Used to gather of an evenin' when th' old down train was due,

'count, ornery and pore,

Used to be a heap o' pleasure when th' down train come in,

teen's side-tracked you ag'in."

An' "Accommodation's" canceled sence th' trolley's come to town.

Used to go to that old depot just as reg'lar as th' day,

Sit around and whittle freight up, er

whatever come our way;

Spit an' cuss and chaw terbacker-swap old yarns th' brakies toldSeemed t' me them depot stories never lagged ner got too old,

But them days is gone forever an' th' depot's tumblin' down,

An' "Accommodation's" canceled sence th' trolley's come to town.

conductor frown,

At' th' orders Bill 'ud give them-but th' trolley's come to town.

'Lectric cars may be more modern, up-todate, an' all o' that,

But I wish "Accommodation" 'd come back where it once come at.

I just want to see th' faces of th' railroad men ag'in,

An' to be down to th' depot when th' train comes whistlin' in,

Want to go down there an' loaf therebut th' depot's tumbling down,

An' my heart's a-crumblin' with it-sence the trolley's come to town.

-Anon.

Technical

Company.

The tandem compound, now widely used in heavy freight service, differs from all other compound systems in that the cylinders are arranged in pairs on each side of the engine, the high-pressure cylinder being forward of the low-pressure

pressure cylinders the valves, also of piston type, control admission at the outer edge of steam ports. This design of valves allows steam to be admitted to the same side of each piston by means of the crossed ports in the high pressure cylinders. The valves are shown open to admit steam, the pistons being at the beginning of the stroke.

cylinder, and having both pistons on the same rod. The general arrangement of pistons, cylinders and valves is shown in Fig. 1, in which the steam chest is common to both cylinders, being open from end to end and serving the purpose of a receiver. The valves being hollow, permit an unrestricted flow of steam through the steam chest, and there being no receiver pipe on these engines the smokebox is fitted up with steam pipes and exhaust pipe exactly the same as in the case of simple engines.

On the high pressure cylinders the walves, which are of the piston type, control the admission of steam at the inner

The saddle and cylinders are shown in Fig. 2, in section and front view, in which are seen the steam and exhaust passages of the low-pressure cylinder at the left, and the relation of steam chest to both cylinders on the right. Connecting with the steam pipe passage is an opening extending from front to back of saddle on each side. on which is a flange to receive the short steam pipe which conveys steam to the high-pressure steam chest on which is a like flange to which this steam pipe is secured. The purpose of the passage through each half of the saddle is to make the cylinders interchangeable for use on either right or left side.

inder. The by-pass valves for the highpressure cylinders are also contained in the casing of this starting valve, and are worked in connection with the latter. When working the locomotive simple that is, to admit live steam directly to the low pressure cylinders-the starting valve A is placed in position shown in Fig. 3 by means of a lever in the cab connecting with jaw on end of the spindle of

mitted to ports E and G, and passes around the by-pass valves BB into port H, or from H through G and E to D, the valves BB being held up to their seats by pressure below through port C, which opens directly into the steam chamber of chest. Steam having access to both highpressure steam ports, passes through both hollow piston valves and is admitted to the low-pressure cylinders, the engine

working as a simple locomotive. When working compound, the starting valve A in Fig. 3 is brought to lap on port E, shutting off high-pressure steam from its passage into the low-pressure end of steam chest. Under these conditions no steam can reach the low-pressure cylinder except from the exhaust of the highpressure cylinder, which passes through the hollow valve to the low-pressure steam chest, and the engine, therefore, works as a compound.

quantity of water carried in the boiler, with the view of using steam as dry as possible. In common with other types of compounds the tandem will do more economical and satisfactory work operated as a compound, and should never be worked as a simple engine except in starting, or when likely to stall, and then only long enough to overcome the resistance of the train. This design of compound may be treated the same as a simple engine as to removal of parts or blocking

At times when the engine is not work ing steam, or drifting, the by-pass valves BB in Fig. 3, being in a vertical position, fall away from their seats by gravity and give a clear opening between the two ends of the high-pressure cylinder. The by-pass valves, Fig. 4, for the low-pressure cylinders are also in a vertical position, and are held down to their seats by the steam pressure when working steam. When running with closed throttle, the by-pass valves (Fig. 4) are raised from their seats by any pressure on the lower side assisted by the spring under valve. With the valves raised from their seats there is a continuous opening between the two ends of the low-pressure cylinder, through cylinder steam ports into steam chest, providing relief from back pressure when drifting, by equalizing the pressure in the cylinders.

The tandem compound, like any other locomotive, requires care in operation and maintenance to insure maximum efficiency. Attention must be given to the

of crossheads, when necessary to disconnect on the road in case of accident. CORRESPONDENT.

Knowledge Is Power, but a Little Knowledge Is a Dangerous Thing.

."I wonder," said fireman McCool, "if de trainmen ain't a goin' to do some knockin'. I see der grievance squad wid deir horse show clothes on, yesterday, goin' to 'arst de 'Old Man's' office."

"Huh!" observed Heiny Stein. "It aindt a good idea to dress up clotheshorsey when you go up by der 'Old Man' to get more raisin's on your pay, yet."

The boys were talking "between courses" at the dining-table in our boarding house this morning, and the air-brake instructor, who had just finished his breakfast, said: "Well, if things are going wrong for the trainmen I hope they will get matters adjusted satisfactorily.