Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1881-07-08


resolved TO give him a chance. / therefor,
ordered the train TO be got ready, and l nov
invite the school and all their friends to 90 Il
the station. We will take the engine out oil
the line. and Master Stayboltt shall try fol
the prize by running the engine a mile with
out wood or water. The engine has nevei
! been used, except on its trial trip, and ther,
is not quart Of water in the boiler or tank
nor pound Of coal, or 80 much as mattel
/ on the tender"
This proposal was received with the great
est enthusiasm, aud the entire company, Ia
dies and gentlemen, teachers, boys and all,
marched down to the station, and took train
of cars they found all ready for them. A
heavy 'Mogu" engine backed up and took
took the train over to the repair-shop yard.
where the new engine stood. Several Of the
directors got out and examined the engine.
and declared there was no fuel in the tender
nor drop of water in the boiler. The train
was backed up to the engine and it was
coupled on. Every one now got on board,
and the train hauled out Of the yard, aud took
the main line with the empty engine trailing
behind. As for Master Stayboltt, they put
him on the engine and made him ride there
all alone.
Tom didn't care in fact, this was Just
what he wanted. The train ran at a good
speed for about ten miles into the country.
Then it stopped and everybody hurried out
to see the performance--or the failure The
road just here was perfectly level, and there
was switch and siding. The train was un-
coupled from the engine, and run into the
siding out the way, and hag-men were sent
up and down the line to stop all trains that
might interfere with the show. The people
gathered round the cold and silent engine
standing in crowd on the grass by the line.
Tom still sat in the engine, and when every
thing was ready, the president said that Mas
ter Stayboltt might now try for the prize.
The idea of that boy making an engine go
mile II was very silly in him, and no
doubt he would now be properly punished
for his vain Boosting.
'Are you ready, sir ?"
'Y-y-yes-yes, sir"
Then go ahead"
The people stood looking on, and quite
ready to laugh at the poor boys failure. All
she moves. The big wheels turn slowly, and
the cold and silent engine rolled slowly back
ward. For an instant there was laugh. She
was going the wrong way. She moved fast
er, and the laugh died away. All she's
slowing up. She has stopped It's a fail
ure. No. Tom could be seen turning the
reversing bar. The engine gave one loud
whistle, and started ahead. Faster and fast
er On it came, and rushed past all the peo-
pie at 20 miles an hour. How the people
cheered and cheered! II was wonderful.
Tom was looking straight ahead like a good
engineer. The ladies waved their handker-
chiefs, and the boys shouted until they were
hoarse. Tom Stayboltt had won the prize.
The engine ran on about half mile, stop
ped, and then came slowly back, and stopped
just before the presidents pretty daughters
Tom came to the window, and took off his
hat and bowed politely to the ladies'
How much pressure have you, Master
Engineer p said the president.
''T-t-twenty-2O pounds, sir"
Then the school gave three cheers for Tom,
and three more for the president, for every
one said it was better to do something than
to write the best composition ever seen OF
course every one wished to know Just how it
was done, and to make it all clear, the presi-
dent mounted a pile of sleepers, and told
in steam-engine is boiler and a furnace, or
fire-box. Water is put in the boiler, and
fire is made in the furnace precisely as in
tea-kettle on the stove. The water boils in
the tea-kettle, and we see the steam escape
In the engine the steam is locked in, and can
not escape, and very soon it becomes crowd.
ed, and if still kept locked in, it will burst
the boiler. Before this can happen, the en-
gineer opens q valve, and permits the steam
to enter two oblong iron boxes, called the
cylinders. Here it meets piece of metal
called the piston, that fits the inside of the
cylinder pretty closely. It cannot get past,
and so it pushes the piston away to the other
end of the cylinder. As soon as this happens,
the valves close of their own accord, and the
steam escapes into the open air with a loud
puff Then the steam enters the other end
of the cylinder, and drives the piston back
again. In this manner the steam pushes the
piston TO and fro as it tries to escape from
the boiler.
NOW there is a rod fastened TO the piston,
and passing through the end of the cylinder.
Each cylinder has one, and these are con-
nected by means of other rods with the great
wheels of the locomotive. You now see that
the piston, driven forward and backward,
moves the wheels, and thus it is the escaping
steam moves the engine. These rods you
can see outside the engine the piston and
valves are inside, out of sight.
Now the air is elastic like steam, and it
may be used in any engine in place of steam.
II air is pumped into tight box like boiler,
it may be locked up, or compressed, and if
we were to go on pumping, we might burst
the boiler with compressed air. Master Stay
boltt knew all this, and he also knew that
when an empty engine is dragged along the
rails by another engine, as happened on our
Iluc OuL heIcs luS hueSlS Will TOuuu, anu
these move the rods and the pistons, and
each cylinder works like pump. Instead of
letting steam out it pushes air back into the
boiler, and very soon the boiler is full of elias
tic compressed air struggling to get out.
Master Stayboltt, as soon as the train stop
ped, opened the valves, and the air rushed out
the way it went in, making the pistons move,
and the wheels turn round OF course the
air soon ran out and the engine stopped.
This made no difference to US, for Master
Stayboltt clearly showed that he had learned
his lessons well, and knew how to apply
them"
Then the presidents youngest daughter
climbed up into the engine and gave Tom
the prize watch. The boys took him on their
shoulders in triumph to the presidents car,
every one got on board, the fsgmen were
called in, and the entire party went gayly
home with the empty engine trailing be-
hind