The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1886-02-25
MIDGET LOCOMOTIVES.
little yoiting steam-Tugs that Do Mules
Work ON Plantations.

swayed over the tracks of IN avenue
road; "but if you want 10 have some
fun in this line that exceeds the sport
of riding on 4 log-wagon over cordu-
roy road you should get job rs Gu
gineer On plantation locomotive
where had ! better apply we
asked.
Down or some OF the southern
plantations for the genuine article, but
You can find counterparts in Pennsyl-
vania and Michigan and northwestern
Ohio. You don't need any skill beyond
that required to hang on when she
wobbcs. l suppose that very few
people have any idea OF the number OF
small locomotives in Use in this coun-
try They are driving the mule out of
business entirely. The regular planta-
ton. locomotive is q midget beside an
elevated railway motor. The elevated
motors weigh from Is TO - tons, while
The midget weighs 3, and it is used on
rails that weigh II pounds to the yard.
Tlic cylinders are only 10 inches long,
anti the diameter is trinc greater
than the breadth OF my hand. Very
tpequently these locomotives are run
over wooden rails. There is 4-mile
road at Summeryille, ;. c., that uses
timbers a inches square instead OF iron.
People generally suppose that the old
fashion iron strap laid on stringer
went out OF fashion years ago, but
lumber road near Savannah ~ miles
long. has that same old strap, and it is
modern road, too.
''In having a wood railroad the ties
are notched so that the rail sets down
about two inches into the tie. The
inuer side of the notch is perpendicu-
lar. and the outer edge slants away so
that the notch is wider at the bottom
than at the top Then when the rail is
laid wedges are driven in beside it and
under the edge of the notch, thus keep
ing the rails from turning over or
spreading. Sugar maple with the
heart up makes the best rails. Seine
times two-inch strips of maple are laid
ON soft-wood stringers. These roads
are lsed for getting out lumber and
logs chiefly. Very little grading is
done Cribs of logs are laid up in
stead OF trestleS, and the ordinary
irregularities of common level land are
overcome by blocking up the ends of
ties with all sorts of logs and stumps.
| know OF one road that runs across q
low bit of ground on the stImps of
trees that were sawed off at the right
height The ground under these roads
becomes soft mud when it rains, and
the way these little locomotives snake
a train OF logs through the clearing
with the mud slashing over everything
within ten rods of the track is a cau-
ton. es,Hln the toot-board of such ma
Chine i, where you can see jolting.
As fast a. the available timber is
cut on one tract of land the road is
shifted TO new one. The engine on
the road AZ '>ummerville runs from ten
to twenty times over its four-mile road
every day, burns J cords of wood in
doing it. and hauls out 1900 feet of
logs OF from tifty-five TO sixty tons.
1t took the place of twenty mules, and
II said TO pay for itself every year.
Some Of the little engines burn less
tue than that. There is road g.
miles long At Pensacola, Fla, on which
the -cugiue burns only one-third OF Il
cord OF wood in is daily service of
thirty rules. There are no curves or
this road.
II hose little engines are not confined
to wood Tor fuel As lumbermen, thew
burn wood because the wood costs
little or nothing. As genuine planta-
tiou ea gincS- used for transporting cot
ton az sugar or supplies across the
cduuity they frequently burn refuse
diN pressed sugar-caue. In different
form but with the same dminutivc
cylinders. thev are used in coal-mines
Tor nJ0iing ears. and burn either soft
or hard coal o. coke In their smallest
sizes hey are only ten feet long over
All or use in mines they are some
times only (! tset high aud , feet wide.
A few bushels of coal and a few pals
OF watcr keep them running ali day.
Que OF these mOles in Il coal mine at
Brookiieid. o. pulls twenty cars,
weighing nearly three-quarters of a
ton each. up grade 1850 yards long,
that rises at the cate OF 10J feet to the
mile Aud yet any good athletic
schooiboy could Iamp over the engine
without drawing n second breath.
Curiouhiy enough thcse little locomo-
tiycs, ID at completely ill the tunnels
through which they run, serve as VEN
tilators. forcing the air ahead of them
and drawing it in ALTER them, the same
a punlp-plunger draws water into Il
pump and forces ii 0Nt again
I'm the mines. OF course, iron or
steel rails are used Iron is really
cheaper than wood in any locality.
The wood rail needs constant care.
When il is wet the locomotive can not
draw half q load. and la the north is
hard TO keep clear OF ice
What does it cost 10 buy and nan
one OF these midget locomotives"
The FIRST cost of the outfit depends
altogether Oh the kind OF a road and
the Kind OF service required. There il
one road down south where the engine
cost -. 00O. The wooden eoad cost
S450 mile for the timber delivered
along the line. 10 lay and grade it
cost Eear1t Is knuch more. Tne oil
and repairs 20 the engine have q ost $50
a veal. The cost of cutting the wood
for fuel was $50 year. The engineer
got $40 a year for running the ma
chine. aud the boy who worked the
switches. coupled the cars, and made
himself generally useful got $3.50.
Allowing per cent. interest on the in
vestmcnt the cost of that engine was
less than $1,000 year The lumber
man found that IL cost him 90 oants