The Indianapolis journal., 1899-02-16

or the Pittsburg division of the Pennsylva-
MIA Railroad, died suddenly at his home on
Sunday. Mr.. Briston was sixty-one years Of
age and had been in the service of the
pennsylvania for many years
The Vanderbilt freight way-biu clearing
house, which was organized last week, will
open for business March l. with William
Nicholson, formerly auditor of the Falls
Brook road as general manager Mr. Mich
olson Will start with force of one hundred
clerks, expecting TO increase the number TO
two hundred.
NJ. T. Fields. the colored attendant in the
Office of the Vice President and General
Manager Ramsey, Of the Wabash, is in re-
ceipt Of an autograph letter from Admiral
Dewey, dated Manila, Dec. %, gracefully
acknowledging rabbits foot. which Mr..
Fields had sent the admiral for luck as a
Christmas gift.
In compliance with recent order Of
Texas railroad commission, the Pullman
contracts and schedules of rates with the
commission In doing this the two compa-
MES protest that they are not common car
rleTs' put, IN order TO show their good faith
with the people of Texas and the commits
sion, they bow to the latter's will.
At a meeting of all railroad lines inter
ested in passenger traffic between Chicago
and Omaha, held in Chicago yesterday, it
was decided to discontinue all twelve-hour
trains between these two points. The roads
represented at the meeting We're the
Chicago, Milwaukee & st. Paul, Chicago,
Rock Island d Pacific, Chicago e North
western and the Chicago. Burlington &
Quincy.
Harry Miller superintendent of the Van
dalia main line, has just completed his
eighteenth year in railroad service. He is
now thirty-seven years Of age and has
bright future before him. A prominent rail-
way official said yesterday that, like his
father the general superintendent of the
Southwestern system Of the Pennsylvania
lines, he was a strict disciplnarian but
sun highly esteemed by employees who do
their duty.
Tourist travel to the South was never bet
ter A II lines in interest have the story
to tell. AT the Piney lands, on the SeabOard
Airline, there are nearly four thousand
people registered at the various hotels. and
there are constant additions to the number.
The Florida special, operated by the Plant
system carried 80 more passengers the first
eight days Of February than for like time
last year, while travel to the east coast IS
far ahead of what it was during the season
of 1S9S
The tourist sleeping cars which the Balti-
more & Ohio will run at a lower rate than
on the Pullman cars are neat, clean and
comfortable with rattan chairs, instead OF
plush, and have all the desirable features
of a frst-class sleeping The lntroduc-
tion Of these cars is an innovation which
will be watched closely by officials of other
that. In providing such equipment at low
rate the Baltimore & Ohio is going beyond
the differential agreement.
During Sunday and Monday vigorous ef-
forts were made to keep perishable freight
in motion On the Panhandle, the Fort
Wayne and the Pennsylvania railroads. all
other kinds Of freight were abandoned in
yards and sidings and the fast trains sent
out with such crews were able to stand
the severe cold. AS all the fast trains are
composed of cars with airbrakes and patent
couplers. it was not necessary for the men
to expose themselves very much, and they
suffered but little on the road.
The annual meeting of the American Rail-
way accounting officers began at Cincinnati
yesterday and will continue two or three
days. Fifteen of the leading railroads are
represented The meeting will discuss uni
f0TmitU handling fTnlUnf shining
blanks, and will especially consider the i'm
provement of through bills of lading from
York, auditor of the Erie lines is president;
| w. c. Scale of Philadelphia, auditor of the
| Lehigh Valley road, is secretary
Judge Adams, in the Circuit Court at St.
Louis, has handed down an opinion in the
| patent suit of McConway & Torley against
| the Shickle. Harrison & Howard Iron
| Company. The plaintiffs alleged that the
| st. Louis company infringed on their pat.
| ent on the fanny freight-car couplers of
which the complainants claim a patent
| granted Feb. q, 1882 Judge Adams ruled
| that the complainants had a clear patent
| on this novelty, and that it has been in
| fringed. The opinion stated that a decree
will be entered granting perpetual inJunc-
| ton against any further infringement, and
| referring the case to Judge James A. Sed-
don for an accounting of the damage sus-
/ tanned by the 'complainants from the in
| fringement.
officials Of the Pennsylvania Company
| deny that the road is in any way inter-
ested in the big South Chicago land pur-
| chase, which has been reported as being
| sold preliminary to its transfer to the Penn
| sylvania Company for the location OF i'm
mense yards there The tract in question iS
| 142 acres in extent and lies in Illinois, just
outside the Indiana state line. 1t extends
| from One-hundred- -and-sixth street to One
| hundred-and-twelfth street, and is cut in
| twain by the South Chicago & Southern, a
| connecting belt line owned by the Pennsyl-
| vania Company. The same tract was bid for
in 1892 by a syndicate of Pennsylvania ofti-
| cials headed by President Roberts on the
| same cash basis as that which figured in
| the present instance, $1,000 an acre.
Charles Chapman Backus, one of the or
| ganizers of the American Express Company,
| is dead at New York, aged eighty-three
| years. About 1S40 Livingston, Wells &
| Pomeroy established an express line be-
| tween New York city and Buffalo, and en-
| gagged Bennett, Backus and Hawley to act
| as their agents in Utica, n. Y. The business
| consisted in the conveyance of money
| packages between the banks along the line
| of the New York Central & Hudson River
| Railroad, and Henry Wells was the sole
messenger. his freight being carried In a
! handbag The income was so small that
| time and again Wells was on the point Of
| abandoning the enterprise, but Mr.. Backus
| encouraged him to perSevere, foreseeing the
| vast capacities of the business if extended to
| include the carrying of merchandise. This
| eventually was done and Mr.. Backus be-
| came interested in II and soon after con-
| ceived and organized. with others, the
| American Express Company.