MARCH

30,

E N G I N E E RI N G.

1900.]

INSTITUTION OF MECHANICAL
ENGINEER .
of the Inst.itution of Mechanical
A.
held on the evening of Thursday of
Engmee~s March 22. In the regrettable absence
las~i~William White, the President. of the .Instiof . Mr J Hartley Wicksteed, VICe-Prestdent,
tutlOn, d the
. chatr
. . Mr. w1ckste
e d opened the prooccduple by readin.g a letter from Sir William White
cee
tngshad been recet ved by t h e secre tary. .Th'lS
hich
w
expressed the great regret of the Prestdent
lettter
g to ill-health he was unable to attend the
t1ta ow
. or to prest'd e a t tl1e evenmg
.
.
of
the
Counctl
meett'mgg this regret betng

t h e great er as many
~:~:O~s in connection with the arrangements for
TING
!BE was

health was such that he had been directed by his

medical advisers to abstain from all extra work for
some time. Under these circumstances-circumstances which might cause serious inconvenience at
the present juncture- he desired to place himself unreservedly in the hands of the Council to make such
arrangements as they considered best for the
interests of the Institution. Commenting on this,
Mr. Wicksteed said that the Council were unanimous in their decision that they should wish Sir
William White to retain the position of President,
even although he might not be able to attend the
tneetings for some little time.
PowER HAMMERS AND PNEUMA.'l:Io TooLS.
It will be remembered that at the h.st monthly
meeting of the Institution two papers were read

,, Little Giant" H igh Speed Rotary Drill.

Fl9. 7.
S ections through Valve.

I.

0
K

-- 5--

---'

..

- --

Fl.fj . q .

Section on 3 -3.

Fig .3

Section ou 2-2.

-1

Fig . 5 . Section ou 5-5.

Sectio11 on 4-4 .

---

the ensuing summer meeting of the Institution required special attention, owing to its being intsnded to combine with that meeting a reception
of the memhers of the American Society of M echan~cal ~n~neers, who were about to visit England.
Str. '\Yilliam went on to state that, acting on the
dectston of the Council at their previous meeting,
he had conferred with the President of the Institution of Civil Engineers, and as a result it had been
a;ranged that the summer meeting of the Institutton of ~echanical Engineers should be held in
London m the last week in June next, and the
Grand Hall of the Hotel Cecil had been engaged
for the annual dinner on June 27.
The concluding portion of Sir William White's
letter stated that unfortunately the condition of his

and partly discussed : these were '' Improvements in

the Longworth Power Hammer," by Mr. Ernest
Samuelson, of Banbury ; and ''Portable Pneumatic
Tools,': by Mr. Ewart C. Amos, of London. The
discussion was adjourned by Mr. Wicksteed, who
occupied the chair on the last occasion also, and on
Thursday, the 22nd inst., the whole evening was
devoted to the further consideration of these two
papers.
Mr. Wicksteed opened the discussion by giving a
brief 1es-ume of what was said at the former meeting, and was reported in our issue of March 2
last (see page 280 ante). Before the discussion was
opened, Mr. Wicksteed requested Mr. Amos to
make certain additions to his paper.
Mr. .Amoa, in reply, Faid that he _would give a

