Pre-Archaic Industrial Jargon

[James A. Landau <JJJRLandau@netscape.com>]

The assistant engineer of a Diesel or eloectric locomotive is still known as the "fireman",  Also a railroad employee who moves locomotives around when making up trains is a "hostler".

Purely a slang term, but a bulldozer operator is a "cat-skinner", derived from the olderterm "mule-skinnter" for a mule-driver.

In the US Congress there is a position known as a "whip".

I read somewhere that a "footman" was originally a servant who ran ahead, on foot, to arrange things for the arrival of the lord's carriage.

In th US Army close-order marching drill is still known as "dismouned drill."  And doesn't the US Army still have a couple of "cavalry" divisions?

   - Jim Landau

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