THE ELECTRIC LIGHT IN TRAINS.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VII, Issue 1905, 3 February 1885, Page 2

THE ELECTRIC LIGHT IN TRAINS.

Describing an experiment in the electric lighting of trains, the •'Scotchman" of November 29th says"A Board of Trade inspectign qf a, train lighted by electricity on the London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway took plaoe on Tuesday, The train was one which, since its equipment eleven months ago, has made 2352 jouniies between Victoria and the Crystal Palace and has therefore run about 27,320 miles, Eight years ago Mr J, P, Knight, General Manager of the line, began to watch a belief in its future application to railway travelling. Both ho and Mr Strandley, the locomotivo engineer, began making experiments at a latter period, and their first public attempt was with tho Pullman oxpress. A second battery' was then charged with power at the Victoria Station, and thero transplated into' the train. After doing duty in the run to Brighton and'back, it was taken out and recharged for the next journey. Of course this was a process which could not be adopted generally, or even for many trains, but it encopgpd fuft|er pperimenta, Now. instead ''of ontrging tho battery before starting the train,' 1 the momentum of the latter as soon as it has acquired a speed of fifteen miles an hour, generates the electricity by which the carriages are lighted. The train, which for twelve months has boen thus illuminated, and which took a large party to Sydenham and back last night consisting of eleven vehicles, namely, threo first-class twosecond'das's, one composite, and five third-class carriages, besides the guard's van. It is the first train which has been fitted with an entirely automantic and self-supplying source of electric lighting. A total number of thirty-two incandescent lamps gave an agregate ijlumination'equal to 512 standard candles each lamp being of 10 eandlo-power nominal, Twenty-two accumulators are employed, each weighing about a hundredweight, the dynamo bringing up the total to 30cwt., which .is lOcwt less than the apparatus that would be required for gas lighting. Oil lamps, with breakage'and labour, cost the company little short of £14,000 a year, and when the electric system has throughly got into working order it will, looking at the satisfactory reSi|lt, effect a decided savings, Nothing could have been steadier than the light oi) Tuesday evening, and the company were unanimous in their gratification.