The Waco daily examiner. [volume] (Waco, Tex.) 187?-1888, 1884-07-12
TALKS WITH THE BOYS.
A PLAIN DISCOURSE ON MECHANICS,
What the Practical Workman on News
paper Has to Say About Loco.
motives, Railroads,
Etc, Etc.
: M. Quad. in Detroit Free Press

cars"
"What is an engine"
uWell. it's another machine to run mills,
boats, factories, etc"
SHOW wide is the railroad track"
son. five or six feet"
"What is the weight of Hat carr
al Dunno"
"Whntis the cost of an ordinary pas
senger coach:'
.Never heard"
"Ah nv lad! Just wish | was about
f,r,tn,n years old and had the chances
,ou nrr daily throwing away"
"What would you do?'
..v,v. pa post myself. For one thing
"a walk down to the depot, and
s. when locomotive brought in its
q ram and went off to the round-housc to be
wiped up IA follow it and find out how it
vas made. l'd have a peep at every lever
md crank and cog and wheel and rod. Pd
know why and how steam exer ed its pow
or I'd satisfy myself why that boiler
mounted ON wheels was able to pull and
push. When | left the roundhouse pd go
to a factory and overhaul a stationary en-
zine and see where the two differed. Then
Pa get hold of some railroad man and
uump him until was posted even as to
The quantity of oil used to rlna locomo'i i've
"a hundred miles.
''Why, what good would all that do
me-"
Why? Because born fool has just rs
| good eyes rs you have. He sees II train
seeding along the track, and he realizes
that tits Il train. That is all you realize, al
though you have every chance to know
more. | don't say that it will he money in
your pocket to know these things, but it
will be Il satisfaction to you which money
cannot buy. You never expect to visit the
Cannibal Islands, but their location, num-
Der, products, area, etc, are given in geo
graphy to post you and broaden your
mind.
one of the grandest bnenessos of the age
is railrouding. Go down to the Union De-
pot and count the trains going out and
coming in for an hour and you will he
amazed. Every one leaves on time-every
one comes in almost to the minute, barring
accidont. If it we're not so the business OF
the entire country would soon fall into
confusion. The train which is due in Chi
cago at eight o'clock a. M, or in Buffalo
noon, or in Cincinnati at p. M, must be
there to the minute ii nothing breaks down.
Passengers expect 1.-THE PoSt-oIlice Off
ciaiS, banks, merchantS-everybody ex-
nects !. and all business ARRANGEMENTS
are made accordingly.
Have you any idea OF the millions of
money required to build, equip and run II
railroad; Have you ever asked yourself
how many locomotives, coaches, cars and
men such n road as tue Michigan Central
q must keep constantly employed? Did you
ever figure ON what fortune it must cost
each venr TO keep iip all this ruiling-stock,
track. stations. tuunk., etc. Z And think of
the perfect sv.teru that prevails IN all the
departments. No train leaves the depot
until the gong strikes tue exact minute
and from the time it leaves here until il
reaches its destination 1t Is under the
watchlul eye oil the Tram dispatcheF' ailt
all its movements are known through th'
telegraph 10 down To Tue uepot AT L
o'clock a. IN. ana ask the tram dispatcher
where the train is winch lett Tor the "es
three hours Oetore, and he Will locate 1t.
Every conductor has his orders. lie
i must run ~ these until the telegraph
makes II change. There is continual
click, click! OF the telegraph all along the
line. and if there are hty trains on the
rails each one makes its run without both
ering another. There must be periec
system, ana men must Outy OIItTS 10 TIT
v.r, ln,tar
VA, 49,, ,.,.,,t &c , roilrood and Won sa
i'''' '"' ~ ~"
piles ol rallS h're' heaps VI IVES 'h're' "i'
car-whcelS and scrap-iron by the acre, AM
d You must imagine that great recklessnes
s. r.,,,,ii, il, ,h', nr,rci.1 m,nagemeut \
van, ~ '''e .''''' ,t,.
ooipol".''" GUS cApo"9'' N'"''' '""'
falIruaa Every Tie Is couhteu-eVcry Oh
III car-whce has its value-every hundre
pounds of sc,uu iron is looked after. o
,.. r,,,, 4. ,,,,,,.,,..i,,.,,, o,. ,iu,it,1 a., .
'"' V''9 ''''''' 90 80
me amount OF OH 10 be used each TRIP
is even figured down just how long
wheel will run and how ION. ana axle wi
Inst
r,,.i.,,,,.. .;.;.. , p.o.
'"p'e YAK ABOUT ''e position "' iIeS
heht "l IN" United States as II 1t demahd'
great ability on the part of the ncumbcn
The active SunerintruI,.nt of = lrst.rla
r,iIr,,.J ox.,.,is,., n,,o ti,,.. ~, ,rnI
va" "N' ''"VH Wv ~ ="
power require" III any P"iItIt"I ono"
the land. Think "t the mal,y Station