The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1883-04-27
THE PASSENGERS STORY.

Inc nlgnJ mall upon Jne CumDer
land Valley railroad had reached the
heavy upgrade a few miles beyond
Kanakia station, when it became evil
dent to the passengers that something
had gone decidedly wrong. The speed
of the train sensibly slackened there
came q series of tremendous jolts, ac-
companied by a curious and unpleas-
ant whirring sound followed in turn
by a complete stoppage. A dozen
heads wer thrust inquisitively out of
the car windows, and S many voices
insisted on knowing all about it imme-
diately. In these days of magnificent
collisions and holocausts. the travelling
public exhibits an astonishing amount
Of interest in railway concerns, to the
great scorn and indignation of all Off
Gals connected.
you have nothing to fear" said
the conductor, who passed through the
car, superb in gold buttons and official
dignity. I'VE have struck an upgrade
where an oil train stopped an hour
ago. The tracks are oiled and the
drivers don't take hold. We shall get
the sand running in half a minute"
1t was Doubtless clear enough to
those who understood such matters,
but to Inc his explanation was mere
.jargon. As somebody said of Cole
ridges commentary upon his poem,
"Christabel," l wished she would ex-
plain his explanation"
The gentleman who occupied the
seat Immediately in front of me, a fine,
middle-ag d person, with an erect, mill
tary air, seemed to have no difficulty in
making out the state of affairs. He
smiled, and was preparing to settle
himself comfortably in his seat again,
when l tapped him upon the shoulder
and said:
excuse me, sir, but what has oc-
Cured? The conductors explanation
is Chinese to me. What does he mean
by the tracks being oiled?'
The gentleman turned about and
faced me.
at is a simple matter" he said,
c~ourteously, "to those who have an
idea of railroad affairs. The power of
an engine depends upon the friction Of
the drivers on the tracks-taking hold,
as it is called. If there is oil upon the
rails, especially upon an upgrade, there
is no friction, consequently the wheels
simply spin around upon the tracks
without moving the train"
"Ah," said l. comprehend"
81 could illustrate the case by an
event which occurred to me upon this
very spot some years ago. l have al
ways thought it a remarkable incident,
and perhaps you may lind it so. The
circumstance l refer to-" he continued,
"tOok place during the war. l was at
the time an a%diutant upon General
Thomas staff during the exciting and
mOmentous campaign in the mountains
of Tennessee. If you remember, there
wero many times when it was feared
that our hour had come. Our commu-
nications were repeatedly cut off and
our whole command in danger of in
slant destruction. 1t was at one Of
those cri ses that the event 1 am going
to relate occurred.
eve were at this time intrenched
upon a spur of the hills around Chat
tanooga, whittier we had been driven
by the desperate courage of the Con-
federates. Our men had fought bravely
and well, but they were exhausted
with long marches and constant action.
Our stores had run low, and but one
line of communication was left open
to us-that of the railroad into the
eastern Part of the State. BY a bril-
liant flank movement the C~onfederates
succeeaed in throwing a line across
this one highway and there we were,
hemmed In like a w%oodchuck in his
burrow. Starvation or surrender
stared us in the face. One or the
other of these alternatives we must
accept in a few days at most, unless
some unexpected change took place
very speedily.
sit is, perhaps, difficult for us to
comprehend the feelings of a com
mander, hitherto successful, and with
the fate, perhaps, of a nation depend
ing upon his action, placel in such a
position as our general then a ]
saw his face grow hourly more pale
and desI airing, his step slower and
more feeble, and his whole air that OF
a nan whose heart and spirit were
breaking under the strain. But Thomas
was not the man TO yield until every
resource had been sounded to the bot,
tom. AMI there a one yet
left-a desperate and almost hopeless
one, it is true.
Forty miles to the eastward of IL,
lay Stockton's command of nearly
thirty thousand men, serenely uncon
scious of our danger AMI their own
Several days before Stockton had beer
direct, ID to occupy a pass in the noun
tains on the left, and to hold it pnti
further orders. OF course, unawar
of the predicament of the main army
he would make ne movement to oul
relief. Communications were now Gu
off, and it seemed a matter of uttel
impossibility to reopen them through
the heavy line of C)nfederates whicl
lay across the railroad. Thomas, how
ever, d9>ermined to try it, and l wa