The Little Engine That Could

Cartoon made of the childrens story "The Little Engine That Could" by Coronet. Bless her wheels.

In Search of Watty Piper: A Brief History of the "Little Engine" Story
Celebrating More Than One Hundred Years of Thinking I Can!

http://tigger.uic.edu/~plotnick/littleng.htm

Story of the Engine that Thought It Could. Published in the New York Tribune on April 8, 1906, this story is attributed to a sermon by the Rev. Charles S. Wing to the Norstrand Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church in Brooklyn; the church had just paid off its mortgage after many years. This is earliest full version I have discovered to date:

In a certain railroad yard there stood an ex
tremely heavy train that had to be drawn up an
unusually heavy grade before it could reach its
destination. The superintendent of the yard was
not sure what it was best for him to do, so he
went up to a large, strong engine and asked :

"Can you pull that train over the hill?"

"It is a very heavy train," responded the en
gine.

He then went to another great engine and
asked:

"Can you pull that train over the hill?"

"It is a very heavy grade," it replied.

The superintendent was much puzzled, but he
turned to still another engine that was spick
and span new, and he asked it:

"Can you pull that train over the hill?"

"I think I can," responded the engine.

So the order was circulated, and the engine
was started back so that it might be coupled
with the train, and as it went along the rails it
kept repeating to itself: "I think I can. I think
I can. I think I can."

The coupling was made and the engine began
its journey, and all along the level, as it rolled
toward the ascent, it kept repeating to itself:
"I ---think ---I can. I ---think ---I--- can. I ---think--- I ---can."

Then it reached the grade, but its voice could
still be heard: "I think I can. I----- think-----I-----can.
I -----think----- I----- can."

Higher and higher it climbed, and its voice
grew fainter and its words came slower:

"I -------think --------I-------can."

It was almost to the top.

"I ---------think"

If was at the top.

"I ---------can."

It passed over the top of the hill and began
crawling down the opposite slope.

'I ------think------- I------ can------I----- thought------I-------could I----- thought-----
could. I thought I could. I thought I could.
I thought I could."

And singing its triumph, it rushed on down
toward the valley.