D
Holt County's Story a Recital of Steady Growth Along: Material Lines
THE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: OCTOBER 17, 1909.
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HS itary of Holt oounty l only
T" I th story of a mighty pllgriin
l I age. Every county In thin prt
ur nrHHKa tins a story ui the
ii'UIn of w4iloh there are two
listkllt't IIIlhod. Ullf iMUlUdl-X
only tlx i 'm.jii ex, (lie thing Hint are
)isfiii today. imi'I Increase or decline
tonu m -.v. Tin- other in romantic and ha
nonx thin.- tf the speculative.
T!k- rnmiino" ef the Holt county cuttle-n-fii
Ih one of tlie moot thrilling In hlalury.
Jtn nre living who took part In It. yet It
has gne Into liiitory aa a distinct romance.
Illy to be spared fronj ,th story of western
progress. Every reflective old pioneer to
this county must have his moments of look
ing backward and his wholesome private
reflections upon the theme of his short
isightednesa In his time. Tbe old cattle
man, who remained in Holt county, lived
In a state of constant surprise. Before he
came he regarded It as strictly a cattle
range. After an experience In It, he re
mained under that Idea. The fever icrew
and reached Its climax and declined and he
still thought and aald that the country was
good for nothing else. The homesteader
came from Iowa and Illinois and trailed
upon the opportunity the cattleman had
neglected, and as the time Missed the
deception grew worse and worse. The waste
and Jonesome acres began to have a value.
The home-maker came with enthusiasm
and soma cash. At first, the old cattleman,
calmly awaited the miserable failure of all
this wilderness and counseled with Ms few
remaining fellows as to the sign of tbe
time. While the cowboy life has all but
passed away, on mar see them yet. In their
v. Me rimmed bat and leather trousers. The
ranches are conducted after modern fash
Ion. Each ranch has as much land 1a
cultivation as In pasture, and tbe erstwhile
cow puncher is following the plow and
driving the slf binder or mower these
days.
In this county the rural districts are
settled b' people from every state In the
union anil the thrifty towns are settled by
a refined and cultured people. Many of
the merchants are college graduates and
rank among the shrewdest business men.
Holt county Is essentially a live stock
county. By climate and produotlon It la
adapted to the (rowing of animal 1U. One-
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HOLT COUWTT (COURT
Electrical
ILL the mountain streams and
w
mighty rivers cook our food and
heat our buildings some time in
the near futuret Th electrical
engineer of th General Eleo
trie company say they will, after
Uiu vuai Is gone.
It wa an English physicist named Joule
who found that th amount of heat de
veloped by an alectrlo currant could be
accurately measured. Th amount of heat
developed from electricity depends upon th
current strength and th resistance It over
comes. A circuit that ha twice Lb resist
ance but th same currant strength as
another la developing heat twice as fast
a th second, whereas a circuit that has
twio th currant strength but th same
raaletano a another is developing heat
four times as fast a th other.
An ordinary electrlo flatlron consume
about eight times as much power a a 16
eandle power lamp. It offer only one
alghln the resistance to th ourrent that
th lamp offer and so Its current la eight
time aa large.
8 up pose a person should, buy a flatlron
(or use oa a UO-voU current and should
afterward mov to a city wber the tur
ret! waa run at fcXe-volt pressure) with
twio th voltag. b would receive twice
the current that hi Iron waa designed for
and used oa thl current tt would aooa
burn out. If th ravers happened and he
attempted to us a 230-volt Iron oa a 110-volt
ourrent, he would find that be could
seareely get hi Iroa more than lukewarm.
This is why all maker of electrlo heating
dovices caution Intending purchasers to al
ways state voltage desired.
In all'th electrical heating devices the
hut Is secured by passing electrical cur-ii-uia
thrauga reslaianc metal. These
iiilo ar not good conductor of e.ec
inctiy; they "resist" its passage and this
i stance produce heat In great quantities.
