REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON STREET-RAILWAY MUTUAL FIRE INSURANCE.

The Secretary read the report, as follows:

WASHINGTON, D. C., October 18th, 1888.

THE AMERICAN STREET-RAILWAY ASSOCIATION, Gentlemen:-The Committec on Street-Railway Mutual Insurance Company, at a meeting held this day, adopted the following preamable and resolution: Whereas, This Committee some two months since prepared and sent to the Companies, members of the Association, a request that each Company express to the Commiteee its opinion as to the feasibility of the formation of a Mutual Street-Railway Insurance Company, and

Whereas, But few responses have been received from the Companies as yet, and

Whereas, The general features of the formation of a Mutual Insurance Company have been heretofore so fully set forth in previous reports and publications, that there appears to the Committee to be no need for further elaboration upon these points.

Therefore, be it Resolved, That the Committee report to the Association the fact of the sending of said notices to the different Companies, the meagerness of the returns thereform, and the consequent inability of the Committee to submit such a report as will reflect the general opinion of the members of the Association.

We, therefore, respectfully suggest the continuance of a Committee upon this important subject, in the hope that it may be able before the next meeting of the Association to secure such information from the respective Companies as to their desires in the matter as shall enable the Committee to present a report that will embody the views of the members and a plan of organization and operation in case said views are favorable to the formation of such a Mutual Insurance Company.

C. C. WOODWORTH,
C. DENSMORE WYMAN,
R. DUDLEY FRAYSER,
Committee.

Mr. Eppley, of Orange: I move that the report be embodied in the minutes of the Association.

Carried.

The President: Is there any gentleman who has any suggestion to make on the subject of this report?

STREET-RAILWAY MUTUAL FIRE INSURANCE COMMITTEE CONTINUED.

Mr. Hurt, of Washington: I presume this Committee will be continued in charge of the subject, as requested in the report. The President: Do you make this as a motion?

Mr. Hurt: I do, if it is not already understood.

The President: It is not.

Mr. Hurt I understood the Committee requested to be continued in charge of the subject.

The President: It says a Committee.

Mr. Hurt: Inasmuch as they have been in possession of the subject, I think it would be wise to have them continue, if agreeable to them; and I therefore make that motion.

The motion was carried.

ANNOUNCEMENT RELATIVE TO THE NEXT REGULAR

MEETING.

The President: I am requested by the Committee having in charge the matter of selecting a place for the next regular meeting, to say to the Association that if there are any gentlemen present who would like to invite the Association to their city, they will please communicate the fact to Mr. Ackley, of the Nominating Committee. If the gentlemen will let that be known to him, the Committee will then be able to act intelligently.

ANNOUNCEMENTS IN REGARD TO THE EXCURSION.

I am very glad to say to the Association this morning, that our friend, Mr. Hurt, who, with his associates, has done so much to make our meeting pleasant, will now address the Association for a moment, in explaining the particulars of the trip to take place to-morrow to Mount Vernon and Marshall Hall.

Mr. Hurt Mr. President and gentlemen-With your permission, I desire to state to the Association that the excursion is arranged for to-morrow, and the boat will leave at ten o'clock promptly. We shall have cars in waiting on the Pennsylvania avenue side of the hotel promptly at a quarter-past nine, to take the delegates and their friends to the boat. This is rather early, and you should be on hand promptly, for the reason that the cars are running at short intervals, and we have no side tracks at this point. We also desire to extend a cordial invitation to all of the supply men and their lady friends who are with them to accompany us on the trip. I think they have done a great deal to lend interest to this meeting, and we would be very glad to have them go with us on this occasion.

Mr. Pearson, of Washington: Mr. President, in connection with the subject, I would like to know as soon as possible how many intend to go. It is very essential for us to know exactly how

many intend going with us; and I should like to know as early as possible. The tickets have been left with the Secretary.

The President: The invitation of our friends is a very broad and generous one. They wish all the delegates who are present, with their lady friends, and all the supply men and their lady friends to accept their invitation, and enjoy this most delightful trip to Mt. Vernon. It is due to our friends that they should be informed as early as possible as to how many will accept their invitation, so that they can make their arrangements accordingly. There are matters that have to be attended to beforehand, and if postponed too long, it will be an unpleasant affair without them. We owe it to these gentlemen to let them know how many will go. I trust before the gentlemen leave the room they will come and get their tickets, so that we may know how many are going.

DISCUSSION RELATIVE TO ELECTRICITY AS A
MOTIVE POWER.

