Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1903-09-10
Moss & GreeVer.

ha,,. CT neat, the man was laid up in the
ships hospital for over week. And
TO this day his sleep is constantly dis
turbed by dreams in which he is roasted
I'm red-hot furnaces.
This same engineer was in the boiler
room one day when suddenly valve, in
among a great coil of pipes above the
boilers. began leaking badly and filling
the room with scalding steam. Instant
~. and regardless Of his own safety, he
scrambled upon the pipes and breath
lessly began making repairs.
He had almost finished when, as I'M
expectedly as the valve had got out Of
order. a pipe joint, below the one on
which he was standing, broke, and
stream of Kissing steam enveloped his
foot. When he endeavored to pull it
away, he found it to be tightly wedged
in the joint
He had on low shoes, and before his
cries brought aid his shoe and sock
were burned off and his foot and lower
leg were parboiled. He was unable to
resume work for three months, and to-
day he walks with a perceptible limp.
Yet he looked upon it all as a part of the
days work, and uttered no complaint.
Ten years ago, just around Christmas
time, the Umbria broke her thrust shaft
and foundered helplessly in midocean.
The part that broke was 26 feet long and
weighed tons.
Under the direction of the chief en-
gineer, the pieces were secured and sus-
pended by chains from the top of the
shaft tunnel, and then, although the
shaft threatened to fall on him at any
moment, he crawled into the tunnel,
found that the shaft was broken of
square, so that it could not be riveted
together, and spent hours in taking
measurements for a collar to be fastened
over the break
He spent other hours in making and
putting on the collar, all the time either
lying on the fat of his back or working
in a sQuatting position, so small was
the space. All told, he labored unceas-
ingly for two full days.
After that he slept two hours, and the
80 hours following he worked without
pause until at last he had bolted the
jacket in place.
The fob was finished late Monday
night, and the ship was got under way.
Early Tuesday morning the head Of a !
bolt broke off, the jacket slipped, and
once more Tomlinson had to crawl into /
the tunnel and make repairs.
Again the ship got under way and
again after an hour of running, snap I
went two bolts. And once more Tom /
Iinson risked life and limb in the shaft /
tunnel.
To make long story short, Tomlinson /
was crawling into the tunel continually 4
until the voyage ended, but while the
passengers did not know of his heroism /
until they landed and read of it in the
papers, Tomlinson had the satisfaction
at least, Of knowing that his work had
prevented the shaft from knocking a
mole lulO lu6 SUI SUE anu lCoN lue5 lllC /
vessel helpless and in peril of stormy
sea until tow should chance along.
1t was a Scotchman who pried open
a safety valve and prevented a serious
explosion on liner that is sailing the .
seas to-day
For some reason or other the donkey
engine, used for hosting cargo and
luggage, had been started at sea and
fireman put in charge of it, An hour
or so later the second engineer, whose
watch it was, distinguished an unusual
noise among the multitude Of sounds
Of the big ship-so keen is an engi-
neer's sense Of hearing.
He located it as coming from the |
donkey engine, and rushed thither. AS
he got near he realized that the safe |
ty valve had stuck and after he had |
slid down the narrow, oily companion
way, he found not only the safety
valve stuck tight, but the fireman |
asleep at his post, and the boiler all |
but ready to explode.