brief description of the "Little Giant " high-speed

drill to which reference was made at the last
meeting. Since then a new plate illustrating the
drill in detail has been added to the paper and was
in the hands of members. By reference to the
illustrations which we reproduce herewith, it will
be seen th~t this drill is provided with a main
casing containing the mechanism. The l~tter c~n
sists chiefly of three cylinders, each provided Wit.h
piston valves and rotating round a fixed ecce~tnc
and fixed crankpin. Live air having been admitted
by actuating the admission valve, shown in the lefthand portion of the top figure, passes through a port
as shown by the arrows into the valve bushing, and
from thence into the cylinders. The effect of the
compressed air acting on each piston in turn cau~es
the cylinder to rotate about the fixed crankpm,
whilst the fixed eccentric regulates the valves for.
the proper admission of air to each cylinder .
Attached to the bottom of the cylinder castings is
a pinion which engages through two idlers with
an internally-toothed wheel forming part of the
drill-holder, and thus rotary motion is imparted to
the drill bit. This machine, the speaker said, will
attain a speed of about 1400 revolutions per minute.
The chief advantage claimed for it is that it comprises a high-speed engine with a minimum consumption of air, and this is obtained by employing
the stationary eccentric referred to, in combination with the piston valves, thus securing the proper
cutoff of the air supply. It was further pointed
out that both the live air and the exhaust pass
through suitable ports, and are thus prevented from
surrounding the working parts as in some other drills
of this type. In the description given in the speaker's
paper of the '' Little Giant" portable air .drill, it was
stated that it was also fitted with a reversing arrangement, although not shown on the diagram. In the
absence of this it was somewhat difficult to clearly
describe the mechanism in detail. The speaker
stated, however, that when the drill was so fitted,
and handle takes the J?lace of the star centre (see
Fig. 22, page 365 wnte), by revolving this handle
a valve placed in the main pressure chamber reverses
the direction taken by the air when entering the
valve bushing, suitable ports being also provided.
The drill when t hus fitted is capable of dealing with
all kinds of work in which reversing is necessary,
such as tapping, tube expanding, wood boring, &c.
Mr. Amos also called attention to photographs of
the " Little Giant '' drill, doing special work at the
carriage department of the London and NorthWestern Railway at W olverton. By these it was
seen that these machines were driving special saw
bits for the purpose of cutting out the lamp holes
and openings for the heating apparatus in railway
carriages. This, it was stated, was the first application of the kind. Another diagram to which
attention was called illustrated the Boyer longstroke hammer. This differed from the Boyer
hammer already described and illustrated in that it
was provided with two hollow cylindrical valves, one
at either end of the working cylinder. These valves
automatically controlled the admission and exhaust
of the air at either end of the piston through
suitable ports, their object being to secure a much
longer stroke to the striking piston than wa~ possible
with one controlling valve. Another distinctive
feature was that the machine would be inoperative
except when pressed up to its work. The diagram
showed a hammer with a stroke of 9 in., capable
of giving a very powerful blow, and this type of
hammer is doing good work in connection with
hand riveting.
Mr. Simpson, of Pimlico, said that in their
works they used pneumatic tools to a considerable extent; in reckoning the relative advantages
of the power hammer and the steam hammer
t he short stroke of the steam hammer should be
taken into account in the comparison. And, moreover, the exhaust from the steam hammer should
be taken to a condenser. He had thought of putting down a power hammer but found that the
steam hammer gave a greater range of work. He
would suggest t hat it would be an advantage if
steam hammers were fitted with smaller steam
pipes, and that the steam should be superheated.
In regard to pneumatic tools their experience was
wholly with the Boyer hammer. The speaker had
caused to be placed on the walls of the theatre a
number of photographs illustrating the uses to
which they put this machine. They had found it
very handy in cleaning up castings, especially in
the brass foundry, where the pneumatic hammer
led to a great saving in the wages of trimmers.

E N G I N E E R I N G.

