ll I
 
 -. 
 

 
 THE 
 
 MOTORMAN 
 
 AND HIS DUTIES 
 
 A Handbook of Theory and Practice for 
 Operating Electric Cars 
 
 BY 
 
 LUDWIG GUTMANN 
 
 CONSUL 
 
 FIFTH EDITION REVISED AND ENLARGED 
 
 BY 
 GEORGE RICHMOND METCALFE. M. E. 
 
 CHICAGO 
 
 WINDSOR & KENFIELD PUBLISHING CO. 
 
 1903
 
 COPYRIGHT 1898 
 BY WINDSOR & KENFIELD PUBLISHING Co. 
 
 COPYRIGHT 1903 
 BY WINDSOR & KENFIELD PUBLISHING Co.
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The purpose of this work is to so iamiliarize the reader 
 with the operation of an electric car, that the practical du- 
 ties of a motorman may be the more easily and quickly 
 learned. At the same time it will be found to explain, in 
 simple language devoid of mathematics and technicalities, 
 many points not generally understood by the average mo- 
 torman, and a knowledge of which cannot; fail to make his 
 services more valuable to his company and satisfactory to 
 himself; and also to better fit him for promotion. 
 
 The motorman who understands his business is able to 
 operate the cars that are put in his charge with much less 
 danger of accident, and with less power and less wear on 
 the equipment, than a man who simply knows how to get 
 his car over the road on time. This book is not only in- 
 tended to explain the electrical part of an electric motor 
 car, but to give some general instruction and advice, to 
 those who desire to make this work their livelihood. It is 
 based on the experience gathered for a number of years 
 in the electric railway field, instructing motormen in their 
 duties and work, and on results and observations made on 
 roads in practical life. To explain some electrical effects 
 it has been necessary to adopt a few comparisons, which, 
 while not exactly correct from a scientific standpoint, give 
 the reader a clear picture of what is meant. 
 
 By closely reading this book and following the advice 
 given the reader should be able to acquire a responsible vo- 
 cation in a comparatively short time, and he has the assur- 
 ance that he does not drop into it in a haphazard fashion,
 
 but has a guide to lead him over a road yet unknown to 
 him, a road which is made considerably shorter and 
 smoother by this method than learning entirely from ex- 
 perience. 
 
 In securing illustrations and collecting data for describ- 
 ing the electric machines and devices, the author desires to 
 acknowledge the generous assistance of the manufacturing 
 companies whose apparatus is explained in the following 
 pages. 
 
 This work is divided into two parts. Part I. treats of 
 the practical work of a motorman. Part II. will be found 
 to explain more in detail the theory and construction of 
 the apparatus. 
 
 THE AUTHOR.
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 A GLANCE OVER THE CAR EQUIPMENT. 
 
 A man who will read and study as well as gain from prac- 
 tical experience will be worth a great deal more than the 
 average motorman of today, and he should be able to se- 
 cure a position more readily. Experience has shown that a 
 motorman who is familiar with the track, switches and 
 curves and who has been in the employ of the company for 
 some time can operate a car with a very much smaller cur- 
 rent consumption than a new man. It is the same compar- 
 ison of an experienced and inexperienced fireman in the 
 boiler room. It is evident that the more a man knows about 
 his vocation the better compensation he can expect. A man 
 may start as a motorman and by faithful service and study 
 he may advance to be a car inspector, line inspector and 
 eventually electrician of the road. 
 
 A man wishing to qualify himself for a motorman can ad- 
 vance in two ways : by experience in operating a car and by 
 studying the theory of the electrical equipment. For rapid 
 advancement the practical work should be accompanied by 
 electrical reading. 
 
 The reader who wishes to become proficient and know 
 more than just simply enough to run his car over the road, 
 should be of a practical and mechanical turn of mind. He 
 should know something about the use of tools and machin- 
 ery. To become familiar with the electric car equipment 
 the best plan is to work at first in the barns and repair 
 shops. One will there learn the practical side. He will
 
 10
 
 11 
 
 have to mount motors on trucks or repair defective pieces 
 of machinery, and by frequently handling them he will soon 
 familiarize himself with their names and uses. However, 
 not everyone can have such preparation for a position as 
 motorman, and for this reason we will do the next best 
 thing, namely, take an imaginary trip through the car shop 
 and mention briefly the various parts of an electric car 
 equipment and the devices that are necessary to operate it. 
 Then these devices will be described in detail further on 
 and the principles on which they work will be explained. 
 
 To begin with, we see trolley wires entering the repair 
 shop and cars brought in and. taken out. Now, there are 
 many persons who have seen this done, but few understand 
 the operation in its details and the many devices and ap- 
 pliances that are necessary to accomplish it. 
 
 The electric current as it flows in the wires is invisible, 
 and although they look "dead" to us they may be transmit- 
 ting hundreds of horse power of energy. It is necessary to 
 be cautious about coming in contact with suspended wires 
 and nothing should be touched that may be connected in 
 any way with a circuit or a severe shock will be received. 
 
 A motor car is composed of the following essential parts : 
 
 1. A car body for carrying the passengers. 
 
 2. A car truck and wheels for carrying the motors and 
 car body. 
 
 3. Motors for propelling the car. 
 
 4. A trolley for taking the power from the overhead 
 wire. 
 
 5. Controllers for admitting current to the motor wind- 
 ings and regulating the amount of power conducted to the 
 motors. 
 
 6. Brakes for stopping the car. 
 
 7. Devices for protecting the motors, such as fuses, 
 lightning arresters and switches.
 
 12 
 
 Figs, i to 4 show different constructions of car trucks, but 
 these are only a few of the types which are in general use. 
 
 Figs, i and 2 show different styles of single trucks which are 
 used on short cars of from 25 to 30 ft. in length. Figs. 3 
 and 4 show bogie trucks which are used with long cars, two 
 
 such trucks being used under each car. The essential parts 
 of all street car trucks consist of two sets of wheels mounted
 
 13 
 
 on axles which are held in position by bearings. The bear- 
 ings are fixed to the side frames which give the truck its 
 rigidity. Springs are placed between the bearings and the 
 parts on which the car body rests in order to prevent too 
 severe jarring of the car body. In the case of the single 
 trucks the lower sills of the car are bolted directly to the side 
 frames of the truck, but where double trucks are used a piece 
 known as the truck bolster extends between the two side 
 
 frames and is pivoted at its center to the car body bolster. 
 The brake rigging is also a very important part of the equip- 
 ment of the truck, and on most modern electric cars both 
 hand and power brakes are used. The brakes and brake 
 rods are shown on the trucks illustrated, and are of a num- 
 ber of different patterns, some of which will be described in 
 a later chapter. The location of the brake shoes is normally 
 from ^ to 34 m - distant from the wheels. Fig. 5 shows a 
 car mounted upon a single truck and Fig. 6 shows a double 
 truck car.
 
 14 
 
 An electric railway motor mounted on an axle between 
 the car wheels is shown in Fig. 7. The wheels and axle 
 have been taken from underneath the truck. The motor 
 consists of two principal parts ; the outer case, which is 
 called the field magnet and which is stationary, and an inner 
 rotating part called the armature. The electric motor and 
 the principles governing it will be explained in a subsequent 
 
 FIG. 8. 
 
 chapter. Figs. 7 and 8 give a general idea of the appear- 
 ance of the motor and may be referred to together. On one 
 end of the armature shaft 6 is keyed a pinion B as shown in 
 Fig. 8, but in service the pinion and the gear into which it 
 meshes are covered by a casting as B 1 C ] in Fig. 7. This 
 pinion meshes with a split gear which is fastened on the car 
 axle. The car axle passes through the bearing 5 as shown 
 m Fig. 9.
 
 15 
 
 Fig. 10 shows one form of split gear which is mounted on 
 the car axle and engages with the pinion B. The manner in 
 which the car is propelled will now be made clear. In start- 
 ing the car a current is sent into the motor which causes the 
 armature to revolve and with it the pinion B. This pinion 
 meshes with the teeth of the split gear C and turns it in a 
 direction opposite to which the pinion rotates. (See Fig. 
 
 FIG. 9. 
 
 8.) As the pinion B is much smaller in diameter than the 
 split gear C, the car axle to which C is rigidly attached 
 makes a less number of revolutions than does the pinion 
 which drives it. In this way the power developed in the 
 motor is transmitted through the gears to the car axle and 
 the speed of the latter is much less than that of the motor 
 armature. We will now continue to discuss the essential 
 parts of a car equipment, and after we have gone through
 
 16 
 
 the repair shop in this way we will take up in the subsequent 
 chapters the theory of these devices and parts, and explain 
 their construction and functions. 
 
 Returning to Fig. 8, if the power admitted to the motor 
 turns the armature shaft 6 and pinion B in the direction in- 
 dicated by the arrow, then the gear C will revolve in the op- 
 
 FIG. 19. 
 
 posite direction and the car wheel 2 will move from right to 
 left as indicated by the arrow. The functions of the casing 
 B 1 is to protect the pinion and gear wheel from dirt and 
 mechanical injury and if filled with a heavy grease the gears 
 are thus lubricated and preserved and at the same time the 
 noise which they make in running is by this means greatly 
 reduced. In all of the motors illustrated a lid will be noticed 
 over the commutator end of the frame where the brushes
 
 17 
 
 are located. These lids are readily removed and their object 
 is to facilitate inspection of the commutator and brushes. 
 Other lids cover holes usually provided for supplying oil 
 to the bearing surfaces. It will be noticed that all of the 
 motors illustrated have their field magnets designed so as to 
 entirely enclose the interior parts, and all the joints of the 
 outer frame are made tight enough to be practically water 
 
 proof. Water and dirt would readily be thrown into the 
 motor from the car wheels if the parts were not tightly 
 enclosed, but by having the motor cased the windings are 
 protected from water which would cause them to rapidly 
 burn out. 
 
 Figs, ii and 12 show two views of a street car motor 
 with the frame dropped. Fig. 1 1 shows the lower frame of
 
 18 
 
 the motor dropped leaving the armature in position. The 
 method of dividing field magnets horizontally through the 
 bearings and fastening the lower part at one side by means 
 of hinges is the most usual arrangement for providing for 
 the inspection and repairs of the interior parts of the motor. 
 
 FIG. 12. 
 
 Fig. 12 shows the lower frame dropped and with it the arma- 
 ture which is ready for removal. 
 
 In suspending motors upon car trucks one side of the 
 motor is always held in position by the bearings upon the 
 car axle. The other side of the motor is not fastened rigidly 
 to the frame of the truck, but has springs placed at some
 
 19 
 
 point between the motor and the frame in order to avoid the 
 sudden jar which would be occasioned in starting the motor 
 if it were rigidly connected. These springs also serve to 
 
 greatly increase the life of the gear wheels as part of the 
 shock in starting is taken up by these springs, without which 
 the teeth would be liable to be stripped from the gears. 
 Figs. 13, 14 and 15 represent the same motor with different 
 
 styles of suspension. Fig. 13 shows what is called the 
 cradle suspension which consists of an iron bar resting on 
 powerful springs which in turn rest on the truck. This 
 method is designed to relieve the motor bearings of the
 
 20 
 
 weight of the motor, which being suspended in the line of 
 its center of gravity is supported without undue strains. 
 
 Fig. 14 shows the parallel bar suspension and Fig. 15 the 
 nose suspension. The latter is the one most commonly 
 used. 
 
 FIG. 16, 
 
 A type of motor differing in some respects to those pre- 
 viously illustrated is 'shown in Fig. 16. This is known as
 
 21 
 
 the box frame type and it differs from the split frame type 
 in that the magnet frame is cast in practically one piece 
 forming a cube with well rounded corners and large open- 
 ings at each end into which the frames carrying the bearings 
 for the armature shaft are bolted. The armature is put in 
 place or removed through these end openings in the frame. 
 Motors of this type are mounted or moved from the truck 
 by means of a crane from above when the truck is out from 
 under the cars, and no track pit is required. In order to 
 
 FIG. 17. 
 
 facilitate removing the armatures from these motors a spe- 
 cial tool is provided, shown in Fig. 17, upon which the motor 
 is mounted. The armature shaft is centered on this tool 
 and by removing the bolts from one of the frame heads and 
 moving the motor frome to one end of the tool by means of 
 the hand wheel, the armature is left entirely exposed and 
 mounted upon centers where it may be readily inspected or 
 repaired. 
 
 Fig. 1 8 is a diagram of the wiring in a car. The two 
 controllers are represented at the extreme ends and the four
 
 23 
 
 car wheels are indicated by 1,2, 3 and 4 ; between these four 
 wheels are shown the outlines of the two motors. Heavy 
 tube-like connection from the controllers to the motors 
 represents a hose which surrounds the wires going to each 
 motor. It protects them partly from mechanical injury and 
 partly from dampness, and water thrown by wheels or rails. 
 The box marked "resistance" is used' in starting the car and 
 will be explained in the chapter on controllers. The resist- 
 ance, hose and other devices are beneath the car floor. One 
 wire entering the hose comes from the trolley. This wire 
 
 is led from the roof of the car down the corner post and 
 passes through the lightning arrester and fuse box. 
 
 There are many styles of trolley bases. In Figs. 19 and 
 20 two forms are shown. The trolley wire is generally at- 
 tached to the iron base below a screw provided with one or 
 two washers. The springs are employed for the purpose of 
 causing an upward pressure on the trolley pole, which is not 
 shown. The pole can be removed from the trolley base and 
 is held adjustably in a socket. A great range of movement 
 is necessary in the springs and trolley pole as the trolley
 
 24 
 
 wire (the wire suspended in the air) cannot be attached at 
 the same height over all the course of travel. For instance, 
 at railroad crossings it is placed much higher so as not to 
 interfere with the railroad service and brakemen who may 
 be standing on the roofs of the cars ; again it may be much 
 lower in other places, such as bridges and tunnels. The 
 trolley pole is a long" iron or wooden pole on the end of 
 which is located the "trolley." This trolley, which consists 
 of brass or gun metal, is generally a small, narrow wheel 
 with projecting flanges, though some European roads use a 
 
 FIG. 20. 
 
 straight horizontal rod which slides along under the trolley 
 wire. 
 
 The brake staff used on nearly all electric cars is very 
 simple. However, the arrangement of levers on different 
 makes of trucks varies greatly, and as a knowledge of the 
 brake and how to use it is one of the most important things 
 for a motorman to know, the subject of brakes will also be 
 taken up in a chapter by itself. 
 
 To make our examination of a motor car equipment com- 
 plete we have yet to notice two overhead or "canopy' 
 switches, usually located under the hood above the platforn 
 on each end of the car. Pushing the handle of either one o/ 
 these to the "off" position opens the circuit and cuts off ail 
 the current to controllers and motors, just as if the trolley
 
 25 
 
 wheel had been pulled from the wire, so that the motors and 
 controllers may be safely examined and handled. A small 
 switch is usually located inside the car near one door for 
 turning the lamps on and off. If the car has electric heaters 
 another switch is also provided for turning them on and off. 
 A fuse box or an automatic circuit breaker will usually be 
 found upon a car. The purpose of each of these devices is 
 to automatically open the electric circuit whenever the 
 amount of current used becomes so large that it will injure 
 the motors. The construction and action of these devices 
 will be explained in a subsequent chapter. Somewhere 
 upon the car (usually beneath it) will be found a safety de- 
 vice called a lightning arrester which is intended to prevent 
 lightning from reaching the motors. As lightning readily 
 pierces any insulating material, this device is designed to 
 deflect the lightning into the ground before it reaches or 
 passes through the motors.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 TRANSMITTING ELECTRIC POWER. 
 
 In order to convey electric power to a distance certain 
 precautions are necessary. The electric current has to be 
 guided by means of a conductor, which in practice is gener- 
 ally copper wire, and in order that the energy transmitted 
 shall be wasted as little as possible the conducting wire must 
 be thoroughly insulated from the earth and from all other 
 conducting bodies. It was found at an early day that there 
 is a great deal of difference in conductivity between different 
 substances, and that some conduct the current very easily, 
 others less easily, and again others do not conduct the cur- 
 rent at all unless it is forced through them under very high 
 pressure. The first class of substances, which are known 
 as good electrical conductors, includes all metals, and of the 
 metals the best conductors are silver and copper. The last 
 class of materials, which do not conduct electric current, are 
 called non-conductors or insulators, and if a conductor is at- 
 tached or supported upon a non-conducting substance the 
 conductor is insulated from the ground to which the current 
 tends to flow in the endeavor to establish an equilibrium of 
 the forces acting. Thus, if we should lay bare electric wires 
 in the ground we would receive but little current at the far 
 end because the earth is itself a conductor of electricity and 
 would absorb the greater part of the current in the wire. It 
 is evident therefore that the conductor must be insulated 
 from the earth and from all other conductors in order to
 
 27 
 
 transmit the current to a distant point where it is to be con- 
 sumed. Perfectly dry air is one of the best insulators 
 known, while water containing dissolved salts and other im- 
 purities, as generally found, is an excellent conductor. 
 There is little chance for current to escape from a wire sup- 
 ported on insulating material unless moisture, acids or dirt 
 is to be found on the surface of the insulators, in which case 
 a slight leakage through the dirt or moisture will occur. 
 
 SECTION INSULATOR 
 
 FIG. 21. 
 
 The best and most commonly used insulating substances are 
 porcelain, glass, mica, rubber, dry wood, silk, shellac, paper, 
 cotton, etc. 
 
 To transmit electricity from one place to another a certain 
 amount of energy has to.be spent in the transmission which 
 is no longer available for useful work. This loss of energy 
 is due to the resistance of the conductor which carries the 
 current, and will be readily understood by the analogy of
 
 28 
 
 water flowing through a pipe. If we transmit a volume of 
 water to a distance through a pipe under a certain pressure 
 the pressure of the water at the further end of the pipe will' 
 be considerably less than the pressure at the point where the 
 water enters the pipe. This loss of pressure is due to the 
 friction of the water against the walls of the pipe and it will 
 be readily seen is greater the greater the length of the pipe, 
 and will be less for a given volume of water as the size of 
 the pipe is larger. In the same way with an electric current, 
 the longer the conducting wire the greater will be the resist- 
 ance, while by increasing the diameter of the wire the resist- 
 ance will be reduced. The smaller the amount of loss in the 
 transmitting lines the more economical is the working of the 
 system. 
 
 We have spoken of the volume, pressure and resistance 
 of water in a pipe as being analagous to volume, pressure 
 and resistance of current flowing through a conductor. The 
 electrical unit of quantity corresponding to the volume of 
 water is called the ampere. The electrical unit of pressure 
 is called the volt, and the unit of electrical resistance is the 
 ohm. According to Ohm's law the current in amperes 
 equals the pressure in volts divided by the resistance in 
 ohms. This laws is generally expressed by the equation : 
 
 R 
 
 in which C = current in amperes 
 
 E = electromotive force in rolts 
 R = resistance in ohms 
 
 The electric current has to be produced in most cases by 
 operating a dynamo by means of a steam engine, and this 
 engine receives its energy from the boiler under which coal 
 is burned. The energy located in the coal is utilized to evap-
 
 29 
 
 orate the water in the boiler and the steam so produced 
 actuates the engine, which in turn operates the dynamo. 
 The greater the waste in electricity, the greater will be the 
 coal consumption per month. Therefore, engineers strive 
 to avoid losses as much as possible, such as leakage on elec- 
 tric lines or faults or leakage on devices connected therewith, 
 as they form part of the circuit the moment the current is 
 allowed to pass into them. For this reason motors, con- 
 trollers and other parts attached to the car are highly insu- 
 lated, and the overhead conductor is held in position by in- 
 sulators, of hard rubber, glass, porcelain, compounds of mica, 
 or other substances put into suitable shape under great pres- 
 sure. Some such insulators as used on electric railwavs are 
 
 FIG. 22. 
 
 shown in Fig. 21. In most cases they consist of two metallic 
 parts which are separated from one another by a strong and 
 heavy layer of insulation. The one metallic part is then con- 
 nected to the conductor which is to carry the electric current, 
 while the other is attached to a pole, or span wire. This lat- 
 ter may be regarded as connected to the earth, but the other 
 end is insulated from such contact by the interposed layer of 
 non-conducting material. Fig. 22 shows such an insulator 
 in section disclosing its construction. 
 
 The various steps in the generation and use of the elec- 
 tric current may be enumerated as in the following manner : 
 Fig. 23 shows a boiler room of a street railway station and 
 the steam here generated is conducted by the steam mains 
 or pipes to the engine and dynamo room, Fig. 24. In
 
 30
 
 31 
 
 neary every station the arrangement of machines is differ- 
 ent ; in some, the engine drives the dynamo by means of a 
 belt, but in most of the larger stations the dynamo is now 
 direct connected, or in other words the armature of the dy- 
 namo is carried on the engine shaft, as shown in Fig. 25. 
 The current is controlled by the use of a switchboard 
 through which the dynamos are connected to the feeders 
 or outgoing wires. Fig. 26 represents switchboard in a 
 street railway station, upon which are switches for opening 
 
 and closing circuits, circuit breakers for protecting the dy- 
 namos from overloads, voltmeters for indicating the volt- 
 age and ammeters for indicating the amount of current 
 flowing through the circuits. 
 
 The electrical transmission from a railway power station 
 is shown in diagram in Fig. 27. To the left will be noticed 
 the dynamo, which is connected by means of a commutator 
 brush to the trolley wire (all switches, circuit breakers, 
 safety devices, etc., at the station and on the car have been 
 omitted for the sake of clearness and simplicity). Each
 
 32 
 
 electric car is indicated by one motor, wheel, trolley and 
 controller. By following the arrows it will be observed that 
 
 the electric current starts from the dynamo, goes to the 
 trolley wire, from there to the trolley wheels and to the
 
 33 
 
 controllers ; from the controllers to the motors, the wind- 
 ings of which are indicated by a few turns, and from there 
 to the iron body of the motor, to the car wheel and to the 
 rail. Through the rails and return feeders it flows back to 
 
 FIG. 27. 
 
 the station, where the second brush of the dynamo is con- 
 nected to the rail. This completes a circuit, through the 
 dynamo, out over the trolley wire, down through the motor 
 and back through the rails, and current flows over this cir- 
 cuit whenever a controller is put in operation.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 OPERATION OF CARS AND CONTROLLERS. 
 
 The value of any motorman depends on the economy 
 with which he can operate his car ; economy in the way of 
 preventing costly accidents, economy in power and econ- 
 omy in wear and tear of the cars, trucks and motors he 
 runs. What has been said before has been intended to pre- 
 pare the reader for this chapter, which deals directly with a 
 motorman's actual duties. It does not require any special 
 knowledge to be able to get a car over the road. To oper- 
 ate it in the best possible manner is quite another matter. 
 It is the main object of this book to tell a motorman how 
 to make himself a valuable man ; how to operate a. car with 
 greatest economy. 
 
 Let us first learn something about the operation of con- 
 trollers, beginning with the series-parallel controllers which 
 are in common use today. The operation of all the control- 
 lers is very simple. They all have reverse levers at the right 
 of the stand or on the top, and the controlling handle on all 
 is moved around in the direction of the hands of a watch to 
 turn on the current, and in the opposite direction to turn 
 off the current. Before trying to start a car, first be sure 
 that the brakes are off, that the controller handle at the 
 other end of the car is on the "off" position and the canopy 
 switches are closed. Then move the controller handle to 
 the first notch. The car will start if all is right. After the 
 car is well under way on the first notch, move to the second, 
 and so on to the last. In moving from one notch to an- 
 other do not stop the handle between notches, but give it
 
 35 
 
 a push strong enough so that it will go to the next notch. 
 A timid or inexperienced motorman is apt to turn the 
 handle slowly, but this is bad practice. 
 
 Always wait long enough on each notch for the car to 
 gain speed before passing to the nex-t notch. If you do not 
 do this, much more current than necessary may be used to 
 move the car. The wheels may slip, the motors will be 
 strained and overheated and there will be a great drain on 
 the power house generators, and wear on machinery. 
 When the notch is reached where the motors are in series 
 and there is no rheostat resistance in the circuit, special 
 care should be taken to let them gain speed and run up to 
 nearly the maximum speed they can attain in this position 
 before passing to the higher notches where the motors are 
 in parallel. When the motors are thrown in parallel too 
 soon in starting, a waste of power takes place. This notch 
 on which the motors are in series with no rheostat resist- 
 ance in the circuit is the third point on the Westinghouse 
 G, No. 14, No. 28, No. 29, the Walker J, and the General 
 Electric K controllers. It is the fourth point on the Gen- 
 eral Electric K-2, the Westinghouse No. 28-A and No. 38, 
 the Walker S and the Steel Motor Company's C control- 
 lers. It is on this series point that the motors exert the 
 greatest pull with the least current, and it should prefer- 
 ably be used when there is heavy pulling to be done or steep 
 grades to be climbed. 
 
 On looking at the points marked on the controller tops, 
 we see that some of them are marked with longer or heav- 
 ier marks than the others. Those points with long marks 
 are called "running" points, because on them the motors 
 may be operated for any length of time without overheat- 
 ing or wasting current in the rheostats. Among these run- 
 ning points there are some to be preferred because on them 
 the whole energy taken into the motors is used to propel
 
 36 
 
 the car. These preferred points are those positions on 
 which no rheostat resistance or diverter is left in circuit 
 with the motors. 
 
