THE WAUPACA REPUBLICAN

October 21, 1898

 

The Cost of a Railroad Car.

 

            “I wonder what it cost,” is often the thought of those who ride in the splendidly furnished railroad cars now provided for the traveling public.  Recently there appeared a detailed statement of the cost of constructing, at the Altoona (Pa.) shops; a “simple, first-class, modern, luxurious passenger car.”  Some of the items are as follows:

            The wheels and axles represent a cost of $332.35; the trucks upon which the car rests cost $533.62; the air-brake represents $131.75; the seat fixtures – twenty-five in number – cost $50.50; the three bronze lamps, $13.50; the two gas tanks, $84; the chandeliers, $50.72; and the item of screws, which might not appear to be an important one, $51.88.  In the construction of this car 2,480 feet of poplar wood, 3,434 of ash, 1,100 of white pine, 2,350 of yellow pine, 450 of hickory, 400 of cherry, 700 of Michigan pine, 500 of oak, and 439 of maple veneer were used.  It required in addition thirteen gallons of varnish, forty-five pounds of glue, and nearly 3,000 pounds of iron, exclusive of 800 pounds of iron castings.  For the furnishing of the car there were required sixty-nine yards of scarlet plush, forty-four yards of green plush, sixty-one yards of sheeting, and 243 pounds of hair. The springs on the car sears cost $43.17.  The basket racks cost $77.35; the sash levers, $42; the bronze window-lifts, $24,40; and the gold leaf for the embellishment of the woodwork, $14.58.  For the window fasteners $16.47 worth of material was required; two stoves cost $77.56; and the tin used on the roof of the car, $41.44.  The labor required in the construction of the car represents an actual cost of $1,263.94, bringing the total expenditure up to more than $4,400.