Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-04-14

(Copyrgnt, 1911, by Union Pacific Ry. Coz
Compiled by Charles j. Lane and d. c:
Buell. for the Union Pacific School OF
RRllroading for Employes.)
''-- (Contlnued from Yesterday
when the line was extended and
completed from Ithaca to Scranton, and to
Great Bend was sent to help establish
the company's coal trade in Binghamton.
In 1857 1 was appointed agent at Pugsiey's
station and in 1860 the Caroline depot was
built, and remained in that depot thirty
years as agent"
No apology is offered for the space
yielded in presenting the remarkable rec
ord Of this veteran railway servant, Mr..
Alvin Merrill Of Tompkins county, New
York He was born In 1926, and entered
the service Of this confessedly pioneer
American railroad when a mere boy. He
continued IN its employ a lifetime; re-
Gently he retired. an octogenarian. 1t is
safe to say that there IL no other such
character living, who has served trans
portatIon interests In so varied and prac-
| ticaI a way, without interruption, for such
a length Of time (three-quarters Of cen
tury); and no other man, therefore, who
can span 50 great a period of actual ex-
perlence in the evolution of American
transportation. He has seen every phase
Of II 80 far.
Prompted by the pleadings Of his
friends he leaves this modest record,
written under the fast falling shadows of
his setting sun. 1t will certainly be more
| impressive to the student than any second
hand assertions OF present-day writer's.
! The use Of steam under pressure, sug-
gested by many early inventors and scien-
| lists a possible source Of power. The first
conception OF what might be called an APP
plication Of this power is generally as
/ surned to have been the Aeolipile of Hero
| Of Alexandria. However, as history Is
somewhat vague on this point, perhaps II
\ would be well to accord the distinction "a
! Sir Isaac Newton, who in 1850 proposed to
| generate steam in a bail or sphere mount
the sphere on a vehicle and propel the
latter by means Of the reactive effect OF
| a Jet OF steam issuing from nozzle at the
rear Of the vehicle.
The first actual propulsion by steam on
land in the world was achieved in 1859
when CuRnot, a French soldier built a
steam carriage for moving artillery. On
trial this machine was found unsatisfac
| tory and Impractical. although II ran, and
developed speed Of two and ons-hali
miles an hour
Richard Trevithick. IN 1901, built loco
motive which was tried on the Merthyr
Tydfil tram road In Wales. and which sue
eessively hauled five loaded cars Thh
was the first steam locomotive used fo
transportation on rails in the world.
From this time. untl the actual, practi
cal. commercial application OF steam as
motive power, scores OF engines and We
hices propelled by engines. were invente,
and experimental with, both IN Europe an
America. This continued development o
tho steam carriage. was IN response 4
the demand for a better tractive powe
than horses; and. as the construction o
the so-called tram roads was oonsiderabl
In advance OF the practical development
OF the steam carriage the early types q
locomotives were numerous in response I
this demand.
Among the early types OF locomotive
several are worthy OF note: Trevithick. 4
lso, built second locomotive: Matths,
Murray In 1871. built for John Bienkinso
a locomotive which worked by a toot
wheel on a rack rail; william Hedley
after q serits OF experiments TO determir
the Sufficisncy for railroad operation OF Il
adhesion between smooth wheels s1
4 SpaOQth FRjls built bis arst epgina, n
, - all1ae - - =