Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-02-01
STREET CAR FENDER S
The Commissioners Orders and the Rail-
roads Objection.
President Dunlop the First to File a
Protest-Choice Of Appliances
Allowed the Roads.

The Commissioners held an important
board session last evening, which resulted
in the adoption of set Of regulations re-
quiring street cars in the District Of CO.
llmbia to be provided with proper tenders.
The Commissioners for the past six
months have given much OF their attention
to the subject of car tenders and other
safety appliances for street cars and have
inspected several appliances now in opera
ton on the street lines of the city. The
regulations provide that on and after April
!, 1885, every grip and motor car operated
in the District of Col umbia shall be fully
equipped with front pickup tenders of the
Blackstone pattern, but any street railway
company may substitute for the above any
other fender which may hereafter be ap-
proved by the District Commissioners. 1t
shall also be fully equipped with wheel
guard tenders of the "Brightwood auto
matte" pattern, or the Blackstone pat
tern, or the ''Eldridge Smith" pattern.
Any street railway company in the Dis
trict which shall after April l, 1885, Oper-
ate any grip or motor car in the District
not fully equipped with tenders shall be
subject to a fine of s25 day for each and
every car not SO equipped and operated by
that company.
Each railway company operating street
cars requiring tenders is required, after
to remove from it's tracks all distractions
projecting above the general surface of the
pavement which prevent the satisfactory
action of the wheel-guard tenders in
crease danger to life and limb. Any rail-
way company failing to comply with this
requirement shall be subject to a fine of S.
a day for each such obstruction not so re-
moved upon and after the date specified.
The regulations also require that every
cable and every motor car operated in the
District must be so constructed or altered
that a clear space OF fifteen inches in
height above the rails is provided between
the wheel guard and the adjacent end of
the car. in order to allow the effective ac-
ton of the wheel guard. Any railway COM
pany failing to comply with this require
ment shall also be fined 50 day for each
car not so constructed or altered and oper-
ated by it,
After the tenders are placed upon the
cars, the regulations conclude, they must
be kept in thorough working order and in
good repair at all times during the use Of
such cars. and any railway company fail
ing to do this will be fined $40 day for
each and every offense.
Railroad Objection.
The orders of the Commissioners with
reference to putting tenders on street cars
had not been long issued this morning be-
fore the railroad companies began to find
objection to the terms of the order.
Shortly before noon President Dunlop Of
the Washington and Georgetown railroad
appeared at the District building, and had
lengthy conference with Commissioners
Ross and Powell on the subject, in the
course of which he made the statement
that n thorough compliance, with the order
would be physical impossibility so far as
his road was concerned. According to his
statement, it would be quite out of the
question to equip all the grips with tenders
in the course of sixty days, and he asked
for an extension of time. Using all pos
sihle diligence. he said. he did not think 1t
would be possible TO equip more than ten
cars the first month, as there was some
question to whether the tenders could
be made in their shops or would have to
be bought outright from a manufacturer.
The matter of the patent on the tenders
proposed would also play some part, and
presumably several days would be used up
before they could actually get to work.
Not Satisfied.
According to Mr.. Dunlop's statement,
the read has ninetyfour grips, of which
number seventy are in actual use every
day. There are twenty-four extra grips,
and three are kept at each end of the road
all the time in case of emergencies.
From one to three grips on an average
are in the shops every day for repairs, and
this work, of course. has to be done with
out delay in order to keep the road going
properly. Although he said he had no Oh
lection to this or any other fender that the
Commissioners might prefer, it was still
evident that Mr.. Dunlop was not inclined
to take the order with very good grace
The tenders have to be shifted from end to
end at the completion OF each trip, or forty
times a day, within the three minutes that
the car stops on the terminals and he
urged the fact that the life of any mechan-
zeal arrangement must necessarily be short
when handled SO frequently by unskilled
laborers. Furthermore it would require an
addition of thrty-siX employees to the
working force of-he road.
All of these objections, however, were
second to the main one that the grips could
not be equipped within the time allowed
The Commissioners would not agree to
formally extend the time, but they assured
Mr.. Dunlop that II his road used all due
diligence. and they We're satisfied of this
it would be possible at the expiration of
thirty days to tell how much more time
might be required, and they could then
make some arrangement for the future.
They We're required by Congress to use all
reasonable means, and if their rule were
unreasona BILE, that very fact would render
it imperative. They had no desire to be
severe in the matter with this or any ether
road but they were firm in the statement
that every motor and grip in the city must
be equipped with proper ife-saving APP
paratuS at the very earliest possible date.