Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-11-08
Trains by Telpherage.

Telpherage is the name which has
been given to q system of automatically
transporting goods by the agency of
electricity as the motive power, which
system was the invention of the late
Professor Fleming Jenkin. Dying in
June last, however, the Professor did
not live to see his ingenious ideas car
ried out on practical scale. He
had begun the construction of
telpher line on the estate OF
Lord Hampden, at Glynde, near
Lewes; but his plans had to be per-
fected by Professor Perry, his sue
cessor, as the engineer to the Telpher-
age Company. This line has been COM
pleted, and was formally opened on
Saturday last by Lady Hampden, who
electrically started loaded train on
the line. A special train conveyed a
large number Of visitors from Victoria
station to Glynde. The line lisa double
one. nearly mile in length, and is
composed Of two sets OF steel
rods, three quarters of an inch
in diameter, supported on wood
en- posts of I shape, and
about eighteen feet high. The wires
are supported one on either end of the
cross piece of the II, which is eight feet
long. The carriers or skips, as they
are technically termed, are iron, trough
shaped buckets, each holding about two
hundred weight, and suspended from
the line by light iron frame, at the
upper end Of which is pair Of grooved
wheels running on the line Of rods. A
train is made up Of ten Of these skips,
which are in electrical connection with
each other, and with an electrical motor
which is placed in the middle OF
the train, having five skips in front
Of and five behind it. AT point
about midway Of the length of the line
is the engine-house, in which is steam
engine which drives the dynamos. From
these latter the current is led to the
: line, and thus to the electrical motor
which moves the train. The use t.
which the line is put is to carry clay
: from a pit to the Glynde railway
siding, whence it is delivered init
trucks and transported by rail to tn
works Of the New Haven Cement Com
II pany. At the charging end Of tn
t telpher line the skips are loade'
each with about two hundred
weight of clay, the train thus carry
ing one ton. A laborer, by touch
ing key, starts the train, whicl
travels at a speed Of from four to fiv,
miles an hour along the overhead lin
to the Glynde station. Arrived Their
s another laborer upsets each skip as i
passes over railway truck into whicl
8 the clay is thus loaded. This upset
II ting, however, will eventually be per
= formed automatically by a means Of
e lever on each skip, which will come il
q contact with projecting arm as
e passes over the truck. The laborer q
IL the discharging end of the line has ful
y control over the train, and can stop
q start, and reverse it at will, as can ais
:. the man at the other or loading end.
II There are two trains at Glynde, bu
II only one is at present used, that bein
found sufficient to deliver $50 tons q
y clay per week at the station-the mini
mum quantity required by the cemen
y company. The trains need no attentio
"a when running, as they are governed t
y run at the same speed both on rising an
Is falling gradients. An sutomstic-blocl
ie system is provided, so that as many a
y twenty trains can berun on the line with
out the possibility of collision. The to
y pherage line at Glynde being the frs
Is erected, it is admitted that its detail
10 are capable Of improvement. 1t, how
J, ever, successfully demonstrates the il
" genious idea Of Professor Jenkin
l. utilizing electricity as source Of m,
tive power. Beyond this it can hardl
" be said to 20 at present.