The times., 1900-12-25
THE Steel RAILROAD TIE
An Experiment Being Made on the
Lake Shore Road.
The Growing Scarcity of Timber
Suggests New I6.R-oId Rails Re-
Than Four Times as Long rs the
Wooden Ones - Comparative Cost.

Several years ago. when Jay Gould was
making an inspection trip over the Mis-
souri, Pacific Railroad system, he abruptly
asked one of his division superntendents
where he expected to get railroad ties
from in future years The subordinate
looked surprised, and stammered: Why
why-Mr. Could had not taken into con-
sideration any possible scarcity of railroad
ties"
1T is a subject that will stand a great
deal OF consideration said Mr.. Gould,
earnestly. The timber lands Of this eoun-
try are being depleted with reckless rap
idity, and a serious scarcity in the kind
of timber needed for railroad ties will
come upon you almost without warning.
Better make such provision for the future
as you can. and plant as many trees as
possible on The company's lands along the
line. The substitution of metal ties for
wooden ones has been suggested. but 1
hardly think such change will come about
in your time or mine"
The life of wooden railroad tie aver
ages about six years, and the incessant
replacement of old ties. combined with
the constant construction of new lines,
extensions, spurs. and sidings. creates an
unintermittent and enormous demand for
these essential fctors of a railroads road
bed. White oak and heart pine are the
principal woods used for railroad ties
and the ties, laid down. cost from % to
30 cents apiece. according to the distance
that they have to be transported. Pine
ties carried from Georgia 10 points west
of the Mississippi River appreciate in
value as they move westward with extra
ordinary rapidity.
Jay Gould was not the only railroad
man who realized that the West would
find it expedient to look out for its own
supply of railroad ties for future use.
Most of the railroad constructors in the
West foresaw the inevitable depletion of
timber lands in certain sections, and the
periodical planting of trees by different
railroads became matter of imperative
duty. Many of the large railroad systems
throughout this country have their own
special departments of forestry and ar
Horticulture
In recent years however American rail-
road men have watched with interest ex-
periments with metal ties, which have
where timber is less abundant and more
expensive than it is here. These expert
ments in metal ties have at last been
transferred TO the United States. and al
ready there is much discussion over them.
The Lake Shore Railroad is conducting a
practical test of steel ties, made from
worn-out rails The old rails are re-
rolled, so as to fiatten out the head or
ball OF the rail- and then cut into proper
lengths for ties. 4 number OF ties made
in this way were placed on the Sandusky
division of the Lake Shore road several
months ago. and President Newman has
received reports that they have stood
good test. An official examination made
recently with test track gauge showed
that the gauge on the steel ties had not
changed a particle since the ties we're first
laid
These steel ties being of uniform thick
ness, it is asserted that they can be
tamped much better than wooden ties. and
the base of the ties being uniform. they
give uniform bearing. II is urged, there
fore. that the surface of the tracks ought
TO be maintained more evenly with steel
than with wooden ties. Lake Shore Off
clals express the opinion that steel tie
Will last from twenty-five TO thirty years
more than four times as long az a wooden
tie. Tie cost of q steel tie, even made
from worn out rails. is about four times
the cost OF a wooden tie
The 'worn-out'' steel rails of today
weigh so pounds to the yard, or 20 pounds
to the foot. Rails of this weight are con-
stantly being replaced by 75-pound ana so
pound rails. Usually these old rails are
worth from $50 to s22 a ton for relays
that is. for use as sidngs, short branches
and spurs 10 mills and mines. Estimat-
ing the old steel rails as being worth /
cent a pound. the value of a steel tie l-2
feet long and weighing 20 pounds to the
foot would be $40 per tie This is con-
siderably more than four times the value
of wooden tie. The Lake Shore authori-
ties have figured that by getting a metal
tie that will last for twenty-five years or
mors they will save greatly in the ex-
pense of replacing wooden ties every six
years. Inasmuch as there are 2. 500 ties
to the mile. the cost of laying down one
or two hundreds of miles of ties is no
small item.
While conceding the superior durability
plausible advantages in the matter of
cost. representatives of some of the East
ern lines are skeptical regarding the
practicability of the proposed substitu
tion. For one thing it is urged that worn
out steel rails are in such great demand
for relays" into sidings and short rail
roads that it would be impossible to get
enough of them 10 supply per cent OF
this demand of the railroad companies for
crossties Almost every railroad mechan-
ical officer, however. comedies that metal
railroad tie of some kind is bound to