The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1905-02-11
AUTOMOBILES ON RAILWAYS.
This Use Of Them Becoming Exsen-
sive Both Here and Abroad.

sive Both Here and Abroad.
Automobiles are now being used on
| railroad tracks to an extent that is
| not only unknown to but not dreamed
| of by most persons. Ordinarily it is
considered that the noise and smell Of
q gasoline motor car are sufficient to
keep persons informed OF It's where
abouts and progress, but the gasoline
automobile has been steadily extend
ing its sphere from the highway to
the steel track with subtloty that
has almost completely concealed the
fact. How much progress in this new
field the modern unit Of motor trans
portation has been making has re-
NAMED to be revealed from trade
sources-the manufacturers of them.
When, last September, Charles J.
Giidden, Of Boston. with his twenty
four horsepower touring car, ocmplet-
ed his run of 1890 miles on steel rails
from Minneapolis to Vancouver. p. c.,
in sixty hours, at an average rate Of
thirty miles an hour through the
mountains, it was heralded as a feat
revealing the revolutionary possibili-
ties of automobiles for railroads. 1t
was in one case predicted that the
twelve hour trip from New York to
Chicago was thereby shown to be near
at hand. 1t was known, too, at that
time that President Underwood, of the
Erie Railroad, was experimenting on
the track rails with an automobile
fitted with f1anged steel wheels, and
4 few persons realized that possibly
something might come Of these doings
in. the future. Yet all the while and
before these feats various automobile
manufacturers were busy supplying
specially constructed cars to railroads.
One American manufacturer alone
has built and delivered more than 100
cars that are now in use on railroads
Of this maker was four
and one-half horsepower affair that |
was tested to 5000 miles on the rails /
of the Michigan Central road. Now |
his special rail automobiles are in use
for inspection cars for division Off
cials, for switching purposes and even
for passenger service on spur line
in Utah. For switching the gasoline
automobile is said to show a marked
economy and gain of convenience over
the switching locomotive. The auto
mobile costs much less than the loco
motive, it's maintenance is less, it does
not need to be fired up, but is always
ready, and one man is fireman, engi
neer, brakeman and conductor.
In England steam motor coaches
have been in actual passenger serv-
ce on the unit basis since 1893. In
France, Austria and Italy there are
gasoline automobiles in regular rail
way service, and some interesting sta
istics concerning them ere to be re-
ported to the French Government next
month.
For supplementary passenger serv- =,
ce there would seem to be big field
or individual automobile rail coaches .
n trolley lines. In some of the small ,
r cities where night traffic is nof :
arge the trolley companies complain ,
hat it costs them dollar head to ,
AIRY passengers after l o'clock in the
no. aing, as they have to keep their !,
normous power plants running in or :
er to keep the few cars in commits =
ion. This expense would be saved !,
y the use of cars that furnished :,
heir own power from gasoline en-
ine.-New York Sun.