New-York tribune. [volume], December 05, 1897, Page 3, Image 27

About New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924

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WIRE CABLE TOBOGGANS.
AERIAL TRAMWAYS THAT CARRY ALL
KINDS OF FREIGHT.
PAHTH-nia.\lU.Y gUmtO ?? Mut'NTAlNul'? OOUM
TWM PUS ?ANANAS. laOOWOOD, PROVI
S IONS. WATliK AND COrNTI.l--.SS ???????
TUINUS CARRITO ??- AND DOWN
STSnsF ORAMBB,
Few t*?Miple who have seen the automati.' cash
carrier:? in large mercantile establishments have
sny idea of the extent to which heavy freight Is
transported through the air by a sotnewhal sim?
ilar system. On mountain sides whose irregu?
lar shapes and steep grades wt uld make the
construction of a surface road very costly, to
say nothing of tho operation of such a line, wire
rope tramways are employed to carry -told or
silver ore, coal ?ird other minerals from the
mine either to Ihe stamp mill or to some con?
necting transportation line. On the Island of
Trinidad hundreds of tons of asphalt travel In
this manner from the loading station (over the
great pitch lake) out to the pier, a mile away,
where it is shipped to foreign countries At
llaracoa, Cuba, there is such a line fully two
and one-half miles lung, for tho conveyance of
bananas. Wheat Is carried from elevator to mill
WIRK KORE TRAMWAY FOR CONVEYING ORE AT GOLD KING MINI?', GLADSTONF., COL
In Minneapolis, wood pulp fiorii one factory to |
another in Montreal, logwood from the moun?
tains t> s ses pori In Haytl, sil by th?? same
method, in some Instances, ss si the paper nulls |
of the Bttsojuehaana Water Power and Paper
Company, al Coaoa'lngo, ? ? . the shipments are
mad?? at s considerable elevation over a broad
river, and rteraslonall) th?? bulk of the train.
will traverei an upgrade. Instead of coming
downhill or moving horlaontally.
Then- ar.? two general systems of wire-rope
tramways. In on.? then? is but a single cable,
whb-h is endless and which passes around great
sh?aves tir pulleys at th?? terminal stations. Tin
buckets or cases In which men handlae Is car
rled ar?? susp<-ml?-d from this cable and attached
to it by certain forms of ?rip. And there sie
lugs or knots In the calle at certain intervals,
to ki-ep the ?p? from allpplng. Then there Is
a two-rope system. In th?? latter the upper,
b?*avi?-r cable ia stationary, and serves as a
track for th?? rollers of the moving pendant car.
while the lower rope, which Is a lighter on??, is
employ???! to do the hauling. This Is mo??, d
either by a steam engine or by tin- weight of the
cars the.nselves goin? downhill, and the ear?
are attached thereto by som?? sort of a ?lip.
What is known as th?? Bleichert system, invent?
ed by Adolf lll'-iihert and now ?*!?-ally in favor,
beliiniis to this latter ? lass. ?11 rope tramways
ar?? doubl??, however. Th?re must be a return
lln?? as well as a main lln?? Consequently, th??
Hliibhert ayatem employs two "track cablea,"
side by side thr?-e or four feet apart, and an end?
lea*) haulinii l-hpe, which runs lw?? or Ihr??? feet
below the track.
Th?? supports for lh?? cables are usually lattice
tOWelS, of steel OT Wood Their height depends
on circumstances. Hut as th?*y art? usually erect?
ed on some of th?? mmor ?d?valions al?n?: th??
slope, they may noi be higher than twenty-five
or llfly feet Th.? chasms and ravines which in
tervet:??. however, are often hundreds ?>f feel
deep. Tin placing of these towers Is a task call?
ing for ?real skill. Wln-n a bn>? of ibis sort is
bald out in mountainous rechina care must be
taken to avoid snow-slides as far as possible.
The distane.? between supports depends upon the
contour of th?? country and the weight ?>f the
loads to be carri???!. Ordinarily Ihe towers are
from 1G/0 to 200 feet apart. Occasionally,
though. lh^ Intervals are much greater. The
Conowlngo line, just ? ef erred t?>, t*onsists ?>f two
spans, each 1,700 foet long. The middle support
of this tramway Is a t??wer on an Island in th??
