News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-03-27
Railway Heroes
THE FIREMAN's STORY.

From the Youths Companion.l
Coal-dast. einders. oil and smoke usu-
ally make fremen on duty rather grimy-
looking personages. Perhaps few among
the thousands who ride in the railroad
cars behind us would care for our ac-
cuaintance. But we are useful-as USE
ful, perhaps, as any other class of men;
and certainly we have our full share of
the hard, disagreeable things in life, in
eludjng frequent peril and much expos
ms to weather.
Working mp from fireman to engine
driver-or engineer" as we are usually
called in this country-is often a slow
process. There are men on our line
the Hudson River railroad-who have
been firing eleven years, with no promo
tion get; though they are no doubt fully
competent to run an engine. For pro-
motion depends almost wholly upon va
caneies occurring, or some special infu-
ence at headquarters.
A mansought to become familiar with a
locomotive in eleven years. thought 1
knew every screw in mine after firing
two years. Yet it takes a good deal of
time to learn to fire well, so as to get the
most steam out of the least fuel, and
have the highest pressure at the grades
where it is most needed. To do this a
man should know the road, every rod of
it, as well as the engine.
Then comes the oiling. An engine re-
quires a great deal of oil, as well as coal
and water. The fireman has to keep in
mind all those scores of bearings where
oil has to be applied. Between oiling,
shoveling in coal, shaking and stirring
up his fire-t keep it steady and hot
and looking to his stock of coal and wa
ter, he is kept busy, and must needs
watch sharply. But man gets these
duties well fixed in his head in time.
1t is while ''firing" that the practical
knowledge of running an engine is
gained. A fireman is the groom, SO to
speak, of the ''iron horse" He must,
morning and evening, have the engine
polished, ''fred up, and ready for his
superior, the engineer, to step into the
cS'b and start off, Usually the engineer
does not make his appearance tiIl The
moment of connecting with the train.
Between the engineer and his fireman
there generally exists an easy-going and
manly sort of friendship, though l have
known cases where the two men detest-
ed each other.
When L began to fire under "Doc"
Simmons, 1 scarcely knew enough to
build a good fire in a cook-stove, and
eauld not have found quarter OF the
oil-caps. 1 must have been a trial to
him the first week or two. But he never
gave sharp word, though he often had
to tell me things over and over again.
'Doc"-as the railway men all called
him-was superior engineer. He knew
every pound of metal in a locomotive;
lust where it lay, and how much it was
good for. He was one of those men
WHO seem to feel just what there is in
locomotive the moment he takes hold oi
the levers and starts up. He was 6
good-hearted fellow, and always had 6
pleasant word or joke all along the
line, and it is generally. the case thai
such men do not fail the company or the
public at critical moment.
I went home and cried like baby the
day "Doc" was killed. If it had beer
NV own father could not have felt hal
as badly. I actually wished that haC
cone to the bottom of the river witt
him.
1t was the night of the 9th of February
and fearfully cold. We had 'No, III
then, and took out the Pacific Express
as it was called, from New York city
up the line to Albany. 1t was bite
night, and the line was frosty and slip
perry.
The express was always heavy train
That night we had three baggage an
express cars and eight passenge
coaches, and we were late out of Ne'
York. to begin with about fifteen min
utes, L think.
Such cold weather is always demoral
izing to a railroad. 1t is much harde
to make time; all metal works bad, ant
though the fire appears to burn brighter
it takes more coal to make steam. Th
train seems to hang to the line. Then
toe, the cutting wind is enough to freez
the marrow in mans bones.
1t might have been mostly fancy o.
my part, but L thought doc" had a
odd look in his face that night, as he &c
INTO the cab. He was more serious tina
usual. for we both knew we had har
run before us, and a cold one. Both {
us were mufied up in fur caps and oil
overcoats.
:sShove in the coal, Nick. and shaB
her down smart. We want every oune
of steam tonight" says Doc. "Fiftee
minutes behind and eleven cars or
Those sleeping-coaches are as heavy
a whole block, too. I'm glad tn
is a double-track line, and all clei
ahead"
We pulled ont, and from the way d.
handled Ler, L knew that he meant
pick up that fifteen minutes, if it was
the old machine to do it. 1 suppose v
forty-on the level stretches.
On we went, reeling off the dar
bleak miles, with the sharp wind cuttir
into the cab, till near New Hambu
station, where the line then cross
Wappinger creek on a trestle bridI
which had a ''draw" in it. 1t was
comfort to think that the draw won
certainly be open on such night, I
the creek was frozen up.
Ah, If it were only permitted to trai
men to know just what is ahead on t
tracks on these black, bitter night
But we can only see what the head-lig
shows us and often the signals see
strangely obscure in fog, or in the dri
ing rain and SLOW.