The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-09-22
REAL AUTOMATIC CAR COUPLER.
Invention of n Denver Man Insures
Perfect Safety to Brakemen.

Denver News
To Denver man belongs the credit for
an innovation in railroading that will mean
a change in the structure of every car In
the United States within a year.
c. A. Brown. a prominent attorney OF
Denver, and C. A Dunn. an inventor. have
perfected and begun the manufacture Of an
absolutely automatic coupling device.
Just what this really means can only Be
understood when it is remembered up to
this time there has not been an automatic
coupler in the world. although since 1854
the United States laws have prohibited the
use of any other kind. At the time the
ordinary coupling loop and pin were in gen.
eral use. The loss of life and limb through
these was tremendous, and when the train.
men took the matter before Congress i'm 1857
a law was passed prohibiting the use OF
any coupler that necessitated a trainman
going between the cars and the Interstate
commerce Commission was given authority
to enforce it.
In 1898 the NJ. c. B. coupler now In gem
erai use was planned. This couples and un.
couples automatically when ii has once
been opened, but it must be opened by hand.
The trains must be at perfect standstill
before that can be done. The real danger
lies In the coupling. In the M. c. b. coupler
the coupler must be opened before this is
done, and then is where the brakeman Is
forced to pass between the cars and when
he is so often injured.
The new coupler designed by Mr.. Dunn
and perfected by Mr.. Brown entirely obvi.
ates this. Their coupler is practically the
same in appearance as the M. G. b. coupler,
but instead of a fiange locking with a pin
and holding the cars together they have two
fanges, which give when pressed from the
outside through spring mechanism, and
then interlock and are immovable until one
of the fianges Is withdrawn. This Is done,
as in the NJ. c. B. coupler, with a pulley
attachment on the side of the car.
The invention was perfected nearly eight
months ago, but Mr.. Brown refused to make
! 1t public until it had been thoroughly tested.
Eight months ago two Of the couplers were
attached to the heaviest engines on the Col
orado & Southern road and used between
here and Trinidad. They were satisfactory
| in every way, and several weeks ago Mr..
Brown was asked to give demonstration
weeks ago in the Colorado & Southern Rail-
| road yards.
General Manager Herbert, of the Colorado
| & Southern, had already tested the coupler.
| and, as the Interstate Commission had or
| dered his road to replace all the couplings
| on the narrow-gauge road. he ordered 1900
| couplers, enough to equip every car they
| own 1,500.
This is the first order the new company
! has received, and Ii means over twenty car
loads of steel. AS soon the new coupler
| has been tried in wholesale lots on the Col
| orado & Southern 1t Is believed that the In
| terstate Commission will order all roads
| equipped with them. This means that the
new business will amount to more than
/ $40. 600 year.
/ Far more than that is now spent by the
| different railroads every year In replacing
and repairing broken and WORKOUT COUP
4 lings.