Transporting Artillery on Trains
The following is from John Gibbon's "The Artillerist's Manual," published in 1860 and found now on Google Books.
p. 423ff
 
   Railroad Transportation
   In railroad transportation, when several trains are required, they should be in proportion to the power of the engines employed, and full loads should be placed on them regardless of the divisions made in the command, such as batteries, half-batteries, sections, &c.
   The men are provided, before starting, with provisions to last during the trip, which should be cooked and carried in the haversacks. The canteens are filled, with water; the French, in warm weather, mixing brandy with it. As the horses can eat in the wagons, even whilst the train is in motion, hay (pressed if possible) should be distributed at the rate of about 8, 14 or 24 lbs. per horse, according as the trip is to last less than 12, between 12 and 24, or more than 24 hours. A feed of oats (half a ration, 6 lbs.) is carried in bags and placed in the baggage wagons. It should not be given to the horses on the road, but after they have arrived at the terminus.
   The horses are carried in cattle-cars, or if possible, in box cars, which are covered. They are provided with bars at the doors to prevent the horses from backing out when the doors are opened. By taking care to keep the horses quiet, however, these bars may be dispensed with. The saddles, &c., the valises of the drivers, and the bags of oats, are placed in the baggage cars, which should be provided with brakes.
   The "material" is carried on trucks or common platform cars. {"material" = cannon and limbers; "trucks" = gondolas}
   The command should be at the station at least two hours before starting. The horses should have finished feeding about two hours previous to their arrival at the station, as they are then more docile. The baggage should arrive half an hour before the command, under charge of an officer, and be loaded under the direction of the employees of the road.
   These cars should be arranged as near as possible in the following order: 1st, a baggage wagon; 2d, a truck carrying the beams, platforms, &c., necessary in disembarking; 3d, the horse cars; 4th, the cars for the men, one, at least, of which, should be provided with a brake; 5th, trucks loaded with material; 6th, baggage cars (with brakes) loaded with saddles, &c. Cars with brakes should always be placed at the head and tail of the train.
   Guards should be detailed and so stationed on the train as to preserve order both when in motion and during stoppages. The commanding officer should pay especial regard to the wishes of those having the train in charge, and enforce an observance of the road regulations in his command.
   On arriving at the station, the commander at once divides his command and material into the portions to occupy the different cars.
 
   Horses
   An officer is detailed, to superintend the embarkation of the horses. He furnishes each car with two bundles of litter, and places forage along the long side of the car opposite the door. A non-commissioned officer is charged with loading the saddles, &c.
   The men are, under an officer, formed into detachments proportional to the importance of the material to be embarked.
   In a battery, the front and middle teams are unhitched and assembled, under charge of a non-commissioned officer, with the saddle horses, in a convenient position near the station. The carriages are drawn up near the cars by the rear teams, which are then unhitched and placed near the others. The horses are divided according to the capacity of the cars, into groups, so that those on any carriage may be, as much as possible, placed together. The several groups are arranged in front of the cars they are to occupy.
   The saddle horses and near horses of the teams are unsaddled, but not unbridled. In bad weather the blankets may be placed ??? and secured with the sureingles. The harness is left upon the draft horses, and the traces, breeching, &c., lashed to the collar in such a way that the whole will be fixed as compactly as possible in rear of the horses' breasts. The crupper, breast-strap, girth, and blanket, are placed together on the shabrac and secured with the sureingle. The stirrups are tied together. The saddles, so arranged, are carried and laid on the ground at a designated point near the baggage wagon, as are also the valises, &c., of the drivers.
   As soon as the horses of the first carriage are ready, the officer in charge of the horses directs the loading to commence. The driver of the leading team, assisted by another man, leads successively his two horses in, lowering their heads to clear the top of the door, and placing them at the right-hand end of the car, with their heads on the side opposite to the door. The driver of the second team, in like manner, places his horses at the opposite end of the car. The driver of the third team places in his horses and the saddle horse belonging to the carriage. The drivers remain in the car. If there are four teams in place of three, and the car is not large enough to hold them, the remaining team should be placed in the next car. Should any horse resist entering, the next one should be taken and the refractory animal led in immediately behind him. The docile horses should be much as possible be placed in first, and mild means are employed in preference to any other in inducing them to enter.
   When the last horse enters, the cannoneers on the outside place in the bar, remove the ramp, and close the door, after which the bar is removed and passed to the men inside the car. The horses are tied to the head bar with the halter strap, which enables them to be unbridled, if the order should be given. In this case, three or four bridles are united, tied together near the head-stalls by the reins of one, and attached to one of the bars of the car near the corner, by the same reins. The awnings with which the cars should be provided, should be left up, unless the state of the weather requires them to be let down on either side. When the last car is not completely filled with horses, they must be kept in place in one or two groups, by bars placed across the car in the same manner as the door-bars. Two moveable seats should be provided, for seating two of the men left in each car.
   Each car of men or horses is placed in charge of a non-commissioned officer, of the oldest soldier in it. His duty as chief of the car is to maintain good order, and to see to the execution of all directions that are given.
 
