The Newtown bee., 1889-03-22
The Derby Extension.

A year ago, ,the Derby Extension, about which there had been a great deal of talk and endless newspaper articles and upon which not a little money had al- ready been spent, was only s'paper road" Botsford was then compartive- 1y unimportant station on the main line of the Housatonic road, boasting store, postoffice and half a dozen houses. At last the final survey was made and grad ing was begun. When the rails were laid and Col Stevenson's party of news paper men, with the gallant colonel himself at the throttle and the whistle valve, came over the extension-yary' passed on up the rqad sud, 'sGuess the and dine go, after all" And a ssgo'' it is. As soon as schedules were arranged and trains began to run regularly, the future popularity and prosperity of the road were apparent. To provide ade- quate accommodations for the business confidently expected, many men were set at work under the charge of Super visor F. M. Cogill of the Housatonic; Roadmaster Clark also did his share. In a few weeks, both arms of the Y were double tracked and switches and cross overs (seven in alp were laid. Soon, also, the 60-foot turntable, capable of turning, with great ease, the largest en- zines on the road, was completed and in use. It is just north of the upper arm of the Y and is so perfectly balanced that 3 slight effort will send it entirely around. Plans for 8 water tank were considered. It was decided to place this still further north, nearly opposite the junction of the Houratonic and Derby tracks, about 100 feet east. After the foundations had been prepared and the framework erected, a surprisingly short time sufficed to put together the tank, place it upon the platform and have it ready to fill. A spring and small stream are close to the base of the tank. This spring is partially enclosed ill brick chamber, 10 feet square and some four or five deep, over which is the engine house, engine and powerful pump. A hydraulic ram was at one time talked of to force the the water into the tank, but a Rider compressed air engine was de- cided upon and is in use. Compressed and heated air, driven back and forth from one of two parallel, perpendicular cylinders to the other, furnishes the power. No water is used, save to cool the air and drive it back into the heating chamber and thus no explosion can ever occur. To run the engine, it is simply necessary to build fire and start the engine; it will rnn as long as the fire lasts. The engine at Botsford is the lar gest made and is rated as ten-inch. It occupies a floor space of three by four feet and is about seven feet high it's weight exceeds 20 tons. Its listed capac- ity is GOOD gallons per hour and it will burn nine to l2 pounds of coal per hour. The tank into which the water is pump ed is cylindrical in form, with conical top. It is 3I feet above the pump, r 1-2 feet high and 24 feet in diameter; it's ca pacity is 6, ,000 gallons. Derby engine No. 4, the first to take water from the tank, filled it's tender in a minute and half, through the six-inch pipe which supplies either Honsatonic or Derby en- zines.
 As through and local freight traffic increases, it will be necessary to make further improvements. The throngs of passengers who will doubtless patronize the road in Summer, the season of travel, must also be we'll provided for. The project of erecting extensive coal sheds and of forming q large coaling station here has been referred to.
 That new passenger and freight depot will soon be demanded is acknowl- edged by all, The building now used as q passenger depot was purchased by the company some time ago, but MT A. B. Blakeman's lease is good for two years more and 1t is doubtful if new depot is erected immedi diataly
 New Haven reporters ind plenty of business men who say tlaat the Darby extension has IazoxesI \ ellefIt U fllenl,