Sus.iuehanna River. Hut these figures at.' stir
paassed out In Colora?!?>. Th?* Silver Lake Mln
IiiK Company lias a sinul?* spun in Its lin?? which
is 'J.LttO feel (nearly half a mil.? in leiiglh.
The track cable? ar?? blocked up at th.? very
ends of a cr.iss-timber on th.? tops of lb?? sup?
porting towers, so that the cars will swing en?
tirely clear of the struclur?? as they go by. To
keep the hauling cables from Bagging to., much
and getting afoul of something, they, too, are
supported at the towers by means of bro.-nl.
spool-shaped pulleys, pia? ed several foel belo*
the track.
The Trenton (N. J.i Iron Company, which con?
trols th?? BlfHcberi system In this country, has
Introduced two Importnnt Improvements on th??
original plan. On?? relates to th?? construction of
th?? track cable The latter is composed prin?
cipally of steel wire of the best ?piality; but in
each of the gap? between the outer strands is
Inserted a curiously furrowed rod, which aervea
a diiu'ile purpose. It lilis up the vacant space so
as to uiiikf th?? surface of the cable smooth, thus
reducing Ihe friction between it and the rar
rollers that travel iver It. Thu? Ihe life if ihe
rabie Is enormousl) prolonged. Thl? rilling ulsu
locks the ???r ? together, so ihii if one should
b) any a? ? Idenl break no end ? (?uld ? M api sil? k
oui and make mischief It unir' lie down in Its
groove anugly if broken, as if continu us The
Trenton Iron Works (which are operated i.y
Cooper, Hewltl ? Co., nt Ne? V?.ik I'Hyi have
;i spei lai form .?f I .? ked coll" ? able ol th-lr
own, It represents the Intesi sdvsnci . m this
d( part men I ?.?f Ihe ai t
The track cable la made in different sises,1
from a dlanwter ??f seven-elghthi of an Inch lo
an Inch and ii half, and In section? between Nili
and 1.200 feel long. Th?se .?r?? ? ??ini.. ?. d n??l l?y
spili Ing, bul bj m?*an? of s special tubular
coupler, which la only slightly larger than the
cable, ??nd Which "fT.-is no embari assnent la the
reliera which carrj ibe cara
Another encellen! feature of the tramways I
constructed by ('?>?>(> r, Hewltl A Co la Ibe
"Webbee compression grip," ? devi..? perma?
nently attached t?> each car, and employed in
hitching th?? lutter t?? the running cable In aome
Bystems II has been ?aeensed ne? esstar** lo pul
button? '?r lug ??? this G???? t<> k?-?-p the ?rips
from slipping In consequence, the ?rear all
romes at rertaln placea. The ne? grip -renders
such appliance? needle??, and distributes ihe
wear uniformly, of ? ours??, under such circum?
stances the ira? Mon rope lasts ?rery much kmger,
Tb?? Webber grip bold?, it is said, on Ibe steep
??st grades,
Wir?? pipe tramways ere used Ota all sorts of
slopes from one to forty-five degrees Beytmd
tb?? latter angle the operation would ?????>??,!??>?
hoisting more than it wo'ild hauling. The great
majority of thus?? lines have rath? ? Ughi
gmdea; Inni is. somewhere between len and
twenty degrees*. Kven these, though, would lie
.?in of ih?? questi ?? ?m steam and electrl?? rail
ways wiihoiit a ?pecial form ??f rails and engine
The im?? which ?arries ore from Ihe Oold Kin?
min??, in ('.la.lsi?ii<?. Col . down I ? the stami.
mill fall? 1..V.I I ?el in a uiataJiee of ?,???) fccL
or about one foot in three. There Is a similar
line at Cornucopia, (?re., which falla 2j000 feet
in a distance of ."?.isn?, ,,r about one fo.it in two
and a quarter. Mut the i-rade of different spans
of a lim? is not always the same. The Granite
Mountain Mining Company of Montana has a
line which drops only 1.900 feet In a total length
?>f ?S.7.V?, but most of this fall occurs within a
2,000-fool section.
