<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.6000.16788" name=GENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><EM>"<FONT face="Times New Roman" size=3>Steam
locomotives typically had no brake handle so only the hostler or engine men
could release the brakes and move an engine."</FONT></EM></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><EM></EM> </DIV>
<DIV>Gary,</DIV>
<DIV> I question this statement because I don't think that
enginemen and especially hostlers carried around a heavy set of brake handles
everywhere they went. It used to be that when the brake handles were removeable,
on trailing units or units left alone, the independent and automatic brakes were
applied and the handles were removed from the brake valves and left
somewhere on the engine. I am speaking of diesels here. However, knowing
enginemen as I do, I doubt that things changed much from the steam days.
</DIV>
<DIV> I used to run across brass brake handles from time to
time. On the N&W they weren't very common, most being made out of steel.
Some men may have taken a brass one home with them, but, I can assure you that
brake handles weren't assigned to engineers and they didn't carry them around
with them in their grips. That is unless someone was playing a practical joke
on another and loading his grip down with heavy metal, the likes of knuckle
pins and such.</DIV>
<DIV> Today all handles are pinned in and it is very rare to
find an engine where they still can be removed.</DIV>
<DIV>Jimmy Lisle</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> </FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>