The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1894-06-09
RAILWAY SPEED.
Why the Fastest Trains Are Considered ths
safest.

ON'CVbtu 0VGG GOs
why the Fastest Trains Are Considered ths
Safest.
About the first thought that suggests
itself to a person about to take rail.
road journey is, in these days of fre-
quent accidents, where is the safest
place on the train? Extremes are gen.
orally Objectionable, Gn6 so rs place
Of safety, are either tho extreme rear
or forward parts Of passenger train.
In case of head collision the engine
and forward cars have to furnish the
means for absorbing the moving energy
of the train, and this energy is usually
so great that one or more cars are
wrecked before its force is spent. In
the case of rear collision the rear cars
must furnish the means Of absorbing a
large portion of the moving energy of
the striking train.
Perhaps fully half of this force 10
spent in wrecking the striking train,
and considerable portion of the force
OF the blow is spent in knocking the
standing trainuf forward. The balance
of this force Is spent in compressing the
springs of the draft appliances on both
trains, and in wrecking the rear part OF
the train that is struck. Therefore it
is plain that in case of head or rear col
lisions the front or rear parts of the
train, as the case may be, are danger
Gus places; and the front more SO than
the rear for the reason stated, and for
the further reason that the forward
cars of passenger train are usually
lighter and less strongly built than the
heavy .parlor or sleeping cars that
usually make up the rear of the train.
The blow of head collision will do
more damage to the forward cars of a
train than colliding blow of equal
force will to the rear cars of the train
as ordinarily arranged.
For this reason the very best form Of
insurance for travellers is a parlor or
sleeping car ticket; although the rear
end of the train. even if of the strongest
construction, may be destroyed in a
rear collision.
The belief is becoming quite common
| that the safety of passengers is not
jeopardized very much by the higher
train speeds that are now attained.
There are good reasons for the belief.
1t is probable that the fastest train on
a railroad is the safest to ride on. OF
course. the higher the speed at which a
train runs the greater is its potentiality
of self-destruction, but as such can re.
suit only from accident, safety is really
enhanced by the higher speed because
accident is more zealously guarded
against on the fast than the slow train,
and the probability of it's occurrence
therefore is largely decreased. The
| flo f,,r f,.oi ,,ni 1rno G
and the engines that haul them are,
| perhaps, more carefully inspected and
are certainly more carefully maintained
in the safest and most perfect running
order than are the cars and engines OF
slower and what are considered less
important trains. The most competent
and reliable employees are generally se'
lected to operate the fast trains, and
perhaps the chief element of the safety
of these trains lies in the fact that not
only the men who operate them, but all
the employees connected with the train
service on the division of the road on
which the fast train is running are on
the qui vive respecting its safe and sue
cessful passage. Interference with il
in any way is sure to get the employe
at fault into trouble, and the knowl
edge of this inspires all who have tc
do with the movement Of trains with
unusual alertness in regard to the spe
cially fast train.
Each Of these influences is a safe
guard against accident, and their com
bined effect is to make the very fast
trains very safe trains to travel on
National Car and Locomotive Builder