The Iron Age 1890-05-22: Vol 45

‘THE Tuurspay, May 22, 1890. IRON AGE Steamship Firerooms, Complaint is heard among fireman em- ployed on the new coastwise steamers at the excessive heat in the firerooms. It is claimed that on the new steamers of the Mallory, Ward, and Morgan lines the tem- perature in the firerooms reaches 140° and is seldom below 120°. On the Leona, the latest steamer of the Mallory Line, a tem- erature of 138° has been recorded in the Sveveous by a thermometer held directly underneath the ventilator. On the City of August of the Savannah Line a temper- ature of 140° has been noted by Chief En- gineer Charles Moore, the present chief engineer of the Leona. On the Louisiana of the Cromwell Line the fireroom temper- ature 1s said to average about 125°. Dur- ing the summer time the heat of the trop- ics is added to that of the firerooms, with the attending consequence that men work until they drop. It is reported as being no uncommon thing for firemen to be car- ned from the fireroom to the deck over- come by the heat. The pay of firemen at present on Atlantic coast steamers is $35 feet high, and represents Boyden, aproned as a mechanic, at work at the anvil with his arms bared to the elbows, his left hand holding a miniature locomotive, which he is intently studying. On the base. in bronze, is the city seal, surrounded by implements of industry. On the front, in large raised letters, is the inscription ‘* Seth Boyden, Inventor.” The cost was about $8000, and the money was secured by private subscription. mI Our Census of Manufactures. On June 2 the work of collecting statis- tics of manufactures for the report of the Eleventh Census wil] be inaugurated throughout the entire country. The value of this report must depend wholly upon the accuracy and thoroughness with which manufacturers answer the questions pro- pornded, The personal interests of every manufacturer are involved in the character of the report on manufactures. It will be quoted for the next ten years as the offi- cial announcement of the exact industrial in the progress of the country, and cover ground absolutely essential to the presentation of its industrial conditions and resources, roper carne dbl iaiacticiioed Small Traveling Crane. We herewith present illustrations of a small traveling crane of new design, built by Alfred Box & Co., of Philadelphia, and which 1s now in successful operation at the shops of the Henry R. Worthington pump works, Brooklyn, N. Y. In many places small cranes can be used to great advantage when so constructed as to lift the load close up to the joist or ceiling, and it will be seen from the drawings that this crane, since it occupies a space of only 20 inches when the hook is drawn up close under the machine, is admirably adapted for such conditions. This lifting of the hook to the extreme hight can be safely done at all times, as an automatic stop throws out the friction gears after the hook has been drawn up to its highest point, and also the gears are thrown out when the hook is at its lowest point. The per month. The general rule in force is to work the men four hours at a time, with eight hours off watch. On the Leona, a vessel which made her first run only last September, and which is supposed to be fitted with all modern appliances, the fire- room is so ineffectively ventilated that fire- men have come off watch in an exhausted condition. Chief Engineer Moore of the Leona is of the opinion that the fitting of a few blower engines on all the coastwise steamers would lower the temperature in the firerooms some 20°. On the Majestic of the White Star Line the fireroom tem- perature seldom rises above 105° and is often lower. It is pointed out that these blower engines could be fitted to almost any steamer at a cost not exceeding $500 or $600. Newark, N. J., unveiled a bronze statue of Seth Boyden, the distinguished in- ventor. Seth Boyden was born in Fox- boro, Mass., in 1788, and in early life was employed on a farm. Later, while em- ployed at a furnace, he discovered the principle which finally led to the produc- tion of malleable iron. He was the first to invent many of the most valuable me- chanical appliances known. One of his greatest accomplishments was the niaking of patent leather. He lived in Newark from 1815 until his death in 1870. The statue is in bronze, and was designed by Karl Gerhardt, of New Haven, and cast by Henry Bernard, of New York. It is 8 SMALL TRAVELING CRANE. condition of the country, and will be the basis for any future legislation that may be enacted in regard to the wants of our people, whether engaged in agricultural Therefore it is of vital importance to each manufacturer or mechanical pursuits. that an accurate report shall be made. The Superintendent of Census has taken every possible precaution in the prelimi- nary work to make this census complete and satisfactory, and the earnest co-opera- tion of those engaged in productive indus- try is all that is now necessary to secure Every manufacturer valuable results. should bear in mind that his answers to the questions relating to his business are held strictly confidential, are not disclosed to any competitor or to other persons, and are not used by the government as predi- cate for the purposes of taxation or license, or in any way to advers-ly affect his indi- vidual business. This assurance is printed on each schedule over the signature of the Superintendent of Census. The expert Special Agent in charge of this branch of census work, Frank R. Williams, bas personally visited the prin- cipal manufacturing centers and consulted representative manufacturers, the publish- ers of trade journals, and practical busi- ness men generally, for the purpose of ascertaining the proper scope of the in- quiry for each branch of manufacture |The questions contained in the census schedules are those suggested by the manu- ' facturers and other persons most interested general arrangement of the working parts of the machine will be understood from Figs. 2 and 3. The hoisting gear is com- posed of the Box patent double-screw gear, the screw being hollow. The splined riving shaft passes through and allows the trolley to slide freely on it, as in- dicated in