Flower at the Wheel

Result of the Electric Experiment on the Canal.

A SATISFACTORY EXPERIMENT

The Heavily Laden Boat Was Bent Against the Current at the Speed of Four Miles an Hour. — Something About the Plant.

Saturday was a red letter day for Governor Flower. It was the day appointed for the first practical test of the utility of electricity in the propulsion of standard, laden canal boats by electricity, under the invitation extended by virtue of an act passed by the legislature last winter. That the event was regarded as important, was shown by the fact that it attracted as important a body of state officials, business men and electricians as has been seen in this city during recent years; and the governor had the satisfaction of standing at the wheel of the F. W. Hawley, and guiding it around the sharp curves and through the locks and under the bridges, propelled, with its abnormal load, by electricity, at the speed of four miles an hour, against the current.

In this electrical experiment, as in other matters, it happened that many were called but few were chosen. Of the halfdozen applications made to the state engineer and surveyor, under the terms of the act, but one plant, that under the auspices of the Westinghouse company, of Pittsburg, and the Niagara Falls Power company, materialized, and took steps to place apparatus in position for the test. Early last week, F. W. Hawley, representing the power company, and Electrician Elias Chestown, on behalf of the Westinghouse company, began the construction of a trolley system over the mile or more of the canal between locks 63 and 65, just east of the village of Brighton, and on Saturday morning, at the appointed hour, everything was in readiness for the test.

A standard size canal boat, the normal propelling power of which was steam operating an old-fashioned dish-pan propeller, was brought from Buffalo and, as the first step in refitting it for the test, was re-christened the Frank W. Hawley, in honor of the gentleman who was so prominent in the promotion of the first electrical experiment. The Hawley was placed in the weighlock and the engineers of the Westinghouse company proceeded to remove the engine and boiler. Then they coupled two Westinghouse twenty-five horse-power, standard type, street railway motors directly to the propeller shaft. A Westinghouse controller, of the ordinary standard type, was placed in position and two street car trolleys were bolted to the deck. The craft was then ready for the trial. The overhead construction was of the typical double trolley system for double tracks, but one trolley being used in preparation for the test. It should be said here that, in practical canal work, as illustrated Saturday, two complete circuits will be used, one for eastward-bound boats and the other for westward-bound boats. One of the wires was connected with the feeder of the Park avenue and Brighton street railway line and the return line was connected to the track rail.

When Governor Flower and the party of distinguished gentlemen that accompanied him arrived at the point of embarkation Saturday morning, the boat was already crowded, and it was with some difficulty that the deck was partially cleared to make room for them. The banks of the canal were also crowded with interested spectators.

The test was in charge of Electrician Chestown and others of the Westinghouse company, while F. W. Hawley represented the Power company. Electrician Charles P. Barnes was selected by State Engineer and Surveyor Schenck to take charge of the interests of the state as electrician, and he attended to the reading of the instruments.

At 11 o’clock everything was in readiness, and the word was given for the start. Owing to the primitive character of the trollies, the high winds and the inability of the light state tug to handle the overloaded craft to advantage, some little time was consumed in lining the boat up under the trolley wires. The effort was finally successful and the governor threw over the lever of the controller, and the first standard canal boat ever propelled by electricity began to move against the current, amid a storm of cheers. Within a short time a speed approximating four miles an hour was attained and the Hawley passed under the low bridge and into lock 63 in safety. While the boat was in the lock Governor Flower made a little speech, in which he said, among other pleasant things;

“In 1820, when DeWitt Clinton started from Buffalo for Albany on a canal boat, he had a military company as an escort, but there was no electricity to move boats or transmit news. They sent the fact of his starting, from Buffalo to New York, by the successive discharge of cannon along the bank and the time occupied was an hour and fifty minutes. The people gathered along the canal rejoicing at the improvement. Only forty tons of merchandise were sent from Buffalo to New York that year, but now 3,000,000 tons are sent through annually. I believe when this electric system is perfected there will be 12,000,000 tons sent from the West to the seaboard and without cost to the people. This experiment will give new life to the commerce of states along the great lakes and make the transportation on the Erie canal equal to that on the Mississippi. I regard it as a great privilege as governor to witness this experiment which marks the change from horse and mule power on the canal to electricity, which I believe will quadruple the usefulness of the canal.”

The governor was loudly cheered at the close of his speech.

President Thomas, of the New York Produce Exchange, said: “A party of us came up from New York to witness the trial, in which great interest is taken down there. I shall tell them that the experiment was highly satisfactory.”

After the brief speeches the Hawley passed on to the end of the trolley line, and then was piloted by Governor Flower back to the starting point, and the first test of electrical propulsion on the canals was at an end.

Among the most interested witnesses was Nikola Tesla, the celebrated Hungarian electrician.

It should be stated, in fairness to the experimenters, that most of the appliances, with the exception of the excellent overhead construction, were necessarily in the nature of makeshifts, and that fact renders the degree of success achieved the more gratifying. Of course, if the plan demonstrated should be adopted, new and special machinery would be constructed, and the difficulties of the Saturday test would be overcome.

Among the many well-known people present besides those already named were:

William S. Kimball, John N. Beckley, Frank S. Upton, F. W. Warner, Henry C. Brewater, Horace C. Brewater, David Hays, Charles P. Ford, Max Brickner, Bishop McQuade, J. G. Cutler, Louis Wiley, Eugene T. Curtis, James W. Whitney, F. P. Allen, Senator Parsons, State Engineer Schenck, Deputy State Engineer Chapman L. Johnson, State Engineer-elect Campbell W. Adams, Superintendent of Public Works Hannan, Superintendent McDonough, Special Agent Halligan, Superintendent Miller, Police Commissioner George Chambers, ex-assistant superintendent of this division, A. J. Johns, Buffalo; E. J. Sullivan, Buffalo; F. P. Allen, J. Lee Judson, C. L. Johnson, L. P. Ross, W. C. Barry, G. C. Buell, Jr., C. P. Ford, George W. Aldridge, Alderman Adams, Alderman Lewis, W. H. Benjamin, Matthias Kondolf, John Bisgood, John H. Chase, Assemblyman O’Grady, W. W. Webb, T. B. Connolly, C. B. Smith, F. J. Kuhn, L. B. McCulloch, canal collector, William C. O’Neill, Buffalo, canal superintendent, John W. Eustice, Buffalo, John Kennedy, Buffalo, Thomas Ryan, Buffalo, Joseph F. Kennedy, Buffalo, John J. Lynch, General Brinker, ex-State Engineer Bogart, Superintendent Webster, of the penitentiary, Alderman Dewey, Hon. John Van Voorhis, J. C. Kalbfleisch, Brayton Ives, president Western National bank, President Evan Thomas, Vice-President Alfred Romer, of the New York Produce Exchange, G. W. Balch, chairman of the canal committee of the New York Produce exchange, Dr. Coleman Sellers, president of the Niagara Falls Power company, and others.