Nearly all th smaller electrlo heating
devices may be connected directly te th
Un.p souket, but wber the oooklng I to
he ilon entirely by th mysterious fore
it Is beat to Install a special healing circuit
I'otli for convenience in making sul.able
vuiitiMtlun and because th user can se
cure a better rate for the current consumed
in uuch quantities.
The rates for th electrlo current vary
widely, depending oa the coal of generation,
eoiupuiiUoii, etc.. So it is impossible to
ii th exact vvt of operating: eitoule
BUSIKESS STREET IN O'NEILL.
third of It area Is better adapted to pas
ture pursuits than to agriculture Th
great cattle ranches h-e disappeared, '"t
In tdeir stead, hundreds of smaller ones
ItnVv been established. They have stopped
growing cattle In Holt cou'ity and are
growing beef. They have discovered that
lei'H and horn r the Ht portion of the
be-f animal. They could never put thetr
Industrial finger on the range steer. His
number and his quality were always a prob
lem. v
Holt county, one of the largest In the
state. Is about tbe else of four common
slsed counties that coDtaln sixteen town
ships each. This eounty has 6X0.000 acres
In farms, with 122.000 acres under cultiva
tion. The eounty is composed of the Elk
horn and Niobrara valleys and the low
divide between them. The Elkhorn valley
comprises about two-thirds of the southern
portion of the county and ' the Niobrara
over one-half of the remainder. The whole
county may be aald to consist of level table
land, or very gently rolling prairie. About
6 per ceat of the county Is bottom land
subject to overflow, Z per cent table land,
40 per cent rolling land and 90 per cent
draws, gulches, sand levels and hills. The
Elkhorn and Its tributaries, Cache creek,
South Fork and a few other streams, water
tbe southern portion, and the Niobrara and
Its tributaries the northern part.
The settlements In Holt county have been
too recent (or much serious difficulty with
the aborigines. No eounty In the state has
had as peculiar an experience with the
noble red men.aa Holt. Much mors trouble
was experienced from the horse thieves
than from the Indiana, On June 2. 1876,
Governor Oarber Issued a proclamation for
the organization of the oounty. The first
regular election tn Holt county was held
November 6, 1877. and resulted in the fol
lowing offioers being elected: Commis
sioners, H. V. Haines, Samuel Gregory and
Harry Splndler; Judge, V. Ross; clerk, 8aa
ford Parker; treasurer, Elijah Thompson;
sheriff, Thomas Berry. At a special elec
tlen held December 27, 1878, Paddock, a
mall settlement on the Niobrara, was
choeen county seat by a three-fifths ma
jority. At a county seat election held May
12, vm, O'Neill was made the county sat
of Holt oounty.
O'Neill la situated about three-fourths
HOUSE, O'NEILL.
Science and Practical Application Growing: in All
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unm me rates are auuwo.
iiut wun thla kno.,ltdge. It la possible to
calculate running costs to a nicety that U
quiie impossible Ui otner ytms. Cata-
logue always specify lb watt conaump-
uou oi me various aevices Deoaus current
is sold at so many cent per kilowatt-hour.
A kilowatt-hour U the consumption of tJ
waits for on hour's time or of one watt
for 1.0U0 hours' time. Thus, If a device
rated at &vo watta la used on hour, th
consumption is one-half kilowatt-hour. A
small water heater la rated at SM watta.
In five minute it will boll a pint of water.
Lot us see what th coat would be aa 10
cent par kilowatt-hour. Th DM! watts la
uuee-unUjs of a kilowatt and it use this
amount tor one-half hour. The consump
tion, then, would be one-fortieth kilowatt
hour and the eoat of operation I seen to be
one-fortieth of 10 cents, or fc-oeab
'lit us ox eiocinoity tor cooking pur
posse is becoming common. Th appara
tus in which th heat la produeed can form
a part of the cooking dish Itself, thus mak
ing It poaslbl to cook without a stove. It
ha marked advantage of cleanlinees and
convenience over other systems, and when
th ourrent can b had at a moderate price
it. I cheaper than other sysuma. It is
Mtlmaud that the average current con-
umd by a family of four for cooking
purpose la eighty-four kilowatt-hour per
mon in. 'mi at the rate or 6 cent per
kilowatt-bour amounts to 14.22.
