The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1885-05-06
THE WIZ ARD EDISON.
Harnessing New Electrical Thoughts to
Practical Work.
~. A. Crotfut ia New YORK world


". A. Croffut ia New York World
| found Mr.. Edison last week in his labor.
story on Avenue B, and asked him what was
the newest thought that he had hsrnssssd 10
matter. This" he answered, and called
my attention 10 q board hanging By one ed-,e
TO ropes above our heads, surface coSerei
With tinfoil IN further tx planstion ha s3l0:
That solves the question Of tslegrsphing to
running trains as sooa IS that little -
vice ia eGopied every moving train In the
country will becone a Geographic station,
BDd anybody ahead the ram may Do tsiz-
grspbed 10 Go easily % II IL was standing
stin. This vii not be done by putting up "A
new SGT OF wiTee under the train or az its
side, but by usipg toe ordinary telegraph
now running By the sids OF the track lis
q new. aod hitherto unsnown. process Of
induction, by which [ make electricity Jump
thirty-five feet through the air carrying the
message without splitting il. H0E's that for
lively2'
The inventors face glowed with pleasure
at the thought Is he went on: by pltting
up this tinfeil-covsred board leugthwiss on
the top of each car / can catch message
from the wire strung on poles thirty-iye feet
off, and can fling an answer back to the wire.
1t requires no change in the wires OF any sort.
The secret Of 1t is the machine for transmit
tiDg. When / was investigating what called
the 'eibeIic force e few years ago / &C
critics of static electricity. These
have now applied. The process is very inex-
pensive. ss three men could equip rosd 300
miles long for 81, 600 in three or four days.
1t seems certain that its adoption will be
general, SO that every train will be run from
headquarters and every passenger will be
accessible to his friends. What do call it?
haven't named the baby yet"
Mr.. Edison looked exceedingly well, 81
though he was robed in o gown OF bed-tick-
ing reaching from collar to ankles. which
was not very picturesque.
at the Edison factory in. Goreck street a
new passenger car of the Elevated Road is
being equipped with the electric motors
which are to take the place of the present
steam locomotive in the early summer. The
car is turned bottom upward, aud two dyna.
mos veighing about ], 200 pounds each are adj
justed to the der side in proximity to the
wheels. One dynamo drives the four for
ward wheels, and the other the four rear
wheels. Every car is to be similarly rugged
80 IS to bear its own motive power. A train
of four cars instead of having one sixteen
ton locomotive, with two great driving
wheels, will have no locomotive,
wheels will be q driving.wheel. The
eight dynamos will weigh about as much SIS
locomotive, and they will ali respond to
| the touch of one conductor. Mr.. Bacheilor,
| in charge of the work tells me that one Car
| can be run alone in the easy hours, while in
tie crowded hours ten or @ dozen can be run
| in train, and that they can reach a speed
| of twenty miles an hour in the frat 800 feet
| alter starting. Mr.. Russell Sage. whom ]
| eaw yesterday, feels sure that the electric
| motors will enable the aerial roads to carry
| one-third to oDe-helf more passengers than
| they are now doing, and that the trains Will
| be much more safe and manageable.