Evening journal., 1912-05-31
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
The Stalled Train That Led
to Two Famous Inventions
By Holland

Although George NJ. Pullman has
always been reputed to be the invent
or OF the sleeping car which bears his
name, yet, as a matter Of fact, he per-
fected that sleeping car and was not
the original inventor. He bought the
rights and patents OF an inventor who
first brought the attention Of the
Pennsylvania railroad people Of Pitts
burgh in the late fifties to a sleep
ing car which he had built.
The late Webster Wagner. who was
crushed TO death between two Wagner
parlor cars near Spuyten DuyVil, n.
". in the winter of 1882, was an origi-
nal inventor Of the sleeping car. He
did not know when he invented the
car which bore his name that some
one else had also invented a sleeping
car Mr. Wagner, was however, the
undisputed original inventor of the
parlor car, having done that some
years after he invented his sleeping
car. In the winter OF 1880 Senator
Wagner who was then a New York
state senator, told me the story of
how the idea came to him upon which
was based his invention of the sleep
ing car.
Il suppose" said Mr. Wagner, that
If ! had not learned the trade of a
wagon maker when | was a boy at my
home at Palatine Bridge, New York,
! never should have thought of the
sleeping car / gave up wagon making
while very young man to take a
place as station agent on the New
York Central railroad at Palatine
Bridge.
"One evening, in winter, a freight
train was stalled at Palatine Bridge.
! went into the caboose. | saw some
of the brakemen stretched OUT on lit
tie hunks or benches built along the
sides Of the interior of the caboose
They were sound asleep. The head
brakeman told me that 1t was upon
benches Of that kind that the major
ity of the hrakemen on the road got
their nights sleep.
81 did not think anything about that
at first, but suddenly the idea flashed
across my mind: Why not make pas
senger cars with hunks upon which
/ passengers could sleep at night? The
more ] thought Of the matter the more
I realized how feasible the project
was. II was not a difficult thing for
me to work ont a plan but the hardest
work ! ever had in my life was the
persuading of the railroad managers
of the New York Central to help me
build one Of these cars and then to
put 1t into service That car cost
about three thousand dollars II was
a success from the first night IT was
put on the line. But you have no idea
of the difficulties met with in per-
suading the managers Of various rail-
roads to use the cars upon which pas
songers could sleep.
"It was in 1858 that my first sleep
ing car was put into service.
i"It was all of ten years after that
when the idea occurred to me that a
good many passengers would be will
ing TO pay an extra rate if they could
have seats in an easy chair all by
themselves. SO ] built a car equipped
with armchairs. very comfortably up
holstered and nut II into services and
there is one thing that am certain
of and that is that was the first man
IN the United States to get the idea Of
the parlor or palace car
YES, presume If I had not been
! taught tho wagon makers trade. and
then had not been employed as sta
tion agent. my name would never have
been identified with the sleeping ca.
or the parlor car"