Evening star., 1927-12-18
Capital Sidelights

With the triangle purchase bill
coming up for consideration in the
House tomorrow, which includes au-
thOrity to acquire the site of the
Southern Railway Building, comes
reminder. through the gift of paper
weight 10 Vice President Dawes, that
the pioneer line of the Southern Rail-
way is approaching its centenary.
This paperweight was presented by
Fairfax Harrison. president of the
Southern Railway, with Senator Cole
Blease making the speech.
1T is a gun metal facsimile in minia-
ture Of the first engine and train that
operated on what. at that time, nearly
100 years ago, was the first long rail-
road line in the world. Though the
engine was very small and very crude
and the cars likewise, it was the gene
sis of the great railroad development
Of the United States. The construc-
ton of this railroad and the running
Of this train was an event in the his
tory of our country second only in inn
portance, perhaps, to the establish
ment of the Republic.
The Charleston Hamburg Rail
road. as it was first called, began op-
Grating a train on Christmas day, 1880,
and within three years the entire line
of 1876 miles, from Charleston to Ham
burg, on the Savannah River, opposite
Augusta, Ga, was completed. 1t is
true that the Baltimore & Ohio Rail
road had commenced the construction
of its road a short time before the
South Carolina railroad began to build,
but had built only miles. When the
Southern road was completed to Ham
burg only 20 miles of it's line from
Baltimore was constructed and in op-
Grafton.
The little engine of the paperweight,
named the Best Friend, which pull
cd the first train Of cars from Line
street in Charleston. had the distinc-
tion of being the first prac cal loco.
motive built in this country. 1t was
designed by q Charleston man, r. L.
Miller. and built at the West Point
Foundry in New York City.
In the facsimile of the Best Friend
the engineer stands on the front of
the engine and controls the valve mo.
ton of his engine by hand Both en-
gineer and fireman are exposed to the
weather, for the cab had not then
come into use. The fireman is shown
standing in front of the upright boiler.
Besides feeding fuel into the furnace
under the boiler. it was evidently his
job TO control the steam pressure by
long lever and by moving this back
and forth it's weight caused variation
IN steam to any amount at the time
required. The engine transmitted its
power to the front wheel by inside
connecting rods, and these wheels
transmitted the power TO the rear
wheels by connecting rods very simi-
lar to those in use on our present.day
locomotives. The Best Friend was
of such construction and steaming ca
pacity that it was necessary to get q
full head of steam on the boiler and
run the engine until this was ex-
hausted and then get up another head
of steam and start out again. The
steam capacity of the boiler had there
fore to be carefully considered in
making up the schedules of the early
trains.
The Best Friend carried no cow
catcher. Perhaps one was not neces-
sary. for the cattle in the low country
those days were small, scrawny and
very agile, and no doubt could outrun
the train. Neither did it carry bell
or whistle.
With the President making special
reference to the Mount Vernon boule-
ward in his message to Congress, and
with the commission planning a proper
celebration of the bicentennial Of
Washingtons birth about to make fa.
Vorable recommendation that con-
struction of this memorial highway be
made one of the major features of the
celebration, there is every indication
that after more than twoscore years
work may soon be started on this i'm.
pOrtant project.
DR.. James II. Penniman of Philadel-
phia, widely known as a specialist in
the study of Washington and his
times, proposes that the thirteen orig
inal States shall join in adornment of
this boulevard connecting the National
Capital with Washington's home at
Mount Vernon, each of them to be as
signed one mile of the right of way.
DR.. Penniman's idea is that each
State, expressing itself in the embel-
lishment of its mile of the Highway
of the Thirteen Original States, should
contribute statuary memorializing it's
sons who have figured prominently in
the Nations history, the whole under
taking to be under the supervision of
the National Commission of Fine Arts
to guard against the perpetration of
those artistic blunders so likely to
creep in under divided authority.