Thundering Rails, 1948

[Music] somewhere in the Silence of the night a child Slumbers peacefully somewhere a child hears the sound of a train the lonely wailing of the Whistle the long heavy rush and Rumble of the wheels then nothing but silence Darkness the huge hush and secrecy of night the running sweep of moonlight Silhouettes the countryside and the long slender bands of Steel shine and bleed only the tracks are awake they hear the saing siren of the fast Express they look for danger in the sudden players they see the swing and Bob of lantern in the yards coil and shudder beneath the sudden glare and hiss of the mighty engines they pulse under the pounding Rhythm of the huge driving rods upon their Cold Steel surface the Transcontinental limited stroking 100 mph across the continent and the small dark towns whip by like bullets then there is only the start Silence of the secret immense and lonely Earth again [Music] America is a land of trains joined by a steel network of rail and wire woven into miles of multiple patterns Great Train shed dense with smoke and accurate with its smell full of the slow pantings of a dozen engines rows of Silent cars along the platform their Windows dark their wheels nocturn helpless cars waiting for engines to give them life and Mobility impatient cars eagerly awaiting purpose and Destination America is a land of stations High roofed Mighty stations with their intricate webs of gerder glass and concrete filled with a million wats of yellow light reflecting off the Slick bright covers of magazines on the new stands shining on the cold marble floors Mighty stations with their ceaseless throngs endless tides of humanity Guided by man-made timetables heaving and flowing forever here is woven the tapestry of America on the [Music] move a little child standing forlorn by a pile of baggage an anxious old couple in front of the arrival and departure board the hells goodbyes handshakes clasped arms kisses restrained kisses unang farewell sad as a youngster leaves for an army camp the homemade cake under his arm yay as the honeymoon couple embarks amid wilted flow best wishes and a shower of rice all our people going to and coming from meeting for an instant exchanging A hurried glance studying timetables a mermaid apology and then on to a destination never to meet again and the sounds of a station underneath the shuffling of thousands of feet the light tattoo of hiking a sudden shriek of laughter the horar monotone voice of the loud speakers straining to be heard over the de the excitement of a station with all the murmurous and remote sounds of time the hint of far away places the thrill of strange names the anticipation a feeling of nervous tension as the hands of the clock reach the appointed hour it is the mood of movement a world of nameless excitement and wordless expectancy the conductor hurries down the platform the train is ready for its run trains cross the continent in a swirl of dust and thunder they cleave through Gulch and Gully they spread Thunder along the trestles above Brown Shor Fields they rip past empty stations of little towns and their Great Wide sound is felt Across [Music] America the rails go [Music] Westward and have you ever heard the wheel Thunder of the mighty [Music] [Music] engines the great iron oxen of the railroad powerful and mighty engines they pant they breathe they fume with the effort of their tremendous vibrations snorting with rage when they're halted sighing with resignation as they wait for the blast that releases them sending them hurtling forward engines are iron steel copper aluminum mixtures of ores extracted from the earth and twisted and hardened into a thousand parts that go into its body do you think an engine is devoid of feeling of emotion then look a herd of monsters as broken loose down the tracks They Thunder Racing for Joy bellowing challenges to each other roaring and boasting of their strength and speed like the herds of wild tough skinned Buffalo that used to roam the west but Buffalo Bill is now a faded Legend and the boy dreams of Another Hero the engineer of a steam locomotive he dreamed of the 515 rolling into town of waving to The Smiling figure in the cast proudly cherishing the Casual friendly greetings of his Idol the lad anticipates the sudden shock and thrill as the tiny spurts of steam grow in force and sound and intensity as the engine gathers speed and Roars past the station dragging all life and color and boyish drama in its W the coal M the lumberman the wheat Farmer see the giant locomotive swings slowly around the bend and with short powerful explosive blasts from its funnel it gathers speeds and lunges forward the miner the lumberman the farmer pause in their lb gaze all struck at the terrific Drive of eight flock piston Wheels a Savage furnace flare of heat a hard thick piss steam a moment's vision of a lean old head a gloved hand of cunning on the throttle and the black and face of the fireman framed by an intermittent Fury of flame as he bends and sways at his furnace door the Modern Diesel driven locomotive speeds across the Slender ribons of Steel hitting a speed of 100 mph it is the first real rival of Steam on the railroad the diesel is a silver flash across the Prairie steamline wind splitter rustly challenging the elements devouring space coldly racing time the cab is clean workmanlike as brightly sterile as the modern kitchen no longer the red heart is afid but now the brain is cold and calculated