THE RAILWAY BUILDER. THE RAILWAY BUILDER A HANDBOOK FOR ESTIMATING THE COST OF AMERICAN RAILWAY CONSTRUCTION AND EQUIPMENT BY WILLIAM JASPER % M. Am. Soc. C.E. AUTHOR OF " THE STORY OF AMERICAN COALS, FIFTH EDITION, RE- VISED & ENLARGED PHILADELPHIA J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY LONDON : 6 HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN i8 97 c\5 ^ , COPYRIGHT, 1878 AND 1897, BY WILLIAM JASPER NICOLLS. DEDICATED TO CARL WALDEMAR BUCHHOLZ, CHIEF ENGINEER ERIE RAILROAD BY THE AUTHOR. PREFACE TO THE FIFTH EDITION, IN the present edition the entire work has been carefully revised and brought up to date. It has also received many additions, the page enlarged, and a new form of binding adopted, so as to render the volume suitable both for the library and pocket. The Author has added fifteen years to his professional life, and has learned many useful facts which, as far as practicable, are set forth in this edition for the benefit of the unprofes- sional reader ; for time has shown that to such the book has been useful. Capitalists who put their money in Ameri- can railways, contractors who build them, and the host of practical men operating them, will 10 PREFACE. find in the following pages plain and simple directions for estimating on the first cost or for renewals, while the young engineer will find much that heretofore has been covered with many formulas and tedious analyses. W. J. N. PHILADELPHIA, 1897. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION, IN offering this little volume to the railroad world the Author realizes the fact that other books have been published covering the same ground in detail ; and that numerous works by Engineers of known ability and reputation are also in existence, which contain an immense fund of general information and most of the tables necessary for calculation. But they are either in a condensed form, or clothed in for- mulas and symbols totally unknown to the average railroad man. During a professional career of nine years the Author has had a varied experience, embracing nearly every kind of railway construction, locating, build- ing, and equipping them, and during that period has also been closely identified with 11 12 PREFACE. works manufacturing railway plant. From notes collected during this time, often from the expressed opinions of prominent railway men, from information obtained in travelling over nearly every railway in the United States and the Canadas, and from the works before men- tioned, this book has been prepared, not for the critical savant, but for the daily use of practical railroad men, those not conversant with Engineering formulas or manufacturers' processes, to enable them to familiarize them- selves with the subject and to assist them in estimating the probable cost of constructing and equipping an American railway. The writer acknowledges himself indebted to Trau- twine, Haswell, Jervis, Forney, Barry, Gilles- pie, Haupt, Knight, and Lorenz. WM. J. NICOLLS. NEW YORK, May 4, 1878. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGE FIELD OPERATIONS 15 CHAPTER II. PRELIMINARY SURVEYS 46 CHAPTER III. COST OF EARTHWORK 78 CHAPTER IV. PERMANENT WAY 102 CHAPTER V. FROGS AND SWITCHES 163 CHAPTER VI. EQUIPMENT 217 13 1 4 CONTENTS. CHAPTER VII. PAGE DEPOTS AND STRUCTURES 255 CHAPTEE VIII. CONCLUSION . 269 THE RAILWAY BUILDEK. CHAPTEE I. FIELD OPERATIONS. BEFORE any idea can be formed regard- ing the probable cost of a projected line of railway, it is necessary to have as com- plete a map as possible of the proposed line, showing the nature of the country through which the road is to run, together with all available information collected and carefully noted on the map or field- book. For this purpose a party or CORPS OF ENGINEERS must be equipped and sent into "the field," and consists usually of from eight to a dozen men to each corps graded and termed as follows : Chief of Corps, Transitman, Leveller, Level Kodman, Front Chainman, Back 15 1 Level rod. 16 FIELD OPERATIONS. 17 Chainman, Front Rodman, Back Eodman and Axman, to which may be added a Topographer, if necessary. The Chief of Corps is in charge of the party, and his business is to determine what route is to be taken by the line of survey. The Transitman runs the transit instrument, and keeps the " transit field-book." The Leveller runs the level instrument and keeps the "level field-book." Level Rod- man handles the level rod, while the two Chainmen and Transit Rodman handle respectively the instruments which their names indicate. The Axman's duties consist in clearing away the brush or trees in advance of the corps, and also in mak- ing and driving stakes at the points marked by the Chainman. THE TRANSIT is an instrument used for establishing points in the line of survey and for mea- suring angles. It consists, essentially, of a circular plate of metal, supported in such a manner as to be horizontal and divided on its outer circumference into Engineer's transit. 18 FIELD OPERATIONS. 19 degrees and parts of degrees. Through the centre of this plate passes an upright axis, and on it is fixed a second circular plate, which nearly touches the first plate, and can turn freely around to the right and to the left. This second plate carries a telescope, which rests upon upright standards firmly fixed to the plate, and which can be pointed upwards and down- wards. By the combination of this mo- tion, and that of the second plate around its axis, the telescope can be directed to any object. The second plate has some marks on its edge, such as an arrow-head, which serves as a pointer or index for the divided circle, like the hand of a clock. When the telescope is directed to one ob- ject, and then turned to the right or to the left to some other object, this index which moves with it and passes around the divided edge of the other plate, points out the one passed over by this change of direction, and thus measures the angles made by the lines imagined to pass from Engineer's chain. 20 FIELD OPERATIONS. 21 the centre of the instrument to the two objects. The cost of one of these instru- ments, suitable for railroad work, is about $200. THE ENGINEER'S LEVEL consists simply of a telescope suspended in the two arms of a Y, and attached to it is a small spirit level. By means of screws operated by the Leveller, the telescope is made level, and when in this position the Leveller reads from his rod the height of his in- strument and by calculations explained hereafter determines the different eleva- tions of the country through which the line of survey is passing. This instrument will cost about $150. THE CHAIN is used for measuring the length of the lines which have previously been determined by the Transitman. It is composed of 100 links of wire, steel or iron, each link being one foot in length ; at every tenth link is fastened a brass tag, having one, two, three, or four points, corresponding to the number of tens which it makes, counting from the nearest end of the 22 FIELD OPEKATIONS. 23 chain. The middle of the chain, or fif- tieth link is marked by a round piece of brass. A good steel chain 100 feet in length is worth from $10 to $15. An outfit for a field party, sufficiently com- plete for all practical purposes, would be about as follows : 1. Engineer's Transit 1. " Level 1. " Level Rod . 1. Steel Chain . 2. Transit Rods @ $1.00 1. 100 ft. tape, $5, 1-50 ft. tape, $3 2. Short-handled Axes @ $1.50 1. Pocket Level . 1. Slope " . Incidentals $417.00 In running a preliminary line for a railroad, straight lines only are located on the ground, and where these straight lines intersect or join each other, an angle is formed, the size of which is exactly de- termined by the transit, so named, because the telescope of the instrument is capable 24 FIELD OPERATIONS. 25 of making a complete revolution on its axis, which is not the case with the theo- dolite. In running a line with the transit, we first ascertain at what point the survey is to commence, then we designate that point as station 0. Now set the transit exactly over this point by means of the " plumb bob" and line which is suspended from it, and level it up. Direct the tele- scope to the rod, which is held by the " front rodman" at the point determined upon by the " Chief." Sight to the lowest visible point of the rod, clamp the instru- ment, and when the needle of the compass comes to a rest, read the course or bear- ing of the line which connects these two points. The bearing is noted by reading between what letters on the compass the end of the needle comes, and to what number, naming or writing down FIKSTLY, the letter N. or S. (North or South), which is at the point nearest to the end of the needle from which you are reading. SECONDLY, the number of degrees to FIELD OPERATIONS. 27 which it points ; and THIRDLY, the letters E. or W. (East or West), of the 90 point which is nearest to the same end of the needle. After this course is carefully noted in the field-book (suppose it to be N. 45 E.), direct the chainmen to measure the distance from the transit point to the point at which the Front Rodman is stationed, the axman driving a stake every hundred feet (1 chain), and exactly in the line given him by the Transit- man with his instrument, after which take a second sight on the front rod to see that the instrument has not been moved in setting the stakes, and also take a second reading of the compass to avoid any error. The Transitman, after directing his Back Eodman to occupy the position at station O, will then move up the instrument to the point previously established by the Front Rodman, where he will set up the transit, as before. The distance from sta- tion O to this point has now been ascer- 28 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. tained by the Chainmen, and a stake has been driven every hundred feet by the Axman, and numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, etc. Suppose the distance measured to be 800 feet, or 8 chains, then the new point will be at station 8. The Transitman notes this distance in his field-book, and after adjusting his instrument so that the VER- NIER plate indicates 0, the telescope is reversed, and he takes a " back sight" on the Back Eodman who is holding his rod on the head of a tack which is driven in the stake marked 0. After clamping the instrument the telescope is then reversed and directed to the Front Eodman, who has again taken up a position in ad- vance which is indicated to him by the Chief as the point to which the line is to be run. At this point there will be an angle, read it on the VERNIER PLATE, and also note the new reading given by the needle, taking care to observe whether the change of direction is to the left or to the right. FIELD OPERATIONS. 29 The reading of the VERNIER (so named from its inventor, Pierre Vernier, who gave a description of it in a tract pub- lished at Brussels in 1631) is the stum- bling-block in the use of the transit by many practical men. It is very simple. The outside circle or plate is divided into degrees and half degrees, and the inside one into minutes. Now, the vernier is constructed in this way: A length on the circumference is made on the inner plate equal to twenty-nine half degrees of the outside plate. This length on the circumference of the inner plate is then divided into thirty equal parts, or one more than the number of half degrees occupying the same space on the outer plate. It is obvious, there- fore, that each division on the inner plate is a trifle smaller than a half degree on the outer plate, and this trifling difference is the space measured by the vernier. To READ THE VERNIER. First, note 30 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. the position of on the inner plate (usually indicated by an arrow-head), and if it is exactly in line with any division of degrees or half degrees on the outer plate, that will be the angle measured by the vernier. But, if the (or arrow-line) does not coincide exactly with any line on the outer plate, then observe which two lines on the outer and inner plates coincide, or to- gether form a straight line ; this, plus the nearest reading indicated on the outside plate by the pointer or arrow- line, will be the correct angle in degrees and minutes. If several lines seem to coincide, take the middle one. A brief study of the following graphic figures from Gillespie's " Land Survey- ing" will make the above description of the vernier more plain. In the first, or vernier A, the reading is 0, or 360 as indicated by the arrow-line. In the second, or vernier B, the dotted and 31 32 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. crossed line shows what divisions co- incide, and the reading is 20 10', the (or arrow-line) of the inner plate being at a point of the outer circle 10' (min- utes) beyond 20 (degrees). Sometimes the graduations of a ver- nier are made so as to read both ways from the arrow-line, or zero. In that case the vernier is double. Care must be taken when using this style of ver- nier to note which way the angle is measured; that is, if from the arrow- line, or zero, towards the right hand, then the reading must be made from the right-hand half of the vernier. But if the angle is measured from the arrow-line, or zero, towards the left hand, then the reading must be made from the left-hand half of the vernier. To return to our survey, suppose the angle we have just turned with the in- strument should read on the vernier 15 80' to the right, note it in your field-book and direct the Chainmen and Axmen 34 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. to proceed as before, and so continue. The field-book will then look as follows : TRANSIT BOOK. Sta- tion. Dis- tance Angle. Course. Remarks. 10 9 "V" .80 15 30' R. N.60 30' E. Plug > 1? 7 ^~^f* c e* 6 ^^i^- 5 4 1 HOUSE . " E.100 ^ ^ 3 2 O o- Fig. 1. 1 00 N. 45 E. 0. On plug intersection of centre line of Madison and Elm Streets. And so proceed, noting carefully the topography of the country through which 'the line is running in the field-book and marking the distances to any promi- nent object from the line, such as a large tree, house, barn, stream or river. This can be done by the Transitman, and noted FIELD OPERATIONS. in his field-book as above, but it is much preferable to have an extra man to take the topography of the country in a sepa- rate book, thus avoiding confusion of figures, and giving the Transitman more time to devote to his calculations and in- strument. In running a " line of survey" it frequently occurs that obstacles to mea- surement are met which will necessitate a knowledge of triangulation. The simplest forms are noted below : Fig. 2. 1st. When a tree or house is obstructing the line. Suppose (in figure 2) A B is the line of survey. At B set up the transit, and taking a back sight on A 36 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. with the vernier set at 0, reverse the telescope and turn aside from the line at an angle of 60, and measure any conve- nient distance B c. Move to c and turn 60 in the contrary direction, and measure to D the same distance as B c. Then move to D, and turn 60 from c D, pro- longed, and D E will be the " line of sur- vey" continued. 2d. When one end of the line is inac- Fig. 3. cessible. Suppose the line of survey crosses a river (as in figure 3), D A is FIELD OPERATIONS. 37 the line of survey, and B is inaccessible. At the point A set off A c perpendicular to A B of any convenient length. At c set off a perpendicular to c B, and con* tinue it to a point D in the line of A and AC 2 B. Measure D A. Then is A B = - :* AD These are the most common triangulations in ordinary practice, but other cases may occur which will require more complicated figures. A study of the subject is then advisable. We have now the line of sur- vey, and want to know the elevations or levels of the country traversed by that line. The Leveller and his Eodman have been following the transit party, as fol- lows : First, setting up the level instru- ment at some convenient distance about midway between station and station 8, he directs the Rodman to hold his rod on some fixed point, say in this instance, on top of the curbstone, at the corner of Madison and Elm Streets, and then sight- ing through the telescope, he reads how much his line of sight is above the bottom 38 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. of the rod, thus getting the height of the instrument above the curb. Then assum- ing a datum line, say of 100.00, he adds this reading, which is, say 8.5 feet, to the datum, and calls the height of instrument 108.50 feet. He now proceeds to take a reading at each station, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, etc., up to station 8, and notes down each read- ing in his book, as follows : LEVEL BOOK. Station Rod. Instr't Elev. Remarks. B. M. 8.50 108.50 100.0 On curb cor. Madison 13.3 95.2 and Elm Streets. 1 6.2 102.3 2 8.9 99.6 3 9.7 98.8 4 5.3 103.2 5 4.2 104.3 6 2.6 105.9 7 7.1 101.4 +50 15.00 93.5 Surface water, Pan- 8 3.8 104.7 ther Creek. and subtracting these readings from the height of instrument gives the elevation FIELD OPERATIONS. 