he n1en in the foundry did not take to it very

readily, objecting to the manner in which it jarred
them in use. His firm had, however, found that
younger 1nen did n ot experience the same unpleasant result, and they were increasing the
num her of machines of this class. They found a
drill with compressed air gave b etter results than
one worked with the Stow flexible shafting or by a
ratchet. In one position they had found the use
of the compressed air drill of the greatest benefit.
In a deep well holes had to be drilled in some ironwork, so they had rigged up the W estinghouse air
compressor and found it very easy to take the pipes
down the well and carry on the work. They used
small pneumatic drills for the holes in cylinder lagging and other light work; here there was a great
saving, for it was not easy to take the work to the
ordinary machines. No doubt further experience was
needed before a definite statement could be made as
to the ultimate economy of this class of machinery.
So far they had had very little trouble, but it would
be necessary to ascertain what would be the cost of
repairs extending over a number of years. They
had also used the air hoists described with great
advantage and found them excellent for placing
work in the lathe. Among the supplemental uses
of compressed air might be mentioned the spraying
of whitewash over walls, in this way considerable
time and expense was saved, as compared to the
older methods. They were satisfied from the experience already gained that before long they would
have to increase the number of their pneumatic tools.
Mr. Wicksteed said that at the Great Northern
Rail way 'Vorks at Doncaster he had seen the best
installation of pneumatic machinery that he had
met with, and he would call on Mr. Ivatt, the
locomotive superintendent of the railway company,
to give his experience. In response to this invitation,
Mr. Ivatt stated that he had gone in smnewhat
largely for pneumatic machinery at Doncaster. He
could give no data as to exact cons umption of air
by different tools, &c., because they had been too
busy to make experiments, but they knew the
system was a good one for their work, and so it
was being extended. The erecting shops and some
others at Doncaster are piped for air, the pressure
at present is 80 lb. to the square inch . Belt-driven
compressors of the two-stage type are used, the
sma11er sizes have a capacity of about 40 cubic feet,
and the larger machines compress about 100 ft. of
free air per minute. A detail worth noting is that
it is desirable to take the air supply to the compressors from as cool a place as possible, and it
pays to run a wooden duct leading the supply from
a cellar or from the north side of the shop,
if colder air can be obtained in that "ay.
As regards the difficulty from water in pipes,
it is well not to have the reservoirs too near
the compressor, but to give the air time to cool,
and so leave t he water in the reservoir, and
avoid its getting into the supply mains round the
shop. The air drills at Doncaster are chiefly
of the rotary or '' blow round " type ; those used
for tapping st ay holes are provided with a reversing
cock. They had four or five different hammers in
work one of the chief things to be aimed at was to
get a bammer which operates with as litt le vibration
as possible. A us~ful application ?f compressed
air was also found 1n bor1ng the cyhnders of locomotives under repair. They had small air engines,
with cylinders about 4 in. by 4 in., and pist:>n
valves. One of these little engines is cramped to the
frame, or " running board " of the locomotive, and
belted to tha driving pulley of the cylinder boring or
valve-facing machine. These air engines were produced at Doncaster, and consequently they were
rather pleased with them. Amongst miscellaneous
uses of compressed air was that for whitewashing,
already mentioned by. a pre~ious speaker, the
plant being fitted up. m ~ ~a1lway truck.. They
h~d tried to clean carriage hnmgs and cushwns by
means of compressed air, but not with c?nspicuous
success. The apparatus '!as somewh~t hke. a curry
comb with an air supply and a flextble dtscharge
tube leading from the handl~ to a ~ucket of w~~er
outside the carriage. The Jet of a1r cau~~d a~ ~
draught at the face of the ''curry comb as 1t IS
passed over the surface .of the cloth, ~raw:ing in the
dust and discharging 1t by the tail p1pe. The
drawback to the arrangement was that it did not
do the work fast enough. They also used compressed air in place of steam for blowing out the
cylinders of locomo tive~, and anot~er use for compressed air was for tak1ng locomotives out of the
shop. They charged the boiler with air from the

(MARCH

30, I 900.

----
therefore, 1.69 cents,

mains, blew the whistle, and ran the engine out average saving per rivet was,
without steam.
making the average cost of machine rivets only
Mr. Harris asked whether Mr. Ivatt used the 47 per cent. of the hand cost; the gain on each shi
cooling water in the cylinders of the compressors ordinarily built at the yard was from 6000 dols. t~
as an injection or in a water jacket. Mr. Ivatt 6000 dols. Mr. Babcock stated that Mr. Cram
replied that the compressors were fitted with water could hardly expect at the start to be equally sue~
jackets. Mr. Harris, under these circumstances, cessful, but there was no reason why in a comparaconsidered that there should be no difficulty in tively short time results equally as good should not
getting rid of the water in the air.
be reached in the Philadelphia yard. "It does
Mr. John Fielding, of Gloucester, said he had not take," he said, "much except ordinary common
used compressed air with advantage for drilling and sense and plenty of compressed air to handle these
chipping, and had found it better t han the Stow machines. " Mr. Marten also read from a docufiexible shaft. He considered there was a future ment he had r eceived from Mr. Babcock in
for pneumatic riveting under certain conditions, which the cost of compressed air was dealt with
and that it would replace a good deal of hand in greater detail. This we also print in full.
riveting. It would n ot, however, supersede hy- Mr. Marliell also pointed out that the arrangement
draulic riveting which, in the great majority of of the illustrations in the paper might lead to
cases, was much to be preferred, especially for misconception. In the text the data given referred
boilers and the heavier class of riveting gene- very largely to one type of hammer, whilst a prorally. He was much interested in the various minent p osition was given to an illustration of a
examples of pneumatic hammers described in the hammer of another type; members would do well
paper, having himself made one or two pneu- to guard against the mistake of attributing to one
ma.tic caulking machines some twenty-five years hammer illustrated the performance of another deago. One of these machines which was most sue- scribed.
Ch 1'cago Shipyards, No. 38.-M'lchine Rivets During
cessfully used in the year 1876 was illustrated by
a diagram placed on the wall. This tool, it would
Three Weeks Ending October 12, 1899.
be seen, diff~red in no essential r espect from the
modern machines. It moreover possessed a feature
Distribution.
Number. Size. M~~~n. e Hand
Rate.
not present in any of the later tools, viz., a spring

