The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-08-14
FAST TRAVEL IS SAFEST
WHAT is SHOWN BY COMPARISONS
OF FAST AND SLOW TRAINS.
The Pennsylvania Making Extensive
improvements on the Main Line
General Railway News.


There seems to be an impression" said
a railway superintendent, speaking of the
fast service the railways are now giving,
that the fast trains the most danger
Gus for people to ride OH, and that more
persons are killed in crossing tracks, etc,
than by the trains which are slower. This
is a mistake. The Pennsylvania Railroad
Company has given this matter special at
tention, and has statistics to show that, in
proportion to the fast and slow trains run,
more accidents have occurred to the slow
trains and more persons not in the employ
of the company killed by the slower trains.
Men in charge OF fast passenger or freight
trains are constantly on the watch for dam
ger. The engineer feels that there is more
at stake, and one will notice that the blasts
OF MS whistle are more frequent and sharp
er; that the fireman is more particular to
ring the bell when passing through a town
or city or near a highway crossing. 1t
would be difficult to find people living on
the lines of the roads which run fast trains
that have not heard Of the Chicago limited
on the Pennsylvania lines, the fast
press, No. 2, between st. Louis and New
York, over the Vandalia and Pennsylvania
lines; the Empire State express the Knick-
erbocker, on the Big Four, and the nun
dreds of other fast trains Fast trains are
run nearer on time, and people know their
time and keep out of the way. The equip
ment of the fast trains is kept at the best
standard, and everything conduces to MAX
ing them safer to ride on and less liable to
injure people at highway crossings and in
passing through towns and cities The
Pennsylvania transportation department is
correct
Ir0Sht service. In 1883 twelve miles an
hour was considered the highest speed
unit FOR a freight train. and J. j. Turner
Whcn superintendent Of the Indianapolis
division of the Panhandle was the first to
increase the speed of freight trains in this
section scheduling train at sixteen miles
an hour between indianapolis and Column
Dus. Competitors soon took similar action
ana increased the speed of the fast freights
TO eighteen miles an hour, then to twenty
miles, which was the maximum for through
freight trains for several years but with
the better track and better locomotives
some OF the roads are scheduling freight
trains at twenty-three to twenty-five miles
an hour, using the schedules of passenger
trains during the seventies and eighties.
Keeping Pace with Competitors
so much is heard of the improvements
that some of our competitors are making"
said d Pennsylvania Railway official. by
the press that would think that our
people are drifting along spending as little
money as possible and our track was be-
coming inferior one, but on the con-
trary more steel rail is being laid on the
Pennsylvania lines west Of Pittsburg than
IN any former year since steel rails were
placed on the market, heavier rails in every
case taking the place Of the lighter sixty
pound rail-" The Pittsburg Post says: "Au
along the of ri
tracks between Pittsburg and Altoona the
work OF Improvement is going on. and
plans are being prepared for still greater
improvements in the future. Recently over
Two hunqred miles Of new steel Of the heav-
lest KING has been put down on all the
tracks of the Pittsburg division and new oak
ties OF the largest and solidest kind placed
under them; Additionallimestone ballast has
Deell distributed over miles of the main
tracks, and the trackmen are now at work
placing the stone in order and smoothing
II up, ana at the same time looking after
tne dIlSnment or the great iron paths over
winch the heaviest freight traffic that is
moved by any one line on earth passes
daily. But improvements on the present
tracks are not the only ones to be OBJ
served The new roadbed which does away
with grades, curves and q narrow tunnel al
Radebaugh, VIII be- ready for track-lavino
N week or two and the new work at
uneven which was stopped last year. has
large force of men at work getting ready
70 make additional fills and cuts They
nave quiz temporary bridge across the
Conemaugh to carry material for the fill
and have steam shovels and narrow-gauge
engines on the embankment ready to 20 to
work. At Lilly the same evidences Of
progress are VISIBLE, and here where so
much expensive work has been done over p
year ago, hundreds of men will be kept
busy this fall and winter making the neces-
shry changes to improve the road"
Wants $50 Pounds of Baggage Free.
For long time the Southern Pacific has
been trying to have the roads of the West
ern Passenger Association carry $50 pounds
of baggage free on each ticket sold for
domestic transpacific business. The West
ern roads have always refused to carry that
amount of baggage, and now the Southern
racine has come to the front once more
with renewal of its demand. 1t saws thar
all the roads in all of the other associations
in the country have agreed to carry $50
pounds of free baggage and it sees no rea-
son why the roads of the Western Passen-
ger Association should not do likewise II
claims that by the refusal of the Western
roads the travel is diverted to the Canadian
Pacific; which makes the concession, and
that the Western roads are thereby de-
priVed of the business. A new vote is naipo