The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1874-03-27
SNOW PLOWS.
How Snow BIOckades are Broken On
the Central Pacific abroad.

How Snow BIockades are Broken On
the Central Pacific II RaiIrOad.
Once in a while, when the storm would
Tighten up, we could catch glimpse Of
the great snow plow, with it's six en-
gines, around some bend, driving into
the drifts with a force that it would
seem would move the world. These
snow-plows are curiosity, both in their
construction and the manner in which
they do their work. They are immense
structures-I say structures, for they
are as big as two-story house-and
weigh from $4,000 to $1,000 pounds.
In front they are shaped like the iron
prov of an iron-cIad frigate, only the
sharp vertical portion of this prov
changes into fiat surface where 1T ap-
Droaches the ground. Attached to this
fiat or horizontal PROV is what is called
an apron" This apron is attached to
the prov by means of hinges. It lifts
up and lets down directly on the track
at pleasure, and when down it is held
there by large steel springs. When in
motion this apron slides right on the
rails, pressing hard on them, but from
the rounded surface which it presents to
them it glides over the joints and any
other little irregularities with ease.
L
snow, the apron scraping it clear from
the rails, and lifting it up bodily it
meets the vertical section of the plow
which divides it, and hurls it off on either
side. When running at high rate of
speed, as is often the case, these plows
sometimes hurl the snow into the air
fifty feet, and plunge it in huge masses
into the deep chasms and canons. Some
such scene as this was presented the
other night When Mr.. Fillmore, the
division superintendent, brought the
eastern bound dexpress train through with
eleven engines. The scene was one of
the widest and grandest that has ever
been witnessed on this road. It had
| been storming all day and all night and
all the next day, and the snow had
fallen and drifted some places ten and
fifteen feet in depth. The train started
out from Colfax with three engines, but
at Alta it took fourth. A snOw-plow,
with seven heavy So ton engines, went
on ahead to clear the way, bat at Blue
| Canon stuck in a huge drift, and the
| whole force of the seven engines could
not bulge it an inch ahead. After
| shoveling while the express train and
! the snow train were coupled together,
making team of eleven engines, a
| BuOW-DlOW dlll SIX cars. CuCn a SlRuG
was never seen. The long chain of
| putting monsters backed down for a
mile or two and then, taking a fresh
start, came at the drift at the rate of forty
miles an hour. The only wonder is
that the plow was not crushed into saw
| dust. It not only stood this enormous
strain, but 1t kept to the track and cut
an eleven-fcOt passage in the drift with
the precision of a surgeons knife
| With the power so increased the plOw
cut its way through to Emigrant Gap.
At one point near there the spectacle
was magnificent. On a sharp curve on
a steep embankment the Snow had been
pileI up to the very height of the
smoke-stacks of the engines for dis
tance Of 1 900 yards. The curve was
| so situated that it was IL full view OF
| the station at the Gap. The weather
had cleared of and the moon shone
| brightly on the snow. In the distance,
| slowly forging ahead, were the eleven
! black and begFimmed leviathans, while
IN front of them was the great plow
throwing up snow in huge masses like
| ocean billows, and rolling 1t down the
mountain sides thousands of feet
/ into the yawning chasm below. The
| smoke and fire FROM eleven tunnels, the
| tops of which could Just be seen above
| the drifts, the horrible noise and din OF
| the putting ST am, and the great gla-
eiers b ing thrown high in the air and
| tumbling down the mountain side, all
| furnished a scene which but who who
| have Witnessed it can ever appreciate.
| San Francisco Chronicle.
/
"PATRICK, dear, come, in and go to