Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 203, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 August 1916 — Cost of Electric Headlights. [ARTICLE]

Cost of Electric Headlights.

Charles C. Paulding, solicitor for the New York Gentry railroad, told the members of the Interstate commerce commission that It would cost the railroads of the country $6,000,000 to equip their locomotives with electric headlights. He admitted that powerful headlights might be advisable on small railroads. “But on large roads, where there is density of traffic, multiple tracks and many signals," he said, “they would be otherwise than safety devices.” He said the large railroads were developing their signal systems, and that their efficiency wonld be minimized If not destroyed by the use of blinding headlights. W. S. Stone, chief of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, advocated the change, citing cases In which, he said, accidents could have been prevented with more powerful headlights. The 1,000,000 candle power headlights disclosed every object on the track for a sufficient distance to give the engineer warning In time to reduce the speed of hi# train If not to stop It, he said. He stated that the consensus among engineers Is that powerful headlights do not blind them nor do they Interfere with seeing signals when properly placed.