the plan view, Fig. 2. The racking and traveling motions are operated by hand, the operating ropes passing over sheaves geared so as to produce the de- sired motions of the machine. It has been found that this method of operating by hand is most suitable for small cranes. The main driving shaft is driven by a rope which passes under the first of three sheaves, then over a center sheave, then under and away from the third sheave. On the shafts of the second and third sheaves, shown in the end elevation, are mounted grooved friction drums, which are adapted to be brought into engage- ment with a large drum on the trolley driving shaft, and which, by means of a sleeve splined to the shaft and formed with a worm, drives the trolley through a suitable gear. By bringing either of these friction drums in contact with the center drum on the shaft it is possible to drive the trolley in either direction. The ma- chine is mounted on wrought iron beams, well braced together at the ends. Shafts extend across the machine in order to pro- pel both ends simultaneously. The whole machine is compact and very rigid, ang when tested by the manufacturers proveg 852 THE IRON AGE, May 22, 1890 itself capable of carrying a much heavier load than it was intended for. The power is conveyed by a 1 inch rope running over the large sheaves, as described, and trav- eling at the rate of about 1500 feet per minute. Since no gears are used in the operation of the machine, it is almost noiseless, and as far as possible to judge it will have a long life. The modified ar- rangement for driving, shown in Fig. 4, does away with one of the three sheaves, the construction of the rest of the driving apparatus being merely changed so as to conform to this design. It will be ob- served that thé rope passes over the driv- ing drum on the left over the second sheave, then back and around the first sheave, then to a guide sheave on the frame, then down, over a lift carrying a Be tL weight for taking up slack, then over a second guide drum on the frame and back to the main driving drum. In this way two sheaves on the machine are made to do precisely the same work that the three sheaves formerly performed. New Lake Ore Harbor.—Conneaut Harbor on Lake Erie has been purchased by Chauncey Andrews, who proposes to make it an important receiving port for Lake Superior ore destined for Youngs- town and its vicinity. It is situated in Ohio, east of Ashtabula and immediately north ot Youngstown, and is considered the last unappropriated harbor on the south shore of Lake Erie. Extensive docks are to be built and the shipping fa- cilities are to be made equal to those of other prominent lake ports. A short line of railroad from the harbor, running which run direct to Youngstown. The manufacturers of that place regard this acquisition by Mr. Andrews as a most im- portant move in their interest, as the com- etition in the carriage of ore is thus increased, Some of them are contemplat- ing the erection of their own docks at Conneaut Harbor to control the movement of ore as much as possible, as well as for use in shipping their coal to Western points, ——— ~ aa A New Atlantic Liner. A new competitor in the Atlantic ser- vice, the Normannia (Hamburg-American line), was tried on the Clyde with remark- able results. It is only 12 months since és i . Cy the first proposals to build the vessel were made, and she was delivered the very day she was due. Her dimensions are 500 feet in length, 57} feet breadth of beam, measurement 8500 tons. The Normannia is said to have realized a greater speed on the measured mile than any other Atlantic liner on her trials, and with distinctly less effort. She has nine double-ended boilers, with eight furnaces in each, and three funnels, but has no forced draft. She is, however, provided with open fans to ven- tilate the stokeholes. This is eminently satisfactory, and may lead to engineers abandoning the policy of forcing air through the furnaces to the destruction of the boiler plates and furnace bars, strain- ing the boilers by excessive contraction on cooling. The engines are two sets of triple expansion cylinders, with a downward stroke of 54 feet. The diameters of the directly south, will intersect the lake shore | cylinders are 40 inches in the high pres- and the Pittsburgh and Erie railroads, sure, 67 inches in the intermediate, and (Game IND) APS 106 inches in the low pressure. The steam is worked at 160 pounds, and the revolu- tions at sea will probably be about 85. On some occasions on the trial they made 93. These screws are only 18 feet in diameter, the smallest of any blades yet put upon a twin-screw Atlantic steamer. The horse- power contracted for was 14,000, with a speed of 19 knots, but over 16,v00 horse- power has been indicated, and the coal consumption is not much over 14 pounds per horse-power per hour. There are 16 bulkheads, making 17 water tight com- partments, and there are doorways through only five of the transverse bulkheads, Throughout the whole length of the ship the floor of the vessel has a double skin, and the inner floor is throughout 4 inches above the lower or outer bottom, except Fig. 2.—Plan View of Small Traveling Crane. in the part under the engines, where the intervening space is 7 feet deep. There are no fewer than 19 of these spaces, so that the hull is subdivided into as many as 36 water tight compartments. These spaces are largely used for water ballast, and their contents are controlled by pumps, which are in all cases worked from the main deck, where the donkey engine and donkey boiler for pumping are also placed. This arrangement of the pumps permits of continuous steam pumping in the event of an accident, such as that which befel the City of Paris, whose pumps were below the water line, and therefore useless as soon as they were swamped. To put out the fires and stop the engines of the Nor- mannia it would be necessary to make havoc of five compartments. The nine boilers are placed three abreast, and each triplet is contained in the center of three water tight compartments. Two of these compartments in each set are coal bunkers, May 22, 1890 THE IRON AGE. 853 stretching right across the ship, and each set of three boilers communicates by sep- arate steam pipes with both sets of engines. The boilers are, as before stated, further protected by the double floor and its sub- divisions, and thus it will be seen the en- gineer has three sources from which to City. It is the intention of Messrs. Parker and Topping to continue their business in Minnesota, but arrangements will be made so that one or the other will be at Tacoma all tie time and manage the foundry there in connection with Mr. engine and blower room and for cleaning castings. There will be two cupolas of 25 and 75 tons capacity respectively, making this foundry as large as that at Brainerd, and the largest in the Pacific Northwest. The foundry will manufact- ure all kinds of iron and brass castings, Milliken. A contract has already been Fig. 3.