 The K and K-2 controllers have four preferred running 
 points. On the.K controller the first preferred running 
 point reached is the third, at which the motors are in series 
 and resistance all cut out. This should be used for slow 
 running. It gives a little less than half full speed. The 
 fourth or next point is also a running position. It gives 
 half full speed and may be used for running along on a level, 
 but should never be used on a grade or for heavy pulling. 
 The sixth point on the K controller is also a preferred run- 
 ning point, as is the seventh. The latter should only be 
 used for highest speed on a level, as on it the fields are 
 shunted, as on the fourth point. On the K-2 controller, the 
 fourth and fifth and the eighth and ninth points are the pre- 
 ferred running points. The fourth here corresponds to the 
 third on the K controller and the fifth here to the fourth 
 on the K, and the fifth should be used in the same way as 
 the fourth on the K. The eighth and ninth points of the 
 K-2 are the high speed points, the ninth being only for use 
 on a level. Use of the fifth or ninth points on grades is 
 very wasteful of current and hard on the motors, and little 
 is gained by it in the way of speed. The same is true of the 
 fourth and seventh points on the K controller. 
 
 In the Westinghouse controllers, the third point in the 
 G, No. 14, No. 28, No. 28-A and 29 is the first preferred 
 .position. In the No. 38 Westinghouse it is the fourth, in 
 which the motors are in series without resistance. In the 
 J controller of the Walker Company it is the third point, 
 and in that of the Steel Motor Company it is the fourth 
 point. 
 
 The second preferred running position in all of them is 
 when the motors are at maximum speed. The Steel Motor
 
 37 
 
 Company has on some motors and controllers a third such 
 point, that is point 9, which is used when a shunt is pro- 
 vided in the field magnet winding" of the motors. 
 
 In shutting off current the controller handle should be 
 brought rapidly to the off position from whatever point it 
 may happen to be on, without stopping at any point. To 
 run the car backward when it is standing, pull the reverse 
 lever back and turn on the current as when running for- 
 ward. Sometimes it is necessary to reverse when the car is 
 running ahead, to avoid running into something. To do 
 this, throw controller handle to "off" and pull back reverse 
 handle. Then move controller to the first notch. Tire car 
 will stop with a jerk and begin to go backward. This way 
 should be resorted to only when there is danger, and even 
 then the car speed should be slow, because it is not a sure 
 remedy. The fuse may blow and so suddenly shut off the 
 power on account of the abnormally heavy current flowing. 
 There is also a possibility that one or the other motor 
 may be permanently disabled. 
 
 There is, however, one way in which a violent stop can 
 be made with a series-parallel controller, even when the 
 power is cut off and the brakes fail. It is done by revers- 
 ing and putting the controller handle on the highest point 
 of the controller. In this case the motors act as dynamos, 
 generating current. This method may be used in emer- 
 gencies when the brakes are not sufficient and the trolley 
 has come off or the fuse has blown and the car is going 
 down an incline. You may never have to use it, and it is 
 not creditable to have to use it by letting a car get beyond 
 control. But the brake may give out or something else 
 happen beyond the control of the motorman, so it should 
 always be remembered, as it may save you a sad accident 
 some day. In case you have reversed and the fuse blows, 
 the instant you feel that the power has been shut off by
 
 38 
 
 the blowing of the fuse, put your controller around on one 
 of the higher points named. This plan may also be used 
 in case the brakes fail and the trolley comes off going down 
 hill. It is a very violent way of stopping, and injurious to 
 the equipment. On the Walker S controller the emergency 
 brake notch on the reverse switch should be used instead 
 of reversing, as explained in chapter on controllers in 
 Part II. 
 
 The Westinghouse D controller, the old Edison and 
 Sprague controllers are different both in construction and 
 operation from the series-parallel controllers just men- 
 tioned. When their handles are at "off" they point straight 
 backwards. There is no separate reverse lever. Turning 
 the handle to the left from the off position runs the car for- 
 ward. Turning the handle to the right runs the car back- 
 ward. In starting a car with the Westinghouse D control- 
 lers, advance the handle firmly from notch to notch, as with 
 the series-parallel controller, pausing after each notch long 
 enough to let the car get up to speed. 
 
 On the top of the Edison and Sprague controllers points 
 are cast which indicate the contact positions on the control- 
 ler drum. The motorman should stop long enough in each 
 position to allow the motor to get up to speed. Reversing 
 or running backwards is accomplished in all of these con- 
 trollers simply by moving the handle around from "off" to 
 the right side of the controller. Of course the same precau- 
 tions should be observed about reversing as with the other 
 controllers, that is, reverse only in great emergency, and 
 then only to the first point, after having first brought the 
 handle to the off position and reducing the speed by apply- 
 ing the hand brake. 
 
 When there are two motors on a car, an emergency stop 
 can be made when the trolley is off or the fuse is blown by 
 reversing to the highest point. In shutting off current on
 
 39 
 
 these controllers be careful not to go past the "off" posi- 
 tion onto the reverse side of the controller. 
 
 The early controllers of the General Electric Company 
 have all been of the T. H. rheostat type, as shown in Fig. 
 72. It consists of a double lever on each platform and a 
 crescent or half circular resistance box below the platform, 
 over which a contact shoe having a number of fingers is 
 made to slide by the operating or controlling handle. The 
 second lever has two positions, a forward and a backward 
 position. It is the reversing switch and should be pushed 
 to the extreme end of its position. This switch lever is 1 
 easily distinguished from the rheostat lever by standing out 
 horizontally. 
 
 To start the car the handle should be turned from left to 
 right, or (looking down on it) turned in the same direction 
 as the hands of a watch. There is a stop at both extrem- 
 ities, beyond which it cannot be turned. When the car is to 
 be stopped the handle must be turned backwards, or from 
 right to left once, twice or more (depending on the position 
 of the handle), until it cannot be turned any farther. It is 
 not sufficient that the contact shoe be removed from the re- 
 sistance box, but the handle should be moved until it 
 reaches the stop. 
 
 In starting, turn on the current slowly, moving the han- 
 dle a little ways at a time. Shutting off the current should 
 be done by rapidly turning the handle back to the "off" po- 
 sition. Reversing is accomplished the same way as with 
 the series-parallel controllers. Never reverse unless the 
 current is first shut off. 
 
 HINTS ON SAVING POWER. 
 
 It is not necessary that a man be powerful to control an 
 electric car. At first he is apt to spend an unnecessary 
 amount of energy at the brake. Power may be saved and
 
 40 
 
 the car would be subject to less wear and tear if handled 
 not by pure strength, but by proper judgment of time and 
 distance. It should be considered that as long as the con- 
 troller is not on the "off" position power is taken into the 
 motors and consumed. If a car is to be stopped, turn off 
 the power some time ahead, because the energy taken into 
 the motor does not disappear the moment you shut off the 
 current. The motors and the car have weight, and energy 
 is stored in this moving body and this energy must be spent 
 before the car can come to rest. Some men, because they 
 have not the right judgment, set the brake the moment the 
 controller is placed at the "off" position, and they must 
 then work hard at the brake and consume the energy still 
 stored in the moving car, by spending it partly in wear on 
 themselves, brake shoes, car wheels, motors and gears. It 
 means a wear all around, without a benefit to anyone. 
 
 A test made by the author between a good and a poor 
 motorman with the same motor car and same load, tested 
 on the same dry summer day, showed that the better man 
 used but one-half the power taken by the other. What be- 
 came of the other energy used by one of the men? You 
 would soon know if you were frequently around the barn. 
 The man who uses the most power seems tired when he 
 goes home in the evening, from the hard work he had at the 
 brake. You Would know it by observing the greater wear 
 on brake shoes and constant trouble with brakes, softer car 
 wheels, which soon wear flat in spots, and frequent loose 
 bolts on cars operated by men of no experience or poor 
 judgment. The simplest thing in the world is to cut off 
 your power ahead of time and let the energy stored in the 
 car spend itself by allowing it to propel the car by its mo- 
 mentum for half a block or so, and you will be surprised 
 how easily it can be stopped by setting the brake. What 
 has been said here, however, is not always possible to do,
 
 41 
 
 and a motorman must use his judgment. For instance, if 
 the pressure or voltage is low, or many stops have to be 
 made, or the motors have not speed enough for the sched- 
 ule time set by the company, a motorman cannot act exact- 
 ly as he would wish, but in these cases the conditions are 
 not normal. Such rules can be used as a guide when a 
 road is properly equipped and the schedule time for a round 
 trip is so chosen compared with the distance to be covered 
 and speed of the motors that the motors can accomplish 
 their work easily. 
 
 When running up behind a team on the track and you see 
 that you will overtake it before it gets out of the way, do 
 not crowd your car up to speed and rush up behind it, as is 
 often done, only to be obliged to put the brakes on hard to 
 avoid a collision. You will make just as good time and save 
 your muscle and the company's power by letting your car 
 run along slowly enough to get the team out of the way be- 
 fore you reach it instead of bringing your car almost to a 
 stop after having run up to it at full speed. 
 
 Should the wheels slip or skid on going up grade, bring 
 your sand box into action, and if the car wheels continue 
 to slip then throw the controller handle to the "off" posi- 
 tion and turn it on again step by step. When the rail is 
 greasy or covered with snow so that the wheels do. not take 
 hold of the rail, apply a little sand before starting the car. 
 Use the sand sparingly and be sure that you have some 
 left when in need of it. 
 
 SOME PRECAUTIONS AGAINST ACCIDENTS. 
 
 When approaching curves, switches, turn outs or railroad 
 crossings slow down your car so as to have it under con- 
 trol. It is best to have the controller at the "off" position 
 and the right hand on the brake. The moment the wheels 
 reach the curve, switch or crossing you may put on your
 
 42 
 
 power gradually, to carry the car over the curve or cross- 
 ing. Never let the car stop in a short curve, such as is fre- 
 quently found on country roads, unless there are special in- 
 structions by the authority of your road. When taking 
 curves or turn outs the conductor should be on the rear 
 platform ready to replace the trolley should it jump the 
 wire. If the trolley passes the curve or switch properly, the 
 conductor should ring "go ahead"; if the trolley jumps he 
 should ring "stop." If the conductor has given his signal 
 that the trolley has jumped off the wire, the motorman 
 should keep his controller handle at the "off" position until 
 the conductor rings "go ahead." 
 
 When going around curves, crossings or other places 
 where the car may jump the track owing to roughness of 
 road-bed, or where rails are laid very low in a gravel road, 
 and where stones may wedge in the rails, slow speed should 
 be used, as also when passing through flooded places or low 
 places where the rails are covered with water. When going 
 up grades, it is best to put the controller on points where 
 the resistance is cut out, and further, the car should not be 
 stopped or started on a grade if it can be avoided. 
 
 When passing an overhead insulated switch or section 
 insulator, place your controller always at the "off" position, 
 unless you are on a grade or have other instructions from 
 the superintendent. 
 
 Going down grade have your controller handle at the 
 "off" position, the trolley on the trolley wire and your 
 brake set to such an extent that the wheels turn slowly (not 
 slide) so that the car remains under your control, slacken- 
 ing the hold on the wheels when the grade becomes less 
 steep or tightening the grip of the brake shoes should the 
 grade become steeper. Should the car get beyond your 
 control or the brake suddenly give out, you may have to 
 resort to reversing the controller, as previously explained.
 
 43 
 
 It is a severe strain on the motors, t>ut may have to be 
 resorted to, to prevent an accident or to save lives. When 
 so reversing keep the controller in the first notch should it 
 be effective ; if not, turn the handle very slowly to the high- 
 er notches, as the fuse is liable to give out and your control 
 by means of current from the power house is gone. Should 
 the fuse blow there is then, as before mentioned, only one 
 more means to get the car under control, and that is to 
 throw the controller to the last notch, which causes the 
 motors to act as dynamos. This plan is only available 
 when there are two motors on a car. The current is gen- 
 erated by the rotation of the armature in the field. The 
 energy furnished is the momentum of the descending car, 
 which is out of your control and disconnected from the 
 power house. The current so generated acts by means of 
 the armatures as a brake and the car will slow up in the 
 same measure, as the motors generate current. The means 
 just described are important to know, but should never be 
 resorted to except in extreme cases. 
 
 When stopping a car in the barn pull down the trolley 
 one foot or a foot and a half and tie it, also see that both 
 controllers are on the "off" position and open the overhead 
 or canopy switch. If for any reason the trolley should be 
 left on the wire in the barn some of the car lamps might be 
 turned on, which will be a warning to the repair men. 
 
 Before starting see that the controllers on both platforms 
 are on the "off" position. Never place tools, rubber boots 
 or other wearing apparel, cotton waste or the like on the 
 side below the seat where the motor cut out or wire cable 
 connecting controllers and motors are located. Keep this 
 place clean and free from dirt and moisture. 
 
 When examining motors open your main or overhead 
 switch and take care not to let water drop into the motor 
 from wet clothing. When examining car motors, fuse, etc.,
 
 44 
 
 always open the overhead switch to avoid shocks. When 
 operating a car, any unusual noise heard should be located. 
 Loose bolts should be reported and attended to, because by 
 the fixing in proper time of these small irregularities, which 
 are caused by jarring and constant operation of the car, 
 grave trouble can be prevented, and a car will remain much 
 longer in good repair if kept so and watched. 
 
 It is true that a stitch in time saves nine. The writer has 
 seen plants, where cars were neglected, bolts could be 
 picked up along the road, and on one occasion a car was 
 stalled because the lower half of a field magnet had dropped 
 down and was wedged against the stone pavement. Should 
 a motorman notice irregularities or defects on the overhead 
 line or on the track the matter should be reported. 
 
 When operating on a road with steep grades be sure that 
 you are prepared in damp or slippery weather to be able to 
 get sand from the boxes. It 1 is not sufficient to see that 
 there is sand in them, but that you know it is dry sand and 
 that the valve is in such condition that it will let the sand 
 pass through. 
 
 Never shift the reversing handle unless the controller 
 handle is on the "off" position, nor reverse when the car is 
 in motion except to prevent an accident. 
 
 When leaving the platform be sure your controller is 
 turned off and remove your controller handle. Keep them 
 in your hand should you be en the road, and in the barn you 
 should leave them, according to the rules given by the com- 
 pany. The reason the motorman should not leave the con- 
 troller handle on the controller is that accidents are en- 
 couraged. The author has frequently seen that at country 
 fairs, where people crowd into the cars at both ends, people 
 are apt to strike the handle with baskets or coats held over 
 the arm, and can in this way start the car unexpectedly. 
 Keeping the handle in one's hand on such occasions leaves
 
 45 
 
 the motorman in full control of his car and up to the re- 
 quirements of his duty and responsibility. 
 
 Young people do not realize the responsibility of the po- 
 sition of a motorman ; they may think it fun to hide the han- 
 dle when he has left the car for a moment. Such liberties 
 have been taken by people who knew the motorman when 
 a car, for instance, was at the end of a track and had to wait 
 for 5 or 10 minutes. As the motorman is held responsible 
 for his car he should therefore always have it under full 
 control, and leave it so no one can accidentally start it. 
 
 Should at any time you feel that the power gives out in 
 the power house, for instance, by the operating of a circuit 
 breaker, then bring your controller handle to the "off" posi- 
 tion, close your lamp circuit and wait until the lamps light. 
 
 Before starting the car for your run, see that your 
 brushes and brush springs are in position (unless there is 
 some one else whose duty it is to keep the cars in readiness 
 for the motorman). Before placing the trolley on the wire, 
 look at both controllers and be sure that they are both at 
 the "off" position. Do not run the car with the trolley 
 pole in the wrong direction, because in this position it has 
 no yielding properties when it strikes a hanger or suspen- 
 sion wire. If it jumps the wire it would bend the pole or 
 cause trouble to the overhead wire. 
 
 When starting as a motorman in a new town or on a 
 new road it is well to ride once or twice over the road as a 
 passenger or with another motorman in charge of the car 
 to give you a chance to get a general idea of the road, the 
 location of switches, turn outs, railway crossings, bridges, 
 etc. 
 
 The operation of the brakes is one of the most impor- 
 tant duties of a motorman and one of the most difficult. 
 Accordingly, it is treated in a chapter by itself.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 OPERATION OF BRAKES. 
 
 A number of brake mechanisms are described in the 
 chapter on brakes, Part II, for the purpose of learning the 
 operation. The description of the adjustment is given 
 more particularly for those motormen operating cars on 
 the small country roads where frequently they are called 
 upon to attend to such mechanical matters. In large 
 cities and on large roads special inspectors are provided, 
 and the author wishes to impress especially on those 
 motormen who have inventive faculties, or imagine they 
 have, or those who like to do tinkering, thaf they should 
 touch absolutely nothing about the car equipment unless 
 ordered by the road officers or regulations to do so. The 
 company cannot afford to have a man experiment with its 
 cars, especially when mechanics are employed to attend 
 to all irregularities on car or truck. Inasmuch as this 
 book is intended to tell a man how he should qualify him- 
 self for the position, it must not only tell him how to get a 
 position but also how to keep it. You will certainly lose 
 your position if the company finds out that you tamper 
 with any mechanical or electrical part. Playing or tinker- 
 ing must be entirely avoided if you want to be able to stay 
 for any length of time with any company. However much 
 a man might desire to fix his car, it is not worth while to 
 risk his position if he acts against the rules of the company 
 in doing so. 
 
 While starting your car from the barn try the brakes, to 
 see if they are right. Always be sure your brakes are
 
 47 
 
 fully off before starting your controller. On grades it will 
 be necessary to start the controller the instant the brake is 
 released. There is usually some slack in the brake chain 
 with hand brakes unless the shop men keep them closely 
 adjusted. 
 
 It should be the constant effort of the motorman to 
 avoid locking the wheels so that they slide or skid along 
 the rail. There are two good reasons for this. In the 
 first place, the instant the wheels begin to slide on the rails 
 the braking or retarding force is reduced, or what is the 
 same, the motorman loses more than half his retarding 
 .power. This has been fully proved by experiment and by 
 experience. In the second place, there is danger that by 
 this sliding along the rails a flat place will be worn on the 
 wheels. Such flat places will pound with every turn of the 
 wheels and rapidly grow worse, so that the noise becomes 
 unbearable to the public and the wheels must be turned 
 down at considerable expense or thrown away. A flat 
 wheel on a car is, therefore, no credit to a motorman, 
 and on some roads the penalty for a flat wheel is suspen- 
 sion. It is often hard to avoid sliding the wheels when 
 sleet or mud is on the rails, but this should be remembered 
 above all, viz., never turn on sand after the wheels have 
 commenced to slide without first letting up on the brakes 
 so that the wheels can turn. The safer plan when stop- 
 ping on a slippery rail is to apply sand at the same time 
 you apply the brakes. Remember that you cannot stop as 
 quick by sliding the wheels as you can by putting on 
 brakes firmly without sliding them. In coming to a steep 
 down grade be sure to slow up your car before reaching 
 the incline and set your brakes gradually. If the wheels 
 get to sliding on the grade loosen up on the brakes until 
 they begin to turn again. Cars have run away down hills
 
 48 
 
 because motormen have lost their heads or failed to know 
 and remember this point. 
 
 The wear or lasting qualities of the brake shoes and the 
 power taken from the power plant by a motorman to run a 
 car depends to a considerable extent on his proper judg- 
 ment of time and distance. The less he absorbs the stored 
 energy with the brake, the smaller will be the wear on 
 brake shoes and car wheels and the smaller the power 
 taken. 
 
 It is not a good plan to make gradual stops by applying 
 the brakes lightly a long distance back of where you want 
 to stop, as you lose time in getting over the road in this 
 way and require more power in making up for it. Let the 
 car drift with brake entirely off until a short distance from 
 the stopping place, and then apply them hard enough to 
 make a comparatively short stop without sliding the wheels 
 or making it uncomfortable for the passengers.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 HOW TO REMEDY TROUBLES. 
 
 On many large roads the motormen are expected to do 
 nothing beyond operating their cars, and whenever trouble 
 occurs to a car on the road it is pushed in by the next and 
 the repair men at the barn attend to the repairing. A 
 motorman should of course always abide by the rules of 
 his company, and if they forbid the opening of motors or 
 controllers by motormen the author does not mean these 
 instructions to in any way interfere with rules which may| 
 seem necessary to the officers of large systems where the 
 motormen are not all well posted and where inspectors are 
 employed whose special work it is to remedy slight troubles 
 and where mischief may be done by the tampering of those 
 who do not understand the apparatus. Nevertheless, there 
 are many small roads where a knowledge of how to remedy 
 troubles is needed, and even on the large roads mentioned 
 the man who understands his car can save many delays and 
 knows how to report troubles intelligently. 
 
 In enumerating many of the troubles to which the cars 
 and motors are subject and giving instructions for their 
 temporary remedy, the author wishes to place in the hands 
 of the motorman facts and means which are helpful for 
 such an occasion. However, no one should think that 
 without practical experience, by simply reading these lines, 
 that he can manage a car as well as a man who has been 
 operating one for years. Practical experience is abso-
 
 50 
 
 lutely necessary, but in connection with it this chapter will 
 be very helpful to the motorman. 
 
 A great deal must be learned by actual experience, and 
 success in economical operation on a car line depends 
 partly on the watchfulness of the motorman. While oper- 
 ating his controller he can readily detect irregularities, 
 first, by the way the motors take the current when the con- 
 troller is operated, and secondly, when the car is under 
 way, by the sound of the motors. 
 
 The economy which can thus be accomplished lies in the 
 fact that loose bolts, a loose connection and the like are 
 easily tightened. These are small troubles caused by con- 
 stant jarring of the car, which are easily attended to. 
 However, if the car is not watched bolts will be lost, bear- 
 ings will come loose, the armature revolving at a great 
 rate of speed may be rubbing against the field magnet 
 poles, or a wire working out of its connection may cause 
 a short circuit and blow the fuse, etc. It will be readily 
 seen that these small troubles, if not attended to in time, 
 are the causes of others far more serious, yet a turn of the 
 wrench or the screwdriver in proper tirne may easily pre- 
 vent such troubles on the road. The golden rule, "a stitch 
 in time saves nine," should be remembered at all times, 
 and besides this one, "cleanliness is next to Godliness." 
 Keep your motors, connections and contact terminals clean 
 and dry. Before working around the electrical apparatus 
 pull off trolley and open overhead switch. 
 
 If the car fails to start when the controller is "on" and 
 both overhead switches are closed, the trouble is due to an 
 open circuit, and probably to one of the following causes : 
 
 i. The fuse may have blown or melted. Open an over- 
 head switch or pull off the trolley and put in a new fuse, 
 removing the burned ends from under the binding posts 
 before doing so. Never put in a heavier fuse than that
 
 51 
 
 specified by the company, as it might result in damage to 
 the equipment by allowing too large a current to flow. 
 The fuse may blow because of some trouble on the car, as 
 will be explained a little further on. 
 
 2. On a dry summer day, when there is much fine dust 
 on the track, it happens that the car wheels do not make 
 proper contact with the rail and the car fails to start. In 
 such a case try to establish contact by rocking the car 
 body. Should this fail to work, the conductor should take 
 the switch bar or a piece of wire and, holding one end 
 firmly on a clean place on the rail, hold the other against 
 the wheel or truck. This will make temporary connection 
 until the car has started. The conductor should be sure 
 to make his rail contact first and keep it firm during this 
 operation or he may receive a shock. 
 
 3. If the track conditions are apparently good, it may 
 be that the car stands on a piece of dead rail a piece of 
 rail on which the bonding has become destroyed. In that 
 case the car conductor would have to go to the next rail 
 section with a piece of wire to connect the two rails and 
 then order the motorman to start his car. 
 
 4. Another outside trouble which the author has no- 
 ticed, especially on cars having wooden trolley poles, is 
 that, due to the constantly varying pressure on the pole, 
 the wire connecting the trolley wheel with the trolley base 
 breaks off short near the place where the trolley head or 
 fork is mounted. In such a case wrap a bare piece of wire 
 around the lower part of the trolley fork and continue it 
 around the wooden pole, and be sure to establish good 
 connection between the wire you place temporarily round 
 the pole and that one running down to the trolley base. 
 This latter irregularity, can be noticed by the motorman, 
 because the current taken into the car is irregular. Some- 
 times the motors get the power properly ; at other times
 
 52 
 
 they start slowly as if they did not receive the proper cur- 
 rent. In the evening it can be noticed by the slight arc- 
 ing that takes place between the broken ends. 
 
 5. A brush or two may not have been placed, or if 
 placed, may fit too tightly in the brush holder, so that the 
 springs do not establish contact between brush and com- 
 mutator. If this is the case, remove brushes and sand- 
 paper them until they go into the brush holder easily. 
 
 6. The contact fingers on a controller are rough, burnt, 
 and perhaps bent so that the drum cannot make contact. 
 Try to remove burnt surface with sandpaper and bend 
 fingers or contacts into their proper position. Should this 
 fail, then operate the car with the other controller. In this 
 case the conductor should be on the front platform to 
 handle the brake and give orders to the motorman when 
 to start and stop, as the occasion requires. Under these 
 conditions the car should never be allowed to travel at a 
 high speed. It may also be due to wear on both the con- 
 tact surfaces of the drum and the finger, which may have 
 been burnt and worn away to such an extent that contact 
 is not established when the controller handle is placed on 
 the first notch. 
 
 7. A loose or broken cable connection. This can be 
 located and placed and fastened in its position. It is, in 
 most instances, a cable connected to one of the motors, 
 rheostat, or lightning arrester and very seldom in the con- 
 troller stand. 
 
