The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1903-05-26
FREIGHT CAR TRAINS
System of Making Them Up on
American Railroads.
why 81 Heterogeneous Collection of
Rolling stock Is often Put To-
gether - other Interesting
Particulars.

When travelling on railroads every
one has had occasion to notice the
heterogeneous collection of cars that
make up a freight train, says the
Cleveland Leader. 1t seems, indeed,
that every railroad line in the United
States is represented by freight car
bearing it's name; and the average
traveller wonders how the freight de-
partments carry on their business in
an ineligible manner, and how the
different roads know where their
cars are located. Yet the system by
which freight cars are handled is
fairly simple and easy to understand.
Before proceeding further it may
be well to define two railroad terms
used in connection with this subject.
The first is known as home line OF
owner" By this we mean that rail-
road having freight cars bearing its
name is known as the home or own
er of that car. The second term,
foreign car and foreign line" de-
notes a freight car bearing name
different from that of the railroad
upon which it is running, and vice
versa.
Suppose a road loads one of its
own cars with freight and wishes to
ship that car to some point lying
upon it's own line. The car is simply
attached to a freight train and
drawn to its destination, and, when
unloaded, it is ready for use again.
In this case there is no trouble; but
suppose that car, instead of being
shipped to some point on the ''home
hne," is to be sent to some place
many miles away, which does not lie
on the road owning the ear? The
case is not so simple now. The car is
run on the home line as far as pos
sible towards its destination. Then,
at some junction, the car is trans
ferred on to another road and is at
tached to some freight train that
will pass through the place where
the car is billed to. 1t often hap
pens, however, that this place is not
reached by the second road, ether.
In this case the same system is used
as IN the first place. The car is sent
as far as possible and then trans
ferred at some junction and jointed
/ to freight train that will pass
through its point of destination In
many cases a car passes over a mum
Der of roads before arriving at the
] receiving point. While the car is GO
ing over these different roads its
owner" must, of course, pay for
such privileges. These payments are
based on mileage arrangement,
which, on ordinary freight cars,
amount to six-tenths of a cent per
mile that car travels over road.
We have followed the car to its
destination, and the question that
now arises is what becomes of the
car when it is unloaded and lies
empty? The railroads have adopted
the following plan for solving the
| problem:
The road upon which the car lies
has the privilege of using the empty
car for purposes of carrying freight,
with the understanding that the car
is to be shipped to point or poin. $
which lie in the direction of the rail-
road that owns the car. When the
car is as near the home line" as
| possible it is transferred at some
junction to the next nearest line.
This line, in turn, can use the car
for freight purposes, under the same
condition of working it toward the
home line" and so on. In this way
the car is gradually worked back to
the line that owns it. For each mile
that a foreign road" uses a car il
must pay the ''owner" six-tenths of
a cent. AT each junction where the
car is transferred from one line to
another the number of the car IS
taken by the road that receives It.
and the road that gives it up, and
record of such transfer is sent to
the owner" of the car. Thus every
road knows about where its cars are
located. 1t happens frequently that
car, while on a foreign road -
needs to be repaired. The road upon
which the car lies Immediately takes
the car to its shops and makes tho
necessary repairs. An itemized bill
of such repairs is nailed to the car
and duplicate sent to the Owner
These bills are looked over and com
pared, and if there appears to be no
overcharge or mistake the bill is
paid. A road is responsible for any
damage done foreign car" while
on its lines, other than that occa-
stoned by ordinary wear and tear.
Mileage on refrigerator and tank
cars is higher than that on ordinary
freight cars, thesestablished price be-
ing three-quarters of a cent per
mile. All disputes and all points
that may arise from time to time are
settled by a board of arbitration,
which meets every year in Chicago.
Such is a general outline of the sys-
tenn adopted and used by the rail-
roads of the United States for the
handling of freight cars.
No Chinese Pupils.
1t is now settled that the Chinese
] - I ~ r.