File:Railroad Gazette, 16 August 1889, page 537.jpg

English: Railroad Gazette, 16 August 1889, page 537

"The Decauville railroad, which conveys visitors from end of the grounds to the other, and extends out along bank of the Seine, has been spoken of as a most and intricate affair, the construction of which exhibits skill upon the part of the builders. This is true, painfully true, but the road is nearly useless. The equipment is badly put together, and it goes rattling along over the line at infrequent intervals, and one waits at the station until of standing - for there are no seats - for the train to arrive and again another longer and more aggravating period the train to start. If the guard can observe even a passenger edging his way in the direction of the station awaits the settlement of the person's intentions before blows a trumpet several times waves his arms and shouts verse or so of railroad French and allows the throttle of many jointed locomotive to be pulled. "Many jointed" seem to be a queer term to be applied to a locomotive but this case it is a descriptive one at least. Within the space a few feet in length there has been constructed a double each part having two cylinders each pair of is worked on the compound system. The two parts of locomotive are joined together and swivel as they pass curves. The driving wheels are but 23 in in diameter other parts in proportion. The whole machine is more like toy than a real locomotive constructed for what is most difficult service on a two foot gauge line. It is thus visitors are supposed to be transported about the grounds the exhibition. "Supposed" to be carried because many the visitors, after being there several days, did not know the existence of such a means of transport and to find stations is a more difficult matter than to walk to an and hire a cab. For several days at a time traffic on road has been stopped within the grounds."