The San Francisco call., 1909-01-03
OD-FASHICNED.
@RANE AID @REw

ira ,1erricks. Jss beams, spare trucks.
rails and SWITCHES to repair tracks
or to build a. temporary spur arSund
the obstruction II would take too long
: to. remove. In the tool cars and ten
deEs coming next in slime, are. Jacks
. with a. lifting strain of 40e tens each:
hawsers six inches I'M diameter; steel
cables and chains in which each link
weighs three pounds" VARIOUS huge
blocks and. tackle. axes, saws, picks,
'shoyeIs. :. cFowhars.> sledges, lanterns
and every conceivable :toot the nature
OF the work might demand They are
so compactly and Systematically ar
ranged: that they can Immediately be
located; even fin the: dark. -
:, The combined dining: and. bunk car
the stomach ;of the: short; train, .as the
crane car is It's heart and sbrain--is
spl endidfy designed TO supply: the
7vvorknehr' every comfort while out on
the road performing their arduous
duties; The. food lockers. are. always
the market Safrerds, especially ac'variety-
Of ttnned goods: Railroad officials:
have Learned: .as. the army learned long
agso that the stomach OF "a fighting:
corps: whether il . does battle with:
others of its:kind: or whether 1t CROSSES
swords with the forces: of nature; can
not be toe well catered to-: The cook
out OF sight: Of Ills train, night. ef day:
and he Is enc. of those few nlortals
whose word is absolute. law - 8:
i have cooked an this s-car for. oyer q
hundred men at q time" said Mr.. Ro4
s. land, cook Of 1.-THE local Southern Pacific
crew. when Interviewed. 81 guess. that's
going some, :eh2' with excusable PRIDE:
His. kitchen. and dining compartment,
IN which 20. men can be served at one
time,. are spotlessfy clean and orderly;
e much more so than the average Kitchen.
The cooks work is not by a good deal
the :least arduo1s. Of that performed by
the crew when out on the :road. When
he rs not engaged in. preparing. the
regular meals he is brewing innumer.-
able pots OF piping hot coffee to take
the chill from. frosted hands and
feet; to put new spark Of life into
the wcrn.. weather racked men who
sturdtly fight the grim old law OF grav-
ity itself for days at a time, often, with
scarce an hours respite. To make the
work harder the crew usually eats in
shifts. whenever the job takes some
time. for it's: completion. The. cook, in
consequence; must have the constitu-
ton Of steel gfrder, almost to stand
ing boss are the two men on the crew
for whom there is absolutely no respite
or relief during Job.
There are ample bunk accommoda-
tiops for the members of the crew in
the living car. The beds are roomy,
well ventilated and spotlessly clean; In
fact they are to my notion, far more
comfortable and desirable than the
berths Of a Pullman. Here the men
sleep. by shift, when the work permits
it, or are permitted to stretch out for
an occasional few minutes when COM
pletely exhausted
In short. the average man could wish
for no more comfortable and inviting
home than that provided aboard the
wrecker of the San Francisco division.
1t is a matter of pride with the crew
and the local officials that this train Is
not alone the finest on the coast. but
that ii is one Of the most powerful and
most adequately. equipped wrecking
outfits in the United States.
The wrecking train having stormed
up TO the scene Of disaster with all the
speed Of which the engine is capable,
the wrecking crew and its chief be-
come for the time the most important