39 of each point or station. When it is ne- cessary to move the level, the Kodman drives a peg into the ground, and gives a rod on it which the Leveller sights to, and after reading it very carefully moves the instrument ahead, sets it up again, takes a sight at the rod again, and adds this reading to his last elevation (i. e. the elevation of the turning peg) ; this gives him a new height of instrument, and he proceeds as before. The preliminary line finished, the next proceeding is to locate it. Curves must be put in at every angle, or often the whole direction of the line changed. Without stopping to explain the com- pound curve, reversed curve, or any of the intricacies of location, it is thought advisable simply to give a rule for in- serting a curve at any of the angles of intersection. Suppose it is required to find the point A or D at which to com- mence a curve of a given radius. KULE. Subtract half the angle A ,B D 40 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. from 90, the remainder will be the angle B c A or B c D. From a table of natural tangents, take the tangent of B c A, and multiply it by the given radius, the pro- duct will be B A or B D. Now having calculated the apex distance, and at what point the curve is to commence, we mea- sure back from the point of intersection Fig. 4. that distance, and establish the point of curve (P c) on the ground. Then to locate it, the transit is set up at the point of FIELD OPERATIONS. 41 curve, and a deflection is made for every 100 feet, equal to J of the degree of curve. That is, suppose it is required to locate a 6 curve, we first deflect 3, then for the next station of 100 feet 3 more, and so proceed to the end of the curve, then in Fig. 5. order to pass from the end of the curve D on to the tangent D E, place the instrument at D, and sighting back to c, lay off the tangential angle c D B, then B D continued towards E will be the required tangent. 42 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. RAILWAY CURVES. Degree. Radius. Vers. sine. Ideg. 5,730 feet. 1-8 inch. 2 2,865 ' 3-16 3 1,910 ' 5-16 4 1,432 ' 7-16 5 1,146 ' 1-2 6 955 ' 5-8 7 819 ' 3-4 8 716 ' 13-16 9 637 ' 15-16 10 573 ' 1 1-16 11 521 ' 1 1-8 12 478 < 1 1-4 13 441 ' 1 3-8 14 410 ' 1 7-16 15 383 < 1 9-16 16 359 ' 1 11-16 17 338 < 1 3-4 18 319 ' 1 7-8 19 302 ' 2 20 287 ' 2 1-16 The radius of a 1 degree curve equals about ly 1 ^ miles. That of any other degree is found by dividing ly^ miles or 5730 feet, by the number of degrees. EXAMPLE. Radius 6 curve = 5730 -f- 6 = 955 feet. Curvature of the earth is e^ual to 8 inches per statute mile. FIELD OPERATIONS. 43 In the foregoing Table of Railway Curves the column headed " vers. sine" corresponds to the middle ordinates of a hundred-foot chord. Thus in Fig. 5a the chord A B rep- resents one chain (100 feet) and the middle ordinate is the distance, c D. With this distance given in the table it is easy to measure it on the ground, by stretching the chain from A to B, or by setting a stake with the transit at D and 50 feet from A. The distance measured to c will fix the proper point on the curve half way from A to B. With this brief introduction regarding field operations, a subject has been con- sidered, which in itself would require a volume to be complete. The writer pre- sents only the simplest operations of any Engineer's experience in the field and " on survey," sufficient, however, for the wants of the imscientific man, for whom this work is chiefly intended. C H o! B O * v e Fig. 5a. 44 CHAPTER II. PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. THE first object for consideration in locating a line for a railway is to ascer- tain, as far as practicable, the probable amount of traffic to be provided for, to- gether with the nature of the same, and the direction in which it will probably run ; also what rate of speed is proposed for the rolling stock : if high, the super- structure must be made stronger and heavier, grades must be made easier, and curves lighter, than if a low rate of speed is contemplated. With this information in view, and carefully considered, the En- gineer can proceed to locate the line with more intelligence, and a greater degree of success than usually attends the aver- age " locations" of the present day. The first, or PRELIMINARY SURVEY, is made 45 46 THE EAILWAY BUILDER. with the view of examining the country through which the contemplated railroad is to pass, and by trial lines, and notes collected from actual survey, to arrive at some probable route, and an approximate estimate of its cost. The points from which the railroad is to start and termi- nate, are given, and the Engineer's duty consists in LOCATING THE LINE which is to connect them, and to prepare a plan, profile, and estimate of the cost of build- ing a railroad on that line. This duty involves a great amount of labor, trouble, and annoyance. A deter- mined, resolute Engineer will make his location, entirely relying on his own judgment and skill, making such changes only as he himself thinks right, ignoring completely scheming directors and others having for their only object the filling of their pockets at the expense of the enter- prise. It is too often the case that the locating Engineer is besieged by the men along the line, very often directors of the PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 47 company, and obliged to subject his own better judgment as to what route would be best, to the wishes of an interested party, who is too powerful with the com- pany for the Engineer to differ from. Again a wealthy individual along the line proposes to subscribe liberally to the stock " if the line goes here or there," or any place except the right place, where the Engineer has fixed it. And so very often, owing to such influences, the road is improperly located ; large expenses are incurred to correct it ; profits melt away on the poorly located line, and the road is not only a failure, but the Engineer's ability is questioned much to his injury. It is surprising how necessary a thing it is for a man to " serve his time" to every profession except Engineering. The mo- ment a railroad is projected, every man along the line becomes a good locating Engineer, and viewing with disgust the line as proposed by the Engineer who has devoted a dozen or more years of his life 48 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. in the practice of his profession, points out what route he would take. Still, as before suggested, an Engineer should use his own judgment, ignoring all counter suggestions by unskilful men, acting in perfect fairness to all parties, and with strict fidelity to the company employing him. Much more could be said regarding location, but the writer is necessarily restricted to a simple hand-book, and the> temptation to write further cannot be in- dulged in. Several very valuable works are in print, treating the subject in every detail, and these should be studied care- fully before the young engineer under- takes the location of a railway. If the country through which the line is intended to run is well adapted to the construction, a preliminary sur- vey can be arrived at, and an estimate made in a comparatively short time, regulated, of course, by the length of the road and the difficulties to be en- countered. A fair estimate of the cost PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 49 of a preliminary survey and estimate, is $35.00 per mile, including everything (although much higher charges are made by Engineers of a speculative turn of mind), plan, profile, and estimate. When this has been made and the feasibility of building the road is decided, negotiations should be commenced for the "RIGHT OF WAY," which will determine, in a great measure, whether the road can be built. When it is known that the road is really to be built, and through certain proper- ties, the value of those " estates" imme- diately assumes gigantic proportions ; persons who before the survey was made were willing to give their lands away wholesale to the railroad company, now become strangely reluctant even to sell the smallest morsel. The frailty of human nature is sadly exemplified in these pro- perty owners, and a barrier, sometimes insurmountable, is placed in the com- pany's way. In this dilemma, thore are two alternatives : one is to revise the line, 4 50 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. take another route, and avoid altogether the exorbitant charges ; and the other is, the law and courts ; the latter are very often appealed to, but only as a last resort, it being exceedingly difficult to find twelve jurymen who are not more or less in close sympathy with the individual, and against the company. An amicable adj ust- ment should be made, if possible, between the parties by an uninterested arbitrator taken from a different section of country. This will be found the easiest and the simplest form of adjustment. Should the property owners be willing to concede sufficient ground for the right of way, a conditional or preliminary agreement is entered into, in the following form : Brant of Right of Way and Release of Damages. To the Railroad Co. Know all men by these presents, That whereas " THE EAILROAD COMPANY," a corporation formed under PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 51 and in pursuance of the laws of the State of , for the purpose of locat- ing and constructing a Kailroad from to in said State, have located or are about to locate their Eailroad through, over, or upon the lands, pre- mises, and property of the undersigned in County in the said State, and for the said purpose are desirous of obtain- ing the Eight of "Way in, through, and upon the said lands and premises. Now, therefore, the said - - for and in conside- ration of the location of the said Kailroad through and upon his lands, and of the advantages which may accrue to him therefrom, and also of the sum of one dollar in hand paid, the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, doth hereby, for himself, his heirs, executors or ad- ministrators, give, grant, sell and convey unto the said " THE - - KAILROAD COMPANY," their successors and assigns, for the uses and purposes of their Kail- road and the construction of works con- 52 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. nected therewith, the absolute Eight of Way through, over and upon his said lands the whole distance of the said Rail- road through and over the same, with the unrestricted right and privilege to enter upon, locate and construct their railroad on, over and through his lands as aforesaid, to such extent as may be necessary for the location, construction, opening and use of said Railroad, not exceeding feet in width on and of the said lands, with such additional width, however, as may be required at deep cuttings and embankments, one -half there- of on each side of the Centre Line of the main track of said Railroad as laid down and established by the said Com- pany on their located route, and the full liberty to make, maintain and use the said Railroad over, through and upon the said lands, with the usual Road-bed, Slopes, Berms, Ditches, Spoil-banks and Borrow- pits ; and also the right to take and use any water from springs or streams PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 53 upon the said lands, and to conduct and carry water by pipe or otherwise over, through or under the same, and to estab- lish Water-stations thereon. And the said further covenants and agrees with the said Eailroad Company, their successors and assigns, that on the said Eailroad from - - City to City being completed and placed in run- ning order, he, his heirs, executors or administrators, at the proper cost and re- quest of the said Eailroad Company, will grant and convey the lands and premises hereinbefore described, and the rights and privileges appurtenant thereto, to the said Eailroad Company, their successors and assigns, so long as the same shall be re- quired for the uses of the said Eailroad by the said Company, its successors and assigns, - - and in said Instrument of Conveyance to discharge and forever re- lease the said "THE - - EAIL- ROAD COMPANY," their successors and assigns, from any further payments for, 54 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. or on account of the use and occupancy of the said lands and premises, as well as for any and all damages which have accrued or which may hereafter accrue by reason of the location, construction, operating and using of the said Kail- road through, over, and upon the lands aforesaid. Provided, however, that the construction of the said Eailroad shall be begun within twelve months, and the said Eoad shall be in operation within two years from this date. In witness whereof, the said - - hath hereunto set his hand and affixed his seal the day of A. D. 1877. . [SEAL.] WITNESS : The following table shows how much ground is required, per mile and hundred feet, for different widths for Right of Way purposes. PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 55 Table of acres required per mile, and per 100 feet for different widths (Traut- wiiie). Width Acres Acres Width Acres Amount in feet. per mile. 100 feet. in feet. per mile. per 100 feet. 20 2.42 .046 31 3.76 .071 21 2.55 .048 32 3.88 .073 22 2.67 .051 33 4.00 .076 23 2.79 .053 34 4.12 .078 24 2.91 .055 35 4.24 .080 "1 3. .057 36 4.36 .083 25 3.03 .057 37 4.48 .085 26 3.15 .060 38 4.61 .087 27 3.27 .062 39 4.73 .090 28 3.39 .064 40 4.85 .092 29 3.52 .067 41 4.97 .094 30 3.64 .069 '4 5. .094 The value of the ground, of course, will vary in different localities. After the location of the railroad has been determined upon, the estimates made, and the quantities computed, by calcula- tion, the work is ready for " letting," and the contract for building the road can be made. The following form of contract is 56 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. taken from a contract made by the Perm, sylvania Eailroad. Form of Contract and Proposal. Kailroad. CONTRACT. Articles of Agreement made and con- cluded this - - day of - in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and by and between of the first part, and the railroad company, of the second part, witnesseth, that for and in consideration of the payments and cove- nants hereinafter mentioned, to be made and performed by the said Kailroad Com- pany, the said party of the first part doth hereby covenant and agree to con- struct and finish, in the most substantial and workman-like manner, to the satis- faction and acceptance of the Engineer of said Company, all the graduation, ma- sonry, and such other work as may be required on Section - , numbered of said road : the said work to be finished UJNiVERSITY PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 57 as described in the following SPECIFICA- TIONS, and agreeably to the directions, from time to time, of the said Engineer or his assistants, on or before the day of in the year one thousand eight hundred and . SPECIFICATIONS. 1. Graduation. Under this head will be included all excavations and embank- ments required for the formation of the road-bed ; cutting all ditches or drains about or contiguous to the road, the foundation of culverts, and bridges or walls ; the excavations and embankments necessary for reconstructing turnpikes or common roads, in cases where they are destroyed or interfered with in the forma- tion of the road ; and all other excava- tions or embankments connected with or incident to the construction of said rail- road. 2. All cuttings shall be measured in the excavations, and estimated by the 58 THE EAILWAY BUILDER. cubic yard, under the following heads, viz. : earth, loose rock, solid rock, tunnel excavation, embankment. Earth will include clay, sand, loam, gravel, and all other earthy matter, or earth containing loose stone or boulders, intermixed, which do not exceed in size three cubic feet. Loose Rock shall include all stone and detached rock lying in separate and con- tiguous masses, containing not over one cubic yard ; also all slate or other rock that can be quarried without blasting, although blasting may be occasionally resorted to. Solid Rock includes all rock occurring in masses, exceeding one cubic yard, which cannot be removed without blast- ing. Tunnel Excavation includes all excava- tion necessarily taken from the area re- quired to be tunnelled. 3. The road will be graded for a single track, except where otherwise directed PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 59 by the Engineer ; with side slopes of such inclinations as the Engineer shall, in each case, designate, and in conformity to such breadths, depths, and slopes of cuttings and fillings as may have been, or may hereafter be, determined upon by said Engineer. 4. Earth, gravel, and other materials taken from excavation (except when otherwise directed by the Engineer) shall be deposited in the adjacent embank- ments, the cost of removing which will be included in the price paid for excava- tion. It will be understood, therefore, that the excavation price is designed to pay for the excavation, loading, hauling, and dumping in embankments, all mate- rial necessarily procured from within the line of the railroad. Embankment includes all material placed in the embankments of the road- way of the railroad, or common roads which may be crossed or changed Li their locations ; this material, when taken from 60 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. the excavations of the railway, will be paid for as embankment when hauled to a distance of 1000 feet ; in that case it will be paid for as excavation, and also as embankment ; when hauled to a distance less than 1000 feet, it will be paid for as excavation only. In procuring materials for embankment from without the line of the road, the place will be designated by the Engineer in charge of the work : and in excavating and removing it, care must be taken to injure or disfigure the land as little as possible. The embankments will be formed in layers of such depth (generally one foot), and the materials disposed and distributed in such a man- ner as the Engineer may direct, the required allowance for settling being added. Material necessarily wasted from the cuttings shall be used in widening the banks, or be deposited in the vicinity of the road, according to the directions of the Engineer. PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 61 5. The ground to be occupied by the excavations and embankments, together with a space of twelve feet beyond the slope-stakes on each side, or ten feet be- yond the berme ditch, where one is re- quired, will be cleared of all trees, brush, and other perishable matter. Where the filling does not exceed two and one-half feet, the trees, stumps, and saplings must be grubbed, but under all other portions v>f the embankment, it will be sufficient that they be cut close to the earth ; no separate allowance will be made for grubbing and clearing, but its cost will be included in the price for excavation. 