There Is practically no Chang In th
room temperature In summer where elec
trlo cooking la in process, and. Inasmuch
as special rates may usually be obtained
during the summer months. It us la es
pecially popular at that time. Another
property that ha mad electrlo heating for
cooking popular Is th shortness of time present to offer congratulations to the wo
requlred. Griddles are ready for use in man, who cling to th dree, manner and
from three to five minute: broilers In from nMah nf the Friends of other davs. but
seven to ten minutes; chafing dishes, flv
ininui.ee; taunary irons. live to seven min-
ul'
in many ways, cooking by electrloity I
th Ideal way. It give th same measured
heat every time. With It. cooking caa b
don by the clock Instead of by guca. Or
It can be done exactly to one' taste. Th
bread toaster, for use at the table, la a
good example of thla ,
G.vermaae.t Uwa. Pki..M.
-.
When th provincial government of Man.
Itvba proposed to Parana an4 operate aU
1 1 ti mile north of the Elkhorn river, on
lend gently sloping to the south. The
va'irr here Is about ten milm wide.
O'Neill is the center of fine stock and
grortnjr country for many miles around.
The fii-st settlers In the Immediate vicinity
of O'Neill were H. H. McEvony, Frank
Bltney and John T. Froiity. On th
twelfth of May. 1(74, General John O'Neill,
in honor of- whom the town wr named,
arrived here with the first colony of bis
countrymen, consisting of Neil Brennan..
Patrick H. Hughes, ' Timothy O'Connor,
Henry Curry, Thomas Connely and Wil
liam Fsllon. On November 1, 1R74. Kb"
J. Hayes. James Ryan and John Red''
arrived and In May 1S75. the geiu i i
arrived with his second colony. In L
Genoral O'Neill brought In his tlilp.
colony, consisting of 102 men and a few
women and children, and In 1877, his
fourth colony consisting of seven ty-on
men, a few having families.
The townsit of O'Neill originally con
sisted of 160 acre and was platted by
Thomas I. Atwood In May 1874. Upon the
arrival of General O'Neill's first colony
there wasl not a building In th town. Th
first building was a sod house, 18x39 feet,
and was named the Grand Central hotel.
The building of O'Neill did not com
mence until after tho arrival of the gen
eral's second colony In 1875. The flrnt frame
building was erected by Mr. Maybury,
under contract with Patrick Fahy of
Omaha, who was largely Interested in the
original townslte of O'Neill. Th flrat
school was taught by Miss Ellen O'Sulli
van in 1879, in a building erected by the
Catholics for church purposes. Rev. J. P.
Bedard, a French Canadian ' Catholic
missionary, preached the 'first sermon In
O'Neill, In 1M4.
The first child born In O'Neill wa a
son of Mr. and Mrs. James Ryan, In
March 1875. The first marriage a double
one was Nell McEvony to Ellen Thomson
and Samuel Wolf to Sarah J. Thompson,
occurred May 39, 1876, and the first death
was that of a daughter of Michael H.
McCrath tn February 1875. The Inde
pendent Order of Odfellows was Insti
tuted November JO, 1876, with ten members,
and was the pioneer lodge of the upper
Elkhorn. The Holt County Record waa
t.
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telephone systems In th provlnoe, otner
provlnoe of th Dominion watched with
interest th experiment, for Manitoba
dm, to be th flrt government, not only
Jn Canada, but In th world, to get Into
ln, telephone business, say th St. Louis
rnt-rnn.tnfc
Toward th nd of 1907 negotiations wer
Quaint
.a on Applejack.
