Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1875-03-18

| uhl0Oh ollN iSo IOAi0lHG " 'h
strokes of the pistons, and b,
the time we had gone ten miles
/ am sure I had as much steam
on me as the boiler itself. [
was not so much the exhilarat
ing current, [ might say cata-
! ract, of air that came in through
the open window as the sense
of peril to which | was exposed
Despite a stout heart and a sys.
TEN devoid of nerves,th thought
that there was only an inch OIL
so between us and a horrible
death (and that inch on the
fianges Of the Wheels would re-
cur with increasing force, until
| resolutely dismissed it from
my mind and began to look a.
bout me.
FASTER AND FASTER
we went with every stroke of
the pistons. Looking out side
ways was to encounter fences,
telegraph poles, and stations
blending togetherlikethe figures
in moving water. There was a
roar Of iron rolling upon the
iron, the clink Of the metal Vi
brating from jar and strain
There were squeaks and grind
ings when we whirled over some
projecting rail head, and an oc-
casional muttered grunt as if
the noble machine labored un-
der its tremendous strain and
suffered. 1t was alive all over.
Every part and portion quivered
and shook incessantly. When
we ran over frogs or switches,
the smoke stack was waved from
side to side, the window sashes
shook in their frames, the pic
ture of the pretty girl over the
boiler chartered against the cab,
the index Of the steam gauge
was in a fine tremor constantly.
The fire tools clattered against
the iron floor Of the foot board,
the chain on the furnace door
ratified to and fro. The seat be-
meath me w"ithed and twisted
like a snake. The wrenches in
the tool box on the tender beat beat
a tattoo; the coal kept rolling
down toward us, and the water
in the tank splashed high in the
air, now and then, as we ran O.
vcr a rough spot. No one
laughed. Presently the engin-
eer moved the lever back one or
two notches; the speed slack
cned; houses became more fire.
quent; crossings occurred; the
whistle was blown twice, and
with grinding of wheels and
Of the bell we came to a
dead stop in town as gently as
a bird alights upon a branch
We had driven just twenty-five
miles in thirty minutes. The
engineer got down from his seat
slowly, and almost solemnly,and
went around his engine and ex-
amined the principal parts; he
put his hand on the axles and
bearings generally to see if they
were hot from the friction, ad-
led a little oil here and there,
and remounted. Taking up a
piece Of waste he rubbed his
hands, and said in a friendly
way:
"Well, sir, what do you think
9f her?"
"She's a screamerw
"She's all that, sir. She can
10 her little work every day
can take a train like this-six
,ars-right along forty miles an
lour day in and day out, and
Yehave got some mighty grades,
90. She weighs twenty-eight |
.ons, and her cylinders are fif-
cen by twenty-five; drivers five
ioot diameter, steel fire box, and |
ron tubes. She is just as good |
o-day as the first day she came
N the road, and"
"All right" said the fireman,
md stopping short in his eulo-
", the engineer opened the
hrottle and we were off again.
During the remainder of the
ourney occupied the fireman's
eat as before, and paid more at
ention to the topography of
he line. | found that it was
" no means level, very far from
t. From the outlook of the cab |
window irregularities were
as the engineer re-
there were some mighty
trades. Where the ascent was
lot too long, so as to exhaust
he capacity Of the engine to
it, the surveyor had
un the line right ahead and car
led some inclines, which
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