DEVOTED PRINCIPALLY TO THE LOCAL INTERESTS OF NORTH FRANKLIN, ITS SUMMER RESORTS, MOUNTAINS AND LAKES. V"ol. I I I . Fm w m & m €&•* M m wm % Mar&M&ar, F e b . 2 6 \ t m t , No. 25. I miles. One of these roads, the Bangor the narrower gauge in the character of a “ Then it would be doubted if the frail the ‘‘f!ionogi?flftb,’! & Bucksport, was changed from the wide feeder of the present trunk lines, whether rails were strong enough to carry even ! gauge, and only two of them carry any broad or narrow gauge, so called. In one person without breaking; but here j freight. ! other words, let us consider an altogether again we are at fault—seven men can get In the year 1878 was the commence- j new departure in railroading. Tltis new on and ride as safely as one. Very good; ment of the railroad panic which gave to j j(jea js not based on theory alone, but lias but such an affair cannot be made to go the narrow gauge roads strength they ; received practical illustration of an ex- at any speed. Hold on ! Don't be too would not have otherwise attained, and : treme kind which admits of no doubt fast. This car with its diminutive wheels the people were ready to take hold ot the ] whatever of its feasibility. If there is has been made to run by the force of grav­ IT* o x* Y o a r . system with a will, for railroads were in j not ;l mistake somewhere and the history itation at the rate of twenty-five miles an demand, but not at such enormous cost 0f .,jj )1Uman experience is not at fault, it hour around winds and curves nearly two- Entered as Second Class Mail Matter. as had been in the past. js destined to accomplish such a revolution thirds its length. Such is the result of In the year 1875 another new departure in the modes of transit throughout sec I experience with the ten-inch gauge on the M. MOORE, E d i t o r & P r o p r i e t o r . in the railroad system came before the tions of the country where ordinary rail- Summer Heights and Hazlewood Valley public, by the introduction of a railroad ways would never penetrate, as will su- j Railroad, the narrowest gauge in the with a gauge of only ten inches, for the percede the use of the stage coach and world. RAILWAYS; purpose of gaining attention, so as to the heavy country teams now used to “ During his experiments Mr.*Mansfield their d irth -pla cp, rise & progress. place before the public the narrower haul the product of the farm and forest to has steadily held In view the prime object gauge system with a gauge of two feet. stations for market. This new departure, of utilizing the narrower gauge in a most 1630—1829—1881. This ten inch gauge railroad was built in this idea of narrow gauge railways, is the comprehensive manner that shall he ex­ the town of Hyde Park, Mass., eight miles result of the thought and experience of plained further along. He has visited Broad and Narrow Gauges—7 and 2 Feet. from Boston. The length of the road was Mr. Geo. E. Mansfield, a native of Wal­ nearly all the railroads and especially nearly one-third mile. Tt was completed pole, N. H., but now a resident of Hyde many of the narrow gauges and has main­ BY <t. K. M A N SK IE I.D .— II I . in the month of August, 1875, and was Park, in this state where his advanced tained an extensive correspondence with opened for the carrying of passengers work has been carried out. railway men, machinist, iron-workers and I he Denver & Rio Grande Railroad or­ free, and carried some 4,000 persons who “ Mr. Mansfield when a boy constructed contractors. He has inquired into prices ganized in 1870, instead of 1881. The came from various place to visit it. The a small railrord on his father’s farm, on and calculated to a nicety what engines, seating capacity of the passenger car was steepest grade w#s 612 feet to the mile, cars, rails, sleepers, etc., on such a road which the cars were propelled by gravita­ thirty-three, weight of car 1200 lbs. The with an average grade of 280 feet.— tion, and during his whole life has had a as he would construct would cost, until he has arrived at conclusions that would ap­ t'at and box cars had a capacity for six to j The sharpest curves are 14,25 and 43 passion for railroading which led him to '■,'?ht tons, with a weight of 6000 to 8000 feet radius. 