THE FIRST LESSON
The dispatchers' office is, as has already been remarked, the brain of
the railroad. It is there that all orders relating to the movement of
trains originate; and these orders keep the blood circulating, as it
were--keep the system alive. Let the brain be inefficient, and this
movement becomes clogged and uncertain; traffic no longer flows smoothly,
as it does when the brain is well. Fortunately, the brain of a railroad
can be replaced when it breaks down or wears out, and in so far the
road is superior to a mere human being, who has only one brain and can
never, by any possible means, get another. And so there is about the road
something terrible and remorseless.
Every one has heard the story of Frankenstein, that unfortunate scientist
who conceived the idea that he might make a man; who did really succeed
in manufacturing a being something akin to human shape, and in animating
it with life. But, alas, he could not give it a soul, and the monster
turned against its creator, pursuing him and his loved ones with
implacable fury and torturing them with fiendish delight. The railroad
is such a monster; made by man to be his servant, but greater than its
maker; grinding out men's lives, in its fury; wearing out their brains in
its service, and then discarding them; for the road must have always the
best, and the jaded and second-best must step down and out.
Nowhere is the ruthlessness of this great machine more evident than in
the dispatchers' office, for it is here that the strain is always at the
highest; and it is here, too, that deterioration is at once apparent, and
is swiftly and inexorably punished. A defect of judgment, a momentary
indecision, a mistake, and the delinquent's days as a train-dispatcher
are at an end.
In the office at Wadsworth there were always two dispatchers on duty.
One had charge of the hundred miles of track stretching eastward to
Parkersburg, and the other had charge of the hundred miles of track
stretching southwestward to Cincinnati. The first is called the east
end and the other the west end. There are six dispatchers, each of them
being on duty eight hours a day. The first trick begins at seven in the
morning and lasts till three in the afternoon; the second begins at three
and lasts till eleven at night, and the third begins at eleven and lasts
till seven in the morning. The new dispatcher begins with the third
trick, east end, and gradually works up, as the other places are made
vacant by promotions and dismissals, to the first trick, west end. From
there, he graduates to the chief-dispatchership, and on to trainmaster,
superintendent, general superintendent, and general manager. That is the
regular ladder of promotion--a ladder which, it may be added, very few
have the strength to climb.
All the men in the dispatchers' office of course knew Allan, and liked
him, and he received a hearty greeting when he arrived for his first
morning's instruction. He drew up a chair beside the first trick man on
the west end, popularly known as "Goody," not because of any fundamental
traits of character, but because his name happened to be Goodnough.
"Goody" had reached his present position of primacy by working up
regularly through the various grades, and train-dispatching had become
to him a sort of second nature. He was a good-humoured, companionable
fellow, with an inexhaustible fund of anecdote and a fondness for
practical jokes which not even advancing years and a twinge of rheumatism
now and then could diminish. It is related of him--but, there, to recount
half the things related of him would be to add another book to this
series.
Allan, as we have said, drew up his chair beside him and took his first
real lesson in train-dispatching. He had, of course, a general idea of
how the thing was done, but never before had any one taken the time or
trouble to explain its intricacies to him. The dispatcher sat before a
long desk, on which, beside his key, sounder, bottle of ink, pens, and
so on, lay the train-sheet, upon which the movement of every train was
entered. The sheet, reduced to its simplest form, appears on the opposite
page.
Just as Allan sat down, the operator at Harper's called up and reported
that Number Seven had passed there at 7.02. The dispatcher acknowledged
the message and wrote "7.02" in the column devoted to Train No. 7,
opposite Harper's. A moment later, the operator at Madeira reported the
passage of No. 70 at 6.04. This was also duly acknowledged and noted, and
so on through the day, the columns of figures on the sheet were added to,
showing the position, at that particular moment, of every train, freight
or passenger, on the west end of the division. On the opposite side of
the table sat the dispatcher in charge of the east end, recording, in a
precisely similar manner, the progress of the trains on his end of the
line.
When a conductor and engineer are called, they report at once at the
dispatchers' office, where there is a registry-book which they must
sign. Passenger conductors and engineers, as well as passenger-engines,
have regular runs, which they always make unless some accident prevents.
