The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1890-07-17
THE TRACK WALKER.
A Useful, Though Not = Pleasant. Occu-
patton.


A UsefuI. Though Not n Pleasant. Occu-
NATHAN.
Prom IN. Nan y,,r star
some OF tne oiu raiiroau Track walkers
can boast OF records equa TO that OF loco
motives in the point OF miles which they
nave covered. Engineers sometimes
lain that they have ridden aOO.OOO miles
or q Inn, the men n nave xaiL.d tho,
-.
- : =, ' = o'' o'.' .ue'e my
penny Oh thenh IN the prahch OF 'he ran.
o service OF which the track walker"
belongs. They are the safeguards OF
travel which the public knows least
,ho,,, Tha,, nravan, h,ndra5s -;
d.n,s I'm, thar cool ,l.eIs aro ra,.I, !,
a.as.-,I ~ ~ a. -
ever re"a'uco' as U" une case WIN .he
faithfui engineer ana u Is
a peculiar fact that there Is no line of
promotion, consequently no great incen-
tive In careful work.
A S.n renort.r oot som. ;doas aho,,
T," 1917
.ne'ruu''es run Sesha"' now
FOREMAN Oh u sec'ion Oh orackihch III tue
yard OF the Grand Central station. SEES
nan had been employed on the t~rackwork
work of the Harlem railroad for forty-two
years, and is now looked upon as a patri-
arch among the trackmen. He has had
charge of a gang for eighteen years; be-
IOrN tlat lie WAS n rdckmAn niIlrtII. He
a he helped TO lay the second track of
the Harlem road i'm ls4s, over which the
New Haven road first entered the city,
Every piece Of railroad," he said, ais
divided into sections of from five to seven
miles. il Il il single track, and from three
TO four miles III il is double. A foreman
with a gang of five or six men keeps Zach
section I'm repair. All but one are track
men who are kent busy making repairs.
That one is the track walker, who patrols
the tracks all day with an eve out for
weak poipts and distractions which might
cause accidents, OF course there is a sec
ond track walker at night who does the
same work,
1.-The track walkers outfit includes n
hammer, wrench, lantern, red flag, a few
torpedoes, bolts and spikes. No, he
doesn't walk AT pedestrian speed. His gait
shouldn't he more thar two TO three miles
an hour. A man might hurry over the
entire ground inside of an hour. hut
he couidn't look al every. bolt and rail
connection as his duties require. III it's a
double track road he walks on the track
facing the direction from which the train
is coming and examines only one track al
a time, He takes NE other track ON the
way back. A trackwalker gets over the
ground, as far as he is able. just before
| the trains pass over his section. But he
keeps at work all day long. and IN he has
a double track, divided into three-milc
sections, he ought TO make about three
round trips a day over each track. This
would make a days average of "A miles.
.An experienced track walker can tell
a loose bolt at a glance. Sometimes il
will be caused by n broken rail, and he
will see that the joints do not ilt. Gener-
ally a loose joint will be indicated by a
disturbance of the earth. causing a crew
ice between the sleeper and the rail. In
| thisc case the track walker props the rail
with q thin piece of wood. which he may
carry in his outfit. Fish plates and angle
plates are distributed along the line, and
the track walker sometimes has To replace
broken plates il there isn't time for the
section gang To come up before a train is
due. In case of a broken rail or obstruc-
ton which he can't handle, the track
walker puts torpedoes on the tracks and
uses his red flag To warn a passing train.
Then he leaves his patrol and informs
the foreman and trackman as soon as pos
sible. In emergency eases at night the
track walker wraps his red hag about the
lantern as n signal. Torpedoes are used
also.
II never heard of a track walker being
promoted to a better position. Once q
track walker always "A track walker"
Anybody can get such a job, them"
suggested the reporter.
"Not a bit of it, retorted the patriarch,
'you couldn't. For instance, ia like To
see you bolt on one of those angle plates.
and you'd have TO do il in a ease of emer-
gency. A man must have experience as
trackman first. The foreman hicks his
nav l. NH The same~abont si2s n day