The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1878-09-21
THE POETRY OF RAILROADS.

Rapid locomotion has always been
desideratum with the dwellers on this
earth, who, by the way, are every second
of their lives insensibly progressing
through space at an inappreciable speed.
The Psalmist sighed for the wings ola
dove;" and Dedalus of Crete, with his
son, made an experiment with artificial
wings, to initiate the speed of birds,
which proved lsmentable failure.
The Eastern story-tellers imagined
what human effort, in spite of human
desire, had failed to frame-rapid means
of moving from place to place, such as
bronze horses and flying palaces. Mod
ern science has solved the problem that
puzzled centuries, and iron horses,
harnessed to flying palaces are common
as stage-coaches were of old. Many have
exclaimed against railroads as hard,
practical things, destructive of all
poetry and romance; but we regard
them in different light.
This transporting of body of men,
women, and children, large enough 10
people an ordinary sized village, with
arrowy speed, from one city to another,
within the compass of few hours, is an
exhibition of power that, however famil-
lar, never can be witnessed without
thrill. Often on warm, sunny day, in
early spring, when the grass was spring
ing up by the wayside, and the birds
twittering upon the budding branches,
have we seen long train just arrived
from the north, with the snow thick
upon the roofs, and icicles pendant from
the caves of the cars. There could be
no more striking illustration of speed
than this practical humiliation of differ
ence of latitude.
There is poetry in the motion of
bird that cleaves the air and voyages
through its blue depths till it becomes
faint point, and then disappears in the
distance. But is it more poetical than
the laundering rush of an express train
through narrow valley, passing the
spectator like a flash, its huge bulk
dwindling instantly to narrow line as
it pierces the remote horizon? But if
you wish spectacle of surprising pic
turesqueness, take post upon railroad,
at safe distance from the track, on
dark night, about the time train is
expected to arrive.
First, you hear low thunder rever-
berating among distant hills; anon,
bright point of light appears, like star
on the drapery of evening. 1t grows
with astonishing rapidity, and now it
glarcs like the fierce, red eye of mon
strous demon, becoming larger redder,
fercer, every moment, while the roar of
the engine it heralds becomes more ap-
palling and voluminous as it approaches.
An earthquake "a whirlwind -
shower of fre-and the train has
passed. If there is not more poetry in
this than in an old night-coach, with its
dim lamps, drowsy driver, piled up bag
gage rack, snoring passengers, and weary
cattle, then we give up our point. To
us, railway train is the realization of
the widest fancies of Eastern romances,
the fireman an Afrite, the conductor
magician, and the brakemen attendant
genii. We are sorry to add, that in
railway travelling, to the sentiment of
poetry is added the excitement of dam
ger, frequency of smash-ups rendering
life insurance policy almost as indis-
pensable as ticket to the railway
traveller,