   Saddles, &c.
   The non-commissioned officer in charge of the saddle car, has the saddles loaded by placing one man in the car, who packs them away as they are handed to him, packed and tied up as directed, by another man outside. The first saddle is placed upon a bundle of straw with the valise resting against the side of the car; the saddles of the other teams belonging to the same carriage, are piled on top of this in their proper order. The saddles of the other teams are piled successively in the same manner, so as to form separate piles for each carriage. The officers' saddles are placed on top of the piles. The chief of the car, with two assistants, inside the car, takes a memorandum of the arrangement adopted.
 
   Carriages
   Trucks {gondolas} are the most convenient vehicles for the transportation of the carriages of a battery. Two field carriages, one and a half, or a single one, can be placed on on truck, according to its size.
   The carriages are unlimbered and placed, just as they are, upon the trucks. The following are the principles which should govern the manner of loading. 1st. The weight should be distributed equally over the surface of the truck, occupying the least space possible. 2d. Arrange the carriages, in such a way that the ends of the tongues and the extra wheels shall not project beyond the edge of the truck; and 3d. Consolidate, by chocking and lashing with great care every part of the load in such a way that the whole is rendered perfectly solid and firm in position.
   With trucks 14' long, two are required for every three carriages. They are loaded at the end by placing on, first, the rear train with the stock to the rear, and running it forward until the wheels strike the front end of the truck, when the stock is rested on the floor. A limber is then placed on with the tongue to the front and raised, and run forward until its wheel touch those of the rear train already in place; a second rear train is now put on with the stock to the front resting on the floor, taking care not to allow its box, if it has one, to touch that of the limber in front of it. In like manner, a rear train and limber are placed upon the second truck. The third limber is placed in the rear with its tongue to the front, and resting on the floor, under the carriages already on the truck.
   With trucks 17 feet long, two carriages can be placed on a single one. In this case, the rear train is placed on as before, but the limber is backed towards it till the wheels touch, or if possible overlap those of the rear train, and the tongue is rested on the floor; the second limber is placed on in the same way, and the second rear train with its stock to the front, resting on the floor.
   When these trucks are so situated in the depot that they cannot be loaded from the end, the carriages are first placed upon the second truck, from which they are crossed to the first on a bridge communicating between the two, and arranged on it as already described. The second truck is loaded like the first, by making use of a third, and so on. The last truck is loaded as hereafter described, for those which can be loaded only at the side.
   Trucks which can be loaded only at the side, should be a least 15 feet long to carry a carriage and a half, and 19 feet for two carriages. To load the former, place two rear trains, or a limber and a rear train successively, in position at the ends of the truck, as before described, with the stock or tongue to the rear, and resting on the floor. Then introduce between these two a limber, raising it by hand, with the tongue up so as to pass one of its wheels over the tongue and stocks of the trains already in position.
   For the trucks 19 feet long, the first carriage is established at one end of the truck, as described with the truck 14 feet long. The rear train of the second carriage is placed in the same way at the other end, and its limber is passed in by hand with the tongue up, passing one of its wheels over the stocks of the rear trains to get it into its position.
   In trucks less than fifteen feet long, which can be loaded only at the side, the two parts of a carriage are placed, one at each end, the stock and tongue to the rear, and then placed closer together by making the wheels on one side overlap; the stock being on the floor, the tongue elevated. In some cases the spare wheel is taken off, and either laid flat on the floor or leaned against one of the carriages.
   During the operation of loading, the tongues should be held by a sling fixed at the end. They are afterwards strongly lashed to one of the parts of the rear train already on the truck. The lunettes on the caisson stocks, which are provided with extra tongues, rest upon blocks high enough to prevent the weight bearing upon the ends of the tongues, and consequently on the keys which hold them in position in their stirrups.
   As soon as a truck has received its load, the wheels of the different trains are locked together with cord from .5 to .6 inch in diameter, chocks are placed under the wheels and nailed to the floor, and the stability of the whole secured by tying the carriages to the rings of the truck. Straw ropes, or other means, are made use of to prevent friction between parts.
 
