quire an accurate record of the weights at destination and the manner of securing the weights before paying claims for alleged shortage. W. A. GARRETT, Chairman, General Managers' Association of Chicago.

DEMURRAGE FROM BOTH RAILWAY AND SHIPPER'S POINT OF VIEW.

BALTIMORE, Md., July 29, 1912. TO THE EDITOR OF THE RAILWAY AGE GAZETTE:

Recent contributions in your valuable paper on the subject of demurrage have been read with much interest. All, or nearly all, show bitterness.

Manifestly it would be impossible for the carriers to provide and keep waiting sufficient equipment to place it without delay at the call of every shipper, if consignees and shippers are to be permitted to use their own sweet will in loading and unloading. Suppose it possible for the carriers to stand the burden of providing such an abundance of cars, would it then be possible for them to be handled by the roads to the satisfaction of the patrons or the profit of the carriers? It is, I think, conceded that the carriers do pretty well when the supply of cars that they furnish is sufficient, when handled with reasonable despatch, under fairly normal conditions, to accommodate all without causing undue inconvenience or hardship.

It is obvious that there must be demurrage rules; and they should be recognized by the public and justly and impartially administered by the carriers. It is also apparent that the rules are jointly for the benefit of the public and the protection of the carriers' enormous investment in cars. During most of the time a car is delayed the carrier would much prefer to have the use of it than to collect the dollar a day; and during most of the time that some fellow is delaying a car, at a cost to himself of a dollar a day, hundreds of others would willingly pay a premium to get that car. Such things as premiums to get cars have been heard of in the past.

The rules as they exist are doubtless still defective, but they are the best we have ever had and are probably more impartially administered than ever before. There is every reason to believe they will be still further improved and that eventually strict justice will be done to both the shippers and the carriers.

The carriers can do much if they will tabulate the causes of typical disputes and in this way learn if any one cause is responsible for most of the trouble in particular localities, while other localities are free from complaint on that score. By such a method they should be able to detect and correct many of the defects in both rules and administration. If they find one cause making trouble in practically all communities such a method should bring it to light, and afford the opportunity to at least make an honest effort to apply a remedy.

A reasonable public surely will refrain from indiscriminate and general complaint in and out of season. If a shipper comes across something which he feels is distinctly unjust, or for which the rules do not seem to provide adequately, let him bring it to the attention of the carrier or, if he prefers, the Interstate Commerce Commission, at the same time suggesting a remedy. It is important that the shipper attempt to suggest the remedy, for often in so doing he will become convinced he has no case, and probably find a way to overcome, himself, what he was about to lay on the shoulders of another. The commission could tabulate the complaints and suggestions it receives and for such of them as appear well founded endeavor to have the carriers provide a remedy.

There is a middle ground on which the shipper and carrier can meet, and as to the suggestion that the I. C. C. take over the whole matter, I very much doubt whether much of the shipping public have any idea, or even fancy, that they would be better off if the rules were taken over for ironclad administration by a department of the government; or that if such a course

were pursued anything like a panacea would be provided for all the real and supposed car service troubles.

That there are real troubles no one familiar with the subject will deny; on the other hand it is a safe assertion that much of the difficulty experienced is due to lack of knowledge of and compliance with the provisions of the rules.

I have in mind large corporations whose attitude on this subject was that demurrage was simply another device of the carriers to extract additional revenue from them, and on this basis they usually considered it proper to refuse to pay the bills, whether right or wrong. Of course this could only produce toward them an attitude of suspicion and distrust by every clerk and officer of the carrier. Such a situation could not be for the best interest of either party. It was bound to and did gradually permeate the other business transactions of both until there had to be settled by officers a great many matters of a routine nature which principals should not have been bothered with.

Of course, such a state of affairs culminated in a day of reckoning, executives took a hand, a better understanding was reached, instructions were reached, instructions were issued that subordinates were to familiarize themselves with and obey the rules, and thereafter not nearly so much demurrage accrued. One by one the real causes for complaint were run down and many of them ironed out, and now a vexing and annoying controversy on this subject seldom arises.

Many carriers have to their credit, or rather discredit, a not very enviable past in the handling of demurrage and they are under special obligation to adopt a policy of diplomatic conciliation, and to make every reasonable effort to explain the rules; also to get away from the old "cock sure" attitude of so many clerks and officers toward the fellow with a complaint or claim, that he has no case anyway, and what is he going to do about it. No carrier can afford to take such a position, least of all a carrier with a clouded past, when favored ones got off almost or entirely free, while the other fellow had to pay.

