The Washington times., 1901-09-01
MAKING 4 TIME CARD.
Intricate Task Imposed Upon All
Railroad Officials.
How the Runs Are Governed by the
Little cument-ReIatiOn of the
Train Despntcher to the Sched-
uIe-worry and Care Required.

u1e-WOrry anu Care hequireu.
The relations between the time card of
a railroad and the train dispatcher are
interesting and intricate. Brought down
to a simplfied form, it might be stated
that the time card is the fair-weather
governor of railroad supplanted, how
ever by the train dispatcher during a
Storm wreck or any violence or miShap
which throws the machinery out OF gear.
Given fair weather, an absence of delays
by accident, or an overcrowding of the
track, and the time card of a well regu-
lated railroad will run all but the Wild
trains that are picked up hastily to take
care of a vast amount of, freight business
that can be attended to In no other way,
or special passenger train. the sched-
ule of which requires that it be run on
other time than as a second section of
some well-established passenger train.
The time table in its original form, be-
fore 1t has been reduced to print even
To ss..cc.pg. is a most interesting piece of
work. A small boy might describe ii as
resembling Sunday school blackboard
on missionary day, the resemblance aris-
ing largely from the white background
with the black lines, and the pins and the
red cord that mark the outline of what
will afterward be reduced to the printed
folders. The ordinary train board is
about four feet in length by three feet In
height. and is divided longitudinally into
first the hours and then the minutes of
az entire day The board has as many
divisions as there are stations on the
road. These lines. extending from top to
bottom and from one side to the other,
make the board look like mass of lines
and interIines.
When IL comes to making a time card
the traffic officials, usually the general
passenger agent and his assistants, hold
a conference and decide what trains they
would like to have. and make their recon-
mendation. After them the freight traffic
men relate how many regular trains their
service will require. and the two state
ments are submitted TO the president and
the operating officials together. The
recommendation of the operating Off
Gals headed by the general superintend-
ent, if there be one usually prevails. If
the card be that of the Wheeling and Lake
Erie Railroad, for instance, the traffic
men will announce that they want so
many trains day out of Toledo for
Wheeling, and SO many out of Wheeling
for Toledo and Cleveland.
The procedure after that is very sim
pie. The operating men know about the
time it is desired to start the train from
the terminal. and also know conditions
prevailing along the lines which will ena-
bic the train to make a certain time be-
tween each of the stations. For instance,
the distance between Toledo and Manhat-
tan junction is two and two-tenths miles.
The train which leaves at $50 clock in
the morning is fast one, and, taking the
fact that the train must run through the
Toledo yards into consideration, il is de-
ctded at once to make the running time
between those two stations at seven min
utes. A pin is placed in the board of the
Toledo cross-line at the $3.50 point, and
then is slanted diagonally across the
board until it strikes Manhattan juno
tion at 9:y1 a. m, or seven minute spaces
to the right. Another pin is placed in
that point and the string is fastened TO
If IT should be desired that ..1A train
lie over at that point for five u .nutes.
this Is noted on the train board by the
string being run horizontally on the Man
haitian junction line for FIVE minutes ~
the train is supposed 10 be in motion.
again the string<is slanted toward the
next station Each southbound train is
strung up. as they term it, in the same
manner. until all of the southbound trains
have been provided for. The board then
would present the appearance of a series
of seemingly meaningless lines drawn d.
agonally on its face
When it comes to adjusting the running
time of the northb0und trains to that of
the southbound trains the trouble begins.
The northbound trains are marked up on
the bottom of the board in a similar man
ner TO those at the top of the board, and
as they make progress across the coun-
try the lines representing them are creep
ing nearer to the right-hand side of the
board. Naturally, IL the road be a long
one, the trains meeting will make cross
lines on the map somewhere The diff
Guilty Is for the SuperfntendentS to so ad-
just the running time of these trains to
meet the demands of the business and
still have them come within the posi-
bilities of the facilities OF the track.
For instance. ii a through freight train.
that always carries forty-fve cars. meets
another train regularly at a certain place
which has about an equal number of cars,
one of these trains must be sidetracked.
Hence IL is necessary to cause them to
meet at a place where the road has siding
facilities for forty-ffve cars or more.
These little points make il a puZziing
task at times to adjust the schedule just
right and make the proceedings long
drawn out.
After the board has been entirely
of and put into printed form, making
what they call the working card of the
trains This shows where all of the
trains meet. and which trains are suppos-
ed 10 be in the same vicinity at the same
time. This working card gives the exact
time every train is supposed to be at every
point on the road In case anything haD-
pens to prevent the complete carrying out
of the dictates OF this card il is a matter
for fhs chief train dispatcher TO adjust.
II Is then that he steps in and takes hold
of the reins of the road. At such times
he Is empowered to change temporarily
of course. the entire face of the working
card. and is enabled TO make another card
that suits the need of the hour.-St. Louis
Repubiic.