This point will be touched upon later.
6th. Individual characteristics and advantages.
Under this head a few of the salient features of each system will be
mentioned. As the possibilities and limitations of the horse railroad
system are, however, so well known, it is needless to go over them. I
therefore will confine myself to the electric and cable systems.
With electricity single track lines, crooked streets, all descriptions
of turnouts, crossings, branches, etc., are as easy to construct and
operate as with horses. With the cable system they are either
impossible or enormously expensive.
With electricity the line is not a unit, so that the complete stoppage
of the whole line is absolutely impossible. With cable it is a unit
and it is possible.
With electricity the life of the conductor is infinite; with cable,
two years.
With electricity, and the improvements now being made in traction
wheels, etc., the heaviest grades are as easily surmounted as with the
cable; although it is true that for grades exceptional in character,
such as 20 per cent.
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