The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-04-01
OLD ROLLING STOCK.
WHAT BECOMES OF WORKOUT LOCO
MOTIVES AND CARS.


What becomes of wornout engines, cars,
rails and all the other odds and ends of
railroads The iron probably goes 20 the
scrap heap, but does the rolling stock meet
the same fate, or what disposition is made
| of the engines and cars of the great sys-
| toms when they reach the stage of their ex
istcnce when they are deemed unworthy of
| further rcpairsy The solution OF these
| questions is by no means lacking i'm inter
est A certain proportion does go to the
scrap heap when condemned by the man
| agcment, but not all 10 Is the rule of
railroads generally to place new equip
| ment upon the main lines and to relegate
| the old to branches, the most ancient cars
and engines being assigned to the least
| productive lines, and thus by easy grada-
| tons the entire supply of rolling stock is
| allotted according TO the exigency of tray
! ell. Old rails taken from main tracks of
| the central lines are relaid upon the main
! tracks of branches and later on used for
| sidlngs Who has not noted the great
change in speed, comfort and appearances
when diyerging from main travelled roads
to branch lines?
| The old style engines, the Anticipated
coaches and wornout rails transferred TO
| the side roads remain in active service I'M
| til at last the time comes when they are
| finally condemned and must go. The life
| of a steel rail is but u few years, while
| rolling stock, with occasional repairs and
| barring wreck Of course, will last much
longer than might be surmiscd. Almost
| every road of Importance has in service
somewhere on its lines passenger cars built
| 20 or 30 years ago. The life of an engine
is limited only by its ability 20 run with
ordinary repairs. There are engines in
active service today which were built sixty
odd years ago, the Baltimore and Ohio
railroad having several veterans of this
| kind dating back TO the early dawn OF
steam land transportation, while locomo-
| tives 30 and 40 years old can be found in
| plenty--crude little teapots as compared
with modern engines, bus still doing eili-
cient work.
There is n distinct business in this coun-
try followed by firms and individuals who
might be termed railroad scavengers or
Junk men. They are wide awake, shrewd
fellows, who know good thing when they
see it, and do not hesitate to take long
chances on opportunities which indicate
profitable risks The first requisite for
engaging in pursuit like theirs is large
storage yard with plenty of track room,
connected with some leading railroad,
and a close second is u cash capital, for
ready money is a necessity, and large sums
must be frequently tied up for long periods
Such Junk man will buy anything con
nected with a railroad, but his main bust
ness is dealing with secondhand rolling
stock. When railroad corporation builds
a supply of new engines or cars to replace
like number withdrawn from service, the
latter will not be sent to the company's
SCRAP heap, but will DO offered TO tho vari
Gus firms Of Junk men or brokers, who arr
usually willing to paya much higher price
for old equipment as il stands than coult
be realized if converted into scrap. Th'
changing Of Il narrow gauge road INTO
standard gauge or the substitution o
steam for trolleys, brings harvest TO thes
dealers And so from one source ana an
other the yards gradually fill up with
nondescript collection OF railroad equip
ment i'm every stage of dilapidation, ana q
J many varied styles but all antiquated an'
much the worse for wear. These places ar
known in railway circles as "graveyards,
and the application of the title is sell evi
dent Having thus secured stock II
trade, the junk man bends his efforts u
dispose of bis wares. Tho passenger car
are cone over thoroughly and put into th
best condition possible, coat or two @
noint and "A careful oyerhauling of the run
ming gear oftentimc producing wonders
Tho ancient engines arc inspected by com
petent men and ordinary repairs are MADE
while unusual or expensive alteration
, which may be needed arc noted and mad
known to the would be customers.
= there IL n
I demand for secondhand railway equiv
ment. The market for engines and pas
senger cars is, as % rule, in the souther
states and Mexico, where the public al
not so exacting in their requirements
I'm sneed and comfort. Instances are con
. mon where an entire railroad Quilt, II
cludng engines, passenger, baggage c,
press and freight cars, rails, switches turf
tables. etc, have been moved from one IL
. cality and put into service elsewhere, pc
hans many hundreds of miles distant, tn
taking place, as n rule, when narrow gaue
lines have been converted into broad
standard gauge systems. At one time
: WAS Anticipated there would be netwOr
Of narrow gauge railroads throughout I'll
country. and in view of this many lon
: lines of thenarrow gauge width were Iai'
: one of which was the road from Toledo
St. Louis, nearly 500 miles in lengt
. When that road was made standard gaut
n few years since, there was harvest Il
the Junk men. The Reading railroad lii
I from Camden, N. j., to Atlantic Cit
. now considered one of the finest and be
equipped railroads In the country, Wi
. once a single track narrow gauge railroa
The great sugar plantations in the soul
are good customers of the "gravcyards
and down in Louisiana and Texas tl
- northern traveller may now and then G
> counter engines and freight cars engage
i'm handling sugar cane or farm suppl
which at one time hauled coal or iron
the middle states.
!. Like other occupations, there arc vario
a shades and distinctions in the workings
e railroad junkmen. There arc men WI
:. deal exclusively I'm secondhand railro
1t iron, others who buy and sell roili'
II stock. and still others who may be term
D. the Pullmans of tho profession ana WI
, handle passenger, baggage and priya
/. coaches exclusively. These latter not on
sell cars outright, but likewise rent the
for fixed terms, their most frequent !
irons being theatrical managers
u raudily painted cars now SO frequent