The Cecil Whig., 1881-06-04
THE RAILROAD TELLTALE.
A MACHINE THAT RECORDS THE DISTANCE
TRAVELLED, THE SPEED AND STOPS
OF TRAINS.

\ MAShlNE hA hENoJtpo HF- us ltNN T.
TRAVELLED, THE SPEED AND STOPS
OF TRAINS.
An ingenious machine called the ''tell-
tale has been introduced recently on
the Erie Railroad. 1t registers the speed
of trains when and where they stop, and
how long. 1t is used especially for freight
trains, and is fastened at each end of
small cabooses or at the side of large
cabooses, about four and ahalf feet from
the floor. 1t was adopted because freight
trains frequently exceeded the prescribed
rate of speed. They would run fast for
some distance, and then take things COM
fortably for time.
The machine works as follows: \ screw
is wound around one of the journals or
axles of the caboose. \ rod which is
turned by the screw as soon as the train is
in motto II, runs horizontally to the end or
side of the caboose to a point under the
registering machine. To this rod 4 cog
wheel is attached, working in another
coy wheel which turns Il rod running per-
pendicularly, and ending in still another
cog wheel which turns a cylinder about
four inches long and one inch in diane
ter. The number Of cogs in each wheel
varies, so that when the train has travel
ed mile the cylinder has revolved only
about one-quarter of an inch.
A strip of paper about twenty-one
inches long and four inches in breadth
passes over the cylinder and hangs into a
wooden box under the cylinder. This
paper is called the conductors service re-
port. Lengthwise it is divided by dotted
lines into eighty-eight parts. Each of
these parts, which represents a mile. is
subdvided by green lines into four parts
| each subdivision standing for a quarter
| of mile. BreathwiSe the strip is livid-
ed into thirty parts by green lines. Each
| of these parts represent IL minute. BY
across the paper and back again, taking
| thirty minutes to move across and thirty
| minutes to move back again. AS soon as
| the journal or axle turns, the cylinder
turns at the rate OF quarter inch for
| each mile, SO that when mile is travcrs-
ed the pencil has marked a line over the
space between the dotted lines which rep
resent a mile ON strip of paper. AS the
| clock-work moves the pencil across the
| strip the pencil has also passed over as
many minute divisions as it has taken
| the car minutes to run mile. If the
train stops the cylinder stops. The line
made by the pencil in the direction of
the length of the paper is broken as long
as the train stops, and the time of the
interruption i'll travel is represented by
the number of spaces the pencil moves
across the strip before it resumes the
| lengthwise line.
| In order to ascertain the point where
any irregularity occurred, tho stations on
the road are on OF between the dotted
lines at point corresponding to their dis
tances from Jersey City. Bergen is two
miles and ahalf from Jersey City. Jer-
sey City is printed at the beginning OF
the strip. and Bergen is printed two and
ahalf spaces further on the length of the
strip. When the train stops the cylinder
stops. and the pencil line lengthwise is
broken between the printed name Jersey
City and Bergen. The cylinder and clock
work are inclosed in an iron box, which
is locked When train reaches its des-
tination the slip is removed and inspect