—End Elevation, draw his steam, besides having the two | closed with the Northern Pacific Railroad sets of engines for locomotion. TT = A New Puget Sound Foundry. Minnesota capitalists have organized the American Foundry Company, with a capital of $100,000, to operate a foundry at Tacoma, Wash. The officers are C. N. for all their iron and brass castings for the next five years from Helena west, including all branch lines. This alone will give work to many men. A location has been secured adjacent to the Northern Pacific machine shops in Tacoma and a good slice of real estate purchased, in addition to an ample site for the foundry buildings. The plans for the buildings are completed. Fig. 4.—Modified Arrangement of Driving. Parker, president; H. W. Topping, vice- president; C. 8. Milliken, secretary and treasurer. Mr. Parker and Mr. Topping are the lessees of the Northern Pacific Railroad foundry at Brainerd, Minn., where they have the contract for manu- facturing all the iron and brass castings used on the railroad from Helena East and on the branch lines. Mr. Milliken was, until recently, a resident of New York The main building of the foundry will be 75 x 150 feet floor, with an addition of 30 feat, the whole length of the building, for the brass foundry, cupola and _ store- room and ovens. The buildings will be of heavy frame, with fire-proof paint and covered with iron sheathing. A railroad track will run through the entire sho and another on the outside. A secon building 40 x 60 feet will be erected for contract railroad and bridge work, &c. The new company will be a large im- porter of Scotch iron, which they will use until domestic iron can be had to meet their requirements. The citizens of Ta- coma are well pleased at this addition to their local industries. a Work is now in active progress on ten of the new vessels for the navy. The Concord will soon make her trial trip from the Quintard Iron Works. The Benning- ton is undergoing her final joiner work, and will be launched at Chester on or about May 30. The Maine, at the Brook- lyn Navy Yard, is advancing rapidly, and will be launched in the autumn. The molds have been made, material ordered, and tools received for Gunboats Nos. 4 and 5, whose keels are laid at the Bath, Me., Iron Works. The work has inspired the Bath builders to further effort, and they are supplying their works with an equipment for additional Government work. The second payment has been made on Cruisers Nos. 9 and 10, building at the Columbian Iron Works. The two stern posts have been completed by the Standard Steel Casting Company, and there is no reason why these craft should not be speedily completed. Unfortunately for the Texas, a delay has been caused by the faults of both stern posts, which are unsuited for use. The Pennsylvania Steel Company have recently started successfully, at the Steel- ton Works, a blowing engine for the Bessemer department which is said to possess a number of very interesting feat- ures. It is a high-speed compound ep- gine, the air valves being opened and closed by a positive movement operated by an air cylinder. The Jacksonville Mining and Mfg. Com.. pany, of Jacksonville, Calhoun County, Ala., have issued a prospectus calling atten- tion to the resources of Tredegar. 854 THE IRON AGE, May 22, 1890 THE MECHANICAL ENGINEERS, Cincinnati Meeting. The first paper presented at the open- ing session of the Cincinnati meeting of the American Society of Mechanical En- gineers was by Prof. J. E. Denton, of Stevens Institute, On the Measurement of Durability of Lubricants. Practical differences of durability of lubricants depend, noton any differences of inherent ability to resist being ‘*‘ worn out” by rubbing, bat upon the rate at which they flow through and away from the bearing surfaces. This point was il- lustrated by the case of the standard half- inch plug gauge and its ring, the latter being about one thirty-tbousandth of an inch greater in diameter than the plug. After cleansing these pieces thorou hiy with ether, it is a difficult job to get them to go together; but if they be smeared with any good oil, like lard or sperm of great fluidity, the plug may be pushed within the ring by a slight effort of the hand, and may be reciprocated about 20 times per minute with the utmost effort of the wrist. Ifthe motion be stopped for five seconds, the plug will stick and must then be driven out of its ring with a mallet. The points to be here noticed are, first, that the oil allows itself to be swept into the crack between the ring and the plug by the reciprocating motion of the latter, thereby acting like a wedge to slightly expand the ring; and second, that as soon as the motion of the plug ceases the oil between the ring and the plug is squeezed out by the elastic recov- ery of the ring. Now, if the two pieces are again cleansed, and an oil so thick as to scarcely flow cut of any vessel at ordi- nary temperature be used, it will be found that the plug will enter the ring with the same readiness as when lard was the lubri- cant, but the force of the wrist will not be able to reciprocate the plug more than about one-third as fast, owing to the greater viscosity of the heavy oil. If the reciprocating motion of the plug is stopped, a period of at least 15 seconds is necessary to cause the plug to stick so that the hand cannot readily restart it. The explanation of this difference of action of the two lubricants