New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-10-28
FLYING LIKE THE WIND.
THE FASTEST EXPRESS IN THE WORLD.
HOW THE NETWORK cENTRAL's NEW TRAIN

HOW THE NETWORK CENTRAL's NEW TRAIN
FLASHED ALONG or ITS FIRST TRIP.
Tho fortunate few who were lucky enough 10 De
guests on w. II. Webb's private car, Mariqul'a WIN"
was coupled to the Empire state Express on ''' mo-
record breaking trip TO Buffalo on MONDAY haI Si q
perence worth remembering Although the same unie
will now be made by the new express daily, subsequent
trips will lack the delightful novelty OF the nrS' Nip
and the exciting uncertainty as TO whethsr OF ot .o
train could make The required time. Tnen' AGAIN "nen
one remembers that this hrst train was ulrV 'SeNeh
tons heavier than the regular trains VIII pe' OH
OF the addition OF the Sadquita, the speed ID Iu'uv
can be regulated with more uniformity, ana tere WI"
probably be no necessity for the terrific veoci' heu'
on the first train in order to make up for lost ue'
The locomotives which haul the Empire state Elk
press are huge machines, weighing 100 tons with TIE
tender and sixty without II. They were lhaue S'
schenectady, according to plans furnished Dy mhai
buchanan and they proved themselves worthy by the
noble manner In which numbers SO, S'4 ana o. sue
cessvely raced against tme-and won
The driving wheels OF locomotive NO. ofo are SIX
feet ak inches in diameter. Immense as II Is, ana
heavily as each part Is wrought the general design oil
the engine is so symmetrical that the great machine
does not appear to be largo as 1t really Is uli ono
notes how tiny the big engineer and the hremen iooh
as they climb around IT,
The trip throughout was one Of the most dehghttnl
and celebrating ones that any Of those present had
a.
Of New-York City and began 10 get up speed there
was the usual clank cank from the locomotive but as
the velocity increased the noise decreased ana when
speed Of from fifty five to sixty miles an hour had peeh
reached the cars rushed so silently and smoothly along
the magnificent road that the only sign TO show that
there was n locomotive on the train was inc hely
strcamer OF smoke which hung behind. Crowds waited
At every station from spuyten Duyv to Buffalo 20 see
the flyer and In many places the record-oreakng tr
was greeted with ringing cheers as 1t rushed past qua
IN, velocity of the engine was so great that IN look
ing from the car windows one could scarcely EeV
glnse of the hundreds OF faces before the tram mac
vhizzed BY leaving behind it storm Of flying chips
cnders and dust.
1t was at syracuse that tho greatest ga'ne1hs
awaited the train and it seemed If the whole town
had gathered TO see the come daShing IN sue
walks were black with people, 1ostllng and crahhs
their necks 10 catch sight OF the fastest passenger
express I'm the world, and every windo" WAS hIleo
with heads
The scenery along the Hudson was wonderful ana
from York 20 Albany the train flashed through an
unbroken blaze Of color On that stretch there WIS TO
evctng racing rs the engineer not only made up the
ono minnie and fifteen seconds he had lost In starting
with ease but ran ahead Of the scheduled Tine al INC
vav II, Albany But what lacking in that respcc'
was made up for by the lovely country WHO" h''.u
bv and IL seemed rs il nature had used all her arts -
enhance the beauty Of the painted Palisades III Uer
gold and crimson. gray and scarlet Nonhu oiu
storm KIM. rising grandly above the white-capped
river the wind had swept great sea OF fog THAT "unE
In an unsteady ring around the tree-ooNereo peAA'
which appeared and disappeared at sudden mterVas
a. the long gray streamers Of the mist swung anu
swayed slowly up and down. -.
Albany the first STOP was reached with two minutes
and a quarter to spare and ON the run rom AlONny
to schenectady the flyer gained three m"u'e9 ON
,b,rv f,ur seconds But then something odd happened
4ha mex
-, ,ao For the first time since the start. the tram
nassad stations behind schedule time. First 1t losi
seconds then minutes. and despite all the enor's oi
the engineer Tom DermOdy, who was on MS He0ue'
at Fonda the train behind and still losing, hno
when II rolled into the Utica station four valuable
minutes had been lost Then 1t was found that the
cl which had been supplied at Albany dirty and
bad which accounted for the loss In speed but Ieft
unchanged the fact that four minutes had to be mace
ND on a schedule which already called Tor almost
mile q minute It looked hopeless when the tram
started for Syracuse behind the crack engineer OF
the New-York Central and Hudson River Railroad
"Charley" Hogan, at SO AS p. M SIX minutes and
fortyfve seconds late, but he determined TO fight
hard for his aurels and from syracuse to Rochestei
the train rushed along at terrific rate. But 90 wnat
he would the seconds still licked away too FAST the
mile posts were passed sdll behind time, and when
the train pulled out from Rochester at 26 'O5, there
were minutes to make up. And now, with Buffalo
sxty-eight miles away, there began the race Of the
day. With a clear track ahead that splendid grade
the train went eaplng along, faster and faster, till at
Chill mile was being covered In fifty three seconds
But still there spots where time lost, and
Batavia was passed behind time But Mt Corfu the
engine began b gain on the watch At Crittendon a
mile wac made in fifty seconds faster, still faster
now, until mile IN hfty-me and half seconds
announced as the train passed Gainesville Another
superb burst of speed. and Buffalo In sight and only
two minutes 10 make up. And now the cans seemed
they ny UNTIL with thousand faces lOoldng at the
winner amid cheers and fireworks, the train stopped
In +ba Drffala deuot NV
minutes behind the schedule, and only one minute and
forty-fve seconds behind time, allowing for the delay
in starting The Empire state Express had proved
worthy of being known the fastest regular pas
sengcT train In the world.
When the run had been completed, II was lauglable
to see the odd look Of surprise that gradually COM
mnnicated itself from face TO face among the pms
sengers. Not before Buffalo really doomed up ahead
could one realize what vast distance had been covered
and that New York City. which had been left behind
a few hours before, now 440 miles away.