N THE dry sections of Sussex
county, New Jersey, applejack
I at a premium these day be
cause of th demand for It In
the treatment of ' snakebite,
Driven out of thetr accustomed
haunt by th fire that ar raging In th
Bwattswood mountain woods, snakes ar
warming into th mora settled portion,
and reports com In from very side of
people being bitten.
Th itapl rmedy Is to pros a quid of
chewing tobacco on the wound and apply
applejack Internally In liberal dose. Rattl-
snake and copperhaad ar common In
th village and Owleytown Is particularly
afflicted.
Caadle la m fake.
Ninety-nine candle. Indicating th age
of a charming Quaker, Mrs. Lydla' Sharp
ies of Whlttler. Cel., blazed on the birth
day cake which graced th center of a
large table set In th dining room of th
Friend church.
Bventy-flv of her descendant wer
keep Informed as to events and movement
of th present
town. O.. but i
She waa born in Mlddl
taa lived In Whlttler for
many yeara.
Allow Child ID.TBO a Tar.
Th report of Referee Henry A Kobln-
on, who waa appointed to investigate the
application ot Mrs. Gladys R. Martin for
an allowance for her Infant son, James E.
Martin, jr., the grandson of th late Jaraea
Martin, has been filed with th 8ur-
rogate at Oraat Neck, L. I.. It doe not
allew th amount asked by Mr. Martin.
but show that, with proper oonomy, th
establlrhed in June 187!. by T. J. flmyth.
The Frontier was established October 1.
1I0. by W. I). Mathews. Its editor was
commissioned pcstmster at O'Neill. De
cember. 8, 1M.
It Is very doubtful If the early pioneers
and founders of Holt county realised that
they were laying the foundation for so
large, prosperous and productive a com
monwealth as we find here today.
It Is quite difficult to give a correct esti
mate of the value and productiveness of
this county merely from statlHtlcs and a
general wrltrup of Its resources. One must
travel out for miles, especially to tbe
north, to comprehend anything about. Its
produi Mveneps as a grain and genersl ag
ricultural county. A few facts may as
sist the reader in gaining a partial Idea
of this eounty.
At present Holt cpunty has a population
of lS.rott and a valuation of llU'.,03iM6.
The county has seventy-eight miles of
railroad within Its border, with seven
thrifty, progressiva railroad stations. The
county also has two well developed water
powers, two flouring mills, seven ele
vators, twelve banks, four free ruial deliv
ery routes. Over tt per cent of the farmers
of this county own their farina and about
69 per cent are supplied wltln rural tele
phones. But on oounty In th state compares
with Holt In regard to It public schools,
and It is doubtful If there is a county
that takea a deeper Interest and more
pride In the advancement of yt heir schools
man does this county. Th county at th
. . .sent time has 214 school districts, where
.tachers are emjioyed. The county has
. ) children of school age.
it must be remembertd that this is a
large county and In two townships each
containing thirty-six sections there is but
one school district in the townnlp. This
comes largely from the Klnkalti tioinealend
law, whirl there U but one family on the
section. There is but one sod school house
remaining in the county. . The general
condition of the school building and the
grounds will compare favorably ith many
counties that have been settled much
longer than Holt. For four years the
schools have been under the management I
of Florence E. Zink and the conditions of
these schools and the progress that is
being made seem entirely satisfactory to
the entire county.
It Is a prosperous county and a happy
and contented people. South of th Elk
horn It is .largely a hay and grazing coun
try from which thousands of cattle are sent
to market each year. It will give some
Idea of these few sections of this large
county, when we state that the farmers
and cattlemen last year sold and shipped
out, 21,300 catle, 32,700 fat hogs, 1,000 horses
and 200 mutton sheep. This county also
sold and shipped out 67,600 bushels of oats
and 40,000 bushels of rye. Holt county leads
all the other counties in the state In the
hay Industry, Last year this county pro
duced 4t,700 tons of hay which Is nearly
double that of any other county In the
state.