'Hie longest straight line on j ' . , , c ... , B inquire into and become familiar with all pear to be as surprising as they would be lbs.; were 24 feet long and 7 feet wide. tlic road was titty hit. I Here "as one the details of construction and operation valuable when adopted. The ten-inch The locomotives were the common Anieri- bridge 60 feet long on a curve of 126 feet of raUwavs. He lias constructed near his gauge was adopted by him in his experi­ Make, with a separate tender, weigh- radius and grade of 317 feet. The weight j Qwn holm. }lt Summcr „eight8, in Hyde ments as an extreme narrow gauge, and ln8 from 12 to 17 tons. Weight of the ofthecarswasoi.lv 100 to 150pounds, and I Park> a narrow ^ railwar about H therefore all the better to demonstrate the ra*li 35 lbs. to the yard. The first spike carried more than six times their own third of a mile in length. The road starts problem he was working out. His practi­ "as driven July 28th, 1871, and the road weight and with a rate of speed of twenty- from the summit of a small hill just back cal conclusion is that’for all purposes to was opened to the public Oct. 27th follow- five miles per hour. The proprietor and of the Hazlewood station, on the Boston which his style of railway could be applied |n8. the first division of sixteen miles hav- builder was interviewed by a Boston Her­ & Providence Railroad, and after winding a gauge of two feet would be all-sufficient. ln8 been completed at a cost of ^20,000 ald representative and by others a numher round the hill by sharp curves, comes A road ot this kind could be operated for ,K>r Mile. This road met with great suc- of times, wishing to know what sort of a down through his back yard and by an ap- j trafHc with il twenty-five pound (to the Cess- Its projected line was over 1,500 scheme he was trying to introduce, or if parently very dangerous curve shoots ; )'ard) iron rail; freight ears with a capae- n»'le« long, and at the present time nearly it was a mere plaything for children. Af- - obijqUe]y acro8S omj street, closely sliar- dy of six to eight tons, be made to weigh 1)000 miles of it is in operation. The road ter getting the road completed and in ! j„g a street corner where it runs over a ! not over 2 tons 5 passenger cars that, as(-‘ends to the highest altitude of any road successful operation, the builder was j smau bridge and then across another '* wo’dd comfortably seat thirty passengers hi the country and is worked as a grand ready for an interview and gave to the j gtret.t t(J t|K, j,j(|e near ,|1C radroadj and with single seats on each side, the cars to tumk line. The weight of the locomo- enquirer the full plan. Most people look- i tbt.nce a sliort distance parallel with the ; Rot much over four tons; and last­ 1Ves has been increased to 40 tons, and ed upon it as a fallacy. latter. The ties or sleepers are composed *}’> engines of from seven to twelve tons "eight of cars increased with more 1 lie following extracts ftom the Boston j ()j. nurrow strips of inch board about fif- that would haul on a level front 300 to I(lth and carrying capacity. Sunday Herald, of Oct. 24tli, "ill gi\e j teen inches long, upon which arc nailed tons, could be readily adapted to such After the opening of the Denver & Rio you a full idea of the interview. j ^wjtb sniaj| finisli nails) rails made of soft a road and give the necessary speed ttced- ra”de road, narrow gauge roads were “ The history of narrow gauge seems to wood, about an inch square and six inches j ed. All the equipments could be built laPidly built in the western states. The make a progressive era in railroading. apart. On these are nailed narrow strips j and operated at a surprisingly low cost !’e°Ple were thoroughly aroused to the The early broad gauge so expensive to of thin hoop-iron, and the whole affair is anfl would transport freight and passen- ""portance of the cheaper system, so build and keep in repair has really died eompletc. The car used on this road is a S^rs »t a good profit for at least one-half htch so that many roads were hastily and out. But of late years it lias been dem­ platform, about three feet wide and seven ; of wiiat is now charged for that service oi,eaPly built, regardless of tlie future onstrated that a much narrower g au g e- feet long, and the diameter of the wheels i by railroads.