The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1890-03-23
TO SECURE ACCURATE lime.
How tlse syaohrcnizing Clocks on the
Union Paeific Railroad Are Set.

| HOW the synohrcnizing Clocks on the
Union Pacific Railroad Are Set.
| There is nothing about railroad Of more
| Importance than correct time. In the move
ment of trains it is absolutely necessary.
| True, there is five minute proTiso for varia-
| ton of watches at certain times, but there
/ can hardly be found man conyersant with
| the train order systems as ussd on American
railroads who would care 10 vouch for the
safety OF train running under the rules OF
| one OF these systems whose conductors or
engineers watch was not reliable.
All first class roads receive time daily by
wire from some reliable source. The Wash
ington university at ST. Louis, No., is at
present supplying time for more roads in,the
west than any other one institution; but the
Western Union Telegraph company, having
lately completed arrangements for supplying
time signals from the naval observatory at
Washington, D. c.. is fast securing a monop-
oily of this business Nearly all the wires Of
the railroads in the United States are either
owned or under joint lease and operated as
Western Union wires by that company.
Thus, by refusing to allow the observatories
the use of wires for transmitting of signals,
they are gradually securing the whole bust
ness. The Western Union system Is reliable
probably more so than others, on account
OF its being conducted on more extensive
scale
st. Louis time IS sent at 10 O'Clock a. m.
and Washington time at Il noon. Toreceive
these time signals it is necessary first to have
a completed, uninterrupted circuit of tele-
graph line from the observatory to the main
Office of the road for which the time is being
sent. This is done by the connection Of COM
mercial wires between the TWO points few
seconds before the signals begin.
At the main office generally the headquar-
tiers Of the road the signals pass through
what is called time repeater" which is
simply a machine similar TO a telegraph In
strument, being SO constructed that the neces-
sary number Of wires over which time is to
pass may be connected to it, thus obtaining
Simultaneous action. For st. Louis time, at
8 o'clock, 81 minutes, precisely, the master
clock at the observatory is attached to the
wire and beats, automatically, commencing
at o'clock, 50 minutes, double beats each
second until O'Clock, IS minutes, 50 seconds,
when the circuit opens. At o'clock, 50 min
utes, the clock sends single beats each second
until o'clock, 50 minutes, so seconds, when the
circuit again opens. 1t remains so for ten
seconds, when the clock gives one beat which
denotes that it is 10 o'clock a. m, central
standard time
At the last opening aS the circuit the man
at the time repeater at the railroad main
Office pushes a button which throws into con-
nection circuit to the magnets in the regu-
lating clocks; and the last beat from the
master clock throws the hour, minute and
second hands of these clocks to the correct
place to show 10 o'clock, no minutes, no sec
onds.
This setting device is very simple. At
tached, inside the clock, to the bars on which
the hands are fastened, are small bits of
steel, which are attracted to the magnets
when the latter are charged by the battery,
thus carrying the hands to the necessary
place. No matter how fast or how slow these
clocks may be, they are set precisely by this
current of electricity at 10 o'clock.-Omaha
WOrld-Herald