The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-02-18
AFFAIRS OF THE RAILWAYS.
Personal and Local.

IerSonat and LNSaI.
General Freight Agents Hubbard, Of the Van
aaiia, and Grammer, of the E.. & T. H., left for
New York last evening.
Passenger Agents Welsh, Of the Union Pacific,
and Murray, of the Michigan Central, are in the
eity prospecting for business.
Shipments of Michigan wheat to Southern
markets is still an important feature of tonnage
with the north and south lines.
The locomotives on the Bee-iine system, 2l8
in number, making mileage in the year 1850.
averaged to run 3,2l3 miles per month.
Superintendent Woodland and General Freight
Agent McDoel. of the L., N. A 81 O., are in the
CITY on official business, ard will remain over to-
day.
The Pennsylvania Company has contracted
with the Eastman Freight car Heater Company
30 fit up one hundred OF their new cars with this
device.
OF the freight cars hauled over the Decline in
1856. but % per cent. were empty, which is GER
tainly a good showing where SO large q pei cent
OF the freight is through business.
A warm personal friend Of G. [. Dickinson.
Abe former auditor of the l., B. q w. company,
whose reputation suffers by the suddenness with
which he left the city, received a letter from him
"a day or two ago mailed from Winnipeg, Canada.
The Chicago & Alton road is credited with hav-
ang doEe more than any other road to bring on
what ie now known as the free chair-car rate
war. A passenger riding on a second-class
ticket is as freely admitted as one travelling on o
4irst-class ticket on that road.
Frank Palmer, who represents the Wabash at
Chicago. Is a great sufferer from two carbuncies
on his neck, and his physicians for a day or two
past have been somewhat alarmed as to results.
Mr.. Palmer has numerous friends in this city
who will regret to hear of his affiiction.
80 n-t,5~ L. 49, oHank <hok
as the Lake Shore road has ordered ali its ticket
agents to turn in all commissions paid to them
by connections, the latter now decline to pay
commissions to Lake Shore agents, but have
arranged to pay commissions TO scalpers In
Toledo and Cleveland.
of the Chesapeake IL Ohio and William L. Nun.
son, agent of the same line at Cincinnati, spent
yesterday in the city. The length of lime they
1oitered about the scalpers' Offices on South Hi
nois street has created considerable comment in
passenger circles as to the object Of their visit.
Theodore Brown, recently appointed Southern
passenger agent of the c., l., St. L. g. G. road,
headquarters Chattanooga, Tenn, is in the city
for a day or two. Mr.. Brown states that there
is a large emigration in progress from Tonnes
see, and the movement is about equally divided
between Texas and the Northwest He says
the Southern territory is as vigorously worked
by passenger agents as is Indiana, but the dispo-
Sition to slaughter rates is not so marked In
Bouthern territory as in and about Indianapolis.
The Bee-line people have contracted with the
Brooks locomotive works for eight-wheeled
passenger engines of the following Dimensions:
Cylinder, l8x24; driving wheel %centers, 62; Paige
steel-tired truck wheels, 80 and 80 tender wheels:
axles and crank pins of Otis steel; boiler and
ire-box of Otis steel: boiler with l95 two-inch
tubes; tank of 3. 900 gallons capacity; engines to
be equipped with Westinghouse utomatic air
and driver brakes; total weight OF engine, about
so. 900 pounds; cylinder portion of boiler to be
81 in diameter.
The stockholders of the Indianapolis g. st.
Louis railroad held their annual meeting in this
city yesterday, and elected the following direct
0rs: j. H. Devereux, Stevenson Burke, Truman
I. Handy, James Barnett. Amos Townsend,
George Ell. Russell, John T.. Dye. Mr.. Handy
succeeds Z. B. Thomas; otherwise the directory
is unchanged. Of the 5000 shares of stock,
1900 were voted, chiefly by proxy. No state
ment of the earnings of the road was made, but
will be when the annual statement of the c., O.,
C. g. l. is made public next month.
So dilatory are the Wabash IT,, p. & c. in
iloing the switching service for the L., N. A. 81
C., that road may with good reason offset Its
rental By putting in a Claim for damages. What
the L., n. A. & G. should do is to build into In
dianapolis independent of other roads. and then
do their own switching. A portion Of the
money they will derive from the new line could
not be better expended than in building to a
connection with the Union tracks and erecting a
city freight depot.
George Blanchard, commissioner of the Gen.
trail Traffic Association, at the meeting in Gin
cinnati talked plainly to the general freight
agents. He asked if they had any grievances. If
30, he wanted them to make it known, and not a
complaint was made. He then said in the future
should the freis hit agents of Cincinnati roads
have reason for believing that a competitor was
shading rates. he wished to know it at once, and
there should be no delay in the investigation.
He intimated that the competitor would be
brought mp with a short turn before he had car
Fied the cream of the business as has often been
fhe case in times past.
The efforts to introduce electric headlights
On locomotives in this or other countries is not
meeting with the success that parties interested
had hoped it would. The American Locomotive
Headlight Company, in which a number of Indi-
annapolis people are stockholders, have, in the
last few days, been encouraged. however, over
inquiries regarding their light, which they now
claim is perfect. Three leading railroad COM
panies have about decided to equip their road
engines and switching engines with their light.
1t is believed that when one road adopts the
Sight its use viii soon become general.
The attention of civil engineers in the railway
service is being directed to some of the evils of
carly construction. Many of the early roads,
besides being hastily and imperfectly built. were
not as advantageously located as they might be.
Several of the older roads are correcting these
errors. The Pennsylvania Company has ex-
pended more money in this direction than any
Other, and has secured advantages which justify
the outlay. The Baltimore & Ohio have been
quietly pursuing the same course, and other
companies have been Strengthening out curves,
putting in iron bridges instead of wooden. level
lng their roadway and generally improving
as, the Vandalia also is one of the number,
having spent in the last two years some SIPS, 600
m this direction, and, as soon as earnings will JUS
tify, Colonel Hill, superintendent, proposes to
continue the important work. more especially on
the T. Fl. & L. division. The l., B. s. w. peo-
pie, as well. contemplate, should their business
continue good and earnings be satisfactory. ex-
pending several hundred thousand dollars i'm cut
ting down grades on the Peoria division. This
road will need do but little in the way of
STRENGTHENING curves.
Trouble Brewing on the o. & nj.
One fully conversant with the affairs of the
Ohio g. Mississippi road stated yesterday that