Rensselaer Union, Volume 8, Number 4, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 October 1875 — Amateur Engineering. [ARTICLE]

Amateur Engineering.

An effect of the widening use of steam machinery is that it tends to raise up a multitude of men who—trusting rather to that familiarity that breeds contempt than to the practical knowledge of the na--1 ture and properties of steam which every trustworthy engineer must have —are ever willing, if not eager, to step into the engineer’s berth. They have seen an enginerun.dayinanddayout. Perhaps they have occasionally helped to run one. At any rate, they have worked about an engine a good deal; and as the engineer does not impress them as a man of remarkable ability they do not see why anybody cannot do as well as he. At least they are confident that they can, and, in case of emergency, are willing to put their knowledge (or their lack of it) to a test. When the emergency arises employers are too apt to give such amateur engineers a chance to try their hand; The actual engineer is called off suddenly, is sick, or otherwise kept from his post. Somebody must take his place or everybody must stop work. What shall be done? Dick is handy. Not a regular engineer, to be sure, still a bright fellow who knows an engine well enough to keep it running if all goes right; and the particular engine, the engineer says, is in such good condition that it will almost run itself. So Dick is called in and the gap is filled. Sometimes the engineer is away longer thaq was anticipated; sometimes he never comes back. Dick has done well so far; he has gained some experience in caring for the engine, and if he is willing and modest in his charges—of course he won’t expect a full-fledged engineer’s pay at first—his sudden promotion's likely to be a permanent one. He may turn out equal to every emergency; then, again, he mty not. It is not long since a case of this kind resulted, in our harbor, in the blowing-up of a crowded ferry-boat. There was a terrible list of killed and wounded; and Dick (an illiterate negro) was returned to his proper place as deck-hand or fireman. It Was criminal in the first place to let him step out of it. But a few weeks since an English man--ufactory was blown up, killing several workmen. The regular engineer was absent, sick; and the substitute, who succeeded in making such a mess with things, was one of the workmefct, promoted for the occasion on the strength of his pretended ability to run an engine—ability gained from observation, apparently, since his engineering education was but the slightest and his practice as limited as it was disastrous.

With characteric deference to the rights of property, the Coroner’s jury in this case modestly suggested that, in future, the proprietors of the works would do well not to trust their boilers with anyone in whose capacity they had not perfect confidence! In a leading family paper we saw, the other day, a well-written story, telling “ How Tom Became an Engineer.” Tom was of the genus loafer; specific habitat, a country railway station. The heightof his ambition was to run an engine. A commonplace lad would have gone to work in a locomotive shop, or, more modestly, would have begun by shoveling coal as fireman. Not so Tom. He was to be engineer or nothing. So he loafed about the station, watching his opportunity. His time came with a smash-up on the road, a relief train called for, and no engineer at hand. Of course Tom volunteered, was accepted, and performed his task with the elan of all great geniuses. Equally of course he was thereupon made master of an engine, and speedily rose to be president of as many railways as if his name had been Tom Scott; The moral of the story is plain and very encouraging to all boys given to loafing about railway stations. It is significant, too, of a prevalent belief that the art of managing an engine comes, like Dogberry’s reading and writing—by nature. Such a belief, however covert, cannot prevail to any extent without frequent occasion for putting it into practice. With regard to the intrusting of boilers to incompetent amateurs, we have evidence for believing it far too common. The wonder is that more explosions do not occur, and the risk of serious accident from this source is likely to continue just so long as presumption and general smartness are allowed to take the place, even temporarily, of technical skill gained through patient and studious apprenticeship. IStpam is a clever giant, an obliging servant; but, like all giants, it will not stand fooling, and is obedient only when under the hand of a master.— Scientific American.