The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1872-12-19
QUICK WORK.
One Hundred and Ninety-Five Miles of
Track Laid in Twenty Three Hours.

The following is from the Detroit Post
Of November 10Th
On Sunday, without the slightest de
lay of the passenger trains, the guage OF
the Grand Trunk Railway, from Sarnia
to Buffalo, distance of 195 miles, was
changed from the wide to the narrow-a
work never before accomplished or at
tempted. Mr.. C.. Bridges, the manag
ing Director of the road, informed our
reporter yesterday that some months since
it was decided to change the guage of
the road, experience having proven the
narrow guage to be the best in all respects.
Besides, nearly all the connections of this
road, especially those in New England,
are narrow gauge, and this change will
obviate much Of the heretofore necessary
delay and trouble of shipment or
change Of car guage.
Once decided upon this charge, and
the preparations commenced in earnest
At the car shops large set of men were
at work manufacturing narrow gauge
cars, and already 500 freight and ten pas
senger cars have been completed. These
will be used on the Buffalo line, and the
passenger train that left this city last
evening was composed of a portion OF
these tea passenger coaches, A sufficient
number Of narrow guage locomotives have
also been procured to operate the road
from this city to Buffalo. Iu fact this
line is now unusually we'll supplied with
! rolling stock, most of which is entirely
new.
While the cars, locomotives, etc, were
building, other preparations were being
made elsewhere. Gangs Of men were set
to work all along the line from Sarnia to
Buffalo (the section between Detroit and
Port Huron was already narrow gusge),
clearing away all obstructing earth and
| driving the spikes that were soon to hold
the inside fauge of the rails. This done,
| there only remained the drawing of the
present inside spikes, the pushing of the
rails over to the newly driven ones, the
driving of still others at the outside of
the rails, and the guage of the road is
changed This great work was accom-
plished in single day and night.
At o'clock Sunday morning the last
train on the road was switched upon a
side track at Stratford, at which hour
600 men, in small gangs, commenced la
Dor at nearly 100 different points. The
levers with which the spikes are drawn
as easily and nearly as rapidly as nails
pulled with claw hammer, were first
brought into play, and the spikes holding
the rails on the inner side were drawn,
the rails pushed over to their places, the
spikes redriven and slowly and surely the
work went on, hand cars following the
gangs with provisions, extra tools, and
everything that there was probability
would be needed. Each gang of men had
a certain specified section of road to com
plete, and majority of these finished
their work in fifteen hours but for forty
miles west Of Buffalo about two feet oil
snow had fallen on Saturday, and this had
to be removed with shovels. At o clock
Yesterday morning, however, the whole
had been completed, and at the hour (the
regular time on Monday morniug) train
left Stratford for the West, and all other
trains ran during the day the same as
usual
Upon the main line no change oi
guage will be made yet for two years, il
being impossible to sooner construct the
| immense numbers of cars aud locomo
tives required to operate the seven hun
dred aud eighteen miles of continuous rail
way between Stratford and Portland, tc
say nothing of its hundreds of miles oil
branch lines. AT the expiration of that
time, however, it is expected by the of
fcers of the road that the guage, both o
the Trunk line and its branches, will bC
changed Meantime, shift gauge car,
will be used, the change being effected
at Stratford, thus avoiding trans ship
ment. To meet the present requirements
of the road sixteen hundred of these car,
have been provided, and more are being
constructed.