Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1899-03-30

The whole crew is conscious Of its i'm
portance, and the individual members
swagger more than a new policeman in
Harlem. The company has no regular
system of uniforms, but the omission
is more than supplied by the men con-
cerned.
All sorts and conditions of clothing
are worn. Since the advent of the
American army, the entire road has as :
sumed decided military aspect. 1t
is no unusual thing to see almost every
branch Of the service represented in the
attire of the train crew. In the cab
will be found an engineer with an in
fantryman's blouse, an officers dis
carded helmet, and possibly cavalry
sergeant's belt, fastened about his
waist, The fireman labors at the fur
mace with his black feet thrust into an
abandoned pair of riding boots, and,
perhaps, khaki coat upon his perspir-
ing back The rest of the crew arc
similarly clad. Not long age one of the
importing houses in Santiago received
| a consignment of Spanish railway caps
gorgeously decorated with gold lace.
| Upon the front OF each cap was worked
the title of an official, such as 'Jefe
| de Estacion," or "Chief Of Station. "
These were eagerly bought up by the
men in charge of the rural depots who
complacently wear them, innocent OF
| the fact that Is costly and imposing
piece of headgear does not look we'll
with tattered shirt, dirty trousers and
crude canvas sandals.
| The rates charged in the passenger
and freight service of the Santiago line
are probably not exorbitant in Cuba,
but to an American they seem excess
| siye. The passenger fare is seven cents
u mile, with no discount for round
trip ticket. The freight tariff is even
greater. 1t costs more, for instance, tC
send barrel of beer from Santiago tc
San Luis, distance of 20 miles, than
4 it would to bring the same barrel from
Milwaukee to Santiago.
Even with such high schedule (oi
because of it) it does not seem possible
for the railway company to keep its
road in good condition. The roadbeo
is in bad state, the ties are rotten,
and the rails almost invisible under {
growth of tropic vegetation. Apropo:
of the latter, "a very curious incident
occurred on the Santiago railwa,
several years ago. A deposit of manga
nese ore had been discovered five or 81,
miles from the line, and its value wa
such that the company promptly con
structed branch to the site of the pro
posed mine. After its completion, tn,
mining was stopped for some reason, ant
the branch road temporarily aband
oned. Several months later wash
out carried away that part of the lin
containing the junction of the tracks
and it was repaired without restorin,
the switches. In the course of time
the question of resuming the mininI
came up, and it was decided to open tn
mine again. Orders were given to re
store the branch road, but when tn
superintendent set out with his fore
/ of laborers, 10 the road had disap
peared. The exact spot formerly occu
! pied by the switch had been forgotten
and it was not until after several days @
close searching that traces of the los
| road were discovered. A laborer, cut
ting into dense growth of yegetatio
with his machete, stumbled over some
) thing which proved to be badly ruste
rail. The mystery stood revealed. Th
! branch had been simply buried beneat
5 luxuriant stretch of tropical bushes
weeds and even small trees.
To the practical American railroa
l man it may be of interest to know tina
' railroading in Cuba has these more {
: less important drawbacks: Indoler
native help; the impossibility of keer
0 ing the roadbed in good condition
a owing to the vegetation; mornin
d dew, which is so heavy in Its fall and s
o soapy in its consistency, that drivir
J. wheels slip even on level stretches
S track; the necessity of importing CO..
it for fuel, and lastly, rainy seasc
II which keeps large force of men cul
y stantly repairing breaks and washou
IS and bridges.
= Henry Harrison Lewis.