Let the carriers see that employees who cannot be trusted to handle such matters in a broad way are relegated to more obsecure duties, better suited to their temperament. All concerned should approach this question with one idea of doing justice. if everyone will concede a little, the problems will be solved and new difficulties overcome as they arise.

H. HARLEM BAKER.

ARGENTINE RAILWAY STATISTICS.-In the year completed on June 30, 1912, the railways in Argentina suffered through strikes in the same way as lines in Great Britain. In a comparison of the results of the year with those for 1910-11, it must not be overlooked that the mileage of the lines has grown in many cases, so that even where active receipts are higher the density of the traffic is lower and less profitable. The biggest drop in receipts is 8.8 per cent. on the Buenos Aires Western, where the mileage is up 4.6 per cent. This is due to the poor wheat crop. Last year the company brought down its ratio of operating expenses from 56.52 to 52.86 per cent., so that even if it has kept the ratio of operating expenses down to the lower figure, its net revenue will be more than $500,000 lower, equal to about 1 per cent. on the ordinary stock. The company has issued $10,000,000 of new 4 per cent. capital since last year, so that the reduction in the dividend cannot very well be less than 1 per cent. The Great Southern has increased its receipts by 7.6 per cent. and its mileage by 8.4 per cent. Last October the company issued $15,000,000 in 4 per cent. shares, but owing to its habit of charging interest during the construction to capital it is not possible to say whether any of this charge will be met from revenue. Also last year only $134,500 interest on the $12,000,000 4 per cent. 1912 shares was charged to revenue. The increase in net revenue, however, will be sufficient to cover these charges and permit the 7 per cent. dividend, less tax. The Central Argentine also shows a big drop in receipts, due to the corn traffic having fallen off in comparison with the very large traffic last year. London Economist.

Mikado Locomotive for Use in Fast and Siow Freight Service on the Lackawanna.

parts, there being a 2-in. sheet ring connecting the two flanged 1 in. sections. The smoke stack has a very long interior extension, bringing its lower edge but one foot above the top of the exhaust nozzle.

In the construction of the running gear the latest approved practices of the builders have been followed in many particulars. It will be noticed that the same type of long main driving box which was used on the Pacific type above mentioned, and was illustrated and described in detail in the July 19, 1912, issue of the Railway Age Gazette, page 88, has also been applied to these locomotives. It is said that this type of driving box is meeting with general approval, and that it has now been adopted for 82 locomotives, either built or under construction. The selfcentering guide for the extended piston rod and the self-centering arrangement for the valve stem guide, have been applied to the Mikado as well as the Pacific type. The piston valve is 16 in. diameter and has a 7-in. travel, the steam entering through the outside pipe at the top of the steam chest. It will be noted that the ordinary type of reverse lever is used and that the reach rod is placed very low, connecting to a downwardly extending arm on the lift shaft.

The general dimensions, weights and ratios are shown in the following table:

Tubes, number and outside diameter.
Flues, number and outside diameter.
Tubes, thickness and material.
Flues, thickness
Tubes, length

Heating surface, tubes and flues.
Heating surface, firebox ...
Heating surface, total

Superheater heating surface.
Grate area

Smokestack, diameter

Smokestack, height above rail.

Tender.

Frame.

304-2 in. .45-53% in. .No. 11, B. W. G. Iron No. 9, B. W. G.

..21 ft.

.13 in. channel center and 10 in. chan. side sills

Wheels, diameter

Journals, diameter and length.

Water capacity

Coal capacity

33 in.

.6 in. x 11 in.

8,000 gals. ....14 tons

*Equivalent heating surface equals 4,854.1 sq. ft.+ (1.5 X 1,065 sq. ft.) = 6,451.6.

MASTER BLACKSMITHS' ASSOCIATION.

The twentieth annual convention of the International Railroad Master Blacksmiths' Association, which was held in Chicago last week, as noted in our issue of August 23, page 358, was quite successful. In addition to a number of papers by members addresses were made by H. T. Bentley, assistant superintendent of motive power and machinery of the Chicago & North Western; T. H. Curtis of the committee of investi

The blacksmith shop is one of the most important parts of a railway shop plant, for in most cases when material is held up in the smith shop it affects the output of various other departments. On a recent trip to England one of the things that impressed me most was a drop forge shop which had about 50 hammers. There was not anything, from a watch spring to an anchor, which they did not make under the drop forge, and the work was very satisfactory. After it was finished under the hammer there was nothing more to do to it. That is one thing we are careless about in this country; the tendency is for the blacksmith to leave a certain amount of stock on a forging for the machinist to take off. It should be understood that every one who is working for a railway is doing so for the purpose of helping pay dividends and keeping the public satisfied. The officers have the stockholders to please, and unless they can get returns for the money invested they cannot stay in business very long. Therefore it is for every man to try and reduce the cost of production, and it certainly seems to me

Another thing I would like to speak of is the appearance of the shops. Keep them tidy; tidiness is something we ought to practice. Have a place for everything and put it in its place. When visitors or officers come into a shop they do not always have time to see how many forgings you are making, or just exactly the class of work you are doing, but if you have a clean shop they will go away with a favorable impression.

