Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1868-11-14
of Railway Accidents.

A regular meeting of the New York Society
Of Practical Engineers was held at Cooper In
stitute on Tuesday evening, Mr.. James A.
Whitney presiding. An interesting paper was
read By DR.. A. w. Hall, on the causes and
modes of preventing railroad accidents.
The speaker said that with a triaog increase
Of outlay many dangers might be avoided by
evading heavy grades aud sharp curves. He
said il was singular reflection that railroad
companies were willing to pay such magnificent
salaries to their officers, to building superb pa
lace cars. and yet endeavor TO economise so ia
tally in securing the best and safest means Of
carrying on their business The most frequent
cause OF accidents was broken rails > the second
frequent cause of loss of life was from burning
OF cars. A third class of accidents was caused
by misplaced switches" Collisions are con.
sidered as the fourth class. distractions on
the tracks are also frightful source of disaS
ter. The speaker said that the breaking OF
rails could not be entirely avoided. When &C
cidents are caused by the displacement OF
switch, the speaker was in favor OF trying the
offenders for their lives 1t was also recon-
mended that the speed of trains approaching
switch be reduced 10 four miles an hour
Collisions can be avoided altogether by the
adoption of good system Of time tables, cor
rect time pieces, and a code Of signals, all OF
which should be erigidly adhered to. The abolish
ment of the single track system would also
greatly reduce the proportion OF Collisions
Accidents from distractions would be prevent
ed by the fencing In Of the roads from one
end to the other, so as to prevent cattle
from treSspassing on the tracks. A perfect
system OF brakes, acting on the entire
train under control of the engineer, and made so
as to be applied by steam power, would be of iu-
calculable service In checking traio approach
ing an obstruction, while the general adoption
of the calcium light would, as q rule, reveal
the presence of the obstacle in time to admit
of the slackeniug of speed. The breaking Of
axles, which always occurred close up to the iu-
ner face of the wheel, could to great measure
be guarded against by having at convenient ln-
terVas along the road an apparatus tor testing
the condition of the aXles. Returning, how
ever, to the most important and dangerous
class of accidents, it was evident that from
whatever cause cars were set On hre, there was
no necessity for mourning even the sllg htest
risk of this kind. 1t was not necessary that
cars should be built of wood; or, indeed, have
any combustible material in their construction.
Buildings and steamships We're now constru ;ted
OF iron, and even street railroad cars, as well as
express freight cars on steam railroads were
constructed of plate iron, and passenger cars
could certainly be built IF the same material.
10 place of stoves as means Of heating cars.
hot air conduc ed through pipes from the loco
motive could be used with flexible joints be-
tween the cars Iron cars could not take fire,
and if thrown down embankments would not
become the splintered wrecks that wooden cars
become. Even the wreck would be worth its
weight as old iron to the company, which could
not be said of the wreck of a wooden train.
Railway companies should be compelled by leg
islation 10 build cars of non combustible mate
rials, for if Congress has the power to compel
steambo,ts to carry life, preserVers, it certainly
must have the power to prevent railroad com
panies from running life destroyers. Broken
rails, if they could not be entirely avoided, could
at least be so guarded against as to prevent loss
Of lie or personal properly