New-York tribune., 1902-01-24
NEARLY ANOTHER CRASH.
LAWYER TELLS RAILROAD COMMISSION
ERS ABOUT 1T AT OPENING OF
THEIR HEARING.

THEIR HEARING.
The estate Railroad Commission began It's IN
yestigation of the tunnel disaster in Of the
parlors OF the Fifth Avenue Hotel yesterday
and took the testimony of several witnesses in
cIuding Joseph H Franklin. terminal superin-
tendent at Grand Central Station; William ].
Wigus chief engineer Of the New-York Central
Railroad; Charles w. Baker. editor of "Engi-
neering News; w. F. Allen. secretary of the
American Railway Association: John B. Cade,
secretary of the Standard Signal Company. and
Charles H. Platt general superintendent of the
New-York, New-Haven and Hartford Railroad.
All OF the commissioners. Ashley W. Cole. George
W. Dunn and F. NJ. Baker, present. Be
sides the witnesses representatives of the ciu-
gems OF New-Rochelle. Mount Vernon and The
Bronx were also present to offer suggestions.
petition and a protest regarding the tunnel facil
tties.
1t was announced by Mr. Cole, the chairman.
before the taking of testimony. that the objects
Of the inquiry were to ascertain the causes Of
the collision, and TO investigate the construc-
tion, equipment and operation Of the tunnel. the
system of operating trains in the tunnel and
yard, and the by which both tunnel and
train operations could be improved AS far as
possible the hearings will be public. Mr.. Cole
said that the commission had been in consulta-
ton with District Attorney Jerome. and had
received information of valuable character
that would be OF great advantage in the in
vestigation.
While Mr. Franklin was testifying c. ].
Shearan g. lawyer, arose and asked him If he
did not know of an incident In the tunnel on
Wednesday about 10 a. n, when an accident
similar to the recent one had been barely
averted.
Mr.. Franklin.
al
Place, the New-YorI Central. counsel. looking
angry.
WELL" replied Mr. Shearan, my authority is
Mr.. Lewis. OF the law firm of Eaton g. Lewis,
who tells me that yesterday morning a train he
was coming in got blocked in the tunnel and
a brakeman jumped off and ran back swinging
his red lantern. and stopped a train within fifty
yards of the train he was on. 1 know Mr.. Lewis
was very late in arriving at court, where was
waiting for him.
rs that all he knows?" asked Mr.. Place.
That's ell 1 know" said Mr.. Shearan
Before Mr.. Wilgus, the first witness, was
called Mr.. Shearan presented a petition. signed
by six hundred residents of Rochelle. ask
ing the commission TO direct the New-Haven
road to discontinue the use of soft coal in the
tunnel, and also to direct the Harlem and New
York Central roads to discontinue the use Of
steam. w. W. Niles, of the Mount Vernon
Board of Trade urged that the only way to
avert disasters in the tunnel was to direct that
no trains be stopped in il. Joseph II. Wood,
chairman of the committee Of the same body,
then offered a series of suggestions for i'm
provement OF conditions in the tunnel which
had been adopted by the board In these was
urged approval for the of electricity for
suburban trains and the proposed loop under
the Grand Central Station; the Of electricity
for the through trains in Manhattan and The
Bronx; that the tunnel be operated as one block,
only one train being in it on one track at a
time; that an automatic arrangement be used
to cut off the power when train should enter
block in which there was another train; that
powerful electric lights be used in the signals;
that on each side Of each tunnel incandescent
electric lights, in pairs, red and white. be placed
ten feet apart the white lights Illuminating the
tunnel when the track clear, the red when
the signal was adverse; that stairways be built
from the outside tunnels the street level at
intervals of five blocks; that the tracks of the
switchyard the Grand Central Station be
placed trestles eight feet above the ground,
so that snow could not collect about the
switches and cause delays by failure to work
properly Mr.. Wood said that il was showing
on the morning Of January 3, when the acci-
dent occurred, and suggested that the primary
reason for stopping the Danbury train at the
mouth of the tunnel was the difficulty Of oper-
ating the switches.
Mr. Wilgus. the first witness. agreed with the
commission that the yard room at the Grand
Central Station was inadequate, and said that
H15 trains passed through the tunnel in a day.
He said he knew OF practicable way of i'm
proying the tunnel except to take the roof on.
The system Of signals i'll use, he said, was the
best and he knew Of no way 10 Improve It. 1t
would take two years to make the proposed I'M
provements for the use of electricity In the slde
tunnels Work, he said, could not be begun be-
fore the necessary legislation had been OBJ
tanned. -
Assuming" asked Mr.. Cole, that legislation
is accomplished at the present session. how soon
VIII ii begin| -, O.
trail who was present, interrupted here to say
that there might be certain municipal acts 10
he overcome The board learned nothing def
mite about when the work VIII begin.
The object, witness said, of his road In ADOPT
ing electricity from Mott Haven TO the Grand
Central Station was first TO demonstrate the
nracfica bility Of it. subsequently it would ex-
tend il 70 the tracks in the middle tunnel. our
s6as said Mr. Wilgus, lis a system
known as the multiple unit. by which one car
will be equipped with electrical power, so that
after suburban train arrives at Mott raven
the locomotive can be detached, run ahead and
he sidetra cked while the train can then be run
on 10 the Grand Central Station of its own Vo-
lition." .,.,,..
Mr. Franklin, when asked about the Feasibility
of a single block system said:
"A single block system is not advisable as IL
would result in blocking the road with trains as
far as Mount Vernon, and not over hfteen trains
an hour could be handled"
Mr.. Cole said he had inspected the slgnaI
system in the tunnel at the request OF MI
Jerome, and it about perfect as IL was
possible to make it The range Of an ordinary
signal light he SAID in an average fog was from
80 to 200 feet.
Just before the hearing closed an article in
an evening paper was handed to Mr.. Cole which
aroused his Indignation to the boiling point It
intimated that the questions he had asked from
a piece Of paper prepared by some of the
attorneys Of the New-York Central Railroad
ard that the investigation a farce
1T is an Infamous falsehood." said Mr. Cole
and he promptly swore Ira Place, of counsel for