tool socket by means .of which the weight of blow delD.

cents cent:i
..
..
..
..
6,217
1
livered could be regulated according to the force with Keel
4}
2~
1
..
..
..
. . 21,1328
1~
i
3!
whieh the tool was pressed against the work by the Shell
Shell margin (bilge sin~le
hand of the operator. The spring arrangement also line) . .
..
..
..
1,122
4~
Longitudinals, open . .
..
24,63l
2f
tended to reduce the vibration upon the hand. He C.
V. K. brackets
..
..
3,197
8!
had not, however, followed up the invention, be,
,
3,197

S!
,'
,
. . .. 3,397
cause he was at the time much occupied with the
Longitudinal& under tank ..
664
development of hydraulic machinery, and, more- Longitudinal
bars
..
..
2,989
over, it was then thought by many that with the Tank top stiffen era . .
..
1,129
~
,
margi n
.
..
4,033
2i
new system of riveting all necessity for caulking
,
lugs . .
..
..
1,620
3!
would be done away with. Experience had, how.,
rider . .
..
..
3,209
2i
..
..
.
4,467
2i
ever, shown that there was still room for the use of Tank top..
V. K. . .
..
..
..
12,723
3
a caulking tool. He believed that the caulking 0.
Hold stringer . .
..
..
1,184
3
..
.
..
machines he had made were the first of their kind Floors . .
123
3
odd
..
..
..
5
6
ever employed. He would su~gest that the air C. ..V. }{.
odd . .
..
..
38
6
pressure for riveting might with advantage be in- Bulkheads
..
..
..
1,318
6
,
..
3,061

Si

creased to 100 lb. per square inch, as in that way

,
231
2!

the weight and bulk of the machines might be

Total . .
93,479
reduced. He would like to hear from those who

had used both kinds, whet her the double-stage com- - - - - - - - - - - - - - pressor had not, in practice, ad vanta.ges over the Tota' cost by machine, 1403. 31 dol!.3. ; average, 1 50 cents ea h.
Total coat would have been by band 29 6.87 dole. ; average,
single-stage compressor.
3.19 cents eaoh.
Mr. Amos stated at theLondonanclNorth-Western Saving, 1583.56 dole. ; average, 1.69 cents eaob.
Railway Works they had increased the air pres- Average coat of machine rivet was 47 per oent. or band cost.
sure fr01n 100 lb. to 120 lb.
CosT oF CoMPRESSED AIB.
Mr. B. Martell said the paper was of the greatest Compound Two-Stage Air Compressor :
interest at the present time. During his 30 years'
.. . 150 lb.
Steam at boiler
...
...
. ..
connection with Lloyd's Registry of Shipping he
... 100 lb. to
Air . . .
...
...
...
. ..
105lb.
had come in contact with a large number of enRevolutions . . .
. ..
...
78

gineers, and he could assure the meeting that a

...
420
Indicattd horse-power

great majority of them looked forward to the sub. .. 3200 cub. H.
Free air per minute
...

stitution of this pneumatic machinery for manuitl

Dols.
labour. Engineering employers had great dilli11.30
Coal, per day of 10 homa . . .
. ..

