Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-10-25
|SOURCE OF DANGER
Report Of Inspector Allen Of Damage
From Electrolysis.
SUGGESTS A REMEDY FOR THE EVIL
Commissioners Possess Authority
to Order the Changes.
RETURN CIRCUITS FAULTY

| Inspector Allen Of the street lighting de-
| partment today submitted to the Commits
| sloners an important report concerning
| electrolysis. For several months he has been
engaged upon a series of experiments and
| Investigations. with a view of laying this
matter before the Commissioners, and to-
| day completed his labors. His report is ex-
| haustive, covering the subject in upwards
of fifty pages of typewrting. After point
| ing out the great damage done by electric
| ity, he says the Commissioners have the
power to remedy the evil. and recommends
certain changes which will bring about the
| desired end.
The report gives in detail the electrical
| construction of the several railroads using
| electricity as motive power, and discuss
| es at length the damages which have re-
| suited to the water and gas pipes there
| from. He says Immediately upon the in
stallation of the Potomac lighting system
from grounded circuit, the Chesapeake
| and Potomac Telephone Company COM
menced to have trouble with it's cables, the
| resulting damage being so great that the
| telephone company was compelled to draw
into its circuit a bare copper wire, to
| which is bonded all its cables.
inspector Allen gives the tests which
| nave been made, and then points out how
woefully inadequate is the return circuit of
the company. Continuing, he says:
solution Suggested.
! 1.-The solution of this whole problem is
| quite simple. The extension of the under
| ground electric system. such as is en-
| ployed on the Metropolitan railroad lines,
| to the suburban trolley roads is too ex-
| penslve to put in operation. But its sub
stitute, the double trolley can be easily
| installed and successfully operated The
complications of intersecting lines such as
! are found inside large cities, are not a
factor in the District. Each trolley road is
practically a separate and distinct line,
which greatly simpiifies the matter and
renders the Introduction of the double
trolley system easy Legislation by Con-
| gress, however, is necessary before the
| roads can be compelled to adopt this sys
| tenn.
That Congress has foreseen to a certain
| extent the necessity for legislation on this
| subject is seen by the clauses in the recent
| charters for street railways in the District,
! which, besides providing that the roads
shall be liable for damages caused by
| electrolysis, require the discontinuance of
| the single overhead trolley system after
| a certain period, unless continuous track
rails are used. AS stated in the report of
Captain Fiebeger, the charters of some of
| the railway companies now operating by
| overhead trolley do not give sufficient au-
| thority to the Commissioners TO enable
| them to control the electrical construction.
Rails for Return Circuit.
LAS long as the rails are used for a oor-
] ton of the return circuit, the system will
! be grounded and the current, to a greater
| or less extent will seek other paths than
| those provided for it.
The Brown underground system, in
stalled on NJ street and on 18th street south
east is a grounded system. The electro
magnetic system, as operated on the North
Capitol street branch of the lexington and
| Soldiers Home railway, was not success.
| The third rail system is also a grounded
| one in which the trolley conductor usu
| ally placed overhead, is supported on an
| insulating strip of wood a third rail and
| set between the running rails. The latter
| are, OF course. bonded and return the cur
rent as in an ordinary trolley road.
IF the double trolley or other equally
good metauic-circuit system is not required
| and such amendment TO the charters of the
railroads as outlined by Capt. Fiebeger
shall be adopted, l would suggest that the
| following be inserted:
| Second line after service connections,
| insert electric light. power, telephone and
| telegraph cables and other Subsurface me-
| talic constructions This whole clause
| should be inserted in each street railway
| charter as religiously that regarding the
| protection of the works of the Washington
aqueduct.
| Commissioners Have Power.
| THE Commissioners have the power to
| remedy a great portion of this trouble,
particularly within the city limits, and
by SO doing protect not only the water
| pipes, but the gas pipes and the telephone
and electric light cables from destruction.
| The Potomac Electric Power Company sup
| ply current to all the public arc lamps I'M
| der their contract with the District and
| with the United States government from
| their grounded railway, generators, thus
| sending that current east to Lincoln Park,
| south to the arsenal and north to the Gar
| field Hospital.
The contract particularly provides that
s.,1 of oir
to operate arc lamps shall be thoroughly
insulated from the earth Contract No.
24O0, sectisn {, Electrical Conditions) AS
mentioned above, the return used by this
company is only partially insulated, the
portions carrying the most current being
bare copper. 1t is not alone essential tina;
| the cables-both feeding and return-sup-
plying current to the lamps should be in
su,ated; they should also not be connected
with a generator, either pole of which is
grounded connected to any grounded
construction.
Potomac Electric Company.
Il would therefore, recommend that the
Potomac Electric Power Company be re-
quired, under their contract with the COM
| missioners of the District of Columbia, to
operate the public arc lamps from a gen.
orator or generators, neither pole nor term
inal of which is grounded or connected
electrically to the ground and to thor
oughly insulate all portions of all lines
and circuits that when any point on
such lines or circuits is grounded or on
nected to earth for test, no leakage nor
escape of current shall be perceptible.
THE District is responsible to certain
extent for the damage done to the tele-
phone cables, which the only under
ground construction SO far badly dam
aged, by allowing such Il system to be
used for public lighting, and / certainly
| think the means a. their disposal should be
applied to remedy it.
CONFESSED HIS GUILT.