Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1899-12-02
AccoMAc a - VA SATURDAY. DECEMBER D. 1900


pheres and Fastening the time spoken
of In the book Of Revelation when
there shall be no more sea.
While this has been doing on the
water James Watts wheel has done
as much on the land. How well ! re-
member SandersoI's stagecoach. run
ming from New Brunswick to Easton,
as he drove through Somerville. N. j.,
turning up to the postottce and drop
ping the mail bags with ten letters
and two or three newspapers. Sander
son himself on the box, feet inches
and well proportional, long lash whip
In his hand, the reins Of six horses In
the other the LEADERS" lathered along
the line of the traces. foam dripping
from the bits!
It was the event Of the day when
the stage came. 1t was our highess
ambition to become stage driver.
Some of the boys climbed on the great
leathern boot of the stage. and those
of us who could not get on shouted,
cent behindm saw the old stage
driver not long ago, and expressed 10
him nv surprise that one around
whose head had seen a halo or glory
In my boyhood time was only man
like the rest Of us. Between Sander
sons stagecoach and Chicago express
train what a difference. all the great
cities of the nation strung on an iron
thread Of railways!
At Doncaster, England. l saw George
Stephenson's first locomotive. IL IN
good repair, 1t could run yet, but be-
cause of its make and size II would DO
the burlesque of all railroaders. Be-
tween that rude machine. crawling
down the iron track. followed by q
clumsy and bouncing train. and enc OF
orr Rocky mountain locomotives, Win
village Of palace cars. becoming
drawing rooms by day and princely
dormitorles by night. what bewitching
pfogress!
Modern Wonders.
See the train move out Of one of our
great depots for thousand mile jour
ney, All aboard! Tickets clipped and
In geaee checked and porters attentive
to every want under tunnels dripping
with dampness that never saw the
light; along lodges where an Inch OH
the track would be the difference De-
tween a hundred men living and d
hundred dead, full head Of steam and
two men in the locomotive chaaged
with ll the responsibility of whistle
md Westinghouse brake. Clank!
clank! 10 the wheels. Clank! clank!
echo the rocks. Small villages only
hear the thunder and see the Whit
wind as. the train shoots past, city
on the wing. Thrilling, startling.
sublime, magnificent spectaele-a rail
train in lightning procession.
When years ago the railroad men
struck for wages, our country was
threatened with humiliation, and we
realized what the railroad wheel had
done for this country-orer one hun
dred and eighty thousand miles OF rail-
road In the United States; In one year
over a billion dollars received from
passengers and freight; White noun
tains. Allegheny mountains, Rocky
| mountains, Sierra Nevadas. bowling to
the iron yoke all the rolling stock OF
New York Central. Erie, Pennsylvania
Michigan Central, Georgia Great
Southern Union Pacific and all the
other wheels Of the tens Of thousands
of freight cars, wrecking cars. ca
booses, drawing room cars, sleeping
cars, passenger cars, Of all the accom-
mediation, express and special trains
started by the wheel Of the grotesQue
locomotive that saw ut Donctster
For what it has done for all Christen-
dom I calculate in the language OF tha
text, 10 wheel"
While the world has been rolling on
the eight wheels Of the raA car or the
four wheels of the carriage Or the two
wheels of the gig 1t was not until 1875
ct the Centennial exposition at Phiia-
delphia, that the miracle Of the nine
teenth century rolled in-the bicycle
The world could not believe Its OWL
ewes. and not until quite far on in the
eighties were the continents enchanted
with the whirllng. flashing, dominas
ing spectacle Of a machine that was to
do so much for the pleasure. the Duei'
ness. the health and the profit OF ma
tons. The world had needed 1t fol
5000 wears. Mans sl0wness of loco
motion was mystery. Was IL OF more
Importance that the reindeer or the
eagle rapidly exchanged junSies OF
crags than That mnn should get sWift
" from place to place? Was the busi
ness of the bird or the roebuck more
urgent than that Of the lncarnated I'm
mortal? No. At last we have the
oblteration Of distances by pneumatic
tire. AT last we have wings. Ant
what has this invention done for wo
man? The cynics and constitutional
GROWERS would deny her this eman
, cipation and say. what better exer
else can she have than broom or
buster or churn or rocking cradle
OF running up and. down stairs or
walk to church with prayer book uQ
der her armY And they rather re
1oice to find her disabled with broker
pedal or punctured tire half way ou
/ to Chevy Chase or Coney Island. Blu
all sensible people yho know the tonl'
of fresh air and the healtA in deeI
respiration and the awakening OF dis
used muscles and the exhilaration O.
velocity will rejoice that wife nh'
mother and daughter may have Thu
new recreation Indeed life to so man.
is so hard a grind that l am glad a
the arrival OF any new mode of health
full recreation. We need have 40 anX
iety about this invasion of the world
stupidity by the vivaclous and iaugs
ing and jubilant wheel, except that W
ALWAYS want 1t to roll in the right d
soo+ton fo,uord rIapp Of business. tC