The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-03-18

One Of the recent developments in Amer
lean fiction is what may be called the lit
erature of the railway. Until the last ten
OF fifteen years this phase Of our ctviliza-
ton has been practically unnoticed by the
novelists or course, railway accidents
were useful in the making Of plOts-they
afforded opportunities for heroism. test
of character and the Staying Of peop e
whom the writer wished to get out of the
way. Occasionally. toe, the heroic young
engineer or brakeman, and the hallway
magnate and his family. played their part
upon the story-teller's stage. But the real
life Of the engineers and brakemen and
conductors, the stories Of the road and the
roundhouse, remained unrecorded.
This is all the more curious because the
railway has done more than anything 81 9
to make this country what it Is II it had
net been for the knitting together of the
interests Of various sections by this means,
end the facility thus afforded for The ming
ling Of people from different parts Of the
country, the nation might never have teen
welded together at all Without the rail-
way North and South East and West must
have developed separate systems of civili-
zation. and this might have resulted in the
splitting up OF the United States into half
dozen different Republics, some OF which
might have remained independent, While
others came under foreign control. TIE
railway is perhaps the most typical CT
American institutions and the men who
have made it what it is are representative
Americans, from president to brakeman.
The organizers of such vast systems Of
transportation must be meneof exceptional
character, and, as a rule the engineers are
picked mechanics, resourceful, quick
witted. faithful. and full OF pluck and en-
durance. In the ranks Uf the railroad men
may be found many who have Travelled all
over their own country and seen some
thing of the rest of the world who have
known hard luck and prosperity. sometimes
in quick succession; men of all nationali-
ties and traditions. Il does not take eX-
traordiuary powers OF perception to see
that a wealth of literary material is here
for anyone who knows how. to use it.
The trouble seems to have been that
those who know the life have not been
writer's by nature or education, and the
trained and experienced novelist is not
sufficiently familiar with railway men 10
describe them accurately This fed Of tit
erature has waited Tor the.,EalVsy man to
write his own story; and during the last
few years he has been doing il. At least
dozen books dealing with the Incidents
and characters Of railway life have ap-
peared. and nearly all of them we're writ
ten by men who gained their knowledge Of
the subject from actual experience, as e2gi-
neers. train despatchers, LelagFaphers, or
brakemen. In one or two cases the story
teller was almost brought up on the Rad,
being the son Of an engineer. Most Of
these books have been mere collections OF
short stories. and more or less crude and
imperfect in form, attractive rather from
their realism and sincerity than from per
lection OF style The novel Of The railway
is vet &c come
The development Of this lime Of fiction is
one OF the significant and encouraging
things in American literature. II indicates
that in course of time We shall have
writers VINO VIII picture every Phase or
our national life with the truthfulness and
sympathetic intuition which comes of ac-
tual experience. We shall not have a dis
tinct literary class Of bookish men. whose
traditions and experiences are those Of the
library and the magazine Office. our lit
ersture viii be made by authors repre-
sentative Of every class. Of all occupations.
nationalities. and traditions. who through
their exceptional ability. have become
poets. noyelists or writer's OF essays. with
out losing their sympathy with the people
among whom they were brought up. a lit
erature which rests upon this broad foun-
datiou Of personal experience must have
quality OF realism which is not to be found
in one created by a separate caste of
scholars