New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-08-02
THE AUXILIARY CABLE LAID.
no MORE DELAYS ON THE BROADWAY ROAD,
THE OFFICIALS SAY.
THERE is ALSO DUPLICATE SET OF MACHIN
ERY WHICH is NOW IN oPERATIoN-A

cry WHICH is NOW IN oPERATIoN-A
TALK WITH Mr.. vREELAND.
II is probable that in the future delays will not be
20 frequent on the Broadway cable road they have
been since the system was put In operation snort
lime ago. The Auxiliary cable set in motion
Yesterday and the were hauled by II. Inc WORK
OF repairing the first cable begun as soon as inc
auxiliary cable was started II anything should hap
pen TO one cable now the oher will be- set in motion
TO take its place
While the cable road on broadway In course
of construction mach said In its behalf, ana all
interested In II predicted that II would be an uhlual-
fed success But many delays ana ihi'haps oc-
CURED after 1t started that there were few who
did not think II more OF a nuisance than convent
ence The officials said that as soon as everything
was In working order there would be no cause for
complaint. Nearly all the delays resulted from the
breaking of strands in the cable Every time any
of the strands broke there was delay until the
cable could be repaired Had the auxiliary cable
been in readiness the delays would have been avoided
Now that the auxiliary cable is working order, the
officials say that delays will no longer be recorded
The new machinery which was put TO work yes
terday Is the duplicate set. In every respect IT Is
the same as that which has been in use 1t consists
of a new engine, weights and their appendascs,
and q new cable. 1t has been put together with much
less haste than the first set, and with much more
care. The new cable, too, was carefully made so
that none OF its strands likely to break While
the duplicate set is In the other will be thoroughly
repaired. Then, should anything 90 wrong with the
auxiliary cable nothing more will have to be done
than to set the old cable in notion The new engine
Is situated in the southern part of the power house
at Houston-st. The old engine is in the northern
part OF the building. Both the new and the old
cables lie in the conduit When one Is III
motion the other lies slack. 1t will be possible TO
change from one set to the other in a few minutes
Herbert IL. Vreeland, the president Of the Metro
because the auxiliary cable had been set in motion.
To the newspaper men who him he said:
The road is now running should be for the first
time since IL started When took charge found
only one set machinery operation below 1hrtysNth
not given 10 critcisins Others nut cable roaos
in other cities usually started until the dupicate
system is ready for However, we have had very
bad luck, but think it ms come 10 an END. Other
cable lines, such that on Observation-Disclosures
rfth.st and those cites have had similar mis-
fortunes when they began running a. the records
show but they ran less conspicuous streets we
have had longer blocks cur other hors'car lines az
various times, and the public scarcely noticed IT, "heh
there block Broadway it causes suoh serious IN
convenience that Whole town knows about II almost
-,
Our duplicate downtown plant is now running ana tne
reserve cable is in use The duplicate piaht lor upo
has been I'm ever the beginning almost ana hehce
thsrs have been no blocks above Thirty sXth-st po"h-
town where needed much more On account {" 'e
more frequent stops and the greater irlctoh on te oo
wac ouh
been sufficiently tested and dared not suddenly put II
into emergency until city sure Oh IT, FOR
many weeks since the first block IN the p'ehH VI
Juy we have carryn incessant experiments with
the rasey6 machinery especially at night but not W no"
cond We be entirely satisfied With such powerful ana
complcsted pieces machinery there l. nothhS 10 oe
dome but to stand BY hope that everything may come
out all right.
It has been asserted that all these NeNaous mishaps
were due TO the incompetency Of our employees Ihs i
not true As we the principal losers In all these
cases IL was in select only such men a.
we could trust. The who wrongly look up caoic
at ST. in the instance, was an experienced
pripman who had served for many years III ChlcaSo II
was due to his unfamiarity with the special ielhg
Of that particular grip. After that issued Gil oder
which has been followed since that letting 60 OF
cable the grpmcn close their grips 30 as to make
sure that they really free
Our spcers are expert taken from the ohs-
hundred. and weny -fftht road, and their splicing OF
stranded cables was relatively quick woik Inc ehgi-
neers as a matter course tried men, ana by Tar
the greater pa, grpmen hail from other ciucS
like Chicago san Francisco and Cincinnati, whee tney
we're employed by the local cable companies
Such accidents a. the running over OF that boy on
Sunday are unavoidable, and only hope that there
may not be another for a long time to come