556 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



a hundred feet of him ? Mr. Chairman, yonder is such a brake- 

 man, that is ready at all times, and under all circumstances, when 

 called on, to hold, if need be, the wheels from moving; no de- 

 gree of cold, or wind, or rain, or sleet, affects him; he is con- 

 stantly at his post and always ready ; he performs his duty per- 

 fectly unconscious of the danger which may be present; he dees, 

 promptly, the bidding of the engineman, the conductor, brake- 

 man, or even a passenger, if necessary, and from any point on 

 the train, front or rear; he asks nothing for maintenance, beyond 

 the interest on the first cost, about four dollars a year. Is he 

 not with the equivalent ? 



I am perfectly well aware of the difficulties and cost of intro- 

 ducing new inventions, especially those for the prevention of 

 danger or damage. 



It is always hai-d to make a man realise the want of an article 

 that he has done without all his life. We are, to-day, using a 

 thousand things that were unknown to our ancestors; and yet 

 we should feel as if it "*rere impossible to do without them. The 

 continual advance of society creates continual new wants to be 

 supplied; and thus it should be as it is, a pow^erful lever to dis- 

 tribute the wealth and knowledge that is accumulated. Hence, 

 Mr. Chairman, I find no fault with marble and brown stone 

 palaces, wuth all their attendant refinements of art, science, beauty, 

 silk and satin, &c., &c.,or steamers like the Commonwealth, Me- 

 tropolis, Persia, Atlantic or New World, only let us guard well 

 the safety of human life, and not overlook that in our creations 

 of the beautiful and elegant. 



Mankind do not realize the dangers to which they are exposed; 

 and even when we know there is danger, we let our hope out- 

 weigh our judgment. 



We take the first step in the path of vice, we do not realize the 

 danger, we hope it will be all right, we will indulge in this grati- 

 fication this time and never again; but the first step taken the 

 rest are easy, and we see annually 30,000 drunkards filling dis- 

 honored graves. Few railroad superintendents have any idea 

 they will have an accident on their roads, they think their regu- 

 lations are about perfect, and so indeed they are, or nearly so, 

 but there is not a road in the Union where the instructions are 

 not constantly violated, it is only when some disaster occurs that 

 we find it out. It is infinitely better for the railway train to 

 carry with and about it, as far as possible, the elements of its own 

 security, as it is fur the ship to carry with it its boats, pumps, 



