The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-03-09
AROUND THE CORRIDORS.

runs Oh ID6 Union 1dCluC UCGWSCH DS4ifCl am
Kansas City, is at present visiting his brother,
a Southern Pacific employe who resides in Oak
land. Mr.. Arnold has been in the express ser
vice for a number of years, and in that time
has had several exciting experiences with
train-robbers, of which he gave several gentle
men some particulars while lettering about the
Palace yesterday afternoon. The discussion OF
train robberies led up to statement by Mr.
Arnold regarding the invention OF what Is
called distance lock, which was recently trled
on his car. "The contrivance makes 1t lmpos-
sible to open the eXpresscar safe, to which IL is
attached, until the train has Travelled certain
number of miles" said he, ''and the messenger
simply locks his safe, the lock to travel the
number of miles to the next station, ana IL
cannot be opened until the train has gone the
designated distance. A peculiar mechanism
connects the lock of the safe with one OF the
axles of the car in such way that the safe,
after being locked can only be opened after the
axle has revolved a certain number OF times.
The model that was experimental with was not
thoroughly perfected, but even in It's cond1ticn
it was found that we could set the lock SO that
it would open within few rods OF the desired
distance. The train-robber's most effective foe
in the future, it seems to me, will be the IN
Ventor."
It. d. Draper, who is connected with the pro-
posed carriage factory to be established at
Merced was in the city yesterday Mr.. Draper
has had quite an eventfu1 career and many
years ago took prominent part in one OF the
most sensational cases which ever disturbed
Central Indiana. Along in 1877 young man
named Ernest WhitehouSe, who had made
Terre Haute his home, suddenly blossomed out
as desperate OF the worst stripe and in a few
weeks succeeded in terrorizing the inhabitants
of that section of the State, eluding the efforts
of the police to capture him, holding up
g
during his mad career. Large rewards were
offered for the arrest of Whitehouse and these
attracted the attention of Mr.. Draper who at
that time was but plebeian porter in whole
sale house. He armed himself with an old
fashioned five-barrel pistol, started the trail
of the desperate and succeeded in running
him to earth near st. Louis. Mr.. Draper made
quite sum of money by his fortunate capture
and this he put to a good use. Roller skates
were just coming into favor at that time and
he had an opportunity to buy an interest in
the patent. a large mandatory soon grew
up at Richmond, in that State, which gave its
owners greatwealth before this pleasant means
OF recreation fell from popular favor.
NJ. de Fernat, wealthy plantation-owner of
Cuba, is in the city and is making tour OF the
world with party of friends in private car.
In conversation yesterday he said that the
trade of Cuba was simply astonishing when
compared with that of other nations snd was
only to be explained on the ground that every
thing raised on the island was for export and
all are articles of the first commercial import
ance. "The exports of Great Britain, which
are larger than those of any foreign country
said he, ''are $50 20 per capita, while those of
Cuba are $50 1t is not intended to convey the
impression that Cuba is richer than England
but it is simply an illustration of how the ex-
actions of the Spanish Government rake the
island over and gather up every item of value
in order to raise revenue out of all proportion
to the number of people subject thereto. The
United States furnishes almost the exclusive
market for Cuban products, but in return gets
only a small proportion of the trade of the
island. Out OF a total importation into Cuba
of some $35 900 0O0 the United States gets
less than one-third, while England, which
buys only a half million dollars worth of
Cuban products, sells that country almost as
much as the United States.
F.. C. Hubbard, who is connected with one of
the large locomotive works in the East, was at
the Baldwin yesterday. He says that the ten
dency in engine-building at present is in the
direction of larger and more speedy machines
at has long been considered that mile
minute was the limit of railway travel" said
he, "but several railroads are now having
great engines constructed which win run
heavy trains at the rate of eighty miles an
hour. There is short stretch OF track on the
New Jersey Central road over which trains are
now being run at the rate of 1I2 miles an
hour, but with the engines now in use the
road must be nearly straight to accomplish
such a speed. But with the enormous engines
now in course of construction one and q third
miles an hour can be easily accomplished
over curves and grades, there being only one
requisite, and that is a solid and well-ballasted
roadbed. Such speed, however, will proba-
bly, only be attained by special trains on the
larger roads"
Alexander McDougalI, the inventor of the
"whaleback" boat, who was at the Palace sew
eral days during this week, is also largely in
terested in mining. He is said to be connected
with John D. Rockefeller, the Standard oil
magnate, in several ventures up in Washing
ton, and also has interests in the new Rainey
Lake fields in the Northwest ga large num-
Der OF horses are now engaged in freighting
goods from Tower, the northern terminus of
the Duluth and Iron Range road, to both the
Rainey Lake and Seine River goldfelds," said
he, when discussing the development of those
regions, the other day. ''The distance from the
railroad to the fields is 100 miles and the
freight rate is 81 per 100 pounds, when q
year ago it was 81 SO a hundred. The district
has shown such remarkable richness that
strong effort will be made to induce the State
to build wagon-road to it.''
]. f. Millar, representative of Leonard &
Ellis, oil refners of New York City, returned
from Honolulu on the steamer Australia. Since
his arrival he has been very i'll at the Califor-
mia Hotel. Mr.. Millar knows nearly every civ
ilized country on the globe and is particularly
well acquainted down on the islands. In con-
versation yesterday he said that the feeling
there toward the United States is of the kindest
and that i'll fact the white population consider
themselves as almost belonging to the Ameri-
can Union. He also stated that the pulse of
business is greatly quickening and in his expe-
rience of an annual call at the little republic
for eleven years he had never found things
looking brighter from financial point of view
Pound Limits Unmolested.
The Fire and Police Committee of the Board
of Supervisors took the question of the extern
sion of the pound limits under consideration