The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-12-02

Laison was equal to the task, and ne has had
,osa IN successful operation for some month";
WI. .ae that my company has conpisted ne
soaasions with one of the large street railways
- horK city TO equip its road with this
!sm. mr. Fillsrd's road between Milwaukee
80 Nnicago wiz be operated IN the same man.
neI. cannot give you further details owing to
,ue Iacs That Mr.. Edisou's patents in Europe
lave no. all been secured yet. The coat OF this
ne" system IN less per mile than cable construc-
slon ana somewhat greater than tie trolley and
overhead system.
The Edison General Electric Company has
recently gone into the business OF equipping
electric railways About year ago nv com
pany fought out the Spragus Electric Railway
q Motor Company of New York; until such
time a. we could get out our own apparatus W .
nave been furnishing sprague apparatus and
modlncations of the sprague machine. Ny
company, however, during the last six month.
mas peen putting out an entirely new and dis
tnct type OF motor, embodying features and i'm
prosemsnn oil pronounced nature. The motor
u IN ironciad, single reduction machine OF slow
speed and high efficiency. Owing to the re-
ouced number OF parts and its great mechanical
structural strength the cost OF repairs is reduced
20 minimum. Mechanically and electrically
Al - the peer OF all other motors on the market
today, and street railway managers so well attest
their appreciation of the merits of Mr. Edison 8
latest wonder In this motor that our immense
factory at Schenectady IL kept running day and
night to Ill orders for electric car equipments
I'm comparative test made at Cleveland by
Ieouctlon motor was shown to be Is per cent
more economical and was pronounced the
strongest and simplest machine OF all tested in
Guiding the Thomson Houston single reduction
motor. Twill state that my company has Sc
cured an order from Milwaukee parties for
$20O,Ooo worth of these motors and electrical
apparatus and that the entire street rail way avs
tenn OF that city is to be equipped with the new
Edison system. Railway managers in this Sec
'ion OF the country appear to be keeping abreast
OF the times and viii have only the best We
have sold forty four street railway motors of this
new type in New Westminster, Seattle, Vic
tor;a, Tacoma, spokane, Portland, salem and
other places and have them In actual operation
In most of the above cities"
Nj Grambs' attention was called by the re-
porter to an article which appeared in the Press
Times OF November "a, relative to the replace
ment OF Edison motors by Thomson Houston
motors. Mr.. Grambs said he had read .he arti-
Gle. and was surprised that the Thomson Hous-
ton Company's representatives considered il
necessary in order 10 do business in this section
of the country TO garbls the truth and misrepre-
sent facts through the daily press of this city.
sThe facts in the case" said Mr.. Grambs, "are
these: On August 20, 1891, the Edison General
Electric Company closed a contract with the
James Street Construction Company for its ele-
trio generating plant and two electric ear equip
ments. Ny company had just purchased the
spragus Company, and not being prepared to
deliver cur own motor we furnished a modifi-
cation OF the Sprague motor known as the Eiek-
ermeysr motor. This motor was equal to
ii not superior to any double reduction motor
on the market, not excepting the Thomson
Houston motor. Some few months later We
closed contract for four geeilsss equipments,
and by the terms of that contract we agreed to
loan the James street company four old second
hand Sprague equipments, which had
been In use . long time in Portland,
and which we fell heir to when We
purchased the sprague company. The James
street company was to have the Of these
secondhand motors until we could perfect our
geeress motor. Mr.. Edison had made study
OF the geerless motor for street railway work for
years, and my company, while working on its
own geerless motor, had been watching the
futile efforts of other electrical companies to in
/ troducs their geerless motors, until finally the
Edison company decided to drop the gcerlsss for
the single reduction. 1t was quite evident
that railway managers had confidence in the
single reduction type and none in the geerless
type In the meantime the James street COM
pany were allowed to these old motors of
ours, and it may be true that the cost OF repairs
on these old Sprague motors has been heavy.
Company, In his article in the Press- Times, has
attempted to give the public the impression
that the Edison motor has been replaced by the
Thomson Houston. will state for the benefit
of the public that this is absolutely not SO. and
that some two months ago / closed a contract
with the James street company for two fifteen
horse-po Edison troncad single reduc-
ton motors. These motors are now in
the James street power-house and will
be placed in operation in few days
The Thomson Houston Company has, I
believe, made a contract with the James
street company to furnish a number of their
single reduction equipments, but this con-
tract was not entered into because the officers of
the James street company believed the Thorn
SON. Houston motor better than the Edison single
reduction motor or because the James street
company had had any experience with the Edi-
son single reduction motor; but because certain
very strong financial inducements were offered
to them by the Thomson Houston Company.
81 see that Mr.. Kittls also states in his article
that Thomas Lowry OF st. Paul, is gradually re-
placing the present equipment on his road with
Thomson Houston apparatus. l have just re-
ceived this telegram from Mr.. John Muir, gen.
eral manager of our railway department"
Mr.. Grambs handed the reporter the following
telegram:
W. j. Grdnabs Seattle: Have positive aud per-
sonal statement from Lowry absolutely denying
give entire satisfaction. Some time ago he gave
Thomso Houston Company small order to set
tie old claim.
tsignsd.l JOHN MUIR
"As for the other gross MISREPRESENTATION
which appeared in Mr. Kittles article in the
press- Times. they are not worth noticing" con-
tinued Mr. Grambs al here desire to state that
the management OF the James Street Company
express their regret that the article appeared,
and IL is with their permission that / take the
liberty OF referring the public to Is. Il. Whittier,
president, and j. ID. Lowman, manager, OF the
James street Construction Company, for
confirmation OF the statements l have
made in regard 20 the replacement OF so-calei
Edison motors by Thomson Houston motors on
the James street railway. In view OF the state
ments made by our competitors, would like
you to make public the following:
The Edison General Electric Company hereby
challenges the Thomson Ii custom Company TO q
competitive test of the efficiency and relative
merits of their respective systems o. single re-
IuctSon motors, under similar conditions oil
load, speed and grade, etc. on the James street