 8. A burnt rheostat. A rheostat may have received 
 too great a current for some time and the first contact 
 terminal may be broken. In such a case, if temporary 
 connection cannot conveniently be established, the car will 
 not start at the first notch, but at the second it will start 
 with a jerk. 
 
 9- If car refuses to start on the first contact, but starts
 
 53 
 
 all right on the second and acts normal thereafter, then there 
 is an open circuit in the rheostat, either internally, or the 
 first cable connection is broken. It may also be due to a 
 worn controller and the contacts may be blistered or burnt. 
 Move the controller handle slightly beyond the notch or go 
 direct to the second notch. 
 
 10. The field coil of a motor may be grounded so that the 
 fuse blows whenever current is turned on. Cut out the 
 faulty motor, as explained in Chapter III; Part II. 
 
 11. Armature or commutator grounded. Cut out motor 
 as in 10. 
 
 12. Lightning arrester is grounded by dirt between the 
 discharge points. Remove the dirt, as the fuse will blow 
 as long as the trouble exists. Should this not be possible 
 then disconnect the lightning arrester, ground wire, insert 
 fuse and go ahead. The trouble lies in the arrester. 
 
 13. The car starts and the fuse may blow. This may be 
 due to a heavy load and the fuse not securely fastened to 
 its terminals. The screws holding the terminals of the fuse 
 should be tight, because loose contact at these points will 
 cause heating and an increased resistance, and in conse- 
 quence a quicker burning of the fuse. 
 
 14. Case 13 may happen with comparatively few. pas- 
 sengers. The load may be caused artificially by having the 
 brakes partially set or dirt clogging between the brake shoes 
 and car wheels. Remove obstruction between brake shoes, 
 then insert fuse. 
 
 15. In car equipments, with motors permanently in par- 
 allel, fuse will blow if a field or armature is short circuited. 
 Proceed as in 10. 
 
 There are also other irregularities which may occur, as 
 follows : 
 
 1 6. Some cables form a short circuit either under the 
 seat or below controller due to dampness, dirt, damaged
 
 54 
 
 insulation, etc. This can readily be detected by the smell 
 of burnt rubber. Having found the place, first open your 
 overhead switch, then proceed to wrap rubber tape around 
 the bare place. If this is not on hand, use some dry cotton 
 or woolen rag torn into a narrow band or else dry string. 
 If the wires cannot be separated far enough, place some 
 short pieces of dry wood between them and then tie them 
 together. 
 
 17. The car starts and after the controller reaches a cer- 
 tain point fuse blows. One armature or a field is short cir- 
 cuited. Cut out the faulty motor and go on with the other. 
 
 1 8. The car starts, stops and starts again. This may 
 be caused by a loose contact finger at the controller or by 
 a loose cable or wire. Remove casing from controller, and 
 if you see blisters on the drum of your controller examine 
 the finger belonging to this particular contact, clean it and 
 screw it home or bring it back to its normal form should it 
 have been bent. If the controller looks all right the trouble 
 may be found to be due to a loose cable connected to the 
 terminals of a motor. Take screwdriver and tighten all 
 cables going to the field coils, armature and brush holders. 
 Also examine brushes. If your commutator looks dark 
 and burnt it may be due to a brush, which has worn down 
 to such an extent that the brush springs do not press it 
 against the commutator. In this latter case substitute a 
 new brush, but if none is at hand, cut out the motor and 
 go ahead with the other. 
 
 19. The car starts with a jerk, but afterward runs 
 smooth and normal. There is a short circuit probably in 
 the rheostat. Examine the rheostat terminals and re- 
 move the trouble, which may be due to the crossing of the 
 cables or a loose cable touching another terminal. Should 
 the trouble be internal, namely, inside of the rheostat, you
 
 55 
 
 should not touch it at all, but run your .car back to the 
 barns and report the defects. 
 
 20. A motor field or armature coil may be burned out. 
 Cut out this motor, which can be detected by the smell of 
 shellac and burnt cotton. 
 
 21. Should the speed of the motor increase beyond nor- 
 mal, a field magnet coil is either short circuited or burnt 
 out. The motor should be cut out. 
 
 22. Should there be heavy flashing in the controller and 
 smoking, it is due to dirt, moisture, metal dust in the con- 
 troller, or too slow turning off of the controller. Open 
 your overhead switch and blow out the dust from the ring 
 terminals, remove also all dust at the lower ends of the 
 controller and see that it is dry. 
 
 23. Should the lamps not light up on turning the lamp 
 switch, see if your lamp circuit fuse is not burnt. If in 
 good order either a lamp is not screwed home into its 
 sockets or one of the lamps is burnt out. If one is burnt 
 out none will light up, because they are in series. 
 
 There are also other irregularities which may occur which 
 it is well for the motorman to understand, although he may 
 not be able to remedy them. 
 
 24. One motor of a car becomes a great deal hotter than 
 the other. This may be due to uneven distribution of work 
 caused by difference in the magnetic circuit of the two 
 motors, or to one set of wheels being smaller in diameter 
 than the other, or a ground in the field coil or short circuit 
 in the field coil of the hot motor. 
 
 25. Abnormal heating of one of the motor armatures 
 may be due to its striking the field poles when rotating. 
 
 26. Heating* of the motor may also be due to defective 
 brake, caused by weak release springs or too short a brake 
 chain.
 
 56 
 
 27. Heating may be also due to the oil or grease used 
 which does not melt properly, if at all. A full grease or oil 
 cup is no sign of proper lubrication. If it is found that 
 bearings heat, in spite of full grease cups, take a clean stick, 
 make a hole through the grease down to the shaft, pour in 
 soft oil and go ahead. It may not be a bad idea to oc- 
 casionally feel the car axle bearings, which get pretty warm 
 when insufficiently supplied with oil. 
 
 28. A sharp, rattling noise when the car is traveling at 
 high speed is the consequence of an ^uneven commutator. 
 A commutator that is flat in places, or a few bars that have 
 become loose and project slightly, cause the brushes to be 
 quickly forced away from the commutator by the high bars, 
 and to be forced back onto the lower ones by the brush 
 holder spring as soon as a high bar has passed. The rapid 
 succession of these changes causes the noise, which should 
 be reported. It causes heavy sparking at the brushes and 
 excessive heating! of the commutator segments, besides 
 rapid wearing down of the brushes. This can be remedied 
 only in the repair shop. 
 
 29. A dull thumping noise, also connected with spark- 
 ing at the brushes, may be due to the armature striking or 
 rubbing against the pole pieces. If this is due to loose bear- 
 ings the cap bolts ^should be tightened, but if on account 
 of wornout boxes, the car should be taken to the barn at a 
 slow rate of speed, and reported without delay. 
 
 30. If the car starts with a jerk and the gears make 
 considerable noise, the teeth of the pinion may be worn or 
 fit loosely in the gear, or the key seat on the armature shaft 
 has been made wider by the constant wear of a loose key. 
 This trouble should be reported as soon as p'ossible. 
 
 31. Loud noise from the gearing is sometimes due to 
 loose gears, the teeth of which have too much play. It is 
 increased if the gear casing is partially opened, caused by
 
 57 
 
 loose bolts, or when they are removed entirely. The same 
 trouble of improper meshing of teeth in the gears may be 
 due to a bent armature shaft or a bent car axle. The trouble 
 should be reported to the car inspector or other proper 
 authority. 
 
 32. Another noise frequently heard is the thumping of 
 a car wheel which has a flat spot. The trouble may be due 
 to natural wear, or due to poor track, but most frequently 
 due to improper handling of the brake, which is set too 
 suddenly and prevents the wheels from turning. If the 
 brake is set too tight when going down grade, it will cause 
 the wheels to slide along the rails on four points, which, 
 due to friction, become heated, with the result of softening 
 that part of the wheel, which will wear rapidly into a flat 
 place, causing a disagreeable hammering noise at every 
 revolution of the wheel. 
 
 33. If the motors start with a jerk or do not run 
 smoothly, the conductor should lift one of the trap doors 
 at a time, while the car is running, to examine the com- 
 mutator and brushes of each motor. Should there be seen 
 a flash all around the commutator or connecting two 
 brushes, then there is an open circuit in the armature. Cut 
 out the motor and proceed on your trip with the other motor 
 alone. 
 
 A short circuit on a motor in a car means that by some 
 cause or defect a shorter circuit is found by the electric cur- 
 rent other than is properly provided in the system, and it 
 has the effect of weakening or disabling the part thus 
 affected. For instance, assume that to make the magnet 
 of a motor strong, there is placed around it 500 turns of 
 wire; due to dampness or dirt, let there be cut out 300 or 
 400 turns ; then a current will flow through but 100 turns ; 
 the circuit has become shorter than was intended by the 
 designer. Such defects not only lead to irregularity in
 
 58 
 
 handling, but cause a strain on the dynamo in the power 
 house. Every second that a motor runs after something 
 is wrong is liable to greatly increase the damage. There- 
 fore, cut out a defective motor the moment it is discovered. 
 Short circuits can be caused by dirt and rain, by crossing of 
 the flexible wires joined to the motors and in many other 
 ways. A short circuit on a line means that nearly all or all 
 the necessary resistance which a motor or other translating 
 device should offer when in good condition has been re- 
 moved by a defect, and now acts as a conductor of very 
 little resistance connecting the two wires constituting the 
 line. In a railway system this would mean a direct connec- 
 tion between trolley wire and rail, the current not properly 
 passing through the motors. 
 
 A ground on a motor, or a short circuit, means that some 
 part of the insulation has become defective and that the 
 current has found its way to the iron core. In most rail- 
 way systems used at present the trolley wire is one of the 
 conductors, while the rails form the second or return con- 
 ductor. A ground on a motor equipment indicates that a 
 part of, the field or the armature winding, through which the 
 current should flow before reaching the car wheel, has been 
 cut out of action by a defect. The car will then not 
 operate as well, and depending on the seriousness of the 
 defect, will go slower or faster than when in good order. 
 If a ground cuts out a great deal of the motor circuit it is 
 about equivalent to a short circuit. If a guard wire, tele- 
 graph or telephone wire should fall over the trolley wire 
 and touch the ground it would establish an earth connec- 
 tion, which is equivalent to a short circuit on the dynamo. 
 
 Should a wire be found hanging over the trolley wire, but 
 not reaching the ground, it should be removed with the 
 greatest of care. It does not form a ground, as it may be 
 several feet away from the ground ; however, it is charged
 
 59 
 
 by touching the trolley wire. In trying to remove it with 
 the bare hands, standing on the ground, the man who in- 
 tends to give his services to remove the obstruction forms 
 himself the rest of the circuit and establishes a ground 
 through his body. The moment he would touch this ap- 
 parently lifeless wire with his bare hands, the current dis- 
 charges through his body into the ground. 
 
 A wire covered with rubber insulation can be handled, 
 but even in this case the same precaution should be taken, 
 as no one can tell how' good the insulation may be. Fre- 
 quently rubber insulation becomes brittle and hard when 
 exposed to atmospheric changes hot and cold weather, 
 rain and snow and in this state the insulation is worse 
 than none, because persons may think the covering still to 
 be an insulator when, in fact, it may be carbonized and 
 itself a partial conductor. In damp weather and with high 
 voltages, as now commonly used, such insulation should 
 not be relied on and should be treated as if the wire was a 
 bare one. 
 
 If you see the construction man on his tower wagon 
 handle the trolley wire with bare hands, you should re- 
 member that he stands on a high wooden ladder, and he 
 therefore is well insulated from the ground. Even in his 
 lofty position he has to be on his guard, because the trolley 
 suspension wires are in some cities connected to the iron 
 poles without an insulator between them, only one insu- 
 lator being provided, which is interposed between the trol- 
 ley wire and the span. If he touches either one alone he 
 is safe, but if he touches the trolley wire and at the same 
 time this span wire attached to the iron pole, he establishes 
 a connection from the trolley to the ground through his 
 hands, arms and body and has to suffer the consequences. 
 In most towns the trolley suspension wires are now insu-
 
 60 
 
 lated at both ends, so that they can be handled without 
 danger. 
 
 It may happen that you have to handle a live trolley wire 
 which has broken or fallen in the street, or a telephone or 
 other wire which has fallen across the trolley wire. Never 
 take hold of the wire with your bare hands. If you must 
 take hold of it, put several thicknesses of clothing between 
 your hands and it, if the cloth is dry. Otherwise, use sticks 
 and a rope to remove it.
 
 Part II.
 
 CHAPTER 1. 
 
 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE ELECTRIC MOTOR. 
 
 Many persons have the idea that a dynamo or an electric 
 motor is so complicated a device that it takes years of 
 study to understand it. Nothing is farther from the truth. 
 The fact is, that it is built on one of the simplest principles, 
 and if this principle is well understood it will be easy to 
 understand any machine, because in analyzing we always 
 go back to the simple principle and leave out the many 
 complicated additions which may be attached to a machine 
 for one reason or another. 
 
 A dynamo or motor is nothing else but a powerful mag- 
 
 FIG. 28. FIG. 31. 
 
 net, and differs in principle but slightly from the common 
 horseshoe magnet. Fig. 28 represents a magnet which we 
 can buy in any hardware store. To understand the action 
 of a dynamo or motor, it becomes necessary to understand 
 this little magnet. It is a piece of flat steel bent into the 
 form of a horseshoe, which is hardened and afterward mag- 
 netized. It has been found that steel, when hardened, will 
 retain magnetism for a long time, that is, for months and
 
 64 
 
 years ; provided, however, that it has constantly some work 
 to do. For this reason the keeper B is always found with 
 the magnet. The keeper or armature B is a simple piece 
 of soft iron which, when brought near to the end of the 
 magnet poles or the horseshoe, will be attracted and held 
 
 ^If* 
 
 FIG. 29. FIG. 30. 
 
 by the magnet. If we attempt to remove this piece of iron 
 B from magnet A we find that it requires some force ; that 
 it takes energy to pull off the iron piece from the magnet. 
 We are therefore confronted by the fact that this bent piece 
 of steel has energy stored in it, and that this energy is 
 capable of doing work. The magnet, which at first had to 
 be charged, takes up energy which is stored in it, and 
 which afterward it can return to do useful work. It is 
 similar to a spiral spring. We have to spend energy to 
 compress it (Fig. 29), but the moment we reduce the pres- 
 sure we feel that the spring tries to utilize the stored energy 
 and force our fingers apart (Fig. 30). 
 
 If we remove the armature from the horseshoe magnet, 
 the energy acts from one end of the magnet to the other 
 through the air. The energy or flow of energy is not visible 
 to the eye, but the results of this force are made visible by 
 the action of iron filings when brought near to a magnet. 
 With the aid of iron filings it is found that this force is very 
 intense near and between the ends of poles, and spread in 
 curves the farther we go out into the space surrounding 
 the magnet poles. Fig 31 gives a clear view of some of
 
 65 
 
 these lines. The spots which are marked N, S, are the 
 places where the paper touches the ends or poles of the 
 magnet, which is beneath the sheet of paper presenting the 
 figure. 
 
 The iron filings, which are thrown on top of the sheet, 
 arrange themselves in lines as seen. Between the poles 
 these lines appear straight, and become more and more 
 curved the longer the path becomes from one pole to the 
 other. It must, however, be borne in mind that the sheet 
 is but a single plane through the sphere or globe surround- 
 ing the magnet, and that the power of activity goes in all 
 directions surrounding the poles, as the branches and 
 leaves surround the trunk of a tree. These same curves of 
 activity can be seen to go in all directions in space by tak- 
 ing a small compass needle and passing it from one pole 
 to the other. The needle will during its travel change its 
 position with relation to the two poles, and will always take 
 such a position that its two ends lie in line with the par- 
 ticular curve which unites it with the two poles (Fig. 32). 
 It is owing to this custom of representing this force by the 
 
 
 curved lines that it became usual to speak of "magnetic 
 lines of force," which, however, should not be considered 
 as actual lines, nor that they simply connect the two poles, 
 as in Figs. 24 and 25, but as a force which threads through 
 the whole length of the magnet, as shown in Fig. 33. This 
 energy is not only vested in the extremities or poles, but
 
 66 
 
 is the sum of the forces of all the particles of steel consti- 
 tuting the magnet. The energy is in the magnet, but its 
 manifestations become apparent most strongly at the points 
 where it passes from the magnetic medium to a non- 
 magnetic one. Air is non-magnetic, while iron and steel 
 
 are strongly magnetic substances. Owing to the great 
 preference that the magnetism has for iron, it selects the 
 path indicated in Fig 33, rather than to go straight from 
 the pole N to the S pole through the air. In passing 
 through the iron the lines of magnetic force cause the 
 armature or keeper to also become a magnet. The poles 
 are marked S and N as abbreviations for "South" and 
 "North," because they correspond to the poles or ends of 
 the magnetic needle of a compass. The keeper becomes a 
 magnet under the influence of the horseshoe magnet. 
 
 If we substitute for the keeper a permanent magnet, viz., 
 a piece of steel in which the poles are fixed, we find that if 
 the two magnets are faced N to S and S to N, as in this 
 figure, they will attract each other. If placed so that the 
 two N poles are together and the two S poles are together, 
 no attraction will take place, but, on the contrary, they will 
 repel each other, and from this fact comes the rule "like 
 poles N, N, or S, S, repel each other, unlike poles attract 
 each other."
 
 67 
 
 A great step in advance was made when the following 
 fact was discovered : It was found that if a wire carrying 
 an electric current and a magnetic needle, delicately sus- 
 pended, were brought close to each other, that the needle 
 was deflected to one side. If the current flowed in a wire 
 above the needle in the direction from south to north, 
 namely, if the wire itself was held in a direction due north 
 and south above the needle, and the current flowed north 
 through the wire, then the north-seeking end of the needle 
 was deflected to the west. If the wire was held above the 
 needle, but turned round so that the current flowed from 
 north to south, then the north-seeking point of the needle 
 was deflected to the east. Lastly, if the wire was held 
 below the needle, the direction of the deflection was re- 
 versed. It was clear, then, what had been long suspected, 
 that there was some connection between magnetism and 
 electricty. 
 
 This experiment also showed that the electric current 
 could act through space, and acts on the magnetic needle 
 just as the horseshoe magnet would. If that is the case 
 
 then it must disturb the space surrounding it while a cur- 
 rent is flowing; it must establish a sphere around itself of 
 the nature of a magnet, a sphere that has magnetic proper- 
 ties. Investigating the space around the wire with iron 
 filings, we find a grouping of the little iron particles (Fig?. 
 34 and 35), and that the wire carrying a current attracts
 
 68 
 
 iron filings. Fig 35 shows a picture of the force around 
 the wire, while Fig. 34 shows an end view of Fig. 35. 
 
 Fig. 36 represents a magnetic needle surrounded by a 
 coil of wire carrying a current. It appears that we have 
 here the principle of an electric motor with this one differ- 
 ence, that owing to the arrangement of parts the move- 
 ment is not rotary. Motion is imparted, but not contin- 
 uous motion, in one direction. It was found further that 
 if we take a spool of wire (Fig. 37) without any iron near 
 it and send an electric current through it, as, for instance, 
 from a battery B, through the coil A, that it behaved just 
 
 as a magnet would, viz., that it exhibited a north pole at 
 one extremity and a south pole at the other, and that it 
 attracted one end of the magnetic needle at one end and 
 the other at the opposite end; just what we know would 
 take place if we had an ordinary straight magnet or bar 
 magnet instead of the spool with the current flowing 
 through it. 
 
 Lastly, one more phenomenon must be mentioned, which 
 will complete our picture. If we take a spool of wire 
 A (Fig. 38) and connect it to another coil B several feet 
 away, which is close to a magnetic needle C, and we ap- 
 proach a magnet D to the first coil A, then the needle 
 is momentarily deflected. The needle C is far enough 
 away not to be under the directing influence of the mag-
 
 69 
 
 net D. What takes place is this: The sphere surround- 
 ing the magnet pole in its approach affects the coil A, and 
 this disturbance in space is the cause of the flow of an elec- 
 tric current in coil A, which, passing through the coil B, 
 disturbs the air surrounding it and changes it into a mag- 
 net, which in turn acts on the compass needle. Here we have 
 one of the earliest transmissions of power to a distance. 
 
 Returning now to our simple magnet (Fig. 39). it will be 
 clear and in accordance with facts that if a loop of wire, 
 placed between the poles of a horseshoe magnet and con- 
 nected to a delicate instrument for measuring electric cur- 
 rents, is turned between the poles of this magnet, such turn- 
 
 ing produces a temporary current which affects and deflects 
 the needle of the instrument. An electric current is gen- 
 erated which flows from the loop to the instrument and 
 back again, with the effect of deflecting the needle of the 
 instrument. What has been found is that taking a magnet 
 and turning a coil of wire in its sphere of activity, or (as 
 it is called technically) in its magnetic field, an electric cur- 
 rent is created or generated in this coil. The reader will now 
 see that if this simple magnet, with the loop or a coil placed 
 between its poles, is conveniently arranged on a shaft so as 
 to turn it continually in the same direction (Fig. 40), a cur- 
 rent will be produced that will last for some time instead of 
 simply an impulse of current ; this constitutes a dynamo
 
 70 
 
 in its simplest form. Of course such an arrangement gives 
 but very weak currents and is not a commercial device, ow- 
 ing to its primitive mechanical arrangement, and also owing 
 to the weakness of the permanent magnet, but this funda- 
 
 mental idea can be recognized in any and all of our modern 
 macihnes. 
 
 Now let us start once more with our permanent magnet 
 and go through the evolution until we reach the dynamo 
 of to-day. Fig. 28 shows the permanent horseshoe mag- 
 net with its keeper in place. Fig. 41 shows the keeper or 
 armature, as we will call it hereafter, some distance from 
 the poles, with the field of activity in the space between the 
 
 FIG. 44. 
 
 poles and the armature. The armature, under the influ- 
 ence of the magnet, becomes also a magnet and must ex- 
 hibit poles, which are indicated by the letters N S, N S, in 
 such a way that a south pole of the armature will stand 
 before a north pole of the magnet. Under these condi-
 
 71 
 
 tions the force exerted causes mutual attraction between the 
 magnet and its armature, resulting in a motion of the smaller 
 piece, which moves toward the magnet, where all motion 
 stops when it rests against the poles. If we now wind a coil 
 around the armature, we would obtain a temporary current 
 which lasts as long as the armature is approaching the poles 
 (Fig. 42), but as soon as the armature comes to rest the 
 current ceases. In a dynamo it is desired to produce cur- 
 rents continually, and therefore it is necessary to modify 
 the form and relationship of the armature to the magnet. 
 This is shown in Fig. 43. In this case the armature is 
 
 mounted on a spindle, a cylindrical piece of iron, which, 
 magnetically considered, is a bar as in Fig. 41. Fig. 44 
 shows a magnet like Fig. 43, with the wires wound around 
 the cylindrical armature core. The wires and the shaft are 
 shown in section. The wire, which is to be rotated in the 
 space of magnetic activity, is placed as near the poles as pos- 
 sible, as shown in section in Fig. 44. This figure is ob- 
 tained by placing the magnet in the plane of the leaf or book 
 (Fig. 45). The armature and wires lie at right angles, pen- 
 etrating through all the leaves. If the armature in Fig. 45 
 be cut off, the end that projects on top is shown in Fig. 44. 
 To collect the currents generated and bring them to devices, 
 such as lamps or motors, we have to make some provision
 
 72 
 
 for collecting the electric current from the rotating arma- 
 ture to stationary points. This is done by connecting the 
 ends of the rotating coils to metallic contact pieces or rings, 
 which will be explained later. 
 
 To produce strong currents strong magnets are needed, 
 
 FIG. 47. 
 
 and it was found that permanent steel magnets were weak- 
 ened when an armature with winding was made to gen- 
 erate heavy electric currents. It was further found that 
 soft iron, when wound with coils through which a current 
 was sent, became a far more powerful magnet than could 
 be obtained in any other way. Therefore it became the prac-
 
 73 
 
 tice to use wrought iron, cast iron or soft steel magnets for 
 dynamos, and to magnetize them by a winding through which 
 an electric current is sent as long as the machine is working. 
 Fig. 46 shows our simple magnet provided with energizing 
 coils, which, to distinguish them from the windings on the 
 armature, are called the field magnet windings, or, in short, 
 the field windings, because they belong to that magnet which 
 establishes the field in which the other part or armature ij> 
 
 FIG. 48. 
 
 to rotate. Between the magnet poles is the armature with 
 a winding and contact devices. 
 
 "If we now compare the complete dynamo with the orig- 
 inal magnet, we find that the only difference between them 
 is that the dynamo is made more powerful than the magnet 
 by the application of the coils, and the differences in the 
 armatures are that the motion is changed from a lateral to 
 a rotary one ; further, that the armature is provided with a 
 winding and a device for conveniently taking off the cur- 
 rent generated by the rotating of the armature winding in 
 the sphere of energy of the magnet. The reader will now 
 clearly see that there is no frictional contact required be- 
 tween the armature and the field magnet, an erroneous view
 
 74 
 
 so frequently expressed by people not conversant with the 
 subject. 
 
 We are now prepared to look critically at any kind of a 
 dynamo, from the simplest and weakest to the largest ma- 
 chines built to-day, without confusion and without the idea 
 of great complication as regards the nature of its operation, 
 for now the single magnet with the single loop between the 
 poles will be ever present before the mental eye. 
 
