The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1910-03-03

| CffAg Aui Nbllu was,
according TO Alfred Henry Lewis. cvi.
IDENTIFY built from the ground up. not
from the roof down." said a railroad
official in Ogden yesterday.
But this does not apply to modern
railroading, so far az | can sec" he
continued Tho foundation Of the
railroad Is the track. and today our
| track is only a makeshift, the same
old track used when the first little
toy steam kettles and toy wagons ran
over them and were called trains The
rails are heavier, stone is used for
ballast. bigger and more ties arc used,
but still the fact remains that the
track is a back number compared
With the engines. the sleeping and
dining cars. the block signals and the
telegraph and telephone.
"Our tracks Of today arc not frac.
tion OF an inch wider than ,hey weTc
when our engines were only half as
high and less than one-third as heavy.
Today an engine practically balances
on a tight wire called railroad
track
The rails are nailed TO wood. and
this construction is expected 10 stand
the strain OF hundreds OF thousands
of pounds applied Ike a blow In the
small fraction OF a second for thou
sands OF times Such principles went
out of use in buildings long ago. Sup
pose the modern skyscraper OF
bridge were merely nailed together!
Yet a railroad track today Is In just
this condition
THE situation seems almost iInpos-
siblo to change. Everything is today
bdilt on the basis OF the standard
track. and radically TO change the
tive revolution all along the line. Hun
dreds OF millions OF dollars are In.
vested in locomotive shops 20 make
engines along certain general lines.
The slmo Is truo OF cor shops and the
rail mills. To try to change the track
from what II now is into something
new would. change all these things
and many others.
The railroad Is by far the largest
and most vital business of the nation
1t directly affects the daily life Of
every citizen, and to upset railroad
affairs, as radical change in track
construction would do is hardly tC be
thought of.
But what is To be done? Most ac-
cidents are due to the track. We
have already practically passed the
limit of the present track design. The
greatest problem before the railroad
man of the near futurc-onc might al
most say OF the present time-ls the
track
In the Railroad Age Gazette ap-
pears a letter by J. Drinkwater dis
nict roadmaster OF the TcmiskamnG
& Northern Ontario, 10 which this
leading publication OF the railroad
world devotes considerable editorial
space. beginning; The general In
dIctmcnt OF some features Of the
American railroad permanent way
made by Mr.. Drinkwater III a letter
in another column, Is interesting. II
escapes being COMMONPLACE although
il foUmulates what everybody knows.
A part OF Mr. DrinkwateGs letter
follows.
Without being too pcssinistic or
preaching blue ruin, and while J be-
licve in making use OF every known
device that will accomplish ends OK
pedicntly and save labor, nevertheless
| 0ellevo there are matters OF Import |
ancc facing every one Interested IN |
the maintenance OF our way on The |
Canadian railways. A. least i am m
clined to believe that we have moth
inG that should be called permanent |
way. a torn that Is very often aIpled |
TO what VIC call track
Il have seen track for the last !
thirty-fIye years being built. and put
up In what was called hrStclass
shape. and IN a very short time II had I
gone to pieces only TO done over and |
rebuilt
THE old SO and 6O-pound rail- have
given place 10 the 50 and S5pound. |
mound. and in some places the 100 |
pound rail. but VIC find the same lack !
OF pcrmanenetcy exists as did With
the lighter rail and our track Is prac-
tically no better than II was twenty
five years ago
The plates have been introduced
10 save ties. but they do not save
them. They only increase the hie
OF the tie possibly 10 or 20 per cent
The rail Of the heaviest weight docs
not do its work
we find after a few months ser
vice IL Is cantcd over on lts outer
corner and the rcmedy'is TO cut the
tic TO pieces and straighten II up
again. Every day We here talk OF
AIDING down on this curve and that
curve before the rail gets too badly
canted.
Every year II is necessary 10 take
q piece hero and there on division
and practically rebuild II In order
20 keep II In shape TO do business
Every five or six years II is nee
essary to relay rails. taking Out rails
that should have been good for tWen-
y five years.
This, TO great extent. Is Tor
the want of a proper Joint fastening
Then our rails arc made symmetTi-
cal, While all the force against them
is the inner side. and thc7 must and l