The Portland daily press., 1876-02-25
Narrow Gauge Railways.

the subject OF narrow gauge railroads, their
practicability and cost, and their adaptation
to New England, is published in an extra of
the Everett (Mass.) Free Press. The arti-
Gle is written by George Wadsworth. who is
well known in this section as a civil engineer
of ability and experience. Mr.. Wadsworth
acknowledges that the question of gauge is yet
aproblem, but the practical tendency is decid-
edly in favor of narrowing in the rails. The
accepted gauge, 4 feet 81 inches, seems to have
been the result of accident, and this old
prejudice is to be overcome before change
can be made. True economy dictates that it
should be made. With the exception of some
of the main thoroughfares and of roads in
the neighborhood of large cities the facilities
are far greater than the business demands or
justifies. A glance at the dividends proves
this. Of the 63 distinct railroad corpora
tions in Massachusetts,, having total length
of 37S81 miles, built and equipped at the
average cost per mile of $64,657, only one
half pay any dividends to their owners, while
but one-fourth of them pay over per cent
An ordinary passenger car, with SO seats,
when full has dead weight of 625 pounds
for every passenger. The Mass achusetts Rail-
road Commissioners, in their report for 1875,
taking the whole railway system of the state,
say: "The returns would seem to indicate
haul Its Tor 1880 pounds) of rolling stock
for each passenger they carry, ard for every
ton of freight 3,297 tons of dead weight"
The remedy for this waste of power is the
narrow gauge.
In the first place the cost of road-bed con-
struction is very nearly in proportion to the
width of the gauge. Then the cost of super
structure for tine three feet gauge may safely
be put at from one-half to three-ffths of the
ordinary gauge. The weight Of the rolling
the standard gauge-consequently the ratio
between dead weight and paying weight is in
favor of the narrow gauge equipment. The
capacity of cars, both for passengers and
freight, has been proven to be all-sufficient
for the general business of the country. Be-
sides, the narrow gauge equipment is more
wieldy and therefore capable of being man.
aged with more economy. Again, the steam
power is more efficient in its application to
the narrow gauge and therefore accomplishes
the same work at less cost-and more work
at the same cost.
The narrow gauge admits of altogether
different location than the broad gauge, con-
forming more nearly to the natural surface of
the ground. Especially is it adapted to rough
and mountainous countries, on account of
the short radius it allows to the curves. A
section Of the Colorado Central Railway was
estimated upon the feet 81 inch gauge, at
100000 per mile, while the actual cost of
grading the roa6-bed for the feet gauge did
not exceed $4,000. The road has a maxi
mum grade of 275 feet the mile and curves
of 1876 feet radius. The Denver 6 Rio
Grande Railway is probably one of the best
examples of the narrow gauge. Its shortest
curves are 303 feet radius, and three-fifths of
the line is curved, and the average grade is
SO feet per mile, the weight of rail 80 and 35
pounds the yard, passenger engines 12 tons
and those for freight II tons. This road cost
$13,50O per mile.
The weight of rail used on most of the mar
row gauge roads in operation is 30 pounds
the yard, instead of go and 65 as for the
broad. The rolling stock being often only
half as heavy the wear and tear is proportion
ally diminished. The passenger engines are
| made light with nothing superauous. The
Baldwin for example has cylinders II
inches diameter, 16 inches stroke; driving
wheels AZ inches, truck wheels "a inches.
Its tractive power is 900 gross tons on level
and it attains speed of between 25 and IS
miles per hour. Its cost at present rates OF
labor would be about $6500. The freight en-
gines would be proportionally larger.
The passenger cars are from 7 to feet in
width, and 35 feet long, and will seat from 36
to 46 passengers. The freight cars seem par
ticularly adapted for cheap transportation.
They weigh some 5000 pounds (about half
that of the common box carl and have ca
pacity of tons, while from 8 to 10 tons is
| only allowed the ordinary gauge car.
Owing to lightness, capacity of cars and
ease Of handling such train the narrow
| gauge accomplishes about an eighth more than
| the broad gauge. 1t will also take the same
load over sleeper grade, at least from 20 to
25 per cent. 1t might seem that the 8 feet
gauge must be unsafe for passenger travel
with speed, yet the evidence is thus far in ia
vor OF the narrow gauge for safety-even with
greater width of car as compared with width
of track.
To note the progress that has been made
in the right direction Mr.. Wadsworth cites
the Great Western, one of the earliest roads
in England, which was built on the gauge of
fleet but has now been brought in to feet
| 81 inches. The Ohio and Mississippi, and
| the Grand Trunk of Canada and Maine have
| also been changed to- the above standard.
Some of the roads in the West are about to
be converted into 8 feet gauge hoping thus 10
make them remuneratve. In South Ameri-
ca, Norway, Australia. India, the Dominion
OF Canada and many parts of Europe narrow
gauge railways are in successful operation,
and the first railway in China is to be en- a
gauge OF 30 inches. The 3 feet gauge is par
ticularly suited to many purposes.
The narrow gauge accepted for the United
States seems to be feet. Its success bids
fair to revolutionize the whole carrying sys-
tenn of the far West. So much capital need
lessly sunk in unremunerative railroads may
be looked upon as one of the principal causes
of the general depression of the country.
In 1874 of 2025 miles of road built in the
United States about 627, over 30 per cent,
were on the narrow gauge. The first of
January 1876 finds more than 225O miles in
operation, while nearly 1900 more are under
contract or in way of construction. They are
in great measure west of the Mississippi,
there being less than so miles in New Eng
land. The general roughness of New Eng
land country would seem, to be favorable
field for the narrow gauge. Many branch
lines from 10 to 20 miles might be built on
this gauge over routes now occupied by
stages. The transferring amounts to moth
ing more than from the ordinary convey
ances. He mentions several roads in Penn
sylvania that have branches on this gauge.
The results Of the Denver & Rio Grande
Railway have haen. entirelv satisfactorv mas