The Dickinson press., 1891-09-12

stantly when anything goes wrong
with the machinery under their con
troll. Strange as it may seem, the
only reliable friend OF al engineer lisa
%well-trained ear. The greater part Of
Mr.. Dantzer's paper is filled with Incl
nents Of which he treats are from the
mammoth press-rooms in which Phil
adelphia abounds.
The thunderous rumble and clash OF
the modern presses, which are consld-
cred the most intricate machines in
the world, is q pleasant time to the
pressman, but let a bolt become
loose, let a band slip or a piston or
bar get out OF place, and there is a
discord in the pleasant tune. Instant
ly every man in the press-room, no
matter what he may be doing, raises
his head and turns his eye in the
direction of the discordant noise.
The particular press is located in an
instant. and the particular part of
the ponderous machine when the
discord is being made is traced by a
at once. The same rule holds good
in the engine-room OF an ocean steam
er. The instant any part OF the
noble engine becomes out of order,
it calls in unmistakable tones to the
quiet-looking engineer, who hastens
to prescribe a remedy.
Mr.. Dantzer's paper tells OF many
queer Incidents OF his experience as a
railroad engineer. The master of a
locomotive gets to know his engine as
a mother does her child. In the
darkest night, with the train dash
ing along at the rate OF As
miles an hour, the trained an
gineer hears a slight sound which
is out oithe ordinary. He not only
becomes aware Of it by hearing it,
but ii he were deaf as a post the dis
order would be communicated to him
through the medium, OF the thottle.
He would feel a slight jar which would
Indicate as clearly rs the sound that
something was out OF order, and, if
the occasion warranted. a stop would
be made at once or the matter would
be attended to at the next station.
photographers work entirely by
sound. but strange as it may seem,
many OF them are wholly deaf to
| sounds other than those OF their in
struments. Any OF the chief opera
atorsin themain office OF the Western
Union telegraph company can. from
| one end OF their great long rooms, dis
| tinguish with never-failing accuracy
| which OF the several hundred instru-
ments in the room are calling Phila-
| l,l,l,;, ~, +u;@1 ,c% n ,,I,,,r 4 IN a,o,,ef a ,t
din OF the other instruments. More
than this, many of them cal deter
mine instantly which operator is
| sending on certain circuits with which
they have become familiar by long
service.-Philadelphia Record.
Electricity VS.. Steam.
An expert electrician, in a paper
upon Electricity as the Rival OF
Steam," before a scientific institute
recently, concluded; In this we have
seen that we must look upon cleo
t%ricity not as in any sense able to dis
place steam as a prime mover, but
as an enormously powerful and con-
venient-means of transferring power
from one point to another with the
greatest simplicity and small losses.
Probably for a long time to come
by far the greater proportion Of
dynamos will continue to be driven
by steam-engines; but so far as use
at q given point is concerned the electric
motor is q most successful rival
OF the steam-engine. Ii the day ever
comes, as it may, although we
can hardly dare to look for it-when
we can obtain electrical energy directly
from coal, as we now obtain heat
energy, the days OF the steam engine
will be numbered. AS already pointed
out, electricity and heat are very
intimately connected. Every time
we heat a piece of iron, for example,
we stir up not only what we call heat,
but also electric magnetic energy,
| which is the form in which heat is
radiated; and if we go on heating long
enough we may raise the iron to q
white heat, and recognize the energy
in it's familiar form OF light. But all
this is merely the dream OF the FUTURE;
perhaps it will be fulfilled some day
but until then we must depend upon
our present dynamos.
Mexicans are very indignant at the
reports published Of a probable revolu
ton in that country.