crowd may be checked by the closing of the gate and the car started. The value of both the fender and safety gate can best be understood by closely watching their use. Both are eminently useful and practical. They each have also a good moral and instructive influence; they caution both the public and the trainmen against accident, and also cause the community to realize that a soulless corporation has some regard for life and property and sincerely desires to avert accident to them. They also give to the trainmen an assurance in operating the cars which is of itself of considerable benefit.

Screens for the side of cars (when the trolley posts are between the tracks), sand boxes always filled with sand, and many other devices, are also of considerable importance and tend each in their way to reduce the number of accidents to the minimum.

It is not possible, however, to operate cars entirely without accidents and in studying the problem we should not look for perfect results.

The above presents roughly a few ideas suggested by long experience after trying nearly all the remedies known, and gives one the firm opinion that it is essential, so far as possible, to have the best equipment, including practical safety devices and the best men obtainable for operating the cars and for the claim and other departments, governed and aided by the best rules and supported by the best policy. Respectfully submitted,

WILLARD J. HIELD.

THE PRESIDENT-What action will you take upon the paper just read by Mr. Hield?

MR. RIGG, Reading-I move that the paper be received, spread upon the minutes, and a vote of thanks be extended to Mr. Hield. Carried.

THE PRESIDENT-Are there any questions you would like to ask Mr. Hield, or is there any discussion on the subject?

If there is no discussion on this paper, is there anything of a general nature that any one has to bring up before we proceed to the next order of business, which will be the report of the Committee to recommend officers for next year and select the place of meeting.

DISCUSSION ON THE QUESTION OF HAVING REPORTS OF COMMITTEES PRINTED IN ADVANCE OF THE MEETING.

MR. DAVIS, Williamsport-Would it be practicable in the future to have the papers read at the meeting printed for distribution about fifteen days before the meeting of the

Association? It would be of considerable assistance to the members in preparing for the discussion of the papers.

THE PRESIDENT-That was formerly done, but the man who is going to read a paper does not want you to know what it contains before he reads it.

MR. DAVIS-I will simply say in regard to that, that it is done in a number of other Associations; in fact, it is the practice with a large proportion of organizations of this kind. It gives the members an opportunity to study the question a little more.

THE PRESIDENT-Do you desire to make a motion that we do that in the future?

MR. DAVIS-I move that the Secretary be instructed to have printed, as far as practicable, such papers as are prepared sufficiently in advance for the members to get them at least fifteen days before the meeting of the Association. THE PRESIDENT-As far as practicable

MR. DAVIS-Yes; because sometimes the Secretary does not get the papers—

THE PRESIDENT-And circulate them among the members of the Association.

THE SECRETARY-Mr. President, I will say that one gentleman who was to write a paper for this meeting wrote me and asked me if his paper would be published before the time of the meeting of the Association. He said that if it was to be so published he would not read it. I replied that it would not be published until he read it.

MR. DAVIS-To meet that, I suggest that no paper be published in advance against the protest of the writer. This practice is followed in the National Electric Light Association, and is very satisfactory. If a gentleman insists on its not being printed we ought to recognize his request. I will add to my motion the words "subject to the wishes of the author of the paper."

MR. BEAN-If I am not mistaken Mr. Davis is a member of the National Electric Light Association as well as myself. The papers are printed in advance. I do not remember that the papers to be read at the meetings of the

American Street Railway Association have been printed in advance for a long time. It was tried about four or five years ago, and did not seem to be a success. I shall oppose this motion. I could have read Col. Heft's paper with a good deal of pleasure at home, and when it was being read here could have remained at the hotel. I took it upon myself as a duty to come here. I do not think it is in the interests of the American Street Railway Association, whether the writer consents or not, to publish the papers in advance. There are probably a thousand street-railway companies in the United States, and the Secretary reports that we have a membership of about one hundred and seventy companies. We want to increase our membership. I have not had much to say on this subject in the National Electric Light Association, because this practice was in vogue when I became a member; but in this Association-I refer to it with pride-I have been at sixteen meetings, and will oppose the motion, and trust the other gentlemen will assist me in voting it down. We can get along in the old-fashioned way as the President intimated, and have our papers read at the meetings.

