News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-08-12
A FORTY.EIGHT IN HAND.
A Team of Four Dozen Horses Moving a
spool OfCRbIe.

On July there arrived in st. Louis,
says local paper, on a car especially
built for that purpose a spool of cable
for the cable railroad. 1t was about ten
feet in diameter and as many in depth,
and about 80, 900 pounds in weight
The contractor who took the job of
moving it had truck butt of mammoth
proportions. The wheels fit an iron
axle of seven inches in diameter, with
nine-inch tires.
On Monday last it had been announced
the cable would be moved, and there
were fully 900 people in the vicinity
of Eleventh and Poplar streets, il car
riages and on horseback, and the street
wore the appearance of a section of some
professions line of march. Forty eight
horses and mules, all accustomed to
heavy pulling, in line of twenty-four
span, each hitched to log chain, were
attached to the truck, and with wild
shout and terrible cracking of whips
and terrible rafting ON the street, they
made pull that it seemed ought to have
brought anything, but the truck didn't
even tremble under the strain. Again
and again it was tried, the excitement
growing greater all the time, as the
horses and mules almost bent to the
granite on their knees IN the pull. The
crowd was cheering, and men on every
hand betting upon the point of the load
ever being gotten out.
1t being demonstrated that the teams
could not bulge the truck, it was deter.
mined that locomotive should be mus
tered into service. A very large beam
was placed with one end against the
locomotive front and the other against
the rear of the truck, but the engine
didn't move, and there was a perfect
storm of cheers when another engine
came up and assisted. Between the two
the great truck was pushed out in the
street, on the granite pavement.
With over 100, 900 pounds resting on
it, the granite stood it pretty well,
though some of the blocks sunk down
and the tar in the crevices spurted up
like the soft mud between a small boys
toes in a swamp. 1t wasn't exactly
headed straight, and so the truck was
lacked up and headed due north on the
east side of the street, to steer clear OF
the sewer.
Once again the twenty-four teams
were attached to the truck in a line,
and the drivers mounted the saddle.
With wild burst of drivers shouts and
oaths, and cracking of whips, and the
shouts of the crowd, the animals bent to
their work, and the wheels moved.
With kind of groan the truck started,
slowly at first, but as the teams settled
down they got along faster, the crowd
keeping up and yelling all the time. Az
the tremendous load passed, the track
Of no hoo
PANTY marked as a buggy track in a
dusty road. Every minute some one
thought the wheels, with their nine inch
tires, would sink into the pavement, but
they fortunately did not, and the truck
and the spool reached point about 100
feet south of Market street without any
stoppage. There the tongue broke off
at the traces and operations had to be
stopped.
The tongue was replaced on Tuesday.
and about 3 o'clock the contractor had
the horses again attached to the load.
In the mean time the Mayor was kept
busily engaged in consulting with the
Street Commissioner and the City Coun-
sellor relative to taking action on the
complaints against the removal of tho
obstruction through the streets. The
weight of the combined load had broken
the granite pavement in many places,
sinking some of the blocks two or three
inches below the grade of the street. 1t
was decided to prohibit the further re-
moval of the cable while on the truck,
but the work of the contractor and la
borers was continued. Twenty four
horses were attached to the tongue and
chains about , o'clock, and after an
hours work the load was moved about
four feet nearer its destination.
On Wednesday another long pull,
strong pull, and pull all together was
made, and the great load was got into
Fine street. This street is paved with
asphalt, into which the truck cut deep
ruts, to the horror of the Street Com
missioner and the residents of the neigh
borhood, but nevertheless it went
ahead faster than it had done on the
granite. After gong block in Pine
street a portion of the asphalt pavement
was struck that proved much frmer, and
the ruts were not nearly so deep. From
there on the progress was comparatively
easy, and tonight the huge truck rests
between Twenty-secOnd and Twenty
third streets. 1t is believed it will now
reach its destination without much fur
Their trouble