Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1896-04-07
TRAINING GRIPMEN,
BREAKING IN couNfRYMENFO CITY
e. :. *> RAILWAY SERVICE. =. ~

ON Account Of Their Strength and Cau-
tion-A Situation That Requires Close
Attention and Plenty of Nerve.
"Where do the gripmen come from?"
strong armed, blue uniformed en-
ployee Of the Washington and George
town railway was asked last night as he
left his Car at the end Of the route for
cup of coffee aud sandwich in the all
night restaurant.
's.Why, from the country, most of
them. These fellows who are raised Oh
cigarettes and beer in the city don't
seem to have the muscle necessary to
throw OH the brake and stop the train
Oh I. down grade. Then again a country
man is mighty careful about going
through the streets. He's afraid that ev-
cry man he sees step Off the pavement is
going to be run over, and he is absolute
~ certain That every team that comes
out from cross street is going to collide
with him. Tt takes him about two
years to get over this fear, and then, as
he becomes little careless, he has few
accidents that smash up tenders and take
the paint off the coaches, and then he
gets fired, and the road is ready to break
in another countryman.
Glow do they break them in?''
well, they are mighty careful with
them. A new man On the grip is about
the worst scared object in the world.
Talk about your condemned man being
scared when he's walking out to be
hanged-why, his sensations amt in it
with the man who's running grip car
for the first time. TO be sure, an expert
enced gripman is Oh the car right be-
side him, ready to throw on the brakes
and sound the lookout bell. But be-
tween the grip, and the wheel brake,
and the track brake, aud the go ahead
and stop signals, and the look out
bells, and the people jumping On and off
the grip car, your new gripman just gets
seasick. They say they don't mind it,
but they're talking through their bon
nets, that's all. Then, another thing,
the way they throw on the brake yanks
their arms out of joint and makes 'em
good and sore, I tell you.
'There's something funny about
braking up a grip car. came from the
country to my job, but wasn't always
plowboy. When Twas young fellow,
used to work in country printing Of
fee, and used to have to run Washing
ton hand press. Ever run Washington
hand press-you're i'll the newspaper
business? What! Never run one? Well,
then, I can't tell you anything about it,
except that if you don't know the trick
you can't throw 'er over and get an i'm
preston no more than a rabbit. You
may have a muscle like blacksmith,
but ii you don't know the knack you
can't pull the lever over, but if you are
Oh to the trick, and don t weigh more'n
90 pounds. you can throw her around
just like lightning and make coo im:,
pressions all hour-that is, if you've got
a good devil to 90 your mixing.
"Well, as I was saying, that's just
like braking up grip car. Some big
fellows weighing 900 pounds, with mus
cles OH them like Fitzsimmons, go out
Oh ono Of these grips with two coaches
behind EN-, and the way they brake 'er
up makes all the passengers think they
have gone to sea. Then a little fellow,
who don't look heavy enough to handle
team Of mules attached to sulky
pillow, gets job on the road, and he
grabs that cid grip like drum major
throwing & baton, and he'll get the
knack Of the thing right quick, and when
he brakes FER up the passengers think
that the first waltz at the Charity ball
is just starting.
"But while he may he throwing on
the brakes all right he's kind Of Off his
| pins when it comes to hearing the two
! bells for 60 ahead. You SEQ, new man
can't do everything at once. Takes
! about week to get the shiver off, and
during that time a regular gripman runs
with the new man, keeping sharp look
out. Then the new man, after his week,
goes to the superintendent and has to
pass an examination. They ask him all
about the signals, and where other cars
cross, and where the dead men are
dead man s. a block you strike if you
don't let go the cable where you have
! to, and if you ever strike dead man
your jobs gone, no ifs and ands about
! it--and all about the street and so on.
| Well, if tho new man passes the exami-
nation, he puts up $40, and they give
him certificate, and he can go and put
that up for uniform and an overcoat,
and there you Arches gripman, ready
for 20 degrees below zero and 100 de-
grees above zero and his little old So a
day.
''The conpany's breaking in six new
gripmen On the Fourteenth street line
right now. Two Of the old men died
and a couple quit. Each line always
keeps about dozen extra gripmen op
hand ready for all emergency, so they re
breaking in these new ones. One Of the
new boys had an accident at Ninth and
the avenue the other afternoon. Ran
into all Anacostia bobtail car. By gin
ger, ! thought he was going to knock
the thing clear to the Good Hope hill,
but he didn't. Scared? Well, the pas
sengers on the bobtail wasn't half as
scared as he was. He could hardly get
off the grip to pick up the pieces of tho
fender. He thought he was as good as
/ fired, but the company never said Moth
ing Guess they thought they was lucky
to get off with as little damage. And
besides an accident right at the start
makes a gripman extra careful for all
the rest of the time. Washington
Post >-<sz.> - = .*@'~ r. - s:~:sS-, !.
L S:+EF--
All Hope Gone. - -, T.
Mr.. Flabley--J. told me that he new,
or knew what it was to be happy up te
the time Of his marriage. <=......=: ..,.@ L
Mrs. Flabley Haven't I always told
II x,n,, FIN