signals of safety each a warning each a reassurance today the engineer watches the dials he turns to glance at the countryside rushing by in a blur of one familiar shapes and sights a lonely Crossroad suddenly becomes alive safety signals spring into action automatic Guardians of the road clear a right away Swift tremulous swirl of Wheels unveils a wake of Leaning track a switch Tower Sentinel of safety High balls the onrushing tra speeding tons of steel distort and blur the landcape through which it slashes a trail all through the day the fast Express Roars over the Silvery bands the train toils around Mountain curves sometimes in a slow Arc that from the rear car reveals the engine tiny and toilight in the distance it shutters through giant passes the high walls of stained Rock shutting out the light and threatening to engulf the long steel skinned Intruder sometimes the train slows then it gathers speed with a tremendous burst of power as if to make up for lost time impatient to get out of the mountains anxious to hurdle the restraining gulches Gorges gaps and wild Ravines the train labors slowly down the mountain Graves feeling its way along the sinuous turnings as if crawling down the back of an enormous serpent then suddenly the train is on the flat again Gathering speed to Race Across the level land booming bursting with power the great Wheels pound and smash across the Prairie it cuts through giant forests it splits the fields of Wheat and corn a frightened cow scampers for safety [Applause] the huge beams of trestle Bridges shutter under the impact the Slender Bridge of Steel sways Under The Strain the wind ruffled surface of a river puzzly mirrors the onrushing monster a tugbo toots a [Music] greeting a startled fisherman has to rebate his hook Sun brown boys cease their swimming and splashing to stare in awe it is more than a train crossing a river it is a giant leap from Shore to Shore the train intrudes upon the Serene brooding of a quiet Lake delicately skirting the shore it's whistle apologizing for the noise and the rush and the steam and the raw power a deer stops drinking at the water's edge it's liquid eyes filled with fear a flight of wild foul arise from the rushers honking in protest then just as quickly as it came the monster is gone Nature has slammed the door and all is quiet again and all the while space is being hungrily devoured the three dimensions are being gulped down in huge chunks by the fourth time is fought to a standstill held at the limits of a timable the train is thundering across the C a huge projectile fired from the Atlantic to the Pacific in flat trajectory a hard shell tube in which people live and sleep play and make friends eat and [Music] work the train is a city on the move want to borrow something from your next door neighbor don't shout over the fence lean across the aisle and ask him The Men Who Run the city on wheels are always on the job City Hall is downtown in the engine with his honor the mayor at his post as engineer want to see the post office the mail sorters are busy making up the delivery for the next stop or perhaps they'll just throw it off disdaining to slacken the pace for some small sleepy tow where's police headquarters in the hard round blue cap of the conductor responsible for order and safety these are some of the people who run the city on the move and yet is the train just like a city was there ever a city in which citizens lived in vague awareness of the Mad surge of earth going by at tremendous speed how long does it take to walk from your seat to the water cooler a few seconds to cover 30 ft and yet you've gone on nearly a mile did you fall asleep in New Jersey don't be shocked if you wake up in Ohio were you looking at the state of Iowa while having soup in the diner and you might have dessert in Nebraska 15 m per course is pretty good eating train is thundering across the continent trains are neighbors a pinpoint the distance grows and grows and becomes another train roaring plunging over the rails then the train is gone in one projectile smash of wind like Fury trains are neighbors if a train is named Jones another wants to keep up with it so for Miles the two trains Thunder Down the tracks in an even thrilling tremendous contest of Steel and dust and whirling [Music] Wheels gradually one train BS its way past the other foot by foot and now as if with recollected Force the train gains power from the train it has passed it leaps gathers Springs and smashes on with new found Fury [Music] at length the train has breached the last great wall of the soaring ranges has made its senous descent around the powerful bends and cork screws of The Shining rails towering Rangers melt swiftly Into Darkness night envelops the Train the track and the land piercing and the train takes up its level pounding Rhythm across the swell and convolution of the mighty [Music] continent on board the passengers settle down for the run through Darkness births are made the clicking of the wheels the slight roll and rock weaves a lullabi in drowsy Rhythm vaguely aware of the secret subdued rattling past thick green curtains the low tones of the porter Gathering up the shoes a lonely wailing whistle as the lights of a little town whiz by like a trail of comets the train moves on across the immense lonely nightland of America making its great monotone that is the sound of power and security and in the train and in the 10,000 little tows the sleepers sleep upon the Earth uh