The telegraph at this spot was, for the
occasion, connected with all the offices along the line and in the
leading cities of the country, where crowds were in waiting to hear that
the great work was finished.
Two trains were there with their engines, as Bret Harte describes them,
"facing on the single track, half a world behind each back." Around
stood the guests and officers of the roads waiting for the final
ceremony. "Hats off," clicked the telegraph. Prayer was offered, and
then the four gold and silver spikes, presented by California, Nevada,
Idaho, and Montana, were put in place by President Stanford of the
Central Pacific and Dr. Durant of the Union Pacific.
As the silver hammers fell on the golden spikes, in all the telegraph
offices along the line and in the Eastern cities the hammer of the
magnet struck the bell--"tap, tap, tap." "Done,"--flashed the message
to the eager crowds.
All over the land the event was celebrated with great rejoicing. In
Buffalo, as the news came, hundreds of voices burst out in the singing
of "The Star-Spangled Banner." In Boston, services were held at midday
in Trinity Church, where the popular pastor offered "thanks to God for
the completion of the greatest work ever undertaken by men.
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