 Let us examine in this way a few of the types of dynamos 
 used in every-day practice. Fig. 47 shows the outline of 
 an Edison dynamo, one of the older types, still in use in 
 some stations. The horseshoe magnet with its windings 
 will readily be recognized in this machine. It is built with 
 its poles downward and its armature between the poles, 
 which are extended so as to surround the armature. Fig. 
 48 shows a front and side view of the armature, the iron 
 core being completely covered by the wire. On the right 
 side may be seen the contact terminals, called the commu- 
 tator, which is marked A. In Fig. 25 was shown a large
 
 75 
 
 railway generator capable of driving a great many cars. Fig. 
 49 is a skeleton of a multipolar field magnet, which shows a 
 magnet with four poles and consists of four horseshoe mag- 
 nets, one of which is shown shaded. The armature is shown 
 located between the poles. 
 
 This elementary description, explaining the nature of the 
 generation of an electric current, shows clearly how simple 
 is the principle underlying an electric machine. It is a 
 magnet at rest, combined with a rotating piece of iron 
 wrapped with wire, that constitutes a dynamo; and further- 
 more, a machine that is used as a dynamo may also be used 
 as a motor. The name dynamo or motor changes with the 
 service to be rendered. If the machine sown in Fig. 47 be 
 driven by a steam engine, and is supplying electric current, 
 it is a dynamo; if, however, an electric current is applied to 
 it, and it does mechanical work, it is a motor. These dif- 
 ferences should be clear in the mind of the reader. If there 
 are parts he does not understand clearly, he should discuss 
 the subject with such persons of his acquaintance who are 
 competent to explain the matter to him.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE ELECTRIC RAILWAY MOTOR AND CAR EQUIPMENT. 
 
 We are now ready to look into the details of an electric 
 railway motor. In Chapter I were explained the principles 
 on which all dynamos and motors are built. We found a 
 motor to be simply a magnet in which the magnetism is 
 produced by the electric current, and in which one part, 
 called an armature, is caused to revolve by magnetic attrac- 
 tion between it and the poles of other parts, called the field 
 magnets. We have also learned how the electric current is 
 transmitted through wires, and what precautions are neces- 
 sary to insulate or confine it to the proper wires or con- 
 ductors. 
 
 Let us go more into the details of the internal working 
 of the armature of the dynamo or motor, and show the rea- 
 son why in one case large engines are used to produce the 
 electric current, and while at other times the armature will 
 turn itself and give out energy. In Fig. 48 is shown an ar- 
 mature complete. It consists of a shaft on which is mounted 
 an iron core closely wrapped with wire, 1 and the ends of the 
 wire coils are connected to the contact terminals, called the 
 commutator, on which the brushes rest to collect the current. 
 An armature is represented in diagram in Fig. 50. The iron 
 armature core A is shown in form of a ring. The winding 
 B is uniformly wrapped around the core, and every three 
 turns a wire is led to the commutator C, which is divided 
 into eight parts because the winding shows eight coils. The 
 number of coils varies on different kinds of armatures.
 
 77 
 
 The commutator consists of copper bars insulated from 
 one another by mica. These bars form the ends of the 
 armature coils. They are made heavier than the wires so 
 as to last a long time, being exposed to wear by rubbing 
 contact, and to be detachable when worn out. On the com- 
 mutator rest the brushes D, Di. If the armature is tra- 
 versed by a current entering at brush D, as for instance when 
 it is used as a motor, the current passes to segment I, and 
 from there through connecting wire a to the armature wire 
 proper. Here it has a double pass, as shown by the arrows. 
 
 Half the current will follow the direction indicated by the 
 arrows on the upper half of the ring, and the other part of 
 the current will follow ihe wires wound on the lower half of 
 the armature core. The two currents unite again wire e, 
 enter segment 5 brush Di, and leave the armature. This 
 flow takes place in whatever position the armature may be. 
 For instance, assuming the brushes D, Di stationary and the 
 armature turning ; if the armature has turned so far around 
 that segment 2 would be under the brush D, then segment 
 6 would be under brush Di. The current would go to the 
 armature winding through b and leave it by way of f. In
 
 78 
 
 this way each one of the segments and connecting wires has 
 to perform in succession its work. The current in going 
 around the core makes a magnet out of the iron, as indicated 
 by the letters N, S. 
 
 For the sake of convenience in understanding, the arma- 
 ture core may be also considered divided into two half rings, 
 as in Fig. 51, the upper and lower; then the current flowing 
 around the upper half makes it a magnet, and similarly the 
 
 FIG. 51. 
 
 current in the lower half will make that half become a mag- 
 net. The poles are marked N and S. The poles caused by 
 each half of the current are indicated on the ring. An N 
 pole on one side and an S pole on the opposite side in each 
 half is produced, and both together make again one N pole 
 and one S pole, but of double the strength. As long as the 
 brushes stand in this position the magnetic poles will stay 
 in space in the same position, however much the armature 
 may rotate, because just as many turns are leaving the brush 
 on one side as are brought under it from the opposite side.
 
 79 
 
 The iron ring wrapped with the armature wire repre- 
 sents in reality two half circular magnets 'butting together 
 with similar poles. Whether these are curved as is Fig. 51, 
 or have another form, for instance, being straight bar mag- 
 nets, does not alter anything in the nature of the armature. 
 Nor is there, as far as principle is concerned, any difference 
 between a ring armature, shown in Fig. 50, and a drum ar- 
 mature. An armature made for a street railway motor is 
 generally made of thin discs mounted in a compact way on 
 a shaft (Fig. 52). The wire in this case has to be all ap- 
 plied externally. It cannot be threaded through the center 
 
 as in Fig. 50, but the results is the same. Fig. 53 is a dia- 
 gram indicating a railway motor with an iron core made of 
 discs and the magnetizing copper wire wound all around the 
 surface. 
 
 The diagram represents the armature in section. Now 
 suppose the brushes to be set as they are in Fig. 50, then 
 the current flowing in the coils with which the armature core 
 is wound will cause N and S poles in the armature as in- 
 dicated. Current is also sent through the coils on the field 
 magnets, causing N and S poles in the magnet as indicated. 
 It will be evident that the S pole of the armature will en- 
 deavor to place itself in front of the N pole of the field mag- 
 net, being attracted by it and at the same time repelled by
 
 80 
 
 the S pole near it. Similarly the N pole of the armature will 
 try to get in front of the S field pole, being attracted by this 
 pole and repelled by the N pole; but as the brushes are sta- 
 tionary, the magnetic poles S, N of the armature remain 
 fixed in space between the poles, while the conductors car- 
 rying the current and the core on which they are wound are 
 turning in the direction of the arrow as long as a current is 
 conducted into the armature. 
 
 In a motor, therefore, the electrical energy furnished by 
 some outside source causes rotation capable of developing 
 mechanical energy. In a dynamo it is just the opposite. 
 There is no electrical energy given ; it has to be produced. 
 
 The wire coils passing in front of the magnet poles gen- 
 erate current. 
 
 Fig. 54 illustrates this action. The field magnet N S 
 changes the armature into a magnet with the poles as indi- 
 cated, the S pole of the armature approximately facing the 
 N pole of the field and the N pole of the armature nearly 
 facing the S pole of the field magnet. There exists mutual 
 attraction between the armature and the field magnet. To 
 generate a current, the armature must be turned between 
 the energized field magnet poles, which is equivalent to at- 
 tempting the pulling away the armature poles from under 
 the field 'poles. This we know from the first experimnent 
 mentioned in the book means the expenditure of energy. 
 
 We can now look more intelligently at the parts of a
 
 81 
 
 modern electric railway motor than we could when we first 
 went through the shops. We have already seen the external 
 parts of a motor in Chapter i, Part i, Figs. 7 tq 16. From 
 the foregoing explanations we are now in a position to ex- 
 amine the various internal parts of an electric motor. Fig. 
 
 FIG. 55. 
 
 55 shows a railway motor with its frame opened, giving a 
 view of its interior parts. The armature, A, is mounted 
 upon a shaft and at one end of the armature is the com- 
 mutator C, consisting of a cylinder of insulated copper bars, 
 to which the ends of the armature coils are connected. Sur- 
 rounding the armature are four field magnets, or poles, P, 
 around which are wound coil of wire to magnetize them for
 
 82 
 
 the purpose previously explained. The brushes, B, conduct 
 the current to and from the armature through their contact 
 with the commutator. These brushes consist of carbon 
 blocks which are held in brush holders and which are pressed 
 against the commutator by springs. The path of the current 
 through the motor is as follows : Starting at one of the 
 brushes the current passes through all the coils of wire upon 
 the armature, beginning at whatever commutator bar the 
 brush happens to rest upon, and comes out upon another 
 commutator bar under the second brush. From this brush 
 the current is led through all the field coils wound around 
 the poles surrounding the armature, and this completes the 
 circuit through the motor. With the current flowing 
 through both the armature and the field coils, both the ar- 
 mature and the field become magnets, and each attracts the 
 other in such a way as to cause the armature to turn as pre- 
 viously explained. To reverse the direction in which the 
 armature revolves, which reverses the direction of the car, 
 it is only necessary to change the direction in which the cur- 
 rent flows through the armature, allowing the current to 
 flow through the fields in the same direction as before, or we 
 can also reverse the direction of revolution by permitting the 
 current to flow in the same direction through the armature 
 and reversing its direction through the field coils. If the 
 armature current is reversed the magnetism in the armature 
 is reversed, the north pole becoming a south pole and the 
 south pole a north pole. In order to reverse the current in 
 the armature the wires from the armature brushes are led 
 to the controller independently from the terminals of the field 
 coils, so that the connections of the armature terminals can 
 be reversed at the controller when it is desired to reverse 
 the direction of rotation of the motor. For this reason 
 there will always be at least four wires leading out from the 
 motor.
 
 83 
 
 We will now trace the electrical circuit through the car. 
 The current, as we know, comes from the power house 
 through the feed wires and trolley wire, and flows through 
 the trolley wheel down the trolley pole to the trolley base. 
 This base is insulated from the ground by the wood which 
 forms the car body. From the trolley base a wire conducts 
 the current to the canopy switch over one platform, and 
 passing through this switch it flows through another wire to 
 the canopy switch over the other platform and from there a 
 
 FIG. 56. 
 
 wire generally concealed in a corner post of the car carries 
 the current to the car fuse box, mentioned in Chapter I, Part 
 i. The canopy switch, Fig. 56, is also sometimes called the 
 main motor switch, the overhead switch or the auxiliary 
 switch. These switches are generally provided with what 
 is known as a blow-out magnet coil, for the purpose of blow- 
 ing out the arc when the switch is opened. The next piece 
 of apparatus in the circuit is the fuse box, which is a device 
 for protecting the motors from an excessive flow of current.
 
 84 
 
 All the current flowing through the car motors passes 
 through this fuse box, of which there are several styles on 
 the market. The simplest fuse consists merely of a piece 
 
 FIG. 57. 
 
 of soft wire generally made of some aHoy of lead having a 
 low current carrying capacity. This piece of fuse wire will 
 melt and open the electric circuit whenever the current 
 flows through the motors of such an amount as might burn 
 the cotton insulation on the coils of the armature or the field 
 
 magnet. When too much current is permitted to flow 
 through any wire it becomes heated and the greater the 
 amount of current the hotter the wire becomes. If. there-
 
 85 
 
 fore, something should happen on the car to allow too much 
 current to flow through the motors, the wire upon their ar- 
 matures and fields would become heated so as to burn the 
 insulation upon them, and would eventually be melted if the 
 circuit were not protected with a fuse which would melt 
 when the current exceeded a certain predetermined amount. 
 The fuse is frequently a short length of metal connected be- 
 tween two binding posts, and of a material that will melt at 
 a very low temperature, although sometimes a small copper 
 wire is used. When copper is used it must be of a size much 
 
 smaller than any of the other wires on the car, so that it will 
 melt before any other of the wires in the circuit can get 
 dangerously hot. 
 
 The Westinghouse Company employs a fuse which has 
 to be taken out of the box with its supporting blocks before 
 it can be renewed (Fig. 58), but with this exception the 
 usual fuse box consists simply of two terminals fixed inside 
 the fuse box between which the fuse is clamped, as in the 
 General Electric fuse box (Fig. 57). 
 
 In addition to the bare wire fuses described above, there 
 are various covered fuses such as the D. E. W. fuse, Fig. 59, 
 and the Noark fuse, Fig. 60. The latter has a fusible con-
 
 86 
 
 ductor which is enclosed in a tube and around the con- 
 ductor is a special filling which prevents any arc or flash 
 under short circuits. A fuse of this kind is a great im- 
 provement over the old-fashioned bare wire fuses, as they 
 do not blow with the loud report and heavy flash which ac- 
 company the blowing of a bare fuse. They are also of ad- 
 vantage in not blistering the varnish and paint of the car, 
 which frequently happens with the uncovered fuse. An- 
 
 other advantage of these fuses is that they are inserted in 
 the fuse box by simply pushing the tube into its seat be- 
 tween clamping springs, and there are no thumb screws to 
 be manipulated, which is a difficult matter in severe weather. 
 Automatic circuit breakers have recently been used to a 
 large extent to take the place of the fuse, and they are prefer- 
 able to fuses for a number of reasons, the chief of which 
 are that they may be arranged to break the circuit when the 
 current exceeds any predetermined amount with much more 
 accuracy than a wire fuse, and they are thrown into circuit
 
 87 
 
 again simply by the movement of a handle without the neces- 
 sity of replacing any of the parts, as with the fuse. There are 
 a number of circuit breakers on the market, one of which, 
 called the I. T. E. circuit breaker, is shown in Fig. 61, but 
 they are all designed practically upon the same principle. 
 The principal parts of the automatic circuit breaker are a 
 switch which closes against a spring, and which is held in 
 its closed position by means of a trip. In the circuit of the 
 machine is placed a magnetic coil, the function of which is 
 
 FIG. 61. 
 
 to attract an armature whose movement releases the trip, 
 permitting the spring to throw the contact surfaces apart 
 and break the circuit. The cause of the armature being at- 
 tracted and the trip released is that the magnet coil is wound 
 so that with a normal amount of current the magnet is not 
 strong enough to attract the armature, but the moment an 
 excessive amount of current is used the strength of the mag- 
 net is correspondingly increased, so that the armature is at- 
 tracted and the trip released, which opens the circuit. 
 
 The next device on the car to which the current is led is 
 the lightning arrester. This is a device to deflect lightning
 
 or atmospheric discharges from the circuit to the ground 
 before they have an opportunity to reach the motors or other 
 electrical apparatus on the car. There is a strong tendency 
 for a lightning discharge to take the shortest and most direct 
 path to the ground, and it will readily arch over a small gap 
 or air space or will pierce through insulating materials to 
 the ground. If it were not for the lightning arrester, the 
 
 True A and Grouncf 
 
 FIG. 62. FIG. 63. 
 
 lightning would frequently jump through the insulation 
 of the armatures or field magnets of the car motor, and while 
 the very small current of the lightning discharge would do 
 no harm of itself, the arc which it would establish in jump- 
 ing to the ground would be followed up by the line current 
 from the station, which would burn ont the windings im- 
 mediately. The tendency of lightning to jump to the ground 
 by the shortest path is the principle upon which- most all 
 lightning arresters are designed. These devices usually con-
 
 89 
 
 sist of some arrangement whereby the lightning can easily 
 pass down the wire across to the ground by jumping be- 
 tween points set a small fraction of an inch apart. Various 
 provisions are made by different manufacturers to prevent 
 the current from the power house from following the light- 
 ning when it is deflected to earth. Fig. 62 shows a diagram 
 of the connections of the lightning arrester. One terminal 
 is connected to the wire from the trolley and the other to 
 the motor truck and therefore to the ground. The lightning 
 jumps across between the points and is thus led to the earth. 
 Fig. 63 shows a Carton arrester. In it may be seen the two 
 carbon points indicated by an arrow between which the 
 
 lightning jumps on its way to earth. In order to break this 
 special circuit after the lightning has passed so that the cur- 
 rent from the dynamo cannot follow by the same path that 
 is taken by the lightning to earth, the circuit to the lightning 
 arrester is automatically broken by an electro magnet which 
 pulls the two carbons apart as soon as current flows through 
 the coil C. It will be seen that the circuit of the lightning 
 arrester or by-pass is constantly open except when tempo- 
 rarily closed, as the lightning flash crosses it, and even then 
 it is a circuit of very high resistance. It is therefore clear 
 that while the lightning, arrester is connected to the trolley 
 wire, yet no current from the trolley line goes through it. A 
 kicking coil, Fig. 64, is used in connection with the lightning
 
 90 
 
 arrested, and an inductive resistance such as this coil is the 
 only resistance that offers hindrance to the passage of static 
 electricity- or lightning. The kicking coil is put in the cir- 
 cuit immediately after the lightning arrester and its induc- 
 tive resistance tends to drive the discharge through the ar- 
 rester before it reaches the motors or other apparatus. Fig. 
 65 shows the Wurtz non-arcing lightning arrester with the 
 outside cover removed. The principle upon which this ar- 
 rester is based is that a discharge will pass over a non-con- 
 
 FIG. 65. 
 
 ducting surface, such as wood, more readily than through an 
 equal air gap, and the discharge will take place still more 
 readily if a pencil or carbon mark be drawn over the non- 
 conducting surface. In order to maintain a dynamo arc, 
 fumes or vapors of the electrodes must be present. The in- 
 strument is constructed with two metal electrodes mounted 
 upon a block of hard wood with charred or carbonized 
 grooves upon it to provide a path for the discharge. An- 
 other block of wood is fastened closely upon the first block, 
 entirely covering the grooves and electrodes. The discharge 
 takes place over the charred grooves which provide an easy
 
 91 
 
 path for it, and as there is no room for vapor between the 
 tightly fitting blocks no arc can be formed. Fig. 66 shows 
 the General Electric type of lightning arrester for trolley 
 cars. 
 
 After the line current has passed the point where the light- 
 ning arrester is connected, it flows through what is called the 
 kicking coil previously mentioned. The object of this is to 
 aid in making it difficult for the lightning to flow toward the 
 motors, owing to an inductive kick in the spiral winding, 
 and to increase the liability of its going to ground through 
 the lightning arrester. 
 
 After leaving the choke coil the current enters one of the 
 many wires conveniently held by a hose. This wire is con-' 
 nected to both car controllers. A number of other wires 
 lead from each controller to motors and regulating resist- 
 ance. After leaving the motors the current flows to a wire 
 which is securely fastened to the iron or frame of the motor, 
 from which the circuit, continues through the various motor 
 supports to the car truck and car axle, then to the wheel 
 rims through the rails back to the generator. Next in im- 
 portance to the motors are the car controllers. As the mo- 
 torman has chiefly to do with the controllers they will be 
 treated in a subsequent chapter,
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 CONTROLLERS. 
 
 For controlling the speed of electric cars three general 
 methods have been employed, two of which, however, are 
 practically obsolete to-day. One method is by means of a 
 rheostat, which was the system adopted by the Thomson- 
 Houston Co. In the Thomson-Houston method of con- 
 trol the motors are connected permanently in paral- 
 lel, and the rheostat is inserted in series with the 
 two motors, and contains sufficient resistance to re- 
 duce the starting pressure to less than half of the total volt- 
 age. This resistance is gradually cut out until the full volt- 
 age of the circuit passes through the motors when the car 
 reaches its maximum speed. There are two types of rheo- 
 stats made by the Thomson-Houston Co. known as type 
 D~5i and D-8i. The former is semi-circular in shape, and 
 the latter is round. Another method of motor control for 
 street cars is that of the Sprague system in which the field 
 coils are divided into several sections, the sections be- 
 ing connected in series and also in series with the 
 armature in starting the car, and changing by suc- 
 cessive steps of the controller until they are all in 
 parallel, and in parallel with the armature, when the 
 car attains its maximum speed. A starting rheostat is also 
 used with this method of control, but is in series only on the 
 first notch of the controller when the car is starting from 
 rest. Both of these systems are. now practically out of use,
 
 93 
 
 and can only be found on cars equipped many years ago, but 
 as they are liable to be met with on some of the older roads, 
 a short reference and description of them has been included. 
 Of these two systems the Sprague system is the most eco- 
 nomical in the use of current, but owing to the complication 
 of the windings, is more liable to derangements and burn 
 outs. With the straight rheostatic method there is . no 
 change whatever in the connections of the motor fields, and 
 while this method is less efficient than the other, its freedom 
 from accidents and burn outs is a distinct advantage. 
 
 The series parallel method of control which is now uni- 
 versally used, and which has supplanted all other methods, 
 consists in grouping the motors on the car, together with the 
 starting rheostat, in series and gradually, through the suc- 
 cessive steps of the controller, changing them to parallel con- 
 nection when the car attains its greatest speed. A large num- 
 ber of controllers of both the General Electric, Westinghouse 
 and other makes, are described in the following pages. It 
 may be stated, however, that the type K General Electric 
 controllers, are the ones most commonly used. 
 
 The car controller is a combination of switches adapted 
 to control the speed of the motors by admitting more or less 
 electrical energy to the motors as the case may require. 
 These changes of connections may be made by a number of 
 independent and separate switches, but if this were done 
 many switches would be required, and they would be slow 
 and awkward to operate and would occupy too much room. 
 Experience has shown that a circular contact drum is the 
 quickest acting and most suitable device on which a great 
 many changes of connections can be made simply and easily. 
 The purpose of the controller is threefold : 
 
 1. To connect the motors into the circuit so that current 
 can flow through them. 
 
 2. To regulate the amount of current flowing to the mo-
 
 94 
 
 tors so as to make a gradual start and control the speed of 
 the car. 
 
 3. To govern the direction of travel of the car. 
 
 The electrical pressure on the trolley line (technically 
 called voltage) is kept practically constant at the power 
 house. Therefore, if the current at full pressure were ad- 
 mitted suddenly to the motors, and no means provided to 
 .allow it to rise gradually, we would have to expect a similar 
 abrupt and sudden start by the motors from a state of rest. 
 Admitting the full current would be a strain on the elec- 
 trical parts, and similarly the sudden start from rest to 
 high speed would tax the bearings and other mechanical 
 supports and gears, to say nothing of the discomfort which 
 the passengers would experience by the jerk with which the 
 motors would start the car. 
 
 To control the amount of current flowing to the motor 
 it is necessary to consume a portion of the pressure under 
 which the current flows by interposing some material which 
 offers a resistance to the flow of the current until the motor 
 has been gradually increased to its normal speed. All the 
 switches or contacts for such grading or varying of resist- 
 ance are mounted on the drum of the controller, while the 
 resistance itself is generally fixed at a convenient place be- 
 low the car body. Substances that offer resistance to the 
 flow of current are iron wire, iron strips or plates, german 
 silver, etc. For street railway purposes iron plates or bands 
 are generally used, which are supported in an iron frame, the 
 turns or convolutions being insulated from each other and 
 the fire proof frame by mica. The complete device is termed 
 a resistance, though some call it rheostat or diverter. Let us 
 assume, for the sake of illustration, that the total length of 
 the iron resistance band is 40 ft. in divisions of 10 ft. each, 
 these divisions being connected to the controller terminals 
 by means of wires mentioned in the previous chapter. If
 
 95 
 
 now this controller were placed on the first notch, the whole 
 40 ft. of iron band would be in circuit with the motor, and 
 the pressure that could reach the motor reduced just the 
 amount that would be lost in the 40 ft. of iron band. Turn- 
 ing the controller to the second notch, 10 ft. of this iron 
 band would be cut out so that but 30 ft. would be in cir- 
 cuit. The pressure that could reach the motor in this case 
 would, of course, be greater and its speed would increase. 
 Turning the controller to the third notch, but 20 ft.; to the 
 fourth notch, but 10 ft. of the resistance would be left in the 
 
 circuit, and at the fifth position the resistance would be out 
 entirely, causing an increase of speed with every reduction 
 in resistance and a maximum speed when all resistance was 
 cut out. 
 
 A Westinghouse resistance or diverter is shown in Fig. 
 67. Its terminals (by which as just explained the resist- 
 ance is subdivided) are led to the controller. In order to clear- 
 ly understand all the different changes and conditions that 
 take place by means of the controllers, it is desirable to make 
 the reader acquainted first with the different modes of circuit 
 connection and their names, and then immediately apply them 
 to standard types of controllers. After the preliminary ex-
 
 96 
 
 planation one type of each make in general use will be de- 
 scribed in detail, and the rest will be understood after a 
 simple statement of the successive steps and changes as they 
 take place. 
 
 If several parts or conductors are grouped so that the 
 total current flows in succession through all parts, they are 
 said to be grouped in "series," as for instance in Fig. 68. 
 
 Main fuse Resistance 
 
 hVWVWH 
 
 The trolley, the main fuse and the resistance carry the total 
 current that goes to the motors, and they are said, or each 
 one of them is said, to be in series with the motors. The 
 motors are also in series with each other, as the current flows 
 first through one, then through the other. It will be clear 
 that if for any cause the main fuse would melt, there would 
 be a separation between the trolley pole and the resistance 
 and the current could not flow. 
 
 Another mode of connection is called "parallel" or "mul-
 
 97 
 
 tiple" connection. This is shown in Fig. 69. The full cur- 
 rent supplied to a car goes down the trolley pole, and if the 
 motors are grouped, as shown in this figure, the current 
 will divide and half of it will go to one motor and the other 
 half to the other motor. Where the circuits of the motors 
 are connected again the two currents join and flow on as 
 
 one through the car wheel and rail. The two motors are 
 connected in parallel or multiple with one another. How- 
 ever, this connection is not restricted to motors only. Any 
 two or more conductors placed in such a relation that the 
 original current will split up into several paths and join at 
 a place further on, are called connected in parallel, or shunt, 
 or in multiple. For instance, resistance may be in parallel 
 with or in shunt circuit to the field coils of a motor (Fig. 
 70) , a connection which is made in some modern controllers.
 