The President: Gentlemen, I have seen somewhere the picture of a stalwart man, elevated high in the air, with arms extended and both hands full of forked lightning; and that man, I find, was Calvin A. Richards, of Boston. [Applause.] He had not the slightest fear of lightning, he had just all the bravery that it was possible to put into a man's heart and fibre; but unfortunately for every one of us, that man, who is so endeared to all our hearts, has left the street-railway business; and feels that, in the hitherto existing regulation, it would not be proper for him to be present at this meeting. We are thus denied the pleasure of listening to his glowing terms, as he would describe the power of electricity and lightning in moving our cars.

It is a loss to every one of us, which we feel, not only in not being able to listen to his paper on such an important and interesting subject, but we miss very much his presence. We would like to take him by the hand once more, and cordially greet him to our meeting. [Applause.] But in the absence of Mr. Richards, we are forced now to depend for the discussion on gentlemen who are present, who know all about this matter, so far as any one knows of the workings of electricity in its subtle. ways. I trust no one will hesitate to express his views frankly, and give us all the information he can about this interesting and progressive topic. The subject is open for discussion; and the man who gets on his feet first will have the floor.

Mr. Lawless I would like to hear from some of the gentlemen who represent the electric lines that have recently joined the Association.

The President: Gentlemen, you have heard the request of Mr. Lawless, of Kansas City. Will some gentleman who knows something about this subject, who has been experimenting, give us the benefit of his experience?

REMARKS OF MR. WILLIAM BRACKEN ON THE STORAGE BATTERY SYSTEM.

Mr. William Bracken, of New York, General Manager, Julien Electric Company:

Mr. President and Gentlemen—I have hesitated to be the preface to this discussion; especially as the preface is the most disagreeable part of a book. It is the more difficult on the present occasion, simply because I do not profess to be an electrician. It is only a few years since I have had the honor to be ranked among the gentlemen who represent your great industry. I am one of that dangerous class of men known as a Philadelphia lawyer; who, in a moment of folly, left his profession some two and a half years ago, and directed his attention to electric traction. I am not able to discuss the subject by the use of technical terms which men skilled in the science are accustomed to use; neither am I mechanician, nor do I know anything about the street-railway industry. I have had the opportunity of devoting two and a half years in the capacity of an officer of a company engaged in electric traction, the Julien Electric Company, of New York; and I came on here to be a looker-on in the Convention, rather than with any hope that I should have the privilege of addressing you. I trust, therefore, you will extend to me your indulgence if I make statements which your practical sense may deem to be impracticable, or not, to the point.

I think it a very auspicious thing that the electric traction men and the hard-headed, practical, common sense, intelligent streetrailroad men of this country should meet as they do to-day and exchange views. I think it shows that the electric traction men deem it necessary to co-operate with the street-railway men; and I trust that the street-railway men will regard it in the same light. There has been a great deal of misapprehension, I think, on both sides in relation to the application of electricity as a motive power.

I think the electricians have led the street-railway men to expect too much; and I am afraid that on that account, and for other reasons, the street-railway men have been too exacting with electricians. Of course, it is natural in any industry entirely new, like that of electricity-a science that has certainly until very recent years been regarded as an occult science-that a certain air of mystery should surround it, and have two effects, viz: that of making people, who are naturally very sanguine, to expect too much; and on the other hand, to lead people who are accustomed to spy into abuses, to regard it with some degree of skepticism. But, gentlemen, there is nothing mysterious about electricity; electricity is energy, just as steam is. It is necessary to consume coal, or some other material, in order to develop electricity. It is handled just in the same way that steam is handled; and when you direct your attention to it, if you will not be afraid to look into it and study what you may deem its mysteries, you will be surprised to find how simple it is, and how docile. I am not one of those over-sanguine people who think that electric traction is going to supersede every other method of traction; neither am I sufficiently conceited to imagine that storage battery. electric traction, which I represent, is going to supersede every other method of electric traction. I think there is a sufficient field for all, and the sooner we come to recognize this, and pull together in harmony, and exchange views as to the best methods of applying our systems, the sooner we will all come to the desired result.

No man will say, no matter how sanguine he may be, that the President of this Association, Mr. Holmes, would dream for a moment of exchanging what, from his description and what I have heard from others, is a magnificent system of cable traction, for any system of existing electric traction, at the present day. In the economy of his system, in the method and manner in which it works, I should hardly deem that it would be judicious for him to do so. I cannot see myself any difference in starting from a central station and moving a cable, which gripped on to will move a car, and running that same energy through a wire which grips the car instead of being gripped, and takes it to the same destination, provided the economy in both should be the same. I will not discuss this matter, however, as I am here to discuss the merits of the storage battery system of electric motive power; and if I may be indulged, I will tell you about it.