is simply that more time is required for the heavy oil to es- cape underneath the ring and allow metal- lic contact. The sticking of the plug when allowed to rest has its parallel in the excessive friction offered by the jour- nal to starting compared to its friction when in uniform motion. The writer then gave his experience in detail regarding the measurement of dura- bility of oil in the laboratory. As ameans of measuring the friction between two rubbing surfaces there is no device supe- rior to what is known as the Thurston form of oil tester, which consists in forcing a pair of brasses against a journal by a spring, the latter being lodged in a pendu- lum free to swing about the journal under the influence of the fnction produced be- tween the brasses and the journal, the amount of friction being measured by the inclination to the vertical of a line joining the center of the journal and the center of gravity of the pendulum. Suppose one of these oil testing machines to have a jour- nal 14 inches square, and to be lubricated with one drop of oil. At first a very slow co-efficient of friction will be obtained at a rubbing speed of about 200 feet per minute and a pressure of 75 pounds per square inch of the journal. If the journal has been run continuously for some time, the friction will be found to increase gradu- ally and finally become double the original amount, and it might be suppoeed that the number of revolutions necessary to accom- plish this would measure the durability of the lubricant used as compared to another tested in the same manner. The writer found, however, when using a standard lard oil, which at a given temperature always produced a certain amount of fric- tion, that when fresh upon the bearing surfaces 1t was translucent in appearance and slippery to the touch. After about 10,000 revolutions the friction might have increased to double the minimum amount, but the appearance of the oil showed no signs of deterioration. the cause of the extra friction was the un- even distribution of the oil over the rub- bing surfaces, and that when it had been redistributed with the pointed end of a match, and the pressure reapplied, the fric- tion at once resumed the minimum value, showing that the oil was in no sense worn out. This could be repeated several times, until finally the oil had lost its translu- cent appearance and oily nature, and had become a paste. not be decreased by redistribution. It was found that The friction then could It was found that the number of revolu- tions necessary to reduce the oil to the gummy state varied anywhere from 5000 turns of the machine to 500,000 turns, so that evidently some cause was at work which rendered the method valueless. The reason for this was discovered and communicated to the writer by Dr. Charles B. Dudley, of Altoona, who had made similar analysis that the black paste to which the lubricant reduced itself was composed mainly of the material of the bearings themselves, this showing that the limit to the friction producing qualities of a lubricant tested in this manner was the rate at which it adulterated itself with the metal worn off the bearings, notwith- standing that the amount of the latter was so infinitesimal that years of operation of the machine would not produce wear suf- ficient to be detected by measurement. The rate of this metallic wear being in- finitely variable, it is evident that the investigations. He found by durability of oil cannot be measured by restricting the measurement to the be- haviour of a fixed quantity. It occurred to the writer that perhaps the method might be more successful if a greater quantity of oil than just sufficient to cover the rubbing surfaces was used. Such a plan was tried on a large size of Thurston machine, having a journal 4 inches in diameter avd 7 inches long, the brasses being of the same proportions as those used in railroad car service. Oil was fed to the journal through two oil cups. After cleansing the bearing surfaces, ten minims of oil were smeared upon them, and the pendulum then hung in place. Twenty- five minims of oil were then evenly dis- tributed between the oil cups, while about 100 pounds poy was brought upon the bearings and the machine set in motion. The pressure was then gradually increased to 350 pounds, and the machine run until the minimum friction doubled itself. The arrangements were such as to maintain the journal in a uniform condition of lubrica. tion. The friction remained constant for several hours, and the temperature, with all oils of about the fluidity of lard, was within 5° of 130° F. Yet in spite of ever precaution successive records of lard oil were as follows: 82,000, 67,800, 53,000 and 29,000 revolutions. A more uniform result was obtained with pure mineral oil, but even though this was the case, it was found in one test that 10,600 revolutions were required, and in a second test, ander conditions as nearly similar as it was pos- sible to get them, 64,000 revolutions were required. It was evident, therefore, that irregularity of conditions existed of a nature beyond the reach of any available means of control, and so far as is known to the writer, there is no method of em- of oil in 1,000 miles of service. flows with ploying so little oil on 9 journal as to pre- vent its escape from the latter and deter- mining anything representative of the quaiity of durability. A very economical case of practical oil consumption is when a locomotive main crank pin consumes about six cubic inches The sur- plus oil in this case, and in others like it, undoubtedly continuously escapes from the journal, and the oil leaving the crank pin is but little changed in fluidity, and a the same freedom as when in a fresh condition. It follows that the economy of one oil over another, so far as the quantity used is concerned, is simply proportionate to the rate at which it can insinuate itself into and flow out of minute orifices or cracks. Oils differ in their ability to do this—first, in proportion to their viscosity, and second, in propor- tion to the capillary properties which oor may possess in Where the thickness of film between rub- bing surfaces is so great that large amounts of oil pass through, the least