Year: 1879

A correspondent of the Boston Her.
aid, writing yesterday from Altoona,
Pa, with regard to the great workshops
of the Pennsylvania Railroad and the
wear of locomotive, says: The engine,
once in service, is by no means lost sight
of. Its movements are as thoroughly
noted as are those of an ocean steamer.
In Mr.. Ely's Office in this city there is
an immense board covered with little
pegs, upon which hang small, round,
co1ored disks, from the under part of
which has been cut small portion.
These pegs and disks are numbered
from 1 to 1850. Each number CORE
spends with an engine. On one part of
the board the pegs are numb con-
secutively. Looking at this part for any
particular engine that may be desired,
and on the disk will be found ssPtgh,''
"N. Y.n or stP," etc. This refers you
to the division where the engine is.
Looking to that division on the board
and finding the number on the engine,
another little disk, by means of its color,
will tell you just what condition the en-
gine is in. If the disk is pure white the
engine is in perfect order. If the disk
is bordered by red line the engine
needs only such slight repairs as may be
made without withdrawing it from the
service. If the disk is covered one-hah
with red, repairs are required of very
slight nature, but for which the engine
must proceed to the shop. If
the entire disk is pale gray, repairs of a
most Important character are needed,
though still deemed slight. A disk en-
tireIy blue denotes machine that needs
very substantial repairs. One-half black
and half white indicates the machine as
being built over. A disk all black de-
notes an engine dead, unfit save to be
cut up or sold. This record is changed
every week and is so complete as to en-
able any one to see at glance just the
condition of the motive power. Re-
pairs are never undertaken if they will
cost over $4,000. For that a new STAN
dard boiler can be built, and unless an
engine is of the standard pattern she is
never built over. For the company does
not intend to perpetuate odd engines,
and to pay more than So 600 would not
be so economical as to pay the interest
on the value of new machine. Here,
again, true economy steps in to change
the practice of blind conservatism. An
engine on this road is always most care
fully used After the locomotive is
placed in the hands of an engineer it
is cared for with the watchfulness of a
parents affection. A most accurate
record of its performance is made,
kept and compared with that of other
engines. AS freight is paid for per ton
per mile, so the cost of an engine Is
reckoned. The amount of coal con-
sumed per car per engine mile being
calculated it is easy to see, by dividing
this by the tonnage, just how much coal
it takes to move a ton of freight one en-
CINE mile. And the engine that does
this most successfully is the cheapest.
Finally, after having travelled many
thousands of miles, having safely haul
ed millions of human beings, our loco
motive is sent to the shop condemned,
dead. 1t is ignominiously bundled OFF
into q corner to stand with lot of 9TH
ers until cut up or sold off. Its imme-
diate neighbors may be others like it
self, worn out, perhaps "died in the
harness." or again victims Of the vain
wrath and assassin like communism OF
Pittsburg rioters. The little disk that
records in the superintendent office its
physical condition has turned to black
There is no hope. Tomorrow COM
mittee of inspection will condemn it to
be cut to pieces. Into the furnace the
parts will go, to emerge, like the mill
where old men were ground into new,
rejuvenated, ready to take a place IN
some new monster with steel heart and
transmi0rated soul.