Morning journal and courier., 1890-10-25
srORAGE BATrERY SYSTEM.

EIactr,c street Cars-The Manage.
ment Favors the Above System.
The State Street horse railroad company,
like other companies of the kind in this
CITY. has for many months been watching
with closest interest all developments made
in regard to running street cars by cleo
tricity. The management of this road has
thus been alert to the signs of the times
with view to adopting electricity as the
motive power of the road in the most ap-
proved method. 1t may now be said that
the management is strongly inclined to ia
vor the storage battery system. The di-
rectory of the road has all along been in
clined to favor this system as the safest
and most satisfactory-in short, as much
preferable to the overhead wire or trolley
system, the latter being considered as de-
cidedly more dangerous to the community,
more troublesome to repair and more trou-
blesome to the community, to say nothing
of the Disagreement of streets occasioned
by the poles and wires The directory of
the road has been much confirmed in its
favorable opinion of the storage battery
system by different reports reaching them
of it's workings, and especially SO by an ar
ticle in the Springfield Republican of this
week from regular correspondent to that
paper, the gist of which is given below.
President Warren of the State Street COM
pany said to COURIER reporter recently
that the State street road would undoubt-
edly adopt electricity as the roads motive
power in the near future and that all the
company was waiting for was to secure the
best system and not expend the big amount
e 70 ,1ox a q
until perfectly sure of the situation.
w. j. Atwater of the board of directors
of this road, when seen last evening, said
that President Warren's views in the mat
ter were his emphatically, and in his at
tendance upon the recent convention OF
railroad men in western New York he was
very much struck with one thing-and
that very important one-that none OF
the companies using electricity were able
to report to the meeting how much the
plants of their respective roads cost, OF
what the running expenses were. They
could give no data on which to found an
estimate as to what it would cost here.
They seemed to be all at sea when any
thing like exact figures were asked for.
There's tho trouble.
Before going to battle, continued Mr..
Atwater, count the cost; some of the
roads hadn't used electricity but few
months, and some used electricity ON a
part Of their road and horses on the other
part. Just as soon as we get definite and
sound basis on which to start we will
equip our road with the electric cars; and
we want the best. It is ho small under
taking, as it will, as near as we can esti-
mate it, cost double to equip the road with
the electric system than the whole cost OF
our road up to date.
Said another gentleman interested in thu
| road lost evening: You see, by dispatch
| in the afternoon papers from Meriden thai
the Daft cars are ordered off in Meriden
| that Meriden is tired of its electric street
car system that has been in op
Grafton there for months, an6
that some other electric system is likely te
be adopted next spring. Now there's the
! milk in the cocoanut. Isn't it better tt
wait little while and get sure thing
than sink pile of money on what may
prove a failure and sore disgust to the
public. Now mind you, am in favor Of
substituting electric cars for horse cars al
the EARLIEST possible date that the change
can be made, safely and wisely, and the
sooner the better under the circumstances
As to the latest about the working Of the
storage battery system the following will
be of general public interest:
Much interest has been aroused in the genera
| discussions aroused throughout the country
lately over the respective merits of the storage
battery system for street electric railways ant
| the trolley system. Those interested in the for
| mer method come out with some remarkabl,
claims in it's support based on successes made IL
| the line between Beverly and Danvers, Mass, ,
| for the purposes of public transportation OF
October 81, 1899, and up to October 1880 it hat
lost but trips and had made mad twenty
1 been from causes independent of the system
| which is used for motive power. Other stree
l railways are subject to the same causes, such a
| heavy snow-storms, or other casualties which in
| terfere with even the best appointed road
Hence it's friends assert that it is system which
| can be depended upon.
The system has received some severe tests a
to its power, having had heavily loaded cars t
| transport, which has been accomplished success
| fully in every instance.
With this fact comes the inquiry as to tn
character Of the road bed In general it is VI
the entire three miles and over there are no
sS e ir sVei TN
| has several curves The steepest grade is sever
| feet in 100, and each of the curves is on a grad
| SO that the combination of difficulties tests tn
! power of the motor greatly. But the power /
| sufficient and the obstacles have been overcome
! The speed of the car is not as great going up hi
l as it is on level or down hill, for 1t is not a
economical to put on more power as it is to tax
] more time, but the other course could b
followed if desired: AS it is the speed Q
hour, and that is about the speed of tn
cars run by the trolly system. If it is desired tn
| speed can be mnch Increased, and an instance
related in which an empty car with only on
l peSron aboard, was run at about three times tina
| rate. In point of speed the people who believ
l to the attainments of the trolly system and tina
the latter cannot possibly have any superiorit
l in that respect.
l When it comes to the cost of construction an
| of operation, there is where the storage peopl
| ness than in other respects. Compared with til
| old horse car system, there can be no compariso
| which is not decidedly in favor of the storae
battery. road equipped for ten or twelve car
| they say at the home office here. can easily /
| run for five cents per car per mile, while the COZ
Of horses is about ten cents per car per mile. B,
the storage cars are lighter than the cars for IL
l overhead system, and the original outlay is NJ
l nearly as great.
for running is put down 1t 81, 600 While it is a
serted that the trolly system would cost $64, o
fn1 ihe Of he sSeage
| poles, which is about 5000 per mile. Besid
| this, it saves the Disagreement of the streets
| the poles and wires, which are a serious injury
| any public thoroughfare, as is evident where tn
1 system has been erected. Besides the great ga
ey eomparso 5ne WITH the tro III s1saer
| 1t is charged against the latter that the annu
outlay Tor repairs is 100 per cent. of the origin
in expense the entire cost in the hr
rspars Of the nov tb 80 a IN
| renewal of the motors, for it is said that there
a burning out in the overhead system which
| very destructive est and expensive Against the on
need but per cent. Of the smaller original OF
be considered that without the overhead wir
there is nothing Of the danger to property and
killing Of two horses 81 tie West End Street Ra
| the company has been Obliged to keep very sha
| watch OF its wires and that il break occu
anywhere it is only few minutes before We
End employe appears on the scene.
To the mind Of the storage battery men, the
r | can be no comparison Of the overhead and t
| trolley systems which will not result greatly
ae OF the ferme al hiS that
speed, that his system is fully equal to all 9
which made bad upon ii that il is
in short, that the storage system is by all cd
the best, and that it is surely destined to SUPP
? sede the overhead The storage men say th
= | they have been operating their cars but about
Q year; that there has been a belief that tn
quietly gone to work and solved it.
j, They make another point In favor of their g,
X There is not particle Of the buzzing which
a such disagreeable an accompaniment Of
on IF Of he M
o One Of the features Of the invention viii
the car is going down hill the power of
J. wheels is used to make electricity and to ste
) fact that when the car has reached the foot Of
batteries than when it was at the top. This {.
is also utilized In connection with the brakes,
that the driver has rarely, If ever, occasion
:, | apply the brakes. This results in a decided 8
b | which cannot be the case with the overhead s
r. It would be very entertaining to look furtl
a | into the processes by which the storage syst
Z has reached its present perfection, but the abb