OPERATION OF THE BRAKE.
The Vacuum Brake, as the name implies, is operated by means of a vacuum which is formed in the connections that act the part of the cylinder in the air-brake. With an air-brake, compressed air is made to do the work of applying the brakes by moving a piston to which the brake-lever is attached, the air being carried throughout the train by means of iron pipes and rubber hose: with the vacuum brake the work is done in a similar way with similar connections; but, instead of compressed air being forced inside the pipes and apparatus, all the air is exhausted out, and the natural pressure of the atmosphere is made to do the work.