This Is not only one of the prominent
counties In the northern part of the state
in th live stock Industry but it Is already
. ' l t" I lr ,.-' I .' I i JP- ... I .-r" Jf I . .- . II I'f ..if.r?'.X. I
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ST. HART'S ACADEMT. O'NEILL.
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eiarcea oiwen ue government ana am
Bell Talephon company for th purchase
of all the tinea, exohangea and franchises
from the monopoly. Approximately 13.-
000,000 waa th price agreed upon for the
enUr system, with a quantity Of supplie
and material which th company had on
hand. After twelv month of operation
Features of Everyday Life
young man can be brought up on an
allowance of J15.7U) per year, payable
quarterly.
Th amount allowd ax 14,000 for a
horn and 17,600 a year to maintain the
same; for an automobile and his keep,
63,000; for entertainment by the infant
and for his recreation and exercise. l&O;
for prospective medical attention, medi
cines, .c., 6200 and for clothing,
The estate of the child Is estimated at
(48,100.
In fixing the allowance the referee said
that the child's father was used to an
Income of 160,000 a year, and the child
waa entitled to an Income which would
ducat and entertain hint to th am
extent.
, a
Mors Chew Tobaeee.
It I a generally believed fact that dumb
animal hava an aversion to tobacco In ,
any form. This waa disproved to a slight
extent by the recent experience of a visitor
in New York City. He says that he waa
landing on the upper deck of a Delaware,
Lackawanna A Western railroad ferry re
turning from Hoboken. As he stood there
watching th passenger com on he saw
a delivery wagon belonging to a Hoboken
"dry concern drive on the lower deck
and stop. Th driver descended from hi
seat, and, pulling out a package of tobacco,
rolled a clgarctt and returned the pack
age to hi pocket. Hi horse In th mean
time had pricked up Its ears sharply for
ward and then stepped forward and begun
to sniff at th pocket where th tobacco
had been replaced. The driver with a
laugh moved forward a step or two, but
waa followed by th horse, which again
sniffed at th pocket containing th to-
bacco. By thl time the cigarette had been
rolled and lighted. The driver then turned
to ta tor fto4 thrust hi hand la hi
rs
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HAY
well to the front In the dairy Industry. At
the present time th farmers have on their
farms over 10,400 milch cows where 600 hand
separators are In use. From these cows
they manufactured and sent to the mar
ket last year 103,400 pounds of butter and
40,000 gallons of cream.' Each year these
farmers have more and more of their land
seeded to alfslfa. At th present time they
have over 3,000 acres In full bearing and
msny hundred acres that will come Into
productiveness with the coming season.
The roultry industry Is sttractlng more
attention each year, as will be shown by
the facts that these farmers or their wives,
In 1T01. marketed over 88.000 dozen of eggs
and 200.000 pounds of poultry. Last year
the farmer of Oils county produced 65.200
acres of corn, 4.000 acres of wheat, 83,700
afnn of oats and K.OOO acres of rye.
The bustling, enterprising, thrifty city of
O'Neill, with a population of 2.000, is not
an accident. It ha been created bv an
ambitious, cnergetlo. and progressive class
of citizens. Education, Intelligence and cul
ture are plainly apparent In the many
church and splendid schools, as well as In
the many fine business blocks. The city
Stands today a credit to Its citizens and an
honor to the Elkhorn valley. The first
thing that strikes the eye of the visitor of
O'Neill Is the clean, wholesome appearanc
of its stores, a good criterion of what may
be found on the Inside. It Is perhaps very
apparent to the careful observer of indus
trial and commercial matters that th city
has never forged ahead to rapldness as in
the last few years.
O'Neill has three substantial banks that
have the liberal upport and entire confi
dence pf this and adjoining counties. They
have a combined deposit of J160.000.
