.san. completely ciogged and