, 1885-08-21
gsaLls. cAas Ano 70 .MorIvgs


The Impr~--ion They Make upon an
American Observer.
nnrper's Migazin u
The hrst impression which an Ameri.
can who IS experienced in railroad
travelling in his own country derives
from the O terror aspect OF an English
train is unfaSorable. The cars, as he
must necessarily call them. seem to be
small they Lack. apparently, tho weight
and solidity OF the American passen-
ger coach. the compartments are
narrow. the ceilings low, tho
ventilation apparently doubt ul. They
stand upon two, three or more
pairs OF gaunt high wheels, to
the axles of which their springs are di-
rcctly geared. lie misses the little in
dependent ehicle, the truck or DO ie,
with its four or six small. compact.
solid looking, wide-fanged wheels,
which sustain each end Of the car-that
rolling gear which looks so strong, so
adapted to inc uality Of rail or curve.
so resourceful against disaster, an so
complete in its equipment.
The cars are smaller there is no
doubt Of ii. They arc narrower and
they are shorter, and to the American
eye they look even shorter than they
really are, because they have no
pro Getting platforms at the ends,
no o~verhanging roof or hood,
but are buckled up close to
each other and their contact CON
trolled by small metal buffers, the
springs of which allow a play of from
eighteen inches to two feet and n half
between car and car. The Miller plat
form, the Janney coupler, the link and
pin-of all the familiar devices of the
nitei States there is not one to be
seen. The brakes None visible. Nor,
for the matter Of that, a brakeman.
This in luential and numerous person
has 10 existence in England. there is
not even a rudimentary type Of him.
That you do not find him is the first
stern intimation you receive that in
English %railroading there are no auto
Gratis. The wheels are fitted with
brakes, however, and the trained eye
notes u rubber hose connection between
the carriages, quite different in its ap-
plication to that known at home, tut
which nevertheless betokens the air
brake.
lie takes account of the distinctions
of class, and Rejects upon his country'n
yelled progress in that regard in tho
matter of parlor cars and limited OK
press trains. Then he finds that there
are no baggage masters to watt the vOla-
tile Saratoga TO its doom, as his own
newspapers would express it. There is,
perhaps, a luggage van or two, or there
are IN the carriages themselves luggage
compartments according to the way in
which the train is made up, the length
of Quincy it is to take, or the custom
81 fha artsaYla. l,.. ,.Iau -
ton. His final contemplation is perhaps
devoted TO the engine, and, if he has
ever given any of his attention to the
Ameri an locomotive, it fills aim with
r deep concern. lie recalls the impos
ing splendor OF the latter, its comforta-
bic and 10 ty cab OF oiled and polished
wood. its gay brass bell, the soul-stir-
ring whistle. the noble hoad light and
the COW destroying pilot, the great Gin
der-consuming smoke-stack unless it
be a hard-coal burner. in which case
that feature shrinks to moderate pro-
PORTIONS, the powerful drivers and
compact finders, the eccentric con
Meeting rods, all its parts radiant with
the glitter OF polished steel or bur
nished brass, or decked with appropri-
ate vermilion or emerald green.
In all OF these matters the nglish To-
connective compares with it much as a
lawn-mower does with a New York fire
engine II is a humble, awkward, green
or monoohromatic machine. 1t has
neither polish nor decoration about it.
There is no cab. The engineer and his
fireman that is to SAY, the engine
driver and his stoker, as they are stylel
in ngland-per.orm their duties with
only xnph GhaIfar 40 ia afnrdn1 lao a
board screen in front of them. pierced
by two round apertures filed with stout
glass, technically kno Sn as ''spectacles.
The smoke stack is short and thick,
there is an unsightly green hump on the
back of the Loiler: the cylinders are
under the 'front.' of the latter, instead of
on each side before the drivers: the
wheels are all large, and the body of the
eng ne is perehod high up above them,
and looks top heavy and dangerous.
The whole thing is rigid and still
looking, and TO the observer who has
had to do with the external aspects of
locomotives it is unprepossessing and
unlovely, The practical American en-
gineer whistles thoughtfully as he sur
veys II, and wonders TO himself how
long itwould lie before he would ditch his
tram If he had TO run on a new western
railroad with such an engine. Where
would he be on a sharp curve, or how
would such r~unning.g gear adapt itself to
an %uneyenly balanced track The low
center of gravity Of the American loco
motive, the weight distributed well
down between the wheels, the play Of
the small, broad langes under the pilot
truck, and the external gearing of the
driving wheels, all give the American
engine an appearance of stability which
impresses not only the layman, hut also
the expert.