The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-11-28

gyrostatio action and stored-up energy can be utilized. The fy-wheels are mounted on high class bearings and are placed in a vacuum, so that the air and friction are reduced to minimum, and consequently tho power required to keep them in rapid motion Is very small The stored-up energy in the fy-wheels, when revolving at full speed. Is so great and the friction so small that if the driving current is cut off altogether they will run at sufficient velocity to impart stability to the vehicle for sev- eral hours, while 1t will take from two to three days before they come to rest. The stability mechanism occupies but little space. and is conveniently placed in the cab at one end of the vehicle. It's weight is also small, being about per cent of the total load.
 The wheels of the car are placed in a single row beneath the center of the ve- hicle and are carried on bosy trucks which are 50 pivoted as to provide Tor horizontal curves on the track, and also for vertical ones. This enables the ye- hicle to run upon curves of even less radius than the length of the vehicle It. self, or to run on crooked rails or on rails lald over uneven ground, without danger of detrailment The motive power of the mono-railway may he either steam, petrol, oil, gas or electricity. In the ex- periments made thus far petrol has been used as an electric generator, the power of each vehicle being self-contained and ready for immediate use. Use Of It any moment Is made possible by keeping the eyro-wheels in constant rotation by Q current from Q small accumulator, the engine being at rest. In order that the vehicle may be able to ascend steep in clines, the wheels are all power driven and change gears are provided for use in hilly country.
 Larue Coach Made Possible.
 Great economy is obtained by making the vehicles much wider than the ordi- nary passenger coach. On this point MT. Brennan claims that he has plans for a passenger car 100 feet in length and 20 feet wide, which, he says, is not an ac- cepted estimate of the size of the railway coach of the near future. He also de- clares that such a coach may be driven safely at a speed of 200 miles an hour while travellers are making transconti- mental journey in rooms as large and as luxuriously furnished as those of mod ern city hotel.
 The rail upon which the car runs has curved top and It's weight Is that of the ordinary rail, but the sleepers or ties are only one-half the usual size of railroad ties. The interest which the British gov ernment IS IahiHB III tue uiouoIdlWdy iS understood when 1t is stated that flying lines of railroad can be built with great rapidity over uneven ground with but 8 slight expenditure of labor. By the use of a specially designed construction car 1t is confidently stated that 1t will be
 possible to construct this new type of railroad fast enough to keep up with an army on the march and supply 1t with all requirements.
 The bridges required for the use of tho monorailway are of the simplest possible construction, a single wire hawser stretched across a ravine or river being all that is necessary for temporary work. These hawsers can be built on the spot from separate wire rope strands, and the lateral swaytng of such hawsers does not disturb the balance of the car. In other cases a bridge building of single roll of piles with a rail on top suffioes. or a single girder carrying the rail may be conveniently used.
 Hotel on Rails Predicted. The expenditure of fuel necessary to operate the monorailway is very much less than 1t Is with an ordinary railroad. This fact is due to the absence of nange friction on curves and to tho vehicles
 running without oscillation or jolting.
 The absence of these same factors mAkes
 an increase of 200 to 300 per cent in the
 speed of the train a safe possibility. Con- sequently MT. Brennan confidently de- clares that his dream of a transconti-
 mental railroad furnished with a travel-
 ing hotel having rooms 15 to 20 feet wide
 and carrying passengers in perfect conn fort and safety at speed of 12o to 15o
 miles will surely be realized.