The Colfax chronicle., 1904-08-20

st. Louis. No.. Aug. IA, 1904.
Editor Collar Chronicle:
was through the Transportation
building the other day where we
started out with the old sailing shin
Of the 14th century. Oh. how cumber.
some and crude. You follow on up,
and find the first steam vessel with
its great walking beam. like that
remember having seen As years ago
when a child. Then comes the more
modern ship. and finally the grey
hound of to-day with Its twin screw
propeller power, and it's water tight
compartments, so that in case of col
lisiOn with Ice floats. or with some
other boat, only the apartments dam
aged would I'LL with water. This
lessons the danger of sinking. and
even this is about to be revolution
lied by the Cunnards. who are now
building two ships (InOdels exhibited
here) that will be $50 feet long. 50 feet
beam, and II feet depth of hold. They
will he operated by four turbine
wheels instead of two of the old STYLE
screws. The steam Is let in these and
the pressure is like water, the steam
being caught and used again and
that the cost of propelling will be re-
duced to a much less cost and that
the boats win make 25 miles an hour
against any sea.
1t Is probably In the railway de-
partment that we see by actually
placing the old and new side by side
the greatest Improvement. In En-
gland as far back as 1867 you find a
three wheeled steam wagon formed
after the little boys tricycle. of to-day,
except that all the wheels are the
same height, about as high as the
hind wheels Of the average wagon of
to-day. with body much like the
body we use now. This wagon was
moved by a cog gearing over the
ground any v here. The cog gearing
was run by steam. The first thing
approaching our present idea OF rail-
rOading was invented In Wales In
1903. 1t was little upright boiler
and engine, fixed on q frame support
ed by trucks, without springs. The
wheels resernbled the four wheels of
q wagon, and It ran on q Hanged rail,
both rails being Hanged on the out
side. 1t was quite a crude thing. the
engineer sitting exposed to the wealth
er, and when they wanted to fire up
they had to stop the thing and 90
around In front to fire it. Not long
after this, In 1882, think It was, we
built our first railroad In this cOun-
try. They laid down o piece of hewn
wood and spiked on a nat piece of
iron, say half inch thick and two
inches wide, and put the flange on the
inside OF the wheel. Itwas very crude
and slow, stopping to fire up, as the
fire was put In from the front. This
locomotive was made in England,
but under American direction. 1t is
easy to see the ingenuity of the Yankee
In this fange wheel. In 1887 they put
down cross ties, then spiked to them
the timbers on which was nailed a
fiat bar of iron. In a few years this
bar became the present rail, only
much lighter than is usec now. With
1t they got the boiler In a horizontal
position with a agreat v shaped smoke
stack. and they put the fire In from
and got protection for the en-
gineer. After this the progress Is ran
Id, the United States leading. look
ed with pleasure and pride ON the
biggest locomotive In the world.
made last year, that weighs the enOr-
nous weight OF 240 tons. just think
OF It! Its engine. as best could ap-
on outside was 3k feet by
five feet. Now. you can get your rule
and pencil and estimate how many
horse power.
Mrs. Teal says some of my descrip-
tiOns have mortified her. lam sorry.
because l would rather have her good
opinion In my journalistic venture
than any ones. can say this much,
however. l never went any W here, at
the fair. but saw a lot of nice folks.
They all seemed interested In all they
saw. No one seemed shocked. There
|s kind OF good cheer and happiness
stamped on the face of every man,
woman and child you meet, and each
talks to the other, without intrOduc-
ton, with tha. friendlincss / have
|Ound no where else.
Sincerely, C. H. TEAL.
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