The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1907-06-20
TIE BREAKDOWN GANG
Quick and Hard Work When a
Railroad SmaShup Comes.
THE ROUGH AND READY CREW.
They Board the Wreck Special and
Are Speeded to the Seere Of the Ao-
oident-The Rush, the Peril and tho
0i.fieulty of the Work They Do.

Cident-l ne huSn, INe Feril ana tnc
oi,fieulty of the Work They Do.
you ever hear of the minute
J - Of the breakdown gaug-thc fcl-
! who are the rough and readies of
line? In the roundhouse or repair
you see them hammcring, rivet.
perhaps running the drill press or
,e cutter Then in rushes the call
BIS. Not stopping to ge. out OF jump
Pr and overalls, but rabblng their
caps, off they run TO IL. wrecker
A bowlder fell on the track. The
switch handle was turned the wrong
way. \ loose spike may have mis-
placed the rail. But it is not for them
TO stop and learn how it happened.
The shapeless mass of torn and twist
ed framework, which n few hours be-
fore people called a train, must he at
tackled with chain and rope bar and
ax-burned, If need bc--to opcn the
way, for until they have performed
their duty the line Is blocked, and the
wheels of perhaps Il thousand ears
cease TO turn. SO away goes the break
ders have gone ahead for a clear track,
and even the limited and fast mali
must take the siding until the minute
men have passed on the way to the
rescue.
You don't hear much about them un-
less you are a railrOader, but the su-
perintendent, the manager. perhaps
some of the directors, know them. Sc
lected from the veterans in the shops,
they are all round mechanics but
brains as well as fingers are needed,
and man has to be quick witted to
get into this gang.
In tine fifteen or twenty which make
up the average crew you can general
iy find two or three little men; for
there are tight places in Il wreck where
they can do considerable work in prop
ping up or loosening a part, crawling
into holes which no one else could
reach The boss wrecker tries to get
two or three left handlers also, as their
services are valuable in hammering
away in corners where a right handed
man would be useless Some of the
best wrecking crews in the country
include a number of sailors. The half
bitches and other knots that only the
~~'men can make are of great service
ccurely fastening lines to portions
h, wreck and to the crane or To-
olive used in pulling it away. The
"a salts are familiar with the assist
'Hcc that combination Of pulleys will
we. for they have been taught It on
e..pDoard, while usually they are very
strong and wiry. Consequently man
of this kind who is out Of job at
any time can frequently so with the
wrecking crew.
Their limited is not much for looks
Like the men, 1t is also rough and
ready. Down by the division round
house or repair shop it stands on
siding where it can take the line at
minutes notice. There is nothing un-
usual in its appearance except the
crane car, which carries the heavy ar
tillery of this little army Of rescue.
Two or three fiat cars, a box car or
80 and at the end passenger coach or
cabOose make up the train, but every
article 1t carries, from the extra truck
wheels to the coupling pins, has been
loaded with such care that every man
knows where to put his hands on what
he wants. Usually the running gear
gets the worst of 1t in a wreck, so one
Of the fat cars contains extra trucks
and wheels to be substituted for the
broken ones. Next to this car Is placed
the big steel crane, which yanks masses
OF wood and metal about as though
they weighed pounds instead of tons,
and Is capable Of lifting a fifty ton en-
glne.
Enter the box car and you see
miniature lumber yard-square pieces
of timber all the way from an inch to
foot through. They are wanted for
propping up the wreckage, which may
be holding down the living as we'll as
the dead. These props may aid in saw
Ing life, but they also are handy to hold
up coaches when the crew are putting
wheels or other parts IN place. In one
corner are coils of rope an inch or
more thick. Boxes of bolts and nuts
and screws lie side by side on the
floor. On the walls hang hooks, pull
leys, saws and axes. Heavy steel
crowbars are piled in another corner.
In short, this is repair shop and
storehouse on wheels.
Any old coach will do for the crew,
provided its wheels and axles are
sound. Taking out some OF the seats
gives room for a table where the men
can eat and play cards if they don't
want to get nap on the way, but II
they have time for little sleep half
dozen wooden hunks round the sides
give them a chance. Sometimes an end
is partitioned off into a galley where
they can make pot of coffee or fry
a steak while en- route.
Such Is the usual makeup of the
wreck special" as the railroader
terms it, When called into service, a
big driver engine backs down to It and
couples on. There is no need Of any
speed orders. Those are understood in
advance On the straight track tha