The Kalispell bee. [volume] (Kalispell, Mont.) 1900-192?, 1901-10-09
WILL USE
ELECTRICITY
Great Northern to Try Elec-
trio Motors.
ON THE WEST END
Original Intention Was to Use the Current
Only In the I 'unnel, But 1t Will
Go Further.

The announcement recently by
President Hill, of the Great North
ern. that he would in the near future
begin the work of equipping a por-
ton Of the Cascade division for the
adoption of electric motive power,
instead of locomotives. was the first
official sanction of the reports that
have been in persistent circulation
for more than two years
The investigations that have been
made for the Great Northern into
the matter Of substituting electric for
steam power for railroad use have
been under the direction of J. N. Hill,
The eldest son of J. j. Hill, and cover
period of over three years. The
matter was first brought to the elder
Hills attention by the reports of his
civil engineers to the effect that it
might be found impracticable to Op-
crate trains through the Cascade tun-
mel by means of coal burning locomo-
tives on account of it's extreme length
and the fact that there are no means
of effectually ventlating it without
going to the expense of installing
and operating air motors.
But the investigations that have
been made into the matter have con-
vinced the officers of the road from
the president down that there is
great saving to be made in operating
trains by water power conveyed in
the form of electricity. This much is
patent from the fact that the original
plans for the adoption and use of
this new means have been greatly
extended.
When the plan was first broachel
it merely contemplated the operation
of trains by means of electricity
through the tunnel, distance of
about two and half miles. But now
the announcement is made that the
electric Improvement will be applied
to that portion of the road extend
ing from LeayenWorth on the east
side of the mountains. to Skykomish
on the west side, a distance of 6G
miles. And it is understood that if
the electric motors are the success
it is now anticipated they Will be i'm
mediately operated from Everett on
the west side to Wenatchee on the
east sile, distance of 14l miles,
and eventually extended to include
the entire mileage of the system.
The portion of the road chosen for
the first application of the expert
ment in electric power is one of the
most difficult and expensive portions
of the road to operate on the entire
system. 1t lies through the wild and
rugged Cascades, the grades are very
heavy on both sides of the mountains,
there are many miles of snoWsheds
and every winter there are numer-
GUS slides of earth and rock which
come down from the steep mountain
sides to cover up the tracks and en-
danger the operation of trains.
There is one important reason why
the Great Northern desires to secure
and adopt some new and cheaper mo-
tive power for this portion of it's sys-
tenn, and that is because of the ex-
pense of coal, which gives both the
o. r. & N. and the Northern Pacific
great advantage over the Great
Northern In the expense of handling
freight on it's coast division.
The advantage of the o. r. & N.
lies in it's gravity route down the Col
umDla river from the Rocky noun
ldIHo, anu iIdl VI luG ANOIJueTu fdCIIIc
lies in the fact that it mines it's own
coal at ROslyn at cost to the COM
pany of from 81 to $1.25 ton, while
the coal of the Great Northern costs
about $275 for the ordinary product,
which is used on the greater part of
the division, and for the Crows Nest
Pass coal, which is used on all trains
through the tunnel, the cost is much
greater.
For about 80 miles of the mountain
climb on the Cascade division each
loaded train running over it requires
the assistance of helper engine in
addition to the regular engines, and
as all of the mountain trains are haul
ed by the big mountain climbing en-
gines, the coal consumption is some
| thing enormous, amounting to up
| wards of 250 tons day, or nearly a
| million tons year At a difference
of $l.50 a ton in favor the the North
ern Pacific it will be readily seen
that the older road has on account
of coal supply alone considerable
advantage over its newer rival.
AS the water power for the crea-
| tion of the electric power for the Op-
Grafton of the trains under the new
| system will be taken from one or
more of the many streams which ex-
ist in abundance along that portion
of the system the innovation con-
templated will reduce the coal bills
of the division very greatly. if not
eventually doing away with them en-
tirely.
Just which of the streams the pow
er will be taken from, or whether
one or more. has not as yet been def
initely announced, but the engineers
have surveyed anl minutely exam
ined the Skykomish river on the west
side of the summit and several of