2.00
Attendance, per day of 10 hours
...
culties with the labour market; where men could
2.62
...
Fireman, per day of 10 hours ...
earn enough in three days to k eep them for six,
0.44
...
Oil, per day of 10 hours . . .
. ..
there was little control over them, and contractors
1.00
Repairs and maintenance, u1.y ...

found great difficulty in insuring the completion of

the work undertaken. With this machine they
17.36
Total
. ..
.. .
.. .
Cost per 1000 cubic feet free air comcould always depend on six days' labour. It had
press(d
...
. ..
...
...
... 0.91 cents.
been his duty for many years to find out whether
work, when done, was sound, rather than trouble Maintenamoe of P la;nt Outside of CO"mpressor:
Dols.
himself with the manner in which it was carried
1.75
One lin~ma.n ver day
...
. ..
. ..
out. He could say, without hesitation, that the
2.00
,
tool
repa.~..rer per d ay...
.
.
.
.
..
very best kind of work was done with these pneu2.60
, lathe band on repairs, dies, and sets
matic riveters. In one case, i -in. rivets had been
, smith on rf'pa.irs, dtes, and sets,

driven and the plates had been slotted through to

1.38
average halfda.y . ..
.. .
.. .
show how the rivets had been laid- up to fill the
7.73
T otal
...
holes ; in this respect the work left nothing to be
Material for repair~, replacing hose,
desired. In regard to rapidity of work, he would
&c., about lOO dols. per month, say
read from some particulars which had been sent to
4.CO
per day . . .
. ..
... ... .. .
him from Chicago shipyards, showing t he work
- 11.73
done by pneumatic riveters over a period of three
17.36
Air as above ...

weeks. We give in the next column the document

referred to by Mr. Mar ten in his speech. The
Total
...
.. .
.. .
29.09
speaker also read a letter r eceived from Mr. This amount of air will run a.b.,ut 30 riveters, 12 reamers,
W. I. Babcock, the superintendent of the Chi10 chipping or caulking hammers.
cago Shipbuilding Company, addressed to Mr.
In addition, air is supplied to one air hoist in sh?p, and
Cramp, Philadelphi~\. This letter was dated last is used for blowing 30 hea.ti~g forges {one ~or ~oh n vet~),
October, and stated that as M essrs. Cramp had one large rivet forge for sta.t10na.ry st~m nvet~gmaobme,
made a start on pneumatic riveting, some figure& and two blacksmiths' firee. Tbe nveters. will average
that the writer had collected would be of interest. 400 rivets per day of all claeses, or 12,000 rivets per da~.
I t stated t hat with a total of over 93,000 rivets, If the total cost of the air and maintenance of plant IS
charged against the riveters, it woul~ a..mounb. to 0.24
the average cost of the machine-driven rivet was cent per rivet. Probably one-half th1s IS a. fall' allow1! cents as against 3.19 cents for hand riveting. ance as both reamers and hand hammers are used much
This was taking the rates in t hat time in force in mor~ continuously than riveters.
. .
In comparing these figures with hand work, 1t JS necesthe shipbuilding yards of the Great Lakes. The

E N G I N E E R I N G.

~1ARCH JO, rgoo.J

dd also t.> Lhe dirr ot hand cor ~ the

Eary of course,l to a
he- ..l _, and hd.nd e ~, re pam~ t .>
mmer
. ,,
.
b
h th'ts
cost ' of tool"
, ' I anm
unableau.to
~ay JUSt ow muo
forge11, &J. t0 but probably 1t wvuld be be~ween on ~
would amoun\ jr the mn.obine cost. In any event .the
third and obe- dded to the direct co3t of th~ ma.ohmes~ount ~o e a . the corresponding band cost IS less than
drtven rlvet ove~nts er 100 rivets.
. .
0.10 cent, olr 10 o nt l.nPvested to date in our air plant ts, m
The tota amou
round numbsrs :
Dols.
:=

Compressor

Tools
...
...
p1pe lines, hos"', &o.

..
...
...

"
. ..
...

...

17.500

..

5 000

..

