The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1913-05-15
OLD Time
RAILROADS
Told by the Engineer.

Those were the days when they
had to stop to wood up every 10 or
Is miles," said the engineer. mo.
don't 60 back that far myself, but Eve
fred for the men whs did"
Don't understand what. wood up
means? Well, guess there aren't so
very many who would now. In the old
days Of railroading. there was wood
pile every few miles along the road.
The engines used only wood in those
days, you. know, and when they came
to one of them the engineer and fire.
man would both climb down and NIL
the tank with wood. guess that we'd
we had to do thing like that now.
Then the train would go along for
maybe ten miles more and the per.
Torrance would be repeated. Sounds
funny, doesn't it?
Il tell you what made me think
that something ought to be said about
those times, and that was the death
Of John Yerger, who was killed by
the trolley wire at the Erie station
Monday morning, just as he was start
Ing out on his run. There are
mighty few of the old timers left, and
fewer still in active service.
They made railroading what it il
and it really seems as IL there was
better stuff In them than you sec
much of now. AS l said, fired for
some of them, and 1 know about the
differences then and now.
ca the first place. besides the dit.
ferences In fuel, there was about "a
big q difference in pay. The engineer
got two dollars 9 day and the fireman
one dollar, and there was no suck
thing as overtime. Your day ended
when you got to the end Of the road.
That ia what 1t was when Yerger
started in; yes, and he fired wood.
too.
"And then you couldn't get water
In the boiler unless the engine was
moving; there wasn't any such thing
as an injector or inspirator in those
days. There was pump and it was
attached to the guides of the drivers,
20 unless they were moving there was
no way to pump the water In. Now,
less than 80 pounds of steam is need
ed to fill your boiler.
"And in those days an engineer
vas supposed to make all repairs on.
The road ~--~-, r, 60: ? -'i.E-'''' ]!
"Of course, you couldn't expect
him to do it now, the machinery is
30 much bigger. Why, take the
guides. He couldn't wind a piece Of
wire around them now IL they broke
and keep on running. Now IL any
thing happens to one side of an en-
CINE all there is to do is to cut it out
and run light with the other. Every
locomotive is practically two en-
gines, you know, one on each side.
And in those days the fireman regu-
larly crawled under the engine and
packed the wheels. If anything hap
pened to them, and they got heated
up, why he was to blame. Now all
that Is done in the shops.
"Of course If you put one Of these
he'd be lost. but they certainly knew
their engines. Singletrackers? Why
all the railroads were single tracks
In those days, and there wasn't any
block system. The way they ran was
something like this: Two trains
would be scheduled to leave stations
about the same time, and half way
between the stations would be white
posts. When one train reached this
post It would wait half an hour on
siding. and If at the end Of the 30
minutes the other had not showed up.
why. she'd start up again.
Sometimes they'd get to the half.
way post and not be able to stop be-
cause the throttle had disconnected.
They used the sliding throttle, and
when anything happened there was
NO way Of cutting off the steam.
They'd fill the boiler up with water
and use the reserve until the train
slackened up enough to let the brakes
work. Now they all have automatic
throttles, and steam is cut of the min
ate anything happens.
"There weren't any safety devices
like the steel brake beam or the air
brake then. And the band brakes
were poor. It wasn't bit unusual
for one of those wood brake beams to
break and drop down on the rail and
wreck the train.
Another thing that those old fell
lows did. They made the Brotherhood
Of Locomotive Engineers what it is
now, conservative and respected by
everyone. If a man doesn't belong to
the brotherhood the officials OF the
road think that there must be some
thing wrong with him. And you never
heard of the brotherhood's being in Q
row or foolish squabble They started
It and carried it through at a time
when organizations we're in pretty bad
reputation, and when they deserved
to be- But they never let the brother.
hood get like that.
Zone more thing about the old days:
The way they ran fre;ghts was like
this: An engine was rated as able 70
pull, say, Is cars. and pull Is cars 1t
had to whether the cars were loaded
with straw hats or brick. Now the
horse power and diameter of the
drivers of an engine show just how
v,,apy tome ~ con null updor oivcn co0.