perhaps, that they might be crowded out, and so, as is usual in large companies, there has been crowding, not so much to get a good seat, for they are all good seats, as to get in at all, fearing that they might be crowded out. This year the local committee has adopted a new plan. They have prepared a diagram of the tables and numbered the seats. It is, therefore, desired to arrange in advance as to where each person will sit. Immediately after the adjournment this morning, there will be tacked on the wall at my right a diagram of the dining-hall. Mr. Crossman, my assistant, will issue the tickets to the officers of the companies as they are entitled to them. Each company is entitled to two tickets by virtue of its membership. Any gentlemen not connected with member-companies who desire tickets may obtain them at ten dollars each; ladies' tickets, five dollars.

After receiving the regular banquet ticket, please come to this desk and get the seat ticket according to the location you select on the diagram.

RECESS.

On motion, the meeting took a recess until 2 o'clock, P. M.

THURSDAY'S SESSION—AFTERNOON.

The President called the meeting to order at 2.30 o'clock, P. M., and announced the first order of business to be the Report of the Committee on "Direct-Driven Generators," by Mr. C. J. Field.

REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON DIRECT-DRIVEN GENERATORS.

As Mr. Field was not present, the Secretary read the paper, as follows:

TO THE AMERICAN STREET-RAILWAY ASSOCIATION,

Gentlemen:-I have been requested by the President to act as a Committee on the preparation of a paper on the subject of "Direct-Driven Generators." I will try to present to you briefly a short sketch of the development of this type of apparatus. In taking up the subject I have taken a somewhat liberal interpretation of the title of my paper, feeling that in order to present the matter intelligently before you requires the consideration of the generator in connection with the power station.

I have tried, in taking up this subject, to obtain from manufacturers of apparatus both generators and engines; also from the managers of power stations all possible information relative to the subject, and sent out a list of questions covering the following points:

Relative economy of direct-driven and belted apparatus; type of machine best adapted for direct-driven; method of connecting generator and engine; types of engines best adapted to the work; overhung armatures or outward bearings; comparative cost of the generators and engines; comparative cost of the generating station complete general relative economy in operation, and many other general minor details.

I will try, in presenting this, to give a general summary of the subject as it presents itself to me, for your consideration and careful thought.

HISTORY OF THEIR INTRODUCTION.

I will not take up according to dates or chronological order the introduction of this type of generator, but will merely sketch in a general way their introduction.

Back in the early eighties the different manufacturers in Europe, including Brush, Siemens & Halske and others, commenced the building of direct driven generators of small capacities connected to different types of engines, operating at a high rotative speed. Among these were a large number of Brush machines connected to Westinghouse engines. About the first apparatus for use in central power stations were those designed and built by Mr. Edison for the old Pearl street station in New York city. These machines were about 300 horse power capacity, directly connected to an Armington-Sims automatic, single cylinder engine, operating at about 250 revolutions. This apparatus is still in use at the present day, except a few of them which were destroyed in a fire in the station several years ago. One of these units is shown in the exhibit of the General Electric Company at the World's Fair. There is also a large power station operating in Milan, Italy, with the same type of apparatus. Although it is now nearly ten years since these particular units were built, it is only within the last two years that we have commenced their introduction to any general extent on large power station work. Although these units operated in general in a satisfactory manner, the type of generator and engine were not perfected generally to give the best of service, and therefore electric manufacturers abandoned their development after these first ones and returned to belt-driven generators; and they continued to be the standard type of power station generators until two years ago.

In Europe, though, we have a different history of the matter. The develop

ment of their electric apparatus has been slower, and they have therefore had more time to work up special designs and perfect different types of generators. The general commercial requirements were not so rushing, and when American manufacturers commenced to develop to a large extent direct-driven generators, they found their co-workers in this line in Europe far ahead of them, in that they had several years ago a number of large stations in Berlin, Paris, London and other parts of Europe operating with units up to a thousand horse power, directly connected to different types of engines, principally vertical. The writer remembers in 1887 and 1888, when he was connected with one of the electric manufacturing companies, the difficulty he had to get the shops to build the first small direct connected generator for naval service. This really commenced the development of this type of apparatus with American manufacturers, and the old Edison, Thompson-Houston and Westinghouse companies commenced building them in small units. All of the foregoing generators, although for different types of central station and power work, were not any of them used on electric railroad work. Commencing in 1890 the ThompsonHouston, Edison, Westinghouse, and later the Siemens- Halske Company of America commenced designing and building railway generators for direct connected work, and during the past year there have been quite a number of new stations operated and building, which are equipped entirely with direct connected generators, running in size all the way from 100 K. W. to 1,500 K. W.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF DIRECT-CONNECTED GENERATORS.

The type of generator being built and furnished to-day for direct connected work is far superior in every respect-almost beyond the question of comparison to the early and antiquated small generators which many of our friends are using and struggling along with to the tune of the popping of the safety fuses and circuit breakers, the whirl of the revolving grease-besmeared belts, and the squeak of the friction clutch pulley. The direct-driven generators built by the different manufacturers in a large measure are of the same general construction so far as general details go, differing in minor points only. I have taken as illustration the more permanent to give a fair and intelligent representation of this type of apparatus. I feel it is not necessary to do more than this on account of the fact that it would only be repeating the illustrations which many of you have seen from time to time in the technical press, and the practical illustration which most of us have seen of this type of apparatus at the Fair in Chicago.

In figure I. we illustrate the Westinghouse generator coupled direct to the Westinghouse engine by their well known method of flexible clutch coupling. This generator was one of the first of direct connected machines to be intro duced on railroad work, and is now built and operating in units up to 375 K. W. on railway work and up to 1,000 K. W. for power, in a large number of stations throughout the country. The generator shown in the illustration is a multipole machine, with iron clad slotted armature, and is built entirely separate from the engine in all respects. The principal point of difference in this unit from that of other manufacturers is in the method of the connec. tion to the engine, which is by flexible coupling, the engine and generator

having separate shafts. The generator in general appearance resembles the belted machine built by that company in its construction. The rotative speed of this direct connected machine is somewhat higher than those of the other manufacturers of the same capacity, but operated as it has been generally with the Westinghouse engine, it has proved itself so far a well constructed and good operating machine.

In figure II. we illustrate the type of machine built for railroad or power work by the Siemens-Halske Company. This company has the advantage of the development of this machine by their company in Europe, which development commenced, as previously stated, in these large units, considerably before that of the American manufacturers. This machine as shown in the illustration

FIGURE 1.

pillow block of the main shaft and the ring shaped armature keyed on outside the magnets to the main shaft like a flywheel, and the outer end of this shaft is supported as stated by an outward bearing. This machine is not provided with any especial commutator, the armature winding is on solid copper bars, on which the brushes rest. Owing to this company having only within the past year completed their works in this country, their machines are not introduced here yet very extensively, but the record they have made in Europe proves them to be well designed and good operating apparatus.

is mounted directly on the shaft of the engine, from which it operates, which shaft is supported at the outer end by an outboard bearing. In this type of machine the electro magnets are placed inside of the Gramme ring. By this arrangement the diameter of the armature is largely increased and the peripheral velocity is great even with a slow rate of speed, making the machine specially adapted for direct connection. The field magnets are bolted to the

FIGURE 2.