Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1896-10-08
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Electric Railroads A
N VI Europe n.

Which, OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
rere first proposed in Europe great
rcjudice was created against them by,
be emphasis laid by their opponents
d the danger and Inconvenience Of
Arrying crowds Of people down ele-,
ntors into the bowels of the earth,
bid the risk Of being caught in an ac-
dent In a tunnel fifty feet below the
arface of the ground. In this country
lis hole in the ground" fallacy Is
Ill used as war cry, but in Europe
has received its quietus from the in-I
sputable success Of the system of
Underground ELECTRIC. traction When
c facts and figures Of this system are
npartially considered is is hard to
scape from the conviction that 1t is
he most sensible and effective solution
the question Of rapid transit for
lrge cities now in existence. 1t is
bid, in fact that nearly all the large
Rpitals in Europe have now in con-
emplatiOn railroads of this descrip-
Ion. The new line Mt Buda- Pesth has
list been opened. The cost Of the dou-
ble-track road was $656,OO0 per mile
rhe average speed maintained, includ-
ing stoppages, is twelve. and one-half
miles an hour. The station platforms
are from ten to sixteen feet 'wide. The
station walls are covered with white
glazed tiles. All the iron parts through
out the tunnel are painted in a silver
color, which reflects the electric light
land makes the tunnel as light as day.
In the hottest weather the cars are de-
cool. One of the most sug-
kgestive features Of the road is that in
the morning and evening nearly every
passenger is reading his daily paper,
(which he does with all the comfort and
ease of daylight conditions. Brussels
Is about to lay down system Of Great
head tunnels. The line will run fifty
feet below the surface, and will be op-
erated by electricity. The line is to-
cost less than 81, 100000 mile 1t will
have an automatic block system, which
will make collisions impossible. In
London there are no fewer than six
underground roads now authorized.
STwo of these are at present being act
ually pushed forward. The work is
regularly progressing, unhindered by
any springs that may be encountered,
AS the shield used in driving the tun-
nels is water-tight and air tight. There
is no sign Of the excavation visible to
street passengers, excepting only ut
the sites of proposed stations. The
minimum depth of the tunnels will be
fifty feet and the maximum depth 100
fleet. Access from above to the plat
forms will be had by monster elevat-
Tors, each with q carrying capacity OF
1850 persons. The cost of construction
land equipment is $2,5OO,OOO per mile.
The trains will be running next sum-
mer. They will be dispatched at two
land half minute intervals. 1t will
serve to give some idea of the magni-
tude of these combined railway enter
prises when it is considered that the
number of new stations they will ill.,
volve will be total Of forty-fve.
Wages and Hours of Labor.
Some curious and instructive facts
are brought out in the last annual re-
port of the British Labor Department
Of the Board of Trade. The aggregate
wage-earning capacity,as seen in statis-
tics, has decreased during the last year.
The blame for this is laid by some
on the introduction Of the eight-hour
working day. Reports from firms who
have tried the eight-hour day, however,
would seem to show that there is no
reason for less pay to accompany fewer
hours. In one large works, after a re-
duction Of the day from twelve hours
to eight the labor cost per ton Of prod
uct came out less. The jealousy Of
some employers Is indirectly referred
Manchester firm dismissed their best
Il man hoa01ycn no1716 in1y 20
ALLOWING one Of their Sc ants to earn
Nseveral thousands of pounds year.
Rather than do this, they discharged
Ehim, and themselves ceased to make
q profit on his most remunerative de-
pnrtment. This state of commercial
ethics is hard to understand in this
country, where Jack is as good as his
master, but in England, where the
caste instinct is still strong, the idea
OF a servant making much more than
a living is to some men intensely dis
tasteful. This feeling is 50 active that
1t was recently stated rs an indisputa-
bic fact large proportion Of English
employers would rather earn f1,OOO
on ten-hour day than make FL, 100 on
a day Of nine hours. One Of the points
touched on this report is specially in
teresting. When the eight-hour system
was about to be introduced in Eng
land, it's opponents insisted that the
hour saved would be wasted in drink
ing. This has not proved to be the
case. On the contrary, it seems to
have had q beneficial effect both on the
morals and the physique Of the mass
of the people. The workers Of the"
country are distinctly more sober than
they were, and statistics confirm this.
Among the working classes, tea is rap
idly superseding beer as beverage,
and it is said that great change has
come over the country, not so much
in the way Of maudlin teetotalism, as
Ein that Of an all-around moderation.
A New Incandcsccnt Lamp.
n A new form of the incandescent
Elamp has been brought out in England.
Its special feature is that the top end
of the glass bulb is either silver-plated
or gilded inside, so as to form re-
1cctor which may be either concave or