The applicant stands on a platform close 

 to the motion-picture screen with the con- 

 troller and air-brake handles in his hands. 

 He is supposed to operate them just as he 

 would if he were on a car on the street 



The controller and brake levers are con- 

 nected with a tape recording machine. 

 Moving the handles causes two needles 

 to trace lines or curves on the tape. At 

 right are the examiners watching the tape 



Testing the Motorman's Quickness and Sl^ill 



The speeding automobile, the busy street and the excited 

 crowds are brought into the testing room — on the screen 



THE instructor in charge of a Brooklyn 

 school for motormen, which is main- 

 tained by one of the street railway 

 companies of that city, has devised a test 

 for ascertaining the efficiency of motormen 

 by means of a motion picture screen and a 

 clockwork tape-printing mechanism. 



The test, in some respects, is similar to 

 that which is used in determining the re- 

 liability of French war aviators which was 

 described in the October number of 

 the Popular Science Monthly. 



In the test for French aviators, the candi- 

 date's quickness in responding to certain 

 sensations, such as sound, sight, and feel- 

 ing, was carefully recorded. 



The quickness and accuracy of judgment 

 of a motorman at the controlling handle 

 of a street car traveling at high speed when 

 an automobile darts around the corner 

 and down the track would determine his 

 fitness for the job. 



The accompanying drawing shows the 

 arrangement of the testing apparatus. 

 On the platform before the motorman- 

 applicant is mounted a regulation-sized 

 street car controller and air-brake lever. 

 Half-way down the room facing him is a 

 moving picture screen. Back of the screen, 

 at the other end of the room, is the pro- 

 jection machine. The controller and brake 

 levers are connected electrically with a tape- 

 recording machine. The tape is about 

 three inches broad and is marked by two 

 self-inking pens. Moving the handle of the 

 controller or the handle of the air-brake 

 causes two needles to move, tracing 

 irregular lines, or curves, along the tape. 



As soon as the picture is flashed on the 

 screen, the applicant is ordered to operate 

 the two handles as if he were actually 

 on the platform of a street car. The pic- 

 ture, taken from the platform of a moving 

 car, shows an assortment of contingencies. 



806 



