Pete
I knew you did. My point was intended for others on
the list as well. That is, we can't "read" a lot of
these things. I always enjoy your comments. You are
right about not giving the hour too. When the operator
gave two times, as in your example, the first was the
arrival time and the second was the departure! So you
see that "on sheet" is the only explanation that makes
any sense.
John D. Mitchell, Jr.
--- PSHedgpeth@a... wrote:
> John Mitchell
>
> I too spent a lot of time with old time railroaders.
> I was even examined on
> the operating rules while sitting in the front seat
> of my Grandfather's 1937
> Hudson Terraplane on the platform at Langdon, MO. I
> was about 5 years old.
> No. 21 then running as the Pioneer Zephyr was in two
> sections that night and
> Harry Logan, RFE at St. Joe was riding the first
> section...he dropped off and
> came over to sit with us while waiting for the
> second section to arrive.
> Harry asked my GF who's this guy..referring to me.
> GF said "That's the
> traveling engineer on the Rock Port Langdon and
> Northern..Harry said "What
> does he know about the rules? GF said go ahead and
> ask him. Harry pointed
> at the green classification lights on No. 21 and
> said what's those lights
> mean. I said..."gonna be another one"...He asked a
> couple of other questions
> about the rules which I promptly answered correctly.
> Harry eluded that
> perhaps I did know something about the rules.
>
> From the time I could climb up on the telegraph desk
> in the depot at Langdon
> I would grab the dispatcher's phone when the
> operator wasn't using it and
> listen in.
> I started on the Q as a brakeman in 1956 when there
> were lots of the old
> timers you speak of still around and actively
> railroading. I've got lots of
> stories, just as you have.
>
> Regardless of all of the above experience or
> whatever I never heard the term
> OS discussed as to it's origin. First memories of
> listening to the operators
> at Langdon give their "train reports" would be
> something like this.
> Langdon......OS No. 21 at 28 and 30. Normally the
> old guys didn't use the
> hour. Someone said, "If a man doesn't know what
> hour it is he has no
> business being on the railroad.
>
> Pete Hedgpeth
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
> removed]
>
>
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