The Butler County press. [volume] (Hamilton, Ohio) 1900-1946, 1916-09-22
RAIL WAY WRECKS
Quick Rescue Work the Rule
When a Smashup Occurs.
"SAVE LIFE" is FIRST ORDER.

To Accomplish This Every effort 10
Strained, and When That Work 10
Done "Clear the Traoks,' Regardless
OF Property Loss, 10 tho Next Tack.
Marvelously efficient is the system
Of wrecking machinery In use In these
days for quick work when a smash.
up occurs on one of the great rail.
roads Some Of the latest inventions
and appliances for clearing tracks aft,
er wreck are described In the Popu.
lar Science Monthly The magazine
says:
"Wrecking trains are located on
every division Of important railroads,
standing idle in the yards waiting for
calamity-a crane car, with sufficient
power to lift a freight car as a child
lifts toy; supply car, containing
ropes cables, chains, Jacks, crowbars
tools, lanterns. fire apparatus, dyna.
mite. rails, ties; caboose for the
wrecking crew
When the word comes over the wire
that the express and the fast freight
have tried to see which could butt the
other OF the track the wrecking crew
assemblies in a hurry. They are pick
ed men-these minutemen OF the rails
each with his specially. Mechanics
tracSmen, men skilled In explosives,
strong men, slender men at least one
small but muscular man, they come
from roundhouse and shop, freight
yards and office at the supreme call
The wrecking boss takes command, the
best engine available backs down, and
with clear track the wrecking train
gets to the disaster, often ahead Of the
special containing doctors and nurses
There is only one order to be obeyed
when the wrecking crew gets into ac-
tion-'save life But once the victims
are extricated-and they are taken out
in remarkably short ttme-the order
changes. It is not. n might be expect
ed, save property 1t is clear the line
1t makes no difference that FIVE jun
bled freight cars contain expensive
automobiles, or pianos, or monographs
or fruit, which might be saved by cnre-
full work II the contents cannot be
saved In less than an hour there Is
only one thing 10 do The big steam
crane Is backed down to the mess; a
long, tentacle-!I Ike hook descends, chains
and ropes are brought into play, and
slowly, surely, almost daintily, the
crane swings the wrecked freight car
and it's contents TO one side
Sometimes the easiest way TO clear
! the lines Is to burn the wreck or blow
1t up. Tracks can be quickly relaid If
damaged, but nothing can replace lost
time. The price Of the cargo Of auto
mobiles Is nothing against q FIVE hour
delay, for the price Of delay mounts
in stunning geometrical progression
A few hundred dollars for the first
hour, 1t may be many thousands OF dol
lars in the second or third hour. A
stoppage OF the lines may mean a stop
page of the whole railway system, with
hundreds of thousands Of dollars
worth of freight tied up, confusion
loss, waste
And wen he knows his work-the
This engine looks like scrap, but
probably will run; put her on the other
| track. That engine looks all right, but
| is yitally wounded throw her off This
| car is too inextricably tangled with
another IN loving embrace TO take to
pieces, part by part; burn it up and
| throw the trucks to one side. The
| small man, a necessary factor, crawls
into and out of holes too small for his
stronger mates. attaching chains and
| ropes, reporting conditions. doing work
| as valuable as that of the Hercules
who with a crowbar heaves up tan
gle OF wheels that Jack may be slip
| ped Into position
"The doctors and the nurses and the
relief train have come and gone. Down
| the line stands an impatient express
| behind 1t long freight. In the other
| direction q local is filed with fuming
commuters, and perhaps the presidents
| special Is close behind. All along the
| division and soon to spread through
the whole system is delay, stalled
| trains, trains waiting orders, trains
| costing the company thousands Of dol
lars q minute.
"Over the tangled debris Que man
stands supreme, swapping his orders
like the crack OF whip utterly IN
mindful of the property he destroys
that other property may move And
as If by magic the lines clear The
last of the bent and broken cars are
| turned on their sides and slide down
| the bank. The umping engine goes of
behind a switching engine sent for the
purpose. If the delay looks long, 9
temporary sidetrack has been swiftly
built and the several waiting trains
puff slowly by The wrecking train
whistles. Its crew. driving the last
spike to make the track secure, pull
out Jimmy pipes The big crane folds
its single arm and rests. The men pile
into their caboo The wreck is of
the lines-time. fifty-ive minutes The
wrecking train has finished its work