The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1890-05-11
WALKING 4 TRACK FOB A LYING.
It's u Useful. Though Not q Pleasant DC
cupatIOn, as Many Men Know.

| It's u Useful. Though Not q Pleasant DC.
| cupation. as Many Men Know.
Some of the old railroad track walkers can
boast Of records equal to that of locomotives
| in the point OF miles which they have covered
| Engineers sometimes claim that they have
| ridden 100000 miles or 30, but the men who
| have walked that far are not often heard Of
| Still there are plenty Of them in the branch Of
the RAILROAD service OF which the track
walker " belongs. They are the safeguard OF
travel which the public knows least about.
They prevent hundreds Of accidents. but their
good deeds are rarely If ever rewarded. rs is
the case with the faithful engineer or lagman.
And it is a peculiar fact that there is no line
OF promotion, consequently no great incentive
to careful work.
Sun reporter got some ideas about their
duties from Thomas Sesnan. now foreman OF a
section OF trackmen In the yard Of the Grand
Central Station. Sesnan has been employed
on the track work Of the Harlem Railroad for
forty-two years. and Is now looked upon as q
patriarch among tho trackmen. He has had
charge OF a gang for the last eighteen years
before that he was a trackman himself He
says that he helped to lay the second track OF
the Harlem road in 1S48. over which the New
Haven road first entered the city.
Every piece Of railroad" he said, us
divided into sections of from five to seven
miles II 1t Is single track. and from three to four
miles, If double. A foreman with gang of five
or six mon keeps each section in order. All
ing repairs. That one is the track walker who
patrols the tracks all day long with an eye out
ior weak points and obstructions which might
cause accidents. OF course there Is q second
track walker at night who does the same work
The track walkers outfit includes ham
bolts and spikes No. he doesn't tem toI walk at
pedestrian speed. His gait shouldn't be more
than than, two to three miles an hour. A man
might hurry over the entire ground inside OF
an hour. but he couldn't look at every bolt and
rail- connection. as his duties require. lifts II
the direction from which the train il coming
and examines only, one track at a time He
walker gets, over the ground, as far as lie is
f a6le 'pst before the trains pass over his Soc
has dbRs aI az TnG Hna
mile sections he ought to mako about three
round trips dag over each track. This would
An experienced track walker can tell n loose
Polt Ct glance. Sometimes it will be caused
a. not ". Generally loose, Joint will be in
dicated by q disturbance OF the earth, causing
nGIeyice between the sleeper and tho rail. In
thin piece Of wood which lie must carry In his
Quilt Fish plates and angle plates are dis
sometimes has to replace broken plates If
there isn't time for the section gang to como
sGOFs or !raa is which f' he s ca
handle tho track walker puts torpedoes on tho /
tracks and uses his red flag to warn n mss I
Ing train. Then he leaves His patrol and in .
1orms the foreman and trackman rs soon rs /
track walker wraps his red flag about tho Ian .
tern as a signal. Torpedoes are used also.
never heard OF track walkers being pro-
NOTED 10 better paying position; once
track walker always truck walker,
Anybody can get such Job, then.' suG-
Restec the reporter
Not a, biz Of IT," ,retorted tho patriarch.
" You couldn't for instance. Id ike 10 sec you
bolt on one of those angle plates: ana you'd
have 10 do 1t In case OF emergency \ man
must have experience rs n tract man iirst Tho
foreman picks his track walker out OF the
l.3} day; But Il there is any promoting be-
ing done tho track walker is never tho LUCKY
one. some trackman gets the raise. The
track walker must go back TO the section gang
again if he expects TO get up in the world.
. AS rule track walkers keep at II AL their
section between Philmont and Granville, on the
Harlem road. strip six miles long, made two
-Ound trips day. lie started GU, from Phil
m mt at A. NJ. and by the end Of tho first
'ound trip Of twelve miles 1t was noon and he
got dnner Another TIP and he gave ,TTay to
McGrath kept up his twenty-iour miles walk
lbout every day in the year for eghtrcu years
teckoninG 400 days 10 the year. this makes
more than 10000 miles. Many track walkers
rave kept 1t up longer. A man on the Erie
ays he has walked more than 100000 miles.
Tho unpleasant part comes in rainy or
vintry weather OF course. ii the snow is six
inches deep on the tracks. the track walker
an see the rails lot alone he loose bolts, and !
hat Il the only time he gets II holiday. but
vim the rest OF the section gang and help clear
he road" |