Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1875-03-18
Abide ona Locomotive.
PeculiaritieS of the Men who
Drive Iron Horses.

How it Feels to Travel with the
} Engineer-Unders the
Engine-Where Lost Time
is Made Up-A Respon-
sibIe Post.
The nine o'clock day express
stood on the track ready for a
long Journey. [ walked the
length of the train for glance
at the engine that was to draw
rs; for l have especial admira-
ton for the powers Of this, the
greatest Of all mans inventions.
A stalwart, russet-bearded man,
clad in a blue denim overall and
jacket was going about her,
poking the long nose of an oil
can now in over the drivers, now
into the forward trucks, or a.
gain into some Of the intricate
parts which operate the valves
the link motion | believe it is
called-he filled the cups on the
guide bars, and then passed a.
round to the other side and was
lost to sight.
The fireman sat on q seat in
side the cab looking out Of the
window. The furnace door
stood open andrevealed sea Of
fire within, and a subdued sort
of hiss and summer as of a ket-
tie boiling smote the car to the
exclusion of all other sounds.
1t was scarcely possible in look
ing at this magnificent machine,
respIendent with g!ittering brass
and polished steel, to realize
that it was not possessed Of
vitality. The columnar smoke
stack reared its head with a
lordIy air. The drivers seemed
gathered together under it ready
for a spring. The stream eX-
haling from its nostrils was like
the breath Of charger smart
ing under the spur; when it
gave a preliminary snort or two
backed down, and was attached
to the train the likeness was
complete, and nothing could
dispcl the feeling that it was
not a fiery dragon "breathing
forth threatenings and slaugh-
ter" Suddenly a desire seized
me to mount upon the engine
and ride with the engineer, ard
l r;ade known my desire to that
person at once.
THE PERMIT.
We'll, sir" he said, civilly
enough, despite his stern coun-
tenance, Il have no objection,
but it is against the rules of the
road, and as much as my place
is worth to allow it. Please
step over to the Superintcn-
dents office and ask him for a
permit. He will give you one,
and then it will be all right
There he is now coming down |
the platform; ask him, and if |
he gives me a nod it will be as
good as a permit" | started
for the Superintendent at once
and told him what | wanted,
he gave the desired nod and [
mounted the engine. The fire
man looked out toward the end
of the train foss the conductors
signal, which he conveyed to
-he engineer, and we got under
way so gently that no one could
have said at what moment we
began to move. The bell tolled
until we cleared the city limits
md we ran slowly, but once out
Of the streets we began to
quicken our speed until we fair
y flew over the ground. No
one spoke. The fireman had as
much as he could do to attend
to his own business. So had
he engineer; with his eye on
he track and his hand on the
hrottle to shift it as OCCASION re-
1uired, he had not much time
% entertain company. I'm
used as | was to such novel ex-
perience, the details of it as
they now recur were far diff
.erent from what l had ex-
oected. l had supposed that
-he noise Of the exhausts or
puffs of the engine would be
perfectly deafening in such close
proximity, but they were not;
when the furnace door was o.
)ened to supply fuel, the fire
OoX was a resonant cavern that
the noise of the ex-
naust thrown into the chimney
II one unending chuckachucka-
chuckachuck, that ran into
zchkchkchkch as we quickened
our speed until they were final
y almost undistinguishable. A
.hrill ran through my frame; I
1905, 70 ou;vor o,,1 4ro,,bIo -,