cxcvi GENERAL SUMMARY OF SCIENTIFIC AND 



ter of cheap transportation with that of St. Gothard, now in 

 course of construction. 



The past year has likewise given origin to several projects 

 of vast possible importance to the far East. One of these 

 the Indo-European Railway as its name implies, contem- 

 plates the union of the South and West of Europe with the 

 richest portions of Central Asia, and further on in the future 

 with the far eastern parts of that continent. Several plans 

 with this object in view are, it is stated, receiving the con- 

 sideration of the governments most interested. A second 

 enterprise of much interest to the engineer is the proposition 

 to create a great inland sea, or chain of lakes, on the plains 

 of Northern Africa, in the Desert of Sahara. The topo- 

 graphical features of the country are said to be favorable to 

 the project; and the information comes to us that General 

 Chanzy, the Governor of Algeria, has ordered preliminary 

 surveys to be made to determine the question. Many specu- 

 lations are indulged in upon the possible influence of such 

 a work on the climate, productions, and commerce of the 

 neighboring countries. 



In the operation and management of railroads, no feature 

 of special novelty presents itself in our yearly retrospect. 

 The disposition on the part of companies to look with favor 

 upon plans for adding to the security and control of trains 

 is manifest in the extending introduction of the several 

 standard power -brakes and safety -switches. During the 

 past year the hydraulic system of train -brakes, for which 

 many advantages in point of simplicity are claimed by its 

 advocates, lias attracted considerable attention, and its ef- 

 fectiveness has been satisfactorily demonstrated in several 

 interesting trials of the Henderson hydraulic brake, the best 

 representative of its class in this country so far introduced. 

 The various signaling systems employed by the roads 

 throughout the country have received a searching criticism 

 in several quarters. Impressed with the importance of the 

 unification of the diverse and arbitrary plans in use, and of 

 the necessity of doing away with the many dangers and in- 

 conveniences attendant upon the present condition of things, 

 the American Society of Civil Engineers has attempted the 

 task of collecting information on the subject, with the view 

 of securing a much-needed reform in this particular. The 



