CHARACTERISTICS AND COST OF RAILWAYS. 
123 
Neither wood nor water is taken on the road in passenger trains. Velocity up maximum 
grade, 15 miles per hour. 
With reference to the transportation of coal to be used as fuel, it may be stated that the freights 
by canal in New York and Pennsylvania vary from 1 T 2 ^ to 1 T 7 T cent per ton per mile ; that the 
railroad freights on coal average about l\ cent per ton per mile; and, finally, that in Pennsyl¬ 
vania, under very favorable circumstances, coal can be delivered on the canal-boals, at the mine, 
broken, screened, and weighed, at 55 cents per ton. Taking the average weight of hard wood 
lit for generating steam at ton per cord, the probable expenses of transporting it by railway 
would be 2£ cents per cord per mile. 
The experiments before alluded to on the Boston and Maine road show that 1 ton of anthracite 
= 1.6 cord of wood (such as used there;) or one cord of wood = 0.625 ton of coal, taking 
evaporating power as the standard of comparison. The general result of these experiments was 
that coal is more economical, especially with heavy loads, than wood. 
The presence of metallic salts in water is injurious to the boilers; if in large quantities, they 
are prohibitory. 
From the data given above, it would seem that the cost of transportation of wood for fuel 
would be about 2.4 times that of coal for the same purpose. 
It will be remarked that freight trains habitually take water oftener than passenger trains; this 
arises from two principal causes: first, more steam is wasted in freight trains, on account of the 
great detentions, &c., as well as other causes; secondly, the various water-stations seldom give 
sufficient water to afford a full supply to several trains; a little is, therefore, taken from each, so 
that no one need be exhausted. 
j Relations between weight of water and fuel , and maximum load of engine. 
For a 22-ton engine on 4 drivers, on a level: 
Weight of water and wood for 25 miles = of maximum load of engine. 
Weight of water and wood for 100 miles = f 2 of maximum load of engine. 
Weight of water for 100 miles and wood for 200 miles = x ’ g of maximum load of engine. 
Weight of water and wood for 200 miles = of maximum load of engine. 
Weight of water and coal for 25 miles = of maximum load of engine. 
Weight of water and coal for 100 miles = ^g maximum load of engine. 
Weight of water for 100 miles and coal for 200 miles = of maximum load of engine. 
Weight of water and coal for 200 miles = yk of maximum load of engine. 
The maximum load of this engine, on a grade of 40 feet per mile, is by formula (1) 252 tons; 
by formula (3) 180 tons. 
The relative consumption of fuel and water on passenger and freight trains is in proportion to 
the resistance to be overcome, and may be determined when the velocity and weight of each 
train are known. 
CHARACTERISTICS AND COST OF SIX RAILWAYS. 
1. Massachusetts Western road. 
Length of main road, 1554 miles, of which 53 miles is double track; sidings, &c., 8J miles : 
equivalent to 217 miles single track. Maximum grade, 83 feet for 1J mile; total rise and fall, 
2,085 feet; minimum radius of curvature, 882 feet; total degrees ol curvature, 6,370° ; weight 
ot rail per yard, 56£ pounds and 70 pounds ; 33 way-stations, 59 engines, 48 passenger-cars, 17 
baggage-cars, 1,666 freight-cars; miles run in one year, 947,382. 
Graduation and masonry, per mile of main road.. $22,352 50 
Wooden bridges, (6,092£ feet,) per foot... $38 08 
