The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1902-05-09

Largest Leceoellve Ever Dsllt.
Very few people could tell whore
the largest locomotive in the world
is quartered. Fewer still have any
idea OF the immense size and power
|of the greatest monster that ever
hauled q train OF cars.
San Bernardinv has the distinc.
ton Of being the home Of this huge
piece Of machinery, and it 10 the
property OF the Santa Fe railroad.
Think for . moment Of the larg-
es. engine that ever went painting BY
you at the station, add ons-fourth to
its dimensions and you will have
some idea Of this giant on wheels,
and from this is called "Decapod," J"
which means an animal with ten
feet.
Its arrival from Scheme ctady, N.
T., recently, was the signal for the
gathering Of large crowds OF curious
people for several days. They
would climb upon it, crawl under It
and walk around it, and do every
thing except 60 through it. Every.
body that owned . kodak took q
picture Of it, and those who hadn't
a kodak bought pictures OF It. Not
lonly as interest manifest ut home,
but at every stop it made on its
Tourney from the east.
Many Of the visitors took five long
steps into the cab, for that many
must to taken in order to sec the
lire box which measures nine feet In
length, with two doors, ono fofeach
Iof the two firemsn who feed it.
Down on the ground . six-foot
man could walk under the boiler
without touching his head, while IL
six-foot men standing one on top OF
the other could not measure the
Length Of this great machine.
Il was built to haul freight trains
OYER tho heavy grade east OF San
Bernardino, ana is expected to do
away with the practice Of sending .
"helper" over the grade. Since it,
arrival il has been converted into an
oil burner, carrying instead OF . coal
bunker an oil tank large enough for
ID good sized dining room.
A brief description Of this world's
Largest engine is as followe: Built
'|by the American locomotive works,
at Schenectady, N. Y, it is guaran-
Iteed TO haul 2, 100 tons up . 4O-foot
grade. The engine, minus the ten.
der, weighs within seven and one.
half tons as much as the next larg-
est engine and tender with the ten.
der loaded, or 1917 tons. On the
drivers alone there 10 . weight OF
23O, 600 pounds, or 115 tons. To
the top Of the stack the height 10 ID
feet; TO the top Of the boiler IL feet
seven and one-half inches. The
boiler At the smallest ring measures
l7S inches in diameter; at the larg-
lest ring 88 inches. The fire box is
! inins feet long and 70 inches vide.
, In the boiler there are Alb hues,
each having Z diameter OF two and
lone-half inches and q length OF lS
feet six inches. The wheel base ia
20 feet; total wheel base % feet II
/ inches; total wheel base OF engine
} and tender 62 feet. The cylinders
t|have . stroke Of "a inches. The
fldiameter Of each Of the driving
: wheels is 81 inches. The machine
3 stands Is feet six inches above the
Trail, the dome and stack being
vIabout the same height. The tender
has . capacity Of 1000 gallons o.
water and 2, $50 gallons OF oil. Th.
,-ltotal weight Of the engine is 262 ,OU
]. pounds and Of engine and tender
ylS63 600 pounds, steamed up and
. ready for service. A speed gauge
lie attached to the forward trucks
which moves q regulator in the cat
i-Iby means Of . fine wire run through
q small pipe. II il hard to con
''ceive Of such . hugo mass OF iror
o and steel being perfectly controlled
Thy one man at the throttle, TO o..
a. nothing Of . long train Of cars
which be must also maintain con
ltrol of.-San Bernardino telegram