The New York Rapid-transit Subway

48 PABSONS ON NEW YORK RAPID-TRANSIT SUBWAY. [Minutes of 100 feet the tunnel was filled with a mass of debris consisting of rock, earth, street-pavement, and brick and stone from the fallen house- fronts. In order to avoid digging out this mass and still further endangering the street, the tunnel below was tightly closed with two bulkheads, one on each side of the break, and grout was pumped in at the top into the mass of debris, which became completely solidified. After the cement had been given about 10 days to set, the bulk- heads were removed and tunnelling operations through the mass thus solidified were resumed with entire success. Under the terms of the lease the equipment is to be furnished by the lessee company, and was designed by its engineers, subject to approval by the Commission. It is not therefore for the Author to describe the equipment beyond giving salient facts necessary for a complete description of the railway. POWER-HOUSE, Rolling Stock, etc. The power is furnished from a single house 950 feet by 200 feet, containing sixty water-tube boilers of a nominal capacity of 600 IIP. each. The generating-units are nine in number with a rating of 5,000 kilowatts each, and are capable of being overloaded 50 per cent. In addition there are separate units for lighting- and signal- currents. The main current is generated and sent out at 11,000 volts, and transformed and reduced in ten sub-stations to continuous current at 600 volts, at which pressure it is fed to the line. The current-cables are carried in terra-cotta ducts built in the walls of the subway, as can be seen in the cross sections (e.g., Fig. 4, Plate 5). In order to give access to these ducts, manholes are built in the walls, with covered openings in the street. Through these manholes cables are drawn in or removed. There are 841 cars. Each car is 51 feet 2 inches long over all, and 9 feet 2 inch in maximum width, with seating arrangements for fifty-two persons. Figs. 21, Plate 6, show the general design of the cars. The first cars made had a steel underframe with wooden sides and roof, sheathed with copper. Later, an all-steel car was adopted, the only combustible material being wooden window-sashes and cane seats. All recent cars are of this type. Such car-bodies weigh 34,000 lbs., or with the trucks and motors, 77,000 lbs., the composite cars weighing 72,000 lbs. The seating-capacity of the steel cars is likewise fifty-two passengers. The longest express trains consist of eight cars, and local trains of five cars. Of the former five are motor-cars and three trailers, and of the latter three are motors. The motor-cars are equipped with