The New York Rapid-transit Subway

104 DISCUSSION ON NEW YORK SUBWAY. [Minutes of Mr. Cuning London railway the air was pumped out every night after the traffic ceased. The doors of the station-passages were closed, the large fan at Shepherd’s Bush was started, and air was drawn from the Bank to Shepherd’s Bush to the extent of about 20,000,000 cubic feet every niglit, a process which entirely renewed the air three times over. Bacterial and chemical observations showed that the air was as good and pure as the air outside when the fan ceased to work. There was, of course, the further question of the warmth of the tube, which was objectionable to many people. The clay had gradually become warmed to a steady temperature of about 68° F., and thus kept the atmosphere of the tube at that tem- perature. Still, that of itself could not be an objection. The lift service was also objected to, as being a source of heavy expense. The cost of the lifts was about O'1d. per passenger, and amounted to about .£16,000 per annum, a large sum, but just about one- half of what was paid in rates and taxes, for which there was no return. If relief was required, the relief might come very properly from the municipalities, who rated the railways so heavily that it became an exceedingly serious matter for a railway to continue financially sound. With regard to the wear of the rails, touched upon by Mr. Bury, on the Central London railway the wear of the rails had been chiefly on the curves, due almost entirely, Mr. Cuningham thought, to the fact that it was extremely difficult, with a considerable overhang of platform, to get a train sufficiently elastic in going round a curve; the close coupling made the train so stiff that the wheels ground against the rails and cut them away. The wear of the rails on the straight was hardly e inch in the 74 years of running, in spite of the enormous car-mileage; but on the curves the wear was severe. As to side doors, on the Central London railway the average stop of trains with end doors was 10 to 15 seconds, and he did not think it was possible to do better than that with side doors. The difficulty about side doors was the im- possibility of having a man to look after every door. People were apt to injure themselves in getting in and out whilst the train was moving, whereas by the system of end doors and platforms with men guarding them the passengers were perfectly controlled and their safety was absolutely secured. The Central London railway had now carried about 300 million passengers witliout injury to one, and that said a great deal for the end-door system. Mr. Read. Mr. R. J. G. Read was one of those who had had the privilege of visiting the subway witli Sir William White, in 1904. Several things struck him, especially the interminable lines of upright stanchions, such as were shown in tlie sections. The question