   The Men
   The men, with their knapsacks and side-arms, are divided, under the superintendence of an officer, into portions corresponding to the capacity of the cars. Each division is conducted promptly to the car it is to occupy, the men entering first going to the end farthest from the door, and so on. They seat themselves, holding their arms between their legs, the stock or scabbard resting on the floor. Fire-arms should never be laid on the seats or stood in corners, excepting when leaving the cars at the principal stopping places and stations.
 
   Numbering
   The commanding officer should cause each car to be marked in chalk, with the number of the piece to which the men, horses, and baggage occupying it, belong.
 
   Inspecting
   Immediately before starting, the commanding officer and conductor of the train inspect the cars to ascertain that every thin is in order. They should see that the couplings of the cars contaiining the "material" are short enough to insure the contact of the buffers.
   The officers then enter the car assigned them.
 
   Regulations
   The command being all aboard, the men are strictly prohibited putting their hears or arms out of the car while it is in motion; passing from one car to another; uttering loud cries of any kind; and from leaving the cars at the station before the signal for doing so is given.
   The men with the horses, keep them from putting their heads outside the car. They feed them with hay from the hand, until they get used to the motion, hold them by the bridle or halter, and quiet their fears whilst the locomotive is whistling. In case of any accident, they make a signal outside the car, by waving a handkerchief.
   If at any station the commander deems it necessary for the men to leave the cars, after the time indicated by the conductor, he informs the officers of the length of the halt. The officers remain in the vicinity of the cars containing their men, in order to direct and govern their movements. The guard posts sentinels wherever it is necessary, especially at the doors, to prevent the men from gathering near of opening them.
   At a given signal on the bugle, the men leave the cars in order, and without side-arms. The men in the horse-cars get out over the side. If it becomes necessary to open the doors of these cars, the door-bars are first placed in position.
   About the middle of the trip, as near as possible, the police-guard and men with the horses, are relieved. At each halt of more than ten minutes, the commander, or some other officer, and the conductor, inspect the cars, and especially those which carry the ammunition wagons.
   Five minutes before starting, a bugle-call gives the signal for entering the cars. At the station immediately preceding the terminus, the horses are bridled, and the forage is collected and formed into one bundle for each car.
   During feeding time there should be at least one man to every two horse-cars. In general, oats should be distributed only after the horses leave the cars. Hay is fed by hand by the drivers whilst the train is in motion. In ordinary weather, the horses are watered only when the trip exceeds twelve hours; and even in this case they need but little, and a single ordinary-size pailfull suffices for two horses.
 
   These appear to be the practices of the French army and railroads. Of course, these procedures would be quickly modified by experience, but this would be the foundation.

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