The history of the first locomotives in America. From original ...

90
HISTORY OF THE FIEST LOCOMOTIVES IN AMERICA.
Still considered reliable. The iron plates composing it are Ml
half an inch thick.
"Respectfully yours,
"D. Yaeeington."
Mr. Yarrington was a "blacksmith in the company's
shops, an old citizen of that region, and lived iu Dundaff
from 1825 to 1847.
We will now close our description of the events incident
to the first locomotive ia America, by giving our
readers Mr. Allen's account of his ride alone upon the
"Stourbridge Lion," in a speech made by him in 1851,
at Dunkirk, on the occasion of the celebration in honor
of the completion of the New York and Erie EaUroad,
and transmitted by him to the author. After alluding
in terms of commendation to those who, by their talents
and perseverance, had carried through to a successful
completion the great work just finished, Mr. Allen
continued
:
" Having occupied your time with these statements of perhaps
no great interest, hut the omission of which would have heen an
act of injustice, I have thought that, on this great railroad occasion,
a reference to some of the incidents in the early railroad history
of this country might be appropriate. To bring before you as
strikingly as in my power, it has occurred to me to lead your im-
agination to the conception of the scene which would present
itself if, on some fine morning, you were placed at an elevation,
and gifted for the moment with a power of vision which would
command the railroad movements of the whole United States.
There would be presented an exciting picture of activity, in a
thousand iron horses starting forth from the various railroad
centres, or traversing the surface of the continent in all directions.
When the imagination has attained to some conception of the
scene, let it seek to go back to the time when only one of these
iron monsters was in existence on this continent, and was moving
forth, the first of his mighty race. When was it? where was
it ? and who awakened its energies and directed its movements ?
It was in the year 1829, on the banks of the Lackawaxen, at the
Digitized by Microsoft®