Freight conductors and engineers are assigned to trains in the order in
which they sign the book. There are in the employ of the road two men
known as "callers," whose sole business it is to notify the trainmen when
they are wanted. For instance, three freight-trains are scheduled to
leave, one at ten o'clock, another at 10.10, and a third at 10.20. It is
the caller's business to see that the crews for these trains are ready
to take the trains out. A freight crew consists of engineer and fireman,
conductor and two brakemen. The conductor and one brakeman, known as
the rear-man, ride in the caboose. The other brakeman, known as the
front-man, rides in the cab of the engine, and makes himself useful by
ringing the bell, watching for signals, and so on, when he is not engaged
in setting or releasing the brakes, or helping make up the train.
[Illustration: P. AND O. Railway--Train Sheet]
++=====================================================================++
|| P. AND O. RAILWAY--_Train Sheet_ ||
++------------------------------------+--------------------------------++
|| EAST BOUND | WEST BOUND ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+-----+----+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | | | | | | | | | ||
|| No. | |No. 14| No. 22|No. 102| Train |No. 1 | No. 7| | No. | No. ||
|| 70 | | | | | | | | | 97 | 71 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
||Grace| |Hawkes|Harris | Smith |Conductor |Brown | Jones| | Hall|Hess ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
||Hill | | Curry|Rosland|Jackson| Engineer |Snyder|Hooker| |Price|Roads||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| 906 | | 1836 | 1430 | 1862 | Engine | 1473 | 1416 | | 916 | 912 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| 26 | | 6 | 5 | 6 | Cars | 8 | 5 | | 28 | 32 ||
++=====+-+======+=======+=======+==========+======+======+=+=====+=====++
||A. M.| |A. M. | A. M. | A. M.| | | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
||5:15 | | | 6:15 | 2:40 |Cincinnati| | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
||5:50 | | | 6:45 | 3:00 | Norwood | | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | | | 3:12 | Madeira | | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | | | 3:27 | Loveland | | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 4:35 | | 4:06 | Midland | 6:42 | | | | ||
|| | | | | | City | | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 5:07 | | | Highland | 6:15 | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 5:12 | | | Leesburg | 6:12 | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 5:18 | | | East | 6:07 | | |6:59 | ||
|| | | | | | Monroe | | | | | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 5:32 | | |Greenfield| 5:56 | | |6:40 | ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | | | | Thrifton | | | | |7:00 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 5:48 | | | Lyndon | 5:48 | | |6:24 |6:50 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 5:54 | | | Harper's | 5:43 | | |6:18 |6:40 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 6:03 | | | Roxabel | 5:34 | 6:54 | |6:03 |6:25 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 6:07 | | | Musselman| 5:31 | 6:48 | |5:48 |6:07 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 6:12 | | | Anderson | 5:25 | 6:42 | |5:40 |5:50 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | 6:25 | | | Wadsworth| 5:14 | 6:30 | |5:24 |5:34 ||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | |A. M. | | | | A. M.| A. M.| |A. M.|A. M.||
++-----+-+------+-------+-------+----------+------+------+-+-----+-----++
|| | | | | | | | | | | ||
++=====+++======+=======+=======+==========+======+======+=+=====+=====++
For each train that goes out, then, five men must be in readiness.
The caller looks through his book, sees whose turn it is, goes to the
dwellings of the men to be called, and notifies them of the hour they
must be on duty. If any of them are ill or absent, he goes on and calls
some one else. The passenger-trainmen, having regular runs, know, of
course, the hours they must report for duty and do not need to be called.
They are also paid a monthly salary, whereas the earnings of the freight
crews vary with the amount of business done by the road. For each man
must wait his turn. When business is slack and few freight-trains are
needed, that turn is often a long time coming; but when business is
heavy it frequently happens that the road finds itself short of men
and the same crew which has just brought in one train is compelled to
take out another, and is sometimes on duty for sixteen, twenty-four,
and even thirty-six hours at a stretch. It is then that nerves give
way, that memories fail, that eyes which should be alert grow dim and
weary,--orders are forgotten, signals are unseen, and a bad accident
follows. Freight-men are paid by the trip, and not infrequently, in busy
seasons, they make double time--that is, get in two days' work in every
twenty-four hours.