6. Contractors, when desired by the Engineer in charge of the work, will de- posit on the side of the road, or at such convenient points as may be designated, any stone or rock that they may exca- vate; and if, in so doing, they should deposit material required for embank- ment, the additional cost, if any, of pro- curing other materials from without the 62 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. road, will be allowed. All stone or rock excavated and deposited as above, to- gether with all timber removed from the line of the road, will be considered the property of the railroad company, and the contractors upon the respective sec- tions will be responsible for its safe keep- ing until removed by said Company, or until his work is finished. 7. The line of the road, or the gradi- ents, may be changed if the Engineer shall consider such changes necessary or expedient ; and for any considerable al- terations, the injury or advantage to the contractor will be estimated, and such al- lowance or deduction made in the prices as the Engineer may deem just and equit- able; but no claim for an increase in prices of excavation or embankment on the part of the contractor will be allowed or considered unless made in writing before the work on that part of the sec- tion, where the alteration has been made, shall have commenced. The Engineer PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 63 may, also, on the conditions last named, increase or diminish the length of any section for the purpose of more equalizing or balancing the excavations and embank- ments. 8. Whenever the route of the railroad is traversed by public or private roads, commodious passing places must be kept open and in safe condition for use ; and in passing through farms the contractor must always keep up such necessary fences as will be needed for the preserva- tion of the crops. MASONRY. All masonry will be estimated and paid for by the cubic yard of twenty-seven feet (cubic), and will be included under the following heads, viz.,: culvert masonry^ bridge masonry, vertical and slope wall masonry. 1. Culvert Masonry. All rectangular culverts will be built dry, with a v^ater way of not less than two and a half by 64 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. three feet ; the abutments will rest on a pavement of stone, set edgewise, of at least ten inches in depth, confined and secured at the ends by deep curb-stones, which must be protected from undermin- ing by broken stone placed in such quan- tities and position as the Engineer may direct. The abutment walls will not be less than two feet thick, and built of good- sized and well- shaped stone, properly laid and bound together by stones, occasionally extending entirely through the walls. The upper course to have at least one- half of the stone headers ; and the struc- tures in no case to be less than twelve inches wide ; no stone in this course to be less than six inches thick. The cover- ing to be of sound, strong stone, at least twelve inches thick, and to lap its whole width not less than ten inches on each abutment. The thickness of the covering, stone, and dimensions of the whole walls to be increased at the discretion of the Engineer. PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 65 2. Bridge Masonry. When rock foun- dation cannot be had for abutments and piers, the masonry shall be started upon hewn timber, sunk to such a depth as to protect it from decay, and to prevent the possibility of underwashing. The timber platforms will be composed of one or more courses, according to the depth of the water, the height of the masonry, or other circumstances of which the Engineer shall judge and determine. The masonry will be of two qualities, either to be adopted at the discretion of the Engineer. FIKST QUALITY shall be rock range work. The stone to be accurately squared, jointed, and bedded, and laid in courses of not less than twelve inches thick, nor exceed- ing twenty inches in thickness, regularly decreasing from bottom to top of pier or abutment. The stretchers shall, in no case, have less than sixteen inches bed for a twelve inch course, and for all courses above sixteen inches, at least as much bed as face; they shall generally 5 66 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. be at least four feet in length. The head- ers will be of similar size as stretchers, and shall hold the size in the heart of the wall that they show on the face, and be so arranged as to occupy one-fifth of the face of the wall, and they will be simi- larly disposed in the back. When the thickness of the wall will admit of their interlocking they will be disposed in that manner. When the wall is too thick to admit of that arrangement, stones not less than four feet in length will be placed transversely in the heart of the wall to connect the two opposite sides of it. The stone for the heart of the wall will be of the same thickness as those in the face and back, and must be well fitted to their places ; any remaining interstices will be filled with ordinary masonry. The face stones will, with the exception of the draught, be generally left with the face as they come from the quarry unless the projections above the draught should ex- ceed two inches, in which case they must PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 67 be roughly scabbed down to that point. The abutments or piers, and such por- tions of them as the Engineer may direct, shall be covered with a course of coping not less than ten inches thick, well- dressed, and fastened together with clamps of iron. The SECOND QUALITY of bridge masonry will be rubble work, laid in irregular courses, and will consist of stone contain- ing generally six cubic feet each, so dis- posed as to make a firm and compact work ; and no stone in the work shall contain less than two cubic feet, except for filling up the interstices between the large blocks in the heart of the wall ; at least one-fifth of the face shall be com- posed of headers, extending full size four feet into the wall, and from the back the same proportion and of the same dimen- sions, so arranged that a header in the back shall be between two headers in the face. The corner stones shall be neatly 68 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. hammer-dressed so as to have horizontal beds and vertical joints. 3. Vertical and Breast Walls. The walls will be good, dry rubble work, the stones to be of such dimensions and laid with such batter as the Engineer may direct. 4. BKICK WORK. Where bricks are used in piers or abutments of arched or open bridges or tunnels, they shall be made of the best clay, well tempered, moulded, and burnt. The sizes after burning to be nine inches long, four and one-quarter inches wide, and two and one-half inches thick ; laid in the best hydraulic mortar, grouted full every three courses, and made with such pro- portions of cement and sand as the Engineer may direct. The materials for the mortar to be furnished by the con- tractor. The joints to be of such thick- ness, and the bond to be of old English or Flemish, or such other character as the Engineer may prescribe, either for the PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 69 walls or arches. No bats, cracked, broken, or salmon brick to be used in the work. The quality of the stone or brick of which the masonry shall be built must be well suited to the kind of structure in which it is used, according to the judg- ment of the Engineer. All masonry, whether of stone or brick, to be estimated and paid for by the cubic yard of twenty- seven cubic feet. Such portions of the masonry as the Engineer may require to be laid in lime mortar or hydraulic cement, will be so laid. 5. The prices per cubic yard for masonry shall in every case include the furnishing of all materials, excepting lime and cement, the cost of scaffolding, centering, etc., and all the expenses at- tending the delivery of the materials, and all risks from floods and otherwise. 6. No charge shall be made by the con- tractor for hindrances or delay from any cause in the progress of any portion of 70 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. the work in this contract, but it may en- title him to an extension of time allowed for completing the work, sufficient to compensate for the detention ; to be de- termined by the Chief Engineer, provided he shall give the Engineer in charge im- mediate notice in writing of the cause of the detention. Nor shall any claim be allowed for extra work, unless the same shall be done in pursuance of an order from the Engi- neer in charge, and the claim made at the first settlement after the work was exe- cuted, unless the Chief Engineer at his discretion should direct the claim or such part as he may deem just and equitable to be allowed. And the said - - Eailroad Company doth promise and agree to pay to the said party of the first part, for completing this contract, as follows, viz. : For earth excavation, cents per cub. yard. For loose rock excavation, " " " For solid rock excavation, " " " PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 71 Tunnel excavation, cents per cubic yard. For embankment, " " " For bridge masonry, 1st quality, " " " 2d quality, " " " For rectangular culverts, " " " For brick arches laid in cement, " " " For paving in foundations, " " " For vertical walls or breast walls, " " " For timbers in foundations, in position, For timber worked in trestling, For timber in bridges, For workmanship of timber in bridges, For wrought iron, in position, For cast iron, in position, " " " Any and all other items at the Engineer's estimate. On or after the first day of each month during the progress of this work, an esti- mate shall be made of the relative value of the work done, to be judged of by the Engineer, and upon his certificate of the amount being presented to the Treasurer " per cub. foot. " per 1000 ft. B. M. (( U ' ' per pound. 72 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. of the Kailroad Company the amount of said estimate shall be paid to the party of the first part, at such time and place as the said Treasurer may designate ; and when all the work embraced in this con- tract is completed agreeably to the speci- fications, and in accordance with the directions, and to the satisfaction and acceptance of the Engineer, there shall be a final estimate made of the quality, character, and value of said work, agree- ably to the terms of this agreement, when the balance appearing due to the said party of the first part shall be paid to upon giving a release, under seal of the said Railroad Company, from all claims or demands whatsoever, growing in any manner out of this agreement. It is further covenanted and agreed between the said parties that the said party of the first part shall not let or transfer this con- tract to any person (excepting for the delivery of materials) without the consent of the Engineer, but will give personal PRELIMINAKY SURVEYS. 73 attention to the work. It is farther agreed that the work embraced in this contract shall be commenced within days from this date and prosecuted with such force as the Engineer shall deem adequate to its completion within the time specified, and if at any time the. said party of the first part shall refuse or neglect to prosecute the work with a force sufficient in the opinion of the said Engi- neer for its completion within the time specified in this agreement, then, and in that case, the Engineer in charge, or such other agent as the Engineer may desig- nate, may proceed to employ such a number of workingmen, laborers, and overseers as may, in the opinion of the said Engineer, be necessary to insure the completion of the work within the time hereinbefore limited, at such wages as he may find it necessary or expedient to give, pay all persons so employed, and charge over the amount so paid to the party of the first part, as for so much 74 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. money paid to said party of the first part on this contract ; or the said Engineer may, at his discretion, for the failure to prosecute the work with an adequate force, for non-compliance with his direc- tions in regard to the manner of con- structing it, or for any other omission or neglect of the requirements of this agree- ment and specifications on the part of the party of the first part, declare this con- tract, or any portion or section embraced in it, forfeited, which declaration and for- feiture shall exonerate the said - Railroad Company from any and all obli- gations and liabilities arising under this contract, the same as if this agreement had never been made, and the reserved percentage of upon any work done by the party of the first part may be retained forever by the said Railroad Company. And it is mutually agreed and distinctly understood that the de- cision of the Chief Engineer shall be final and conclusive in any dispute which PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 75 may arise between the parties to this agreement, relative to or touching the same, and each and every of said parties do hereby waive any right of action, suit or suits, or other remedy in law or other- wise, by virtue of said covenants, so that the decision of said Engineer shall, in the nature of an award, be final and con- clusive on the rights and claims of said parties. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the President of the - - Eailroad Company hath signed the same, and caused the corporate seal of said Company to be attached, and the said - - ha hereunto set hand and seal the day and year first above written. . [SEAL.] . [SEAL.] . [SEAL.] . [SEAL.] WITNESS : 76 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. KAILROAD PROPOSALS. Excavation per cubic yard, earth., " loose rock, " " " solid " " " " tunnel, Embankment per cubic yard, Masonry (per yard of 27 cubic feet) , 11 of bridges, 1st quality, of bridges, 2d quality, " of arches, stone, " of arches, brick, " of rectangular culverts, " of paving in foundations, 11 of vertical or breast walls, Timber (per 1000 feet, B. M.) " in bridges, 11 in trestles, Workmanship (per 1000 feet, B. M.) " in bridges, " in trestles, Timber per cubic foot in foundations, Iron per pound, in position, Wrought iron per pound, in position, Cast " " " " The undersigned hereby propose to the Eailroad Company to do all the work on either or all of the sections to PRELIMINARY SURVEYS. 77 which, prices are affixed in the schedule, according to the conditions and specifica- tions contained in the printed form of contract, a copy of which is annexed; and, on the acceptance of this proposal for all or either of the above sections do hereby bind to enter into and execute a contract in said form for the prices above named. 18- Proposer's Eesidence, Nearest Post-office. Signed, The above form of Proposal is filled in by the contractor and attached to the blank form of contract. This con- stitutes his bid for the work, and is considered, with others, by the railway officials on some previously advertised day. CHAPTER III. COST OF EARTHWORK. THE work required to bring the natu- ral formation of the ground to the grade lines of the proposed railroad is called GRADING, and embraces all the cutting and embankment required. Being by far the most expensive part of the enterprise, close attention must be given to it in every estimate that is made. It is di- vided into two classes; excavation and embankment. It is very desirable, as far as practicable, for the Engineer to so ar- range his grade lines that all the cuttings will yield sufficient material to form all the embankment ; the nearest approach to this happy equality of affairs generally shows the cheapest possible line ; but there are a great many reasons why such a course is not practicable : for example, 78 COST OF EAKTHWORK. 79 the haul may be too long to bring the material from the cutting to the place of embankment, consuming much time and money ; in this case " BOKKOW PITS" are necessary that is, material must be bor- rowed from other points than the excava- tions of the line to form the banks. And in the case of excavation a " WASTE" is organized, or the material from the exca- vations instead of being used to form the banks is wasted, i. e., dumped into any con- venient hollow or ravine. This borrowing and wasting is a very expensive business, and as little of it should be allowed as possible ; a contractor should haul at least 1000 feet before any idea of borrowing is allowed. The steepest or MAXIMUM GRADE of a railroad is to be determined by the rolling load that is to pass over it. On the Phila. and Beading R E., a train of 170 loaded cars, each car carrying 5 tons of coal, is hauled with comparative ease on a level grade at the rate of 12 miles an hour. The following table 80 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. shows the number of feet per 100 feet, ascending or descending grade, for each degree and minute of the angle of in- clination up to 5 feet per 100 feet. Table of Grades per 100 Feet for Each Degree to 5 Feet. 1 B Per 100 7 . 1 I Per 100'. 1 a Per lOO 7 . 1 d Per 100'. 1 .0291 30 .8727 1 1.7455 1 56 3.3758 2 .0582 31 .9018 2 1.8038 58 ; 3.4341 3 .0873 32 .9309 4 1.8620 2 3.4924 4 .1164 33 .9600 6 1.9202 2i 3.5506 5 .1455 34 .9891 8 1.9784 4 , 3.6087 6 .1746 35 1.0182 10 2.0366 6 3.6669 7 .2037 36 1.0472 11 2.0948 8 3.7250 8 .2328 37 1.0763 12 2.1530 10 ! 