XVII 



SOME LOCOMOTIVE FREAKS 



THERE have been many freaks in the 

 locomotive world; though, for the most 

 part, they belong to the earlier years rather 

 than the later. You see, little was known 

 about the locomotive, and much had to 

 be learned by finding out what could and 

 what could not be done with the iron 

 horse. 



For instance, the belief was fairly gener- 

 ally held that, as the rails were smooth 

 and the wheels of the engine were also 

 smooth, the locomotive could not possibly 

 climb a gradient with anything of a load. 



Men like Stephenson solved the difficulty 

 by coupling the wheels of the engines; 

 sometimes actually coupling the driving 

 wheels of the locomotive to those of the 

 tender to gain greater adhesion. 



187 



