Steve and the Steam Engine

by Sara Ware Bassett

  CHAPTER XII

  NEW PROBLEMS

  "I have been thinking, Dad," said Steve that evening, while they sat atdinner, "of the railroad story you told me this morning. It was someyarn." His father laughed over the top of his coffee cup.

  "It was, wasn't it?" replied he. "And the half was not told then. I wasin too much of a hurry to give you an idea of all the trials the poorrailroad builders encountered. Did it occur to you, for example, thatafter the roads to the Pacific coast were laid their managers wereconfronted by another great difficulty,--the difference in time betweenthe east and the west?"

  "I never thought of that," was Steve's answer. "Of course the time musthave differed a lot."

  "Indeed it did! Every little branch road followed the time peculiar toits own section of the country, and the task of unifying this so that abasis for a common time-table could be adopted was tremendous. Aconvention of scientists from every section of the country was called tosee what could be done about the fifty-three different times in use bythe various railroads."

  "Fifty-three!" ejaculated Stephen, with a grin. "Why, that was almost asmany as Heinz pickles."

  "In this case the results of the fifty-three varieties were far moremenacing, I am afraid, than those of the fifty-seven," said his father,with a smile, "for travel under such a regime was positively unsafe."

  "I can see that it would be. What did they do?"

  "Well, after every sort of suggestion had been presented it was decidedto divide the country up into four immense parts, separated from oneanother by imaginary lines running north and south."

  "Degrees of longitude?"

  "Precisely!" returned Mr. Tolman, gratified that the boy had caught thepoint so intelligently. "The time of each of these sections jumpedfifteen degrees, or one hour, and the railroads lying in each districtwere obliged to conform to the standard time of their locality. Untilthis movement went into effect there had been, for example, sixso-called standard times to reckon with in going from Boston toWashington."

  "I don't see why everybody didn't get smashed up!"

  "I don't either; and I fancy the passengers and the railroad peopledidn't," declared Mr. Tolman. "But with the new state of things thesnarl was successfully untangled and the roads began to be operated on amore scientific basis. Then followed gradual improvements in cars whichas time went on were made more comfortable and convenient. Theinvention of the steam engine and the development of our steel productswere the two great factors that made our American railroads possible.With the trans-continental roads to carry materials and the opening upof our coal, iron and copper mines we were at last in a position to makeour railroads successful. Then science began to evolve wonderfullabor-saving machinery which did away with the slow, primitive methodsour pioneer engineers had been obliged to employ. The steam shovel wasinvented, the traveling crane, the gigantic derrick, the pile driver.The early railroad builders had few if any of these devices and wereforced to do by hand the work that machinery could have performed inmuch less time. When one thinks back it is pathetic to consider thenumber of lives that were sacrificed which under present-day conditionsmight have been saved. Yet every great movement goes forward over thedead bodies of unnamed heroes. To an extent this is unavoidable and oneof the enigmas of life. If every generation were as wise at thebeginning as it is at the end there would be no progress. Nevertheless,when you reflect that ten thousand Chinese and Chilean laborers diedwhile building one of the South American railroads it does make uswonder why we should be the ones to reap the benefits of so much thatothers sowed, doesn't it?" mused the boy's father.

  "Do you mean to say that ten thousand persons were killed while thatrailroad was being built?" questioned Stephen, aghast.

  "They were not all killed," was the reply. "Many of them died ofexposure to cold, and many from the effects of the climate. Epidemicsswept away hundreds of lives. This particular railroad was one of themightiest engineering feats the world had seen for in its path lay theAndes Mountains, and there was no escape from either crossing ortunneling them. The great tunnel that pierces them at a height of 15,645feet above sea level is one of the marvels of science. In various partsof the world there are other such monuments to man's conquest of theopposing forces of nature. Honeycombing the Alps are spiral tunnels thatcurve round and round like corkscrews inside the mountains, risingslowly to the peaks and making it possible to reach the heights thatmust be traversed. Among these marvels is the Simplon Tunnel, famous theworld over. The road that crosses the Semmering Pass from Trieste toVienna is another example of what man can do if he must. By means of aseries of covered galleries it makes its way through the mountains thatstretch like a wall between Italy and Austria. In the early days thisterritory with its many ravines and almost impassable heights would havebeen considered too difficult to cross. The railroad over the BrennerPass between Innsbruck and Botzen penetrates the mountains of the Tyrolby means of twenty-three tunnels."

  "I learned about the St. Gothard tunnel in school," Steve interruptedeagerly.

