Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1911-06-23
IF TROOPS HAD TO BE RUSHED.
The Railroads in This Country Could
Move 250,0O0 Men a Day.

Move 250,oo0 Men a Day.
Let us suppose it became neces-
sary to send the entire National Guard
of New York out of the state, how
long would 1t take the railroads to
handle them?" a representative Of
the Railroad Mans Magazine asked
high railroad official in New York
a few weeks ago.
"Twenty-four hours, easy!" was the
instant reply. This Is under war
conditions, remember, which means
that everything gives way to the
movement of troops and their equip
ment. The railroads Of America can
handle men and war material Of all
kinds, including everything from
horses and men to cannon and rations,
much faster than they can be assem-
bled and delivered to us.
I'm fact und war conditions the
railroads are prepared to do their part
| quicker and better, with more GER
tainty and better speed. than any
other part of the machinery, CONNER
cial or military in America"
Take the New York Central lines
as an example. BY sidetracking all
commercial business and using the
railroad temporarily as an engine Of
war this road alone can move 10000
men every hour of the day and night
in almost any direction within the
state This means fully 100000 men
and their temporary supplies every
twenty-four hours, mighty army In
| itself.
Considering that It would take at
least one month for the government
to assemble, drill, arm, clothe and
feed such an army before It would be
In shape even to put on a railroad
train, to say nothing of putting 1t into
the field, the fact that one railroad
alone could take this army beyond the
state lines within one day and one
night shows where the American rail-
| road stands II called upon to move
| troops under actual war conditions.
The recent movement to Texas or
during the Spanish American war
was under urgent military conditions.
| The troop trains were sandwiched be-
tween commercial trains--passengers,
freight, express and mail trains rum
ming on regular schedules in all direc-
tions-and this condition Is much
harder on the railroad man and the
! soldier than 1t would be to handle
hundred times more troops and mill
tary supplies under actual military
necessity.
one railroad official when asked
what could be accomplished IL it be-
came necessary to rush troops from
all over the country to the Pacific
coast said:
II think we could put 10000 men
an hour, fully equipped for week
or two on the coast. That means
$50, 900 men a day scattered from Sc
attic to San Diego.
ITO accomplish this the govern
ment would use the Great Northern,
the Northern Pacific, the oregon
Short Line, the new st. Paul line, the
o. r. NJ, the Union Pacific, the Gould
| system, the Southern Pacific, the Salt
| Lake route and the Sante Fe, all as
one system, sending loaded cars west
on one line and running east, empty,
on another.
TT would mean the suspension Of
| all mail trains and leaving some towns
on the way little short OF coal and
maybe of food for week or 80.
Peace conditions and war conditions
are vastly different, and IL these towns
| could not exist under war conditions,
then the inhabitants would have to
move elsewhere.
"The government would have
| pretty bill to pay later; but that is
quite another story. Your question
was what the railroads could do In
the way of moving ain army II they
had to regardless Of cost, and that Is
| Just what war means"
Speaking Of moving people," said
another traffic official, "the New York
| Central or the Pennsylvania could
move the entire population Of Chica-
60, man, woman and child, allowing
100 pound trunk for each one al
| that Either road alone could trans
port the entire population Of Chicago
] to New York In less than two weeks.
| "All the railroads between New
| York and Chicago, operating togeth-
er could transport Chicago's whole
| population to New York In at least
two DAYS, and 1 think in even less
| time IL we had authority to handle
| our trains as we liked. Under war
| conditions the railroads could easily
dump New York city on the Pacific
coast in one month with no trouble
at all.
IF the railroads Of this country
cannot carry 100000 persons from
coast to coast in one month under
military necessity I'll take contract
to eat the railroads, Let them trot
out any old war they want to, the
railroads are ready to handle all the
men and supplies the nation can
| hand them.
"All laws, such as those about wa
| tering stock, block signals. car de-
murrage, mixed trains, hours OF ser
| vice; in fact, all civil laws vanish
when martial law comes into play.
The mess could be thrashed out later
| by the interstate commerce commits
sion, the courts and congress, but that
does not touch the railroad end Of
| the matter. We would get our gov
ernment orders to move troops,
powder, horses and rations, and we'd
| move 'em!
when a train was once made up,
whether IL was in New York. Boston,
Chicago, Vicksburg or Salt Lake City,
| II would not stop except to change
engines until 1t reached the Pacific
coast.
On the edSl6TI 90
far west as the Mississippi river, the
| average running time could easily be
| twenty miles an hour. We might soon
Increase 1t to thirty miles an hour on
some Of the best pieces Of road. West
of the Missouri river the time would
probably be slower-say from ten to
| fifteen miles an hour-although we
might possibly work 1t up to even
twenty miles an hour, but this Is un-
| likely.
However. one Is safe in saying
that the troop trains would average
fifteen or twenty miles an hour from
starting point to the coast Troops
are moved best in mixed trains, say
ten passenger coaches and ten freight
cars to a train, for slower travel with
| heavy engines; or, say, about five
| passenger and five freight for faster
| running behind lighter engines.
ION a ten car train we would put
about sixty men to a car, say three
| companies and their equipment to
train. Cavalry would run Of course
more freight and less passengers to
the train. because the horses and