Waterbury evening Democrat., 1891-06-17
WHIMs OF LOCOMOTIVES.
An Engineer Tells OF Their Many
Strange Actions.
They Become Deranged and Maniacal,
Suffer from Nervous Prostitution, and
Are Generally Like Human Be-
ings-One That Had the Grip.

maniacal, like human beings" said
John Bowcher, the oldest express en-
gineer on the Big -Four. Bowcher has
the supcrstitions common to nearly all
men in his business.
81 assure you," Bowcher continued,
''that locomotives require regular rest,
constant attention, even nursing when
they don't feel right. An engine will
take spells when nothing You can do
will make it act properly. Then the
shop is the only place for 1t, and there
my machine has got to go, or Iquit the
service of the road"
do certain engines get bad charac-
ters-deve1op some unexpected faint in
the blood, so to speak, after being in
use for awhile?" was asked by re-
porter who met Mr.. Bowcher at q re-
union of locomotive engineers.
''They certainly do grow unmanage-
able sometimes. Generally this Is
from overwork. Engines are like a
thoroughbred horse in that particular
respect. They will get off their feed
by which mean that they will not
pump up right, the furnace will clog
and the efficiency of the fuel will not
be obtained. They suffer from lack
of energy. You are liable to stall on
an upgrade. They will act badly on
the curves, manifesting a decided in
clination to mount the rails or to take
sudden starts that will endanger the
couplings.
''Old No that 1 used to make the
best time with when she was right
had an annoying habit of starting with
an awful jerk. It didn't matter how
carefully 1 opened the throttle, how
thoroughly I understood the condition
of the steam, away we jumped every
time. 1t seemed as If the steam gath
cred itself somewhere and, after 1t
got ready, let itself go. The old mon
ster has been broken up, and am
glad of it. She was the last of the
'seven-footers.' The number of seven
foot drive-wheels now in use are very
few. do not personally know of any.
"Six feet seems to be about right.
But, recurring to the temper of the To-
comotives, they are affected by the
weather, which is readily understood,
but dull, heavy sky or dense at
mosphere has like effect This can
not explain in any way whatever. Why,
Mart Smith, who was strict church
man, couldn't do anything with one of
his engines during Lent. After Easter
day the Discrimination to make time dis
appeared.
''She would hustle whenever
called upon. Sounds very absurd,
doesn't it? But it's true. The grip
is the only distemper to which I can
liken a locomotive such as Mart's was.
When q machine gets so, tell you, she
must have treatment-the best scien-
tific overhauling. She needs masseur
needs galvanism."
"When once locomotive has lost
force Of character or self-respect, does
she ever regain it?'' was asked.
Generally not" said Bowcher, med
itatively. 81 know a recent case in
which an engine recovered from a
stroke of this paralysis and became, as
she Is to-day, the best on the road.
When engine No. II, on the Louisville,
New Albany & Chicago road, came out
of the shop brand new, little more
than a year ago, she was successfully
put in the hands Of half dozen of the
best engineers on the road to make the
run from Lafayette to New Albany.
after fair trial every man, with
out exception, pronounced No. II an
utterly worthless piece of machinery.
the engine and ordered her condemned,
but the master mechanic blurted out to
him:
"'She doesn't like the run. It's a
mighty mean run, and she knows it as
well as you do
"You see the master mechanic
wanted the locomotive to have another
chance. Well, she got it, and I tell
you it was to have been her last one.
She'd have been sold for scrap iron or
run off the track into forest and con-
verted into the motive power for a saw
mill. No. II was sent up to Indian
apolis and put on the run to Monon. I
went to the round house and looked
her over, for I'd heard of her and am
very curious. was asked what I
thought was the matter. spent an
hour over her and everything appeared
TO be right. took an off day and ran
down fifty miles on her.
"She made great time. To-day she
is the fastest on the road and the most
reliable. She can pull vestibule
train Of five cars mile a minute.
Now she's the pet, the banner engine
of the road. A month ago she was In
a fair way to be turned out to die, but
|
She has the best engineer and fireman
and the best attention In the shop"
"You speak of the need of rest, Mr..
Bowcher. Must 1t be regular? mean
at regular times?''
''Most assuredly," was the prompt
reply. "A locomotive must be allowed
to recover her residence. That's the
word, you have 1t spelled correctly
only one ]. Remember a locomotive
that pulls out its breath in the round
house (where it has been in a state Of
quiet and rest), backs up to big train,
and, at the sound Of the conductors
bell, rushes off on q hundred-mile run,
at fifty or sixty miles an hour, is under
a heavy nervous strain. Don't smile. /
mean exactly what say.