The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1907-07-11
RAPID TRANSIT At EXPO
American M0n0ral Car Tested and
Found Successful

NORFOLK, Va, July 11.-Of all the
recent inventions in methods of trans
nortation. the one which it would seem
is calculated to upset the whole of the
present method of city and interurban
rapid transit, was successfully tested at
the jamestown exposition on June ~
The statement of this fact must have
very soothing effect upon American
pride. for the reason that this proposed
innovation has been the occasion for
considerable rivalry of late between
this country and England, by reason
of the fact that a London man has re-
Gently invented similar car.
AS matter of fact, the two systems,
as far as the track and car are con-
cerned, are identical. But there is
difference in the method of equilibrium
which, it can be seen at once, is
very important factor in a car con-
structed to run at higher rate or
speed than has YET been attained by
any device built for the transportation
of passengers.
With the exception of one or two
short eXperimental lines. the James
town exposition line is the first single
rail railroad ever built in this coun-
try, and this half mile track now has
car speeding back and forth over it
daily by way of convincing the public
that the system is beyond the expert
mental stage The initial run over
the line was made on June 81 with
Governor Warfield of Maryland. May
or Barry Mahool of Baltimore. the
Maryland commissioners to the exposi-
ton, officers of the company and rep
resen tatives of the press aboard the
car
This car is AZ feet six inches long
has a seating capacity of "a, with
s landing room for so more, and is
equipped with eight motors of 20 horse
power each. The frame work is of
structural steel. 1t is estimated that
it will be able to make 800 trips
day from the exposition to the mill
tary camp. which points represents
the terminals
This car is operated upon positive
mechanical method of which N. H.
Tunis of Baltimore is the inventor.
while the English car of which Louis
Brennan is the inventor, operates on
the gyroscope methOd-Or in other
dc ha hot
lies and keeps in motion the ordinary
spinning top, with which every Toy is
familiar.
The American car. of which Mr.
Tunis is the inventor. and which is in
operation at the exposition, has two
overhead trucks, built as light as pos
sible for safety. The wheels run be-
tween positive guides overhead. There
fore, it matters not if the motor stops
or some accident happens to the car
the guides are there to hold it on the
hail
A desirable feature of the Tunis car
is that when the car is running on
curves at a high rate of speed it leans
toward the center: IN some cases S
much as % degrees, which serves to
keep the car on the rail- One of the
nice points about this American mono
rail system is the fact that the equilib-
rum device also serves the purpose of
a transmitter for the electricity.
The only single rail system in op-
Grafton heretofore is that of the sus-
pension type known to Europe, and of
which this country could make no
practical use. Therefore the James,
town exposition line is attracting wide
interest. especially among practical
railroad men. Much interest has like
wise been aroused in the proposed
construction of a monorail interurban
line from Newark, N. j. to New York
city, which undoubtedly depends upon
the success of the demonstration now
being made on the shores of Hampton
Roads.