L23 
To get at the animal cost lor the provision and renewal of railway 
ties the following points must be considered: 
(1) The animal interest on first cost. 
(2) The annual sum laid aside for depreciation. 
(3) The " old material value," lessening the amount of depreciation. 
(4) Cost of labor and tools for replacing ties. 
(5) Cost of the attachment to the rail. 
(G) Cost of maintenance in the road-bed. 
(7) Influence of tie upon the life of rolling-stock. 
The first cost of fastenings for wooden ties is less than for metal ones, 
but the cost of renewal is greater in the former case, so that in the end 
the annual cost for fastenings becomes less in the case of metal ties. 
The cost of maintenance of a steel-tie road three and one-half years 
old was found the same as that of one of the same age laid on wooden 
ties, bur from this point on the cost of the latter increases, while the 
cosl of the former tends to diminish, owing to the consolidation of the 
bed. One of the district engineers of the Netherlands Railroad states 
that on a test piece of 1,144 yards, on a curve of 820 yards radius and a 
gradient of 1 in 83, no tamping of the ballast was required for 22 
months ending December 31, 1884, and that the only maintenance re- 
quired was one man for 34 days inspecting and tightening up bolts. 
On the Rhenish roads, which at the end of 1879 had 112 miles of track 
hi id with longitudinal, and 197£ miles with cross metal ties, and to which, 
during 1SS0, were added 94 and 138 miles, respectively, the following re- 
sults were obtained : On 100 miles of track with wooden ties 271 labor 
days were required yearly ; with metal longitudinal system, on an aver- 
age of three years, only 258, or 5 per cent, less, and the average amount 
of labor expended in the year 1879 was only 209 days, or 23 per cent, 
less ; with iron cross-ties, during an average of 25J months, 242 days, or 
11 per cent, less, and for the average of the year 1879, 1G4£ days, or 35 
per cent, less were required. 
In Germany the cost of maintenance has been found to vary from $38 
to *3G0 per mile with long-tie system, and from $47 to $107 with cross- 
ties, subsoil, bed material, and kind of structure causing great differ- 
ences. 
Taking (1) the annual interest on first cost (C) at 5 per cent, (or 
0.05 C). 
(2) Annual allowance (B) to be charged for renewal after n years, 
leaving out of account value of old material : 
B = 005 C. 
1.05 n+1 — 1.05 
(3) The reduction of this (B) annual allowance due to value of old 
material is : 
0.05 , c n , . 
1 05 -+--1.05 X valueofold tle ' 
