Trunk line

“ The mere manual exercise of stacking a 60-foot baggage-car from floor to ceiling with heavy trunks (and the commercial travellers and theatrical folk do carry heavy trunks) is no slight matter. But that is not all. The trunk put off at the wrong place or the trunk that is not put off at all is apt to make the railroad an enemy for life and the baggageman is another one of the many in the service who are permitted to make no mistakes. ”

“ There is also associated with each trunk connexion a device which lights a lamp as soon as the scheduled limit of the period of conversation is reached.
Where the volume of traffic over any route is considerable, the requirements to the distant town may be notified over a separate circuit reserved for the purpose, and the local connexions involving the use of junction circuits to other local exchanges can be established in advance, thus minimizing the time of occupation of the main circuits and securing the greatest possible effective use of the trunk lines. ”

“ The Adjustable Trunk.—Some kinds of traveling bags can be adjusted to suit the degree of baggage a traveler needs. Some similar arrangement should be supplied for trunks. A half-filled trunk is more apt to be broken than a full one. ”

“ As the pilot or truck wheels enter a curve, a sidewise movement is given to the truck, in consequence of the engine and drivers continuing to travel as a tangent to the curve of the track. This movement, and the slight turn of the whole truck on the kingbolt, not only causes the wheels to travel correctly on the track, with their axles parallel to the radical line of the curve of track, but also elevates the outer side of the engine, preventing any tendency to run off the track upon the outer side of the curve. ”

“ A trunk, mounted upon four legs, is brought out on the stage and proven to be empty by turning it all the way around to show that there is nothing on the back, whereupon pieces of plate glass are placed along the back, sides, and front, the trunk is closed and given a swift turn and then opened, when to the amazement of all, a lady steps out appearing to come from nowhere. ”

“ On our home and continental lines, the modern express locomotive, with a four-wheel bogie truck in front, is a much longer vehicle than its predecessors, and its total weight is distributed over a greater wheel-base; but the actual weight placed upon the driving-wheels, or on the coupled wheels, is now very much in excess of former practice, and must be taken into consideration when working out the details of girders and cross-girders of under-line bridges. ”

“ The taking over by motor trucks of short-haul freight and passenger traffic, even though it cause the discontinuation of unprofitable branch lines may prove to roads but a pruning which will be beneficial and inure to the growth of the main trunk and remaining healthy branches. ”

“ Where the Minister considers that it is expedient that any road across a trunk road should pass under or over the trunk road, he may for that purpose construct a bridge under or over the trunk road, and such connections between the trunk road and the other road as he considers desirable, and may also construct approaches to any such bridge or connection ”

“ A trunk that will not stand wear and tear is not worth having. One need not purchase an expensive trunk, but one can not afford to purchase a cheap one. The material employed must be good, though the appearance need not be luxurious. If one can afford the price, one may find trunks where separate trays are provided for each gown or where indeed frocks may be hung at full length and come forth at the end of a journey as they might come from my lady’s closet. ”

“ They are jerked on to a movable truck, that grips them, and turns them about with mechanical arms into the required position for cutting, and then log and truck are driven at the saw blade, which slices beams or planks out of the primitive trunk with an almost sinister ease. ”

“ The customs guard says your other trunk has already been examined, passed, and placed on the baggage van. He was trying to tell you that it would be necessary for you to permit a porter to take this trunk to the train before time for starting. With your permission——"
The stranger turned and halloed to a porter, who came running. Miss Gerson had the trunk locked and strapped in no time, and it was on the shoulders of the porter.
"You have very little time. Miss Gerson. The train will be making a start directly. If I might—ah—pilot you through the station to the proper train shed. ”

“ But the great paradox of packing is that a trunk is always full when you close it and always three-quarters empty when you open it. The trunk that nothing but violent stamping will shut is the very trunk that, a few hours later, bounces your possessions about like beans in a rattle ”

“ He waltzes out a great trunk on its corners till they are as dog-eared as a school reader. He keeps carpet-bags in the air like a juggler. While one is going up another is coming down. Hinges of trunks give way. There is a smell of camphor and paregoric, and a jingle of glass, and a display of woman's apparel. They are all bundled up like an armful of fodder, and thrust back into the offending trunk, and a big word is tumbled in after them—to keep things down.
THE BAGGAGE SMASHER.
Meanwhile, the tremendous voice of the check-master tolls like a bell, "4689 Cleveland! ”

“ That the goods taken from Inglis & Horner’s shop were put into the said two trunks, sent to the said Berwick carrier’s quarters, and to the Newcastle waggoner’s, as mentioned in his former declaration; that the direction on the round trunk is, as he believes, of the handwriting of Ainslie, and the direction upon the other of the handwriting of Brown, of which he is certain. All which is truth, &c. ”

“ I try to crawl over the top of the truck, between the truck and the bottom of the car. But the space is not large enough for me to squeeze through. This is new to me. Down in the United States I am accustomed to going underneath on rapidly moving trains, seizing a gunnel and swinging my feet under to the brake-beam, and from there crawling over the top of the truck and down inside the truck to a seat on the cross-rod. ”

“ The Cars for this railway will have their trucks constructed alike, and it is a simple matter to transform a car from one style into another. Figure 79 shows a top view of a truck. For the bed of this cut a three-eighths-inch board twelve inches long by two and one-quarter inches wide, and, after rounding the ends as shown in the drawing, cut a mortise at A and B two and three-eighths inches from either end. ”

“ The velocity with which all these little parcels are booked, weigh-billed, placed into hand-trucks, wheeled off to their respective vans, packed, locked up, and then despatched down the little branch-rail to the main line, on which is the train ready to convey them, is very surprising. ”