 A third way of connecting parts is made by a combina- 
 tion of the two above ways. Some of the devices with re- 
 lation to others are in series with one another and in par- 
 allel with others, and such grouping is called series-parallel 
 or parallel-series connection, Fig. 71 explaining this clearly. 
 It represents a condition of grouping of motors on large 
 electric locomotives. There are shown four motors, I, 2, 3 
 and 4. 
 
 Evidently the current splits at A, divides into two cur- 
 rents, one of which flows through motors i and 2, the other 
 through motors 3 and 4. The volume of current that goes 
 
 ft e si* tone e 
 
 through motor 2 must therefore be the same as that going 
 through motor i, and the relation is similar between mo- 
 tors 3 and 4. At point B the currents join and the total cur- 
 rent flows to the car axle and car wheel C. In this combina- 
 tion motors i and 2 are in series, and so are motors 3 and 4, 
 but the i and 2 combined are in parallel connection to 3 and 
 4 combined, and the whole combination is called series-par- 
 allel. 
 
 Returning now to the controllers themselves, the old style 
 (some being still in use) installed up to 1893 consisted of 
 a drum with contacts mounted thereon w y hich were the ter- 
 minals for trolley, motor armature, motor field, resistance 
 and ground. The handle or lever when turned to the left
 
 99 
 
 caused the car to go ahead, when turned to the right caused 
 it to go backward. The handle was in the "off" position 
 (meaning that circuit was open and the current turned off 
 from the motors) when it stood centrally on the controller 
 and nearest to the motorman or operator. This condition 
 existed in the controllers of the Sprague, Edison, Westing- 
 house, Wightman and Steel Motor companies. 
 
 The old Thomson-Houston motor has no such cylinder 
 
 _* from Station _. 
 
 controller, but instead two brass handles which turn rods 
 extending below the car, where one moves an arm over a 
 sheet iron resistance (see Fig. 72) for gradually cutting 
 out more and more of the resistance, and the other handle 
 operated a reversing switch which caused the current to 
 flow through the motor so as to reverse the direction of 
 rotation of the armatures. This latter handle, placed in 
 the forward position, causes the car to go forward, and 
 when pulled as far back as possible the car moves back. The 
 upper handle or controller handle is moved always in the
 
 100 
 
 same direction. The reversing handle should never be 
 moved unless the other handle is in the "off" position. The 
 connections made by this controller or rheostat are indicated 
 by the diagram, Fig. 73. Let A represent the trolley wire, 
 B the trolley pole, C a contact arm, R the rheostat or resist- 
 ance of sheet iron in zig-zag shape, the circles M, M indicat- 
 ing the motors and G the wheel on the rail H. On the "off" 
 piston the contact C is not in touch with resistance R, there- 
 
 fore no current will leave the trolley wire. The lever C 
 makes contact with resistance R, and cuts it out gradually 
 until lever C is brought around to the "on" position, when 
 no current flows through the resistance, but passes directly 
 from the end of the contact arm to the motors, where it di- 
 vides, half going to one motor and half to the other. 
 
 In car equipments installed in early days, the connections 
 between controllers and motors were such that the motors 
 were permanently grouped in parallel with one another. The 
 controllers operating these equipments are known as paral-
 
 101 
 
 lei controllers. One sometimes met with on older roads is 
 the Westinghouse parallel controller known as type D. Pro- 
 jecting through the cover plate of this controller is the 
 spindle on which the operating handle is placed. This spindle 
 carries the centrally located cylinder with its ten contact cyl- 
 inder bands. Above this cylinder or drum is located a ratchet 
 wheel having large teeth, and as many notches as there are 
 
 positions for the handle or changes of electrical connections 
 and speeds. In this ratchet wheel fits a small roller held in 
 an arm and receiving tension by a spring. By means of this 
 contrivance it is possible to bring the controller always into 
 the same position for each point, and without having to look 
 at the handle to be sure that it is exactly on a notch. 
 
 On the sides of the drum are contact fingers, and below 
 the drum are a number of contact blocks provided with 
 screws into which the trolley wire, ground wire and others 
 are attached which connect to the resistance or diverter and
 
 102 
 
 motors. The circular contacts on the drum are not of the 
 same length ; the largest ones are the four on the upper end 
 of the drum and the lowest one. These are of equal length 
 and on turning the drum in one direction or the other, these 
 five connections are established at the same time. In this 
 first position, the motors are connected with trolley and 
 ground and the whole resistance is in circuit with the two 
 motors which are permanently in parallel. The remaining 
 five circular contact pieces are of different length. The 
 largest of them is the second from the bottom and the small- 
 est is the sixth from the bottom. These middle contacts 
 have the purpose of cutting out portions of the different re- 
 sistance from the motor circuit. When the controller handle 
 is moved to the second notch a part of the resistance is re- 
 moved from activity by the second contact from the bottom. 
 Turning the drum to notch 3, the third segment from the 
 bottom of the drum further reduces the resistance. Contin- 
 uing by turning the handle to notch 4 another part of the 
 resistance is cut out and sending the handle to notch 5, the 
 last part of the resistance is cut out of the motor circuit by 
 the smallest circular contact. At this position the motors 
 receive the full pressure and have their greatest speed. 
 
 When the car is at rest the controller handle stands 
 straight back. To start take hold of it with the left hand 
 and push it to the left in the direction of the hands of the 
 watch, until at the fifth position, it meets a raised part on 
 the controller cover beyond which the handle cannot pass. 
 Turning the handle as described will send the car ahead. To 
 back up the car or to run it backward, the handle is turned 
 from the "off" position or (position of rest when car is 
 standing still) to the right. To the right, there are the same 
 number of notches and speeds ; the only difference is that the 
 direction of car travel is reversed. 
 
 Since 1893 an improved form of controller, called the
 
 103 
 
 series-parallel controller, has come into general use. The 
 power required when first starting a car with the motors in 
 series is only one-fourth what it would be with the same mo- 
 tors in parallel as on the old controllers just described. Conse- 
 quently in the modern controller the motors are in series 
 as in Fig. 68, on the first few points of the controller, and 
 after about half speed has been reached they are connected 
 in parallel as in Fig. 69. Hence the name, series-parallel con- 
 troller. 
 
 The difference between the old method and the new is that 
 formerly, to reduce the pressure at the motor terminals at 
 the start, a great resistance was inserted to consume a part 
 of the pressure and the energy thus spent in the resistance 
 was wasted. In the new way the two motors are grouped in 
 series first, so that the current must flow through one motor 
 before it gets to the next (Fig. 68), and therefore but one- 
 half the pressure can reach each motor. The energy passing 
 through the first motor ( which causes the reduction in press- 
 ure for the other) is not wasted, as it is doing useful work 
 in turning the armature and increasing the turning moment 
 necessary for starting the car. 
 
 Practically all new controllers in use today are made by 
 the General Electric Co. and these controllers are divided 
 into four classes, as follows : 
 
 Type B controllers, which may be either of the series par- 
 allel or rheostatic type but which always include the neces- 
 sary contacts and connections for operating electric brakes. 
 
 Type K controllers is the series-parallel type, and is the 
 type almost universally used. In these controllers one of 
 the features is the shunting or short circuiting of one of the 
 motors when changing from the series to the parallel con- 
 nection. 
 
 Type L controllers are also of the series parallel type, but 
 differ from type K controllers in that the circuit is com-
 
 104 
 
 pletely opened when the change from series to parallel is 
 made. Type R controllers are of the rheostatic type and are 
 designed to control one or more motors by the use of resist- 
 ance only. 
 
 One of the most important features of the General Elec- 
 tric controllers is the magnetic blow-out by means of which 
 any arc forming between the controller terminals is blown 
 out. Other important features are the cut-out switches and 
 the interlocks. The cut-out switches are arranged so that 
 either motor on the two-motor equipments, or either pair of 
 motors on the four-motor equipments, may be cut out with- 
 out impairing the operation of the remaining motors. The 
 interlocks prevent, as far as possible, the abuse of the con- 
 troller, as they make movement of any of the handles im- 
 possible unless the 'remaining handles are in such a position 
 that no trouble can result. These controllers are built with 
 hinge clamps, permitting the cover to swing open from 
 either side, or to be completely removed. The parts of all 
 these controllers are interchangeable, permitting ease of 
 repair and renewal. 
 
 The series parallel controllers manufactured at the present 
 time are as follows : K-2, capacity two 4O-h.p. motors, 5 se- 
 ries and 4 parallel points ; K-4, capacity four 3o-h.p. motors, 
 5 series and 4 parallel points ; K-6, two-8o-h.p. or four-4O- 
 h.p. motors, 6 series and 5 parallel points; K-io, two 4o-h.p. 
 motors, 5 series, 4 parallel points; K-n, two 6o-h.p. motors, 
 
 5 series and 4 parallel points; K-I2, four 3O-h.p. motors, 5 
 series and 4 parallel points; K-I3, two I25~h.p. motors, of 
 series, 6 parallel points ; K-I4, four 6o-h.p. motors, 7 series, 
 
 6 parallel points ; K-27, two 6o-h.p. motors, 4 series, 4 par- 
 allel points ; K-29, four 4O-h.p. motors, 6 series and 5 paral- 
 lel points; K-3I, four 3O-h.p. motors, 4 series and 4 parallel 
 points; K-32, two 4O-h.p. motors, 4 series and 4 parallel 
 points; L-2, two 175-h.p. motors, 4 series and 4 parallel
 
 105 
 
 points; L-3, four i5O-h.p. motors, 8 series and 7 parallel 
 points ; L-4, four xoo-h.p. motors, 4 series, 4 parallel points ; 
 L~7, four 2OO-h.p. motors, 9 series, and 6 parallel points. 
 
 The electrical brake controllers are designated by the letter 
 B and are as follows : 
 
 B-3, capacity two 4O-h.p. motors, 4 series, 5 parallel and 6 
 brake points ; 6-7, two looh.p. motors, 6 series, 5 parallel 
 and 6 brake points; B-8, four 6oh.p. motors, 6 series, 5 
 parallel and / brake points; 6-13, two 4O-h.p. motors, 5 se- 
 ries, 4 parallel and 7 brake points; B-i8, two 4O-h.p. mo- 
 tors, 4 series, 4 parallel and 6 brake points ; 6-19, four 40- 
 h.p. motors, 5 series, 4 parallel, 7 brake points ; 6-23, two 
 6o-h.p. motors, 5 series, 4 parallel and 7 brake points; 6-29, 
 iwo 6o-h.p. motors, 5 series, 4 parallel and 7 brake points. 
 The latter is similar to 6-23, but has a separate brake handle. 
 
 The rheostatic controllers are designated by the letter R, 
 and are made in the following capacities : 
 
 R-n controller, capacity one 5o-h.p. motor, 6 controlling 
 points ; R-I4, two 35~h.p. motors, 5 points ; R-I5, two 8o-h.p. 
 motors, 6 points; R-i6, four 4O-h.p. motors, 5 points; R-I7, 
 one 5o-h.p. motor, 6 points; R-ig, two 5o-h.p. motors, 6 
 points; R-22, two 5o-h.p. motors, 5 points; R-29, four 125- 
 h.p. motors, 6 points ; R-37, two 5o-h.p. motors, 5 points ; R- 
 38,*two 35-h.p. motors, 5 points ; R-48, four 75~h.p. motors, 
 8 points; R~55, iwo i5o-h.p. motors, 7 points. 
 
 In the following descriptions of controllers there is in- 
 cluded a number of controllers which are no longer manu- 
 factured, but many of these older controllers are still to be 
 found on different roads where the old equipments have not 
 yet been discarded, and it -was therefore deemed advisable 
 to include descriptions of the old as well as the modern con- 
 trollers. 
 
 In Fig 74 is shown the type K-2 controller of the Gen- 
 eral Electric Company. On the top of the controller are
 
 106 
 
 visible two handles. The one located near the center of 
 the controller top, called the controller handle, is attached 
 to a spindle which passes through the whole length of the 
 
 FIG. 74. 
 
 controller. On this spindle is mounted a cylinder by means 
 of which the current is turned on to the motors. The sec- 
 ond handle, called the reversing handle, is located at the
 
 107 
 
 right hand side and its purpose is to control the direction of 
 the car. If this handle is pushed forward as far as it will 
 go the car will go ahead when the controller handle is 
 turned to close the circuit. The car will run backward when 
 the reversing handle has been pulled to the other extreme 
 position and the controller handle is operated as before. 
 What takes place is this : The reversing lever operates a 
 small drum inside of the controller which is provided with 
 contacts. This handle has three positions. The working 
 of this handle forward or backward changes the connections 
 of the motor armatures so that the current flows through 
 them in one direction when the car is to go ahead, and in 
 the opposite direction when the car is to go backward, as 
 explained in the previous chapter. When the reverse handle 
 stands at the intermediate position between forward 
 and reverse, the current is shut off from the motor 
 at that controller and the reversing handle can be removed 
 only when it is at this intei mediate position. An interlock- 
 ing arrangement prevents any movement of the reversing 
 handle except when the large or power cylinder is at the 
 "off" position. This same locking device prevents any 
 movement of the power cylinder except when the reversing 
 handle is fully thrown into proper position and standing 
 at either "forward" or "backward." 
 
 The reversing cylinder, therefore, controls the direction 
 in which the car moves. The propelling of the car and its 
 speed is controlled by the controller handle with which the 
 motorman has far more to do than with the one just de- 
 scribed. We will, therefore, go fully into the details of 
 changes that take place when the controller handle is shifted 
 from one point to another. 
 
 On the top of the controller will be seen a number of 
 points or dashes and on the spindle is fastened a finger or 
 index which points to these raised marks as the handle is
 
 <X /?*/ -totortM ^crtM 
 
 *****>~^ 
 
 Armature Armature 
 
 -^mi^^^ 
 
 S^r 
 
 WWV^^
 
 109 
 
 moved around to admit current to the motors. When the 
 car is standing ready to start, the finger points to the posi- 
 tion marked "off." To start the car, the handle is moved 
 around in the direction of the hands of a watch to the first 
 point. This connects the motors and resistance to the cir- 
 cuit so that the current flows first through the iron plates 
 of the resistance, then through one of the motors, then 
 through the other motor, and finally to the ground through 
 the car truck, wheels and rails. The motors are in this case 
 what is technically known as connected in "series." This 
 is represented in the diagram showing the connections on 
 the first point in Fig. 75. The connections made on all the 
 following points of this controller are also shown in the same 
 figure and should be studied while reading this explanation. 
 On the second point, the connections, it will be seen, remain 
 the same as on the first, except that two-thirds of the re- 
 sistance has been cut out of the circuit, so that more current 
 may reach the motors. On the third point, eleven-twelfths 
 of the resistance is cut out of the circuit and on the fourth 
 point, all the resistance is out so that the current flows only 
 through the two motors in series. 
 
 All resistance is now cut out and no power is being 
 wasted as the current is doing only useful work in the mo- 
 tors. We can therefore keep the controller on this point 
 for any length of time with economy, only the car will run 
 a little less than half its maximum speed. To increase the 
 speed still more, we move the controller to the fifth point. 
 In doing this, connections are made so that part of the cur- 
 rent is shunted through a resistance around the field coils 
 of the motor; that is, instead of having all the current that 
 flows through the armatures flow also through the fields, a 
 part of it is made to take a by-pass or shunt around the 
 fields. This has the effect of increasing the speed of the 
 motors and they will on this point run at half the full speed.
 
 110 
 
 In moving the controller to the sixth point, an important 
 change is made in the connections of the motors. 
 
 As said before, when the controller is on the fourth and 
 fifth points, the motors are in series with each other, the 
 current flowing first through one and then through the 
 other. Consequently each motor gets only one-half the 
 pressure of voltage between the trolley wire and ground. 
 That is to say, by the time that the current has passed 
 through the first motor, half of the pressure has been used, 
 leaving only the remaining half to run the other motor. To 
 increase the speed we must now connect the motors so that 
 they both will get the full pressure from the trolley line. 
 This cannot be done abruptly, however, but some resist- 
 ance must be introduced into the circuit at the time this 
 change is made to prevent the car from jerking, just as it 
 would have acted on the first point had some resistance not 
 been interposed when first starting. Therefore, on the sixth 
 point, the motors are connected so that the current divides 
 and half flows through each motor. They are then what 
 is technically called connected in "parallel." They both get 
 the full pressure, except that some resistance is put in the 
 circuit before the current gets to the motors. A part of 
 this resistance is cut out on the seventh point. On the eighth 
 point all of the resistance is out and the motors are con- 
 nected so that they both get the full pressure and run at 
 nearly full speed. On the ninth point part of the current is 
 shunted around the field coils as on the fifth point, and the 
 motors run at their highest speed. At each point there is pro- 
 vided a notch on a wheel or ratchet, mounted on the con- 
 troller spindle inside the controller case, which prevents the 
 handle from stopping between points when it is turned. 
 
 At the lower end of the controller are located the motor 
 cut-out switches, which enables one to operate a car with a 
 single motor should the other one have become defective.
 
 Ill 
 
 When it is desired to have both motors in operation, as is 
 generally the case, both switches should be down. The 
 operator will find an instruction card in each controller read- 
 ing either 
 
 To CUT OUT MOTOR No. I (motor 
 
 throw up left hand switch as far as it 
 will go. 
 
 To CUT OUT MOTOR No. 2 Imotor 
 nearest -HH-THE OTHER end of car 
 throw up right hand switch as far as it 
 will go. 
 
 To CUT OUT MOTOR No. I Imotor 
 nearest THE OTHER end of can 
 throw up left hand switch as far as it 
 will go. 
 
 To CUT OUT MOTOR No. 2 (motor 
 
 throw up right hand switch as far as it 
 will go. 
 
 It will be noticed that they do not read alike on the two 
 controllers of the same car. This is due to the difference in 
 connection. Should at any time it become necessary to cut 
 out a motor, look for the instruction card in the controller 
 stand. To operate with a single motor, the car will start on 
 point I and reach its full speed on point 5. A stop is placed 
 on the controller spindle, with which a pin engages, pre- 
 venting movement of the controller cylinder beyond the 
 fifth point. This is effected by either of these cut-out 
 switches, which, in being raised, operate the pin. 
 
 The high controlling lever on the top (Fig. 74) turns the 
 central shaft, on which are mounted the contact pieces or sec- 
 tions, which, when the shaft is turned, will establish connec- 
 tions with the stationary terminals located to the left. 
 
 The wires to the left connect with the terminal board in 
 the controller to which are also attached the wires going to 
 the motors and to the second controller and resistance boxes. 
 
 The old K controller of the General Electric Co. is very 
 similar to the K-2. It was of earlier construction than the 
 K-2, but as the K-2 has been most widely used, it was con- 
 sidered best to give it the more detailed description. The K
 
 controller is about 2 in. shorter than the K-2 and its appear- 
 ance is almost the same. It has, however, two points less ; in 
 other respects its mechanical contruction is the same. 
 
 FIG. 76. 
 
 The old style or rheostat controllers of this company, 
 known as types 51 and 83, ?nd described in the first part of
 
 113 
 
 this chapter, have been gradually superseded by the R type 
 of controllers previously mentioned. A controller of this 
 type R-I7, is shown in Fig. 76. 
 The K-4 controller is used in connection with larger cars, 
 
 where four motors instead of two are mounted on the 
 trucks. Its action is like the K-2 controller, and the differ- 
 ence is that instead of having first two motors in series and 
 later in parallel, as there are in this case, two identical sets
 
 114 
 
 of motors of two motors per set. Each set of two motors 
 is permanently grouped in parallel, and the one pair is first 
 placed in series with the other pair or set, and finally the two 
 series are connected in parallel. 
 
 The old K-2i controller is the same as the K-2, except that 
 it is of greater capacity, as its contacts and wires are larger. 
 
 The K-6 controller which is designed for two 8o-h.p. mo- 
 tors or four 4O-h. p. motors is shown in Fig. 77.
 
 115 
 
 The K-io controller is designed for two 4O-h. p. motors. 
 It is a controller with nine notches. On the first four notches 
 'the motors are in series and resistance in circuit. On the 
 fifth notch motors are in series with resistance all cut out. 
 On the sixth, seventh and eighth, motors are in parallel and 
 resistance in circuit. The ninth is for full speed, motors in 
 multiple. The K-io controller .is shown in Fig. 78. Field 
 shunts are not used with this controller, 
 
 The K-n controller is the same as the K-io, except it is 
 designed for heavier currents and larger motors. 
 
 The K-I2 controller is like the K-n, except that it is made 
 to operate four motors in two sets just as the K-4. 
 
 The K-I3 is designed for two 125-!!. p. motors. It is a 
 thirteen notch controller. The motors are in series up to 
 and on the seventh point. From the eighth to the thir- 
 teenth they are in multiple. The preferred running notches 
 dre the seventh and thirteenth. No field shunts are used. 
 
 The K-I4 is for four 6o-h. p. motors and is like the K-I3, 
 except that it handles four motors in two groups as the K-4. 
 
 The old K- 1 5 controller is practically a double K-I3, with 
 two controlling drums and t\\o 125-!!. p. motors controlled 
 by each drum. The notches are the same as on the K-I3. 
 
 The old K-i6 controller is the same as K-15, but with dif- 
 ferent case. 
 
 The K-27 controller is similar to the K-n. but is arranged 
 for operation on a metallic circuit, having contacts for open- 
 ing both sides of the circuit. 
 
 The K-29 controller is similar to the K-6, but has contacts, 
 for opening both sides of the circuit. 
 
 The K-3i controller is similar to the K-27, but has re- 
 verse switch arranged for four motors. 
 
 The K-32 controller is also similar to the K-27, but is of 
 smaller capacity. 
 
 The L-2 controller is used for two I75~h. p motors, and
 
 116 
 
 the L-4 for four loo-h. p. motors. They have four points in 
 series and four in multiple. The handle is operated con- 
 trary to the hands of a watch, or in the opposite direction 
 
 from most controllers. The first half revolution moves the 
 controller through the series points and brings them into 
 full series. To throw them into multiple the movement of 
 the handle of the controller Is continued on around to the
 
 117 
 
 original off position, and when the handle begins to pass 
 over what were the series notches on the first revolution, 
 the motors are thrown in multiple, so that when the handle 
 has completed a revolution and a half the motors are con- 
 nected for full speed in multiple. The current is always off 
 when the handle is at the left and always on when it is at 
 the right. A brass dial on top of the controller indicates 
 whether the motors are in series or multiple. 
 
 The L-3 controller for four 150-!!. p. motors has 15 points, 
 eight series and seven parallel. This controller is shown in 
 
 Fig- 79- 
 
 The L-J controller for four 2oo-h. p. motors has 15 points, 
 nine series and six parallel. 
 
 The General Electric Company's controllers for use with 
 electric brakes are known as the B type. The action of the 
 electric brake and the way to operate it is described later on 
 in the chapter on brakes. Some of these controllers have a 
 double set of points or notches. Moving the handle in the 
 usual way from off position starts the car just as on other 
 controllers. Moving the handle the other way from off po- 
 sition applies the electric brake, if the car is running. The 
 capacities of the B controllers at present manufactured and 
 the number of controlling points on each has been already 
 shown in this chapter. The B-8 controller has separate han- 
 dles for power and brake as is also the case with the 6-7, 
 B-iQ and the 6-29. 
 
 The 6-23 controller is shown in Fig. 80, and has but one 
 power and brake handle. The 6-3, 6-13 and B-i8 also have 
 only one handle which is operated in one direction for the 
 power and in the other direction for the brake, as just de- 
 scribed. Of the B controllers the 6-13 is most generally 
 used and its braking connections are such as to render the 
 skidding of the wheels practically impossible. 
 
 The Westinghouse Klectric & Manufacturing Co. former-
 
 118 
 
 ly manufactured controllers of which a number was of the 
 series-parallel type. The Westinghouse controllers are no 
 longer made, but as many of them will be found in use on 
 
 FIG. 80. 
 
 different roads, a description of them is given. The old West- 
 inghouse series-parallel controllers and their coresponding 
 diverters are known as
 
 119 
 
 Controllers Diverters 
 
 G. E. 
 
 No. 14 No. 7 
 
 No. 28 No. 46 
 
 No. 28A No. 46 or 47 
 
 No. 29 No. 47 
 
 No. 38 No. 38 
 
 With the rapid advancement and development of electric 
 street railroads more powerful motors were required, and 
 at the same time greater economy in consumption of power 
 was the object aimed at by the manufacturers. Owing to 
 these developments and advancements the parallel controller 
 D, described at the beginning of the chapter, has not been 
 manufactured for several years. 
 
