St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1869-07-09
Fel's Rail,Cay Orer Mont Cents.


until the tunnel is completed, is called
the American railway, lis inventor, Mr..
Fell, who built the one on Mt Washing
ton, being styled IN American and we
were promised ride in real American
cars. The time of starting was !. Il. IN.
There was a great crowd of all sorts at
the station =: a lively fight ensued for
tickets at the box-otlice, 0or the perfect
French system has not reached the other
side OF the Alps, and then we waited till
half-past before we were let out to the
cars. The train ready to 90 consisted OF
an engine and two first class passenger
carriages. The carriages were about
half the length of ours at home, with
seats on each side, SO that the passengers
face each other as in an omnibus, and
with windows at the sides. from which
it is very difficult to look out when one
is squeezed in tight with his back to
them. The cars are also very narrow,
the track being only three feet six or
seven inches gage, 50 that they are not
much more comfortable than an omni-
bus. The fare, first class, was twcntv-
five, second class, twenty-five francs.
from Su>a to ST. Michel, the time occu-
pied IN the passage being from four to
five hours.
The locomotives of these trains are
small, compact and powerful their
trucks, as well as those of the carriages,
set well i'll the middle, so that they can
turn very short corners. The track has
three rails, one elevated in the centre.
Beside It's ordinary driving wheels, the
locomotive has two horizontal wheels,
and it is by this strong traction that the
train is pulled up. The carriages have
corresponding wheels for the center rail,
but their only Use is to keep the train on
the track. Both cars and locomotive
have double sets OF brakes, one tor the
ordinary and one Tor the central rail 50
that they can screw the cars to the track
with the grip Of a wise, and render it al
most impossible for the carriages to run
away. There Is every preCaution against
accident and | should only fear the
snow storms OF winter, and perhaps an
avalanche, in some places, high up, which |
are not ruofed in.
We bcgan To climb the hill directly we
left the station, exactly as carriage
drawn 10y horse, would do. In fact. oar
track ran parallel to the carriage road /
all the way, WIS just as steep, and made |
the short turns of tie latter Our train /!
seemed to be a huyc live reptile with les /
and claws, that crawlcd up by its own
power it literally dug right UP the hill /.
and looking back, we could see tht steep
incline. GA the curves, where the wheels |
got Il good grip Of the rail, we moved |
with ease and NOR rapldIty than on Il |
straight pull, where the locomotive cvj- |
IDENTIFY lahored more, and We rose more
slowly. The StccpeSt grade on the road /
is one foot in nine lcct, but this is only /
tor short distances. The rise OF one in
twelve Is more common, and the least, |
(Of which any note Is taken,) Is one in |
twenty-five. The curve, are - short n |
to be startling. We seemed to turn in a |
space rs short Is an ordinary wagon
would. The shortest curve i on Il rldi-
us OF only l2O feet that Is, our train |.
would run round circle only 2iO feet /
III diameter. Oar track was all the time |
in siyht, behind and before, running |
along the steep hillsiIes and constantly
doubling, like 4 compressed letter :.
You march up with a triumphant ease,
rising among the grand snow peaks like |
Il conqucror. The valleys open behind
you, with their rivers and brown Villages |
the great panorama expanding with ev-
cry revolution of the wheels. You skirt |
precipices, and look down on the green
fields, and nesting villages You push
your way up among the snow regions, |.
the stone huis Of the begging, hall-nakcd
and dirty peasants, and the refuge houses |
of the road are whiSked around rookie |
headlands, through tunnels and covered |
ways, over gullcs and tracks of ava
lanches, rising always higher and higher,
by no expenditure OF strength, into Il
purcr air, among peaks Of virgin snow,
among the silent submits of the enduring |
Alps.
The day was superb, with blue sky
and fine AIR, and it was 50 warm, even IN
the snow regions, that | needed no over
coat. Our view was, for the most part, |
uninterrupted and magnificent. The sum |
NIT level Is about [, 100 feet above the
sea, and before we reached it we passed |
into covered way built ot wood at the |
sides and archcd with iron, and were I'M
INJURED i'll this, i'll the ascent, descent, and
ON the level for four or live mile, |
should think ; dark, unpleasant passages
made worse by the smoke and fumes Of
the locomotive. These covered ways are |
absolutely necessary as Il protection from
avalanches in many places and against the
falls of snow for long distances. Thro' |
the chinks of the boards l could see the
snow piled up high along the way. The
summit station Is in one OF these long
sheds, and is gloomy enough.
We made the descent more rapidly
than the ascent swinging round the short
bends with considerable velocity. The |
brakes were jammed hard down until |
could smell the odor caused by the trc-
ton. On the descent saw the trowning
forts of BIumont d E.ssillon. on peaks
high above the abyss through which the
Arc toams and roars, connected with the
road by thread OF Il suspension bridge
over the gorge, called the Pont du Da-
BILE. The forts are beng demolished now,
under the agreement between France and
Italy. Lower down, and about ten miles
up the mountain from ST. Michel, we
caught sight OF the rubbish at the open
lng OF the great tunnel, which enters the
! l. Il Ia, x
miles long, and it is expected 10 be COM