3.7833 9 .2619 38 1.1054 14 2.2112 12 ! 3.8416 10 .2909 39 1.1345 16 2.2694 14 | 3.8999 11 .3200 40 1.1636 18 2.3277 16 ! 3.9581 12 .3491 41 1.1927 20 2.3859 18 4.0163 13 .3782 42 1.2218 22 2.4441 20 4.0746 14 .4073 43 1.2509 24 2.5023 22 4.1329 15 .4364 44 1.2800 26 2.5604 24 4.1911 16 .4655 45 1.3090 28 2.6186 26 4.2494 17 .4946 46 1.3381 30 2.6768 28 4.3076 18 .5237 47 1.3672 32 2.7350 30 4.3659 19 .5528 48 1.3963 34 2.7932 32 4.4242 20 .5818 49 1.4254 86 2.8514 34 4.4826 21 .6109 50 1.4545 38 2.9097 36 4.5409 22 .6400 51 , 1.4837 40 2.9679 38 4.5993 23 .6691 52 1.5128 4-2 3.0262 40 4.6576 24 .6982 53 1.5419 44 3.0844 42 4.7159 25 .7273 54 1.5710 46 3.1427 44 4.7742 26 .7564 55 1.6000 48 3.2010 46 4.8325 27 .7855 56 1.6291 50 3.2592 48 4.8908 28 .8146 57 1.6583 52 3.3175 50 4.9492 29 .8436 58 1.6873 54 3.3758 52 5.0075 59 1.7164 COST OF EARTHWORK. 81 To get the grade in feet per mile, multiply the figures given in the col- umn headed PEE 100' by 52.80. Thus, in the Table, angle 2 52' = 5.0075 X 52.80 = 264.39 feet per mile. Where the trade will not be very heavy and the trains light, much steeper grades can be used, saving very mate- rially in the first cost of the road, by making the excavations less heavy, and the banks not so high. On the Cumberland and Pennsylvania R. R. there are grades of 186 feet to the mile, and on some of the recently constructed narrow-gauge railroads, the writer has been informed of grades of 4 feet in the 100 or 211 feet to the mile. Often a great deal of unnecessary expense is in- curred in the endeavor to preserve a uniform grade, which, could be saved by building a " surface road" or establishing the grades by frequent changes, so as to conform to the natural surface of the ground. 82 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. The accompanying illustration shows the manner in which the surface of the ground is plotted on profile paper and the grade of the railway established. A good locomotive weighing 27 tons on the drivers can haul up a grade of 5 feet to the mile, 1150 tons. 10 20 " " 30 " " 40 ' ' ' : 50 " " 60 " " 70 " " 80 " " 90 " " 100 " " 110 " " 120 " " 130 " " 140 " " 150 " " 160 " " 170 ' 180 " " The grade being established to the best possible advantage, the next step is to 939 " 686 " 536 " 437 " 367 " 315 " 275 " 242 " 216 " 194 " At a speed v of 8 to 12 ' miles per hour. 175 " 159 <( 146 " 134 " 123 " 113 u 105 " 13 d I I' s 84 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. provide for "STAKING OUT" THE WOKE:. This is the work of the "constructing corps." The places to be excavated are marked on the ground by driving stakes every 50 or 25 feet along the entire line, and the number of feet of cutting or em- bankment is marked on them with red chalk or " kehl." The side or slope stakes are then set, which indicate the position of the edge of the slope. For the benefit of young Engineers perusing this work, who are not familiar with staking out work, the writer, digressing from the general plan of this treatise, takes the occasion to introduce a simple rule for "staking out," which he has used fre- quently during his practice in construc- tion work, as follows : When the natural surface of the ground is level, Add the cut in feet and decimals, multiplied by the slope, to one-half the road-led. Thus, for example, suppose the depth of the cut required to be 20.3 feet, the slope to be 1J to 1, and the road-bed 13 feet, then. COST OF EARTHWORK. 85 by the rule given above, we have (20.3 x li) + 6.5=36.95 feet, which is the dis- tance from the centre line to the edge of the slope on either side of the line. But suppose that the natural surface of the ground is not level, then assume a point on the ground (apparently right) find its height above grade with the level, multi- ply this by the slope, and add one-half the road-bed ; see how near this calcula- tion comes to the measured distance from the centre to the assumed point ; if not right, a second trial will fix the point. If the natural surface of the ground is very much inclined, stake out the upper side only, and allow the lower side to assume its own shape. The section at each station should be plotted on cross- section paper from which the areas are calculated. With this information ob- tained the cubical contents of each 100 feet of excavation or embankment can be ascertained by the prismoidal formula as given on page 94. The ground, being 86 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. staked out, is then loosened by picks or ploughs, the latter generally being much cheaper ; a single plough with two horses and men will loosen up from 200 to 300 yards of stiff soil per day at about 1} cents per yard; with the pick, a day's work is about 25 yards, or with labor at $1.00 per day 4 cents per yard. Light soils will average about one-half the above, while pure sand requires very little labor, say \ cent per yard. After loosening the earth it must be shovelled aside, or into carts or wheelbarrows, and then moved away. A cart will hold about J of a cubic yard, measured in place. A man can shovel and load a cart in five minutes, or for a day's work of 10 hours, 120 loads, or 40 cubic yards of light mate- rial, but some deduction must be made for delays, etc., which would place the average at about J or 20 cubic yards of material one man can load into a cart per day. Assuming the labor at $1.00 per day, the cost of shovelling into carts 87 88 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. will be about 5 cents a yard. A cart itself weighs about J a ton. After the material is loaded into carts it must be hauled away and dumped where it is needed in forming bank, then the cart must return and be loaded again, all of which takes time. Trau twine says : " The average speed of horses in hauling is about 2 J miles per hour, or 200 feet per minute, which is equal to 100 feet of trip each way, or to 100 feet of lead, as the distance to which the earth is hauled is technically called. Besides this, there is a loss of four minutes in every trip, whether long or short, in waiting to load, dumping, turning, etc. Hence every trip will occupy as many minutes as there are lengths of 100 feet each in the lead, and four minutes besides; therefore, to find the number of trips per day over any average lead, we divide the number of minutes in a working day by the sum of 4 added to the number of 100 -feet lengths COST OF EARTHWORK. 89 contained in the distance to which the earth has to be removed, that is The number The number (600) of minutes in a day of trips 4+ the number of 100 feet-lengths in the lead, "" g r 1 ^ ds per cart. And since J of a cubic yard, measured before being loosened, makes an average cart-load, the number of loads divided by 3 will give the number of cubic yards removed per day by each cart, and the cubic yards divided into the total expense of a cart per day will give the cost per cubic yard for hauling. In leads of ordi- nary length, one driver can attend to 4 carts, which at $1.00 per day is 25 cents per cart. When labor is $1.00 per day, the expense of a horse is about 75 cents, and that of the cart, including harness, tar, repairs, etc., 25 cents, making the total daily cost per cart $1.00. The ex- pense of the horse is the same on Sundays and on rainy days as when at work, and this consideration is included in the 75 90 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. cents. Some contractors employ a greater number of drivers, who also help to load the carts, so that the expense is about the same in either case. Example. How many cubic yards of loam, measured in the cut, can be hauled by a horse and cart in a day of 10 work- ing hours (600 minutes), the lead or length of haul of earth being 1000 feet (or 10 lengths of 100 feet); and what will be the expense to the contractor for hauling per cubic yard, assuming the total cost of cart, horse, and driver, at $1.25 ? Here 600 minutes 600 4+10 lengths of 100 feet " 14 : And 43 loads 3 = 14.3 cubic yards. And 125 cents =-{-5 T-. T = 8.74 cents per cubic yard." 14.3 cubic yards After the material is hauled away and dumped into position, it is necessary to COST OF EAKTHWORK. 91 have it nicely spread in layers on the bank and levelled off. Still quoting from Trautwine: "A bankman will spread from 50 to 100 yards of either common loam or any of the heavier soils, clays, etc., depending on their dryness. This, at $1.00 per day, is 1 to 2 cents per cubic yard ; and we may assume 1 J cents as a fair average for such soils, while 1 cent will suffice for light sandy soils." Add to the above items, say 2 cents per cubic yard for keeping the haul in order, and 5 cents per yard for contingencies, and we have the AVEKAGE COST OF EXCAVAT- ING ONE CUBIC YARD OF EARTH, and placing it in position in the bank, as fol- lows : Loosening "by pick, 4.00 cts. per cu. yd. Loading into carts, Hauling 1000 feet, Spreading into layers, Keeping haul in order, Various contingencies, Total cost to contractor, 26.24 Add contractor's profit, 10 #, 2.62 Total cost to company, 28.86 92 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. If the material is hauled away by men and wheelbarrows, the cost will exceed the foregoing by about 30 per cent. "A CUBIC YARD OF ROCK IN PLACE, before being blasted, will weigh about 1.8 tons, if sandstone or conglomerate (150 pounds per cubic foot), or 2 tons if good compact granite, gneiss, limestone, or marble (168 pounds per cubic foot)." With labor at $1.00 per day, a fair esti- mate for LOOSENING SOLID ROCK would be about 50 cents per cubic yard, and for loose rock, say 30 cents per cubic yard, while the cost of loading and hauling away would be about 25 cents per cubic yard, or the total cost to the contractor for loosening, loading, hauling away, and dumping, say with a haul of 1000 feet, would be about 75 cents per cubic yard measured in place. Add to this 10 per cent, for contractor's profit, and we have the ACTUAL COST TO THE COMPANY, at 82.5 cents per cubic yard of solid rock. Loose rock will cost about 55 cents to COST OF EARTHWORK. 93 the contractor, or 60.5 cents to the com- pany. In a mile of single track railroad through a rolling country it is safe to estimate the earth excavation at about 15.000 cubic yards, which, at say 30 cents per yard, would amount to $4500. Also estimate, for about 1500 cubic yards of solid rock, at say 85 cents per cubic yard, which would amount to $1275. And 1500 cubic yards of loose rock, at say 60 cents per yard, amounting to $900, which gives us a total for the cost of earthwork PER MILE of single track rail- road of $6675. Circumstances, of course, will vary these figures considerably they are based on average figures, taken from several estimates of roads already built, through a rolling country, but one pre- senting no engineering difficulties ; the maximum haul is considered 1000 feet in length. If the cutting is over 10 or 12 feet in depth, the present day contractor usually uses a steam shovel. This ma- chine is capable of scooping up from 1 94 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. to 2 cubic yards of earth at each move- ment, or about 3 to 6 yards per minute. One of these machines costing from $6000 to $8000 will excavate from 500 to 1500 cubic yards of loosened earth or gravel daily. The cost of operating one of these shovels is placed at $30 per day, or about one-half the cost per cubic yard of hand shoveling when reduced to a basis of $1.00 per day for labor. The rule for calculating the cubic con- tents of excavation is contained in the following PRISMOIDAL FORMULA. "Add together the areas of the two parallel ends of the prismoid, and four times the area of a section half way and parallel to them; and multiply the sum by one-sixth of the length of the prismoid, measured perpen- dicularly to its two parallel ends." In railroads, the prismoids are generally 100 feet long, it is therefore easier to multiply the sum of the areas in square feet by 100, and divide the product by 6. COST OF EARTHWORK. 95 Quantity of Earths equal to a Ton. Sand, river, as filled into carts, 21 cubic feet. Sand, pit ' 22 " Gravel, coarse, 23 " Marl, 28 " Clay, stiff, 29 " Chalk, in lumps, 29 " Earth, mould, 33 " The whole subject is ably handled by Trautwine, on "Excavation and Em- bankment." From the same author the following on Tunnel excavation is adapted by the writer. In making tunnels for railroads they should, if possible, be straight, especially when there is but a single track, inasmuch as collisions or other accidents in a tunnel would be particularly disastrous. A tunnel should not be made unless the depth of cutting exceeds 60 feet. Firm rock of moderate hardness, and of a durable nature, is the most favorable material for a tunnel, especially if free from springs and lying in horizontal strata. In soft rock, or 96 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. in shales (even if hard and firm at first), or in earth, a lining of hard brick or masonry in cement is necessary. A tun- nel should have a grade or inclination in one direction for ease of future drainage and ventilation. No special arrangement is necessary for ventilation, either during construction or after, if the length does not exceed 1000 feet ; but beyond that, generally during construction either shafts are made, or air is forced into the tunnel through pipes from its ends. But after the work is finished nothing of the kind generally is necessary. SHAFTS generally cost from one and a half to three times as much per cubic yard as the main tunnel, owing to the greater difficulty of excavating and removing the material, and getting rid of the water, all of which must be done by hoisting. Their sectional areas commonly vary from about 40 to 100 square feet. In exca- vating the tunnel itself, a HEADING or passage-way 5 or 8 feet high, and 3 to 12 COST OF EARTHWORK. 97 feet wide is driven and maintained a short distance (10 to 100 feet or more), accord- ing to the firmness of the material, in advance of the main work. In rock the heading is just below the top of the tun- nel, so that the men can conveniently drill holes in its floor for blasting; but in earth, the heading is driven along the bottom of the tunnel, that being the most convenient for enlarging the aperture to the full tunnel size by undermining the earth and letting it fall. In earth, the top and sides of the heading, as well as the tunnel, must be carefully prevented from caving in before the lining is built, and this is done by means of rows of vertical rough timber, props, and horizontal caps or overhead pieces, between which and the earth rough boards are placed to form temporary supporting sides and ceiling to the excavation. The props and caps are placed first, and the boards are then driven in between them and the earthen sides of the excavation. These are gradually re- 7 98 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. moved as the lining is carried forward. THE LINING, when of brick, is usually from 2 to 3 bricks thick (17 to 26 inches) at bottom, and from 1 J to 2% bricks thick at the top, and when of rough rubble in cement, about half again as thick. It is important that the bricks or stone should be of excellent hard quality, and laid in good cement. The bricks should be moulded to the shape of the arch. As the lining is finished in short lengths, and before the centres are removed, any cavi- ties or voids between it and the earth should be carefully and compactly filled up. Even in rock if much fissured, or if not of durable character, as common slate, lining is necessary. THE CROSS SECTION of a single-track railroad tunnel in the clear of everything, and for cars of 11 feet extreme width, should not be less than about 15 feet wide by 18 feet high ; nor a double track one less than 27 feet wide by 24 feet high, unless in the last case the material is firm COST OF EARTHWORK. 99 rock, in which a high arch is not neces- sary for lining. The roof may then be much flatter, so that a height of 20 feet will answer. With cars of 10 feet ex- treme width, the width of the tunnel may be reduced to 25 feet ; or with cars 9 feet wide, to 23 feet. The rate of DAILY PRO- GRESS from each face of a tunnel varies from 18 inches to 9 feet of length per 24 hours with three relays of workingmen. From 1J to 3 feet may be taken as an average. If the tunnel is through earth the construction of the lining about makes up for the slower excavation of one in rock. In rock, with labor at $1.00 per day, the cost will usually vary with the nature of the rock from $2.00 to $5.00 per cubic yard for the main tunnel ; and from $3.00 to $10.00 for the heading; while shafts will average about 50 per cent more than heading. As the sides and roof of a tunnel are very roughly blasted, the contractor takes out more material than would be given him if 100 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. measured in the clear. Allowance should be made him for this, or the mode of measurement clearly stated in the specifi- cations. Before commencing a tunnel trial shafts should be sunk to ascertain the nature of the material. In long ones the greatest care and accuracy are neces- sary for preserving the line of direction, so that the work from both ends shall meet properly in the centre. The cost of a single track tunnel will range from $30 to $75 per foot of length. On the Eeading E. E., during its con- struction, three tunnels were cut at the following cost per lineal foot: Black Rock Tunnel, near Manayunk, $90. Flat " " " Phcenixville, 130. Port Clinton " 82. which gives an average cost of $101 per lineal foot. The first two named are double track tunnels, and the latter a single track only. The Flat Eock tunnel is 1932 feet long, worked with 6 shafts, and artificial means were used for Railroad tunnel. COST OF EARTHWORK. 