The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1892-11-16
DANGER ON The RAIL.
What an Old Conductors Says OF
Unseen Daily Dangers.
THEY MADE ENGINEERS SHAKE.
Incidents which show How Easily the
Trains Might be Thrown Into the
Ditch and the Passengers Perhaps
Killed.

''If the travelling public only knew the
amount of danger involved In railroad
travel" said well-known conductor,
who has run on many roads, there
would be less of the feeling of abandoned
security than there is at present. The
fact of the matter is that while there are
comparatively few railroad accidents.
the number OF narrow escapes, most OF
them unknown To the passengers them
selves. is simply appalling. Very few OF
these accounts get beyond the cab, for
your engineer is conservative, IL any
thing. upon hat point-policy, If nothing
else. keeping him quiet. But could the
average passenger take few trips upon
the engine he might forswear forever the
luxury of railroad travel for the more
primitive but To him, safer, accommoda-
tions OF the stage coach. Ana yet rail
road travel in effect is almost entirely
devoid of danger-it is the number of
narrow>escapes that causes one astonish-
meut.
"When you come to consider the innu-
merable opportunities offered for railway
disaster-a broken rail. a misplaced
switch, COW or other animal on the
track, an operators blunder, a break III
the machinery or running-gear, and
thousands OF other cases, 10 Seems iucredi-
BILE that SO few accidents really occur.
The point we wish TO emphasize Is this
The immense number OF escapes or
avertei disasters in comparison with the
number Of accidents that really occurs.
Why, an engineer hardly ever makes u
trip over his run but what he sees some
thing that fairly makes his hair stand on
end. The passengers never know any
thing about iG, neither do the rest OF the
train crew, for that matter, for the en-
tFiu l<eans lIg cDIIugel RnL lf the
average passenger, could, when he
reaches his destination, safe and sound,
have u short talk with the engineer his
feelings of complaceacy would utterly
vanish.
"A friend OF mine took a trip on the en-
gine few days ago and during sixty
mile ride the locomotive was stopped
twice for misplaced switches. whistled
one cow and seven pigs OIL the track:
| once lost control of the air, and once ran
past an improperly placed slow-up hag,
! .snv one of which contingencies mi ht
| have involved IA disastrous wreck. Aad
| yet, tue passengers on that train prob
| ably gave their friends n glowing de
| scrption Of the utter lack OF danger In
railroad travel. But they didn't see the
| inside as my frienas did.
zone of the POSSIBILITIES most TO be
| feared by the engineer is the presence of
| "A sheep on tue track. One sheep is "A
| greater source OF danger than whole
| drove of cattle. You cannot knock him
| off the track; you are compelled To run
| over him, ana, as his thick fleece prevents
| his body from being crushed, he becomes
| "A roller under the frame of the engine,
| and that means inevitable dsrailment.
"Yes, sir. The number of narrow es-
capes from terrible disaster is positively
astounding The number OF actual
wrecks is equally wonderful and the ratio
between tue two, when viewed in the
light OF cause aud effect, cons itutes oSt
of the most mystifying problems with
which philosophers have to deal. can
account for it in DO way but by ascribins
il TO the interposition of divine PrJvi-
deuce.p