amount of oil will be used when the viscosity is as great as in the petroleum cylinder stocks. y virtue of the particular ients used in their composition. When, however, the oil must flow freely at ordinary temperatures and the feed of oil is restricted, a3 in the case of crank pin bearings, it is not practicable to feed such heavy oils in a satisfactory manner. It is therefore concluded that a test of durability must be a test of the rate at which two oils fed to the same journal by the same device and under the same con- ditions permit themselves to flow between the surfaces and out of and off of the bearings. Discussion. H. A. Portafield said that a series of tests of oils, on Thurston oil testing ma- chine at the Cambria Iron Works, made to determine co-efficients of friction only, led him to think that the machine was valuable only for determinations of fric- tion co-efficients, and not for endurance tests. The statement by the writer, that endurance tests are affected by the escape of the lubricant from the bearing, and also by its mixing with particles of matter from the bearing itself, or from outside sources, is plants, such as iron and steel works, where rticularly interesting to large it is impossible to use the best grade of oil for each purpose, but where one or two oils only can be handled to answer many requirements. In practice there are many bearings where an oil does not get a chance to show its enduring qualities, and on such bearings it is often economical to use a low priced oil of less enduring qualities than the high priced. This fact is worthy of consideration in the adoption by a large plant of an oil to be used for different — The speaker recently saw an engine run- ning in a place where there was a great deal of dust of the nature ofiron. The oil used on bearings was of high viscosity, and had the reputation of being one of the best and highest priced mineral oils in the market. On substituting a second oil, of one-third the viscosity, and half the price of the first—an oil which, he thought, if it could be got at properly, would have less enduring qualities than the first oil— Y | the engine ran cooler on a little less quan- tity of the second oil than of the first. This might be due to the fact that the less viscous oil mixed differently with the dirty matter, and carried more of it off the bearings. Some Experiences With Crane Chains was the title of a paper presented by C. Seymour Dutton: In the foundry department of William Tod & Co. isa power crane, on which it is sometimes necessary to lift 25 tons. The crane was fitted with a chain of 14-inch May 22, 1890 THE 1RON AGE. 855 iron, running over sheaves 16 inches in diameter, The chain had become consid- erably worn in the bends of the links, and had broken, but not at the worn places. A new chain from the best makers was put on, but it broke within two weeks under a load not exceeding 18 tons, the fracture being short at the middle of the straight sides of the links. Now, here was a chain which had failed twice in the first month of its use, while only two, or possibly three, links had been broken in the old chain in 15 years’ continuous use. The crystallization theory will hardly account for this, although the fracture of the broken links presents the same appearance. The photographic _——— presented explain the cause. The iron is cold short and totally unfit for use. The chain now in use has not failed in any way, and if it is all of as good material as a link that was examined, it will probably only give out when worn to an insufficient section at some point. The question of principal interest 1s to obtain good chains. The writer knows of but one certain way, and that ia the inspection of the material, and of the workmanship, by a competent en- neer. Giving a piece of chain a mild ull in a testing machine enables the manu- acturer to certify that it has been ‘* tested,” and may occasionally open a particularly bad weld, but can serve no other useful purpose. The ability to stand bending cold is the most important quality of chain material, because that is the principal, if not the only cause of chain failure. The writer closed as follows: ‘* Perhaps as the millennium approaches, a certificate of inspection which shall mean something will accompany all chains. At present, however, we shall have to conduct the inspection at our own expense, or take what we can get. There are, un- doubtedly, some manufacturers who would make chain to suit our specifications, if not hampered in price; and there may be some who make reliable work of their own free will; but the search for them is not certain to be short or inexpensive. Our own experience in this direction has not been reassuring. At any rate, we are not likely to get good chain, or good anything else, unless we ask for it. And as long as we are willing to believe that a brittle link was made so by some mysterious influence or condition of its use, so long will chains be made of cheap cold short iron.” Discussion. Gus. C. Henning said that the experi- ence given in the paper under consider- ation was unfortunately one of too com- mon occurrence, and was due clearly to cold shortness through high phosphorus. High phosphorus is very common in some of the best grades of iron made in Pitts- burgh and elsewhere. It gives in the ten- sion test as much as from 51,000 to 56,000 pounds tenacity, 25 to 30 per cent. elonga- tion in 8 inches, and from 35 to 60 per cent, reduction, according to whether the material is tested in bars of from $ inch to § inch diameter, all three factors changing in proportion to diameter or work Sine during rolling. This same iron, however, although welding admirably when using a bright coke or gas fire, will give con- siderable trouble with coal ‘fire. _ Further- more, although this material when it comes from the rolls is thoroughly fibrous, and shows no crystallization whatever, it is precisely of that quality which, when sub- jected to heating and quenching, will become granular or crystalline and there- fore valueless, oy eee for chains, every link of which is heated, reheated, welded and hammered. The speaker wished to add his opinion to that of the author, that there is no such thing