The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1892-01-16

Q. 5. Churchill. IL
G. Il. Henderson .................. 6
For vice-president:
j. II. Wiugate. %
j. @. Rawn. ...... II
d. II. Fits. Observation-Disclosures. 10
For directors:
j. e. nj. Humphreys. ... 80
w. L. Anderson. 81
=. u. Cushman. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 90
e. Il. ID. Meyers, Jr. -. .... 81
=. Coleman. ................. %
j. E. nj. Hanckel. 90
For secretary and treasurer:
y. X. Schick. 90
X. a. cummings. Observation-Disclosures 20
President Wingate announced that
MIR. Clarence Coleman had been elected
PRESIDENT H. Wingate, vice president:
NJ. 70. Yeatman, j. e. M. Humphreys,
w. E. Anderson and c. G. Cushman,
directors; j. r. Schick, secretary and
treasurer. On motion of Prof j. ii.
fltts the election was declared unani-
nous.
Secretary Newly read an invitation
from uperintendent R. III. Soule, of the
Machine Works, for the engineers to
toxic trip through the shops, which
was accepted. An invitation was ex-
tended by Mr.. Shick to visit the brewery,
aud this was also accepted.
Mr.. Il. G. Peohin, chairman of the
com mittee having charge of the drafting
OF new constitution and bylaws, read
the report Of that committee, although
the matter will not be discussed until
to daY.
The new constitution is q radical
change from the old one and provides
for three meetings year instead of the
monthly meetings as heretofore. The
new constitution is copied after that of
the American Institute of Mining Engi-
neers.
The meeting then adjourned until
o'clock, the members availipg them
selves of the invitations extended to
them in the interim.
frlor to the evening session the board
OF directors held meeting and elected
the following new members: S. Henry
Jencks, Richards, Tazewell county;
Edward 2, Lee, Lynchburg; VIM. George
Houston, assistant city engineer of
Roanoke; r. H. Soule, superintendent
of motive power of the Norfolk and
Western railroad.
The night session was devoted to the
reading of papers by Prof. James H.
Fits and Mr.. Oscar Saabye. Professor
Fits read the first paper, which he said
was correction to paper read by Mr..
Clarence Coleman at Virginia Beach on
July 30, in which he said that the
first railroad in Virginia was the Rich
mond and fredericksburg, and was built
i'll 1884, Professor Fits paper was lis
tened to with great interest by the asso-
citation and is as follows:
A paper read before the Association of
Engineers of Virginia by Mr.. Clarence
Coleman at Virginia Beach on july 30,
1891, makes the Richmond and Freder-
icksburg railroad, built in 1884, the first
in the State. The writer is in error.
In 1882 road was constructed from
Petersburg to Weldon, sixty miles,
which was the first in the South and one
of the first in the United States. Mr..
Moncure Robinson was the builder of
this road, as we'll as of the Richmond
and Fredericksburg, but his chief as
sistant, Mr.. Henry d. Bird, really car
ried On the work, as Mr.. Robinson was
also at the time constructing several
short railroads in Pennsylvania.
MIR. Bird became manager of this road
at its completion, and afterwards presi-
dent, remaining in this Office many
years. He was superintendent of the
Southside railroad during the war, and
did no small service to the Confederacy
in that capacity. Some extracts from
his letters in the early days will prove
not undressing. Unfortunately
these. letters are to the young lady
whom he afterward married. and
do not contain much about engineering.
Explaining what railroad Isl THE
objectof railroad. then, is to interpose
smooth surface for the wheels to run
on, and we accomplish this by LAYING
beams of wood or iron perfectly straight
parallei and solid for the wheels to run
on. Where railroad is very level and
straight we place steam engine on
wheels to draw tho load, and as steam
of prodigious force can by employed, it
is plain. provided the road is light, we
can go along as swift as the wind. 1t
m AXE horrible noise, however
September IA, 1882, he wrote; az
have been more pleased o-day than
have been since that happy time l saw
tho first dollar had earned by the
sweat OF my brow. We set locomo-
tive engine running for the first time.
TIE first one tina, was ever dreamed of
here and everything went OF as smo 5tn
| as rraaaa I routd hava lc-a ,..,.