The public schools are In exceWent condi
tion, with model school buildings where ten
teachers are employed. Stt. Mary acad
emy has a capacity for 800 students, where
eight teachers are employed. This xulen
dld Institution was established eight yaur
ago at a cost of CS,000.
. . 1. 1 a -, , - .,1 . , r.t
mmcr urauuui iihuijp v - -
3W),00L10 is declared aftr deducting the.oay. Several reduction bar already
oost of the construction bf 1.486 miles of mad sine th government took over
long distance line and twenty-nine new the system from th Ball company. Th
exchangee for z.l&S subscriber. system now consist of over W.IM) ubsorlb-
Bo attsfaotory has been th snowing
moa unaer government owncramp iu
a reduction varying from 25 to 60 per oent
pocket, while the animal was all attention.
Thf-. w.lnhlnff tilm thrnilffht that hi
would null out a lumo of ugax. but wer
much urprised to see again that self-
same package of tobacco. Still further
were they .urprieed when h took out a
generous handful and extended It to th
horse, which took it greedily. At thl
point the ferry had reached the New York
shore, and the chain being tot down tb
horse trotted off the boat, contntdly
roaatleatlng a juicy quid of tobacco.
es In Heart.
Michael Lawlor of 1M7 Hodlamont ave-
nue. St. Louis, whose heart was sewed
with twelve stitches after he had been
stabbed In a fight In Wellaton, August 22,
ha practically recovered. He la held at Jority of th telephon systems ar operated tineerUi it DOt distinctly discouraging any
the Bt. Louis city hospital that th sur- by the British Columbia Telephon com-' fttimpt to Initial such a service, hav at
geon may watch his heart action for a pany, which Is said to b a subsidiary com- jeaBt been cautious about advocating it in
few days. pany of the Bell. th0 lrnniedlate future. For this reason the
The remarkable operation is said to hav When this legislation passes th British experiment about to be made by the Nate
been 'the first of its kind ever performed Columbia house th Bell Telephone com- ijaVen company deserves to be and car
In tit. Louis. On several occasions In- Pany will be extinct In Canada between latnly will be watched closely. One eiectrlo
clsions In th outer covering of th heart th Great Iake and th Padflo ocean, for
hava been closed, but never before have It will have but a short mileage In oper
stitches been taken In the heart Itself atlon, and that tn Saskatchewan, where the
while it was pumping blood. government can buy out these lines at any
As soon as Lawlor waa recehed at th
hospital, Superintendent W,' C. O. Kirch-
ii r and Drs. Rodney Butuh and C. H.
Shutt performed the operation. An open-
lng In his breast was made In th form
of a trap door, the ribs being cut and laid
ck'
The doctor had the little hope that Lawlor
would live, aa tiie operation was an ex-
tremely
dangerous one. . Urn recovered
rapidly, however, and waa soon able to
walk about th hoapltal. He will be dls-
charged In a few day. He says th wound
pained him no mor than a pin-prick, and
that he did not realise he wae seriously
hurt until doctors at the hospital dls-
cussed hi caa with him.
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DiT AT rROELICII A RYAN BARNS.
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a , w.z. iz't.z: zTJi a
PUBLIC SCHOOL, O'NEILL.
The United State land office I located gan experimenting on th land In th outh
here. There Is still remaining 60,000 acre west corner of thl county In regard to it
of vacant land In thl district Thr are being adapted to the growth of forest trees.
2,600 homesteader tn thl land district who Many acres of jack pin wer planted at
will prov up within th next year. These that time and at the present there are hunt
homestead wer nearly all taken under dreds of acres of this specie of pine ktovt-.
the Kinkald act and contain 640 acre. Ing on th once bare sandhills. Th expert
Seventeen years ago th government be- ment ha proven a complete success.
1 -. .; - - - 'r ' 1 '.' ' : 's.