28 000

50.000
Total ...
...
...
..
duplioatino- our comprf>s3or, which will
We are nowaoit but ~11 not h!iVd to add any more
dou~l~ropu[p~a.Dne3 ~r anything, except~ perb~p3, a. small
too t f hose a.s our outfit of toolg IS far m excess of
amoun. o ly '
ouDat~ supfbe' psriod between September 2t and No};0~ 1899 we drove by air a. total of 335,713 rivets,
~:~di~t cost'or 5649.66 do 1 ~. , average 1.68 cents. The
direct co3t C'f the38 ri vets by hand woul_d have ~een
10 698 27 dols., average 3.18 cents. That 1s, . the dtrect
M~in of air over band was 47 per cent. Allowm~ 10 c~nts
r 1No for ai r n.nd maintenance woul~ make the a.tr-drL ven
~ets cost 6,985.37 dols., and the ~av!ng over band 44 p:r
cent., allowing interest and depra01ah~n or;t plan~ of 16 per
1n addition would make the au-dnven r1 vets c<;>st
t
cen 37 dols and (takmg

"620
no accoun t of th e amoun t m~~sted in band plnnt) the saving ove.r hand, 29:1 Jler cent.
It will be observed that as, durmg the per10d under
discussion, the plant was ~orke~ only to. abvut one-half
it~ capacity, this charge IS tw1~e .what It ~ught to be.
When also, the new compressor 1s I~ operation, bo~h the
cost of air and maintenance and the 1_ntere~t cost will m~
terially decrease per 10~ rivets _dn ven, 1f the plant 1s
.
worked to anything near 1ts. oap~ot~y.
Finally, i~ is our empba.t1o opmton that If the O?St of
air-driven rtvets were equal ~or ev~n somewhat m excess of that of band, the superior qua.hty of the work done,
and the far better control we have over our men, would
amply jostify our entire outlay.
(Signed),
W. I . B ABCOCK, Manager,
Chicago Shipbuilding Company.
December 12, 1899.
Mr. W. W. Ma.rriner said that through the
courtesy of Mr. Yar_row he \yas abl~ to give t~e
result of the expenence gamed w1th pneumat1c
appliances which are iu use at t.h e P oplar yard of
Messrs. Ya.rrow and Co. Pneumatic hammers
were used for a. variety of purposes such as chipping, caulking, and bel! -m o~thing t ubes. V arious
types had been tried, but 1t was found that t he
"Boyer " was preferred because it had some
special advantages. One was that the shock tran smitted to the man holding the hammer was so
small that there had never been an objection made,
in fact, the men much prefer a pneumatic hammer
to the hand hammer. Another advantage was thl).t
the weight of the blow given by the hammer could
be regulated independently of the trigger valve. It
was found that the principalvoints needing attent ion
too were the hose should be as light as p ossible, so
as to offer the least resistance to the free movement
of the tool, and at the s~me t ime it shoulu be of a
kind not easily damaged. They preferred good
india-rubber hose to metallic or armoured hoses.
All fittings and couplin~s for hoses should be of
the same size and t hread throughout the works,
and any new tool should be fitted with the
standard nipple before being put into use. The
tools of pneumatic hammers can be ground much
keener than ordinary hand chisels, without much
danger of breaking the point, the blows b eing
more uniform than with a hand hammar. Of course
the ~een?r tool cuts quicker. In r eferring to pneumattc drills, the speaker said that those shown on
one of the diagrams (i. e., the Boyer piston drill),
were what Messrs. Yarrow generally used, but they
had _also several other types. These drills were
spectally _useful for drilling holes on the boats in
progress m the yard, for drilling a. wk ward pipes that
could not be_ got under _an ordinary machine, and
also for use 1~ the erectmg shop, where it was n ot
always convement to take the work t o a machine.
They ha~ also tried this drill for driving s pc cial
salf.feedmg expanders for boiler tubes but it was
not fou~d suitablt', as the speed was to~ g reat and
much ttme was lost in getting the expander dut of
~e tub~ after it had done it.q work. The drill had
be dtsconneoted, and t he expander r eversed a
~hn ~Y ha_nd to loo~en it. They therefore fitted
e!rdrtll w1th a reducmg gear, and al lOa revers ing
I SO that the Operator
by turning the reguthttng valve, could reverse 'th e spindle and loosen
expander. At the present time the speaker
was ~~t know a more efficient tool for the job. It
1
drill ~ clll~ague, Mr: ~rush, who saw where the
8
a. e , and ortgmated the idea of making