it will ???? readily perceived 'hat on steep grades
ilu weight ?f tin loaded can going down will
mor.? than overbalance th?? ??empties" going up
on the other track. Th?? difference, after all al?
lowance for friction, often amount.-; to several
horsepower. Then- is often something in the
way of return freight?previsione for tin? miners,
fuel or machinery. The Qrsnite Mountain Min?
ing Company sends only two hundred tons of
ore down dally, and has at bast on?? hundred
t?>ns of bach freight. The tramway of the M??
cate Company, in Pern, has a very steep grade.
It falls I.0G0 feet (marly 5.000) in a length of
ID, 100, About .m?? hundred tons of ore are sent
down each day, and ;? thousand gallons of water
IT?? back in the mean time. Where such tram?
ways are nearly level, or carry their heaviest
loads uphill, of conree a steam engine or electric
motor must be used to drive th?' traction rope.
Some lines cross a "divide" and are partly up?
hill ami part!? downhill. The three-snd-s-hslf
mi!?? tramway Which has Just been sent to Ch!!?
kiot Pass, to form a link m a longer trauspor
talion rout.? for ???, duna and otti? r men ban?
di ??. rise? 1?.IBS1 f,.,.| between Steep Camp and
Ihe ummit. and then fills .'??? :? ? during Ihe
h ri G??? lining poi II in of the Un??, h in. ii runs
do ? ? ?.? ? "rati ? I.aU- :_' mai ... ? ?,. .,,,.,,?
The loada seni uvei u?*h tramway? varj from
ami to l..".i?i pound.-, exclusive f the car '.hai
t.ik.-s ? hem in rare instances .? full tun haa
lieen lineile.I in .1 single load The distance be?
tween the ..us depends on clrcumatance h
may lie as much as ?? thousand feet, or II ma)
?.nl> a hundred llul on ever) Riven lut?? it la
hlghl) Important that the cars should lie spaced
uniformi) It is customary, therefore, to have a
gong ? truck automatical!) tu Indicate when a
freah car should be gripped to the moving rope.
Tins latter lask la performed b) hand llul si
Ihe end of th?? route, whether going uphill or
down, the cars ar. detached by a self-acting
mechanism, and are often swlt? bed off t?? a side?
track. The top.? ? uns slowly, us speed seldom
?x,.ling ihre. foui miles an hour. Kuht
tuns an hour, ? ?'??*??? hundred ? ins In s work
in?; day. is about the maximum capaclt) of ;ni)
of th?? wu?? rope tramways now in servu*e.
?'Roli Mil 1 II ST I Roll CHIC it/O.
Prom Th ? Cleveland Plain Dealer.
??.nvlable reputation which Cleveland holds
in educational circles is enl.itt.-ed Many's Ihe
time and oft that mir citisene have laughlngl)
,..,,,) ,,| ih? |.ih.it answers win.h scholars
i,.?v. ajiven .n the s.hoois ..f other cities, com?
piacenti) assuring, themeelvw thai nothing of
thai ,,,?? would happen In Cleveland, llul an
inciden) which oecurml In one of the high
s, h?? ili ?re will noi deslgnste which one. as
I'rin. i].ii Harris mlghl feel unduly compliment?
,,l a??? serve to advise us lhal sun.? Chicago
children musi have lieen recenti) enrolled on
..u?? m h??'! Hat.
n h.ipp. te .? im the Knallsh .lass Th?? rtuestlon
? ( tjVho a/as hint.? '"
The scindai call?-d up*in .nos?? and gave th??
st.iiiim.; information that "Dante was ;i tlreek
lO.ildeSS"
"What were som?? ,t Dante's w?M-ka7" asked
tl,?? ?. .i. bel
"l'a.: a.lise laobL"
QUEER OPTICAL ILLUSIONS.
EXTRAORDINARY EXPERIENCE OF Tila
OPPICBRfl AND CREW OP A FRENCH
BARK OPF THE PHILIPPINES?
