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THE PORTRUSH ELECTRIC RAILWAY, IRELAND

- DR. EDWARD HOPKINSON

The current is conveyed under the gaps by means of an insulated copper cable carried in wrought-iron pipes, placed at a depth of 18 inches. At the passing places, which are situated on inclines, the conductor takes the inside, and the car ascending the hill also runs on the inside, while the car descending the hill proceeds by gravity on the outside lines.
From the brushes the current is taken to a commutator worked by a lever, which switches resistance frames placed under the car, in or out, as may be desired. The same lever alters the position of the brushes on the commutator of the dynamo machine, reversing the direction of rotation, in the manner shown by the electrical hoist. The current is not, as it were, turned full on suddenly, but passes through the resistances, which are afterward cut out in part or altogether, according as the driver desires to run at part speed or full speed.

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MPAA: G
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