The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-01-03
A GROWL FROM A DRITIsHER.
A Sweeping Denunciatien of All He Saw in
this Unfortunate Country.
Pail Mall Gazette.

Pail Mall Gazette.
"A great country. no doubt said Mr.. Capper.
the well-known engineer. who has recently re-
turned from the other side of the Atlantic,
where he has been attending the meetings of the
British association at Montreal. "a great coun-
try. no doubt, big enough for all creation; but.
except in size and ferry boats. not up to much.
That, in brief, is the impression | have brought
home concerning the United States of America
Let say that have only seen a corner of the
country, and do not wish to speak of the whole
after merely inspecting part of it. So far as the
States of the Atlantic seaboard are concerned,
from Maine to Baltimore must say that was
bitterly disappointed. Like most Englishmen
who visit America, / expected that there was
something to see that we could not see else
where, something to learn which could not be
taught at homeland. in short, that in the great
Republic of the West should find mechanical
appliances, social organization, and material
civilization at their highest pitch. found none
of these things"
Some two years ago two of the ablest men of
one of our great English railways went over to
the States to pick up wrinkles in railway man
agement, and after a prolonged tour they came
home and reported that they had learned
nothing, because there was nothing to learn. /
can quite believe it. 1t was startling surprise
to me, and to all my companions after all the
boasting which has filled the world concerning
the enormous strides of American genius, the
great development and marvellous adaptation of
machinery to all the purposes of life, to dis
cover that in almost every respect-in every
respect, so far as | saw, with the exception of
steam ferry -bSats-the Americans are immeasur-
ably behind the old country. To begin with,
take the railways. In this country we have two
or three different gauges How many have
they in America! Fifteen! And why! 1t is
free country, anu every company that runs It's
own little line through its own little terri Dry is
tree to break its gauge In order TO keep the 0lS-
trict to itself. The variety of gauges in the
States, which necessitate constant changes OF
carriages and all the inconvenience of which
we have some slight experience on the Great
Western, are incurred solely and entirely for
carrying out of dog in the manager policy.
'"The majority of American railways are built
upon the English gauge feet 8! inches-but
a great nun. Der are feet 81 inches, feet 9
inches feet 81 inches and and feet, the addl-
tional gauge being added solely for exclusive
ness. AS far as could make out. the mileage
Of l34. 1873 miles of railways was thus. 4068 miles
not being classified: Sixteen miles of feet
gauge, TO- $50 odd miles of 3 feet, 1900 miles of
feet 6 inches. 100 miles of feet inches, l, 100
miles of feet 81 inches 81, S9l miles of feet
81 inches, 361 miles of feet 50 inches, 12.2S7
miles of feet inches, 1851 miles of feet 8!
inches 81 miles Of feet 81 inches, 81 miles of a.
feet 10 inches. H. 554 miles of feet 8 miles Of
feet q inches, % miles of feet = inches miles
of 9 feet That. however is but a small thing
Take the roadway. There is not line in Amer
lea that has rails weighing more than 60 pounds
to the yard On our Great Western the rails
weigh % pounds The track is badly metaled,
or not metaled at all, with the result that rail
way travelling is exceedingly disagreeable The
line being uneven. you bump and jump if you
were going along corduroy road The rate on
none of the railways exceeds thirty miles an
hour, and IN almost every respect the railway
service is inferior to our own.
THAT, no doubt, will startle many who, have
heard a great deal about the luxury of the Amer
lean cars. 1t may be a luxury to some people to
be pigged in with a heterogeneous mass of ba-
bes, -navyies. expectorators, etc. through the
midst Of which there dawdies perpetual stream
OF oiterers who while away the time by wander
ing about the train, always leaving the door
open as they pass, and indulging in whatever
MISUNDERSTANDING, singing, swearing, and
larking-that seems good in their own eyes On
one occasion my wife and l had corner seat
near the door, and TO keep out the draft and the,
SCOT and smoke | was perpetually jumping up to
close the door as it was left open by each fresh
conner. How many times do you think had to
close the door in a quarter of an houra Forty
four times! In the whole hour between aud o
l timed myself. and found that had to close
the door 1876 times. OF course no one who could
afford it thinks of travelling otherwisethan in the
American first class, or, as they call it out of
Difference to democratic principles, Pullman
cars. But that is not always available and
even when it is its advantages have been much
exaggerated.
when you sleep in palacecar You are liable
to be jerked up on end by the sudden slowing
up of the train, the vacuum break being con-
stanty in use, and the cars are frequently
brought up almost as rapidly as if there had
been collision. After seepless night, in
which You have been alternately bumped and
jerked on both ends and both sides, you get I'D
in the morning to discover that you have afforded
pasturage ground for variety of insects. which
are not often mosquitoes. If you complain to
the conductor. you are informed that your griev-
ance whatever it may be, is none of his bust
ness, and if you persist in your representations
you are warned that if you don't mind what you
are about your traps will be deposited at the
next station and you can wait until the next
train. 1t is a land of liberty, they say, but the
boss, whether in the elsewhere, has
great deal tighter hand than anything we know
of here. At the railway stations, too, they have
adopted the abominable continental habit of
penning travellers up in waiting rooms until the
train is almost ready to start, when the doors
are thrown open and a general stampede takes
place for the cars Garfield was shot while
waiting for the barriers to be removed, and the
spot where he fell is marked with brass star
and still rellglOusly pointed out to every tourist
The carpet was carried away In little bits
after railways, | naturally turn for evidence
of material civilization and mechanical ingenu-
ity to the arrangements for loading and unload
ing vessels. and the working of ports, and the
general management of traffic in ports and
harbors. Would you believe it, that neither in
Boston, New York, Philadelphia. nor Baltimore
did clap eyes on a single hydraulic machine2
Everything is done by steam. nothing by n.y.
draucs. ! could not believe it and, went every.
where hunting to find some specimen of hydraulic
machinery. They don't seem to have heard of
such thing. In England we use water press
ure for cranes, dock gates and for almost every
purpose where great force, speed, and stead-
ness of motion are required But across she At
lantic water power is practically utilized OF
course you have heard the usual talk about the
costly drainage of the wilderness. capable of
driving all the mills in the union. Perhaps it is
but all know is that when our party visited
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