New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-11-29
SAFETY ON RAILWAYS.
automatic apparatus for Preventing
accidents.

Few Of the other dangers 70 which the pubic -
now exposed so serious as those Wnicn yet at
tend railway travel. Owing to tnattenuons' Oau
weather or other causes. engineers often run past
signals which have been set to warn them An
other large group Of accidents occur where no
provision is made for giving notice IN that fashlon
In such cases the existence Of another train ahead
Just around a curve on track which crosses
the first grade may be discovered only Wnen 1t
is too late to avoid the consequences
To avert trouble in these and several other crlti
cal and common situations, Irving E. Burdick has
invented apparatus which promises 70 be OF great
value 1t has two objects 1t provides signal
which changes from safety to danger. as
occasion requires, inside the cab and right before
the engineers eyes. He cannot fit past IL like
fash It cannot be hid by smoke. steam. fog or
snow II stays with him all the time BEHIND
n ground glass plate in cocklike Enclosure, are
two electric lights. one red and the other green
One or the other is always alght. So long as the
man has his senses he has constantly before him
either warning assurance that ne can
proceed safely The other service at which the
Burdick system aims IS to guard against fnatten-
tons from any cause whatever. whether sickness
death OF preoccupation with unusual duties. such
as renairing a defective injector. IT, In an emer-
gency steam is not shut off and the air brakes ap-
piled by human hands. 1t is done ey mechanism
on the engine
Mr. Burdick divides up the track into short sec
lions or blocks establishing electrical connection
along each line of rails for certain distance, and
then running wire across from one TO the other
He thus makes 1t possible for current. generated
by a small dynamo on the locomotive to 90 down
through a shoe to line OF rails. to precede the
train for a prescribed distance. to come back by
the other line, and up into the cab. So long
as everything is in good order on the circuit the
signal on the engine itself will remain green II IL
is interrupted. the signal changes to red. and the
machinery which stops the train automatically ID
brought into play.
INTERRUPTION may occur In several ways. The
presence Of another train of water the track.
or an open switch or drawbridge anywhcre In the
beautifully Illustrated by the inventors WORDING
model On track arranged In the form OF an an
are placed. SO long there is no obstruction or
block or more apart II one stops the other does.
When the first gets under way again the second
b2SSs trac Is paIayzed at the Critical point
The modsl shTSs tb Dss Signals b
side the track be automatically operated by
cab and which stops the train
In actual practice it will often happen that the
engineer having ascertained the nature or the
trouble ahead will wish to proceed. perhaps at re-
duced speed but at any rate avoiding any unnegs Ices
trio switch. he can free the brakes and throttle
His fights VIII continued tell their story how
ever. that he will know what he Is about 1t
ercise Of volton and intelligence: and could not
be effected N the o has seem e1 S
OF his system steam roads only. II is possible
The first requisite to its Introduction would be
cutting the road up into blocks and this would not
always be desirable from an operative point OF
view u is often permissible, and even advan-
tageous TO run several trains close together on an
elevated road. Hence the Burdick system would
hardly be available there, Fewer difficulties would
be experienced line like that about TO be built
between New-York and Port Chester. where block
signal equipment would be deemed essential. In
his recent book Electric Railway Economfes" Mr..
Gotshal shows that the present system Of circuits
could not be employed on such a road and that an
iudepend mt wire would be needed. OF course. II
this world work a track signal. IL would operate
signals inside the rnotormans box, and control his
current and brakes