The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-11-07
AZ 1bo M11Es AN HouR.
No Engineers Nerves Could Endure
tie Strain Of Such Speed.

No Engineers Nerves Could Endure
the Strain Of Such Speed.
New Orleans Times-D Democrat: 81 read
a piece In the Times-D Democrat the other
day." said an old locomotive engineer
"ln which a New Orleans railroad man
said that $50 miles an hour was one OF
the possibilities Of future travel. VEN
ture to dldsagree with him, and I'll tell
you why-he doesn't take into account
the human machine in the cab. 1 don't
doubt but they will build engines that
can stand a $50 mile gait, but they can't
build the engineers. on a fairly good
roadbed one notices very little difference
between twenty-five and fifty miles an
hour. mean the strain on the nerves
isn't materially increased; but anything
above that limit is the pace that kills.
The sensation Is simply indescribable
In words. 1t seems to jar every separate
fiber in the body, and the tension is 50
terrible that one Is apt to feel the effect
| for days. The average man can't stand
many spurts at even siXty-fVe miles an
hour, let alone $50. He comes out OF
such an ordeal all broke up and jumps
when he hears unexpected noises, like
a hysterical woman. My own theory Is
that the effect is produced mainly
through the sight. You have 10 look
straight ahead, but at the same time
you see thins5 whlzzing past on both
sides out of the tail of your eye, and IL
Is as II something had hold OF the optic
nerve and was pulling 1t out like a rub
Der band. That's u pretty clumsy ex
PLANTATION, but it's as near as can come
to It MRny's the time I've staggered
when ] got up from my seat In the cab.
That thing of staring straight
ahead,| continued the engineer, us
bound to get on my mans nerves in the
course of time, particularly during night
runs. One sees queer things, and I've
had some scares In my life that would
have turned my hair white as milk II
hair really turned white that way The
worst trouble is with shadows. It's no
uncommon thing for bird to fit across
the headlight and throw shadow down
the track rs big as box car. OF course,
It's gone in an instant, but in just that
heart beat the nerves have been given
shock that they may not recover from
in n week I've had that happen to me
several times. would be tearing along
at a fifty or sixty mile clip, when all
of a sudden something big and black
would loom out of the dark right be-
tween the rails and not four telegraph
poles ahead Next second would know
1t to be the shadow Of bird. but as far
as was concerned the mischief was al
ready done had had vision OF sud-
den death and sledge hammer blow on
every nerve center in my system. The
new electric headlights are worse than
the others as spook producers. They
cast such sharp shadows that bug
moving over the glass will make you
think COW Is lying just in front Of your
pilot. owe electric Hight bugs a num-
Der OF Erudges for little jokes Of that
kind, and my experience isn't in the
least unusual. All engineers go through
the same thing, The man who was
never scared Is man who is careless
of the lives entrusted to his vigilance,
and such n fellow isn't 1T TO be In the
business. These are things that make
me doubt the practicahllty Of 100 miles
an hour and the possibility Of $50. God
help the engineer OF such a train. He
would go mad in week"