The Virginia enterprise., 1910-11-25

SlG to the highest grade of
~ technical skill and au-
thority without having had
even the slightest preparation prior
to getting his start. 1t is one of the
numerous lines of employment that
are offered by street railway COM
panies throughout the land, and is
open to any boy that wishes to begin
at the bottom at fairly good wage
and have certain and direct avenue
of advancement straight up to a high
position.
Maybe your boy has not cared to
take up job as motorman or street
car conductor, which was elaborated
upon in this series a few weeks ago.
but still would like to get in some
phase Of railway work as represented
by the street car interests. Well, If
that Is the case, and you have been
unable to furnish him with a good
education, and he has a mechanical
turn Of mind, he probably could not
do better than to get into touch with
one Of the superintendent or fore
men Of power houses
The job at their disposal, which is
the subject of this article, leads to a
line of practical electrical engineering,
the basal power that enables street
cars Of the present day to be operated.
The requirements are slight. Of
course, the applicant must have had
sufficient education to be able to read
and write, as he must in practically
all occupations; but further than this
virtually nothing more is required
than that he must be eighteen or
twenty years old and of fairly good
physique. Unusual shortness of stature
is a handicap, as wOrkmen have to
DO considerable reaching for levers
The first pay your boy gets will be
about $3.50 day. He probably will
not be very enthusiastic over his work,
as there will seem to be nothing tech
nical in wiping off machinery, clean
ing up things generally, and running
errands for the foreman; but he must
remember that he has to become ac-
quainted with tools and equipment
before he can understand them, and
.,
If he is attentive and ambitious. In
deed, it will probably be only a few
months before he will be given an ad-
vance to $1.75 day and sent out
from the main power house to one Of
the substations in similar work
The advantage Of this move Is that,
on account Of there being compara-
fiyo11y !,
greater range of duties and respon-
sibilities and thus advance more rap
idly. He will have to clean the big
generators, switchboards, and wiring
apparatus, and thus the complex ma
chinery will gradually become familiar
to him.
Within few months more he may
be sent back to the power house as
boss Of the cleaners there, at about
81 day, or be set to operating a
small auxiliary switchboard under
close supervision, and after he has
advanced sufficiently, so back to a
substatiOn as dynamo tender. 1t will
require probably a year and a half
more before he reaches this position;
but then he will be paid from $3.50
to $2.75 day, while he is getting
there
Then, in all likelihood, he will 20
back to the power house as dynamo
tender, to prepare him more thorough.
ly for the important advance to switch
board operator at a substation, which
is one of the most important lesser
places In the business. These opera
tors must stand their watch of a third
of day with extreme faithfulness, as
on them directly rests the RESPONSE
bility of correctly distributing the
power through the lines connected
with that station. If they permitted
their attention to be diverted from
their work for even a moment, some
sudden powerful change in distribu-
tion Of current might take place that
would cause great damage. All this is
shown on indicators above the switch
board, requiring almost constant
shifting of levers. The pay of Switch
board operators at substations runs
from SO to 1926 day.
After demonstrating his earnestness
and ability at the substation, your now
skilled boy is again sent to the main
power house to do similar, but more
important, work. at further advance
OF Is cents in his daily wages. The
power distributed to the various lines
by the substations is first generated
and sent out from the power house.
1t will not be more than a year or
two now before your ambitious son
has risen to be among the best opera
tors and generator men with the COM
pany. 1t is the policy of practically
all street railway institutions to ad-
vance their own men to the most re-
sponsible positions, as each company
has its own peculiar methods of wir-
ing and operating, and it would take
some time for outsiders, no matter
how capable, to muster these details:
SO the superintendent keep careful
watch of their workmen, taking every
pains to assist them in developing
thar competency and promoting them