KNIGHTS OF COLUM
will be Annnun u1 , V. 1 n k. . n .
wimw uurougn th cities, towns,
. uuuvui ui jnauuooa,
uauueut oi Aianiiooa.
in lead set by Manitoba was closely
luuowea oy tn province of Alberta, and
la that province ther la today a govern-
ment-owned telephone system, but whll
the surplus fur th first year' operation
1 hot ao Urge, th profit par cent, ar
larger, for aoro months past th Bell
Talephon company has been dickering
with th Baskatchawan government for
th ot lu ytm In that province,
DUt tnu ' without uocss. It being
PPWmt that th Province la playing a
'Hut" gam and I constructing
ovrnmnt-ownd line, as rapidly . as
P"l d making competitive rate, with
th BM eompany wherever possible,
N" ron British Columbia oomes th
Ty tot frovarnment-owned telephone lines,
Associated boards of trad nav taken th
matter up, passing resolutions which hav
been presented to the governmnt, with tbe
result that a bill will shortly b Introduced
Into th British Columbia legislature pro-
vtding for government ownership of this
public utility. In British Columbia the ma
time for practically Its own price,
Electricity C'aaee Few Fire.
simply because Benjamin Franklin asso-
dated uctrlclty with lightning, and tbat
moat people ar mor or leu afraid tf
lightning, electricity I believed to be a
dangerous factor In fire hazard. This I
not true, for It ha been proven time and
again that electricity causes lets fires than
a number of th other things abjut the
bouse or office.
Last year nearly 1,000 fire wer reported
In tb city of Chicago. A cartful record
was kept of the origin of these fires and
th result showed that only about 1 per
cent oould U laid to electricity. Only on
A.
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O'NEILL.
''i 1 N I ; r i t I . :S 4 at
er .! Ut; :.(,. ; 5t-. . Ji !f .
aJiMSfc it.Vii!BL if li'-.
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BUB HALL. O'NEILL.
Directions
rire was caused by lightning and thirty-
seven by electrlo wire. Of course th
cause of most of the fires wer un-
known, but the careless use of match
caused 164 fires In 136 days) stoves, chlm-
neys and flue caused over 8u0; fifty-two
wer incendiary; spontaneous oombustlon
caused fifty-one; gasoline, forty-six; thaw-
Ing waterplpes. forty-three; expioslon of
gas, thirty-eight; gas jet, thirty-six; oil
lamps, thirty-five.
Eleetrle Trmetloa for Freight.
Mr. Mellen, president of the New Haven
road, la preparing for an experiment. Ac
cording to the Railroad Age Gazette, a netr
lectrlo locomotive la being buf t fur hiia
which Is designed to haul freignt trains,
and which la likely to be completed next
month.
It has long been believed that th econ
omy resulting from th substitution of lej.
trlcity for steam on trunk lines would be
chiefly conspicuous In passenger traffic.
Indeed, experts have held that even in the
handling of that class of business there 1
room to discriminate, the suburban srvloo
being regarded as a mure Inviting fl Id for
electrlo traction than the long distance ex
press service. The movement of freight by
electricity, on the oilier hand, has not
usually (iuen regarded as promising any
special advantages. Nearly all electrlo an-
freight locomotive doe not guarantee a
revolution In railway usage, but Mr. Mel
len' venture will be an object lesson of
exceptional value. The New Haven man
agement will be tb first, of course, to
learn whether tb Innovation Is llktly to b
profitable, but in time other railroad offi
cial will discover th truth and be able
to determine whether or not to take a
similar step.
It i announced that the new engine I de
signed to draw a freight train welgnlug
l.UW tons at the late of thirty five ru
an hour and a heavy passenger train w.ift-
vy paa-nger train w.ify-!orty-tlve
miles an hour.
Investment Is net likely j
if a larger use of eleo-
in w ion at tort)
In any case th
to b waited, fur
trie power in hauling freight doe not fol
low It 1 pretty aur to throw new light
th proper deelga ef 'rVM M
- ..'.; rr i '
paaseuger Ualua,