as gradual crystallization of iron, when properly used, although constantly in vibration. The iron shown and de- scribed, however, can be injured by shock or other percussion, and this can occur in crane chains, which are generally very roughly handled. They often stick under heavy loads, and then a sledge is used to loosen them. This sledging can in such iron produce granulation and ultimate failure of the chains. Unfortunately the makers of chains do not, as a rule, take the proper means to have their material in- spected, and generally depend almost en- tirely upon tension tests and welding tests, and as long as no granulation appears the material is supposed to be satisfactory. The proper manner to inspect and test this material is to subject it to such treatment as it can be subjeeted to by rough usage, and then determine whether such handling will injure or develop dangerous qualities or injure good ones. With our present knowledge of materials, processes of manufacture and accessibiiity of testing apparatus, there is no excuse for using material which is not of suitable quality for chains or for any purpose whatever. The old test of applying a proof load is of no value whatever, as it does not dis- cover defects which careful inspection would not reveal. Such defects which would be developed by this test only exist when the work has been carelessly, negligently or cheaply made. The next paper was by Geo. H. Barrus, on Memoranda Regarding the Indicat- ing of the Engine of the Steamer City of Richmond. The tests were made during the voyage of the engireers in June, 1889, between New York and Liverpool. The paper shows indicator diagrams which were then taken, and gives some brief statements as to the horse-power, coal consumption, &c. The engine is a compound vertical, having one high pressure cylinder 68 inches in diameter, and one low pressure cylinder 120} inches 1n diameter, the stroke being 5 feet. The cylinders are steam jacketed, but the jackets were out of use. The in- dicated horse-power of the high pressure cylinder was 1762, of the low pressure cylinder 1468, and of both cylinders 3230. The coal consumption varied from 90 to 100 tons in 24 hours. Taking the smaller figure, the average consumption per hour per indicated horse-power was about 2.6 pounds. This engine was built by Toad & McGregor, of Glasgow, and is one of the first large compound engines ever con- structed. A paper on The Efficiency of Locomotives was read by W. F. Dixon. The objec- tions of wire drawing and excessive com- pression at high piston speeds raised against the ordinary shafting link valve gear are frequently overdrawn, liberal proportions and the use of the Allen valve greatly mitigating the former, while in- side clearance goes far toward remedying the latter. The clearance spaces in loco- motive cylinders are usually too large, but as one valve controls all the events of the stroke, it is not advisable to reduce them below 7 or 8 per cent. of the piston dis- placement to avoid compressing to initial pressure before the end of the stroke is reached. To overcome cylinder conden- sation and re-evaporation, steam jacketing superheating and compounding have been tried. In spite of some economy that has resulted in a few instances, the writer does not consider the first of these expedients warranted, as the cost of construction and maintenance would probably more than offset any benefit. The same applies to the second. The results that have followed the introduction of the third, compounding, are usually attributed to reducing the rate of temperature per cyl- inder. Although this is probably true ot slow working engines, it is hard to see why it should be of fast working, as in- dicator cards from ordinary single expan- sion express engines show very slight evidence of cylinder condensation. If the high pressures which have almost always gone with compounding cannot be held accountable for resulting economy, it is likely that the solution may be found in the fact that compounding makes high degrees of expansion imperative. he history of compound locomotives dates back to 1852, when two were built in England. The first American engine of this type was built by the Remingtons, at Ilion, N. Y., in 1870, for the Wor- cester and Shrewsbury Railroad Company. At the present time there are several hundred running in different parts of the world, mostly in Europe. The higher the pressure is raised the more efficient steam will be; but 200 pounds gauge pressure per square inch is about as far as is desirable to go, on ac- eount of the high temperature. Recent experiments with high class modern loco- motive boilers gave evaporative rates, from and at 212° F. of 5.68 pounds with anthracite and 7.2 with bituminous coal. Anthracite is far less efficient as a fuel than bituminous coal, and should only be used for special reasons. Discussion. Angus Sinclair said that the portion of Mr. Dixon’s paper relating to cylinder compression in locomotives deals with a subject about which considerable misap- prehension exists. When an engineer first examines an indicator diagram taken from a locomotive running fast and cutting off short, he is almost invariably inspired with an ambition to distinguish himself by reforming the locomotive. If he is so placed that the aspirations of theory are unchilled by the demonstrations of expe- rience, he will lose no opportunity to deride the ignorance of the railway engineers who persist m using an engine that pro- duces such a reprehensible card. If the would-be reformer gets the opportunity to arrange the valve motion of a locomotive to accord with his idea of the eternal fit- ness of that mechanism, the engine will invariably use more coal in doing certain work than one equipped with the much maligned link motion. Most of those who are struggling to im- prove the distribution of steam in loco- motive cylinders are laboring to popularize a delusion. Because certain phenomena would imply very bad practice in a stationary engine, they argue that their occurrence in a locomotive must prove the rformance of the engine to be defective. he cases are not parallel. Tne loco- motive of to-day is a machine developed by a tentative process to