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When I got back from my wisdom tooth debacle in May, Maurice told me to get my work all cleaned up in a hurry because there would be a big job swinging very soon that he wanted me to handle. My guess was that he referred to the sample "flying machine" which was the sample locomotive the New York Central was supposedly interested in as one of the prime building blocks for their hoped-for main line electrification project. It was to be the fastest, most powerful and most modern and innovative locomotive in the world--and I was to be in general charge of this project! It was like a dream! I was wildly enthusiastic at this prospect and wrote in my diary, "What romance, exceeding the fondest dreams of my childhood visions of railroads and railroading. My profession comes first and I am going to throw all the enthusiasm I can muster into it and make a great success of engineering before anything else. Writing can come later if I have any time for it but my profession is going to be a [[underlined]]success[[/underlined]]." Characteristic of Maurice, he even went far beyond the New York Central electrification project and envisioned a brand new railroad built in a straight line between New York and Chicago, to operate at unheard—of speeds.

And there was considerable work on the Flying Machine but it was sporadic. First, the Pennsylvania electrification was a reality and work on the locomotives for it was the real thing and not a dream. Brandenstein and several others were actively engaged in developing these units with the designers and the job was complicated by the fact that the business had been split by the Pennsy between GE and Westinghouse with the stipulation that all the key parts he interchangeable. So there was a big job in the mill that meant business in the shop and dollars in the cash register, and it naturally got preference over any Flying Machine for a dreamed-of NYC electrification. Second, the deepening depression kept chipping away at the NYC plans, steadily cutting down the scope of anything that might even conceivably be done. So the Flying Machine work was off—again--on—again and I was enthused one day and discouraged the next. Samples from the diary:

[[underlined]]July 9, 1931[[/underlined]]: Work is getting slack in my New York Central line now and I find it increasingly hard to keep 100% busy with things that must be done. However, there are a 1,000 and 1 things to study up, so my time need not be idle.

[[underlined]]July 13, 1931[[/underlined]]: Can't help being discontented at the office, as I'm in one of the "in-between slumps" in my line of work--haven't enough to do. I'm happiest when things are booming and I have lots of important work ahead of me. I do my work better and time flies at the office. Last summer it was the same till the Pennsy tests (?) came along, then DL&W then back here on the Central--a year of activity, and now the slowing u p again. Well, I'm thankful to have a job.