The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-06-04


kinetc stored steam motor C"kinedc"
meaning force and motion'O, and 1t was
placed on trial in Chicago, running on the
West Madison street cable company's line,
and there demonstrated in efficient service,
on schedule time runs, the practicability
of Mr., Dodge's theory. Mr.. !. L. Murphy,
master mechanic of The West Madison
street car line of Chicago who was in
speetor of the trials, said to Mr.. Dodge:
You have made good an your claims
for the simplicity, directness and economy
of the stored steam motor for street rail-
| roads. 1t is truly remarkable the success
you have had in doing away wholly with
noise, and with the show of steam and
smoke, particularly in condensing all of
your exhaust steam without causing any
back pressure, so far as 1 have observed.
The work of The motor with snow-ploWs
and track sweepers, especially during the
recent blizzard" was most remarkable"
Not satisfied with the success of the first
motor (Which now forms part of the
regular equipment of the Babylon, L. l..
railroad) Mr. Dodge constructed several
other motors, with view OF sin further
improving the system.
One set of these models are single truck
motors, trial cars of which have been an
practical operation on the Babylon rail-
road, New York, for nearly a year, and
the other set are double swivel truck mo-
tors, trial car of which is on duty on
spur track running close by the com
pany's plant on the Delaware river, near
Wilmington.
Vanderbilt Rides on One of the Cars.
1t was in the latter motor car, which is
As feet long, having a seating capacity of
60 passengers that Cornelius Vanderbilt
Cd D~I,D n "
made an excursion 10 test the merits, of
the Kinetic The writer was favored as a
guest of the party on both occasions. l
was inclined to believe that motor hav-
ing boilers under the car body would be
a very oppressive vehicle during the sum-
mer, but upon inspection / found that the
boilers were not only properly insulated,
but that an air space was left between
the insulation material and the car floor.
I did not quite understand how it would be
possible for car to run 100 miles on a sin
gle charge of superheated water, but after
riding on the motor at the rate of 40 miles
an hour, and finding it In better shape for
running at the end of the journey than
when the start was made, l began to
grasp the fact that the motor was actually
accomplishing the work claimed for it, and
that was enjoying a ride on the locomo-
tive of the future. When I asked Cornelius
JGss Wldl lie luOuSHl Vi Tic
motor he said in substances:
~ came down here as guest of Mr..
Dodge to see if his system would be adap-
table to our tunnel, but / did not know
that the Kinetic motor was adaptable to
railroad locomotives also. We want sys-
tenn that will obviate smoke and cinders,
and I find that is the point attained in the
Kinetic system"
Cost of Operating New Motors.
Through the operation of the Kinetic
motors, now running on the Babylon
Railroad, the extended trial runs in Chi
cago, and through the average record
made by the new motors on exhibition
at Wilmington, Mr.. Dodge has been able
to carefully compute the cost of build
ing and equipping with his system as
compared with all other existing sys-
TENS. From these figures thus COM
piled ii appears that the Kinetic sys-
tenn is not only cheaper than all known
street railroad traction systems. but
also cheaper than the operation of the
ordinary locomotive, which has hither-
to been considered the most direct and
economic motive power. According TO the
New York railroad commissioner report
for 1897, the motive power cost per car
mile on the Manhattan Elevated Railway
of New York city is 1.99 cents per car mile.
OF the three known traction systems,
namely, the underground and the overhead
electric and the cable system, the over
head electric trolley system is the cheap
est and the least offensive. The report of
The Massachusetts Railroad Commission
ers shows that the motive power cost on
the West End Street Railway in Boston |
(where the trolley system is in use) is
So cents per car mile. The operation of
the Kinetic motors in use on the Babylon |
Railroad has proved that the motive pow
er cost of Mr.. Dodge's system amounts to
the fraction of but II of a cent per car |
mile.
1t is not only In operation that this |
system is cheaper and better than the |
other known traction agents, but also |
in the cost of equipment per car mile, |
which the following table, prepared by |
Mr.. Dodge, will show. Cost per mile of |
equipment, including three motor cars |
per mile: Gable, Sis, 600: overheard trolley. |
sS1. $50; underground electric, $4,000 TO |
500 900; kinetic, $2S.5O0.
This marvelously simple system requires |
no bonding of rails 1t does not demand |
the raising of poles and extending of |
wires or of underground conduits, and II |
does away with the unmechanieal recon- |
version and transmission losses of power |
attendant on other systems The weight !
of the Kinetic motor rests upon springs, |
thus avoiding the great damage to rolling |
stock and rails, and rail- joints experienced |
with electric systems, The adjustment of |
the weight of the motors of which is
either actually upon the dead axles or