The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-10-03
ALL STOCKTON RE30lCES.
Sounding Bells and Screech-.
ing Whistles Vent the
Enthusiasm.
CROWDS BOARD THE CARS.
Men, Women and Children Cheer
as the Locomotives Steam
Away.

STOCKTON, CAL, Oct. 2.-The screech-
ing of whistles and the ringing o. bells at
4 o'clock this afternoon in the Vanity of
Mormon Channel announced some unusual
occurrence at that section of the city, and
soon people were hurrying along Center
and Hunter streets in that direction in
buggies, on bicycles and afoot. At the in
tersection of Center and Taylor streets the
people saw three monster locomotives of
the compound pattern moving slowly over
the newly laid tracks of the San Joaquin
Valley Railroad. The big engine, Claus
Spreckels, was the header, and atx& he'd to
the engines were two flatcars. "
There was some delay in getting I'D
steam in the Southern Paeifcyard but
there seemed to be plenty on when they
moved. The trip from the Southern Pa
cific yards to this point was made in COM
paratively good time. Henry Nogelsang,
an old Southern Pacific engineer, leaned
out of the cab window OF the Claus Spreck-
els with his hand on the throttle. He
moved his mixed train cautiously over the
track, and the people took advantage of
the Glow rate to climb on top of the en-
CINE, the cabs, the coal-tenders the pilots
and the freightcars. The ladies were
boosted on by the men in the crowd,
and the moving train was soon black with
people.
"First ride on the Valley road" yelled
one man on top of the cab. "No conduc-
tor to-day" said another, as he jostled
against Engineer Vogelsang in the cab of
the Claus Spreckels. - ~.~'
Every once in awhile the engineer would
open the whistle and the shrill report
would be answered by some of the faeto-e
ries or mills uptown.
The big engines with the cars and their
swarms of human freight were moved up
and down over the main track and over on
all the sidings and switches, and the track
and roadbed stood the test well. Not a
single flaw was found along the line. Dur
ing the day a gang was ready putting the
finishing touches on the road in order that
the rolling stock might be brought over
from the Southern Pacific yards to the COM
panV's own line. e..
The material yards are alive with men
getting ties and rails in shape to move by
construction trains to the grade outside
the city.
Many looked upon the valley road en-
gines to-day who had never seen q locomo-
tive other than those of the Southern
Pacific. The engines and fatcars are
tonight on the tracks OF the peoples road.
railroad magnate not many years ago
said in a spirit of resentment over some
fancied wrong done him by the City Coun-
ell that he would make grass grow in the
streets of Stockton. If vegetation of this
character ever had tendency to flourish
here it has been effectually estopped by
the Valley road. Instead of grass there is
dust-dust everywhere-on the south side
of the city and on toward the Stanislaus,
caused by the construction gangs on the
San Joaquin Valley Railroad.
The Corral Hollow people are also work
ing away, and good progress is evident in
every department of the,enterprise. Their
workmen on the line by the slough cheered
the passage of the engines: and then set
tied back with an evident determination TO
give little exhibition: of their own at
some future date.