The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-10-23
LOCOMOTIVES ARE THE FASTER.
Higher Speed Made With Steam Than
With Electricity.

Wen fairly fly by and by Is the
heading which we find attached 20 some
recent public deliverances on electricity
az the motor for the high speed trains
OF the future. II Is little curious how
universally II appears To be assumed tina.
If it We're desired to run trains AT speeds
of, say 100 miles per hour. electricity
would be the power adopted. In the pres
ent state OF the art 1. must be said tina,
nothing has ever yet been accomplished
in the way OF high speed on an electric
railway. even experimentallr, beyond
what the steam locomotive Is doing In
actual service week in and week out The
fast schedules on the New York Central
and on the Philadelphia & Readings At
iantic City lire have proved that loco
motives can be regularly run at speeds
Up 20 seventy miles per hour and up-
ward. and that with safety and regular
ity. II II Is desired 20 increase these
speeds 10 Ico miles per hour locomotive
designers could be found, we are sure
who would undertake 10 provide ma
chine 20 accomplish the work. assuming.
Of course. that the train load would also
be iightened.
II is frequently said that the fact that
the locomotive is a reciprocating ma
chine while the electric motor is a rn-
tary one gives the latter an advantage
In The matter Of high speeds. A. an ab-
hut the locomotive has b. No means
reached rs Ius, I'm the matter oc speeds
larger driving wheels, lighter rec'pro-
eating parts and more careful balancing
are some Of the means by which higher
speeds could be made as feasible as are
the speeds at present reached. 1, IL
worth noting that none of our present
day locomotives uses drivers as large IS
those In use many years ago an some
fFz,-
speed Another argument occasionally
heard is that the high speed electric mo-
Ter woai6 be much less severe on the
track thar the locomotives. but this ar
garment sg8in ts based on theory rather
than practice. AS a matter 81 fact the
standard electric railway track nov
uses IA rasi nearly twice the depth ~ tfe
standard steam railway rail ard this
practice has bern forced upon fhe e}ee-
uric railway by ths frnposslaili'Y 81
keeping up their joints with any lighter
construction
Evidently the electric motor designers
have also &ergls problems - solve before
they viii be re&dy n pDt - BIDS for
ia4-rr.ie pr h08r service. The matter Il
current collection, Tor example might
prove hard nat 70 crack The trolley
Is Of course out q IRE question and he
heating ot east 'ron sfso@ sliding on
thi-s rnil a. a sreea of 1za fest per sec-
ou3 might ca&se Sorne a!rFscgs'iss
yTe must csntlS}Y ackns~Ae6ge that
fkA subject IS rot vital ore 81 present,
tcY 70 railway - run trains ~ 20 miles
an hour ~ VET IN stght except 81 fhe
brains % !rYspscuniogs promoters Ex3sE-
frg railway stnss would fra II ai~csa1t
for operating reasons - rg1 trains II
@srN high sne~sf ar fAAs- existing tiN@&
ars me proposal 80 valid spectsl hlgs
speed el@cfFtc Ira. e~~s ~ such r9Eeh
travelled roads ss thss between New
York ara PhfIhtslSht&. has never set
been presented 30 snarcf@~s IN = way
- command rhst- support y vou}t
-srNhzhgy b. rauck e@sEsr task 20 h'.31d
either elecsrie or steam locomotives &c
make - f-sssss az hour oy~r such e f.rss
than II would he 20 hrd sufHGisEt fras.ss
TO saaks 81 4 yaSt.E <ntexcr!se.