74 ELECTRIC TRACTION. 



In rapid succession followed Blackpool with an under- 

 ground system, technically known as the conduit system. 

 Mordling, Frankfort-Offenbach, with overhead slotted tubes as 

 conductors. Brussels and Hamburgh followed in 1886 and 

 1887 with the Juien system of storage batteries, which, as 

 will be subsequently explained, proved a failure. So far as 

 America is concerned she has left us far behind in the race 

 for cheap transit. 



The first electric railway in America was exhibted at the 

 Chicago Exhibition, in 1883, by Messrs. Field and Edison, 

 the track running round the gallery of the main building, 

 curving sharp at both ends, with a radius of 566 feet. The 

 total length was 1,500 feet. The gauge was three feet, with a 

 central rail for the current, and the two outer rails for returns. 

 On June 5th, the "Judge" and its car, loaded with sixteen 

 passengers, was started. The railway ran for a fortnight, 

 completing a mileage of 446, and carried 27,000 passengers. 

 The trial was considered a success. Mr. Leo Daft then began 

 experimenting with his electric locomotive, the " Ampere." 

 The actual performance was the hauling of a railway car 

 weighing ten tons with sixty-eight persons in addition to the 

 motor, which weighed two tons and carried five persons. 

 The speed was eight miles per hour, upon a track having a 

 gradient of 93 feet to the mile, and included a 20 degree 

 curve. A maximum duty of about 12 h.p. was registered ; 

 and, although the actual efficiency was not determined, the 

 25 h.p. engine which actuated the primary machine was also 

 doing other work at the factory. 



The first electric tram open for traffic in America was the 

 Baltimore Union Passenger Railway, in 1885 ; it had two 

 miles of single track, six cars, and 260,000 passengers were 

 carried yearly up to 1887, at a cost of 16s. per car per day, 

 each running 73 miles daily ; a third rail was introduced as a 

 conductor, also an overhead wire. Electrical progress in 

 America since that date has been simply astounding. In the 

 beginning of 1890, one hundred and fifty towns had electric 

 trams, aggregating 1 ,670 miles of track, with 2,650 motor cars, 

 equivalent to 70,000 h.p., running 150,000 miles per day, and 

 carrying 200 millions of passengers yearly. The prime 

 source of power required to meet this gigantic traffic is 

 estimated at 40,000 h.p., and it is stated, on the authority of 

 those competent to form an opinion, that 3,000 motors will 

 be at work this year, carrying 3 millions of people, and cal- 

 culated to return in fares about 3 millions sterling. 



It is always a profoundly interesting thing to know some- 

 thing of the historical development of a force which is destined 

 to greatly modify the physical and mental attributes of man, 



