Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-08-11
THE SPRING POWER
New View-The Key Presented
Science Can Unlock.
IT. Aha FdItora of tha TTnicn and Amaricsn.

A New View-The Key Presented
Science Can Unlock.
To the Editors of the Union and American:
MoRRIsTowN, Tenn, Aug. Z, ISL
l have been watching in your columns
with a great deal of interest what has
been said by editors and correspondents
about the Cay &c Spring Power. The sub
iec. was not new to me when frat spoken
of in your columns. 1 had been of Opin-
ion for two years or more That the spiral
spring could be utilized-nOt as motive
power for machinery, buta locomotive
power. | think Mr.. Cayce has ''struck
the key" and that his invention will work
a very material change in the modes of
transportation from place to place. The
invention will not do for stationary
machinery, as no force is Gin the common
! acceptation of the term) lost in ats ope-
ration. No force is LOst-no power use
lessly expended in working saw or grist
! mill or other stationary machinery. But
the CAGE is widely different as to loc0n1o-
the machinery or locomotive power.
Could q man utilize all the force used by
him IN lifting, or giving motion 10, his
body in going up hill, and in retaTdiDg
his motion in going down hill, and use it
| all in lifting himself, he would in the
cosTse of his life have enough force util-
lied or accumulated to lift himself to the
moon.
A train of cars at Nashville, is (for
| practical purposes) on horizontal plane
" it'll train at Knoxville. The difference
in altitude may be two Or three hundred
| feet Now if the road between the two
| points were reduced to plane, including
the two points ia its surface the grade
| would be such, that in going one way
| scarcely any power would be required to
overcome the friction and move the train
from one point to the other. Perhaps the
power that one man could exert would be
sufficient TO move the train from the
higher 10 the lower of the two
points. To overcome the friction and
move the train from tie lower
to the higher point would require a
power equal to what can be exerted by
one or two horses:-not more, as every
practical 'railrosder' will agree. Only
ouch force would be required (friction
out of the way) as would raise the weight
of the train through the two or three hun
bred feet in the time required to make
the run. But as power is now applied
and wasted, enough power is used in run
ming train from the one point TO the
other,-in giving it motion up grade, and
in retarding the motion in going dowr
grade-to raise the weight of the train
through very many times the difference
in altitude of the two points Perhaps
hundreds of times as much power is used
as would be needed, were the road between
! the points pc feet plane.
In this vast waste Of power is the oredt
expense of operating our railroads-the
great expense of transportation over our
pixies. Nov, to utilize the force actually
exerted, and to waste none; is the prob
lem. Accomplish this and you revolu-
tionize our entire system of inland trans
portation. Will the Cayce Spring Power
do lt7 1t may not: but say believe
it is the 'fksyn to q new system. 1t is
the step in the right direction of Utilizing
the weight of, and storing up the force
of, a train Cor wagon, if you please,)
descending a grade, TO be used by the
I train to ascend the next grade.
Let mechanics and scientists take the
key and open oui the new system.
SUBSCRIBER.