 In the center of the G controller cover plate is located the 
 controller handle for regulating the speed of the car. On 
 the right-hand side, through the rim of the cover plate, ex- 
 tends a straight handle or lever, which is the reversing 
 handle. The two raised lugs to the left on the cover are 
 stops which prevent the controller lever from going round 
 to make a complete circle. At the front lug the handle is at 
 the "off" position. The cylinder contacts are disconnected 
 from the contact fingers in this position and the car is at 
 rest. When the handle is turned so far as to strike the 
 other lug the highet speed is reached. The reverse handle, 
 which should be moved only when the controller handle is 
 in the "off" position, has three notches. The central posi- 
 tion opens the circuit and cuts off the current ; the outward 
 and the inward position control the direction in which the 
 car travels, either forward or back. If the handle is pushed 
 forward as far as possible, the car will go ahead when .the 
 current is turned on by the controller handle. Pulling the 
 handle inward (toward one's self or toward the car) re-
 
 120 
 
 verses the armature connections, so that the car backs or 
 run backward when the controller handle is moved from 
 the "off" position to the first notch. The contacts con- 
 trolled by this reversing handle are mounted on a small 
 vulcabeston disk which is secured in the inside of the con- 
 troller cover. All the terminals and contact fingers, as well 
 as the rings on the drum, are separated from one another by 
 vulcabeston partitions which project between them and the 
 rings. Their object is to prevent the current from jumping 
 from one terminal to the next. 
 
 The first G controllers had ratchet wheels with 10 notches. 
 Only the first three notches or controller positions and the 
 last three are "running" positions (namely, the positions in 
 which the controller handle may remain for some time to 
 operate the car), while the other four should be passed over 
 slowly, but without stopping on any one of them for more 
 than a moment. 
 
 In the later G controllers, the ratchet wheels had only the 
 six running notches, the intermediate four being omitted. 
 The changes that take place on the various positions are 
 enumerated below and may be readily followed by the dia- 
 gram shown in Fig. 81. The reversing handle being in the 
 forward position, the car will go ahead when the controller 
 handle is operated. Moving the controller handle from the 
 "off" position to the first notch will close the circuit and 
 connect the controllers, motors and diverter resistance to 
 the trolley line and to the ground return or rail. Both mo- 
 tors are then in series connections with one another and also 
 in series with the whole diverter resistance. This-is the start- 
 ing position ; the mtors receive each less than half the pres- 
 sure o'f the line. This slow speed can be used especially in 
 crowded streets. Moving the controller handle to the sec- 
 ond notch has the effect of short circuiting or cutting out of 
 active service one-half of the diverter resistance. This allows
 
 121 
 
 a heavier current to flow through the motors, resulting in 
 increased speed. 
 
 Moving controller handle to the third notch causes the 
 controller drum to cut out all the resistance, and now the 
 
 Motor No! Motor N&2 
 
 ^ \MAM/vV^^ 
 
 ^-^w^^ 
 
 \MQ/ / MM3^^^ 
 
 ^ym~- 
 
 two motors are in series with one another and receive the 
 total voltage of the line. Each one is working under half 
 the total pressure. The position is an economical one and 
 the speed is half full speed. The controller may remain in
 
 122 
 
 this position for any length of time. Between the third and 
 fourth notches several intermediate connections are made 
 between the diverter and motors. However, as these are 
 made in succession and without stopping, and are not opei- 
 ating positions, they are omitted from the ratchet, and when 
 the handle arrives at the fourth notch both motors have 
 changed from the series to the parallel connection, and the 
 diverter resistance is in series circuit with one of them. This 
 is the next higher speed. In the fifth notch half of the di- 
 verter resistance is cut out, but the relations of the motors 
 is unchanged. The speed is further increased. Neither the 
 fourth nor the fifth notch should be used for any great 
 length of time. In the sixth position, at which the motors 
 reach their highest speed, all resistance is cut out of the cir- 
 cuit and both motors are in parallel, each receiving the full 
 pressure of the line. 
 
 The No. 14 Westinghouse controller is in outward appear- 
 ance very similar to the G controller. It has, however, a 
 number of modifications which should be noted. The con- 
 troller drum is mounted so to swing outward, for the pur- 
 pose of easily examining or to have access to all parts, as in 
 the G controller. Further, there is provided an interlocking 
 device between the controller and the reversing device. To re- 
 move either it is necessary to bring the handle to the "off" 
 position, namely, into that position in which the current is cut 
 off from the trolley. Lastly, this controller is provided 
 further with motor cut-out switches or plugs. It was at 
 first the custom of the Westinghouse company to place the 
 motor cut-outs under the seats in the car. This method was 
 later abandoned, and plugs were provided inside of the con- 
 troller casting on the right-hand side. The various changes 
 made with this controller will be given in a short and con- 
 cise way. The changes are more gradual and the work is 
 more evenly distributed than with the G controller. In prin-
 
 123 
 
 ciple it is very similar to the operation of the G controller, 
 and therefore it is believed that with this controller, and all 
 the following that are described of the Westinghouse make, 
 the simple enumeration of the change will suffice. In this 
 controller the reversing switch changes the connections of 
 the motor field coils to cause the armature to rotate in the 
 opposite direction. 
 
 Moving the controller handle from the "off" position to 
 notch i, both motors are connected in series with one another 
 and in series with all the diverter resistance between trolley 
 and rail. This is the starting position and slowest speed. 
 
 On notch 2 both motors are in series with each other and 
 the diverter resistance, with some of the resistance short 
 circuited, causing an increased current to pass the motors 
 and resulting in higher speed. 
 
 Notch 3. The whole resistance is cut out of action and 
 the two motors, still in series with one another, are receiv- 
 ing the total line pressure, that is, each one receives half of 
 this pressure. The cutting out of all the resistance further 
 increases the motor speed. 
 
 Notch 4. Between notch 3 and 4 there are a number of 
 intermediate combinations which follow in rapid succession, 
 and when contact is established in notch 4 the motors are 
 no longer in series. Each motor is in series with half of the 
 resistance, and one motor and resistance are grouped in par- 
 allel with the other one and resistance, resulting in increase 
 of speed over notch 3. 
 
 Notch 5. The resistance is cut out of circuit of one of the 
 motors which receives the total line pressure. It remains 
 in parallel with the other motor which has still half of the re- 
 sistance in series with it. Speed in this notch is higher than 
 on notch 4. 
 
 Notch 6. The resistance is also cut out of the circuit of 
 the second motor, therefore no resistance is in the circuit.
 
 124 
 
 The motors are in parallel, each receiving the full line pres- 
 sure, resulting in maximum speed. 
 
 If at any time it becomes necessary to cut out one of the 
 motors, the upper plug will cut out motor number i, the 
 lower plug motor number 2. Running with the one motor 
 only the car will not start when controller is moved to notch 
 i, but it has to be placed on notch 4, which is the starting 
 position under these conditions. 
 
 The Nos. 28 and 29 Westinghouse controllers are both 
 similar in construction and operation to the No. 14. The 
 difference is mainly of a mechanical nature. The No. 28 is 
 of smaller dimensions than the No. 14, while the No. 29 is 
 built heavier, to control more powerful motors and cur- 
 rents. The grouping of the circuits by these controllers is 
 very similar to that of the No. 14. The main difference is 
 that the resistance is not divided between the two motors, 
 and any change made in it affects both motors exactly the 
 same way. 
 
 Notch I. Motor No. i, motor No. 2 and diverter all in 
 series. 
 
 Notch 2. Motor No. i, motor No. 2 and part of resist- 
 ance in series. 
 
 Notch 3. Motor No. i, motor No. 2, in series, resistance 
 all out of action. 
 
 Notch 4. Motor No. i, motor No. 2, in parellel, resist- 
 ance in series with both of them. 
 
 Notch 5. Motor No. i, motor No. 2, in parallel, part of 
 diverter cut-out, rest in series with both motors. 
 
 Notch 6. Motor No. i, motor No. 2, in parallel between 
 the line receiving full pressure, all resistance being cut out. 
 Highest speed obtainable. 
 
 When but one motor is used the car will not start before 
 the fourth notch is reached. 
 
 The 28A Westinghouse controller is heavier in all its
 
 125 
 
 parts and had many changes of a mechanical nature. To 
 begin with, the reversing handle as well as the controller 
 handle was placed on top of the controller cover. They were 
 made to interlock to prevent the moving of the reversing 
 handle when the controller handle is not in the "off" po- 
 sition. This controller has seven notches or running posi- 
 tios, and in case that one of the motors is cut out, the car 
 will start with the first notch and reach maximum speed 
 in the fourth position, beyond which the handle will not 
 turn. A latch is provided which automatically locks the 
 drum when either one of the motor cut-out plugs at the 
 lower right-hand side of the controller is removed. The 
 controller changes are as follows : 
 
 Notch i. Motor i, motor 2 and total resistance in series 
 with one another. 
 
 Notch 2. Motor i, and motor 2, in series with less re- 
 sistance. 
 
 Notch 3. Same as 2, with still less resistance. 
 
 Notch 4. Motors i and 2, in series without resistance. 
 
 Notch 5. Motors i and 2, in parallel with part of resist- 
 ance in series. 
 
 Notch 6. Motors i and 2, in parallel with less resistance. 
 
 Notch 7. Motors i and 2, in parallel without any resist- 
 ance. 
 
 The Westinghouse No. 38 controller was designed for 
 large cars and motors. Its general arrangement is like No. 
 28A as to interlocking of controller and reversing handles 
 as well as motor cut-out switches, and it was the largest con- 
 troller for this service. Only the controllers used for loco- 
 motives are larger and heavier as regards the internal parts. 
 It has four more contact rings than the 14, 28, 28 A and 29. 
 There are eight notches or positions for the controller handle. 
 
 Notch i. Motors in series with one another and full re- 
 sistance.
 
 126 
 
 Notch 2. Conditions as before, but with less resistance. 
 
 Notch 3. Motors as before, with still less resistance in 
 series. 
 
 Notch 4. The two motors in series, resistance entirely cut 
 out. 
 
 Notch 5. Motors in parallel, with a part of the diverter 
 resistance in series with both motors. 
 
 Notch 6. Motors as on 5, some resistance cut out. 
 
 Notch 7. Motors as on 6 and some more resistance cut 
 out. 
 
 Notch 8. Motors in parallel as on 7 and all resistance cut 
 out. Maximum speed. 
 
 When one of the motors is cut out of circuit and the car 
 is operated by the other, it will start when controller handle 
 is moved into the first notch and reaches maximum speed 
 in the fourth. 
 
 The diverter box is the same as a resistance box. It is 
 made of iron bands wound into flat iron coils of spiral shape, 
 separated by mica. They must be of different sizes depend- 
 ing on the capacity of the motors. The heavier the current 
 that is supplied to a motor, the wider has to be the iron 
 spiral, to prevent overheating. 
 
 The Walker Company's Controllers. The Walker Com- 
 pany had a number of controllers on the market, but few, if 
 any, of these will be found in use at present. One is the 
 J type. The reversing handle is at the right. In this 
 controller there are no separate switches or plugs provided 
 for cutting out any one motor, these provisions being made 
 on the reversing cylinder, so that this one handle can ac- 
 complish all these functions, as will be described later on. 
 The controller has five running notches, and the resistance 
 is of such capacity that any one of these notches may be 
 used for continuous service, though not with economy. An- 
 other point in construction to be mentioned is that the con-
 
 127 
 
 troller is provided with a magnetic lock, which renders it 
 impossible to move the reverse handle when current is 
 flowing through the controller. The construction is such 
 that when the circuit is opened contact is broken simul- 
 
 Troneu 
 y 
 
 Motor No I Motor, Nti 
 
 
 ^^^^ 
 
 taneously at eight different places, thereby greatly over- 
 coming the bad arc that otherwise would exist if it was 
 broken at one or two places only. In this controller, as in 
 all others, every terminal is lettered so as to prevent confu- 
 sion. These letters are for the benefit of the electrician or 
 wireman who wires the cars, se'.s up the motors and makes 
 the connections.
 
 128 
 
 The combinations with this controller are as follows (see 
 Fig. 82) : 
 
 First point. Motors in series ; all the resistance in circuit. 
 
 Second point. Motors in series and the current only flow- 
 ing through one-half the rheostat. 
 
 Third point. The two motors are in series with the rheo- 
 stat entirely cut out. 
 
 Fourth point. The current now flows from the trolley to 
 the center of the rheostat, and is equally divided between 
 the two motors, which are in parallel. 
 
 Fifth point. Motors in parallel, resistance all out. 
 
 There are six positions of the reverse cylinder. In the 
 normal "off" position the handle of the reverse cylinder 
 stands parallel with the face of the controller, pointing to 
 the right. In this position both motors are cut out. If now 
 the handle is pushed forward until it comes in contact with 
 the stop, both motors are connected so as to carry the car 
 forward. If the handle is pulled backward until it comes in 
 contact with the stop, both motors are connected in such a 
 direction as to carry the car backwards. To cut out one 
 motor, raise the reverse handle about ^ in., far enough to 
 clear the stop and turn the cylinder until the handle points 
 to the left. If it is now pushed forward against the stop, 
 so as to cover the point marked "i," No. I motor only is 
 in action propelling the car forward, while No. 2 motor is 
 cut out. Pull the reverse handle back about 45, or an 
 eighth of a turn, until it covers point marked "2," and No. 2 
 motor only is in action, carrying the car forward, while No. 
 i motor is cut out. Pulling it still farther back until it comes 
 in contact with the stop and covers point marked "i," we 
 have again No. i motor in action, carrying the car back- 
 wards. Moving it forward from here about 45 until it 
 covers the other point marked "2," we have again No. 2 
 vnotor in action, carrying the car backwards.
 
 129 
 
 These combinations give us, therefore, on the controller 
 one forward point for both motors, one for No. I and one 
 for No. 2, and the three reverse positions corresponding to 
 these. In running on No. i motor alone, either forward or 
 back, the car does not "take power" until the controller 
 handle reaches the fourth point. With No. I motor the car 
 "takes power" between the third and fourth points. 
 
 The last controller made by the Walker Company was 
 the type S. In this car controller a solenoid or coil of wire 
 
 is used between each contact ring. This is to prevent the 
 burning of the contact rings and fingers by the electric arc 
 which forms when a circuit is opened. The magnetism 
 caused by the solenoid or coil blows out the arcs as soon as 
 they form. Fig. 83 shows the plan of this controller top 
 with the handles at "off" position. It will be seen that there 
 are seven points on this controller. On the first four the 
 motors are in series and on the last three in parallel. 
 
 The reverse lever on this controller differs from that on 
 other controllers in several respects Looking at the sur- 
 face plate diagram, Fig. 83, we see the various reverse lever
 
 130 
 
 points indicated around the reverse lever at the right. The 
 point marked No. i ahead means that when the reverse 
 lever is put over to that point, motor No. i will run the car 
 ahead, No. 2 being cut out, and so on for the other points. 
 The position marked A means that on this both motors will 
 act together to drive the car ahead, while R means that 
 both motors will reverse. The other points will explain 
 themselves, all but the one marked "Emerg.," which is an 
 emergency electric brake for stopping the car quickly in 
 emergencies in place of reversing it. All that is necessary 
 to do to operate this brake is to shut off current with the 
 controller handle and then put the reverse handle on the 
 emergency brake position. After this is done begin to 
 apply the hand brake. The emergency electric brake acts 
 by turning the motors into dynamos by changing their con- 
 nections and causing them to generate current to stop them- 
 selves. 
 
 Controller of the Steel Motor Company. This company 
 has built various controllers since 1892. The last and most 
 improved type is known as the 43 controller. It was made 
 very simple by reducing the number of terminals and connec- 
 tions. This controller differed from others in that wires 
 from the car cables did not go to a terminal board, but in- 
 stead directly to the contact fingers of the controller. 
 
 Arcing at the opening of the circuit it subdued by pro- 
 viding two coils placed on either side of the controlling 
 cylinder or drum and partially enveloping it, the drum act- 
 ing as the core of an electro magnet. The current passes 
 through the coils before a connection is made with the 
 motors. 
 
 The reverse and cut-out switches are combined. An in- 
 dex shows the positions to which the reverse handle is 
 moved in order to run both motors together or either of 
 them independently in either direction. The reverse handle
 
 131 
 
 cannot be removed except when the circuit is open. In or- 
 dinary practice the motors can be reversed without shutting 
 off the current, but the cam index on the inside is so de- 
 signed that the addition of a common iron washer provides 
 the necessary device to prevent this. There are nine points 
 of contact, and when used without a shunt across the fields, 
 
 two of them are running positions ; when used with a shunt, 
 there are three running positions. 
 
 At "off" position the controller handle is at about the 
 same place as on other series-parallel controllers, and to 
 start the car it is moved clock-wise. The connections made 
 are as follows : 
 
 First point. Motors are in series with all resistance in 
 circuit. 
 
 Second point. Motors in series, about two-thirds of the 
 resistance in circuit. 
 
 Third point. Motors in series, about one-third of resist- 
 ance in circuit.
 
 132 
 
 Fourth point. Motors in series with all resistance cut out. 
 After passing fourth contact, circuit is broken and both 
 motors are put in multiple. 
 
 Fifth point. Motors in multiple with full resistance in 
 series circuit with them. 
 
 Sixth point. Motors in multiple with two-thirds of re- 
 sistance in series with both motors. 
 
 Seventh point. Motors in multiple with one-third of re- 
 sistance in series with them. 
 
 Eighth point. Motors in multiple, no resistance. 
 
 Ninth point. If motors are operated with a shunt this is 
 brought into service on the ninth contact. If no shunt is 
 used the ninth point does not produce any change over 
 point 8, and operates the motors in precisely the same man- 
 ner as the eighth. 
 
 The effect produced by each notch of the reverse and 
 cut-out switch is indicated by the copy of the index around 
 the reverse switch shown in Fig. 84.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 MULTIPLE UNIT SYSTEMS. 
 
 In the previous chapter was explained the method of con- 
 trolling motor cars when run singly or when towing one or 
 more trail cars not equipped with motors. On some electric 
 railways where the traffic is heavy it becomes necessary to 
 run trains of several cars, some or all of which are motor 
 cars. It also becomes necessary at times to divide these 
 trains into smaller ones or to add more cars as the traffic 
 fluctuates, and as it is obviously unpractical to have more 
 than one motorman to drive a train means must be provided 
 so that each motor car of the train may be controlled from 
 the front of the train by one man. This method of control is 
 generally known as the multiple unit system of control. One 
 of these multiple controllers is placed at each end of each 
 motor car and they are so arranged that when the controller 
 at the front end of the train is moved to any particular notch, 
 all the other controllers on the train are automatically moved 
 to the same position, so that while the train is operated as a 
 whole from one controller each car is operated independently 
 by its own controller. The multiple unit system allows the 
 greatest flexibility in the operation of cars, for one car can 
 be run alone or any number of cars may be coupled together, 
 each car being driven by its own motor as an independent 
 unit. 
 
 Owing to the large amount of current required to operate 
 electric cars the multiple unit system is generally operated 
 on the third rail system described in Chapter VI. The con-
 
 134 
 
 tact area of the ordinary trolley wheel with the trolley wire is 
 too small to carry the current required for a heavy train of 
 cars and as the use of several trolleys on one train would be 
 too troublesome, the current is taken from a third rail along- 
 side the track, by means of sliding contacts or shoes carried 
 on each car. There are two systems of multiple control in 
 use, that of the General Electric Co., known as the type M 
 control, which is electrically operated, and the Westinghouse 
 multiple control system which is operated by means of com- 
 pressed air. 
 
 In the type M control the series parallel motor controller 
 as described in the previous chapter is replaced by a number 
 of electrically operated switches, called contactors, which are 
 placed under each motor car, and there is also a separate 
 electrically operated reversing switch called the reverser. 
 These contactors and the reverser fulfill the same functions 
 as the controllers on a single car, making the same combina- 
 tion of the motors and starting resistances. Instead, how- 
 ever, of being directly operated by the motorman they are 
 operated through a small controller, called the master con- 
 troller, to which all the conductors and reversers on the train 
 are attached by means of a control circuit cable. This cable 
 runs the entire length of the train and is connected from car 
 to car by means of suitable couplers, and when trail cars are 
 placed between motor cars they are also provided with cables. 
 The platforms of each motor car and, if desired, those of 
 each trail car are equipped with a master controller so that 
 the train may be operated from the platform of whichevei 
 car happens to be in front. 
 
 The master controller, type C 6, shown in Fig. 85, al- 
 though smaller than the ordinary car controller, is similar in 
 appearance, and method of operation. It has separate power 
 and reverse handles and it contains a magnetic blow-out 
 similar to that of the ordinary controller. All the current
 
 135 
 
 for the operation of the conductors is taken from the line 
 and passes directly through whichever master controller hap- 
 
 pens to be in use, and the handle of the master controller is 
 generally arranged so that if the motorman removes his 
 hand from it the control circuit will be broken and the con-
 
 136 
 
 tactors opened, thus shutting off all current from the motors. 
 The reverse handle can only be removed when it is in the 
 off position and the power handle is mechanically locked 
 when the reverse handle is removed. 
 
 The contactors each consist of a movable arm with a re- 
 movable copper contact at one end, making contact with a 
 similar fixed contact piece, and a coil which actuates the arm 
 when supplied with current from the master controller. The 
 contactor is closed only when the current of the control cir- 
 cuit passes through its coil and gravity, assisted by the 
 spring action of the contact piece, causes the arm to drop and 
 the circuit to open when the control circuit is broken. The 
 contactor also has a powerful magnetic blow-out. The re- 
 verser is somewhat similar to the ordinary reversing switch 
 with the addition of electro-magnets for turning it either to 
 the forward or reverse positions. Its operating coils are sim- 
 ilar to those of the contactors. A cut-out switch is also pro- 
 vided by means of which all of the control operating circuits 
 on any car may be cut out. 
 
 It will be evident from the foregoing explanation that 
 there are two principal circuits on a car equipped with the 
 type M control : First, the control circuit which passes from 
 the line to the contact shoe on the car, thence to the master 
 controller, thence through the various operating coils of the 
 contactors and reversers and thence to the ground return ; 
 Second, the motor circuit, which from the contact shoe passes 
 through the various contactors, thence to the motor fields and 
 armatures and thence to the ground return. All of the con- 
 tactors under each car taken together constitute a series 
 parallel controller and the different combinations of the con- 
 tactors is indicated by the position of the master controller 
 handle. The diagram, Fig. 86, shows the complete connec- 
 tions of the C-6 controller and its auxiliary apparatus for 
 a two-motor equipment. The running points on this con-
 
 C-6 Controller 
 
 I9ever*e Forwar< 
 
 Cootn 
 Coupler SocKets 
 
 Third Ril Shoe
 
 C-6 Controller 
 
 Reverse 
 'Cylinder 
 
 Auxiliary f* 8to'- l 'out 
 Contacts [^ *g~i Coil 
 
 Runn.no PointS---K) s' 
 
 Resist Shoe Points;. 9 8-76 '--A 321 
 
 From this Cable 
 Oo 8 Wire connects to O 
 no O to 8 
 
 at Connection Board no 2 
 
 Control 
 
 Coupler Sockets 
 
 Operating Coi 
 
 Copyright, 1903, by General Electric Co.
 
 137 
 
 troller are 5 and 10, 5 being the series connection of the 
 motors and 10 the parallel connection. The intermediate 
 points are resistance points. As this system of control is 
 made up of separate electrically operated switches these 
 may be located in any available position and are generally 
 placed under the car floor. 
 
 The Westinghouse multiple train control system employs 
 compressed air to operate the controlling apparatus, electro- 
 magnetic valves for controlling the admission of air to the 
 various cylinders and a low voltage control circuit for actu- 
 ating the electro-magnets. The essential parts of this system 
 consist of a series parallel controller on which is mounted 
 an operating head consisting of a number of air cylinders, a 
 multiple control switch and two sets of storage batteries. 
 
 The controller and operating head combines a series 
 parallel controller with an operating cylinder, a release cylin- 
 der, two reverse cylinders, a repeating switch, a limit switch, 
 four magnetic valves and two safety switches. The operat- 
 ing cylinder carries two pawls on the end of its piston rod 
 which engage two ratchet plates mounted on the end of the 
 controller shaft and these pawls turn the controller notch 
 by notch. The release cylinder throws the controller to the 
 "off" position. The reverse cylinders are used to throw the 
 reverser to "forward" or "back" and the magnet valves admit 
 or cut off the air in the different cylinders. The repeating 
 switch causes the controller to advance notch by notch auto- 
 matically as the car is accelerating and the limit switch stops 
 the advance of the controller when too much current is being 
 taken by the motors The safety switch prevents the reverse 
 switch from being thrown or the circuit breaker from being 
 closed except when the controller is at the "off" position. 
 All of the pistons of the air cylinders move against springs 
 v/hich return them to their normal positions when the air 
 is cut off.
 
 138 
 
 A multiple control switch, which is operated by the motor- 
 man, is placed on each end of each car and a train is con- 
 trolled from the one on the front of the leading car. This 
 switch only controls the low voltage battery circuits which 
 operate the magnet valves. Two sets of batteries are used 
 alternately, one set being charged on the lighting circuit of 
 the car while the other set is being discharged. The bat- 
 tery circuits are connected from car to car by means of flexi- 
 ble cables coupled between the cars, and the supply of air 
 for the controller cylinders is taken from the air-brake cylin- 
 ders under the cars. 
 
