Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1901-09-04
THE HERAILROADSCARE
ODD EFFECTS OF THE FIRST SIGHT
OF A LOCOMOTIVE.

OF A LOCOMOTIVE.
Some os the People of the south Hid
Bchind Trees In 1893. When the
Iron Hornc Went By-Thc Country,
Earliest Railroad.
America cannot lay claim to the first
locomotive or the first railroad. That
great honor lies with England. Yet
Yankee genius WAS not very far behind
her, for, when George Stephenson
launched his first real locomotive. the
Rocket, on the Liverpool and Manches-
ter road in 1929, the first spike had been
driven on the Baltimore and Ohio rail-
road, July i, 1928, by Charles Carroll
of Carrollton the last surviving slgner
of the Declaration of Independence.
This was the first road started in the
United States and i'll 1880 it had reach
ed Ellicott Mills, 13 miles from Bnlti-
more.
But tie south can claim the honor of
completing the longest railroad in the
world at that date, being the old
Charleston aud Hamburg road. now a
| part of the South Carolina and Georgia
| system, which was begun in 1880, and
| by October 1888, it had 137 miles of
track in operation. In letter from
| Mr.. Samue C. Clarke of Georgia, a
kinsman of the writer, who attained
the extreme age of 91 years and who
had seen the beginning ana the compile
tion of this road, he thus gives his ex-
perience upon first sight of locomo-
tive:
"one day while going down to
Charleston with Il party of gentlemen
to attend the races as we approached
the city we saw In the distance the
new railroad, finished some 10 or II
miles out of Charleston. 1t was built
upon piles, longer or short, according
to the nature of the ground. Sometimes
In crossing ravine the rails were 20
feet from the surface. Our track ran
near this elevated road and soon n
horrld shrek as from 20 panthers was
heard In the woods. BY this time we
were nervous. Elephants and lions
we had heard of, and some of us had
seen them. but what monster was this
whose screams we heard? Presently
1t came in sight flying aloft through
the air and breathing fire and smoke,
and our frightened stecds became I'M
manageable, and in fact | think that
some of our party Were as badly fright
ened as their horses If any of my
readers are old enough to remember
the Introduction of locomotives and
how they felt Mt first sight of them,
they will perhaps understand our SEN
sations that day in the pine woods.
"a mile or two farther Oh we came
to a broken wagon by the side of tile
road. and near it sat Georgia cracker
smoking his pipe. On being asked
what was his trouble he replied, Well,
stranger, I've often hearn tell of nulli-
fication, and now reckon I've saw it
for true"
1t Is somewhat amusing now to read
of the superstitious dread with which
the inhabitants looked upon the build
ing Of these first railroads. Some
thought the smoke of the continual
passing trains would cause pestilence
or destroy all the crops along the road.
Others We're afraid TO ride on the cars
for fear of having their breath taken
away, and the people in the cities OBJ !
jected to the railroad being built be-
cause they feared the smoke from the
engines would soil the clothes which
We're hung out to dry.
Many are yet living who looked upon
the terrible, screeching iron monster
with awe and trepidation. Mr.. Nat Nc
Gee of Ivy, Albcmarle. tells n joke upon
himself that when he heard the train
coming he jumped from his horse and
got behind n tree, where he viewed it |
for fear Of being run over. Mr. w. 7. |
Trout. who was taking wagon load of |
produce to Richmond. when he reached |
Gordonville heard the whistle and ter |
rible noise of the approaching train,
ana lie and his companions were so
scared that they sprang out, leaped the
fence and ran across the field to safe |
distance, leaving the wagon and team
to Its fate, but when the train appeared
1t was only an engine and one coach.
The first roadbeds were formed, as
has been stated. by driving piles in the
ground, upon the top of which were
placed wooden stringers, in which were
cut groove for the wheels to run. |
These were called wooden railroads"
and at distance appeared like the ele-
waited railroads in the cities of the pres
ent day. The honor of this invention
was contested between John Hartman
OF Scottsville, Va, and John Williams,
an engineer Of Ohio, but 1t did not
prove bonanza to either, for the
wheels were constantly bouncing out of
the groove. and the piles soon after
gave place to solid dirt embellishments,
and strap iron rails We're substituted |
for the wooden groove. But the grad
ing was very imperfect and uneven, |
which made riding OH one of these
primitive railroads like going over i
corduroy road in springless wagon,
with the cars bouncing over these
rough rails TO the jingling music of the
windows.-Richmond Dispatch.
Do Carpets Shorten Lifef