The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-07-06

simply an abbreviation and consolida- tion of the first letter of each state, This is the road think, that the late MT Vanderbilt threatened to use as a club against the Pennsylvania road on account of a belief that the latter road was intruding in his territory. A com promise was effected between the two great railway magnates, Roberts and Vanderbilt, and the resources of this I road were never properly developed, The St. Louis, Arkansas and Texas road is called the Cotton Belt and, of course, derives its name from the great product of that region,
 Blue Grass pretty name for a | railroad, is given to the Kentucky Gen. ' tral on account of the exceptionally rich grass country through which it passes. Tom Scott's great road, the Southern Pacific, Is called the Sunset I have never learned the origin of this name, but perhaps it's connection with the Pacific, the home of the setting sun, brought about the christening. The New York, New Haven and Hartford is nicknamed the Consolidated The Missouri, Kansas and Texas line sails under the pretty sobriquet of Katie, taken from the initials of Kansas and | Texas. The road with the elongated | name. Elizabethtown, Lexington and 1 Big Sandy, has the last words of its corporate title, Big Sandy chopped off | and goes by that name, not a bad plan l to follow in that case. For short the New York Central and Hudson River road is called 'Central:' the New Pork, l Lake Erie and Western the Erie; the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western | the Lackawanna;' the Atchison, Tope- ka and Santa Fe the Santa Fe,' and the | St. Louis and San Francisco the 'Fris- | CO., Two humorous nicknamss are the ones given to the Buffalo and South western and the Buffalo and James, town railroads. The former was first | called the B. and S. w. but of late goes under the name of Brandy and Soda The latter road, on account Of l its connection with Jamestown, is known all through the railroad world as The Jimtown' road. To come closer l home, the Chesapeake and Ohio is called the F. F. w. taken. no doubt, from the name given its fastest train. The Baltimore and Potomac, the B. and P.;' the Baltimore and Ohio, the B. and O., and the Richmond Terminal, the R. T. These are abbreviations, but | what the trainmen know these roads by would not look very well in print, and if made public might perhaps ruffie the courteous demeanor of the managers of these roads, who are certainly the princes of good fellows
 There Is a road up in Pennsylvania that runs from York to Peach Bottom that the people living in the country through which it passes called the 'Ac- commodation' It was, when originally built, a gauge road, and as bus mess had to be developed, the train ser vice was much on the order of the go- as-you-please. There were two trains, and each made one round trip a day, the road being about sixty miles long. The officers gave orders to the trainmen
 to make friends with the people so as to make them go out of their way to patronize the new road The trainmen took advantage of this order at every opportunity.
 There were no telegraph or telephone stations on the road, and when the trains left the terminal stations on the
 conductor was master of the situation until he got back again or arrived at the other terminus. They say that the superintendent of the road had the hardihood to ride over the road one day
 and that he hired horse and buggy and rode back to York, as he was in a
 hurry.
 "The train that puts up at Peach Bottom for the night leaves York about two o'clock in the afternoon, and 1t is optional with the trainmen as to the
 time they arrive home One of the
 trainmen on the road told some time
 ago that on one of the trips down they
 picked up drunken former who had
 stretched himself out on the track for a
 quiet sleep The conductor chanced to
 know him, and held the train while the
 brakeman and baggage master carried
 him to his home, nearly mile away
 Tn about an hour the two men returned
 with an invitation from the farmers
 wife for the crew and passengers to
 come over to supper.
 There were only three passengers,
 and they quickly accepted the invita-
 tion. Of course the crew went, and af-
 ter the repast an old negro with a
 cracked fiddle was brought in and a
 dance was inaugurated. The conductor
 then wanted to proceed. but the engi-
 neer had become sweet on the farmers
 daughter and persuaded him to dance a | few more rounds.
 "The train was due in Peach Bottom at six p. m., but that night it did not
 reach it's destination until midnight
 Only one more passenger was picked Up
 on the lower end of the road, and he
 only grumbled little, so no harm came
 from the incident, the engineer account
 ing for the delay to the superintendent with good story about the engine giv- ing out,
 That road Is now owned by Balti-
 more people, and it is broad-gauged and
 the train service is almost first class. might add that 1t was a common thing for the trainmen in the earlier days of
 the road to take large tin pails along , land stop the train at good locality and , I fill them with blackberries before pro
 ceeding. But that only occasioned al , hours delay and was little thought of , No wonder they called it 'Accommoda-