Taris correspondence, Courrier dea Ktats Unis.
"Sin???? th.? telegram algned by Messrs. s?>k??iov
an?! Kkidtovsky, announcing that ??n the night
of October ."?. while they nere In the Usteyng
district, they si.?, a balloon passing rapidly
over th. village <?f Xakovleu anddiifttnatoward
the forests in a south.-ast-rl,- diieetion, many
persons have "alghted" Andr?e's balloon. Evi?
dently it is a phantom airship that they have
s?en. W'll-tneaning people have atlirnied that
they saw Andr?e*? balloon H.-ating ??ver the
White Sea. Others hav?? seen ?? soaring over ihe
Stat.? of Iowa, in the l'nit?-d States. Others
?gain hav.? rfrn it at North Cape, sometimes
rushing Slong In a tempest at th?? south of ihr
Disco Island, In Oreenland, ?ir soaring over Ko
t.'lly [aland, in North Sili.-ria: and funong thl
latrai reports is the one that announced Its ap
p.-arani1.? ove? the villa?;.? of Yukovleu.
All this goes t?i show that we are in the
presence of a new phenomenon produced by the
extreme suggestibility of th.? throng. Bach in.
dividual is. without knowing it, In a <? instant
slate of expectation, and when an extraordinary
affair, like tin? one with which we are dealing,
la pr.nted t?? the mimi, th?? intensity of the
Impression is su?'h that sui?i?esti.in becomes
easy, and, once formulated, it Imposes itself
immediately upon the mwd of th?? masses by
contagion.
The whole world followed with constant inter
<st and emotion th?? preparations that were
going mi at the Island of Danois; but few peo?
ple knew that spot, and it may be said that
nobody knew what was ?"???t on there. Never?
theless everybody mad?? a picture in his own
mind of th?? place and of what was taking place
there. When this image became imj?res.s?'d upon
th?? mitili its temi? my from th?? very first mo?
ment was to transform Itself into a reality.
? his is s<? true that a ? aplain ?>n a long voyage,
with a perfectly sound and well-balanced mind.
affirmed last year that h?? saw Andr?Vs balloon
in August, ????, northwest ?>f Newfoundland,
and several of the men of his crew also fortified
to th?? same thing with as much energy M
honesty. And, as a matter of fait, Andr?e was
obliged to ? ?sip?n?? his ascension until tins
year. 11?? had not started in his balloon, and
yet they saw him.
Examples of collective hallucinations are very
numerous. Lei us cite on? that certainly is not
generally known, and of which a lieutenant m
th?? ? rench Navy, M Leslonnat, was th?? victim.
"In May, INKl." ?aid he, l waa on board th?;
hark Carolin- We liai just left Hollo, in the
Philippines, and wv were travelling toward the
Suii'i.i Htrait. One morning we were movinj
slowly, .?? ;ii?? rate of s bout four or ii??? knots,
in a ver) Ughi wind, when the man ??? Ihe look
?ui sli?ui?d to m? thai be ?m a pirogue or
shan.? ih?? ?larboard nuartcr. Everything
that we Bee a! ? a. however Insignificant, ??
always lnte(catlnii Con? quently, I placed my?
self In a position to see tl.hji <?: thai the man
?? ? ?rted Hut, on account of I he I???.? ??? - ills,
1 was n ' ?? I i? ko forward. 1???>??? lhere I
.????.?, .a about two points to ?tarboard, tha
pli ? gue, ihlcl ?? ?? ;:- If ?ho m a? aboul '??
? r? ?s our ii??.?.. Wu?l?l''rl) ihe mate shouted:
?? ?- ? t :?. pirogue; it is .? yawl boat ' Then the
? tllor clin? down from the rigging and reported
th.u he -1 landing In the
boa! and iiii he \? ?? making signals.
" h i? noi necessari to ???? aloft to se? that."
r? ??????? the male, I . an ?? ?? him ?listm. tly bere.1
"After bavins otiserved the boat with at
tentlon, ? ?aii b? plalnlj .??- iwsslble, and all th?*
? r ???. ?aw Just ??- l did, a man making ?ignala
with something m his hand that we could n??t
>.?: ? ? ?u'li.?.?. hut which evidenti) wa? a gaff
or .m oar, si the end of whl? h was fixed a pie ??
