The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-11-13
THE q" ROADS TREASURE CAR.
The Nightly Money Collections on the
Manhattan Elevated Railway.

There is one thing no elevated road
official or employe will ever talk about,
and that IS the treasure car--the money
bagsn car, it is called. And no wonder
Thirty thousand dollars daily, 81 ,000,
900 month, $12, 900, 700 per year, are the
acknowledged receipts of the Manhattan
elevated railway company. Probably, If
the truth were known, the revenues of
this money making property are very
much larger. Once a day-hurriedly at
night-the collection is made. How
this multitude of tive-cent pieces, dimes
and quarters find It's way into the ticket
sellers hands the public know well
enough. They triokle through the little
inconvenient windows at the lis stations
of the road, every minute of the "a hours,
week days, Sundays and holidays, cease
lessly, rivulets of coin that when the
financial year is ended make a mighty
torrent that falls veritable Niagara of
coined metal into the treasury of the
road-a greater income than the fortune
of Monte Cristo. The general I'M
preston that the ticket sellers report in
person at the main Office and dump their
like many other public impressions, is
an Incorrect one. The company takes
no chances of any kind. Employees of
the company are given no opportunity to
run off with even days receipts, and
they are not subjected to danger from
enterprising highwaymen, diligent foot
pads or other desperate individuals who
infest the streets of the metropolis. The
company's money never leaves its own
rails, SO to speak, until it is poured into
the treasury. This desirable end is ac-
complished by train which makes
run every night, for this particular pur-
pose. 1t is made up of single car and
locomotive. Every night, but at a
different hour each night. this train
runs wild from station to station, and
the harvest waiting at each point for it
is gathered in. No time is lost at its
stopping places. On the front platform
of the engine, directly in the center, is
single green lantern. When this is seen
approaching by the ticket chopper or
station guard he signals the ticket seller
inside Immediately, but very quietly.
The side door is suddenly opened. Two
uniformed employees spring out. One
runs into the station, the holder stops at
the ticket box outside. The first energies
moment afterward bearing small
white canvas bag and sheet of paper.
he throws both into the car through a
pigeon hole in grated window, at
which man sits with two guards at his
back, one on either side. Before his
duty is done his companion has jerked
the Cancelled ticket box from the ticket
receiver, damned au empty box in it's
place and snapped the lock again. The
whole proceeding is ended in less than
minute. and the phantom-like train with
it's precious freight is off for the next
OF NH Qvo nfI " ha ufo
ance is gone through with. They are all
trained hands, and as the car generally
reaches station just after train has
left it, there is seldom a passenger on the
platform when the TRANSFER of wealth
and vouchers is made. If there should
be one he scarcely has time to realize
what IS taking place before the red rear
astonished eyes from several blocks
away.
In outward construction the treasure car
is similar to other cars on the road. But
there are essential and necessary differ
ences inside. 1t is divided by solid
partition which separates it's length into
two compartments. The larger one is
used for the bulky bags Of Cancelled
tickets. This section occupies fully two
thirds of the space in the car. The
smaller end is where the money goes
The sides of this section contain num-
bered pigeon holes, which correspond
with the different stations. AS the bags
of money are thrown in the man at the
window makes a hurried note or so on
the station blank that accompanies it
one of the assistants seizes each tightly
tied parcel and the last public view of
the inside of that car before it vanishes
into the night is when his arm reaches
for the niche where the contri button be-
longs. Six men guard the car and do
the work. Including the engineer and
fireman, eight in all are in charge.
Counting the two employees usually
found at each uptown way station the
company trusts to ten men TO protect it's
daily collection of $50, 600 or more in
coin. This is larger sum of cash money
than is often CARED by the express safes
on the greatest railway lines, yet up to
the present no attemrr has been made to
restore the valuable freight of the
Gould's collection car to general circu-
lation again by violent confiscation of it's
desirable contents. The route of the
treasure car is not always the same.
This shows that the company is we'll
alive to the danger of transporting such
q 1or0a Sr1rn of monAv