Ellison on Model Railroading starts with eight chapters on how railroads accomplished their work. The next four chapters deal with the construction of model railroad bench work and laying track, with the goal of making trains run reliably. The final four chapters deal with scenery and buildings: the lead chapter, "The Illusion of Distance," illustrates Ellison's philosophy perfectly; that model railroaders are creators of illusions, which, if done well, will entertain not only their creators but also their family, friends, and the public. Ellison wrote that "the art of model railroading consists of condensing everything to within reasonable proportion", with no elements dominating over the others. He also held that all elements of a layout should contribute to its fundamental purpose, which is good train operation. He took his own photographs using flood lighting and a large format view camera. Careful examination of these photos reveals no evidence of a model signalling system on the Delta Lines, which would be consistent with his philosophy. The Delta Lines at its maximum extent would accommodate from six to seventeen operators, all of whom were personal friends with no formal club organization. They met weekly on Saturdays, organized like the operating staff of a real railroad, and boasted attendance averaging 97 per cent. Like most O gauge systems of its era, the Delta Lines was hand-built of separate ties and rail and used outside third rail for power supply. Electric power was "flat" direct current provided by rechargeable batteries that had been scavenged from retired full size railroad passenger cars. The scenery was also hand-constructed, using methods that were common in museums and theatre stages: many structures painted on flats, instead of modeled, and artificial perspective where needed to create the illusion of distance. Operations used an accelerated clock to increase the apparent lengths of runs. Ellison's wife died in 1954, after which he curtailed most of his writing. While the Delta Lines was arguably one of the greatest model railroads in its day, in 1956 this great layout was disassembled and put in storage as Ellison prepared to sell his house and move to Baton Rouge to be near his son. In 1959 the layout was sold to a new owner in Boston, Massachusetts, however, it was heavily damaged and largely destroyed when the truck that was transporting it was involved in a major accident during a heavy rainstorm. While the layout