r,
did

them slower and r eversible for this c!a s of

work.
At t h e Popla r yard t her e were also
in use pneumatic h otsts for hn.ndling ihe work at
the heavier machines, and t h ese we re found \ ery
useful; their onl y dra wback b eing that until t h e
operator b ecame used to the regulating valve, t h ey
wer e rat h er too q uick in t h eir action. At the last
meeting, Mr. Wicksteed invited a compa rison between por table pneumatic tools a nd elect rically
d rive n tools ; and, as Mr. Yarrow had la id down
both installations about t he same time, th e s peaker
had h ad t h e opportunity of making this corn parison . In t h e fil'st place, there were, h e said, dist inct uses for both syste ms ; for instance, where
p ower is r equired in the form of a blow, compn:ssed air is obviously superior, and where it is
required to drive a machine abo ve 1 h orse-p ower
at some distance from the source of power, t h en
electric ity is better ; at t h e same time t h or e is a
large fi eld in which they would be close rivals.
T o make the matter q uite clear, Mr. M a rriner
con side red t he fundam ental differences b etween
the two systems . Firstly, the pneumatic m 11.chines
we re lighter than electrically driven machines for
t he same power ; but if a flexible shaft were used
in conn ection wi th t h e elElctric m otor, t he n t h e
d rill press would be much ligh ter, a nd it would
also be much easier to support than th~ drill
and pneum<\tic machine corn bined.
The pneumatic drill i4 self-contained, which is n ot the case
with electric dri11s, as, ~xcept for small sizes,
they r equire flexible shafts. Pneumatic drills can
be r eversed with impunity; this is not the case
Electricity can b e more
with flexible shafts.
rapidly la id on than compressed air, and for a temporary job a cable is not so much in the way as a
pipe line. Mr. Marriner proceed ed to give ins tances
of working t o illustrate h ow t h ese diffe ren t p oints
affected t he case. F or expanding tubes compressed
air is b etter, because t h e machine b eing selfcontained, can Le readily reversed. F or c utting
ventilator h oles in a ship electricity is b ett er,
because t he fl exible shaft can b e r eadily connected
to the cutter-ba r and t h e motor a nd cable can be
easily moved to any p oint. F or drilling small
vertical h oles the weight of t he electric motor h elps
to push the drill through ; while for drilling small
horizontal hules a pneumatic breast drill is much
handier. I t would b e seen, therefore, it was n ot
easy t o say which system was better, unless t he
peculiar circumstances of the ea<le were known. In
bringing his r emarks to a close, the speaker said
h e felt quite sure that anyone who established a
pneumat ic installa tion in his work s would, in a few
months, wonder how ever h e got on without it.
Mr. Ratcliff explained t h e design of a power
hammer by mean s of a diagram he had placed on
the wall, but which unfortunately was too faintly
drawn to be seen from the body of the theatre.
This hammer, he said, would work with 4 h orsep ower as against 7 horse-power neede d for t he
L on g worth hammer, in bot h cases a 3-cwt. hammer
being under consideration.
Mr. Duntley, of Chicago, said he had been
making pneumatic tools for five years past. Perhaps it would give the best idea of p opula rity in
t he United States if he stated t heir output. During
the first year they wee in business they ma de 100
machines all told. L~st year they averaged 800 per
month. At the present time they were building
new works, and expected to double their production.
By aid of these tools Messrs . Cramp, of Philadelphia, had been able to overcome th e results of a
strike of 7000 men, and in one ship they had just
built all the rivets wer e closed by pneumatic machinery ; as a consequence, Messrs. Uramp had given
a duplicate order for the pneumatic machines. A
proof of t h e superiority of pneumatic riveting was
given in t h e fact that t he rivets themselves were
! in. longer than for hand riveting, and t his additional metal had t o be cl osed into the h oles, t hus
sh owiog the latter were b etter fill ed by the use of
t he pneumatic riveter than by t h e hand hammer.
Another proof was g iven in the cutting up of work.
With ordinary h and rivet ing, if the ends of the
rivets were cut off, the shank would fall out from the
holes in the plates, but when the rivets had b een
closed by the pneumat ic machine they had t o be
driven out. The speaker himself was not a skilled
op erator, but in a con test in Germany h e had
b eaten the hydraulic riveter; 97 per cent. of
the railroads in the U nited States were usiog
these tools, and the speaker gave a large number
of instan ces in which air machines were used for
supereeding hand work. In the United States