101 ventilation. During the construction of the Black Rock tunnel, the work pro- gressed at the rate of 100 feet in 52 days, while the Port Clinton tunnel was ex- cavated at the rate of 100 lineal feet in 48 days. It is well to avoid a tunnel if it can possibly be done : a number of trial lines should be run, and shafts should be sunk, before even deciding upon building one. Several tunnels formerly built at great expense have been abandoned within recent years. In one case it was found preferable to build two bridges and revise several miles of operating railroad, and in an- other instance to maintain an open cut of 30 to 40 feet in depth than to con- tinue using the tunnels. CHAPTER IY. PERMANENT WAY. AFTER the excavations and embank- ments have been completed, and before the track is laid, the BALLAST should be put on the grading. It consists of from 8 to 28 inches of loose, hard material, of sand, gravel, or good hard broken stone furnace slag has been used very suc- cessfully on some American railroads reduced to such a size that any piece will go through a ring of two inches diameter. The quantity required will depend on the nature of the material which forms the cuts and banks, and may vary in depth from 1 to 3 feet. Ballasting is necessary to drain the road-bed properly. If the sills or cross-ties should be laid directly on the grading without any intermediate ballast, which unfortunately is often done 102 PERMANENT WAY. 103 in the hurry to get the road in operation, they are laid on soft clay, which in wet weather washes away from underneath them ; or else on solid rock bottom, say / of excavations, of that nature which pre- sents such a rigid base as to destroy the rails. The ballast on a railroad gives the track a certain amount of elasticity, ab- solutely necessary to carry the train, which passes over it, with any degre of safety. Frequently the cross-ties and iron are laid on the sub-grade temporarily, only laying the iron so that the ballast can be hauled to the place required by construction trains, and so save the ex- pense of carting the material. Such cases are admissible, but when the first con- struction train passes over the rails safely, the temptation to let a freight, and then a passenger train, over the line also, is very seldom resisted, and much injury results in the form of badly bent iron, occasionally an upset engine, and some- times loss of human life. Too little atten- 104 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. tion is paid to ballasting, excepting upon some of our leading railroads, which make it a prominent feature of con- struction. In nearly every instance in which the rails, frogs, and switches show unusual signs of wear, the cause can be traced to dirt, or often, to no ballast. The sand ballast of the South makes a good elastic road-bed. Some of the Southern rail- ways have no other ballast except pure clean sand, and apparently it is suffi- cient. On the Pennsylvania E. R. the ballast is broken stone, sloping from the sills to the sub-grade, and such attention given to it that care is even taken to have the edges of the ballast laid with a line ! The following TABLE gives the number of cubic yards of ballasting re- quired for one mile of single-track rail- road. Slopes of the ballast 1 to 1, the depth from 12 to 30 inches, and the top width that is, the width of the road- bed from 10 to 12 feet. PERMANENT WAY. 105 Table of Ballasting. Depth in inches. Top width in feet. 10. 11. 12. 12 18 24 30 2152 3374 4694 6111 2347 3667 5085 6600 2543 3960 5474 7087 Cubic yards. a it The cost of breaking stone for ballast, exclusive of the cost of the stone, if done by hand, will be about $700 per mile of single track railroad. The stone can generally be procured from the excava- tions along the line of the road ; if not, the cost will be about $1500 per mile to buy and put in position. The hard slag or refuse, from blast furnaces, makes an ex- cellent ballast, its extreme brittleness renders it easy to reduce to the proper size, and it does not crumble to dust as softer material will do ; the water finds its way through it with ease, and as it never packs closely against the CROSS- TIES, the water will not decay as 106 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. quickly, the air having free access to the wood. When railroads were first built in Eng- land, the rails were firmly bolted to blocks of granite, which were imbedded in the grading ; this gave a durable magnificent road-bed, and one over which an engine could pull a greater load than over our timber cross-ties, but every block of stone under the rail had the same effect on it that an anvil would have to a piece of iron on which the smith is using a sledge ; the heavy engines when running at any considerable rate of speed battered down the heads of the rails, particularly at the joints, so badly, that the stone had to be removed and timber put in its place to give an elastic road-bed. STRINGERS placed under the rails, running in the same direction, their entire length, were used, but not successfully ; the timber would rot in places, and it was found very expen- sive and inconvenient in repairing to be obliged to handle such large timber. PERMANENT WAY. 107 THE CROSS-TIES as now used on almost all American railroads, excepting a few Southern roads, which are laid with the longitudinal stringers, consist of timbers laid across the ballast at right angles to the line of the road, and usually measure 9 feet long, 7 inches deep, and 8 inches in width, and are usually trees cut down and roughly hewn on the top and bottom sides. A good hard wood is necessary, to prevent the rails from sinking into it. In England, the double-headed rail is used, that is, the top and bottom of the rail are of the same shape, and it has no flat base like the American rail. This ne- cessitates iron chairs placed on each cross-tie, in order to hold the rail in posi- tion. In this country the base of the rail rests directly on the cross-ties, and hard wood is necessary to prevent the crushing of its fibres by the rail. White oak, chestnut, locust, and cedar make good cross-ties ; elm can be used if of good quality ; whatever timber abounds along 108 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. the line of the road, if at all hard wood, can be used to greater advantage than any timber which has to be brought from a distance. The seasoning and preparing of cross-ties for railroads has received great attention from many eminent En- gineers, and many attempts have been made to prepare the cross-ties previous to laying, so as to prevent or arrest the natural decay of the wood. Some years ago the cross-ties used on the Phila. and Beading E. E. were notched at the points where the rails crossed them, and their ends dipped in coal tar ; by this process it was supposed it would preserve the ends from decay. Since then " BURNETTIZ- ING" has been tried on the same road, a process by which the ties were thoroughly saturated with a solution of zinc. Neither of these gave the desired result, and both have been abandoned. The cost of Bur- nettizing a cross-tie was 25 cents, equal to one-half of its original cost. SAWED CROSS-TIES are often used, but only on trestle work or bridges, although the PERMANENT WAY. 109 writer knows of cases where sawed ties are laid the entire length of the railroad. The following table gives the NUMBER OF CROSS-TIES required to one mile of single track railroad, laid in the following order. 18 inches from centre to centre, 3520 ties. 21 " " " 3017 " 24 " " " 2640 " 27 " " " 2348 " 30 " " " 2113 " A fair ESTIMATE FOR CROSS-TIES is from 40 to 50 cents apiece, delivered on the line of the road, or about $1700 per mile of single track road. The history of the rail is identical with the history of tramways. Wooden rails were used at New Castle, in 1602. In 1716, flat pieces of iron were nailed to the wooden rails. In 1776, cast-iron rails, with upright flange, were laid on wooden sleepers. In 1789, Loughborough's cast-iron edge rail, with flanges on the wagon wheels. In 1793, stone bearings were substi- tuted for wooden sleepers. 110 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. Wrought- iron bars two or three inches in thickness, spiked to longitudinal sleep- ers, were then used in connection with flanged wheels. Wyatt's cast edge rail, leaving an oval section, was then used in connection with grooved wheels in 1800. Jessopused this rail in 1789, and added the chair a block of iron slotted to re- ceive the ends of adjacent rails. The wheel had a tread of 2| inches, and a flange to keep it on the rail ; the sleepers were of wood. 1803. Woodhouse's hollow rail, with a channel for the rounded edge of the wheel. 1805. The fish-bellied rail at Penrhyn. 1810. A square-bodied cast rail. 1811. Blenkinsop's rock rail. 1816. Gosh and Stephenson's flanged rail, which was a lapping continuous rail. 1817. Hawk's cast-iron face on a wrought-iron base. 1820. Birkenshaw's, of Bedlington, Durham, wrought-iron face on a cast-iron PERMANENT WAY. Ill base ; lie also invented the rolled rail, the iron, while hot, being passed between grooved rollers of the required pattern. This rail, with many modifications, is now used on the different railroads in this country. As before stated, some few Southern roads in this country are using the old STRAP RAIL, a flat bar of wrought iron resting in its entire length on wooden stringers, but they are only so used for light logging roads in the lumbering districts, and would not be suitable for use with our modern rolling stock. In the olden times this was the rail in gen- eral use in America, and many accidents occurred by reason of the ends of the rails curling up and forming " snake ends;" these would become detached from the wooden stringers, and some- times would pierce the floors of the cars, injuring and maiming the pas- sengers. The English DOUBLE-HEADED RAIL is supposed to possess an advan- 112 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. tage over the American rail, from the fact that when one head is worn out it can be reversed, and the wheels can be equally accommodated by the other head. If such were really the case, its superior- ity would be unquestioned, but in actual practice it appears that, by the time one head is worn out, the other has received such injuries from hammering away in the iron chairs, that notches are found in the rail at such points as to render the surface unfit for the wheel to run on, and also to seriously injure the strength of the rail, and again, in many of the sections of English rails the form of the two heads is not alike, so this idea of reversing the rail does not seem to be of much impor- tance. The STEEL-TOP RAIL, MITRE-JOINT RAIL, COMBINATION RAIL, all possess some merit, but their use has been extremely limited, and the writer deems it unneces- sary to go into details respecting them. The BESSEMER STEEL RAIL, made by the Bessemer process, is now the standard PERMANENT WAY. 113 rail, and as long as it can be purchased at its present low price, its advantages over the iron rail seem to admit of no argument. In fact the superiority of steel over iron rails is now no longer dis- puted ; they are not only more durable, but are much stronger for the same amount of material, their comparative strength being in the same proportion as 5 to 3. Steel rails are less fibrous than iron, and consequently less liable to splin- ter off from use. By actual test, one steel rail has outworn 17 iron rails, with only T s g of an inch worn off the top. Great care is necessary in selecting irons for the Bessemer process; only those containing very little sulphur and phosphorus can be used, the former causing red -shortness, and the latter cold-shortness, or brittle- ness. At the furnace of the Penna. Steel Works, a very superior iron is made which they themselves use in making steel rails. The ores used are chiefly magnetic, from Dillsburg, York County. 116 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. degree of hardness ; this addition of speigel to the metal produces a violent action, which soon ceases, and the steel is then poured into a ladle, from which it is sub- sequently run into cast-iron moulds. A small test-ingot is taken from each charge, and chemically tested. The capacity of a Bessemer plant is from 25 to 30 blows per day. From the moulds the steel ingot is taken to the blooming mill, and the ingots are reheated and rolled into blooms, which are in turn heated again, and then rolled into rails. Great care is necessary in manufacturing steel rails to avoid brittleness, and to insure toughness. When steel rails were first manufactured, there was an uncertainty in the quality of the material which raised quite a pre- judice in the minds of many Engineers against their use, but the process of manufacture has now been brought to such a high state of perfection that this doubt no longer exists, and where the traffic of the line will permit they are PERMANENT WAY. 117 generally adopted. The cost of steel rails at the present writing (1897) is about $20 per ton at the mills, or about $1880 per mile of sixty-pound steel. The first steel rail was made in 1857, by Mushet, at the Ebbow- Yale Iron Company Works, in South Wales. It was rolled from cast blooms of Bessemer steel, and laid down at Derby, England, and re- mained sixteen years, during which time 250 trains, and at least 250 detached en- gines and tenders passed over it daily. Taking 312 working days in each year, we have the total of 1,252,000 trains, and 1,252,000 detached engines and tenders, which passed over it from the time it was first laid before it was removed to be worked over. Two steel rails of 21 feet in length were laid on the 2d of May, 1862, at the Chalk Farm Bridge, side by side with two ordinary iron rails. After having outlasted 16 faces of the ordinary rails, the steel ones were taken up and examined, and it was found that at the expiration of three years and three months 118 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. the surface was evenly worn to the extent of only J of an inch, and to all appear- ance they were capable of enduring a good deal more work. These two rails, during a period of little more than three years, had been exposed to a traffic of 9,550,000 engines, trucks, and carriages, and 95,577,240 tons, an amount of traffic equal to nearly ten times that which de- stroyed the Great Northern iron rails in three years' time. In England rails are rolled from 15 to 21 feet long, the latter being the most common size. In this country it is not an uncommon feat to roll a perfect rail 60 feet in length, weighing 60 to 90 pounds to the yard. A rail is generally from 3 to 4J inches high (usually 4J inches), and the width from 2 J to 3 inches at the head, 3 to 5 inches on the flange, and having a web or neck of J to 1 inch in thickness. The life of iron rails of best quality has been found to be 35,000,000 tons over a double line, or 17,500,000 tons over each single rail, and many from PERMANENT WAY. 119 the best makers stand only 5,500,000 to 15,000,000 tons, or equal to 100,000 trains of 150 tons each, independently of the length of time of the traffic. The wear may be estimated as the Tu Q^^th part of the value of the rail each time a train goes over it ; and if the value of a mile of iron be taken at $5000, the wear would be 5 cents per train per mile. A great many American railroads are using a rail of the average section of 60 pounds per yard, some as high as 90. Table giving the Number of Tons of Rails required to Lay One Mile of Single Track Railroad of different Weights of Rails, of Steel or Iron. Weight of rail p'r yard. Tons per mile. 81bs. 12 16 25 30 35 40 Weight of rail p'r yard. 55 45 50 52 56 57 60 62 Tons per mile. Weight of rail 120 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. AN IRON RAIL is made by rolling together a number of separate pieces of iron which when placed in position preparatory to rolling, are called " RAIL PILES." These rail piles are formed in different ways ac- cording to the ideas of the manufacturer. The pile is first treated in a furnace to a welding heat, and hammered # or rolled into a solid lump or bloom, which is again heated and rolled into the desired shape of rails. Formerly a very important fact to consider in deciding between iron and steel was, that after an iron rail became worn out and no longer fit for railroad service, it was still a marketable article, and could readily be disposed of as old iron, at at least two-thirds of its original cost, but what old steel rails were worth was a com- paratively unknown quantity. This is no longer a consideration. Recent im- provements in the melting of old steel have made that article a valuable asset, and old steel rails can readily be ex- PERMANENT WAY. 121 changed for new, plus a comparatively small cost for rerolling. The following Table gives the Average Price, per Ton, of Iron and Steel Rails, New York, during the past Fifty Years. Year. Iron. Steel. Year. Iron. Steel. 