Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1893-05-06
rRAINMEN,s sIGNAEs.
Upon Their Right or Wrong interprcs
tation Depend the Lives OF fnos-

aOu b, he - u lOSis
ing his salary.
Every time be swings his arms TO ana
fro he means a great many more Things
than the average citizen Knows anything
about.
He NAV be a sooty looking, common
q. place sort of fellow from an exterior
noint of view. bnt all the Internal
mechanism of his dome of thought Is
as clear as a bell, and rs for memory
we'll if a switchman didn't have MEM
ory like the recording angels there
would be wrecks from Dan TO Beer
sheba.
;, ,When,you lie half.axake in the berth
of Pullman, listening to the monoton-
ioous clickety click, clickety click that
makes things melt away before your eyes
in a strange unreal fashion, and woos you
gently to sleep. there is little army of
switchmen scattered all along down the
line, swinging their tired arms to and
fro in a relentless endeavor to clear the
way for you, and WHEN each crew has its
engine or freight safely sidetracked they
stand and wait for you to pass, and
watch the tail lights of your sleeper fade
away into the dust and the gloom.
Then there is another vast deal of arm
swinging to be gone through before
they can get their own train back on the
main line again
The casual observer who chances 10
see a switchman manipulate train at a
crowded crossing, usually fails to dis
tinguish any method in his motions
except reckoning movement which is
h world wide sign to 'come along" or a
4 movement just the reverse signifying
''go away"
In reality, however, his every motion
Is repete with the deepest meaning.
If his train is approaching another
train, or another car, which wishes to
couple to it, he stands with his arms ex-
tended, and as the distance grows less
and less the palms of his hands are
brought nearer and nearer together,
until finally, when the cars are sutfi-
GENTLY near to admit of the operating,
he brings his hands together and Their
drops them to his side.
The engineer, being entirely familiar
with all these various movements, regu
lates his pressure on the throttle by the
: gradually approaching hands of The
7 switchman as he is entirely unable t.
see from his station in the cab of tn
engine how near he is getting to TIN
other train. When he sees the hand
touch each other and then drop, h
brings his engine to standstilI
The operation of coupling is ATTENDED
with considerable danger when per
formed by the old.fashioned pin method
and miscalcuatonc or carelessness hay
brought about the deaths of great man
men between the cars. In fact, one al
! most dislikes to watch man standing
\ calmly by the sheer, bank end OF
freight car while a ponderous train roll
down upon him with irresistible force
apparently bent upon crushing him t.
death.
There is a loud clank, the sound Of
pin rafting into its socket, and the ma
steps forth unframed, and you feel just
little bit like fool.
One of the most peculiar antics in tn
switchman's vocabulary is the one h
brings into use when he, wants to max
what he calls a running switch.
The uninitiated sometimes speak of
as throwing" car, and that expressio
!. conveys the idea very we'll. The engin
4 puts on high rate of speed, moging i
y 4 backward direction, and just before tn
cars reach the switch those that are t
be transferred, which are uncoupled, ar
allowed to run by their own momentum
while the rest of the train is brought to
stop. The disconnected cars shoot 0
over the switch.
Well, to bring about all this th
switchman has to do variety of thing
First, with his reckoning movemen
he signals the engineer to proceed bacl
wards; then, as the tain nears the switcl
he raises one arm high above his head, an
waves it around just as Baby Clevelar
waves its rattle. That means to put c
steam. Then the train must be stoppC
by dropping the hands to the sides,
usual.
With all this backing and reversing
and darting hther and thither it is We
often necessary that the whistle shou
be blown as warning The switchmi
watches out for all that sort of thing to
when the train is going backward, al
the engineer cannot see where he is goin
When he thinks the whistle ought
be blown he makes grab at an imagi
airy lever and jerks away with all {
zest in the world. The engineer, seeil
these motions, understands immediate
what is wanted, and does the whistle a
in good earnest
The amount of information that
skillful man can convey by signs is wo
derful
Aswitehman was standing ut one
our local street crossings lately trying
get train through some rather diffict
manpuvres. First, he crossed his arm
then increased them and held up the /
dex finger Of his left hand, holding
arm ut the same time in the direction
which he wished the train to 90.
Only three, orat the outside ouly Tot
very simple gestures. Yet by the
movements he told the engineer to p,
The train across the street, take out
pin and take the engine TO the switch
The left side OF the depot
The bane OF the switch engine Ia NJ
Orleans Is the army Of mules that dai
haul cotton floats and other ychic
right under is yery nose. Incidental
Il may be said that tn switch engine
also the baue Of the mules. Thu q