Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-09-06

Inc Massachusetts, electric corporation, the
Guys new imported sovereign, evidently takes a
CIeass maiicious pleasure In compelling Its SUD-
1o..ofs AND advocates 70 contradict themselves
euo 70 furnish amusement by absurd inconsistent
ciea The palpable reversals OF Capt. Grimm and
sue commissioners, and the threatened reversal Of
sne senate. have already been noted The solitary
newspaper defender Of the Overhead wires has un-
oergone similar experience. Formerly contend
sns mat the underground system or storage bat
sery should be used, as decidedly safer
enu certainly less unsightly than the
poles ana overhead wires, and predicting
tnAt the Commissioners would revoke the Ecking-
son permit SIN Difference to public sentiment" 1t
now loudly denounces 1.-THE senseless and baseless
opposition' TO overhead wires. II has also been
driven TO the claim that IL win be municipal i'm
pro'ement, progressive and publie-splrited act,
70 surrender the beautiful streets OF populous
washington 70 a railway system, which Capt
Srinin, while q District oflciat formally pro-
noonced unit tor Use In cities and which has been
repudiated on account OF the overhead wires in
several OF the villages which have expert
mented with It The most careful ex-
animation OF the experience OF the
village and suburban lines upon which the over.
neal wires have been used only confirms the wis
oom OF Capt. Grf1in's recommendation that the
system should not be permitted except for subur-
Dan purposes, and justiies his disinterested opin
Ion that the use Of conduits Is practicable and
should be compelled. so far as the city streets are
concerned What would be a marvellous public
Improvement for the main street OF progressive
and aspiring Squedunk would be q blot upon the
avenues OF a great capital The newspaper
advocate Of overhead wires has also felt
compelled to take the position that the
current along the electric railway wires Is at
once low-tension and harmless, and high
tension Ike the electric-ght current, and subject
he tahh haQra frh wing
the electric light wires Its firm belief Is that Sir
VIM Thompson, DR.. c. W. Semens, Dr. John Hop
hnA, and other eminent electricians, who testined
that current OF 800 units Is the limit Of safety,
are so far out OF the that current or over 400
units Is harmless but that this harmless current is
or sufficiently high tension TO class the railway
wires with the electriclight wires Of thousands OF
volts intensity, and TO make the electrical con-
vention's declarations in respect to the latter APP
plicable 70 the former. IL agrees with senator
Hoar, who expresses the opinion that q current
which Kills animals In Montgomery, Ala, VIII, If
developed by Massachusetts corporation in WASH
fngton, do no more than 'raise blister and who
apparently finds 1t impracticable, commercially or
otherwise, 10 comprehend why the capital should
object 10 being blistered for the bene1t OF this
Massachusetts, corporation. II also agrees that
the harmless telegraph and telephone wires can
be buried, and has no objection TO their burial II
they will bury themselves, but urges strenuousiy
that the burr al OF deadly hlgh-tension wires, like
those of the electric lights and electric railways
isinpraetieable. Perhaps compromise OF the two
opinions OF our ne1ghbor would approach the truth.
Perhaps the railway current Is below but near
the fatal point so that IL kills men or
animals only when there is some weakness
In the Individual victim which is sought and
found by the current, and Westinghouse OF per-
feet health may endure the shock and escape
with their lives And perhaps, also the current
Is OF such low tension as compared with that OF
the electric light wires that 1t cannot be classed
with them. By this compromise the current would
appear 10 be dangerous though not certainly fatal
hut so weak as compared with the electric light
current that the burial OF the railway wires is not
1mpractcable, even commercially. II is perfectly
evident that underground railway conductors are
not impracticable, since Major Raymond says
they are now In successful operation In
Allegheny City, and Capt. Grimm reported
that they were operated with wonderful
success there In two inches Of snow
last winter. Difficulties are met In burying the
electric light wires, the most dangerous OF all
which do not appear in the OF the other wires
But these difficulties will undoubtedly be overcome
Indeed, individual electricians at the recent con-
vention argued confidently that they were already
conquered. There is question as TO the best
system OF conduits, and careful investigation Is
advisable before decision concerning the plans and
methods OF burial; but that all the wires can and
ought TO be buried few people living In the large
cities Of to-day will be disposed 10 deny,
The sympathy OF The STAR with all projects
which promise TO improve the eity's street-railway
service is well known and has been repeatedly ex
pressed, and the advantages OF the proposed lines
connecting outlying districts with the main city
have been fully recognized. But TIE STAR cannot
escape the conviction that the public welfare will
be best advanced BY securing the advantage OF In
creased transportation facilities without the draw
back OF the Objectionable form OF electric motor
proposed.
The Chinese exclusion bill having been put