1847 $70 1872 $90 $110 1848 60 1873 85 120 1849 50 1874 65 75 1850 45 1875 50 70 1851 45 1876 45 60 1852 45 1877 40 50 1853 75 1878 35 40 1854 80 1879 40 48 1855 60 1880 50 68 1856 60 1881 47 60 1857 65 1882 45 48 1858 50 1883 40 37 1859 50 1884 30 1860 45 1885 28 1861 40 1886 34 1862 36 1887 37 1863 70 1888 35 1864 153 1889 30 1865 84 1890 32 1866 80 1891 30 1867 80 1892 30 1868 78 $175 1893 80 1869 75 150 1894 28 1870 75 130 1895 28 1871 70 95 1896 28 122 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. STEEL RAILS are worth only $20 per ton (the price recently fixed for 1897), and this low price, together with their acknowledged superiority over iron rails, has practically driven the lat- ter out of the market. Nearly 90 per cent, of the track of all railways in this country is now of steel. It is not always best to buy a heavy rail ; very often a lighter rail will do as much ser- vice for the amount of traffic, making quite a saving in the cost. A rail will usually wear out first at the ends, owing to the wheels hammering over the open joints, which are caused by the rails con- tracting and expanding at the different degrees of temperature. Many devices have been invented to overcome THE OPEN JOINT, but for all practical purposes they have not been successful; the joint still exists, and is a constant source of annoy- ance and expense ; the only thing to be done is to make that joint as secure as possible by using good fastenings, and PERMANENT WAY. 123 when laying track to make allowances for the contraction and expansion of the rails. Table giving the Number of Rails and Joints per Mile of Single Track Rail- road, for Rails of different Lengths. Rails 24' long each. " 25 " 26 " 27 " 28 " 30 440 complete joints and rails. 422 406 391 377 352 In order to fasten two rails together at their ends, some fastening or other cou- pling must be used. Time and space will not permit even mention by the writer of the hundreds of devices presented to his notice for effecting this object, very many having claims to originality of design, but very little else. On the many miles of railroad now operating in this country, but very little difference will be observed in the manner of fastening or "FISHING" the rails ; and the general tendency ap- pears to be towards the adoption as a 124 PERMANENT WAY. 125 STANDARD JOINT of two iron bars, one on each side of the rails and bolted through. These bars are made in many different shapes and sizes, but generally speaking are much alike, simply two bars or plates ranging from 18 to 24 inches in length, and having holes punched in them for the bolts to go through, these holes corresponding in size and position to the holes in the rails. When the joints happen so that a cross-tie is immediately under it, then it is called a " SUPPORTED JOINT," but when the cross- ties come on each side of the joint, it is called a "SUS- PENDED JOINT." The latter is undoubtedly the best, possessing greater elasticity and preserving the life of the rail by relieving the anvil pounding it would receive if too rigidly supported. FISH PLATES are usually quoted by the pound or per joint of two bars. The price per pound is about two cents, and per joint, the price will vary according to the weight and size of the bar. The following table has been 126 PERMANENT WAY. 127 prepared for the different sizes, weights, and present prices per pound and joint for Plain Fish Bars. (Original.) Weight rail. Length plate. Weight of plates. Price per pound. Price of plate. Joint with bolts. 30 Ibs. 16i n. 6 Ibs. 2 cts. 13 cts. 36 cts. 40 22 13 2 26 62 " 50 22 13 2 26 62 " 56 23 16 2 32 75 " 60 23 16 2 32 75 " 67 24 18 2 36 87 " 90 34 30 2 60 1.35 To connect the fish bars with the rails, 4 BOLTS are used (excepting the 34-inch plates, where 6 bolts are used), two in the ends of each rail ; these bolts measure j of an inch in thickness, and are of vari- ous lengths, usually, however, 4f inches long. The heads of the bolts are made square, oblong, or with round-button heads, the latter being the most com- mon. The holes in one fish plate are made oval to fit an oval-headed bolt, and prevent it from turning round. 128 PERMANENT WAY. 129 The nuts are made square, or hexag- onal. Bolts and nuts are usually quoted by the pound ; a bolt and nut together will weigh about one pound. The price of Fish bolts and nuts is about 3J cents per pound, bolt and nut together. Table of the Number of Fish Plates and Bolts required for One Mile of Single Track Railroad. (Original.) Length of rail. No. of plates. No. of bolts. No. of joints. Price per mile for complete joints. 24 feet. 25 ' 26 ' 27 ' 28 ' 30 ' 880 844 812 782 754 704 1760 1688 1624 1564 1508 1408 Complete. 440 422 406 391 377 352 Rail 60 Ibs. $330.00 316.50 304.50 293.25 282.75 264.10 The customary lengths of rails are seldom under 30 feet. The cost, there- fore, of Fish plates and bolts for one mile of single track railroad, will be about $264, as shown by the preceding tables. 9 SQUARE NUT l&Utx 1 32. IN. THICK. 130 PERMANENT WAY. 131 The following tables contain all neces- sary information regarding bolts and nuts, viz. : Number to One Hundred Pounds. Square. Hexagon. inch, 1100 1250 " 550 650 " 375 415 " 230 155 Square. Hexagon. 1 inch, 150 170 1| " 98 110 If " 70 80 1 " 45 55 Weight of Nuts and Bolt Heads in Ibs. Diameter of bolt in inches, * I i I f 1 Weight of hexa- gon nut & head .117 .057 .128 .267 .43 .73 Weight of square nut and head .021 .069 .164 .320 .55 .88 Diameter of bolt in inches 1 1J H H 2 2* 3 Weight of hexa- gon nut & head 1.10 2.14 3.78 5.6 8.75 17 28.8 Weight of square nut and head 1.31 2.56 4.42 7.0 10.5 21 36.4 132 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. Standard for Screw-threads, Bolt-heads, and Nuts. Adopted by the Master Car-Builders' Association. 3 S* 2 f H 7 11 7 fclS if:::::::::? 11 5 2 41 41 2f The distance between the parallel sides of a bolt- head and nut for a rough bolt shall be equal to one and a half diameter of the bolt, plus one-eighth of an inch. The thickness of the heads for rough bolts shall be equal to one-half of the distance between their parallel sides. The thickness of the nut shall be equal to the diameter of the bolt. The thickness of the head for a finished bolt shall be equal to the thickness of the nut. I - 1 r *\-rt2 k 3* v-**l-f ift in S IN cnts. .. - aj IN C iJlN^.-rf^l^hi jj 1 FROGS AND SWITCHES. 169 fish plates do very well at least three on each side, to be placed under the movable rails as sliding blocks. The chair is usually made of cast-iron to fit the end section of the two fixed rails, and to form a positive base for the movable rail to slide on, and should measure at least 12 x 16 inches, and have not less than one inch metal in its weakest part. This chair is also made of wrought iron, with inverted clamps to hold the ends of the fixed rails, and sometimes of iron and wood together, forming a cushion and giving a certain amount of elasticity. A pair of these chairs will cost about $5.00. The "tie rods" connecting the two mo- vable rails are made in many different styles, all of which have some merit, ex- cept the kind which necessitates drilling the flanges of the rails. It has been proven by practice that any imperfection existing in the flange of a rail, more parti- cularly of a steel rail, seriously affects the strength of the section, and is almost cer- 170 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. tain to cause fracture. A hole drilled or punched through the flange of a rail will generally produce the same result. A tie rod made of square iron 1 \" x V with clamps on each end made to fit the lower half of the rail section is the very best in use. Five tie rods are generally used to each switch, and are placed five feet apart, the first one commencing ten inches from the toe of the switch. The "stand" can be made of wood or iron in any variety of shape or size. The best are made of cast iron, weighing about 150 pounds. When a "target" is used the stand should not weigh less than that, in order to have strength sufficient to resist the sudden wrenching and jarring produced in throw- ing the switch. Care should be taken when laying the switch to have the stand firmly secured with two or more screw bolts passing through the base of the stand apd the sill it rests on, in addition to the ordinary number of spikes. And the connecting rod by means of which the stand lever is connected with the switch Switch stand, with target 171 172 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. should be supplied with a sleeve-joint to admit of tightening up as it becomes loose by wear and length of service. Where the stand and target would take up too much room, the ground lever can be used to advantage. It is so familiar to all rail- road men as to require no further men- tion. A "three throw," or, as it is often incorrectly termed, a "double throw" switch, does not differ materially from the single stub switch described above, except simply in the "chairs," which are made larger to allow the introduction of an additional rail. All switch stands are made for a "three throw" switch, and are used for both kinds. The stub switch has also been made practically a safety switch by means of additional castings so ar- ranged and fastened to the switch that they receive the wheels of the engine, when they leave the track by accident, and guide them safely back again. There are several modifications of this prin- ciple, but in the main idea they'are simi- FROGS AND SWITCHES. 173 lar. At the best they are clumsy un- mecliamcal contrivances, and can rarely be depended on to do the work intended. There are a very few exceptions, but the first cost of these is in most cases too great to admit of their use. Although a comparatively safe switch on our leading railroads, where they are well protected by signals and other mo- dern appliances, the stub switch is in itself an imperfect, dangerous switch and open to many serious objections, the principal one being the noisy open joint causing enormous wear and tear of the rolling stock and destructive mashing of the rails. Even by exercising the utmost care the joints formed by the movable rails will prove a source of endless annoyance, often interlocking by expansion in summer, and growing so large in winter by the rails contracting and "crawling" as to need frequent renewal. The cost of a stub switch complete, including the chairs, rods, stand, and target, ready for laying 174 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. FROGS AND SWITCHES. 175 in the track, is about $35.00 per set. BOOLE Y'S SWITCH, by having the joints of the movable rails placed so that the wheels when riding over them will go Saver one joint at a time, is similar to the stub switch, except that the joints are not placed opposite to each other, one joint being a few feet back of the line of the other; otherwise it is a stub switch, and costs about the same. THE NICOLLS' SWITCH, designed by the author with the same idea to lessen the jar and shock produced by the wheels passing over two open joints has only one open joint in its construction. As shown in the figure, the switch is set for the main line. A is one of the main track rails, unbroken and continu- ous; C and D form together the other main line rail, having an open joint at H, as in the ordinary stub switch. The rail B is planed or tapered to a point, and when closed fits up snugly to the rail A, as in the Lorenz Safety Switch (described 176 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. FKOGS AND SWITCHES. 177 hereafter). B and C are the two movable rails which, unlike other switches, move in opposite directions by means of the lever F and the two cranks Gr and H. At b and c these two movable rails are con- nected by fish plates with the fixed rails of the main track and siding, as described previously on page 141. To operate the switch it is only necessary to raise the handle F, and throw it over from the track as in the common ground lever switch; this motion by means of the crank H draws the rail C over in line with the rail E of the siding, and by means of the crank at G shoves the pointed rail B over against the rail A, thus setting the switch for the siding. The simplicity of its design, the fact of its having only one connecting rod across the track, and having only one joint, establishes its supe- riority over the stub switch, which has five connecting rods and two open joints. A SAFETY SWITCH is so constructed that if it be left by accident set wrong, an 12 178 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. engine or train will not be thrown from the track when attempting to pass through it. Very many devices have been invent- ed to effect this object, and some merit can be claimed for almost all that are now in use. A favorite safety switch in Eng- land, and one which has given general satisfaction in this country also, is THE "SPLIT RAIL SWITCH," or, as it is better known in this country, the LORENZ SAFETY SWITCH, owing to the fact that Mr. Wm. Lorenz, Chief Engineer of the Beading Eailroad Company, greatly im- proved its construction by the introduc- tion of rubber springs. The construction of the switch is well denned by its name, the two movable rails being split, or planed down to points which fit up closely alongside of the outer rails of the track. The flanges, of the wheels of the engine passing between these points and the outer rails shove them aside, and by doing so operate the switch. The rubbers which Mr. Lorenz introduced are placed in the FROGS AND SWITCHES. 179 J80 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. rods which are used to operate the switch, and in such a manner that any strain coming on the rods is received by them, and owing to their elastic nature is ren- dered harmless. The split rail switch, as shown in the figure, is operated as fol- lows : In the diagram the switch is shown set for the siding. A represents a con- tinuous rail belonging to the side track, and D the continuous rail of the main track, both of which are unbroken rails, perfect in their entire length. This is one of the chief merits of the switch, as in either case, whether set for the siding or for the main line, one of the rails will be continuous and unbroken, and conse- quently no jarring or noise is experienced when running over it. B and C repre- sent two rails which are planed and made pointed, so as to fit up closely to the rails A and D. These two pointed rails are clamped together by tie rods (usually five in number) so as to be thrown in the same direction and at the same time by means FROGS AND SWITCHES. 181 of any common lever at E. By means of this lever the switch is operated. It will readily be observed that if an engine should attempt to pass from right to left on the main track while the switch is set for the siding, as shown in the diagram, the flanges of the wheels will go between the rails D and C and force them apart, and the rail D being immovably spiked down to the sills will not move, so the pointed rail C must move, and also its opposite B, both being clamped together and only held in position by the connecting rod of the lever which will break or yield, allowing the flange to pass through, the engine consequently keeping on the track. In like manner the flanges of the wheels will operate against the rail B should a train attempt to pass out of the siding when the switch is set for the main track. To avoid this injury to the switch, that is, the breaking of the connecting -rod, a spring has been introduced, indicated at F in the figure, which allows enough move- 182 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. ment to make space enough for the flanges to pass between the rails, and which, after they have done so, by their elasticity draw the pointed rails back again into position for the main track. This spring Mr. Lorenz makes of rubber, and for many years has used it on the Beading Kail- road. Some other roads, however, use coil springs of steel, which answer the pur- pose probably as well. For a double track railroad where the trade is generally moving in one direction and on its own line of rails, this switch is unquestionably the best in use ; many years of experience and trial have proved its superiority over other safety switches ; but on a single track railroad where the switch would have to take the trade at both ends, the objection is raised of " running against the points." This switch can also be made a " three throw" switch, operated with two separate levers, A B, as shown in fig. 12. The cost of a Lorenz Safety Switch is about FROGS AND SWITCHES. 183 184 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. $110 per set, including everything and ready for laying in the track. When ordering it is necessary to designate whether a right or left handed switch is wanted. The following table for correctly laying a Lorenz Switch is added for the use of Eoadmasters and Engineers. Table for Laying the Lorenz Safety Switch. (Matthews.) Switch Angle, IP 30'. Throw of Switch is the distance between flange sides of main track and switch-rails at heel of switch. Frog Distance is the distance from heel of switch to point of frog, measured diagonally across the track. 20 foot Switches. 24 foot Switches. Switches. 30 foot. Switch angle, 1030' 1030' 1030' Throw of Switch, 6 inch 7" 9jr'' Frog Distance, 55 feet. 53'8" 51'7" Radius, 556.64 542.78' 521.6 Degree of Curve, 100 18' 100 34/ lio 00' Mid-ordinate, 8 inch. 8" 7|" N. B. 20 foot Switch means, with point-rails 20' long, etc. FROGS AND SWITCHES. 185 To meet the objection raised against the Lorenz Switch that "it is dangerous to run against the points," Mr. Ains worth, Roadmaster of the North Pennsylvania Railroad, invented and patented a switch, as shown in the figure. The switch is constructed by bending the main track rail A so as to receive the blunt pointed switch rail B when shut, which forms the lap of the rails at that point. The short or tapered switch rail C is made in the usual manner, and both are connected by the rods d d d in the usual way. The flanges of both switch rails, where they overlap the main rails, are so shaped as not to need planing, and are placed above the flange of the main rails in such a manner as to leave the switch rail flanges of their full thickness. The switch is in position for main track use when the blunt point B is placed alongside the bent main rail A. When the blunt switch or movable rail is open, it is then in position for the siding. The inner edge of the 186 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. FROGS AND SWITCHES. 