The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1871-07-01
Narrow Gauge Railroads.

| The following facts in relation to the
Marrow Gauge railroad at Festiniong,
Wales, the first built, will be of general
| interest to the reader:
| Let us then take y trip along the in
teresting little railway, and see what
it is and what it docs. Arrived at
Porten1adoc Station, we find the train
in waiting-:l train which looks almost
! like child's toy, SO diminntive is it
| compared to what we are accustomed
to sec. One might nearly sit astride
the engine, and the carriages look us
though Il push would set them going.
The passenger carriages are of two
kinds; in those of the oldest make the
seats are arranged lengthwise, the pas
scngerS sitting back 10 back, us i'll an
Irish jauntig-car, in those Of more re-
| cent build the seats arc placed crosswise
| as in ordinary railway carriages, and
accommodate three passengers to each
seat, or twelve to 4 carriage; for sum-
mer tourists there are open carriages,
with lengthwise seats and awnings
| overhead; and for the quarrynen, large
numbers of which go up the line every
Monday morning and return every
saturday, there are low, open ears,
without coverings, which each carry IL
dozen workmen. The carriage floors
being raised very little above the
ground level, there is no need for plat
forms at the stations, and one step lands
US in the carriage. Leaving Porte
madoc, we pass along Il straight and
level embankment, almost 4 mile in
length, which carries the line over
Traeh Mawr, or the estuary of the
Beddgciaat river. This being erased
we Immediately commence our ascent
into the mountain country, the line
1,n
until it reaches its terminus; the gr:t-
dicntS vary from ! in 60. GS to l in I6S
the average gradient being in % for
124 miles. We can hardly help crediting
the little engine with Il cOnciOus pluck
end determination rs it manfully
climbs these steep inclincs, and draws
after it its long train of carriages and
wagons. The line runs through the
most enchantin" and romantic scenery,
and at times in our journey we look
straight down into the beautiful, fertile
valley below, three or four hundred
feet beneath us. and along it to the
sparkling sea beyond, while the rugged
rocks rise high on the other hand, and
we gaze up to the mountain tops. On
we go, along onr winding way, turning
and twisting, as the engine, like u
thing, Of life, seems to choose its noun
tain path with the incest discrimina-
ton. At times the curves round which
we sweep arc syN>,,ll and follow each
other in such rapid succession that
neither the engine nor the brakeman
| can be seen by passenger in the mid
| die of the train, and tho train itself will
be on three different curves at once; at
other times the line takes Il long sweep
along the side Of !, great natural basin,
| almost doubling back upon itself as it
seeks its way to the higher ground.
The curves, indeed, form one of the
! most marvellous features Of this line.
The railway is nearly ali curves; in
some cases they are not more than II.
chains in radrzs, yet trains glide round
them with the utmost ease clinging to
the mountain sides and following their
outlines with unfaiIing fidelity. Part
of the journey, by the invitation of Mr..
SpOOner, we perform on u log of tim
Der, some 80 or GO feet in length; this
affords us capital opportunity Of judge
ing of the capabilities of the line, and
we arc no less surprised than pleased to
find that we pass over the line as stead
lily and smoothly as in most first class
carriages on ordinary lines. The log
is carried on Il couple of "boglc' trucks,
and its passage over the sharp curves
is absolutely imperccptiblc. AS we ap-
y
see, on either hand, several branches
running high up into the mountains to
the uuarricS, from which the states are
conveyed to the port below. On all
these, the gradients being very steep,
the traffic is worked by gravity, the
| loaded trucks coming down to the
quarry termini on the main line and
drawing the empty trucks up by means
of large windlaSScS. The return Jour-
ncy down the main line is also per-
formed by gravity. Taking our seat in
| q little open car, We make II rapid de
cent to PortemadOc, spinning along at
the rate of about thirty miles an hour
without either traction or propulsion,
thus serving to show us very fOrcibly
the gradients with which the engine
had to contend on the upward journey.
For its whole course the line, as will
have been gathered, runs through 4
rocky country, yet, owing to the sharp
curves which have been available
through the use of the narrow gauge,
cutting, tunnelling, &c, have been
avoided in a very remarkable manner
The greatest cutting is - feet, the
greatest filling or embarkment 60 feet
and there are only two tunnels in the
12t miles, one of 730 wards ana the
other 80 yards.
5 No Sacrament for Democratic Darkics
, Here is IL specimen OF the religion
of the Loyal League. The Char