  "Yes, that is yet another of the celebrated ones," his fatherrejoined. "In fact, there are now so many of these miracles of skilfulrailroading that we have almost ceased to wonder at them. Railroadsthread their way up Mt. Washington, Mt. Rigi, and many another dizzyaltitude; to say nothing of the cable-cars and funicular roads that takeour breath away when they whirl us to the top of some mountain, eitherin Europe or in our own land. Man has left scarce a corner of our planetinaccessible, until now, not content with scaling the highest peaks bytrain, he has progressed still another stage and is flying over them.Thus do the marvels of one age become the commonplace happenings of thenext. Our ancestors doubtless thought, when they had accomplished themiracles of their generation, that nothing could surpass them. In thesame spirit we regard our aeroplanes and submarines with triumphantpride. But probably the time will come when those who follow us willlook back on what we have done and laugh at our attempts just as youlaughed when I told you of the first railroad."

  Stephen was thoughtful for a moment.

  "It's a great game--living--isn't it, Dad?"

  "It is a great game if you make yourself one of the team and pull on theside of the world's betterment," nodded his father. "Think what such athing as the railroad has meant to millions and millions of people. Notonly has it opened up a country which might have been shut away fromcivilization for centuries; but it has brought men all over the worldcloser together and made it possible for those of one land to visitthose of another and come into sympathy with them. Japan, China, andIndia, to say nothing of the peoples of Europe, are almost our neighborsin these days of ships and railroads."

  "I suppose we should not have known much about those places, should we,"reflected the boy.

  "Certainly not so much as we do now," was his father's answer. "Ofcourse, travelers did go to those countries now and then; but to get farinto their interior in a palanquin carried by coolies, for example, wasa pretty slow business."

  "And uncomfortable, too," Stephen decided. "I guess the natives weremighty glad to see the railroads coming."

  To the lad's surprise his father shook his head.

  "I am afraid they weren't," observed he ruefully. "You recall how eventhe more civilized and better educated English and French opposed thefirst railroads? Well, the ignorant orientals, who were a hundred timesmore superstitious, objected very vehemently. The Chinese in particularfeared that the innovation would put to flight the spirits which theybelieved inhabited the earth, air, and water. Surely, they argued, ifthese gods were disturbed, disaster to the nation must inevitablyfollow. It was almost impossible to convince even the more intelligentleaders that the railroad would be a benefit instead of a menace forbefore the ancient beliefs argument was helpless."

  "Well, the railroads were built just the same, weren't they?"

  "Yes. Fortunately some of the more enlightened were led to see thewisdom of the enterprise, and they converted the others to their viewsor else overrode t
heir protests. They were like a lot of children whodid not know what was best for them and as such they had to be treated.Nevertheless, you may be quite certain that the pioneer days of railroadbuilding in the East were not pleasant ones. Materials had to be carriedfor great distances both by water and by land. In 1864, when the firstlocomotive was taken to Ceylon, it had to be transported on a raft ofbamboo and drawn from the landing place to the track by elephants."

  "Humph!" chuckled Steve. "It's funny to think of, isn't it?"

  "More funny to think of than to do, I guess," asserted his father."Still it is the battle against obstacles that makes life interesting,and in spite of all the hardships I doubt if those first railroad menwould have missed the adventure of it all. Out of their resolution,fearlessness and vision came a wonderful fulfillment, and it must havebeen some satisfaction to know that they had done their share inbringing it about."

  "I suppose that is what Mr. Ackerman meant when he spoke of the historyof steamboating," said the boy slowly.

  "Yes. He and his family had a hand in that great game and I do notwonder he is proud of it. And speaking of Mr. Ackerman reminds me thathe called up this afternoon to ask if you would like to take amotor-ride with him to-morrow morning while I am busy."

  "You bet I would!" was the fervent reply.

  "I thought as much, so I made the engagement for you. He is coming foryou at ten o'clock. And he will have quite a surprise for you, too."

  "What is it?" the boy asked eagerly.

  "It is not my secret to tell," was the provoking answer. "You will knowit in good time."

  "To-morrow?"

  "I think so, yes."

  "Can't you tell me anything about it?"

  "Nothing but that you were indirectly responsible for it."

  "_I!_" gasped Stephen.

  Mr. Tolman laughed.

  "That will give you something to wonder and to dream about," heresponded, rising from the table. "Let us see how much of a SherlockHolmes you are."

  Steve's mind immediately began to speculate rapidly on his father'senigmatic remark. All the way up in the elevator he pondered over theconundrum; and all the evening he turned it over in his mind. At last,tired with the day's activities, he went to bed, hoping that dreamsmight furnish him with a solution of the riddle. But although he slepthard no dreams came and morning found him no nearer the answer than hehad been before.

  He must wait patiently for Mr. Ackerman to solve the puzzle.