The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-10-16
WANTED-AGENT
A DIFFICULT QUESTION
TROUBLE IN PROSPECT OVER EXCESS
FARES FROM ST. LOUIS.
A Coming Test of a Steam Motor Sim
liar to that on the c., HI. & D.-Fast
Mail Service Criticised.

The board of managers of the Joint Traf-
fic Association has decided to reopen the
excess fare question, to apply between New
York and st. Louis as well as between New
York and Chicago, and some of the passen-
ger officials are of opinion that the re-
opening Of the question will lead to good
deal of i'll feeling, as the roads which have
the roadbed and the equipment to make the
fast time feel that they have the privilege
of using their advantages without charging
excess fares. 1t is proposed to put the
charging of excess fare on the fast trains
between ST. Louis and New York in force
Dec. l. IN speaking of this proposition a
passenger official Of one of the strong lines
said: 'If this is done it can be stated with
an almost certainty that the whole matter
of excess fares will be wiped out entirely,
as several of the strong lines will embrace
this opportunity to fight the managers on
this backward step. With trains as popular
as the Knickerbocker express over the Big
Four, the No. 2 limited over the Vandalia
and the Pennsylvania lines, enterprisng
passenger men like E. o. Mccormick, pas
senger traffic manager of the Big Four;
e. A. Ford, general passenger agent of the
Pennsylvania lines and H. c. Townsend, of
the Wabash, will hesitate good while be-
fore they obey any such mandate of the
board of managers.
The old differential trouble is again COM
ing to the front with the excess fare propo-
sition. The Nickel-plate Railroad has made
Joint Traffic Association for authority to
establish a new differential line between
Chicago and New York, using it's own line
west of Buffalo and the New York Central
east of there 1t desires to make rates of
s1S frst-class and SIG second-class, the
usual differential fares, over this route, and
uses as an argument why it should have it's
application granted, the recent award of the
arbitrators establishing corresponding diff
ferential between Chicago and New York
over the Panhandle and Pennsylvania roads.
In addition to this request for a differ
entail the Michigan Central and Lake Shore
roads are also about to ask that they be
granted authority to form differential lines
east of Buffalo, presumably the West Shore,
claiming that when the arbitrator, for the
first time in history applied the differential
principle to a strong line as 1t did the Penn
sylvania, in the Panhandle case it placed
the managers in a position where they could
not refuse to allow other strong lines to
apply it also.
This action on the part of three roads at
once, which is understood to be backed by
move to make the differential question ex-
tremely odorous to the arbitrator and man
ayers, and place the first named officials in
a bad hole.
The managers on Saturday last sat down
hard on the application of the Canadian
Pacific for differentials to New York over
it's line and the New York Central, and an
appeal has been taken to the arbitrators.
Copying After the c., H. 81 ID.
In few days one of the composite cars
will be placed on the New England road
similar to the one tested on Tuesday on the
Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton, and when
it makes its first trip electric engineers will
realize that it has thrown down the gaunt-
let to the electric motor. The management
of the New England road have determined
to try what are called composites, that is,
a regularly equipped coach, with a steam
engine in one end to supply the motive
power. In short it will be nothing less than
a highly developed dummy" The order
was givei, to the Schenectady locomotive
works, and few days ago the first inspec-
ton of one of the new cars was made.
Several tests show that the composite Is
economical III operation, and the general
manager of the road expressed himself as
being confident that the composite Will
demonstrate the value of radical de-
parture from the conventional and standard
methods. The new car looks like long
passenger coach with a pilot and headlight
on the end. The smokestack has more the
appearance of Ventilator hood than a
stack, and, as the Iuel VIII De COKE or nara
coal, there will be nothing except the escap-
ing steam to indicate that the composite
is a masked locomotive and not an electric
motor car. The car is sixty-four feet long,
heated by steam and lighted by gas. Long
cylindrical tanks strapped under the car
carry the water, and the fuel is carried in
the front end or cab Of the car. The drivers
of the motor are only forty-two inches in
diameter. and the cylinders are but 12x16
inches, yet test showed that the car could
be made to run forty-five miles an hour
with ease. The ear viii start with a steam
pressure of two hundred pounds, which the
builders claim will be sufficient to carry the
car twelve miles at least without further
firing, and in all probability twenty miles.
In thinly settled sections electrical traction
on railroads is not economical. On hundreds
of branch lines the regulation train hauled
by a locomotive is expensive. 1t requires
five men at least to handle a branch train
and the railroad managers have been try
ing for some time to reduce the expense
of operating trains on branch lines.