twelve years old. The second biggestevent was getting a watch - whichhappened in the same year. I rememberthat engine as though I had seen it onlyyesterday, for it was the first vehicleother than horse-drawn that I had everseen. It was intended primarily fordriving threshing machines andsawmills and was simply a portableengine and boiler mounted on wheelswith a water tank and coal cart trailingbehind. I had seen plenty of theseengines hauled around by horses, butthis one had a chain that made aconnection between the engine and therear wheels of the wagon-like frame onwhich the boiler was mounted. Theengine was placed over the boiler andone man standing on the platformbehind the boiler shoveled coal,managed the throttle, and did thesteering. It had been made by Nichols,Shepard & Company of Battle Creek. Ifound that out at once. The engine hadstopped to let us pass with our horsesand I was off the wagon and talking tothe engineer before my father, who was