Putnam patriot., 1913-08-15

'on and Providence, over which such freight had to travel.
 Even jp the early days of conSolida
 tiOD there was still much time con s.smed because the old freight transfer points Nere retained. Boston and nortser1 New England were not en tifely without early produce, but owing to the slow schedules and delays the business vas hazardous one for commission men. In these days the bulk of the southern fruit and vegeta. 5ies was pu on a boat at Norfolk and rushed by sea to Boston Some of Ii went by rail ts New York and thence by the old Stonington li1. to Boston The sea was able to afford the better service for the most part. The boats from Norfolk made the third market day and sometimes not that The Sto nington line made possible noon de. livery on the second day, but while this enabled some large consumers such as hotels, in Boston to serve fresh fruit at the dinner hour the gen eral consumer had to wait until the third day, while the depreciation went on.
 In 1896 the first fast freight service was inaugurated, but it was not all that it ought 10 be until about four years ago.
 At that time the New Haven roads officials got together with those sf the Pennsylvania and decided to work out a schedule which would land the stuff from the southern farms in Bos- ton in ample time for the second mar ket day, counting from the time of it's shipment. It was to be a schedule which would stand up under heavy service and be such as 10 warrant the commission men to increase their or ders. The Pennsylvania put on sey- eral new trains, and quick transfer was arranged for around New York.
 In all about five trains are now re quired in the busy season to bring this produce from the south. The ears are picked up all over Virginia and even south of there and most of them are collected at Norfolk. There the Penn Sylyania makes up a train, known aS R 10, in one or more sections, and starts it north at noon. This train reaches the Jersey City yards of the Pennsylvania at 10 a. Ill. the next day. There it is broken up and the cars rushed to the New Haven transfer floats, which are taken around the East river and through Hell Gate by the most powerful tugs in New York harbor- In the great Harlem river yards it is classified" again It starts on its way to Boston at 3 D. m.. mak- ing stops at New Haven. Providence. Mansfield and Readville to drop of cars, The old arriving time of this train was 2;30 a. m in Boston. but thirty minutes have been cut off this in the last year. Frequently it comes into the South Boston yard at 80 a m. Thirty five cars is about the limit of freight train. When 250 carloads of berries alone are coming up from the south in one day obviously this train can't take them all though 1t runs in several sections For the later sections of the Pennsylvania roads train bringing up the berries the New Haven has still faster train ready. This train leaves the Harlem river yards at [ .25 p. m. and gets to Boston at a m. IL also makes stops on the way where ears have to be dropped for midway points. All this takes time, so that the speed between these stops must of necessity be that of fast passenger train.
 These are the two great berry ex- press trains of New England With the Pennsylvania's trains they form the route over which daily passes the out of season fruit to which We are now so accustomed
 Though this stream Of farm produce runs practically all of the year. if is subject to many changes When Feh