Omaha daily bee., 1893-10-01
Ell NOTES.

Scotch farmer has arranged to do all his
work by an electric motor.
The Chicago-New York telephone covers
$50 miles.
The electric curling iron is very simple
The wires conduct the electricity into the
little stand into which the tongs are thrust.
The latter are made the proper temperature
by heat, which is generated by the resist
ance of the wires to the current. The stands
are about two inches high and are usually
nickel plated. In travelling the iron and
stands occupy only IA very small space in IL
satchel. Attached to the stand is 4 silk
cord, which may be adjusted to an incandes-
cent wire after scrcwing OF the little globe.
The electric underground road has earned
such golden opinions i'll London that the Bel
gians are turning their attention to the sys.
TEN for their city passenger traffic. A rail
way based on the Greathead system of tun-
nels is now proposed for Brussels. 1t is to
be worked by electricity and to run fifty feet
below The surface. Inc first portion is to
consist of a complete circle about four miles
long, with double track, ihaving eleven sta
tions, and a future extension of a second cir
Gle of about two miles, long, with four sta
tions; the two tunnels'for the different direc-
tions will be quite distinct from each other
they run almost entirely below the public
streets. The subsoil appears to be clay.
There is to be 4 two and one-half minute
service each way.
Electricians regard electric launches as
Ine most successful form OF storage battery
propulsion that has yet been devised. This
is mainly due to the fact that the driving
machinery, of which the propeller forms the
most important part, is at work in water,
which allows of sufficient movement to pre-
vent any strain, electrical or mechanical, on
the machinery. 1t is this sudden strain that
tends to deterioratc an Accumulation. 1t mas
often been rem arked that electrical launches
are not fast enough, and that a good steam
launch Is much better, but they are now
made in this country IN arppmmO1a tp than-
selves to any roa enable speed, and the same
is true in England, according to electricians
OF that county y. 1t is stated that there are
now several running on the Thames which
make a speed of from i've to five and u half
miles an hour against n three-mi.e stream
without an excessive strain on the accumu-
lator.
Electricity and steam had their first tug of
war at Chicago the other day, An old Balti-
more & Ohio engine weighing thirty-one and
one-half tons was pitted against an electric
engine weighing twenty-five tons. They
were coupled with n cable twenty feet long.
AT a 81 gnal both were pulled wide open"
The electric engine DUzzed and scattered
lightning over the surrounding country, but
was unable to budge the ancient switch
engine. The latter simply gave a couple of
puffs and walked away with the lightning
bug, In subsequent tests the electric engine
was given the advantage by being started
first, but again the locomotive pulled it up
the track. The electric engime was clearly
outclassed. making due allowance fer the
locomotives excess of weight.
ClMr. Henry Pope, the New York electrician.
is quoted as saying: THE day of the trolley
is past. l would rather own this patent than
any other for electric street car propulsion
in the world" This sanguine prophecy was
made after viewing with representatives of
the Broadway cable road and other railroad
men from New York city and Boston an ex-
perimental trip on a section of electric rail.
way run with an underground conduit sys.
TEN. The system was invented by Gran
vile r. Woods of Brooklyn and Cincinnati,
and the experimental section has been down
for about IA year ut Coney Island. 1t has
stood Il number of tests made in fine
weather, but the usual objection that it
would not work in wet weather was made
To disprove this the experts were invited to
witness the test just made. The system
consists of II conduit, in which are
placed at regular intervals hermeticllly
sealed and water tight boxes, from which
project contact points on each side of the
slot. These contact points form Il connection
with a long shoe, which is fastened on the
bottom of the car and runs in the slot, which
resembles the slot on The cable roads, The
connection is made, by the shoe running
against the contact points, which are so ar
ranged that the shoe is always in contac'
with at least one point causing the motor Il
become actuated by the electric curren
which flows through the boxes from tn
cable wires, which are land in the conduits
The boxes are so arranged that the contac
points turn on a pivot, making a connection
with brushes inside the boxes only whel
they are in contact with the shoe on tn
car. Otherwise they are always out of cir
cult. For the wet weather experiment tn
conduit was filed with water and mud, aut
the car was run backward and forward JUS
as well and as rapidly as if the conduit wa
perfectly dry. The demonstration was de
clared a success ana drew out Mr.. Pope
prophecy.
Many old houses in Holland have q specia
door which ls never nnaned an We ON two nn