Morning journal and courier., 1888-01-25
Wednesday, January 25. 1888.
MAssACHUsETTs RAILROADs.
 

MASSACHUSETTS RAILROADS.
 The railroad commissioners of Massachu- setts are apt to make interesting reports, and the one just issued is no exception to the general rule. Especially interesting are these parts of the report which deal with the heat ing and lighting of trains. The advance made by Massachusetts in the matter of safe- 1y heating passenger trains is gratifying. That some system of heating trains with steam from the locomotive is the coming system is evidently the belief of the comnis- sioners, but it is also evident that all the difficulties in the way of adopting the system in trains which take up and leave oars at different points on the route have not yet been practically surmeunted. There are not less than seven different systems of heating in use on the railroad of Massachusetts, and it is believed that after thorough trial this winter it will be possible to judge concerning the merits of these systems. The Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn railroad has devised 8 special system of it's own, and has applied it to all of it's cars, thus being the first rail road in the commonwealth, and probably in the world, to abolish separate heaters in all cars and heat entirely by steam from the To- eomotive. The Boston and Providence has also devised special system of it's own and has applied it to seventeen cars.
 Concerning the lighting of passenger cars the comm issioners state that tLe railroads all report that they knew of no accident dur ing the past five years resulting from the method of lighting in use. The Boston and Albany railroad experimented last year with electricity furnished by Julien storage bat tery suspended under the cars, and tho sys- tenn is now in use on that read on two trains running between Boston and New York. The light is much superior to oil, being sufficient to read by with comfort in all parts of the car, and the heat generated is less. The president of the corporation writes as fol- lows: ''Without taking into consideration the cost of maintaining storage batteries, electricity costs about ten times as much per burner as oil. How much additional is to be charged to the batteries we are not able at present to tell, for their life is not yet de- ternined, but we have information sufficient to warrant us in saying that, in the present state of the art, this method of lighting can not come into general use." Success in the matter of lighting by electricity seems to be close at hand, but has not as yet been attain ed to such degree as to warrant compulsory legislation.
 Another interesting part of tho report is that which relates to bridges. The report of Professor Swain, the bridge expert em- ployed by the board, gives abundant evidence that the investigation into the safety of the railroad bridges of the State was not begun any too early. He states that the prepara- tion of the document required by the board has brought to light defects and cases of weakness which were entirely unsuspeoted, and this, too, on some of the best managed roads of the State. Considerable still re- mains to be done, however, for the board de- clares it is by no means satisfied with the present condition of bridges as whole, and that there are many bridges in which the tie system is such that it would not carry de- railed car in safety.