National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1886-09-29
THE snELLABAnerR CAR.
How Live stock Can he Carried with
Regard TO Safety and Comfort.

How Live stock Can he Carried with
Regard to Safety and Comfort.
Considerable Interest having been shown in
the shellabarger live stock car aud numerous
Inquiries made as to what it was and how
operated, q reporter of the REPUBLICAN
dropped into the company's office, No. 1895
street northwest, yesterday, and proceeded TO
pump the com oanys representative for infor-
nation.
some shipments of live stock have recently
been made in the Shollabarger compartment
stock car. Would you object to furnishing the
NATIONAL REPUBLICAN with the facts for pub
"Certainly not" replied the agent Through
the courtesy OF the officials OF the Pennsylvania
Railroad Company, the shella6argsr yonp1ny
north, and will make another aud the last, for
the present III this 50 ctlon, on Thursday next.
You will see our card to that effect In to.day's
star, with an invitation to our Stockholders
and others 20 witness the shipment. We
would be pleased to have you consider thai
invitation as cordially, extended to repre-.
sentative Of your paper"
"The REfuBlIGIS will try to be on hand.
Meanwhile, | would like to inquire whether,
when put TO test your car met your expejta.
tions?'
az can safely say that II has not only met,
hut exceeded them. The cattle are more easily
loaded and unloaded, become sooner accus'
toned to their surroundings, and ride with
greater comfort than we could have believed.
The troughs are filled with hay before loading
begins. Within few minutes after loading Is
completed the majority of the animals arc
feeding with rs much composure rs II in n
stable. On the arrival OF our car at its destlnn.
ton many of the animals were found lying
down.. having made themselves perfectly AZ
home In the car"
what particular advantages are there In
the compartment systcmW
THE advantages are so manifold that II
would be difficult to specify them all. In the
Afgt Nil ratiF ~ MI nj ar
10 much per ca, the shipper concelves II to bo
in his interest TO crowd as many animals as
possible into car. AS q matter OF fact from
into car thirly.two feet long and eight feet
wide. Those that enter last arc compelled to
do SO by brutal poundlngs and by prodding
heavy poles from four to six feet long. These,
with tail twistings, kicks, howls, and
curses, complete the savage task; Inside
the cor all In cOmmotion. The air Is
sitting. The heat communicated by the close
contact Of the animals Is intense. Each ami
NAL ia in agony and constantly seeking 10 bet.
portunity for, rest or refreshment, during the
| twenty.eight hours ride until the law steps In
| and compels their unloading for rest.
a@ S Sed animals fnS % STe loaded two Sar
| time. This is easily done. But sixteen cattle
arc transported in car, which ailowsamplc
space for carriage without crowdln5, and for
| meath the car, and days supply of water in
the tanks overhead, What we have Is stable
| oil wheels. and but for the jar in starting the
| tfHin, or the swaying In rounding curves, the
cattle ere lust as comfortable in Il Shell4blrger
| car as they could be In any stable. To sum
| up When n train OF ordinary stock cars
| reaches its destination. after long journey,
| from one TO three dead animals are taken from
| each car. II notice that thiTty.seyen were
taken from single train In New York city not
| long agol The rest are feverlsh, bruised.
gorcd and greatly depleted In strength and
| weight; unfit for food, and showing an i'm
mense loss to the shipper in shrinknge; The
animals carried on train of SheilabarSer
| cars, no matter how many days may have been
| occupied en- route will have lost but little, II
| any, in weight, and will be In fine, healthy
condition; ready for market"
| 81 have seen some figures regarding the loss
| on cattle through sbrnkage and death from
| the present modes Of transportation, but can
not recall them. l suppose you are familiar
| ut Is estimated by careful authorities that
| there Is an annual loss OF SIG 100000 from tho
| cause you have mentioned. Suppose, now, that
| the nse Of the Shellabnrger compartment stock
car should reduce this loss from SIG, 900, 900 to
100000 or $1,000 900 annually land this H. q
| vely moderate expectation you can SEQ the
vast results that we are aiming o., the iact
| are directing this enterprise can themselves
| hardly realize that they are engaged In an un-
dertaking which will revolutionize the entire
| system of stock shipping, which, In Its hui
manitarian aspect, is far In advance OF any.
thing yet conceived, and which, in Its financial
results, hopes TO effect the saving not OF thou
| sands or hundred of thousands, but OF many
| millions Of dollars annually"
| 81 see that there are number OF patent
stock car companies besides the Shellabarger,
| and that some Of them are invoking legislation
by Congress to correct real or supposed an
| tHgonism by the railroad companies. How
will the shellabarger company meet this an-
| tagonism?"
"As far as we are concerned we have had ne
antagonsm, as you term II. to meet. We have
found the railroad companies both east ant
the trial and Introduction OF our car. In fact
railroad company In the west that uses 900
stock cars made US u proposition some tint
ago TO use some of our cars and pay Us tht
companies for the use of theirs. If they had
taken our cars aud tested them thoroughly
without compromising us at all am sure We
| see we know nothing eNperimentally of oppO
sition TO improved stock cars by the railroad
companies. This much may be said. however
| The Shellabarger company have presented tt
the railroad companies an invention which
they can afford toadopt. So far as am awart
no other car company has done this. Through
the use OF our patent fixtures any ordinary
cattle car can be transformed into Sheln
baTger compartment stock car at a cost of D
over $50. After shipment of cattle east thu
| fixtures can be readily removed, and placed II
the bin underneath the car, when the car re
sumes It's function as receptacle for ordinar.
freight"
chase additional rolling stock, as you ship Blu
sixteen animals In a carp
mot a car. In fact, they will need fewa
cars, and III tell you why. AT present, ate
| riding twenty-eght hours, the animals mus
be unloaded and allowed rest of five hours
This occasions great delay on a long journey
A Shellabarger can be run right through fron
Santa Fe TO Boston without any stops, exceu
for water once a day and for food once 4
three days. The number OF trips that can b
made in a year will far more than Offset tn
smaller carrying capacity of our car"
do you expect TO manufacture many cars?
mo. II is our plan to sell railroad compa
MES the right TO use our fixtures, which the
can readily manufacture In their own shops.
"Whcn win your first trip be made from tn
westY'
about Oct. 15. The president of the Hu
name Society Of the United states, the yeteri
nary surgeon, members of the press, the fir:
vice president and the secretary OF our CON
pany will accompany the first train loa