The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1882-06-28
THE TRAIN pEspATcHER.



fEsr VAST Ffasiness Il Done on Single
Track.
mo, sir" said well-lsnown railroad
man of this city recently cit would be
utterly impossible to conduct the railroad
traffic of to-day without the telegraph. I'm
aided, our roads could not do hundredth
part of the business they now do and that
10 about equal tosaying that without the tele-
graph, railway transit would be Fifty times as
expensive as It is to-day" Although the
railroad ante-dated the telegraph, yet its
workings up to the introduction Of the latter
were exceedingly restricted. When invent
i've man had gotten the railroad into fair
shape, he had acquired highway which
was too fast for him, All he could do was
to start the big horse at one end and let him
go. If the horse had to meet other horses.
he took his chances off sinash-up, or else
progressed very slowly. Then it was that
Mr.. Morse harnessed up electricity and run
ahead ona wire and piloted the horse, and ever
since electricity has been largely engaged in
this kind of work. No railroad of any
length eau exist without q telegraph
What an exceedingly nice aud accurate
task it is to hurry fifty trains over road
with fifty more to meet them. To construct
time table of road for every train and
every point is difficult thing to do at les-
ure.; yet the whole schedule may be, and
constantly is upset, and then must be I'M
mediately readjusted.
But while we sleep or thoughtlessly pass
the hours of travel away, there is man far
away who is watching us, and watching
every other train, too, upon the road He
knows just where we are, and can put his
finger on us at each and every minute of the
day and night. If our train gets into any
trouble which causes more than few min
utes' delay, he will be informed of the fact
and take charge of us by wire, and also take
charge of all other trains which can possibly
approach us either way. This man is called
the train dispatcher, and he has his Office
generally at that point of the line where the
main offices are. Upon him far more than
any conductor or engineer may depend the
safety of the traveller "A few careless ticks
may cause a fearful collision Every station
agent or operator is his agent to inform him
of the time of the passage of every train.
Even if one or more trains are behind time,
he knows just the time at which each left
their last station and consequently at what
time they ought TO arrive at their next.
Every item Of such telegraph information
received from off the road is, of course,
6led for reference. As long as every train
is up to time, or within certain agreed
upon limit, the train dispatcher has only
machine labor TO perform. But suddenly,
comes from Station % delay or small
accident there. Now is the time for the
train dispatcher to open his weather eye.
He scans the road to see what trains IRE
near station %. If there are any such they
they may avoid all danger, aud yet lose as
little time as possible II the accident is
one which will take several hours to repair
then, of course, greater number of trains
will have to be attended to- The despatch
er must know where all switches are and
their capacity. 4f8gEgE z
The work is not very difficult when there
is trouble at only one point. Suppose there
is trouble at two or three points. So that
in q few hours every train each way is thrown
out of time, then il is that clearheadedness
comes into prominence. He bas every train
"under orders, y and he is in communication
continually with nearly every conductor on
the road. He must still make the best dis
position possible of all the track that is
open, move along all trains that can be
moved. The reader can well understand
that the situation may become extremely
complicated. Nevertheless, the skilled train
dispatcher will bring everything out oil
right, barring, of course some delay to pas
sengers and merchandise. Mr.. Warder
Cummings, now Division Superintendent of
the Missouri Pacific, boasts that years ago,
when he was train dispatcher on the line
between Pittsburg and Crestline, o., heonce
had seventy trains ON the road (thirty-five
each way), yet he brought them all through
slick and sound and without unnecessary
delay There are, of course, many others
Of the profession who have had similar ex-
perience. 1sI
When station operators lose their con-
nection with the main office they at once
notify all trains on their division of the fact,
and conductors and engineers have to use
great caution and run very slowly. The
passenger never allows himself to think of
such cause MS this when he finds the train
creeping along. He don't know that his
train is running haphazard, and feeling for
train known to be approaching from the
opposite direction.
In.sending SO many dispatches to SO many
points and giving such diverse directions,
there is, of course, liability to error, both
on the part of the train dispatcher and the
station operator. Even when the order Is
correctly received and the conductor
tagged and presented with it, there is still a
possibility that the conductor may misunder-
stand the meaning. All this is provided
against. The station operator, when he re-
ceives an "order," Immediately telegraphs
IL back to the train dispatcher and receives
his 80. K" that it is right He receives it
IN manifold in the first place. Two copies
he gives TO the condutor and one he files in
his Office. The conductor reads aloud the
message to the operator to see if it is under
stood. Then, he takes copy to the engin-
ee~ and asks him to read it, and state what
he thinks in means. If the conductor and
engineer do not agree upon the meaning,
they must at once telegraph to the train
dispatcher for more explicit instructions.
In fact the train can't move until operator,
coSductor and engineer are perfectly agreed
upon all orders received Engineers are
always authorized to refuse TO obey con-
ductor when they think it dangerous to do
SO. On well-managed road it may be said
that all train regulation is conducted with
equalcare. All of this may cause delay and
is sure to enrage the passengers, but il is
for their own immediate good, and If they
knew the circumstances they would be more
anxious to have everything correct than the
train men are.-St Louis Post DespatcA.
TWIN TREES Down IN GEORGIA. the
-.,;daxoa <sf 1 L xxrt.kxs-x.41.. -. A. NJ