Evening Republican, Volume 17, Number 88, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 April 1913 — KEEPS JOINTS LOCKED [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

KEEPS JOINTS LOCKED

■ • ~a ■, ' NEW SCHEME THAT RAILROAD MEN CONSIDER OF WORTH. —3 ■ . Will Make for Greater Safety and Economy if the Claims Made Are Justified When Device la Proved. A radical change from the regulation rail-joint is proposed by the in-

ventor of a new interlocking joint described and Illustrated in Railway and Locomotive Engineering. This device is marked by simplicity in structure and operation, which, as the writer of the notice reminds us,

is a necessary adjunct in the appliance intended for use on railroads. He says: “Any new device which is a radical change from the regulation appliance which may be in use is always sure to excite comment, both favorable and unfavorable, and the result is that both lines of argument bring such a device prominently to the notice Of the general public. It is a well known fact that frequently unfavorable comment is productive of much good, as it very often brings to light some organic defect which may have been overlooked, and remedies and improveinents naturally suggest them-' selves to the inventor. In regard to the rail-joint, it may be said briefly that it is the result of many careful experiments, and Mr. Barnhill, the inventor, has submitted the results of his experiments to a number of eminent experts, all of whom agree tnat the problem of forming a perfect railjoint calculated to meet the growing demands of railway service has been completely solved. It has been tested and retested and improved until the present product appears to be a perfect article in this line of endeavor. It precludes the clicking of the rolling stock in transit, as well as the battering of the rail ends. The track is no more liable to spread than elsewhere. A low joint is impossible, as one rail can not- spring below the other. Fishplates, bolts and nuts are necessary. Reinforcements at the joints add strength where it is needed, and tfre laying of rails costs less than by some other methods. It is only necessary to raise the rails eight inches to lock or unlock, and in laying new track the rails can be laid upon their side and locked very easily, and then set over right side up. The use pf bent wires is no longer necessary where this rail-joint is used.”