As has been said, the engineers and conductors register at once at the
dispatchers' office. Then the engineer goes on to the lower yards to look
over his engine and see that it is in good shape, while the conductor
waits for his orders. These are given to him in duplicate, one copy
for himself and one for the engineer. He reads his copy aloud to the
dispatcher, compares his watch with the big official clock, and then goes
down to his train. As soon as the engine is coupled on, he gives the
engineer his copy of the orders, which the engineer must read aloud to
him. Then they compare watches, and the conductor goes off to show the
orders to the rear brakeman, while the engineer shows his copy to the
fireman and front brakeman. Thus every member of the crew knows under
what orders the train is to proceed and its movement is not dependent
upon the memory of one man alone. The dispatcher has also kept a copy of
the orders, which he files away. At the time appointed in the orders, the
conductor gives the word and the train starts on its journey.
The dispatcher has, meanwhile, entered the number of the train, the
names of conductor and engineer, the number of the engine and the number
of cars on the train-sheet, as well as the hour and minute of the train's
departure. When it passes the first station, the operator there calls
up the dispatcher and reports the hour and minute at which it passed.
This also is entered on the sheet, and as the train proceeds, the column
of figures devoted to it grows. The record of east-bound trains starts
at the top of the sheet and grows downward, while that of west-bound
trains starts at the bottom of the sheet and grows upward. It should
be remembered that east-bound trains always bear even numbers, and
west-bound trains odd numbers.
By this method, the dispatcher keeps a record on the sheet before him
of the progress of every train. He knows the exact position of every
train, or, at least, he knows the last station passed by each, and the
probable time of its arrival, barring accident, at the next station. His
problem is to keep all the trains moving, to keep a clear track for the
passengers so that they can run on time, and to arrange meeting-points
for trains going in opposite directions so that there will be no
unnecessary delays.
It should be understood that, while a few of the larger railroads are
double-tracked, the great bulk of the railroad business of this country
is done over single-track roads. On these roads, points of meeting or
passing must be at sidings, upon which one train can run while the other
passes on the main track. Such sidings are usually at stations, and the
problem of making the trains meet there is a very delicate one.
In order to accomplish this with the least delay, the trains are divided
into classes. The east-bound passengers always have the right of way,
and expect a clear track. West-bound passengers must make arrangements
to get out of the way of east-bound ones, but have precedence over all
other trains. Regular freight-trains must make provision to leave the
track clear for the passengers, while the extra freights, which have no
regular schedule, creep from station to station as best they can, giving
all the other trains a clear track--a sort of yellow dog which every one
is privileged to kick.
All the regular trains, passenger and freight, run by the time-card. That
is, each of them has its regular time for reaching and leaving every
station on the road, and as long as all the trains are on time, things
move smoothly and the dispatcher has an easy time of it. But it is indeed
a red-letter day when all trains are on time. So many things may happen,
there are so many possible causes of delay, that almost inevitably some
of the trains will run behind. It is then that the dispatcher shows the
stuff that is in him; if he knows his business thoroughly, he will not
only keep the trains moving promptly, but will give those that are behind
a chance to make up some of the time which they have lost.
The rules given for dispatchers in the book of rules are short--only
about a third as long as those for section-foremen. They state that the
dispatcher reports to the superintendent, that it is his duty to issue
orders for the movement of trains and to see that they are transmitted
and recorded, that he may not go off duty until another dispatcher
relieves him and that he must explain to the dispatcher coming on the
train-orders in force.
But how small a portion of the dispatcher's duty this really represents!
He must "know the road,"--every grade, siding, and curve. Nay, more; he
must know the pitch of every grade, or he will give his engines such
heavy loads that they will not be able to get over the road. He must
know the capacity of every siding, or he may name one as a meeting-point
for trains too long to pass there, except by breaking the trains up and
see-sawing by a few cars at a time. He must know the capacity of every
engine, so that he can tell just how many cars it can handle. He must
know the disposition of every conductor and engineer, for some will
complain without cause, while some will never ask for help until they
absolutely need it. As a telegrapher, he must be expert in the highest
degree; he must be quick and sure of decision, of an iron nerve and with
a calmness which nothing can disturb.
None of which things are mentioned in the book of rules!