187 wheel flanges will press against the side of the switch rail which will guide them into the switch, and the distance between the flange edge of the two switch rails is so gauged that the short or tapered point is always out of the reach of the flanges of the wheels, as they are guided entirely by the blunt-pointed switch rail, which in consequence of its peculiar shape may be left open the space of half the width of the switch rail head without endangering the safety or direction of trains. The automatic movement may be by spring or other known devices pre- viously described. The WHARTON SAFETY SWITCH, in- vented by Wm.Wharton, of Philadelphia, gives a main line absolutely continuous and unbroken, a decided merit, which places it far above all other switches for a road which sacrifices everything else to its main line track. On long single track roads, like those in the West and South, where the sidings are seldom in use, and 188 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. FROGS AND SWITCHES. 189 the main line is occupied constantly with fast trains, this switch is preferable to any other; but in cases where the siding is used nearly as often as the main line, the Lorenz Safety Switch is preferable. The construction of this switch is rather com- plicated, and has many parts, but is easily adjusted. In the diagram (fig. 14) A and B represent the main track rails, which it will be at once perceived are " unbroken and continuous." C and D are two mov- able rails clamped together with tie rods, and operated as shown by the lever at W, which is supplied with a weight. C is a grooved rail planed down to a point, and which when thrown over against it, fits under the head of the main rail A, and guides the flange of one wheel out on the siding, while the opposite wheel gradually mounts up on the rail D, which is somewhat higher than the main rail B, until its flange clears the rail B, with the tread of the wheels riding on D. The wheel is then carried down by a gradual 190 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. decline to the proper level of the track. At the ends of the rails C D are placed two castings respectively at i, which, in case an engine should run out of the sid- ing with the switch set for main track, receive the wheels and guide them back again to the main track. When the switch is set for main track, as shown in the figure, the curved rail E lies away from the rail B, but when set for the siding the same motion of the lever throws it over against the rail B, where it remains as long as the switch is set for the siding. Now, supposing a train to be coming on the main track from right to left, and the switch set for the siding, the first wheel flange will force the rail E away from the rail B, and consequently by means of the connecting rod e, will throw the lever "W, and so leave the main track clear and unobstructed. The chief objection brought against this switch is, that it will not admit of fast running both ways, and is therefore exclusively a main FROGS AND SWITCHES. 191 line switch. An engine running on the side track at any very high rate of speed is very apt to rock badly while passing over the main track rails. This objection is met in a great measure by the fact that in passing in or out of a siding the train generally "slows up," and consequently passes over the switch quietly. THE COST of the switch complete is about $125 per set, ready for laying in the track. The "SINGLE TONGUE SWITCH" is more generally known in this country as the Thiemeyer switch, owing to the fact that a Mr. Thiemeyer, of Baltimore, patented a few slight improvements on the original switch. It has been in use in Germany and in other European countries for many years. In its construction it differs from the Lorenz switch in the manner of hav- ing only one pointed tongue which is movable, the other tongue lying on the other side is a fixed tongue, making a frog. It is generally made of heavy 192 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. steel castings, and although a suitable lever is much preferable, it can be used without one, the movable rail being easily moved by the foot. The switch is shown in the figure set for the main line, in which case the rail D acts as a guard rail, and, causing the wheel flanges to pass through the throat c, in a line parallel to a, keeps the wheels in the main track rails A E. Now in order to set the switch for the siding it is only necessary to close the tongue D against the main rail A, thereby necessitating the passage of the wheels over the rail D, and consequently the flanges of the opposite wheels through the throat 5, past the point E, and so on to the siding rails D B. Or should the switch by accident be left set for the sid- ing, and suppose a train on the main line passing from right to left; as soon as it reaches the rail D which, when the switch is closed, would be close up against A, the flanges of the wheels will force them apart and pass through, the FKOGS AND SWITCHES. 193 13 194 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. opposite rails E and B being arranged as in a frog, readily carry the other wheels from E to B ; or vice versa if left set for main track, and a train should come down the siding. The switch works well in either case, and is a safe, reliable switch, more particularly adapted for yards, but doing good work wherever it is put, in a yard or main track. For fast running it is hardly suitable, as the continuity of the main line is broken by the frog point at E. The simplicity of its construction, coupled with the fact of its perfect safety, makes it a general favorite among rail- road men. The cost of the single tongue switch complete is $90, including all attachments, per set. The Baltimore and Ohio Kailroad Company have in use a great number of these switches, but have now discontinued laying them, using in- stead a switch invented by Mr. John L. Wilson, Koadmaster, which in design and operation is very similar to the Lorenz switch. The enormous weight of the FROGS AND SWITCHES. 195 machinery on this road necessitates very heavy track material, and a preference is given to this switch because the tongues can be made much heavier and stronger of forged steel than is possible when using a planed T-rail. The cost of making this switch is somewhat more than the single tongue and Lorenz switches, owing to the heavy forged steel tongues, which must be first hammered and then planed to shape. The MOVABLE GUARD SWITCH is better known as WHITE'S SAFETY SWITCH, and is different from other switches, having both of the points fixed, and moving in- stead the two guard rails which are usu- ally placed to guard the entrance to the switch. By shifting these guard rails from side to side the train is directed into the siding, or continues its course along the main track. Another safety switch, known as the TYLER SWITCH, is used on the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Kailroad as their standard switch. This 196 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. switch is incorrectly termed the Tyler switch, as it was invented in the year 1842, by Mr. G. A. Nicolls, at that time con- nected with the Reading Railroad, and afterwards President of the Reading and Columbia, East Pennsylvania, and other railroads, and was in successful operation on many railroads in this country and in Cuba, when he received a patent for it in 1845. Afterwards Mr. Philos P. Tyler, of New Orleans, obtained a patent for the same device. The switch has been extensively used on the Reading Railroad, and was well known some years ago as the "NicoLLs' SAFETY SWITCH." It con- sists simply of two extra rails with cast- ings at their ends so arranged that, if the switch should be left wrong, these extra rails will receive the wheels of the engine and train, and the castings will guide them safely back on to the main track. It is very economical, and could be ap- plied to any stub switch now in use by an additional trifling cost for the extra rails and costing say $10 for each switch. FROGS AND SWITCHES 197 "With, each switch a "frog" is a neces- sary adjunct. The word FEOG, as applied to the railroad contrivance, is so named on account of its supposed resemblance to the frog of a horse's foot. Originally a frog was nothing more than a swinging rail pivoted in the centre, A, as shown in the figure ; but now a frog is a casting or other mechanical contrivance to enable the wheels of a moving train to pass over, by, or through a point where the rail of a siding necessarilly crosses the rail of the main track (see fig. 16). There are two classes of frogs, called the STIFF FROGS and SPRING FROGS. The former denotes a solid casting or combination of pieces bolted stiffly together, and which when spiked down in the track remains im- movable, while the latter term implies a frog having some of its parts arranged so that they are adjusted by springs, and the action of the wheel flanges wher pass- ing over it sets it right for the tread of the wheels to ride over. Knowing the 198 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. FKOGS AND SWITCHES. 199 angle with which the siding rail crosses the main track rail, the number of the frog to be used is known, as this angle determines the number of the frog. Then by referring to the preceding table of frog distances, the distance from the toe of the switch to where the point of the frog should be is quickly ascertained. Now to find the radius of the curve to be used to connect these two points, we have the following by Mr. Trautwine: "From the frog angle take the switch angle, the remainder will be the angle at the centre of the circle ; which angle call C; subtract this angle from 180, and divide the remainder by 2. Call this quotient angle A. Then as Nat. sine of Nat. sine of Radius> angle C angle A If it is necessary to start a turnout from a curved piece of road, the frog distance can be found near enough for practice, from a drawing made on a scale of about J inch to one foot. And so in the numer- 200 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. ous cases where turnouts cross tracks in various directions in and about stations, depots, etc." These can then be laid out on the ground with an ordinary tape line from the measurements given in the drawing, near enough for all pur- poses. Ordinary cast-iron steel plated stiff frogs of the average size (No. 8) will COST about $30 apiece. An ob- jection to their use is the difficulty experienced in keeping them in posi- tion ; being short and entirely distinct from the rails, the weight of the cars soon causes a rocking motion which tends to loosen the spikes which hold it in posi- tion. An improvement in this frog is the steel rail frog (see fig. 18), which is made up of the ordinary pattern of steel T-rails in many different styles and shapes, but in the general idea the same. In this frog the connection with the main rails is made by means of the ordinary fish plates and spikes as are used in connect- ing any two rails together. The PRICE of FROGS AND SWITCHES. 201 202 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. this frog (No. 8) is now as low as $28 apiece. THE SPRING FROGS are used to avoid crossing a channel or the throat of the frog, and to give a continuous even bearing to the wheels when passing over it. This is done by means of springs so fastened to the frog that the flanges of the wheels operate against the rails, and shift them into such a position that the tread of the wheel will always ride on a smooth even bearing, and will not have to cross any channel. The manner of work- ing it is as follows : The rail A (fig. 19) and the rail C, forming together the point of the frog, are securely dovetailed together, and then riveted down to a base plate of wrought iron a. The wing rail D is also riveted to this plate sufficiently far from the point to allow the easy passage of a car wheel flange between them, usually If inches. The other wing rail B is movable, but is confined in position by rubber springs at e e, and also prevented from rising or "crawling" by a cross bar FROGS AND SWITCHES. 203 204 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. / which, passes through oval slots in the two wing rails, and also the point. The frog is always kept set right for the main line by means of the rubber springs, and it will readily be observed that a train pass- ing from A to B will do so over a smooth unbroken surface, securing much comfort to passengers, and a great saving in wear and tear to motive power and rolling stock. In passing from C to D, or on the siding, the flange of the first wheel, as soon as it reaches the wing rail B shoves it aside far enough to pass through, and each subsequent wheel in like manner, the springs allowing the necessary motion by compressing, and then (after the wheels have passed through) drawing the wing back again by their elasticity. In like manner a wheel returning from D to C will, with the aid of the guard rail on the other side of the track (which keeps the wheels "at gauge"), shove the wing rail B aside and pass through safely. These frogs are in use on the main line of the FROGS AND SWITCHES. 205 206 THE KAILWAY BUILDER. Pennsylvania Railroad and many other leading roads. They are usually made 15 feet long, and cost for an average size (No. 8) frog $50 apiece. The elastic frogs are made like stiff frogs, but have alternate layers of wood and iron, and even rubber for a base plate. The most prominent of these is the MANSFIELD FROG, which some years ago was very extensively used, but can now be hardly classed among the best frogs the wooden base having been found to decay and crush very rapidly. The MANSFIELD FROG used to sell at $125 apiece. Among other elastic frogs, the PIERCE and the BILLINGS obtained some little favor. A CROSSING is necessary where one railroad crosses another, and when the crossing is "at grade," that is, one rail- road is on a level with the other, it is per- haps the most troublesome part of the road, and no doubt the most expensive part of the track; the former, because the utmost caution is necessary to avoid colli- sion, and the latter on account of the FROGS AND SWITCHES. 207 double wear and tear of the rolling stock when passing over it. The danger has been obviated in several States by a law compelling all trains to come to a full stop before crossing. When it is necessary to cross a railroad, it is always advantageous to do so with a tangent and without any grade. The reason is obvious: a grade necessitating much pulling by the engine driving wheels, and consequent heavy wear on the crossing, which is liable to break or be twisted out of line. The origi- nal manner of making a crossing was sim- ply to use rails bent to the proper shape. These were succeeded by four heavy cast- ings heavily plated with steel, and made to fit one in each corner or intersection of the rails. Afterwards a design was used in which the rails were riveted to an iron plate which was first grooved by a planer, and strips of rubber inserted under the base of the rail, this was intended to give elasticity to the crossing. This in turn was succeeded by a CROSSING MADE 208 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. OF STEEL RAILS, firmly secured in position by bolts and fish plates in such a manner as to make the crossing virtually one piece, and gave great strength and re- sistance to strains in every direction. The parts of the crossing are made inter- changeable, and can be easily replaced if by accident they become broken. The cost of a steel rail crossing complete, of any angle from 20 to 90 inclusive, is about $300. "When laying it in posi- tion care should be taken to lay it on good heavy oak stringers, 14" x 16", or even heavier, framed to suit the angle of the crossing, and laid on a bed of broken stone at least 18" in depth, and the ground should be carefully drained from the centre to the four corners by drains filled with broken stone, and care taken to prevent any water lodging under the stringers. Many roadmasters prefer lay- ing crossings on sills, owing no doubt to the ease of ballasting and lining up the track, but this does not balance the good 209 210 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. result contained in a solid even bearing given by the stringers in which every inch of the rails is supported throughout their entire length. Another reason for not laying a crossing on sills is the danger of the crossing being broken in case the foundation of ballasting should give way under any one of them owing to the action of frost or of a heavy rain. Stringers will, however, stand firm even on very treacherous ground. The writer has had an extended and varied experience in constructing and laying crossings, which has only served to prove the foregoing remarks. Tha cost of pro- perly laying a crossing, including the stringers, need not exceed $50. When ordering a crossing from the manufac- turer the order should state the angle of intersection, section of rail to be used, gauge of both roads, and, if double track, the distance between tracks. SIGNALS are used on railroads to notify the engineer of an engine of the position FROGS AND SWITCHES. 