The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1890-11-05
TransIt through a TuSs.
,,ou the rhnssslphIa Record

Prom the Phllaaeiphla Record
The laying Of double pneumatic tuoe
line between thi. city and New York for
the rapid transmission Of packages seems
nov assured. There are many Phiisoei-
phjans interested in the piojecs, among
them being John and Felix Bradley
James sweeny and Joseph Trainer' De-
side s. F. Leake, the inventor OF the ne"
system and the principal promoter Of 'ne
enterprise. Mr.. Leake and John BRAD
lev are now in New York Periecting
plans for the laying Of 8 trisl tube be-
tween NeSark and Jersey City and look
iny after other matters preliminary 10
building the whole plant
II is generally agreed among The lead
en- that the capital stock Of the company
win be $4,000 OOo. but the details con-
cerning the disposition Of the stock have
not been definitely settled Ii was
originally intended to sell shares ior
about 25 cent? apiece in order to make
the company popular. A circular was
sent out not long since to number Oh in-
aiv;auals which stated that there is nov
enouQh business carried on between New
York and Philadelphia Of kind that
can be handled by the tubes 70 declare 3
dividend of . per cent. upon capiiai
stock Of SlOOoopoo.
Mr.. Leake has six patents, all taken out
on July s of the present year, Two ol
which pertain to the switches, two 70 tne
receiyer. and two the "blOcks Of air
system. Twelve eminent engineers from
different parts of the country have been
asked 70 examine the tubes and MS ap-
puI,ensnces, and all have pronounced
the system SO far as their knowledge
goes.
THE PLAN or ARRANGEMENT.
The tubes will be two feet in diameter
and made Of copper They are TO be laid
underground IN pretty direct line be-
tween the two cities. The Delaware river
will be crossed in the neig hborhood OF
Tacony. the tubes being laid on the bot
tom Of the stream. Packages, papers and
letters will dispatched from an office and
the switches will be manipulated by the
agent, who send them. For instance, II
a bundle Of papers is put in the tube at
Philadelphia destined for the way sta
ton at Trenton, the agent here, as he
starts the bundle, turns the switch at
Trenton, by merely touching button II
the switch turns all right an automatic
hand, working on the principle OF COM
mon enunciaior. so indicates.
The little cans which carry the packag-
es are prevented from telescoping each
other by means of blocks of compressed
air. The receiver into which the car
drop or are stopped ut the end OF th'
end OF the journey is also a compressed
air apparatus. Mr.. Leake the inventor
has said that, although il seems simple
thing. this was one of the very hardest t
make work successfully. The velocity 0
the cars is four miles a minute, or elgh
times the speed of an ordinary expres
train. How 10 stop the car wIthon
smashing its contents was a knotty prob
lem, bat compressed air solved it.
Il is proposed to make the rate 10
transportation reasonably low, and b,
80 doing a large part of the telephone an'
telegraph business between the two ci'
les will be captured by the tube people
since car can be Whirled to New for
and back again in forty-five minutes,
letter can be semitic business firm an
an answer received about as quickly as
telegraph message and answer can no.
be exchanged. Banking houses will b
greatly benefited by this quick commu
nica.ion, as will pewspapers which no'
use special railroad trainsto get Their ed
tions ont Of the city.