Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 January 1919 — 400 LOCOMOTIVES SENT TO FRANCE [ARTICLE]

400 LOCOMOTIVES SENT TO FRANCE

Dispatched Intact, Ready for Steam, by the Army Transport Service. 1,200 SHIPPED IN SECTIONS Record of 12 Days Made From Shops In This Country to Lines at the Front—Great Work ft;. Now Revealed! Washington;—Shipment of Americanbuilt steam locomotives, each weighing 73 tons, and assembled all except the smokestack and the tender, so that they ♦■ould move away—under their own steam within a few hotirs after their arrival in France, was among the accomplishments of the United States armytransport force under stress of war. and has since been continued. More than 400 of these locomotives were so shipped from New York in a few months, it was learned here with the lifting of the war censorship regulations, and these were in addition to 1.200 which were shipped in sections, nine to a locomotive, packed in cases. The ships used to transport the locomotives complete were of a special type with three holds, each hold measuring 60 by 102 feet, entered by hatches 39 feet wide and 42 feet long. — —— — — —— — — Into each of the three holds were placed 12 locomotives—36 to a ship. A bed or flooring on which they reitLed for the voyage required more than 3.000 tons of steel Tails. The locomotives when „in position were braced with heavy wooden beams and the space between the boilers tb the level of the top of the steam dome packed solid with highly compressed baled hay. Compressed Hay Under Flooring. On this hay another flooring was laid, and on this floor was placed the tenders—the smokestacks, with more baled hay or other light cargo, packed in the space where coal is to ’be carried. On top of the tenders was packed still more cargo to the deck level, and during the“rush days” the above-deck spa,ce filled with crated airplanes. When completely loaded with the 36 locomotives and other carg<ueat& vessel was carrying a dead

weight of 14,000 tons in addition to ship machinery, bunker coal and crew supplies. The loading of the locomotives is an interesting sight. Steel railroad barges carrying 14 of the steel monsters are m ade fa st al on gside a 100-ton capacity floating derrick barge, in turn made fast to Hie ship. An ordinary sling of steel wire is placed around the forward end of the boilers, another under the supports to the cab, the signal given and the locomotive lifted 40 or 50 feet in the air. swung over and gently loaded into the ship’s hold. The whole operation required but 20 minutes, and it was accomplished with the same ease and the same lack of excitement as prevailed on board a steamship at an adjoining dock which was taking on board 500-pound.... bales... of cotton. The idea of shipping locomotives complete was conceived when army_j transport officers were informed that England was shipping them across the channel ready to move away on arrival. ’ “America Can Do It* “If England can do it. so can America,” an officer said, and he straightway commandeered a fleet of ore-carry-ing vessels which were constructed with hatches large enough to permit the handling of such freight. When the movement was at its height the following time was recorded for the movement of a locomotive from its builders to its base of action behind the battle lines: Shops to New Jersey terminals. 24 honrs; from rail to barges, 6 hours; from terminals to ship side, 6 hours; barge to ship, 20 minutes: New York to France, 9 days; ship to army rail lines and hooked Up to a transport train bound for the front, 6 hours; a total of less than 12 days. Handling of 73-ton locomotives as’ if they were but one-tenth of their weight is only a small part of the tremendous work that has been uiider way at army transport piers since the United States transport service attained full Swing. Maj. Han O’Brien, marine director, an officer who has won his rank .by more , than 20 years’ service in every port of the s United States, Cuba, Mexico and the Philippines, where transport facilities 6fthe army were centered, is the man who handled the locomotives. I