Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1903-01-24

K0FE BIN EsyG 8A Daess A@S
which INSTANTLY Warns Him OF Any
Danger From Collision.
a full description OF the new safety
appliances for German railway trains
has been sent to the state department
at Washington by Frank II. scn.
consul general at Berlin. AlehoGgn -
tended for use on steam railroads, the
devices are operated by electricity and
require a third rail in the track. Mr.
Mason's description Of recent expert
ments is In part as follows:
Midway between th, rails Is laid q
light third rail Of the ordinary T pat
tern, the joints Of which are 50 . ii
nected as to form a continuous conduct.
or. Midway under the forward part o.
the engine Is hung the working instfu
ment, an electrical apparatus inciosad
In a square case CT jacket occupying a
cubic foot Of space. The instrument y
connected with 4 contact shoe, which
slides along the third rail and by VINES
with n telephone and electric alari1
bell In the cab of the engine driver AID
a red incandescent lamp which is light
cd By the same impulse that fouses the
alarm bell Into action. a further i'm
proyement of the device sets the elec.
trio brakes On the engine or entire train
simultaneously with the alarm signal
which sounds the bell and lights the
lamp. The apparatus is 50 adjusted
and arranged that the engineer can at
any moment BY touching a lever satisfy
himself that 1t is in full working condi
ION.
The tests on Nov. - were conducted
on the main line from Frankfurt to
Hanau, between the stations Sachsen-
hansen and Goldstein, and a transla
ton Of the official report will illustrate
concisely the working of the apparatus.
TWO locomotives, numbered respective
" 290 and 1920, had beenN equipped
with the new device, and the expert
ments proceeded as follows; Engine
200, drawing a special train and ap
preaching Sachsenhausen at full speed,
received the danger signal and came to
a full stop. The driver of 300 then
asked by telephone the cause of the
signal and received from the keeper Of
a grade crossing half a mile In front
word that d wagon had broken down in
crossing the track and INSTRUCTED the
line. After ten minutes wait the en-
gineer of go received word by tele
phone that the obstruction had been
cleared away and thereupon resumed
his trip.
A mile farther on the signal on 200
again sounded, and the driver vas In
formed by telephone, as before, that
the semaphore round a curve and more
than half Il mile distant was set at
halt" ThereupOn engine 300 slowed
down and proceeded cautiously, sound
ing its whistle at short intervals, the
telephone bell In the drivers cab ring
ing continuously until the curve was
rounded, when the ringing ceased, mott
flying the engineer that the semaphore
had changed to track clear" There
upon POO resumed full speed.
In the tests to prevent collision en-
CINE lao came up rapidly from behind
and on the same track as 200, which
had slowed down and was proceeding
cautiously in consequence OF reported
danger in front. The moment that
1,420 came within 1000 meters Q,093
YARDS of 300 the signal ON both en-
gines began to ring and their red lights
to glow, Thereupon 1920 halted, the
driver inquired of 300 in front the
cause of Che alarm, and a complete UNI
~derstanding between the two trains
was Immediately established. An i'm
portant point in this connection is that
in practice the same warning signal
is sounded upon every engine equipped
with the apparatus which is on the
same track and within the prescribed
radius-a kilometer or a mile, as the
case may be-from the engine and
train which cause the obstruction. If
a semaphore be falsely set at safety,
the train may run past it into a block
In which another engine is halted or
moving with perfect security that warn
ing will be given In ample time TO pre-
vent a collision under any and all con
ditiOns of darkness, fog, storm or mis-
taken instructions. The invention has
other minor points Of usefulness, but
the foregoing will be sufficient to indi-
cate the general method Of its opera
ton and the measure of it's efficiency.
In effect 1t puts the engine driver Of
every train into instantaneous touch
with other trains, switchmen and sta
ton and crossing keepers in his neigh
borhood and keeps ever before his eye
and ear an automatic and infallible
signal which springs into activity the
moment that his locomotive, whether
running forward or backward, comes
within the radius of danger from COLI
sion.