The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-11-11


Responsibility Which Is Upon Them
Boys Costly Sleep.
The most undesirable work and the Least
remuheratiye among telegraphers is thai
OF night operator at some lonely station OF
railroad. The rules Of the company re
quire that these men shall remain awake
at their posts from Z p. m. till Z a. m. tc
report passing trains, and to receive anC
deliver such orders as it may be necessary
to convey to engineer and conductors tC
regulate the movement of their trains. Or
double track roads their presence at Their
posts is of great Importance only in emer
gencies. and to be sure they are always on
hand. A system Of signaling is in vogue
on most roads by which every operator is
required TO report by wire to Headquarters
every half hour during the night.
On the Central Railroad of New Jersey
hIteen years ago the headquarters of the
night dispatcher was at Elizabeth, the
wire signal OF the Office being "K l."
Every half hour in the night the dis
patcher's operator would sound on the
wire the signal "Six, six, six, X l." and
each operator on the line from Jersey City
TO Phillipsburg would have to sound his
y
and ending with "P." If all the responses
came the operator st ak II would saw
20. k" and another half hour of dreary
silence would intervene.
ONE SCHEME TO SLEEP.
The operator at Somerville was on terms
of intimate friendship with the one at
Hampton junction, and they arranged to
sound each others signals on alternate
hot fha e.. L.
acted could sleep. Each, however. had to
attend to the reporting of the trains that
passed his station. The station at Soner-
vile was between the north and south
bound tracks, and the operator there in
vented an ingenious device by which he
could go to sleep and yet be awakened
whenever train should pass
taking two stout cords, he ran one out
over the window and under the platform
10 one OF the rails of the south bound track,
to which be tied it. The other was run
In similar way, and tied 10 the north
bound track. Inside the office he made a
loop In each OF the cords at a convenient
height Leaning back in his chair, with
MS head pillowed on a shelf, he put his
right foot through one loop and his left
through the other, both feet being about
A north bound train came along, cut the
string, and his left foot fell down with a
jerky suddenness that would have thrown
HIM out of the chair had his other foot not
been tied. Then message would go to
headquarters like this, IS. o. k, l. n. g., |
NO. %, eng. 45 l:l8," meaning that Somer- |
Vile reported, north bound train No. %, |
drawn by engine No. a, passing at 1:ls a. |
N. The string was tied TO the rail again, |
another loop made, and the operator soon |
was dreaming once more. If the left foot |
ell 1t was north bound train; if the right |
one, south bound-a glance at the clock /
showing what train was due according to
the schedule.
Another operator used to I'll a coal scut-
tie with coupling pins, old scraps Of iron
and tin, and fasten it high from the floor
to string tied to the rails. When train
came along the scuttle would fall with
crash loud enough almost to be heard at
the dispatcher's headquarters.
A BOYS NEGLIGENCE.
On the Belvidere Delaware division of
the Pennsylvania road, where balloon sig
nails are used, such devices are not availa-
bic, and the operators must remain awake
every moment of the long night The
Bel Dell" as it is called, is a single
track road, and orders are frequent during
the night TO regulate the movement Of
trains. IL is over this division that the
Pennsylvania heavy coal traffic is
brought down to Trenton and to Perth
AmbOy. The balloon signal is an oblong
hollow canopy made of red flannel, and
kept in shape by circular iron hoops.
BY double cord attachment connecting
Il laa - 81 l., q.
Dr raised at will IL lowered it is a danger
signal that no train dares TO pass. IL rails
I'd the signal is 'No orders; 20 ahead on
schedule time" At night a white lantern
S hung under the balloon, which when
Covered shows red light through the red
lanneL If raised the white light shows,
signaling that everything is ''all right"
The orders of the company are that the
balloon must be kept down at all times,
lay and night, showing the red signal, and
'nly raised when train approaches for I,
which no orders have been received. Thus
/ terrible responsibility falls upon the :
operator who has complete control of the
ignal. If he receives an order for a train
md forgets it, or becomes confused and
aises the signal, the result is sure.to be :
collision. Fortunately the operators on
llhb AlNlSlOu are ldllnlul men. VINO eNl- I
lently never sleep on duty Perhaps a
ense of the responsibility keeps them :
wake The operator at Washington :
rossing, justsbove Trenton, nearly a score
f years ago was a young boy, who could !.
lot resist the temptation TO run about TO :
icnics and on excursions during the day. :
Is a rule he was most powerfully inclined :
o sleep at night Twice he did so, and .
vas then discharged.
The first occasion resulted in the wreck
{ a coal train, and the other i'm breaking a
reiCht train in two. The coal train stopped
u the heavy grade, seeing the signal down, =
nd the engineer coming in for orders
)und the boy sound asleep. tie woke him "
oughly, and in deep anger started again
Or his engine. Being angry he started up
20 quickly, and broke a coupling on the :
enth car, the engine and the ten cars :
tarting down the grade very fast "OT
rakes' had been whistled, and the second q.
ection coming on crashed into the first, !,
ling up dozen cars. Almost the same
hing happened to the freight, and the
Dung operator was allowed 10 look for !.
ay job-on some other road.-New York =
ribune. -
Several Versions OF a Maxim.
Popular maXims credit certain individ- n
ais with criminal proclivities The Ro- q
ian says Little beard and little color -
= ]. ,