Of ? loin
"'I'dere was ? ? longer any doubt vVe had
discovered an unfortunate shipwrecked man.
whose vessel doubtlers ??...> lost u|??on the r??? ks
??f ih? ?bor?*? called, if my memory serves me
coi ? tly, ih? Thousand Isles. I Immediately
reported ??? ih?? captain, ??h?> ??>"?? his glasses
and follow?*] m? to tbe forward <!? cfc He recog
id/??'!, just a^ we did, a boat paint???! v\ hit??, and
in ihe how there \?as a man dressed In ?? blue
gansy, who was waving ?n "-?r. at the end "I
?vin? h *'os tr.-t? ?.?? a ?.??? of salii !????.
i':,,: ??.?? levil i? lu? k).' sal 1 th aptaln
?for If we had had more wind yesterday ????
would have |?ossed him In Ihe night, and, ol
, ..in ? ?\. ? nuld ii"l lia? ? ->??!? him '
"Hut as ih curreni w is drawing the boat
aw i?. from us, h ? gave Ihe order lo the man at
tn.? wtiee lo let the v??sse| fall off ?o as to gel
the i.iat .? ?? .?? im ?larltoard In thia ?vay
t ?.ill canil) reach Ii without the ?.islty
! ..f low? rinn a Imuii, which I? always a tedUxis,
operation on lioard sailing vessel? The man.
???elm? ih.it w?? w -r?? coming for him, ceased "?
1 signal, and ?at down in the stern, and with his
oar h ? ?t? i'< ?I the Im at toward us. We could
I distinctly see Ihe boat's m.i^t was broken at
alunit tin-??? or t"iir feel above the ? tiling thwart.
When she ??.??- about ?ItW metres from us. the
, captain, who wa? on ihe poop, ask. ?I tbe mate
; if everything was ready, and, on tli?? latter1?
affirmative reply, he gave the ordei t?> head h.-r
up a inn? i" ?tarboard Al this moment the
emotion on hoard the vessel was intense The
entire crew leaned over the rail. Then suddenly,
ns ii we i'i had been aroused from a dream,
, the man and the lioal nun?.I Into s block ?f
pumice-stone on which wbre several branch???
? of banana treea. After drifting alowl) along
the aide of Ihe vessel liefore the stupefied sailors,
' ii vanish???! out of sight. The men were ?o
utterly astonished that several of them could
? not help crying "in. 'But, by Jingo, there was
| a man on it, sur??' W?? all saw him"
?if the sea had been rough, so thai we could
I noi reach thai little floating island. ??.?? would
certainly hav.? ?.? convinced that a fellow
creature had been lefl to perish.
"Nevertheless, our mind was free from all
anUrtor pr.curati m Notwithstanding ih??
spontanei!) "f the thing thai had stari, ? it.
th.? ?ugge?tion Wim none the less vivid. Its ln
tensltj ??ai as strong In the mind ?>f th?? officer
as il was m the mind ol euch sailor, ami this
?rara t?. prove thai In Ihe case ol a crowd the
; mental quali!) ??f ihe Individuals thai compose
| ii is without .????? Importance "
After that, what I? anyliody i?> think ?>f the
I fantastic news glvei to us about AndrtVs bal
? ??? Remember tl.?? BUggeatlons ?>f the si.??.?
? ..f Paris, the signals seen al perfectly Inn.nt
? windows, an.l ihe furious cavalrj charges that
\ ihe peasants ould see at ?unset In the sky.
I \ 11 oin \HII DEL I ?.
Prom The I'? ? r ? * i t ??? ?.? ?*r? s.
IC?, ihr? ? -? ??. ui. is of an hour Min?? I oui ?red
ih.ii turtle soup." snapped the angT) gueal at
Ihe restaurant
?Vas. sab." said the waiter with an obttequlou?
b????. "but de turtle d?me mak.? his '?trape, ?ah?
au' d?-> had ?? chase him Ik?ui a mil?, sali."