THE PRESIDENT put the motion, which was defeated by a large vote in the negative.

MR. WOODRUFF, Atlanta-I have a friend here from the Cracker State, who has recently put in operation quite a novelty in the shape of a car, and it may be of interest to some of the gentlemen to see photographs of it. It is a Georgia pine car, built at his own shops, with motor frame and truck combined. He is running it very successfully; and I think it would be of interest to the members of the Convention to see the photographs, and have Mr. Zimmerman, who is superintendent of the Atlanta Railway Company, explain the principal features of the car.

THE PRESIDENT-Do you wish to hear the description of this car? [Voices: No, no.]

MR. WOODRUFF He is a member of the Association. THE PRESIDENT-We will pass on this question just as we did with the storage-battery men yesterday. Gentlemen, do

you wish to give Mr. Zimmerman an opportunity of placing his new device for a car before you?

THE PRESIDENT put the question to vote; and it was lost. THE PRESIDENT-We will give Mr. Zimmerman the same opportunity that we did the storage-battery men yesterday. If he will say where he can be found you will all go to see the photographs of the car.

MR. ZIMMERMAN, Atlanta-Gentlemen, I am not here to promote any scheme of that sort. I designed this car at my leisure, more out of curiosity to see what I could do than anything else. I am an operator and not a promoter, at all. Mr. Woodruff, who is from the same town, has urged me to put this before the Convention. I had never thought of doing this as a matter of advertising the car.

THE PRESIDENT-Will you state where your headquarters are, so that you can be found? There may be some gentlemen present who are interested in the matter and will call

upon you.

MR. ZIMMERMAN-I am at the Cataract House.

MR. HEFT-Mr. President, I have arranged with Mr. W. J. Clark, of the General Electric Company, to have placed in their parlor a portfolio that I have brought with me from my office, containing a lot of maps, curves and data sheets; and I would be glad to have any of the members of the Association examine them, if they desire. They are at perfect liberty to do so.

REMARKS OF THE PRESIDENT AS TO SUBJECTS FOR COMMITTEE REPORTS FOR THE NEXT MEETING.

THE PRESIDENT-The Secretary has something to say, and right here, before I forget it, I would like to announce, while we have so many in the room, that the Executive Committee, during the past year, considered and went over every subject that was submitted to them on which papers might be prepared; and they were guided by these suggestions in their selection of the subjects and persons who read papers at this meeting. I would like all the members to repeat that, and send to the Secretary at any time during the

to pay the small sum of twenty-five dollars a year, we cannot get them by depriving them of the use of these papers. It is a compliment to a man who spends days and weeks in writing a paper to publish it, and let it go before the public in his name. It is a publicity and benefit that he is entitled to, and if we simply read the papers and not allow them to be printed for public circulation, you would find that they would not be willing to devote the time and labor that is necessary to prepare them.

MR. BEAN-I heartily endorse what has just been said. I was one of the original subscribers for the Street Railway Journal, and met Mr. Harris, the original proprietor, the other night. Then there is the Street Railway Review, the Electrical Engineer, the Electrical World, the Electrical Review, the Western Electrician, and the Electrical Age. All these papers have come into our field, and they gladly and willingly, at great expense, publish our proceedings. I consider that they have been one of the greatest influences which has made this Association what it is to-day-one of the greatest Associations on the continent. I would not favor any plan to have our reports kept from the trade papers. This custom obtains with every trade organization in the country — the trade papers connected with the Association always publish the proceedings.

Municipal ownership is in the air, and there it will stay, until we can get it into the minds of the people that they are wrong, and that it will cost them more to operate the street railways under municipal control. I was originally located in Kentucky in the street railway business and had a perpetual charter, the same as a man would have a deed to a piece of property. I moved to another State where the Constitution of the State forbids a franchise of longer duration than thirty years. In the State of New York, I am informed, the charters are for nine hundred and ninety-nine years; practically perpetual.

I am in favor of publishing everything that is said and done in this Association. I have always felt a pride in attending these meetings. I attended them when my Company