“ But to give perfect vertical adjustment of such an engine to the track, still another provision must be made. Everyone has observed that a three-legged stool will always stand firm on any surface, no matter how irregular, but one with four legs will not. Now if the back end of a locomotive should rest on the fulcrums of the equalizing levers, as shown in Figure 15, and the front end should rest on the two sides of the truck, it would be in the condition of the four legged stool. ”

“ The body bolster rests upon the truck bolster, and at the point of contact there is a device called the center bearing plate, which, acting in connection with a king bolt, permits the truck to conform to inequalities and curvatures in the track, regardless of the direction of the axis of the car body. ”

“ In running on either a straight or curved track one of the truck wheels often breaks off, and the truck swivels around on its center pin in consequence, and throws the engine off the track, but with my device one wheel, or even the two wheels on the opposite sides diagonally of the truck might break off and still the truck would not run off, because its position is set and it has no axis of motion around which it could swing.... ”

“ The carriage which sustains the plank or board to be operated upon, may be moved forwards by means of a rack and pinion, by an endless chain, or band, by geared friction rollers, or by any of the devices well known to machinists for advancing a carriage, or materials to be acted upon in machines for various purposes. The plank or board is to be moved on towards the cutting edges of the cutters, or knives, on the planing cylinder, so that its knives or cutters, as they revolve, may meet and cut the plank or board, in a direction contrary to that in which it is made to advance. ”

“ For smaller vehicles, a single four-wheel truck is used, the wheel base being limited by the curvature of the track, but not as a rule exceeding 71⁄2 ft. For the longer and heavier cars, two four wheeled bogie trucks are employed. If two motors are used on a double-truck car, and if the grades on the road are very heavy, the trucks are made on the “ maximum traction ” pattern, in which one pair of wheels in each truck is of smaller diameter than the other and the greater part of the weight of the car is on the larger motor driven wheels. ”

“ The drawing by which the specification is illustrated shows the frame of an ordinary street car provided with a door which is supported upon and moves back and forth upon suitable pulleys and ways, which, it is said, may be arranged in any desired manner. Passing through the bar from which the hand-straps are suspoended, and which is made hollow, is a rod or rock-shaft which has a lever or crank upon its front end within easy reach of the driver. ”

“ He struggles away to hail a four-wheeler. You push your way with the others down toward the front of the train to where the baggage is being thrown out on the platform. You seize a porter and engage him to attend to the handling of the trunks. As you point them out he loads them onto a truck. ”

“ The door is pushed back into the groove in which it works, and then the sorter, touching a spring that holds up the net, it is loosened from its supports, and projects over the carriage-sides; the iron arm, acting on its pulley-rope, is drawn round into the carriage, where the pouch is rapidly fastened to it by means of a catch or spring—but in such a manner that a touch from the net-apparatus at the station will bring it off—and then let down, remaining by virtue of its own weight at right angles to the door. ”

“ The lateral movements of the trunk in ordinary locomotion do not affect the mechanism: it is only when the trunk is alternately flexed and extended in the vertical plane that the mechanism comes into play and a noise is {357}produced. ”

“ When you are certain the structure is firm and can stand the strain and weight of a loaded car, lay the two-by-four rails upon the ground, and fit them to the car-wheels by pushing the car over them, to see that they are just the right distance apart. If you make your track too wide the car-wheels will slip off the rails and run between them, and if you lay your track with too narrow a gauge the rails will pinch the flanges of the wheels so tightly that the car will stop, or the rails spread. ”

“ In practice it is found that in shunting by gravitation, no two trucks run exactly alike, some railway companies and private owners keeping their stock in better order than others, and much depending upon the precise condition of the tyres and axle-boxes, the length of the wheel base, the nature of the load, and the description of brake gear employed. Strong winds also affect the running, especially of covered vans lightly loaded ”

“ And the first and most vital of these is that no company must be allowed to lay any tram or other line along a road unless they agree at their own charges to increase the width of the metalled surface of the road by the width of the largest car which they propose to place on the road—say eight feet. ”

“ No one is on the platform. When the train comes to a standstill, I slip off to the ground. Ahead, and between me and the engine, are two moving lanterns. The shacks are looking for me on the roofs of the cars. I note that the car beside which I am standing is a "four-wheeler"--by which is meant that it has only four wheels to each truck. (When you go underneath on the rods, be sure to avoid the "six-wheelers,"--they lead to disasters.)
I duck under the train and make for the rods, and I can tell you I am mighty glad that the train is standing still. ”

“ A closed luggage van, 15 ft. in length, but otherwise of the same pattern as the cars, concludes the list, and is used to convey luncheons, teas, etc., for large parties, to the station where refreshments are served. The extreme height of the closed cars is 6 ft.
All the wagons and cars are carried on chilled iron wheels, 131⁄2 in. diameter, cast in my foundry. The axles, as has been stated, vary from 2 in. to 21⁄2 in. in diameter, and on to these the wheel on one side is forced by a hydraulic pressure of about 15 tons, while the opposite wheel runs loose to reduce the curve friction. ”

“ Glue the upper end of the brake to the chauffeur's hand and the lower end to the side of the wagon.
Paint the Wagon with water colors, making the sides, end, and roof olive green, the steering-wheel, brake, and spokes of wheels black, and the lamps yellow or the color of brass. In painting the sides show the battery compartments upon them below what would properly be the bottom of the wagon (see illustration) . Leave the cardboard white below this box, as it represents no portion of the machine, but is necessarily brought down so far to conceal the wooden frame. ”

“ All makes of trucks are more or less alike in general construction, differing only in minor details, so that the personal whims of the buyer will largely determine the kind he will select. It is advantageous to have as long a distance as possible between the driver’s seat and the bunk over the rear axle, in order to allow more of the load to be carried by the truck, and less by the trailer, giving better traction to the drive wheels, but necessitating extra strong rear springs and axles. ”