The sun., 1897-01-26
LITTLE BRIDGE MISHAP.
ENGINE Ran roo FAsrAyD BURyED
UP LIGHTs.
IL Was One OF tho Dynamo EnEine, aud the
Governor Did Not Work we'll when II.
speed Got Too High the Voltage Wa.
Greater Tha. the Carbon. Could stand.


Governor DID Not Work we'll when IL.
speed Got Too High the Voltage Was
Greater Thna the CARTONS Could stand.
tten minutes after 8 o'clock last night. while
there were siI four.car trains In use on the
Brooklyn bridge, the electric lights In the cleo
trio motor cars suddenly turned black, and.
with swapping and 4 cracking. a lot OF the
glass bulbs burst aud shed their fragments upon
the passengers, and the motormen and passen-
gers were left in darkness-the motormen nom
plussed and tho passengers alarmed.
The rules for motormen require that when the
electric lights In their cars 90 out they shall
turn the handles OF their cor trolers 10 zero aud
walt for the lights to glow again. In this case
the lights had all been destroyed and the book
OF rules was not made in contem p tion cf such
an event. so there no rule to apply. The
motormcn waited. but n the lights did
not shine again and some trains wers
In the stations waiting TO be switched,
they cautiously turned the controller
handles. and finding that they stll
had current to work with. went on moving
the trains, and so far as that went there was no
interruption OF the train service on account of
tho accident. Passengers were excluded from
tho motor cars during several trips. The oil
lamps provided for emergencies were lighted.
and n little later men came around and put in
new electric lamps. md NO far as the public
service was concerned the trouble Was all over
Down In the power house under the bridge on
the Brooklyn side was about the only place
where the real cause Of the trouble was known.
One Of the new eoo.horse power engines which
have Just been put into the power house to fur
nish the electric current for the motor cars and
their lights. had run away, driven tho voltage
OF the line away above what the lamps are in.
tended to bear aud burned out III. carbon- IA
A. tIsNA
siI trains in use. with one motor car to each
train and ten lights In a car, the damage In The
AT the same momsnt that the lamps in the cars
burned out, half a dozen tell-tale lamps on ihs
out. The big engine that had done tie
damage was smut down al once. bnt
current cure for The cars. % for tie bridge % Ras Wires
running To power house Of the Brooklyn CITY
ha,Irosd iLa COMPANY to provide for emeyGencie-.
once.
The accident was due TO q lack Of ad justment
between the big engine and its governor. When
the motor cars were arst put into In Decem ber
these engines were being set up and the power
for the cars WAS drawn from u Brooklyn CITY
Railroad power house. After running seventeen
days an engine In that power house broke down.
the trains were swi,ehed bv ,he old steam, s,,n,
motor up TO saturday.
on Saturday the two 600 horse power engines
and dynamos were ready for trial usr. and one
OF them was set TO work. As many a. seven
motor cars have been operated at a time rin,s
worked well. except that u was discovered that
the pulley which drives the governor was not
small enough, and the lack Of speed on the
! part or the governor would let the
| sins 20 At too hish rate OF sp--d
for the voltage required from the dynamo New
pulley wheels OF proper sire were ordered and
the engine not In use was being Temporarily
fitted up with rubber wrapping on its driving
pulley to make IL run is governor the right
| epsed. and the speed OF the eng No in use was
| being regulated by hand. A few moments re-
| Taxation OF watchfulaess let .hg ereine get up
speed ana the damage was done.
As The services OF both engines will be re-
quired to do the switching when the full four
trnck service at the terminals Is in use arrange
| ments have been made with the Brooklyn city
! road TO Keep n connection With its power house
| TO provide at all times against accident or the
necessity for shutting down the dynamos OF the
I hridce