The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-02-22
MoRRzsNzLH PUBLIC SCHOOL AND us PRINCIPAL.

ma terlaI. Track-walkers traverse the
road-bed to provide against obstruction,
and to look out for broken rails: all the
running machinery is tested in every
II ain before 1t starts on the Journey and
there are safety appliances and devices of
many descriptions.
THEN AND NOW.
To properly appreciate the high state Of
efficiency that now obtains in hrst.class
railroading 1t is only neces sary to COM
pare then an now."Let the passenger
VINO hies hims eli to comfortable berth
In palatial sleeper to be whirled over
hundreds Of miles OF smooth steel rails
by mammoth iron horse, while he sleeps
as placidly as II In his own bedroom,
contemplate the same trip two-score years
ago. His train would then have been
hauled by an engine whose steam was
snall-pace generated by heat from wood
ire! The train would stop every few min
utes on its snail-pace Journey for the ten
der to be replenlshed with pine wood and
Tor the tank to be refllled with water,
pumped in by hand! The first-class pas
senger coach was cheap-John affair
uncomfortable seats. dingy oil-lan1ps,
primitive wood stoves, no safety cord, no
air brakes and common iron link-and-
pin coupler. Indeed, the back-nun her
stage coach line is no more Anticipated In
this year 1908. than the primitive rail-
way sense. and yet 1t served Its day and
generation and did it we'll!
Before the days of telegraphich train
orders. there was Of course no such thing
as "despatching trains in the present
meaning Of the term. gts3Sl
The timetable provided that the sup
nall' Will meet the down mall" at 3D.
Csay); the Cup freight" will meet the
down freight" at"C." and so on There
did not find the Inferior train at the
meeting point, that the former should
walt specified length OF time and then
proceed, keeping SO much late. and there
was corresponding provision which en-
abled the Inferior train to move under
the specified restrictions.
After bit, the wire was strung along
the tracks and ''ree1 and paper operators
were stationed a points remote from each
other and primitive dispatches came in
vogue. The opera tors-or but few OF
them-could take by sound" and trans
lated the Morse characters from tape
paper which was spun off reel in con-
Junction with the instrument, the charac-
tiers being indented on this paper. This
was before the day Of manifold carbon
paper, To-day the operators all read by
soulu ana puI GOWN inc orders on mani
fold paper at the rate OF forty or fifty
q minuth.
The trains are tagged Tor sgnalled)
originally by a piece Of red cloth alta ched
to pole or staff, and by lantern This
causes smile on he face OF the opera
tor who now sits with his hand on the
lever, and an up-to-date train order sig
nal, The world moves as fast as our
modern trains
It used to be question OF miles be-
tween cities. Now It Is 'hours''--'sA'' Is |
so many hours from 'B."
LOVES TIE OLD TIMES,
lis very Interesting to hear recItals OF
have seen the service pass through the |
various successive stages of advancement
And some here arc who ap arently sigh |
Ter the ''good old days. But all such
sighlnE ~ not genuine. ] recall that When