La Junta tribune. (La Junta, Bent County, Colo.) 1881-1939, 1917-03-08
RAILROADS WASTING MILLIONS
Uncle Sam Learns that Puiyerize,l
Coal VIII Save Time. Labor, and
Money for Railroads

awakening to the fact that the rail-
roads OF this country, in spending
approximately $500. 100000 year
for locomotive fuel. are spending
from SIS. 100000 to 100000, 600
OF 1t to "kindle. prepare and main
tain fires on CRATES when locomo-
tiyes are standing still. drifting or
otherwise not actually at work. 3"
Much OF this enormous outlay is
wasted. The government. therefore,
is giving encouragement to the elimin-
alton OF this waste. and, according
to Railway and Locomotive Engi-
neering. one OF the shortest and
sharpest cuts 10 the cost Of railway
transportation IS promised by pull
verified coal
II is pointed out that the neces-
sity for conserving the supply OF oil
in the rapidly eNhausting fields for
other than railway fuel purposes will
soon eliminate II from lOcomtiye ser
vice. while the higher prices and
shortage in supply OF the larger sizes
and better grades OF solid Goals now
in demand n0r the commercial trade
will bring about the use OF the less
Salable by-product of the mines In
pulyerized form Says writer in
the Engineering Journal.
steam locomotives will eventual
ly have to be- equipped so as to APP
proSimate to electric machines by
the use OF pulverized fuel which In
turn will eliminate smoke, SCOT
cinders. sparks and fire hazards: re-
duce noise, bring down the time for
dispatching at terminals. and stand
by losses. and Increase the daily
mileage by providing for longer runs
and more nearly continuous service
between general repair periods -"
Furthermore. by mechanically feed
ing and burning pulyerizcd fuel. ar
duous labor on the part OF the fire
man Is replaced by the more skilled
manual control OF combustion. and
assistance is given 10 the engineer In
the operation OF the locomotive so
that he Is permitted a better chance
to observe both tracks and signals.
thereby reducing the peril to the
lives Of the passengers
Use Of the new fuel has already
gone beyond the experimental stage.
Ms "oYer 100000 tons OF puiverized
fuel are now being used annually
In the United States for Industrial
kilns and furnaces" And In the mat
ter OF expense In the pulyeriging
process. the total cost to prepare
the powdered fuel properly In a suit.
ably equipped drying and pulyeriz.
ing plant ranges from Is 10 Is cents
ton. while for railway eoallnF
station OF average capacity, this to,
tai cost + less than 90 cents ton q
The Interstate Commerce Commits,
sion reports q total OF si.76O loco,
motives Of all ciassts IN the United
States. which made a total OF i.T55.'
s72.32b miles during the fiscal year
ending June 80. 1914 This give,
an average for each locomotive OF
about 27.ii5 miles per annum. q
miles per day. or but little over !
miles per hour From the foreEolns
one may easily suspect that oycr
onc.half the time OF locomotive,
Is now spen, at terminals, and thai
most Of this delay Is probably du.
to the necessity Of cleaning fires
ash.p pans and smoke-boses. inspec
ton, and 80 on.
We learn that With pulyerire,
fuel a locomotive having the boiiei
filld with cold water may b,
brough, under maximum steam pres
sure within an hour. and the fue
feed then stopped until called 70
service. When standing or driftinI
at terminals or on the road. the fu.
feed may also be discontinued. II
this respect pulverlsed coal seems q
have the three potential virtues o
saving time. labor and money. there
by Increasing the earning capacit,
OF the railways. which Ia encourag
Ing TO stockholders: and Of cuttinI