211 of switches, the proximity of depots or stopping places, or of any reasons why the engine should proceed or stop. Switch signals are usually made with the stand of the switches, and are called targets, the switch being altered or changed in any direction shows a corresponding change in the position of the target, which being placed at some elevation above the rails is easily seen by the engineer, and shows him how the switch is set. A FIXED SIG- NAL is a vertical post planted alongside the track, and by means of movable arms operated in a great many different ways, the engineer is notified how to proceed with his engine and train. It is not within the field covered by this work, or a de- tailed description of signals would be given. The subject admits of an extended description. A brief mention of the sub- ject is made simply because calculations regarding the cost of building and ope- rating a railroad necessarily involve sig- nals. The arms of a fixed signal are 212 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. usually painted red, blue, and white, signifying, first Red: "Danger, stop!" Blue: "Caution, proceed slowly." White: "All right, go ahead." With the excep- tion of using green for blue, this is the general interpretation of the colors. In placing fixed signals it is necessary to do so with a view to having a good back- ground the sky is the best but some- times trees or a deep cutting will prevent this, in which case an artificial back- ground of boards painted white, or the rocks of a cutting, or the abutment of a bridge whitewashed, will tend to show the arms of a signal distinctly. On the Philadelphia and Eeading Eailroad SMALL TOWERS are erected for. signals at every sharp curve on the road, and at the ap- proach to stations. These towers are placed high up in elevated positions near the track. A man is stationed in each tower, who closely watches the track which, from his elevated position, can be seen for some distance, and by turning a FROGS AND SWITCHES. 213 red, blue, or white board against the ap- proaching train, he notifies the locomotive engineer how to proceed. At night the painted boards are replaced by colored lights. Another class of signals, for use in foggy weather, or in case the track is obstructed at points not guarded by fixed signals, consists of small, flat, tin boxes containing powder and percussion caps. These little boxes are fastened to the rail by lead strips, and when the engine passes over them they explode with a loud re- port, promptly warning the engineer of " danger ahead !" The interlocking signals are too complicated to explain in detail, nor could the system be readily under- stood without diagrams and illustrations, which cannot be given in this work. The principle of INTERLOCKING SIGNALS is briefly defined by Barry : " If a man were to go blindfold into a signal box with an interlocking apparatus, he might, so far as accordance between points (switches) 214 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. and signals is concerned, be allowed with safety to pull over any lever at random. He might doubtless delay the traffic, be- cause he might not know which signal to lower for a particular train, but he could not lower such a signal or produce such a combination of position of points (switches) and signals as would, if the signals were obeyed, produce a collision." Saxby and Farmer's system of inter- locking signals is probably the best in use. THE BLOCK SYSTEM of signals is briefly illustrated as follows : Suppose a line of railway to be divided off into a certain number of districts by telegraphic stations, for example, a line divided into three stations, calling the stations A, B, and C, points where three signal boxes are established. A train leaves A, and at the same time B is noti- fied of the fact by means of the telegraph ; B answers back to A, " All right, send the train," and also notifies A not to send any more trains until further orders ; the I I 8, 215 216 THE EAILWAY BUILDER. line is then "blocked" until the train arrives at B, that is, no other trains can run from A to B until its arrival ; as soon as it arrives at B, the agent at that point notifies A of the fact, and "raises the block" between A and B, leaving the line clear. In the same manner the train proceeds from B to C, and so on through each district until it has reached its ob- jective point. The safety and security of the block system is obvious for sup- posing a train should break down or become disabled in any of the districts, say between B and C, then the " block" is continued at B, and no train can pass beyond B until the block is raised by C, which cannot be done until the disabled train has reached that point. This is the principle of the " block system," and is involved in all the improvements which have been made on it. If strictly adhered to no collision can possibly take place, as a space is always preserved between each train equal to the length of each district. CHAPTEE VI. EQUIPMENT. IN the earlier history of railways, horses were used to pull the cars which ran on tramways constructed of wood. In the year 1767, iron was substituted for wopd. In 1802 Messrs. Trevithick and Vivian patented a plan for a locomotive, which ten years afterwards was put into opera- tion. In 1811, a patent was taken out by John Blenkinsop, of Middleton, York- shire, England; for certain mechanical means by which the conveyance of coal and other articles was facilitated, and the expense attending the conveyance of the same was rendered less than before. It consisted in the application of a racked or toothed rail on one side of the road from end to end ; into this rack a toothed wheel was worked by the steam engine, 217 218 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. the revolutions of which produced the necessary motion without being liable to slip in descending steep inclined planes. Several of the engines were made in the years 1812 and 1813, but in the year 1814 the rack rail was abandoned, as it was found by Geo. Stevenson that the wheels adhered to the track sufficiently to do the work without it. The Liverpool and Manchester Eailway was commenced in the year 1826, under the direction of Geo. Stevenson as Engineer. After ma- ture deliberation the managment de- termined to have locomotive in preference to fixed engines for motive power, provi- ded the former could be made sufficiently powerful, and that the weight were not so great as to injure the rails ; also, ones that would not emit smoke. In 1829 a reward was offered for the best engine under the following conditions, viz., to consume its own smoke, to draw three times its own weight at 10 miles an hour, with not over 50 Ibs. pressure of steam 219 220 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. on the boiler ; to have two safety valves (one locked), the boiler to be supported on springs, and to rest on six wheels if it weighed more than four and one -half tons: height to top of chimney, not over fifteen feet ; weight, with water in boiler, not to exceed six tons (less preferred) ; boiler proved to three times the working pressure, and not to cost more than 550. This competitive trial resulted in the success of the "Rocket," and the prize of 500 was awarded to Geo. Stevenson. The superiority of the "Rocket" was due in a great measure to the boiler having small tubes, and to the blast from the ex- haust steam enabling the engine to gene- rate steam as fast as required. It is claimed that the flue boiler was suggested by Henry Booth, the treasurer of the com- pany. From other information it ap- pears that the tubular system of boilers was invented in both England and France at the same time. In 1835 Robert Stevenson took out a patent for leaving 221 222 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. off the flanges of the driving wheels, and using flanges on the leading and trail- ing wheels only. Eichard Trevithick claims to have invented the steam blast, but the claim has been disputed by George Stevenson and Timothy Hack- worth. India-rubber springs for sustain- ing the weight of locomotives were pat- ented by the Earl of Dundonald, in 1835. The history of the locomotive is an exceedingly short one, but rapid strides have been made towards perfection in its construction, and particularly by American manufacturers. The total number of locomotives in use in this country in the year 1895 was about 37,000, and this great motive power has been created within a few years. The subject is an important one, and every railroad man should be familiar with the lever which operates his road. The cost of a first-class passenger loco- motive of the " American" pattern, as EQUIPMENT. 223 built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia, ranges from $7000 to $8000, supposing the road to be of the ordinary gauge of 4' 8J". The follow- ing dimensions of this style of locomo- tive are reliable. AMERICA." Number of driving wheels, . . 4 " front truck wheels . . 4 " back " " None. Total wheel base . . . .21' 9" Between centres of front and back driv- ing wheels 96 inches. Total weight of locomotive, working order 65,0001bs. Total weight on driving wheels . . 42.0001bs. Diameter of driving wheels . . 60 inches. 11 truck " . . 28 " " cylinders . . . 16 " 224 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. Stroke of cylinders . . . 24 inches. Outside diameter of smallest boiler ring 48 ' ' Size of grate . . . . . 65"x34" Number of tubes .... 144 Diameter of tubes .... 2 inches. Length of tubes 10ft. 11 in. Square feet of grate surface . . 15.5 " " heating surface in fire box ... 100.6 " " heating surface in tubes 825.4 Total feet of heating surface . . 926.0 Exhaust nozzles (single or double) . Double. Diameter of nozzles .... 2|-3^ in. Size of steam ports . . . . 1^X15 " " exhaust ports . . .2^x15" Throw of eccentrics ; Y . . . 5 inches. Outside lap of valve . . . . f inch. Inside " " . . . -fa " Size of main driving axle journal . 7" dia. X8" " other " " " . 7"dia.x8" " truck axle journal . . . 4x7in. Diameter of pump plunger . . 2 inches. Stroke of pump plunger . . . 24 " Capacity of tank .... 2000 gall. The style known as the "Mogul" is used for freight purposes, and its cost ranges from $8000 to $9000. The following are the principal dimen- sions : MOGUL. Gauge of road 4' 8" Number of driving wheels . . .6 " front truck wheels . . 2 Total wheel base . . . .22' 8" Distance between centres of front and back driving wheels . . .96 inches. Total weight of locomotive . . . 77,0001bs. " on driving wheels . . 66,000 " Diameter of driving wheels . . 52 inches. " of truck wheels . . . 30 " " of cylinders . . . 18 " Stroke of cylinders . . . . 24 " Outside diameter of smallest boiler ring 50 " Size of grate 66"x34" Number of tubes .... 161 Diameter of tubes . ... 2 inches. Length of tubes 11' 3" Square feet of grate surface . . 16' U " " of heating surface in fire box .... 102.7 15 226 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. Square feet of heating surface in tubes Total square feet of heating surface . Exhaust nozzles .... Diameter of nozzles . . . . Size of steam ports . . . . " exhaust ports . . . Throw of eccentrics . . . . Outside lap of valve . . . . Inside "".... Size of main driving axle journal . " other " " " . " truck " " " . " pump plunger . . Stroke of pump plunger . . . Capacity of tank .... 948.0 1051.0 Double. 3" to 3 inches. 7" to 8" 7" to 8" 5" to 8" 2 inches. 24 " 2200 galls. The third style of engine, also a freight engine, is called the " Consolidation." The following dimensions of this class of loco- motives is from the Danforth Locomo- tive Works, Paterson, New Jersey. The cost of this locomotive will range from $9000 to $10,000 for standard (4 r 8J") gauge. EQUIPMENT. 227 CONSOLIDATION.' Gauge of road . . . . 4' 8" Number of driving wheels . . .8 " front truck wheels . . 2 Total wheel base . . . .23' 2" Distance between centres of front and back driving wheels . . . 15' 7 ;/ Total weight of locomotive . . . 96,550 Ibs. " " on driving wheels . . 86,430 " Diameter of driving wheels . . 4' 2" " truck wheels . . 2' 7" 11 cylinders . . . 20" Stroke of cylinders . . . .24" Outside diameter of smallest boiler ring 4' 2" Size of grate 120"x34f" Number of tubes . . . .165 Diameter of tubes .... 2j" Length of tubes . . . .13' 9V Square feet of grate surface . . 29 heating surface, fire box 139 " " " tubes 1370 228 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. Total feet of heating surface . . 1509 Exhaust nozzle Double. Diameter of nozzle .... 3" Size of steam ports .... l|"Xl5" " exhaust port .... 2f"xl5" Throw of eccentrics .... 5" Outside lap of valve . . . . f " Inside " " . . . . None. Size of main axle journal . . . 6f " " other driving axle journal . 6f" " truck axle journal . . .5" Diameter of pump plunger . . 2|" Stroke of pump plunger . . .24" Capacity of tank .... 2400 galls. The "Bicycle" engine used on the Philadelphia and Reading Railway has the following dimensions : Gauge 4'8J" Diameter of high-pressure cylinders . 13" " low " " . 22" Stroke of high-pressure cylinders . 26" " low " " . 26" Diameter of driving wheels . . 84J" Wheel hase of engine . . .22' 9" Weight of engine in working order . 115,000 Ibs. " on driving wheels . . 48,000 " Diameter of boiler .... 56" Length of fire box, Wootten pattern . 114" EQUIPMENT. 229 Width of fire box, Wootten pattern . 96" Heating surface of combustion cham- ber . . . . . . 45 sq. ft. Heating surface of fire box . . 128 " " " tubes . . . 1293 Total heating surface . . . 1466 " Capacity of tender .... 4000 galls. Regarding the other dimensions, the height of the stack is usually from 13 to 15 feet above the rails. The tenders of engines will weigh about 6 tons empty, and about 15 tons full of water and fuel. Width of tender 9 feet, and length about the same as the engine. The price given for the locomotive is supposed to include the tender. The size of American locomotives has steadily increased with no apparent limit in view. The decapod engines, with 10 driving wheels, weigh as much as 148,- 000 pounds, these are freight engines. On the Erie Railroad are some eight- wheeled passenger locomotives weigh- ing 115,000 pounds. The approximate 230 THE EAILWAY BUILDER. price of any locomotive of the usual standard sizes may be estimated at about 8 cents per pound weight. THE FIRST RAILWAY CAR ever used for carrying passengers was built in 1825, and was run on the Stockton & Darling- ton Railroad, in England. It was simply a common box-car made of wood, with three windows on each side, and mounted on four fixed wheels. The English cars, even at the present day, vary but little from this design ; but the American cars are constructed on an entirely different principle, having two swinging or bogie trucks under each end. AN AMERICAN PASSENGER CAR measures about 50 feet in length from out to out of bumpers, with an extreme width of about 10 feet. The trucks have four, six, and sometimes eight wheels each. A car will hold 60 passengers comfortably, and when empty will weigh about 15 tons, when filled with passengers, about 19 tons. EQUIPMENT. 231 Cost of a Pennsylvania Railroad Pas- senger Car. The following table gives in detail the cost of constructing one first-class standard passenger car, at the Altoona shops of the Pennsylvania Railroad, the total cost being $4423.75. The principal items are as follows : Labor $1263 94 Proportion of fuel and stores . . . 28 61 2480 feet poplar 86 80 3434 feet ash 127 08 1100 feet pine . . . . " . . 20 90 2350 feet of yellow pine . . . . 70 50 500 feet oak 10 00 450 feet hickory . . . . . 13 50 700 feet Michigan pine . . . . 49 00 400 feet cherry . . : . . . 16 00 439 feet maple veneer . . . . 24 14 4 pairs wheels and axles . . . 332 85 2 pairs passenger car trucks, complete 533 62 13 gallons varnish . . . . 5234 45 Ibs. glue 14 33 2925 Ibs. iron . 87 75 792 Ibs. castings 16 99 Screws 51 88 I- c EQUIPMENT. 233 Gas regulator and gauge . . . 25 25 2 two-light chandeliers . . . 50 72 2 gas tanks 84 00 1 air-brake, complete. . . . 131 79 57 sash balances 44 61 61 lights glass 65 83 2 stoves 77 56 25 sets seat fixtures . . . . 50 50 3 bronze lamps . . . . 13 50 2 bronze door locks and fittings . . 15 20 Butts and hinges . . . . 15 58 13 basket racks 77 35 12 sash levers 42 00 61 bronze window lifts . . . 24 40 61 window fasteners . . . . 16 47 238 sheets tin 41 44 273 Ibs. galvanized iron . . . 25 31 9 6 yards scarlet plush. . . . 22887 44 yards green plush .... 109 99 61 yards sheeting . . . . 10 30 243 Ibs. hair 72 95 12 springs 22 96 12 spiral elliptic springs . . . 20 29 1 head lining 80 63 2 packets gold leaf . . . . 14 58 Various small items . . . . 261 44 .$4423 75 At present there are about 28,000 passenger cars in use on the railways g) 3, I 234 EQUIPMENT. 235 of the United States, and about 8000 of baggage, mail, and express cars. SLEEPING CARS are about the same size as ordinary ones, but some have been constructed 70 feet long by 11 feet in width, and weighing about 33 tons when empty. Ordinary passenger cars cost from $4000 to $5000 apiece, and sleeping cars from $6000 to $20,000 apiece. Other " special" cars are used for various purposes. A modern special train can now be found on nearly every trunk-line in America. It consists of cars having every convenience, includ- ing a composite car, with electrical dynamo and engine, a barber-shop, and bath-room; a dining-, sleeping-, draw- ing-room, library, and observation car, all vestibuled together and practically continuous. A mail or baggage car of about the same dimensions as a pas- senger car will cost from $1500 to $2500 each. FREIGHT BOX-CARS measuring 30 feet in length and 9 feet in width, with 236 THE RAILWAY BUILDER. 8 wheels, will weigh about 8 tons, and cost about $500 each. Platform or GON- DOLA CARS of the same dimensions weigh about 7 tons, and cost about $350 each. The total number of freight cars in use on our railways is now about 1,230,000. Average Weight of Cars. 4 ft. 8| in. gauge, as in use on principal railways in the Uuited States. Weight. Baggage car, 36 feet out to out, 28,000 Ibs. Mail " " " " 32,000 " Passenger "48 " " 37,000 to 39,000 " Sleeping " " " " 41,000 to 44,000 " Stock " " " " 17,500 to 18,500 " Box, " " " " 16,400 to 17,800 " Flat " 32 feet long, 16,500 " 8-wheeled coal cars, 13,440 " 4 i (( 6)720