fewer injured during the year ending June 30, 1897, than during the year ending June 30, 1893. In the Spanish-American war 298 men were killed and 1,645 were wounded. In 1897 there were 1.693 men killed and 27,667 injured from all causes in railway service. In coupling and uncoupling cars alone. 219 less men were killed and 4994 less were injured in 1897 than in 1893. The number of such employes killed has been reduced onehalf, and the number of injured also practically reduced one-half. The reduction in the number of accidents from all causes largely exceeded in a single year the entire casualties during the late war.

"Application of the self-coupling device and other safety appliances is now being seriously considered in Great Britain, where the ratio of lives lost to the number of men employed in coupling and uncoupling cars is reported to be 1 to 350. The ratio in this country

has been reduced to one man killed out of each 600 engaged in coupling and uncoupling cars.

Figures submitted by a leading railroad company indicate that the automatic coupler will save a very large sum annually in comparison with the expense incurred in former years in applying and maintaining the link-andpin type; and this does not include the reduced cost to the roads resulting from fewer suits for damages by injured employes.

The Master Car Builders' coupler, which is now superseding all other types, was brought into use by the necessities of railroad development. For instance, in the application of the train-brake appliance there was too much play or slack in the link-and-pin coupler to enable the brake to be successfully operated. The automatic coupler not only minimizes the danger to employes, but also meets the requirements of railway operation."

Broken Back

If the side rods are not damaged leave them on, then run the tireless wheel up on a wedge high enough so that the box will be clear up to the top of the jaw, then remove the oil cellar and put in its place a good, sound oak block with the grain running lengthwise with the journal, then fill, with another

MAGAZINE, to be known as "Locomotology." Under this head Mr. McBain will write articles on technical

topics, questions and answers on the locomotive and air brake, and in the "Question Box" answer such

questions as are sent to him by interested enginemen.

Mr. McBain needs no introduction to the readers of the LOCOMOTIVE FIREMEN'S MAGAZINE, as his interesting and instructive articles have long been a source of pleasure and profit to them.

of the box and the pedestal brace. After this block up the back end of the long spring with an iron block as high as possible. When the wheel is up on the wedge the engine will be listed a little to the other side and this can be

taken advantage of to secure your en

gine so she will not go off the track on curves or backing up, which should be done as follows: Pass a heavy chain in a loop around the opposite front corner of the tender frame, and if necessary, spike it there so it cannot slip, then pass the other end over the drawbar to the other side and attach it to the cab support or "jacking beam" on the engine, drawing it up as tight as possible (using a long, wooden wedge to do so if necessary). You are now fixed to go home," and when you run her off the wedge the chain will be tight and the flange on the opposite wheel

44

ers on freight trains, especially on single track, is very common, and in some cases, at least, it is brought about through a desire on the part of the men on the locomotives to avoid "popping" while standing at stations or on side tracks, to accomplish which the fire is allowed to burn out too much, and as a result of this the steam pressure is suddenly run down from, say 160 to 120 pounds, and in case of pulling into side tracks; this occurs when the engine is being worked at full stroke for some distance with the injector, perhaps, working at its full capacity. The sud

Time is money.

den contraction of parts in a locomotive boiler that takes place under the above circumstances, is ruinous to flues, not taking into account its effect on stay-bolts and sheets.

An engineer who wishes to take proper care of his boiler will not permit such conditions to take place, even though the pops do go off occasionally (and I am not ready to admit that that is necessary), for he will see that the fire is not allowed to burn out before the heavy work, that of pulling into side tracks, etc., is done. On the contrary,

he should insist upon the fire being kept up" hot," and in order that the steam pressure should not fall suddenly, the injector should be shut off, if necessary, for a short time, and after the train is into " clear" the boiler can be filled without any damaging depression in the steam pressure.

to take the solid jar off the journals, and, perhaps, prevent heating of the same. Ordinarily one inch of wood and the same thickness of rubber is enough. This is a good "fix," and if the spring were not known to be broken you could never tell by the riding of the engine. The writer has gone nearly two hundred miles with a truck blocked in this way and had no trouble whatever.

can be filled up full enough, without any great drop in steam pressure, to take you to the clinker pit without it being necessary to work the injector again. Whether the distance is one or five miles that you must take the engine light to the house, a little good judgment on the part of the crew will make the foregoing practicable and you will yourself be surprised at the result of your efforts, and the people by whom you are employed will show their appreciation of your efforts accordingly.

If the spring is badly Broken Engine broken, take it out, and Truck Spring. if the pilot is not going to be too low, run her in with frames riding on top of boxes. If, however, the pilot is too low, put small jack under the end of the truck frame and raise it high enough, so you can put a block between top of box and frame, front and back.

If you can not get a small jack, put the long ones under the buffer beam and raise the weight off the truck, then use the pinch-bar to raise the truck frame off the boxes and put the blocks in. It is a good investment to carry with the large tools a piece of carspring rubber, some of which can be used with the blocks to good advantage,

Broken Main

or Binder.

When this occurs shut off

move the bolt or "binder" from the back jaw and put that in place of the broken one in the main jaw. This will fix you all right to go in and not run much risk of doing any further damage. However, if it be a case where bolts are used, you can, if the broken bolt is long enough, batter a false head on it, and by using only one nut, support the jaw from which you took the good bolt until destination is reached.

Sight Feed Lubricators.

Under certain conditions, the oil, as it is fed from the cup into sight feeders, does not pass to the steam chest direct, but this is no excuse whatever for running a dry valve, because a man who knows his business, in case of his valves getting a little dry, will ease-off, almost shut off, for one second. This will drop the steam chest pressure, probably to about one-half of what it is ordinarily, at which time the strain at the lubricator will blow the oil and water from the pipe into the steam chest. The loss of time necessary to do this will not amount to as much in a trip as running a partially dry valve one mile would.

Engines that are being worked at a long cut-off do not, as a rule, give any trouble on account of valves running