Wes

 Lee Sudlow's answer to your question is
(pardon me) partly on track. His description of
lining rail is quite accurate, but that's not gandy dancing.

It is true that The Gandy Manufacturing Co. Chicago, Illinois made tools used
by track
workers. They probably did make the lining bars,
which as Lee points out were humongous crow bars.

A gandy dancer is (was) a track worker. If he worked a designated section of
the railroad he
was called a section hand.

The "dancer" part of the name comes from his
function of tamping ties. Actually tamping the ballast in which the ties are
bedded. He stands on one tie on one foot. His other foot drives a
number two shovel ("Mexican Dragline with a hickory boom") into the ballast
under the tie in front of him. Four men facing forward on each tie
and four men working backward down the line tamp
both sides of each tie and both sides of the
two rails.

There was usually a whole crew doing this more
or less simultaneously. Each man holding his
shovel in both hands and bouncing up and down
on one foot,"dancing". It was an unusual sight, and one no longer seen. The
function is now performed by hydraulic tamping machines. These are mounted on
railroad wheels and mechanically tamp the ballast with eight sets of tools
somewhat like dull chisels pounding
into the ballast on each side of each tie (sleepers, Jeff) and each side of
both rails.

Tailed apprentices aren't the only devices
that have supplanted hand tools.

After the ties have been tamped the rails are
aligned as Lee described. Usually eight men,
four on each rail, heaving at the command of
the foreman who is squatting some distance
down the line sighting (in my experience)
through a notch of hole in a small slat of
wood resting on the rail.

Next question: Black Gang: The engineroom crew
on a ship so called because of their appearance
coming off watch in the days of coal burning
steamships. Nothing to do with race. Most of
them were likely white when they went on watch.

John