meet the require- ments of peculiarly severe and — service. The proportions of cylinders an their passages do not vary materially among the locomotives of different railroads or of different countries, and the proportions are undoubtedly those that produce the most satisfactory results in the perform- ance of work. In no instance of general practice has it been found desirable to make the Se of steam ports ap- proximate to the sizes considered necessary with good stationary engines. When this important feature is so differently pro- portioned in the two kinds of engines, how can reasonable men expect that the dis- tribution of steam will be nearly alike. The comparatively small ports and the restricted opening at short points of cut off make a high compression line ab- solutely necessary to enable a locomotive to perform fairly heavy work at high speed. If the compression does not reach close to boiler pressure, the steam line will drop so suddenly that the engine can do very little work when the piston speed is close to 1000 feet per minute. Increasing the size of the card by reducing the com- pression is a plausible theory, but in 856 THE IRON AGE. May 22, 1890 practice at very high speed it leaves the main rod to drag the piston away from the end of the cylinder I can scarcely agree with Mr Dixon's views on steam jacketing. It is by no means certain that steam jacketing has proved successful on any high speed engine. Ia with Mr. Dixon that it is hard to understand how condensation can take place to any hurtful extent when engines with well protected cylinders are running at high speeds. I feel compelled, how- ever, to admit that such condensa- tion does take place, and to a much greater extent than 7 per cent. of the steam admitted to the cylinders, even though, like Mr. Dixon, I have failed to detect in high speed cards any trace of condensation or re-evaporation. There is so much of what Hemenway culls ‘* initial expansion ” in the cylinders of high speed locomotives, and it is impossible to judge how much of the drop is due to condensa- tion or to wire drawing. Nozzles and contracted steam passages exert so much influence on the exhaust end of the card that it is practically impossible to detect the signs of re-evaporation. L. 8. Randolph said that, in regard to _the efficiency of the locomotive, the ques- tion has been and is now not so much what is the efficiency of the locomotive, but what is its power; not so much how many foot pounds of energy it will develop per 100 pounds of combustible, but how many cars it will haul and make schedule time. The tests of the efficiency of a locomotive, as usually made, are not only exceedingly difficult, but not very reliable. The vary- ing factors of grades, curves and speed, together with the comparatively short time it is possible to give to the tests (not more than five or eight hours at the most), make it impossible to get the accuracy and reliability that the subject demands. Not until we take a leaf from marine engineer- ing and make as it were, ‘‘ dock trials ” of a locomotive, will we get the accuracy and reliability that we should. With the locomotive blocked up, a pillow block substituted for the driving box, and a prony brake to measure the power devel- oped, we should be able to get, with accu- racy, the efficiency of the locomotive under varying conditions of load, speed, &c., other conditions being kept uniform. Knowing these points accurately, we could determine how much was gained or lost by overloading or underloading an engine, as well as the effect of varying dimensions. W. E. Hall held that in handhng the compression question care should be taken not to allow it to be too high, especially with engines running at high speeds where, with the motion cut back, it 1s apt to choke the engine and increase the back pressure and thereby interfere with the working. Two important elements which enter as economical factors in locomotive performance, and which it is desired to mention are: 1. Steam distribution and working; 2. Combustion. The distribution and working of the steam has been brought out prominently recently, in the trials and discussions of the application of compounding to loco- motives, claiming thereby economy on the ground of a decrease in condensation aris- ing from the less expansion of the steam in each of the two cylinders, although, when the high and low pressure expan- sions of the compound are combined, a higher degree is obtained than with a single cylinder. It issimply a case of one and one make two, and the percentage of condensa- tion is dependent, not upon the number of cylinders used in the expansion, but the degree to which the steam is expanded, together with that of the amount of surface of contact, from which increased radiation will result. That this is greater in com- pounding is self evident, but that appar- ent economy is found in expanding in two or more cylinders instead of one would go to show the loss which has heretofore been attributed to the much talked of ‘*condensation and re-evaporation”’ has been overestimated. This, too, in addi- tion to the loss which must arise when in- termediate receivers are used, whether these be in the form of an independent vessel, or so-called steam pipes leading from the high to low pressure cylinder. Work cannot be obtained from steam without condensation, and it looks as though this had been confused, and a larger percentage of it attributed to con- densation from radiation, and by the walls of the cylinder and passages, than prop- erly belonged to it. The point which Mr. Dixon makes of removing the degree of expansion from the control of the engine driver is the all important one, and no doubt the true secret of the economy which it would appear has resulted from compounding. Apparent economy is mentioned because, as far as seen, all the trials of compound locomotives have had other influencing causes that would themselves produce a reduction in the coal consumption were they incorporated in the single cylinder engine. Special reference is made to the increased boiler pressure, which influences so much the economy of engine running. To determine the true efficiency of double against single expansion, the