Omaha daily bee., 1902-02-16

ago, or even a few decades, would stand
aghast at the performances of some of the
moderns. For example, down In the
Union Pacific shop yards one day recently
a single crew Of six men put down 100 piles
In eight and one-half working hours. This
Is at the rate Of one pile every four min
utes. AS the pile must be hoisted into
place, and in this case a follower" was
used, the piles being driven in a pit four
feet below the level on which the driver
stood, necessitating a stop for each pile.
and the machine must be moved as each pile
is sunk, some notion OF the speed with
which the work was pushed can be obtained.
The men are necessarily all experts at the
business, but the engineer is the real
wizard. He has the ability to hoist and
drop that huge hammer almost as fast as a
blacksmith could tap the pile with his fore
hammer. To do this he opens wide the
throttle and drives his engine at top speed.
sending the hammer with a rush to the
top Of the slide. Just as the clutch lets
go and the great weight drops, the spin
ming drum Is reversed and down goes the
clutch, so quickly that frequently II catches
the hammer on the rebound. Instantly the
clutch is secure on the hammer the engine
Is hosting II again. This takes skill al
most marvellous, for the engineer must
have absolute control OF his machine and
perfect judgment Of speed and distance.
Should he fail for even a second, he could
wreck the machine. He doesn't fail,
though. and ell day long he hammers pile
after pile, while the others Chamber around
the driver, adjusting beams, sticks, ropes
and the like. and perform feats that only
the constructing engineer can appreciate.
Call II what you will, sliding down a
smooth track on a middling steep hill is a
Joy that never grows stale. 1t is peculiarly
sacred to Young America, in fact one of the
first brushes between the colonies and the
king occurred over Just this very thing.
Troopers stationed at Boston destroyed the
path on which the boys slid, and the trouble
was on. General Gage-be II to his credit
said-sided with the boys, and the red
coats were compelled to desist in their
Interference with the coasters. But the
Incident didn't tend to make the feeling
toward the soldiers any more cordial. How
long before this event the coasting boys
and the authorities had clashed is not
known, but probably ever since the begin
ming. At any event, the feud has been
handed down along with the custom. It
Is the customary thing even yet, whenever
the majesty Of the law is upheld by a man
clothed with a little brief authority, for
the wearer of the star denoting police
power to interfere With the boys on the
hillside. And just as regularly the boys
go to the mayor and secure permission to
slide on some designated hills. This per-
mission Is elastic enough to be adjusted
to the boys convenience, and the result
usually Is that the boys slide where they
like, while the constabulary look on with
what grace they may. Wherever in this
country hills abound, during the last three
weeks there has been coasting. Omaha
has not had such & season of sliding down
hill In many years. Tumultuous Joy has
reigned among the young people in this
regard, and the bitterest blast blown by old
Boreas has not served to check the sport.
Physical culture for girls has gone past
the fad stage. and is admitted now to be a
necessity. In some respects It is an out
growth Of our civilization. Some years ago
the average girl, Just as did the average
boy. got enough Of physical culture In
the pursuit OF domestic duties to develop
her bones ana muscles. So many phases OF
domestic economy have changed Of late the
girls OF the home are In a large measure
deprived Of many Of the opportunities their
mothers had. II may be that notions have
altered with the times. At any rate, It has
come to be accepted that a girl is Just as
much entitled to muscles as to nerves, and