I have been told that your association is 20 years old today, and from appearances it seems that it has had a very healthy growth since it has been in existence. I believe that any convention that tends to help the men to get together and learn what the other fellow is doing, is something that should be supported by your superior officers.

PRESIDENT HOEFFLE'S ADDRESS.

The opportunity for the members of this association to take part in convention exercises such as these is a valuable educational experience. It enables each member to measure himself by coming in contact with others. We are not here as individuals, but as representatives of the railways for the purpose of devising ways and means for better methods in doing our work. The art of blacksmithing is not a finished one; that is, there is still considerable to learn concerning it. The very best minds in the world today are men who not only follow their vocations, but who make individual efforts to improve their efficiency through study and reading literature concerning their work. We should constantly be looking to improve ourselves, so that as the art progresses and new propositions are presented to us we will be fully capable of handling them. There is no place in the industrial workshop where more hard work, closer and more conservative calculations, and keener insight are required than in the forge and blacksmith shops. There is no class of men who watch the actual performance of the work in their departments more closely than the master blacksmith, in order to insure the safety of the public, who depend upon the strength and thoroughness of his work.

BENEFITS DERIVED FROM THE ASSOCIATION.

Several papers were presented on this subject, which clearly indicated the benefits the members have received from attending the conventions and reading the reports. The consensus of opinion was that although the benefits derived could not be given a monetary value the association has been invaluable to its members. The men are broadened by attending the conventions, and in many instances have learned of better ways of doing their work from their fellow members.

FLUE WELDING.

The methods of handling flues in the shop were discussed, special consideration being given to superheater flues of large diameter. The question of whether flue welding should be directly under the boiler shop or blacksmith shop was discussed, but no definite conclusions were reached, some thinking it should be under one, while others thought it should be under the other.

TREATMENT OF CARBON AND HIGH SPEED STEELS.

Special attention was given to high speed steel, as it is getting to be more common in the smith shops, and there still seems to be some question as to its treatment for various uses. It was generally acknowledged that the estimating of temperatures of these steels by their color could not be accurate within 200 or 300 degs. F., and the pyrometer was considered essential to get the proper results. However, the pyrometer should be carefully checked up and caliberated frequently to be sure that their readings are correct. One member uses the fusing point of common salt, which fuses in the neighborhood of 1,465 deg. F., as one way of checking up his pyrometer.

The question of why taps and reamers bend while being tempered was considered and various reasons were given for their

DROP FORGINGS.

CASE HARDENING.

Methods were described for case hardening various kinds of material. The question was raised as to whether or not the railways were spending too much time in doing this class of work. It was granted that the longer the material was in the furnace the deeper the case hardening would be, but the question was raised as to whether this hardened surface would not be deep enough if it only remained in the furnace one-half the time, for in many cases the part would not be worn down to the full depth of the ordinary case hardening before the lost motion would require the piece to be replaced. On the other hand, it was stated that the interior of the material itself would not be in as good condition as when the piece was kept in the furnace for a longer time.

FORGING MACHINES, DIES AND FORMERS.

Several photographs and detailed drawings were presented to the convention showing various dies and formers used on bulldosers and forging machines. These are of special interest at this time because of the great amount of such work that must be produced by the railways in making safety appliances for cars and locomotives. The material for making the formers was considered, as well as the way in which they should be treated. In many cases cast iron formers are used with steel inserts. G. W. Kelly, of the Central of New Jersey at Elizabethport, N. J., described a system of automatic control for forging machines that is in use in the Elizabethport shop as follows:

"We have a 5-in. universal Ajax machine, driven through gears by a 40 h. p. motor, and a 32-in. machine equipped with the automatic control made by the Monitor Controller Company. The machine is started by simply pushing a button attached to the machine near the clutch of the locking lever. This will energize a series of relays in the controller box on the wall, which are so adjusted that the current fed to the motor will not overload the circuit and damage the motor. The system is so regulated that the machine will ordinarily attain full speed in about six seconds from the time the button is pushed. The machine is stopped by pushing another button. The system saves time for the operator, as there are no belts to shift, no switches to pull, and no rheostat to fool with. For the company there is a saving of electricity, as the machine will more likely be stopped when not in use; a saving in the life of the motor and perhaps in the wrecking of the machine. The ma