 When the multiple control switch handle is moved to the 
 right to the first notch the battery circuit is closed through a 
 magnet switch which opens a valve admitting air to one of 
 the cylinders and the piston in this cylinder is moved for- 
 ward against its spring. The function of the spring is to 
 open the circuit breaker. On notch 2 of the control switch 
 the battery circuit is closed through the other magnets, one 
 of which opens a valve to one of the reverse cylinders which 
 the air pressure turns to the "forward" position. From the 
 reverse cylinder the air passes through a pipe to the circuit 
 breaker cylinder, where it closes the circuit breaker. An- 
 other magnet shuts off the air from the release cylinder and 
 opens an exhaust from it to the atmosphere. When the con- 
 trol switch handle is moved to notch 3 the circuit is closed 
 through the operating cylinder magnet, the repeating switch 
 and the safety switch. In this position of the control switch 
 air is admitted to the operating cylinder whose piston moves 
 forward and turns the controller cylinder one notch by 
 means of the pawl and ratchet wheel. When this piston 
 reaches the end of its stroke an arm which it carries opens 
 the repeating switch. This cuts off the supply of air from 
 the operating cylinder and the spring moves its piston back 
 until the arm closes the repeating switch and the piston
 
 139 
 
 carrying the pawl again moves forward and turns the con- 
 troller to the next notch. This operation is repeated sev- 
 eral times until the controller stands at the full series posi- 
 tion, when it is stopped through the action of an interlock- 
 ing switch. When the control switch handle is moved to 
 notch 4 the automatic notching up of the controller proceeds 
 until the full multiple position is reached. On throwing the 
 control handle back to notch i the air is cut off from the 
 operating cylinder and admitted to the release cylinder 
 through the action of their respective magnets. The release 
 cylinder piston in moving carries a rack with it which turns 
 the controller to the "off" position by means of the pinion 
 on its shaft. The pipe furnishes connection between the 
 brake cylinder and the release cylinder so that the controller 
 is automatically opened when the brakes are applied. The 
 controller, also, cannot be thrown on until the brakes are 
 released. 
 
 To operate the train after all connections are made ready 
 and the air pump has compressed the air in the brake cylinder 
 to the proper pressure, move the handle to notch i, which 
 admits air to the circuit breaker cylinders on each car ; then 
 advance the handle to notch 2 and let it remain there a few 
 seconds and then move it to notch 3. When at this point the 
 controllers on all the cars will advance step by step to the 
 full series position. By pressing a latch in the handle and 
 moving it to' notch 4 all the controllers will advance to the 
 full multiple position. The speed at which the controllers 
 will advance depends upon the limit switch which is ar- 
 ranged to stop the action, of the controller when a fixed 
 maximum of current is taken by the motors. 
 
 The controllers may be stopped in any position by bring- 
 ing back the handle to notch 2, but they should only be al- 
 lowed to stand at the shunt positions but a short time. The 
 current is cut off from the motors entirely by bringing the
 
 140 
 
 handle back to notch I. In order to avoid delay in starting, 
 the handle may be advanced to pcint 2 before the starting 
 signal is given, and this allows the train to be started im- 
 mediately by moving the handle to notch 3. For the general 
 inspection and remedying of troubles on this system the 
 reader is referred to a book of instructions published by the 
 Westinghouse Air Brake Co.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 BRAKES AND THEIR CONSTRUCTION. 
 
 The brake is a most important device for the motorman, 
 because its purpose is to control the car when the power is 
 cut off and cause it to slow up or stop at any desired place. 
 The brake, when applied, consumes the energy stored in the 
 car by the motors. This energy is overcome by the friction 
 of the brake shoes on the car wheels. The better a motor- 
 man can estimate the distance and the less he has to use up 
 the stored energy with the brake, the more efficient are his 
 services, the less is the power wasted. It will be clear to 
 apply the power up to the last moment and immediately 
 afterwards use the brake is a wasteful performance, but 
 there are conditions where such action cannot be avoided, 
 for instance when stopping on a grade or when a motorman 
 has to make many stops and his time for a round trip is 
 measured closely with respect to the speed of the motor in 
 use. 
 
 But before discussing the way to handle brakes let us look 
 into the construction of some of the principal brakes in use. 
 There are at present in use five kinds of brakes. 
 
 1. Hand brakes in which the power which draws the 
 brake shoes against the wheels is supplied by the strength 
 of the motorman, either by the winding of a chain on a staff 
 or as on a few roads by a long lever. 
 
 2. Momentum or friction disk brakes in which the mo- 
 mentum of the car furnishes power to draw up the brake 
 shoes through the medium of a friction disk or clutch placed 
 on one axle.
 
 142 
 
 3. Air brakes, in which the power drawing up the brake 
 shoes is compressed air acting against a piston. 
 
 4. Electric brakes, in which the retarding force is the 
 electricity generated in the motors which are connected to act 
 as dynamos, the motors in this case being used to stop the 
 car as well as to start it and run it. 
 
 5. Track brakes, in which shoes carried at the sides of 
 the truck are pressed against the top of the track rails with 
 sufficient force so that the friction between the shoes and 
 rails stops the car. 
 
 While hand brakes are used on all electric cars, all but 
 the smallest and lightest cars are now generally equipped 
 with some kind of power brakes. Every truck has a brake 
 mechanism consisting of various arrangements of rods, 
 beams and levers by means of which the force applied to 
 the brake handle or the brake levers is transmitted to the 
 brake shoes so that they may be pressed hard against the 
 wheels. Every make of trucks has its own style of brake 
 rigging 1 an d the number of different makes is too great to 
 permit a detailed description of them all, and as the general 
 arrangement of all of them is more or less similar, a de- 
 scription of two or three different syles of hand brakes will 
 suffice. 
 
 Figs. 87, 88 and 89 show three views of the truck equipped 
 with hand brakes. Fig. 87 is a top view, Fig. 88 a front ele- 
 vation and Fig. 89 a side elevation. The brake shoes, 5, 
 are located close behind the car wheels i, 2, 3 and 4, the nor- 
 mal distance between the brake shoes and wheels being 
 about one-eighth of an inch. The shoes are supported by 
 brake beams, 6, to which are fastened the brake rods, 7. The 
 other ends of the brake rods are securely fastened to the 
 cross beams, 8, which in turn engage at 9 with the equalizer 
 bar. At the ends of the equalizer bar are secured the hook 
 rods, ii, into which the brake chain is hooked. The chain,
 
 144 
 
 brake, staff and handle are not shown in these drawings. A 
 heavy spring, 12, is used to remove the brake shoe from 
 the car wheels when the brake is released. The action that 
 takes place in braking the car is as follows : 
 
 When the motorman turns the brake handle around one or 
 more turns he winds up the brake chain and pulls the hook 
 rod, II, forward and thereby moves the equalizer bar, 10, 
 which in turn moves the cross beams, 8, 8. These cross 
 beams in moving towards each other move rods 7, and these 
 in turn bring the brake beams, 6, and shoes, 5, toward each 
 other until the shoes rest firmly against the car wheels. 
 When the brake handle is released, all the parts return to 
 their former position. The spring, 12, assists in this latter 
 work and helps to hold the brake shoe away from the 
 wheel. It will be seen from this that all four brake shoes 
 act at the same time. It is necessary to provide an adjust- 
 ment in every brake, because the brake shoes wear and the 
 slack caused by this wear must be taken up. In the truck 
 just described this adjustment is made where the rods, 7, 
 connect to the brake beam at points 14 near the shoes. These 
 rods have threaded ends that screw into sleeve nuts, 15, 
 which are held in pockets provided for them in the brake 
 beam. A self-locking device prevents these ends from turn- 
 ing loose by the jolting of the car. The adjustment is made 
 by turning the head of the nut with a wrench. The head 
 is at the outer enclosed side of the nut, and turning it to the 
 right, or clockwise, shortens the rod and brings the shoe 
 nearer the wheel. The locking device does not interfere with 
 turning the nut with a wrench, but it prevents the nut from 
 turning due to the jolting of the car. These adjustments are 
 placed near the brake shoes because this location enables the 
 adjustment of each shoe separately, and consequently all the 
 shoes may be regulated for an equal pressure on their wheels. 
 Fig. 90 shows another brake mechanism which is used on
 
 145 
 
 the Taylor single trucks. The brake mechanism is shown 
 in full, and the car wheels and truck are indicated in dotted 
 lines. At the right of the illustration is seen the projecting 
 hook rod, which is connected to lever 2. This lever is at- 
 tached slightly out of center to the break beam 3, which 
 carries the two front brake shoes, 4, 4. The equalizer rod, 
 5, is attached to lever, 2, by means of a link, 6. From the 
 equalizer the rods, 7, 7, extend to the middle of the car and 
 are connected by turn buckles, 8, 8, to the exact duplicate of 
 the mechanism described on the other end of the car. The 
 turn buckles have a right hand thread tapped into one end 
 and a left hand thread in the other, so that turning them in 
 one direction will unscrew or lengthen both rods, 7, 7, and 
 the distance between the equalizer bars. Turning the turn 
 buckles in the opposite direction shortens the rods, 7, 7, and 
 consequently the distance between the equalizer bars. When 
 these are shortened the brake shoes, 4, 4, are brought closer 
 together. This brake is designed to secure an even pressure 
 upon all the wheels at the same instant, even though the 
 adjustment on both sides should not be exactly the same. 
 If the man in charge of the cars takes up more slack on one 
 side of the brake than on the other, the equalizer will com- 
 pensate for the difference, so that each shoe bears against 
 each wheel with the same pressure. When the brakes are 
 idle the shoes are held a slight distance from the wheels by 
 an adjustable release spring, 12, which can be readily ad- 
 justed so that all the shoes are an equal distance from their 
 respective wheels. This distance is from % to 3-16 of an 
 inch, and in this position the motorman can bring the shoes 
 against the wheels by a single turn of the brake handle. 
 Under these conditions the speed of a car can be checked 
 quickly, and the car is under easy control. It is hardly pos- 
 sible to entirely disable these brakes, as the conductor can 
 apply the brake on the rear end of the car in case anything
 
 . $ 
 
 %-... 1 
 
 I 
 
 *\ 
 
 Mr 
 
 ls\ 
 
 N
 
 147 
 
 becomes disabled on the motorman's end, and if one of the 
 brake rods and end chains give way, the brake can be oper- 
 ated on the opposite end. 
 
 The McGuire hand brake is shown in diagram in Fig. 91. 
 The full truck is not shown, but simply the wheels and one 
 side of the brake. The brake chain is attached to rod, i, 
 and when this rod is drawn by the brake chain attached to 
 the brake staff, the curved lever, 2, to which it is attached, is 
 
 pulled over toward the left. This lever is pivoted on the 
 brake beam, 3, and has its other end attached to rod, 4, which 
 runs across to the other brake beam, and the rocking lever, 5. 
 It will be seen that when the rocking lever, 2, is pulled from 
 right to left the brake beams carrying the brake shoes are 
 pulled together, and the shoes drawn against the wheel. To 
 adjust the brake shoes and bring them nearer the wheels a 
 nut, 6, is provided on the end of the rod, 4. The arrange- 
 ment of the brake levers is the same on the opposite side of 
 the truck, except that the lever, 2, is on the opposite end.
 
 148 
 
 The rods on the two sides should be adjusted so there will 
 be an even pressure on both pair of brake shoes 
 
 Fig. 92 shows the elastic brake shoe hanger of the Mc- 
 Guire Manufacturing Company. The spring G serves to 
 automatically take up the wear on the pivot H, and also 
 acts as a reactive spring to throw the shoe away from the 
 wheels when the brake is released. The force with which 
 these springs G act on the brakes can be regulated by the 
 
 ft* to/ire Mfq Co 
 
 PIG. 92. 
 
 nuts C, so that the proper clearance between the shoes and 
 the wheels can always be maintained. For instance, if the 
 shoes on one side of the car do not stand the same distance 
 from the wheels as on the other side when the brake is re- 
 leased, the nut C should be slacked off on the hanger whose 
 shoe is farthest from the wheel, and tightened on the hanger 
 whose shoe is nearest to the wheel. Many of the older 
 McGuire trucks have plain standard release springs in place 
 of the elastic hanger. 
 
 In the case of double truck cars, arrangements must be 
 made to apply the brakes on both trucks, so that each will 
 be operated by the motion of one brake handle. This is ac-
 
 149 
 
 complished in various ways, generally by having either a 
 fixed or floating lever in the center of the car between the 
 trucks, to which the brake rods from each truck are con- 
 nected. The central lever is then connected to the brake 
 staff by means of a brake chain and rod, and by moving this 
 rod and the central lever to which it is attached, the brakes 
 
 on both trucks are operated simultaneously. The arrange- 
 ment of the levers of the Sterling brake for double truck 
 cars, which is standard on the cars of the Metropolitan 
 Street Railway, New T York City, is shown in Fig. 93, and 
 the following dimensions show the proportion of the dif- 
 ferent levers. The length of the floating lever, 1, is 48 in., and 
 the distance, d, between the pins for the arch bar rods is 9 in. 
 The length, b, of the truck lever is 13 in. With these 
 dimensions of levers a pull of 65 Ib. at the brake handle, 
 which is 15 in. in length, gives a total braking pressure o|"
 
 150 
 
 29,000 lb., which is more than the weight of an empty car. 
 The proportion of the levers recommended by the makers 
 of these brakes is such as to make (1-f-d) X (b-i-c) X(hX 
 85) equal to the total weight of the unloaded car. The 
 chain is not coiled around the brake staff on these brakes, 
 but there are two chains running in a double sprocket wheel 
 which makes the operation of the brake very smooth and 
 permits the motorman to feel even a slight touch of the 
 brake shoe against the wheel. If the working chain breaks, 
 
 FIG. 94. 
 
 the safety chain comes into operation, thus preventing the 
 disability of the brakes from this cause. 
 
 The standard equalizer brake rigging for double truck 
 cars used by the Brill Co. is shown in Fig. 94. The two 
 central equalizer levers are connected at their fulcrums by 
 a short rod, one end of each lever is connected by a rod and 
 chain to the brake staff, and the other end of each lever is 
 connected by another rod to the brake rigging. The object 
 of these brake mechanisms for double trucks is to provide a 
 means for bringing an approximately equal pressure on all 
 of the car wheels which is necessary in order to secure the 
 maximum braking effect, and also to prevent one set of
 
 151 
 
 wheels being locked more firmly than the others, which 
 would cause them to slide along the track without revolv- 
 ing, and produce flat spots on the wheels. 
 
 The Price momentum brake has a friction clutch on one 
 axle, from which power is derived to draw up the brake 
 chain which operates the ordinary brake rigging. In other 
 words, the friction clutch supplies the power which is fur- 
 nished by the muscles of the motorman when the common 
 hand brake is used. With the Price brake the motorman 
 simply pulls a lever, which forces the friction clutch to act 
 
 and draw up the brakes. The plan of a truck equipped with 
 the Price brake is shown in Fig. 95. The car wheel, a, has 
 a disc wheel, b, which may be fastened to it, or as ordinarily 
 used, is cast on the wheel. Against this is a corresponding 
 loose disc, e, located upon the axle. This loose disc is pref- 
 erably made in two parts so that it can be easily removed, 
 and the halves are bolted together around the axle. It is 
 supported on brass bearings and is provided with an ex- 
 tended sleeve to which is attached one end of the chain, the 
 opposite end being secured to the center lever of a double 
 truck car, or to one of the brake levers when a single truck
 
 152 
 
 is used. In the early Price brakes the loose disc is pressed 
 against the car wheel disc by a system of levers controlled 
 by the motorman, and this causes the disc, e, to attempt to 
 revolve with the car wheel. This movement of the disc, e, 
 winds up the brake chain attached to it, and applies the 
 brake. In the modern Price brakes improvemnts have been 
 made in the method of applying the power. A hydraulic 
 pressure pump has been added in combination with a hydrau- 
 lic clutch for operating the brake. The pressure pump is 
 located on the floor of the car platform, and is operated by 
 means of a vertical staff, to the upper end of which a ratchet 
 wheel is attached. The movement of this handle drives the 
 plunger into the barrel of the pump and makes it possible 
 to put the desired pressure upon the liquid which it contains. 
 A pipe connects this pump with the cylinders of a hydraulic 
 clutch that is located on the axle and operates the disc. In 
 order to make a gradual application of the friction disc to 
 the wheel an air pump is provided in the connections, which 
 serves as a cushion and permits the motorman to apply the 
 brakes as rapidly or as slowly as required This brake has 
 an operating lever, which is located close to the dash between 
 the hand brake staff and the motor controller. To apply the 
 brake, pull the lever slowly for an easy stop and quickly for 
 an emergency stop, and ease off the pull on the lever slightly 
 just before the car comes to a stop, same as is done with the 
 hand brake. 
 
 When going up a grade do not ease off the pull entirely, 
 but hold the brake on till ready to start the car again. If 
 the brake is released on a grade the car will run backwards, 
 but can be brought to a stop by applying the brake, same as 
 when the car is running down the grade. 
 
 The lever is provided with a ratchet and pawl, but these 
 should not be used until after the car comes to a stop and 
 when it is desired to hold the brake on.
 
 153 
 
 Before leaving the car platform always set the hand brake. 
 
 Air brakes are now very generally used on heavy electric 
 cars, and are principally of two kinds, known as the straight 
 air and the automatic air brake. The "straight" air brake 
 is the more common on electric cars, however, and is also 
 
 FIGS. % AND 97. 
 
 more simple, as we will describe the "straight" air brake 
 first, taking as an example the Standard Air Brake Com- 
 pany's apparatus. Fig. 97 shows a side view of a car piped 
 for Standard air brakes and Fig. 96 the plan of the piping 
 as it would look from above. The air is pumped by the elec- 
 tric compressor under the seat into the reservoir. The com- 
 pressor is simply an air pump driven by an electric motor. 
 In some cases the pump is constantly driven from the car
 
 154 
 
 axle instead of a motor. The air pump is connected with 
 the reservoir where the air is kept constantly stored under a 
 pressure of from 30 to 40 pounds per square inch. Auto- 
 matic regulators shut off the electric pump motor when the 
 pressure reaches 40 pounds, or if the compressor is driven 
 from the axle the pump is made to exhaust into the open air 
 when the pressure rises to that amount. From the reservoir, 
 pipes run to the motorman's valves on each platform and 
 pipes also connect the motorman's valves with the brake 
 cylinder. The brake cylinder has a piston which is con- 
 nected to the brake shoe rig of the truck. To apply the 
 brakes the motorman's valve is turned so as to let the air 
 pressure from the reservoir into the brake cylinder which 
 pushes out the piston and applies the brakes. To release 
 brakes the valve is turned so as to let the air escape from 
 the brake pipe and close the way from the reservoir to the 
 brake pipe. If a trailer is used its brake pipe is connected 
 to that of the motor car, so that the pressure let into the 
 motor car brake cylinder also goes to the trailer brake cylin- 
 der. 
 
 The handle of the motorman's valve should always be on 
 release position, that is to the extreme right, when the car 
 is running. Between the position of "application" and "re- 
 lease" there is the position of lap. When making a service 
 stop the handle should be moved to the left until it is 
 slightly to the left of lap and immediately back to the lap 
 position. This will admit some air pressure to the brake 
 cylinder. The suddenness of the stop depends on the dis- 
 tance the handle is moved past "lap" and the length of time 
 it is left there. To make an emergency stop immediately 
 throw handle over as far to the left as possible and keep it 
 there. This lets the full pressure into the brake cylinder. 
 On slippery track some judgment must be used, however, 
 in making an emergency stop not to slide the wheels. The
 
 155 
 
 air brake, and especially the compressor, needs regular at- 
 tention and oiling. 
 
 The general plan of the Christensen air brakes, which 
 are very extensively used on electric cars, is shown in Fig. 
 98. The compressor consists of a self-contained enclosed air 
 pump which is either directly attached to the car axle, being 
 operated by an eccentric, or is driven by a separate electric 
 motor. The suction and discharge valves are so arranged 
 that when the maximum presure is reached the compressor 
 stops working automatically, and does not commence com- 
 pressing again until the pressure is lowered. In Fig. 99 
 is shown the plan of equipment for a motor car and trailer. 
 In the motor driven air compressor equipments, the current 
 for the motor is taken directly from the trolley and the 
 action of the motor is governed by an automatic switch con- 
 troller which operates by the variation in pressure due to 
 the working of the compressor and the consumption of air 
 by the brakes. Fig. 99 shows the connections for a motor car 
 and trailer. 
 
 The engineer's valve is the part of this brake mechanism 
 which most directly concerns the motorman, and he should 
 become familiar with its operation in the various positions 
 shown in Fig. 100. The position for releasing is the position 
 in which the handle should stand while the car is running. 
 In this position there is direct communication from brake 
 cylinder to atmosphere, consequently the shoes are kept 
 away from the wheels by the heel springs. Don't run the 
 car with the valve handle in lap position. It should be at 
 slow release, or between that and quick release. In lap or 
 center position all the ports are closed, and it will be ob- 
 served that this 'is the only position in which the handle can 
 be removed from the valve when changing from one end 
 of the car to the other. If this change happens to be on a 
 grade, the brakes are simply set, the valves put in lap posi-
 
 157 
 
 tion,, and the handle removed, then the brake is released from 
 the other end. At the emergency position a free passage is 
 open for the air to enter the brake cylinders, applying the 
 brake instantly with full force, and this should only be used 
 
 in case of necessity. The general instructions for the opera- 
 tion of the Christensen straight air brake are as follows : 
 
 1. To start the compressor close the canopy switch. This 
 will automatically close the governor, so that current will 
 pass from trolley to ground through the motor, thus drivinjr 
 the compressor. 
 
 2. Should the compressor refuse to work under this con-
 
 158 
 
 dition, the fuse may be blown. If so, do not put in a heavier 
 fuse than specified ior the size of the compressor. If the 
 fuse is in order, you should try to locate the trouble if you 
 can readily do so ; if not, you should report the matter to the 
 proper person. 
 
 3. All the stop-cocks on the train pipe, except on the 
 front and rear ends of the train, should be open. When 
 open, the handle stands crosswise to the pipe and when 
 closed it stands parallel with it. 
 
 4. To cut out a standard governor close the ^4-inch stop- 
 cock so that the T handle stands crossways with the pipe ; 
 then move the governor plunger so as to make contact and 
 thus close the circuit. The compressor can now be started 
 and stopped by the hand switch in the canopy, but you 
 should not forget to start and stop the compressor to keep 
 the pressures within the desired limits of 70 pounds mini- 
 mum and 80 to 90 pounds maximum. 
 
 Lap Position. The engineer's valve is made with a de- 
 tachable handle, which is only removable in what is known 
 as lap position, in which position the valve is neutral in the 
 same manner as the main controller is by removing the re- 
 verse handle. 
 
 Service application of the brakes is effected by moving 
 the handle of the engineer's valve to the first notch on the 
 right. As soon as a sufficiently hard pressure is brought 
 against the wheels, the handle may be moved back into lap 
 position, whereby the brakes remain set at that pressure. 
 If it is desired to set the brakes a little harder, repeat the 
 operation. By moving back to lap without releasing, the 
 handle may be removed and the brake released from the 
 other end of the car ; this feature is very valuable, especially 
 where the terminus is on a grade. 
 
 Slow Release of the Brakes. By moving the handle from 
 lap position to the first notch on the left a slow release of the
 
 159 
 
 brakes is effected, which release may be checked in the 
 same way by moving the. handle back to lap position, the 
 same as in. service application of the brakes. 
 
 Emergency Application. This is effected by moving the 
 handle from lap as far as it will go to the 'right, in which 
 position a large passage is afforded to allow compressed air 
 to travel from the main reservoir to the brake cylinder and 
 the application of the brakes is practically instantaneous. The 
 emergency application should not be made except when 
 absolutely necessary. 
 
 Quick Release. By moving the handle from lap position 
 to the left as far as it will go, a quick release is effected in 
 the same manner as a quick application, by establishing a 
 large opening from the brake cylinder to the atmosphere, 
 whereby the pressure escapes quickly from the brake cylin- 
 der, thereby letting off the brakes in a very short space of 
 time. 
 
 Running Position. When the brakes are not being ap- 
 plied or released, the handle of the engineer's valve should 
 always be on the first notch to the left, or that of slow 
 release. 
 
 Brake Leverage. The leverage and total pressure on the 
 brake cylinder is so proportioned that under ordinary cir- 
 cumstances, with a dry rail, the wheels cannot skid. If the 
 rail is in bad condition for stopping, the leverage and pres- 
 sure being the same as under normal conditions, would prob- 
 ably skid the wheels if the brake cylinder be charged with 
 the full pressure. 
 
 In such instances care should be taken not to slide the 
 wheels, by not introducing too much pressure to the brake 
 cylinder. If the wheels slide, which can be instantly felt, 
 the handle is moved over to slow release, letting out air until 
 the wheels again revolve, then back to lap, and release again 
 just before the car comes to a dead stop, to prevent the dis-
 
 160 
 
 agreeable jar which follows if a car comes to a dead stop 
 with the brakes applied. 
 
 The Westinghouse air brake is the one in general use on 
 steam roads. With it the pressure is kept constantly on 
 the uain pipe from one end of a train to the other. A re- 
 duction of this pressure causes an application of the brakes 
 so that letting air out of the train pipe, either by the motor- 
 man's handle or by the breaking of a hose, will set the 
 brakes. To explain properly the action and mechanism of 
 these brakes would take more space than is allowable in this 
 book, and we would refer any motorman handling these 
 brakes to the instruction books issued by the Westinghouse 
 Air Brake Company. 
 
