The Brunswick times. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 188?-1900, 1897-03-07
A REMARKABLE RUN.
GREAT SPEED OF A TRAIN FOR A
LONG DISTANCE.

From Chicago by Train Hired by a
Father to Reach a Dying Son-Up Grade
1 Mile In 300 at 81 Miles an Hour.
News came from Denver the other
day of a remarkable railroad run made
by special train which arrived at Den
yer on Monday morning from Chicago
and made a record which appears never
to have been equaled for such distance.
The train had been hired by H. J.
Mahan, a broker, who was trying to
reach the bedside of his 21-year- old son,
who lay dying at Denver
Death won the race, for Mr.. Mahan's
son expired just about the time his train
entered the borders of Colorado, and
four hours before he arrived at Denver.
The train travelled over the Chicago,
Burlington and Quincy road to Pacific
Junction, ard from there over the Bur-
lington and Missouri road to Denver.
Everything along the road was cleared
for it's passage. The total run is figured
to be 1920 miles, according to the rail
roads own tables, and the distance was
run from station to station in 18 hours
and so minutes. This is little more
than an average of 81 miles an hour for
the whole trip.
This is not only the fastest run on
record for such o distance, but it also
appears to have been one of the very
few such trips ever made with private
train, if not the only one.
To realize what such a flying trip
means it might be we'll to compare the
run with some of the long railroad runs
that are looked upon as record makers.
The New York Central and Hudson
River railroad claimed to hold the rec
ord until recently with the trial trip
made from New York to Buffalo on
Sept. ID, 1891. The train consisted of
an engine and two Wagner palace cars
and Central private car, and weighed
altogether about 400, 900 pounds.
The run from New York to Albany,
143 miles, was made without a stop in
140 minutes, that of 148 miles from
Albany to Syracuse in 146 minutes, and
that from Syracuse to East Buffalo, 146
miles, in 147 minutes 81 seconds.
Including the stops, the whole time
of the trip was 4391a minutes, and the
distance was 43619 miles, or trifle less
than 60 miles an hour Since then this
road made new record, on Sept. IL,
1895, when, with a train weighing
S61 200 pounds, the same run was made
in 8 hours, 81 minutes and Sc seconds
at an average speed of 60. 81 miles an
hour.
The Lake Shore and Michigan South
ern railroad claims to have beaten this
on Oct. "a, 1895, with a special run
from Chicago to Buffalo, distance of
$40. miles, with train weighing 304, =
500 pounds.
The trip was divided into five stages,
and the first, of 81 miles, was made
at the rate of 81. 38 miles an hour; the
second, of 1884 miles, at the rate of
Ga. "a miles an hour the third, of 107. s
miles, at 60,96 miles all hour; the
fourth, of 90. 8 miles, at sc. 80 miles an
hour, and the fifth, Of SO miles, at an
average rate of 72.91 miles an hour.
The total distance was covered in 8
hours. minute and seconds, actual
time from station to station, which gave
an average speed, including stops, of
So. 81 miles an hour.
Remarkable as these results were, it
would not be fair to compare them with
a run of twice the distance Of the longest
of them, for as distances increase the
difficulties of making high speed also
increase. Grades, adverse winds, bad
pieces Of track and all the other ele-
ments which work against high contin-
ued speeds multiply usually in a sort of
geometrical progression to make diff
culties.
To give some idea of this, the greatest
runs which the New York Central and
Hudson River railroad has recorded for
trips across the continent will offer a
fair basis of comparison
The fastest of these was one with the
China and Japan mails from Vancouver
to New York by way of the Canadian
Pacific, the Rome, Watertown and Og-
densburg and the New York Central
and Hudson river roads.
The distance travelled was 3,212
miles, and the time was days IL hours
and ~ minutes, Or an average speed of
379 miles an hour.
The reason that private trains are sell
dom sent out at high speeds will be OBJ
vious if one considers the conditions
that would be required to run them. In
the first place, every train on the road
that would be likely to be in their way
must be side tracked, and in addition to
these the dozens or perhaps hundreds of
freight and yard trains, which usually
work along the lines by simply keeping
clear Of the times of scheduled trains,
would all have to be run by special Or
ders to keep them out of the way of
fast special.
The loss of time thus occasioned to
train crews would amount to large
sum, and this would have to be added
to the railroad mans usual estimate of
about rs cents mile for the actual
cost of running such train. 1t is
doubtful if railroads would care to run
such trains even at double that price,
which would make such run as Mr..
Mahan's cost 81, 500 or more.
The most remarkable part of his run
maS in tho Leaf 400 miles durinor