Just as an aside to the "conversation", this really is a very telling photo.
Those 4 locomotives, including a magnificient diminutive Mogul and those glorious Pacifics, really do seem to be shaking in their boots as they look upon the souless invader. They seem to convey that the end is very near for them, a thankless ending to years and years of tireless service, including winning a war.
Now folks here will say "but that's progress". Well it sure as heck did not save not only the Boston and Maine but so so many others. The advent and invasion of Diesels went hand in hand with the demise of railroading all the way to the Penn Central fiasco, and beyond.
I simply cannot image the railroads, especially in the East, would go downhill any quicker had they just stuck with what they had in steam and kept going. Sure the roundhouses and backshops were costly, water treatment was a pain, and on and on but Diesels were expensive and required other kinds of strict maintenance plus a lot of retraining.
Diesels would still come displacing steam. Lets say 1970. Doubt the railroads would have fared any worse.