design of the boiler and the pressure carried, as well as all the other details of the construction, as near as could be, should be the same in both cases. No element of a machine can be tested in any other way. As regards coal consumption, it is only necessary to call attention to the so-called extended smoke boxes, now so generally used in locomotives, to convey some idea of the immense amount of mech combust- ible material which is collected there to be thrown away at a figure below the original cost of the coal. A reduction in its consumption, whether resulting through higher pressure, compounding, or the use of some form of the so-called vacuum ex- haust pipes, or a combination of all three elements, is a question which the near future will develop, and we should not lose sight of the fact that improved com- bustion is as important a consideration as that of steam distribution and working. The paper by W. E. Hall on the Working of Railroads by Electricity produced a long and interesting discus sion. The writer said that, although it had been predicted that at no distant day railroads would be run by electricity from a central station, there had been no dis- cussion of the subject that had more than insinuated the advantages which would result. The aim of the paper is to point out some of these benefits. One very im- portant gain would be the concentration of the power at one point, for a given length of line, into a few cylinders, instead of working it inanumber ot isolated engines, where the insulation is r and the chances for condensation the best. The central stations, located from 30 to 40 miles apart, could be run by large engines and the expansion of steam worked at an economical point by better means of cut- off than can be obtained in present loco- motive construction. In experiments re- cently made it was found that an electric motor could climb a grade of over 50 per cent., so that a marked improvement could be looked for in this direction. The ques- tion of speed enters as a factor. The pis- ton speed of an engine with 24 inches stroke and 68 inches diameter of driving wheels, traveling at 60 miles an hour, is about 1400 feet per minute. An increase in the diameter of the driving wheels, with the object of decreasing the number of strokes, makes the engine correspondingly weaker, so that two sharp horns of a dilemma are placed before the one at- tempting to design an engine to haul the increasing weight of trains at a high speed. With electric motors it would not be ne- cessary to have track tanks and water stand pipes distributed closely throughout the line, and time and expense would be saved. It would not be necessary to carry the dead weight of tender and its loud, The experience with the centralization of power, where large hydraulic, pneumatic or electric plants are in operation, is that a greater amount can be supplied than it is necessary to develop at the station— that is, where there is much division a 50 to 60 horse-power plant can take and supply satisfactorily about 100 horse- power. The reason for this is that it never occurs that all the power is used simultaneously. Multiplication of parts increases the number of pieces to wear and consequent repairs, as well as the chances of failure from breakage. No argument is necessary to indicate the ad- vantage which electric motors would have over the present design of locomotives. Discussion. F. A. Scheffler said that in reading over the article which had just been presentcd by Mr. Hall he was tempted to give a few points in regard to the cost of installing a railroad plant, such as the author of the aper thinks will be required in the near uture, and at the same time he desired to state that it is to be regretted that Mr. Hall did not spend some little time, be- fore writing his paper, in looking up the matter of electrical data, so far as railroads are concerned, and the necessary cost of installation of the generating stations at a distance of not more than 30 miles apart. The ordinary locomotive of to-day, when running at the average rate of speed and hauling the average load, does work of not less than 300 horse-power. Sup- posing the station to be built to have a capacity, to each 30 miles of section, of not more than one locomotive, the capa- city of the generating station would neces- swily have to be about 360 horse-power, us the best forms of motors at present have an efficiency of only about 80 and 85 per cent. It will require, therefore, for the generating station a 360 horse-power engine and sufficient boilers for operating the same. The cost of the station can be summed up about as follows: 1 360 horse-power engine............... $10,000 Battery of 360 horse-power boilers...... 7,000 ED, « ca aniecCntnbnsnedet rans 5,000 Steam connections, pumps, feed-water IG aac cccd exis toe 8 tbcee ues 2.000 Gemereting GYMAMO. .....6<.00cesccdeseve 12,000 Electrical station appliances, &c...... 1,000 Deets Os WR OE oan oie cise vccisncs $37,000 The foregoing station outfit will not permit of having an auxiliary plant of en- gine, dynamos and boilers, which ought really to be included in the outfit, so that in case the engine or dynamos or boilers should at any time become inoperative there would be another set of appliances to operate the railroad with. An aux- iliary set of appliances would almost double the total cost of the station. For operating expenses of the station we have the following: 5 per cent. depreciation on engine and Collers & paws rea Wsesussu sibs dev ei tiwa'e 68 835 4 per cent. dépreciation on dynamo...... 480 6 per cent. interest on station plant...... 2220 Two firemen, night and day............. 1440 Two engineers, night and day........... 2000 Tw6 laborers, night and day ........... 1080 Maintenance, such as oil, waste, &c..... 300 NE AION locas tvevccacecucden $8355 per year, not including the cost of coal. In order to ascertain what the cost of coal would be, we wiil suppose that the total power is required only for one-half the time and one-quarter the power for the balance. This will give us 2774 tons of coal per year required. This assump- tion is based on the supposition that the May 22, 1890 engine will require 3 pounds of coal p