Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1889-11-29
on MISUNDERSTANDING
4 noAo on WHICH THE TRAM
sTAaTs WHEN synes FIRES UP.

4 RoAo on WHICH the TaAN
STARTS WHEN sSnss FIRES Up.
1hs TnAs weso WAns - ~ = CAsT
csss - ~ 1hsas DsM~0GAs La.s
o. ssss assst ~ ~ Only cs.sss .
assAs Dssss.
Commotess and otbwu aeeusepmaA % fne
qnsst railway tsips In ths Unissd Stses viii
hsd someshing 70 intsssue thsm In she ~
clnnt giveu BY . veil Known New York iAv-
yw II his railroad sxpsrsAncss b Bpaai.h
Hondurss This es1fiesunu hnd some bsa6-
~. which required biz psessncs In the into
mar Of Hosduras, stouf shrss hsnsired miiss
from he eosst, and simnst ths eutirs dc
tanrs had N h. made On hogss or mass bAck.
Ths only exceptiou 10 dis ttresoGs mode II
travel wss q the heGtnpisg II sbs journey,
wbsrs. according 70 ths map, there was
railroad running bsGwssa two towns, forty
miiss apart, tbs only railroad in The eoun-
Try.
On landing 10 Honduras, ths gentleman
t,oh hi. family 10 ths hftls native hotel
kspe by muiAtto woman In Central Amer
ican syie, with fritoiss and t1sttIgas for the
lSSA 1thi f8hTAA s%sS<3bsrt WV
frames for bsis-and then started cut 70 dpd
tbs railroad botang 10 catch ths morning
train. After long AArch through the
town, b. came upon . singis track In the
cufxkirt~, which ended In . diiApidatsd
wooden shsd, but nobody was IN sight and
there was 20 sign of train. He made In
quiriss and lsarnsd whsre the railway super
intsndeut lived. That of5csr OF the Hondu-
res trunk Inns came out Of his bo0ss whsn
summoned, and was immsdiateIy asked vhsn
the train would start
The trsinF hs repsatsd, in Spanish, Of
courns.
"Ya; wh.t tims dos il gor' his qusssionsr
asked; lit has not gons today, has itf'
"yo; I donr think IL has gous today; no,
I'm sure IL hasn't gone today"
win 10 60 this norningr'
mo. Idon't think IL will 20 this morning"
"Will It 60 this sftrrnoonf'
"Quien sAbes But don't think 80 No,
dau't think 80 How can ! tellf'
"Y0u ought To know IT anybody DOES" the
Nov Yorker rsplisd, -. you are the super
intsndsut"
Whiis thsy were talking the officer was
ahading his eyes with his hands and looking
aeroo little bay In the distance
'Can you 80 across tbs hAyf' he asked;
my sys are not - good - they used 70 b.
The New Yorker looked, and replied that
b could srs across the bay distinctly.
DO you ~ any smoke coming up out of
tbs trsssF tbs superintendent asked
No, there was no smoke
Then ! gusss Jim won't fire up today" he
went on; II sent him out In the country yes
tsrddy 10 repair an engine On . sugar estate,
and most likely he hasn't got through yet.
Rue I'm, r,rattv strra hall Are to~tnnrrasS
Just come in ON the steAmeri And got =
family with youi Well, you'll find it very
comfortable down at the hotel, and think
thsrs'li he n train out tomorrow; yes, think
there will"
Tborc WAS nothing for 1t. but to wait, for
the chance Of deducting forty miles from the
long mule ride was not to be lost Next
morning tho New Yorker WAS cut bright and
early watching for a smoke across the bay.
The smoke was there; evidently Jim was
firing up. He fastened 10 the superin tendent
with the news and asked what time the train
would start.
About o O'Clock, IL she goes.n the officer
answered, may b little earlier, may be
little later; but you may we'll be on board
by =, TO make sure"
Shortly after o'clock the train was ready
10 start. II consisted OF an engine Of the
style Of forty years or more ago, tender
containing nome wood, and one OF the earl
e~t passenger cars made, with no glass in the
windows, a bench running lengthwise Oh
each side, and boxes OF old iron on and under
the benches 10 give the ear weight enough to
keep It on the track There were a number
Of passengers, and when all was ready and
tho conductor had shouted IAN aboard in
Spanish, and the engine bell had begun 10
ring. one Of the Passengers, = merchant in
the town, clapped his hand 20 his pocket aud
exclaimed that he had forgotten to write
sosne letters, and jumped of and went back
10 his Office W write them. The train start
ID with vast amount If whistling and bell
ringing, and began To dash furiously across
the country at the rate OF seven or eight
miles an hour. 1t had not gone far before
tho wood gave out, and the engine stopped
and the fireman and another trainman went
into the woods with an AK 10 cut fresh sup
ply. These stops To cut wood were made
about once an hour throughout the journey.
At the first station, which was reached at
about II o'clock, the man who had stopped
To write his letters came galloping up on
muls which he gave in charge Of friend,
and resumed his seat In the car
When noon arrived the Nain was stopped
and the engineer. fireman, conductor and the
two or three other men employed on the road
made . little fire. near the track and pacidly
proceetled to cook and eat their dinner This
occupied nearly an hour, and everything
went slowly but we'll till : O'Clock, when q
littls stream was reached. crossed by an old
wooden bridge Here tho engine was stopped
over the middle Of the stream, aud the fire
man got or and, without any hesitation, re-
moved ali his clothes The New Workers
imAgtnsd that he was about TO take bath,
but b was strictly in the performance OF hi.
duty. He lowered himself TO the bed of the
shallow stream, with . pail in his hand and
the other trainmen made line to the tank
of the engine, which they proceeded to al
with water from the brook, handing up pail
after pail and pouring 1t in.
II was not till the middle Of the afternoon
however. that the most interesting part OF
the journey was reached. The train came to
stop without any apparent cause, and stood
still for some time. The New Yorker at
length got out TO see what was the matter.
He found that short distance ahead Of the
engine . rail was missing. II the train had
gone two rods further it would have run of,
without the remotest chance Of getting back
again. for there Is machinery for such
USES in HondurAA The engineer had taken o
crowbar and walked back past the rear end
Of the car, and was feeling about with the
bar for looss rail Presently he found one
to suit and pr,ed it up. and he and the other
men carried IL ahead and spiked 1t down 10
the place VI the rail which was missing. Then
the trAin went ahead. leaving, Of course, one
rail missing in the track On making in
quirie~ the New Yorker learned that some
Year, before somebody stole one Of the rails.
aud that it had never been replaced because
there were no eltra rails in the country, 50
every time the train reached that point the
engineer had To stop and replace the missing
rail with one that the train had already gone
over
The train reached its destination at 0
o'clcrk in the evening, having averaged about
three and half miles an hour in the twelve
hours consumed in the journey. and the New
Yorker who made the trip is emphatic in ad-
wishing all other Americans " ho visit Spanish
honduis As |" stick to the males If time Is Of
any value To them.-New York Times