Whilforber Whirlwind

The Whilforber Whirlwind, as pictured on the back cover of Greenglass House.

The *****W******hilforber Whirlwind***is the railcar that brings guests up Whilforber Hill to Greenglass House. It ends at a pavilion at the top of the hill.

## History

### *Greenglass House*

A guest rang the railcar bell, causing Mrs. Pine and Milo to go outside. From there, they went toward the machine shed. Milo noted that the railway started a hundred yards below Greenglass House, and that while there were other ways to ascend the hill, guests usually came from the river, and thus chose this, the other option being climbing three hundred and ten steps. Mrs. Pine and Milo entered the machine shed, and together pulled the lever, which was known to stick. The lever started a winch which, thanks to many gears, did the work of hauling the railcar up the hill after that initial push. As the railcar ascended the hill, Milo could tell where it was based on how much the rails shook. Eventually, the railcar arrived at the pavilion, carrying Mr. Vinge in it. Milo noted that the railcar was made of blue metal, and that Milo and his father had painted the silver racing stripes and the railcar's name on it. When the *Whirlwind* came to a sudden stop, Mr. Vinge's face nearly hit the dashboard, which was padded, presumably for that reason. Mr. Vinge clambered out of the car got his luggage out too.

   When another guest arrived, Mr. Pine and Milo had to send the *Whilforber Whirlwind* back down the hill, as Mrs. Pine had assumed that they would not be having any more guests. The engine that drove the cable eventually stopped, as the railcar had reached the bottom of the hill, and once the passenger was aboard, they rang the bell, and Mr. Pine entered the machine shed to throw the lever. Eventually the *Whilforber Whirlwind* arrived to the hilltop, and the passenger waved from the car. When the car stopped, she got out, and Milo compared the blue of her hair to the railcar's. Before seeing Georgie inside, Mr. Pine sent the railcar back down the slope, just in case.

The railcar bell later rang again, and this time it brought up two guests. They had an extreme amount of luggage, more than the railcar was designed to handle, and the *Whilforber Whirlwind* squealed as it brought them up. Milo was not sure how the boot of the car could hold that much luggage without it all spilling out. The two guests, annoyed at each other, attempted to exit the *Whilforber Whirlwind* before it had even stopped.

Milo later found The Raconteur's Commonplace Book where he'd dropped it, wedged underneath the railcar. He also found a map that he thought a guest had dropped on the tracks behind the railcar.

Owen climbed the stairs to Greenglass House, as the railcar bell was frozen and he could not call for the Whirlwind to be lifted up the hill. Mr. Pine later de-iced the bell to prevent this from happening again, as Owen had gotten exhausted and hypothermic in the process.

Milo wondered where else people could have descended Whilforber Hill down to the river, except where the *Whilforber Whirlwind* was. Meddy remembered when Milo, his father, and his grandfather built the track for the *Whilforber Whirlwind*. She noted that there had been no railcar when Doc Holystone had ascended the hill.

Mr. Ostling arrived to Greenglass House by way of the *Whilforber Whirlwind*. When Clem and Owen left Greenglass House, they descended the hill on the Whilforber Whirlwind together. Eventually they rang the bell to say that they had reached the bottom, and Mr. Pine brought the railcar back up. Mrs. Hereward and Dr. Gowervine descended together, later ringing the bell once they were down the hill.

### *Ghosts of Greenglass House*

When a bell rang, Mr. Pine noted that it was not the railcar bell, and Milo knew that it was the new bell for the Belowground Transit station. Milo noted that the platform was lit up by small lights when the Pines thought the railcar might be used. Milo observed that the railcar was still at the top of the hill. Milo saw the ghost of Doc Holystone (later revealed to be Gilawfer in disguise) near the railcar platform. Milo later could not figure out where the raiclar landing was, but Mrs. Kirkegrim pointed him in the right direction.

## Physical characteristics

The *Whilforber Whirlwind* is cobalt blue and has its name and silver racing stripes painted on its side. It runs on two sets of steel rails, with stone in between. According to Milo, it looks like an oversized bumper car on rails. It has one bench for a guest, and luggage is placed in the boot of the car.

The railcar makes different noises at different locations on the hill, and the track shook differently as well, allowing Milo to know the railcar's progress. The winch, cable, and rails all made mechanical noises that sounded to Milo as if they were having a conversation.

## Gallery

**Take a look at our **gallery for Whilforber Whirlwind****.