Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1897-10-22
TRAINS TO KLONDIKE.
SNOW LOCOMOTIVE OvERCOMES
ALL DIFFICULTIES.

SNOW LOCOMOTIVE OVERCOMEs
ALL DIFFICULTIES.
The Invention Favored by General
Alger-ls the Problem of Winter
Last?-The Machine Described
Ii II said 10 Have Worked Well
in the Michigan Pine Region.
Winter difficulties in getting to the
Klondike region can be overcome and
the starving thousands in that section
can be relieved. So think Secretary
of War Alger and George F. Glover, OF
Chicago, an inventor. A snow loco.
motive drawing eight or ten cars filled
with provisions and other freight is
their solution of the problem. This
locomotive, they claim, can go through
the mountain passes, traverse gorges
and canyons, and work its way up the
frozen river to Dawson City. 1t goes
on runners, steam is applied to the
traction wheel, the ice and snow are
melted and become an aid totravel,
and speed of twelve to fifteen miles
an hour is attained where heretofore
all progress has been arrested for seven
months in the year. From Dyea to
Dawson City, 700 or 500 miles, less
than eight days will be required, or
the route from Fort Wrangel to Daw-
son City may be travcrsed in less time.
1t all depends upon the aid extended
by the government of the United
States.
Secretary Alger is of the opinion
that the scheme is a good one, as may
be seen by the following letter, written
to Mr.. Glover:
"WAR DEPARTMENT,
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY,
WASHINGTON, d. c., Sept. 20, 1897.
DEAR SIR: Your letters of the 10th
and 18th interested us very much.
Mr.. Weare and Mr.. Cudahy arrived
last evening, and to-day we have gone
over the situation pretty thoroughly.
Of course, the government does not
wish to go into the transportation bus
iness, but is looking out for a possible
emergency in case it should be neces-
sary to get supplies up the Yukon
river to Dawson City during the win
ter, after navigation closes. I thor
oughly believe your locomotive would
accomplish your purpose.
ave suppose Captain Ray is at
Dawson City about this time, and on
his return will know something about
the situation, when we may want to
as to future operations.
In the meantime, you had better make
some specifications and see what kind
of company you can organize to put
in perhaps dozen engines or trains to
carry on that work if needed. Very
truly yours,
ar. A. ALGER,
Secretary OF War"
Mr.. Glover wrote to Secretary Alger
in view of the fact that the Klondike
is now virtually closed to the world,
the rivers being frozen tight and the
overland way covered with snow. The
Secretary knows of the workings of
the locomotive of which Mr.. Glover is
the inventor, as the engine has been
in use in that portion of the Michigan
pineries over which he has had control
for many years. 1t has been used in
the Secretary's lumber camps to haul
log trains, some of which had $4,000
feet of timber, and it seems to have
worked successfully.
On September 16, Mr.. Glover wrote
to Secretary Alger regarding the ad-
visibility of establishing communica-
ton with Dawson City, and suggested
that the snow locomotives could be
used between White Pass and Fort
Selkirk, distance of $50 miles on the
level; between Fort Selkirk and Daw-
son, the distance being 200 miles, the
river could easily furnish the road.
The Glover locomotive is very sim.
pie in construction and principle. con-
sisting of a boiler, twin engines, driv.
ing wheel, and other necessary appur-
tenances, supported in a steel frame.
The frame rests upon runners, fore
and aft, and the locomotive proper is
hinged to the frame by steel beams.
The great feature of the machine,
however, is a huge traction wheel
which is between the runners. There
is drum in the wheel. The latter is
rotated by an engine, with horse
power ranging from twenty to sixty,
geared from five to nine to one. All
the heat from the boiler furnace and
from the exhaust steam is utalized in
the drum, into which it is conveyed
through the trunnions. By this means
the wheel is kept hot all the time.
About the wheel V-shaped teeth, three
by twelve inches. are set "dodging."
The action of the heat from the tOothed
cylinder prevents the snow from clog
ging it, and at the same time COM
presses, with the aid of its weight, the
snow underneath into a solid mass OF
snow ice, thereby giving sufficient re-
sistance to enable the teeth to pull a
train burdened with 200 ton weight.
The cost of each locomotive is about