Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1908-07-22
or INTEREST 70 ryrn ONE.


-grtie campaign Ia favor of greater
safety in railway travel. and In thii
, the commission is chcorfully and ablS
seconded b} the railways themselves
Tho niiial experiments in this direc.
zion aro now being made and win b,
watched win u grctt deal of Interest
bY the people Of the whole country
Tho rests now IN progress arc under
thr control and supervision of the
block signal ANA train control board.
which was authorized by congress
I March A. 1907, and appointed by tho
commission four months later The
members of the board are Mortimer
y Cooley Chairman, dean Of tho de-
partment of engineering of the Univcr-
sity of Michigan Azcl James, Jr., sig
nan engineer OF the electric one Of the
New York central. Frank g. EWald,
consulting engineer of the warehouse
commission or Illinois. and e.. -.
Adams. associate editor Of the Rail-
road Gazette
The board has before Il "A score or
SO Of inycntioas designed 10 prevent
collisions, either hcad-on or rear. All
Of these inventions viii be tried If the
board believes that they have any
merit at all, ana The tests viii be
made as quickly AS the inventors can
@install their apparatuses.
The governing principle in the APP
pliHnce now being tested, is electricity.
ana the inventors claim that It's use
will render it impossible FOR two
trains to meet on the same track. No
matter how fast they may be travel
ing toward each other the apparatus
Is designed TO stop both engines with
IN a certain distance, at the same
time signaling 9th the engine rows
and the operators in the block signal
stations.
These tests yin be made under the
most trying circumstances. and whcr-
over permission from the railroad
companies can be obtained they viii
BE- operated under actual working
conditions without the tfainmen know
ing that a test Is TO be made.
The board is amply provided with
funds for tn prosecution of It's work,
Congress last year appropriated $50
geo for It's maintenance, n OF his
amount more than 10000 is still UNI
expended,
ina the first series of tests made by
the board. last saturday, The report
says a train on tho main line OF the
Burlington road. going at a speed Of
fifty miles an hour, ran past a block
signal which stood at danger" and
was automatically brought to a fun
stop loo feet beyond
While the test was being made a
score Of the foremost operating men
of the United States. representing rail-
roads from coast to coast. either rode
on the train or watched from the side
of the track the operation of the new
device Tor stopping trains when tho
engine crews have d|isrcgardcd the
warning. signal
The experiment VAS conducted for
the benefit OF the Joint committee of
the American Railway association
The Joint committee is made mp OF
members of the train rules and safety
devices committee OF the association.
shortly before Tho experiment abov,
referred to was tried the operating
men sat Ina a room In the Burlington /
company's Aurora quarters and listeu-
cd atteutivcly while Tho most complies
train orders known wore transmitted
"a distance of MS miles. received, rc-
poatod and go. K'd' by telephone iu-
stead of telegraph.
Regarding tho operation. or as IL is
technically called, the 'dispatchipe ut
trains Boy telephone. all the operating
mem were enthusiastic with ono dee
cord tito, declared that the day of the
telegraph for use ia the railway scr-
Nicv is rapidly passing
Nith respect 20 The automatic stop
ping ut trains where signals have been
~dls0belcd lhe railway experts Nyr, not
so certain. Although cautious Boo ape
proving such radical departure iu op-
rrttion, thry al agreed that "a decided
step lu advance had been made loo tho
direction ot absolutely preventing cole
llsious pf amy kind between trains uu
a single cor a. double track. WIN this
character OF railway wrecks eliminate
fatalities on American railways
would be- reduced hy "a vclS largo urr
Ceutlpr
The new device operates tho block
eigual ahd when that is at daupcr H
.ffIur. a.f Hf.h ....Ds t.f..