 The General Electric Cpmpany's electric brake, which is 
 in use on a number of cars, has as its fundamental principle 
 the utilizing of the live energy stored in the moving car to 
 generate an elctric current in the motors independent from 
 the power-house current, and the use of this current to 
 bring the car to a standstill. It is produced in the motors 
 which are connected to act as dynamos. It stops the car 
 partly by its retarding effect on the motors themselves and 
 partly by a magnetic disc mounted on each axle. The con- 
 trollers used with the General Electric Company's electric 
 brake are of the B type. The action is as follows : Suppose 
 a car provided with an electric brake is to be brought to a 
 stop. The motorman first brings his controller to the "off" 
 position and thereby disconnects the car from the line and 
 power house ; then by moving the handle around to the left 
 of "off" position to the special brake notches, the armature 
 connections are reversed and the motors are connected to 
 form a closed circuit through a resistance and the brake 
 disc magnets, as shown in Fig. 101. The motors running 
 with the circuit closed in this way act as dynamos and gen- 
 erate current. This current tends to stop the motors and
 
 161 
 
 also to cause the magnetic clutch on the axle to act and aid 
 in stopping- the car. 
 
 To operate an electric brake requires a little practice on 
 the part of the motorman, but when the principle is clear it 
 is an easy matter. It should first be understood that the 
 amount of current generated in the motors, and conse- 
 quently the braking effect, depends on the speed at which 
 the motors are running, and that if the brakes are to take 
 
 Ktqutottd 
 'Ora/it Cent foliar 
 
 for SJmfi/icitu rtt* Llmtt SHitch As Nof Show/* -= 
 
 hold evenly from the beginning to end of a stop the resist- 
 ance which is in the brake circuit must be steadily cut out. 
 For example, when it is desired to stop when running at full 
 speed, the controller handle is moved to the first brake 
 point. The motors start generating current to retard the 
 car, but as the car slows down a little this current begins to 
 die out, and the handle should be promptly moved onto the 
 next point to cut out some more of the resistance from the 
 brake circuit and allow more current to flow, and so on un- 
 til the car is stopped. The motorman should promptly ad-
 
 162 
 
 vance the handle from one point to the next of the brake 
 controller as fast as he feels the current failing on a point. 
 The quickness of the stop will depend on the rapidity with 
 which the handle is moved from point to point, and in emer- 
 gencies it may be found necessary to move two or more 
 points at a time. There is never need to reverse on a car 
 having an electric brake, as the brake will stop as quick or 
 quicker than reversing and is not so hard on the machinery. 
 On grades it is necessary to use the hand brake to hold the 
 car while stopping, for the electric brake lets go as soon as 
 the car stops. 
 
 The electric brake on the Walker type S controller is de- 
 scribed in the foregoing chapter on controllers. 
 
 The Murrey anti-friction brake has a cast iron collar 
 keyed to the car axle next to the wheel and also a brass 
 sleeve. Around the sleeve is a drum which is free to rotate 
 and around which the brake chain winds. A portion of the 
 sleeve is threaded, and the nut covering this part, which is 
 separated from the drum by ball bearings, has a lever pro- 
 jection. Two levers connect to the car platform, and by 
 forcing them forward the drum is set against the revolving 
 collar and the friction causes the drum to revolve, winding 
 the chain and setting the brake. The ball bearings enable 
 any pressure to be maintained and render it impossible for 
 the brake to set. 
 
 The Magann air brake system uses compressed air which 
 is stord in tanks, but is not compressed upon the car as in 
 the air brakes previously described. At the car barn or 
 other central point a storage tank is provided containing 
 compressed air at about 30 pounds pressure per square inch, 
 and the tanks on the car are filled from this storage tank in 
 a few moments. A sufficient tank capacity is provided to be 
 sufficient for from 300 to 500 stops, or several round trips 
 over an ordinary city route. The initial pressure in the
 
 163 
 
 main reservoir on the car is usually 300 pounds per square 
 inch ; by a reducing valve this is lowered to 50 pounds or 
 less, according to the speed and weight of the cars, at which 
 pressure the air enters the auxiliary reservoirs on the cars. 
 From the auxiliary reservoir to the brake cylinder the air is 
 controlled by the engineer's valve. The brake cylinder is 
 provided with two pistons adapted to be pressed towards 
 each other through the agency of a spring, or other similar 
 means ; means are provided by the motorman's valve for 
 connecting the air supply or reservoir to the space between 
 the pistons whereby the pistons may be separated against the 
 tension of the spring to apply the brake when it is desired. 
 
 To release the brake a controlling valve is operated to cut 
 off the space between the pistons from the air supply reser- 
 voir, and to connect it with the air space of the cylinder be- 
 hind the pistons whereby the pressure on the opposite side of 
 the piston is equalized and the springs permitted to return 
 to their normal positions. 
 
 By this arrangment of exhaust, fresh air is always sup- 
 plied behind the pistons, thereby overcoming the danger of 
 accumulating dust in the cylinder, and by connecting the 
 compressed air between the pistons with the cylinder behind 
 the pistons when releasing the brakes, the pressure on both 
 sides of the piston is rapidly equalized and the springs at 
 once force the pistons together. 
 
 The Magann storage air brakes are operated in practi- 
 cally the same way as other straight air brakes. To start the 
 car, turn the handle to the right until the shoes are felt grip- 
 ping the wheels and then place the valve on lap position. The 
 lap position is the one at which the handle can be put on and 
 taken off from the valve. If the car does not stop as quickly 
 as desired, turn the handle to the right again until the 
 shoes grip the wheels more firmly. The operation can be 
 repeated again if necessary. Turning the handle to the left
 
 164 
 
 allows the air in the brake cylinders to exhaust and throws 
 off the brakes. Just before coming to a dead stop the handle 
 should be turned to the left so as to allow most of the air in 
 the brake cylinder to exhaust. 
 
 The Westinghouse magnetic brake consists of a combina- 
 tion of a track brake with the ordinary wheel brake. The 
 track brake shoe is placed between the two pairs of wheels 
 and instead of being forced upon the wheels through an ef- 
 
 fort of the car, is drawn to the rails by an electro-magnet 
 suspended from the car. This not only adds the track 
 brake friction to the wheel friction for stopping the car, but 
 there is an increase in the wheel pressure on the rails due 
 to magnetic action. The construction of this brake is shown 
 in Fig. 102, in which the parts of the truck are in dotted 
 lines so as to more readily distinguish the brake apparatus. 
 The electro-magnet, a, dividing the track brake shoe, b, into 
 two parts, is secured by pins to the two push rods, c, and sus- 
 pended at the proper distance above the rails by the adjust- 
 able springs, h. The push rods are secured by pins to the
 
 165 
 
 lower ends of the brake lever, d, which are connected at their 
 upper ends by the adjustable rod, g, and at an intermediate 
 point are pivoted to the brake shoe holders and the hanger 
 links, f, suspended from the truck frame. The push rods, c, 
 are telescopic, as shown in the sectional view of the one at 
 the left, so that a movement of the track shoe toward the 
 right relative to the truck frame causes the wheel brake 
 shoe at the right to be applied to the wheel and the connec- 
 tion, g, to be moved to the left, thereby applying the wheel 
 brake shoe at the left, the stop, i, preventing the lower end 
 of the brake lever at the left from following the track brake 
 shoe. A relative movement of the track brake shoe to the 
 left is obviously accompanied by application of the wheel 
 brake shoes through corresponding movement of the parts 
 in the reverse order. 
 
 The brake-controlling device may be incorporated in the 
 running controller or may be a separate device, placed by its 
 side and operatively interlocked with it, so that neither can, 
 through carelessness, be caused to interfere with the opera- 
 tion of the other. These controllers, type B, were described 
 in the previous chapter. In the operation of the apparatus, 
 the current is supplied by the motors, running in multiple as 
 generators, and is divided between the electro-magnets and 
 the diverter, in such ratio as to cause the track brake shoes 
 to be drawn upon the rails with a force proportionate to the 
 braking requirements. The frictional resistance of the rails 
 to the motion of the track shoes causes the wheel brakes to 
 be applied with corresponding force. Thus, to the ordinary 
 retardation of the wheel brakes is added that of the track 
 brake. The force of application depends upon the current 
 and upon the electro-magnets operating the brake shoes. 
 The attractive force of the rails upon the magnets Is under 
 the control of the motorman up to a limit of 150 Ib. per 
 sq. in. of brake shoe surface in contact with the rails.
 
 166 
 
 The strength of the magnet is limited by the sectional area 
 of the rail, acting as armature, and where the weight of the 
 car makes a magnet of greater strength desirable, the track 
 shoe is divided into three parts, instead of two, and wound 
 to form a three pole magnet, or two electro-magnets with 
 one common pole. With this brake the diverters or resist- 
 ances are arranged in two sets, one inside and the other out- 
 side of the car. Those inside are used to heat the car, for 
 which the starting current and braking current is ample. 
 The two sets of diverters may be so combined that any de- 
 sired portion of the heat generated may be used in the car 
 and the remainder, if any, passes into the open air. 
 
 The friction of the track brake shoe may also be adjusted 
 to some extent through the angular inclination of the push 
 rods, c, by which some of the weight of the car may be 
 thrown upon the track shoes, the levers d being correspond- 
 ingly adjusted to reduce the wheel brake shoe pressure in 
 proportion as the weight is transferred to the track shoe. 
 The current declines with the speed during a stop, and in 
 bad weather, when the condition of the rails is liable to be 
 accompanied by wheel sliding, the braking force operating 
 the wheel brake is correspondingly reduced so that 
 the force of application of the wheel brakes is automat- 
 ically proportioned to the rail friction which rotates the 
 wheels. If by chance the wheels should slide upon the rails, 
 the interruption of wheel rotation cuts off the track-magnet 
 current, through which the pressure of the brake shoes upon 
 the wheel is instantly relaxed and rotation of the wheels is 
 resumed, without injury or serious loss of time.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 ELECTRIC TRACTION SYSTEMS. 
 
 We are familiar with the trolley car running alone or 
 with a trailer, and taking current from an overhead trolley 
 line ; but in addition to this there are several other methods 
 by which cars are operated by electricity. The overhead 
 trolley is probably the cheapest of any electrical system to 
 build, and is easily maintained and operated, but beside this 
 there are third rail, conduit, surface contact and storage 
 battery systems, and systems using two or more overhead 
 trolley wires and electric locomotives. 
 
 THIRD RAIL SYSTEM. 
 
 The third rail system is one in which a rail called the third 
 rail is substituted for the overhead trolley. The third rail 
 may be placed either between the two track rail or outside 
 of them. The third rail system is at the present time assum- 
 ing considerable importance in the electric railway field, and 
 this type of construction is required where heavy cars are 
 made up into trains and operated at high speed. The rea- 
 son that the third rail system is preferable to the overhead 
 trolley in such cases is that the weight and speed of trains 
 requires an amount of current which is too great to be col- 
 lected by the overhead trolley wheels owing to its very lim- 
 ited contact. In the third rail system the sliding contact is 
 maintained by means of a shoe which slides along the top of 
 the third rail, and may be given sufficient area to carry any 
 required amount of current. The first commercial installa-
 
 168 
 
 tion of the third rail system was on the intra-mural railway 
 at the World's Fair in 1893. It was next adopted by the 
 elevated roads of Chicago and afterwards on a branch line of 
 the New York & New Haven railroad. The system was sub- 
 sequently extended to various branches of the same road. 
 It was next used on the Albany & Hudson Ry., after which 
 it -was installed on the Aurora, Elgin & Chicago Ry. A 
 third rail system in which the third rail is protected by a 
 wooden sheathing on top and at one side has been installed 
 on the Wilkesbarre & Hazelton railroad. All the elevated 
 roads in Chicago, Boston and New York are now equipped 
 with the third rail system. The third rail is elevated about 
 six inches above the level of the track rails and is supported 
 on insulators resting on the ties. In this country the third 
 rail is always located outside of the track rails, the general 
 practice being in elevated railway work to locate the third 
 rail 20 inches from the track rail, and in surface road work 
 27 inches from the track rail. In the earlier third rail sys- 
 tems, insulators were made of wood, but it has been found 
 that after a year or two of service the wood absorbs suf- 
 ficient moisture to partly short circuit the insulator, and 
 cause considerable loss through leakage. A number of 
 these wooden insulators have been found burning at various 
 times, and it has been noticed that the burning takes place 
 at the inside of the insulator instead of at its surface, show- 
 ing it to be due to capillary action of the water lying upon 
 the ties and road bed. Aside from the location of the 
 supply conductor, there is no difference between the third 
 rail and the overhead system, so far as the circuits upon the 
 car are concerned. The current from the third rail is col- 
 lected by means of a shoe which slides along the top of the 
 rail. The shoe is fastened to the journal box or some part 
 of the truck by means of a hinged joint which allows it to 
 bear on the rail with a pressure equal to its weight. It is, of
 
 169 
 
 course, thoroughly insulated from all metallic parts of the 
 car. 
 
 The third rail system is applicable only to roads running 
 upon a private right of way and is especially adapted to the 
 operations of cars in trains, which requires a larger amount 
 of current than can be collected by one trolley wheel. Shoes 
 are placed at the journal boxes of all the cars so that on a 
 long train the current is collected at a number of different 
 points. Where the road crosses a highway the third rail 
 is broken, stopping at each side of the crossing, and the car 
 is allowed to drift over the gap without current. The con- 
 tinuity of the third rail circuit is secured by attaching an 
 underground cable between the two ends of the third rail, 
 and these ends are built with a downward curve so that the 
 shoes, which can only drop slightly below their normal 
 position, do not make violent contact with the rail, but ride 
 up on the curved portion. 
 
 SURFACE CONTACT SYSTEMS. 
 
 Surface contact systems are those in which there are no 
 exposed conductors, and a number of such systems have 
 ben devised chiefly to avoid the use of overhead wires or 
 open underground conduits. While these systems vary con- 
 siderably as to details they all contain similar essential parts. 
 These are contact plates or buttons of iron set at short inter- 
 vals apart between the tracks, collector bars carried under 
 the cars which make contact with the buttons, and a feeder 
 cable buried in the ground which is connected to each but- 
 ton by means of a magnetic switch. Normally there is no 
 current in the buttons and they are "dead" except when a 
 car is directly over them, but when the collector bar comes 
 in contact with a button it is magnetized and this magnetism 
 closes the magnetic switch and completes the circuit from 
 the underground conductor through the button thence to
 
 170 
 
 the collector bar and to the car circuits. The buttons are 
 placed close enough together so that before the collector bar 
 has left one button it makes connection with the next one. 
 Sometimes two rows of buttons are used and two bars under 
 the car, one for magnetizing the switches and the other 
 for collecting the current. The current for magnetizing the 
 bar and buttons may be obtained from a few cells of storage 
 battery carried on the car. This system is used to a con- 
 siderable extent in Paris, France, and has just been applied 
 to eleven miles of track in Wolverhampton, England, but has 
 not been used in this country except on a small scale in yards 
 and about manufacturing establishments. It is less reliable 
 than the trolley system owing to the use of so many under- 
 ground magnetic switches which are liable to get out of 
 order and fail to open, thus leaving "live" contact buttons in 
 the streets. 
 
 CONDUIT SYSTEM. 
 
 The conduit system is one in which the conductors are car- 
 ried in a conduit under the surface of the street similar to a 
 cable railway conduit. Unlike the other system described 
 the conduit system does not make use of the tracks for a 
 return circuit, but instead, both the positive and negative 
 conductors are supported on insulators fastened inside of 
 the conduit. The current is taken from these conductors by 
 means of a trolley extending down through a slot in the sur- 
 face of the road. This underground trolley is called a plow. 
 The conductors are generally composed of copper bars and 
 the plow contains sliding contact pieces which rest on these 
 bars. One side of the plow collects the current, which is led 
 to the controllers and motors, after which it passes again to 
 the plow contact which is in connection with the return 
 circuit. 
 
 This system is in use in New York City and Washington, 
 D. C., and in a few European cities where overhead conduc-
 
 171 
 
 tors are prohibited. It is very expensive to build, costing in 
 the neighborhood of $100,000 per mile. 
 
 STORAGE BATTERY CARS. 
 
 A storage battery car is one which has electric current 
 stored in cells or batteries in the car, which supply current 
 to the car motor. Such a car can run on any railroad track 
 and requires no wires or conductors outside of itself. The 
 storage cell consists of plates of lead immersed in acid, and 
 these cells are charged at the power station by putting them 
 in circuit with a dynamo, the electric current causing chem- 
 ical changes in the lead. These changes represent a certain 
 amount of electrical energy, which is given out when the 
 batteries are connected to the car motors. The battery 
 merely supplies current for the car and the controllers are 
 similar to those on trolley cars and the method of operation 
 is the same. Storage battery cars are not very extensively 
 used, as the cost of operation is considerably higher than 
 that of trolley cars. This is chiefly due to the batteries, 
 which are expensive to install and which wear out rapidly 
 under the severe conditions of street railway work. 
 
 ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVES. 
 
 For the purpose of moving long trains of cars, switching 
 freight cars and other purposes where the power required is 
 so great that the motors cannot be mounted on the trucks 
 of ordinary cars, electric locomotives are used and current 
 is taken from an overhead wire or a third rail, as with a 
 trolley car. These locomotives are equipped with motors of 
 large capacity and their frames are very heavy so as to se- 
 cure sufficient adhesion to the track to pull very heavy loads. 
 The controllers and other apparatus on electric locomotives 
 are similar to those on cars of ordinary size, being merely 
 larger and heavier to accommodate the larger current used.
 
 GLOSSARY. 
 
 Ampere The standard unit of electric current which is 
 equivalent to the current flowing through a circuit hav- 
 ing one ohm resistance with a pressure of one volt. 
 Volts 
 
 Current= 
 
 resistance. 
 
 Armature The part of a motor or dynamo which revolves 
 and produces power or generates current. 
 
 Brushes On railway generators and motors they are blocks 
 of carbon held in brass holders with light springs to 
 press them against the commutator, and through which 
 the current passes to or from the commutator and arma- 
 ture, or from the stationary conductor of the circuit to 
 the rotary conductors or vice versa. 
 
 Brush Holders Devices to hold the brushes ; they are 
 adjustable so that the brushes can be lifted to prevent 
 sparking. 
 
 Circuit Breaker An automatic switch arranged to open 
 whenever the current becomes greater than a certain 
 amount and endangers the machine. It consists of a few 
 turns of wire around an iron core which becomes a 
 magnet of greater and greater power as the current in- 
 creases until it throws open the switch or releases a 
 catch which allows a spring to open the switch. 
 
 Commutator A set of copper segments separated by thin 
 strips of mica insulation in the form of a drum ; through 
 the segments covered by the positive brushes the posi- 
 tive current passes to the armature in a motor and from 
 it in a dynamo. 
 
 Compound Winding The field magnets of a railway dytta-
 
 173 
 
 mo always have two windings, through one of which, 
 the "series," the main current passes, and through the 
 other, the "shunt," a branch of the main current passes. 
 
 Conductors The part of the dynamo, motor or line, or cir- 
 cuit through which the current flows. 
 
 Diverter A rheostat or resistance placed in circuit with a 
 motor to reduce the current. 
 
 Electro-Magnet An iron or steel core around which a 
 spool of wire is placed to carry current. 
 
 Electro-Motive Force The voltage or volts' pressure in a 
 circuit; e. g., the trolley circuit has an electro-motive 
 force of 500 volts. The abbreviation is e. m. f. 
 
 Field The part of a motor or dynamo which contains the 
 magnets. 
 
 Fuse A strip of metal, generally some alloy of lead, which 
 easily melts when too great a current is flowing in the 
 circuit. It is mounted usually on a piece of porcelain 
 called a fuse block. 
 
 Generator Has the same meaning as dynamo, but is com- 
 monly used to denote the large machines in the station. 
 
 Horse Power The standard rate of work being 33,000 foot- 
 pounds per minute. If a machine can lift 1,000 pounds 
 33 feet in one minute its capacity is one-horse power. 
 The abbreviation is h. p. Electrical equivalent, h. p.= 
 746 watts. 
 
 Insulation A non-conductor, as air, rubber, mica, varnish, 
 etc., through which electricity does not readily pass. 
 
 Lightning Arresters They are devices which offer a by- 
 pass to lightning to prevent damage to machines when 
 the line is carrying a discharge of lightning by conduct- 
 ing it to the earth. 
 
 Magnetic Blow-Out When switches are opened or the cur- 
 rent shut off in controllers an arc is formed, or the cur- 
 rent passing through the air from one conductor to the
 
 174 
 
 other. A magnet is placed near the point where the arc 
 is formed and draws it aside and blows it out. 
 Ohm The standard of electrical resistance through which 
 one ampere of current will flow with a pressure of one 
 volt. 
 
 volts 
 
 current 
 
 Parallel or Multiple Connection A circuit in which the cur- 
 rent divides and part passes through each motor, dyna- 
 mo or other electrical device. 
 
 Poles or Pole Pieces The core ends which project on the 
 fields and conform to the shape of the armature, and 
 geerally carry the field windings. 
 
 Resistance An obstruction to the flow of current. All sub- 
 stances have some resistance, but resistance boxes or 
 rheostats have iron wire or sometimes carbon strips 
 for the circuit. Resistance produces heat in the circuit, 
 and by this means the current in passing through an 
 electric car heater makes the wires very hot. 
 
 Series Connection When the current passes through one 
 motor, dynamo or electrical device and thereafter into 
 one or more devices. 
 
 Sparking The flashing of the current which occurs at the 
 commutator when there is poor contact, the brushes are 
 in bad order, the commutator is dirty, or the dynamo 
 or motor is carrying too heavy a load. 
 
 Volt The standard of electrical pressure, or the pressure to 
 force one ampere of current through one ohm resist- 
 ance. Volts=amperes x ohms. 
 
 Watt The rate of performance of work measured electric- 
 ally; the capacity of a dynamo or motor is measured 
 in watts and is the product of volts by amperes. A 
 kilowatt is 1,000 watts and is equal to 1.34 h. p.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Accidents, precautions against 41 
 
 Ampere 28 
 
 Armature 14 
 
 Armature core 76 
 
 Arrester, Lightning 25, 53, 87 
 
 Carton 89 
 
 General Electric .-.. 91 
 
 Wurtz non-arcing 90 
 
 Blow-out, magnetic .83, 104 
 
 Brakes . 13 
 
 Air 142 
 
 Brill , 150 
 
 Christensen . .- ..155 
 
 Construction of 141 
 
 Electric 142, 160 
 
 Hand 141 
 
 Magann ....... 162 
 
 McGuire 147 
 
 Momentum .141 
 
 Murray anti-friction 162 
 
 Operation of 46 
 
 Price 151 
 
 Standard Air Brake Co 153 
 
 Sterling 149 
 
 Taylor 145 
 
 Track 142 
 
 Westinghouse magnetic track 164 
 
 Brush holder 52 
 
 Choke coil 91 
 
 Circuit breaker 25 
 
 Automatic 86 
 
 I. T. E. < 87 
 
 Coil, grounded 53 
 
 Commutator 74, 77 
 
 Flashing of 57 
 
 Conductors, electrical 26 
 
 Conduit system 170 
 
 Contactors 136 
 
 Contact, rail 51
 
 176 
 
 Controllers, contact fingers 52 
 
 Description of . 92 
 
 General Electric 104 
 
 Master 134 
 
 Operation of 34 
 
 Running points ........ 35 
 
 Series parallel 103 
 
 Steel Motor Co 130 
 
 Type B 103, 105, 117 
 
 Type C 6 134 
 
 Type D 101 
 
 Type K. . . 103, 104, 105 
 
 Type L 103, 104, 115 
 
 Type R 104, 105, 1 13 
 
 Walker 126 
 
 Westinghouse 118 
 
 Control, type M 134 
 
 Diverter 94 
 
 Dynamo 71 
 
 Edison 74 
 
 Economy of current . 34 
 
 Electro-magnet 72 
 
 Emergencies 37 
 
 Fuse 25 
 
 Blowing of -.-So, S3 
 
 Box 84 
 
 D. E. W 85 
 
 General Electric 85 
 
 Noark 85 
 
 Westinghouse 85 
 
 Gear, split 14 
 
 Grounds 58 
 
 Heating of motors 55 
 
 Insulators 26 
 
 Kicking coil 89 
 
 Lines of Force 65 
 
 Locomotives, electric 171 
 
 Magnet ." 63 
 
 Magnets, field 14, 17 
 
 Motor 14 
 
 Box frame .. 21
 
 177 
 
 Parts of 81 
 
 Principles of 63 
 
 Railway 76 
 
 Multiple connection 97 
 
 Field . 75 
 
 Unit Control, General Electric 133 
 
 Westinghouse 137 
 
 Needle, magnetic 68 
 
 Ohm's La \v 28 
 
 Overhead material 29 
 
 Parallel connection 96 
 
 Power, saving of- 39 
 
 Transmitting 26 
 
 Rail, dead 51 
 
 Reversing 38 
 
 Rheostat .............. .\ 39 
 
 Burnt 53 
 
 Thomson-Houston .92 
 
 Sand box 41 
 
 Series connection 96 
 
 -parallel connection 98 
 
 Short circuit 53, 57 
 
 Skidding .......................... 47 
 
 Stop, emergency 37 
 
 Storage battery cars 171 
 
 Surface contact systems 169 
 
 Suspension, Motor 18 
 
 Switchboard 31 
 
 Switch, canopy .......... . 24, 83 
 
 Gut-out ..104 
 
 Multiple control 138 
 
 Third rail system 167 
 
 Transmission, electrical 31 
 
 Trolley base 23 
 
 Troubles, How to remedy 49 
 
 Trucks 12 
 
 Volt .....28 
 
 Wheel, flat . 57 
 
 Slip 41 
 
 Wiring, car 21
 
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 VERSITY OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 Santa Barbara 
 
 THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE 
 STAMPED BELOW. 
 
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