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POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



used also as a racer. The power can be made sufficient to propel any- 

 desired load up any grade, including grades far steeper than any to be 

 encountered on streets or highways. 



The only point in which the electric vehicle suffers in comparison 

 with the others is in the weight. The capacity of a storage battery is 

 proportional to its weight, and if it is made light, the power derived 

 from it will be small or the time during which it is furnished will be 

 short. To furnish one horse power for one hour requires about one 

 hundred pounds of battery, so that if the average consumption of 

 energy is at the rate of two horse power, one thousand pounds of bat- 



Fig. 1. General Arrangement of an Electric Carriage. 



tery will keep the vehicle in motion for five hours. The weight of bat- 

 teries used in automobiles ranges from four or five hundred to about 

 two thousand pounds, and the distance traversed without recharging 

 varies from twenty-five to ninety miles, so that the radius of action of 

 electric vehicles can be said to vary from about twelve to forty-five 

 miles from the charging station. 



The general arrangement of an electric carriage can be understood 

 from Fig. 1. The rectangle shown in broken lines at A represents the 

 storage battery. The circle B under the seat represents the controlling 

 switch. The motor is at C and imparts motion to the axle or wheels 

 through the gearing contained in the casing D. When the carriage 



