Evening star., 1897-05-06
THE AIR MOTORS.
Frotest Against Their Adoption b,
the Eci>inEton Railroad.

A Protest Against Their Adoption by
the Ecl>inEton Railroad.
To the Editor Of The Evening Star
The joint resolution approved February ?.
1897 extending the time fdF compliance by
the lexington and Soldiers, Home Railway
Company and the Belt Railway Company
with the provisions ofssectibn 1 of the act
of June 10, 1896. provides that If the COM
pressed air motors SHAFT te adopted said
companies shall completely equip their re-
spective lines with such motive, power on
or before July 1, 1881 and that IL said
compressed air motiven,bo#er shall not be
adopted on or bcforenJulV J. 1897, then
said railway companies shall, within one
year tiye pes hrom :. July aSs app the respes
compressor air car: has Sen in. operation ton
r on the lexington >, 1.-The Spr'. a bout two
months. and It is said. that fifteen more
Commissicners- Of Tie District have ap-
proved of the TcempEssSed1oa Air system or
not: do Eot know. but II the matter is
still under consideration by them Il wish
to protest against IT'S adoption for the fol-
lowing reasons: First. the system If 1t
should provsra success is NOT so satisfac-
tory in point of speed, reliability. comfort,
elegance, durability, stability or. up-to-date
urban public conveyance as the under
ground electric system: second the sue
cess OF the system Is a matter of grave
doubt. as there have been many bitches
already and excuses by the company and
l understand that 1t Is q matter of i'm
possibility for the compressed air car to
go over the whole route from. the Riggs
House to Brookland without recharging the
cylinders at the power house; third 1t is
admitted by the receiver of the road that
under cold air pressure, a car cannot be
propeiied ON an up grade. How about the
operation of the cars on the steep grade
on 9TH street and Louisiana avenue in the
winter time with the thermometer below
zero, and the cylinders under exposure of
such an atmosphere for half an hour or 50
frem time Of hot charging at the power
mouse! Fourth, the roadbed is very bad,
unsightly and uneven. SD that no matter
now solid and elegant the new cars may be
the WaDble fs very apparent and anything
but pleasant to the passenger. Fifth. the
cars. judging from the pattern now, on
exhibition. are cheap. loosely constructed
affairs. with unsiglrtly smoke stacks stick
Ing out shanty-like' on the roof. They
have no electric bells. the seats are very
Incomfortable. a molding digs into ones
back. an unpleasant odor arises from the
stove. or whatever the contrivance Is. and
tnen cne cannot help thinking about the
highly charged cylinders right under his
seat. liable at any moment to blow him
INTO eternity. Compare such r contrivance
with the beautiful. elegant. solid. smooth
running. rapid, comfortable cars on F and
9h streets. Why should not the people on
the Eckingtcn route have the same comfort
Oh travel as those on the lines of the Metro
poiitan. Columbia and Traction Company?
am convinced that this compressed air
system is only n akeshift means OF
avoiding the expense of putting in an
underground system, and I hope 1t Will not
be approved by the Commissioners of the
District. H,