The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-02-05
OUR LUZON RAILROAD.
The Trains and the Passengers.

The Trains and the Passengers,
The railroad from Manila to Dagu-
pan is now entirely within American
possession, and trip along its sadly
disjointed length shows the destruction
that the insurgents have been able to
accomplish while the Americans
awaited the necessary strengthening Of
their forces Not half dozen station
houses are remaining and there are yet
four considerable gaps around which
| supplies must be carried by bull trains.
The break at Bamban, including as it
does burned trestle and dropped
span Of the steel bridge, Is the most Sc
rious interruption. All along the
whole line Of overturned cars twisted
rails and smashed engines. Fire and
rude skill have done their worst. In
the river at Bamban lie nine engines
hopeleesly wrecked and north of Bay
ambang, in long heap, are the half
burned fragments Of f1fty-four coaches,
| fiat and box cars in one great tangled
mass.
Probably no train ever ran that was
more ludicrous in appearance than IS
| the one that serves between the broken
bridge at Hemban and the long wash
| out at Tarlac. It's line forms separate
branch of the whole railway service,
and the men call that portion THE
Tarlac Washout and Walk" bat
tered, dented engine, much patched ana
plugged, sans tender, sans headlight,
sans nearly everything, wheezes and
shorts along, dragging the remnants OF
five boxcars Their woodwork is en-
tirely burned away, leaving the iron
verticals stretching upward like gaunt,
rusty arms, still appealing against the
flames For flooring serve sheets OF
corrugated iron roofing, lying loose
These clatter loudly q their loads
bounce and 1ostle with the bumpings of
the crooked and uneven strack. And
such loads! Hundreds Of cases OF to-
matoes, piles Of boxes Of canned horse
crates of fiat ham," as the soldiers call
bacon; telegraph material, great heaps
of blanket rolls that have been left be-
hind on the last "hike"' and are now
needed in the cool reights in the noun
tains to the north.
Not seldom a tier of the rough, dull
red coffin cases sway and jostles its
lugubrious way along to where the
sub hospitals are calling for Them.
These grim reminders Of possible f.
male make the choice seats for the train
guard, and each heap Of them Is held
down by half dozen brown clad men
whose waiting cartridges flash brightly
in the sun as the train crawls through
an opening in the forest. or yet ';leam
family when their wearers pass on into
the deep shades OF tropical swamplands.
Ctuck here, there and everywhere, over
all the heaps and piles of stores, ire
the Macabele and Chinese laborers. |
They jabber ceaselessly as they cling in
crevices like animated burrs or t.ercf
like skinny brown and yellow birds
along the rusted sides of the clankjng |
care.
Not much less strange is the appear
ance Of the regular daily train from
Manila to Angeles. The train itself is
fairly spick and span, with freshly
painted cars and polished steel and
brass on its engine. The former legend,
F. C. M. d. (Ferro-carril Manila-Dag-
upanJ has been largely replaced with
U. S. @. M D., and the engines have,
In addition, been christened General
Macarthur, General Funston, Major
Devol or some other official name. A
well confined hospital car. with the a.
,,,iIiar rcd cross IN its sides. is near the
center of the train. A newly built re-
frjoera+or oar tha frst of its kind in
tbis mort of +ha world CARRIES stora Of
fresh meats while still another car has
=, 10 sides "rr g MALI and Is 'flted
,,i+h;,, With su,tab,a racks and hoxes
ror Tho bandline, of the infreouent nails
i've ~. tbree GOA ches and a number Of
,rdinarv freioh+ oars constitnte the re-
,,o;rde, of tho eo,;nmen+ No farss mr.
.oriees oro axootad ord +ransnor+a tjon
!, b,,. oaases az orders from military
r. 4. ~, +be roof of tho +rain that mr.
,,,i,,i,,o hrotter, ord .,stare ora oar
,,nd .nd wben tba+ train draws m In
-. "a t,,o uro,+ do,,o+ ~ +be or,rter.
.,.ton.u ao,snr4,.,+ - Nr,,,I, - . a
,or a,,r,,+ All ,1org IL +o,, ol;rp
sra,,r, 80 ,,a, ,,yor,en ord ch,Idren. (
ia .,orno ,vo.1, strorg rinb and moor
ill., Ther hr,,,e WIFI, tbe,,, naslxo4s
q e,,,,+ h,,,,d,o. oe olo+,;rg ,,.+e, c,f :
~ ior, ~ ao.rso I,ro,,,, s,,gor NJ
!, ,,,,4r,r ,r,a,+ orn+aa 80 fo,,I.o
~ ,.i.,,a a,,,a - ,,,aor h,,r,.n
~, "a a.. a+i,I ,,,aeror haIorg,ngs