S fJi pyarJ"i they used t he pne umatic

hn.mme r f or scttliug ship~, and it was found to be a
g teat imp ro\ement on t h e old m eth od. Anot h er
use for pne umatic mach iner y was in breaking up
iron or steel vessels. They h ad what was called a
"biter " or '' nibbler, " which ch ewed off the h eads
of t h e rivets in place of cutting them by chisel and
hammer. N e w uses were con stantly b e ing found
for compr essed air ; in chipping ston e work t h ere
had been found to be a saving of 9 d ols . a d ay,
a r imer did t he work of 22 me n, a nd lately h e had
seen a freigh t car painted by compressed a ir in
seven minutes. In t his count ry we were in a position to appreciate what h ad already b een d one in
Ame tica in the intr oduction of compressed air
machi nery. It was n ot always easy t o get a n ew
t hing introd uced, and it migh t b e interes ting to state
that he had worked two years with Cramp's b efor e
he could p ersua de t h em to give him an order .
Mr. Churchward, of Swindon, said h e would like
to ask Mr. Dunt ley a question as to t he stayThey h a d h ad on e at Swindon for
bol t biter.
some time, but could n ot get it to work ; the claw
would not t ak e hold for som e r eason.
Mr.
Duntley, in r eply , said that the act ion of this
machine d epended on the shap e of the claws, and
this, again, depended on tho n ature of the work
to b e d one. The claw must be so arra nged as to
bite in. He was about to proceed to Russia to
arrange for a large installation of pneumatic machinery in that country, and on his return he would
be pleased t o go down to Swindon and put the
machine righ t . Mr. Churchward remarked on the
wear of machines of this t ype, certain parts n ot
lasting very long; and h e thought that , for complete success, the only thing that remained was
to make improvemen ts in this respect. He did
n ot wish it t o b e understood t hat he made any
complaint, as the pneumat ic machines did their
work well, and whatever repairs might b e needed
were well paid for in th e total result . In regard
to what might be called the annoying qualities
of t he pneumatic ha mmer , th ese con sisted of
vibrat ion and noise. In n. boiler -shop such as t hat
at Swindon, t h ey found very great trouble from
t his cause. One simple way in which the annoyan ce had been lessen ed to a con siderable d egree was
in putting a wide strip of leather round t h e shell of
the boiler being operated upon. What t hey used
was gen erally a n old driving belt . This made it
po~sible for them to live in a boiler-shop. Another
defect was that the tools were apt to drop out
when the air pressure was put on. They ha d also
found it advisable to put a shield to protect the
men's h ands from the exh aust air, as they were apt
otherwise to get numbed. In regard to Mr. Marriner 's remarks, they had found flexible pipes a
great source of trouble, as t hey were heavy
and cumbersome, whilst there was also, in spite
of every care, conside rable leakage from joints.
This matter wanted attention, and he was glad
to h ear what Mr. Marriner bad said. They
had n ot b een quite successful in t h eir effort8
in cutting tubes out of boilers . The proper way to
do this was to cut off the tubes close inside the
tub ~plates and let them drop down.
This they
ha d n ot q uite been able to do. Like Messrs .
Yarro w and Co., t h ey had at first found difficulty
in expanding tubes by pneumat ic machinery, but
that by experien ce had been overcome. They preferre d the lon g-stroke hammer to the sh ort-stroke
one. In r epair boiler work they found it very h ard
work cutting off the stayheads, and would b e glad
of a pneu matic hammer that would d o t he work.
Copper stayhead s could be cut off in 15 seconds
each, but they wa nted a tool to deal with steelri vets.
To t hose about to lay down pne umatic machinery, he
thought, perhaps, a lesson from t h eir experien ce at
Swindon would be of use. It was, when beginning,
begin big enough. At Swindon their mains a nd
compressing plant were n ow t oo small, and n early
all their troubles were from not having enough air.
No doubt the machinery was costly, but perhaps,
if some source of waste power could b e utilised,
the re would be an improvement; at Swindon they
used a pressure of 80 lb. to t h e square inch, but
he con sidered that too low. They h ad designed
a plan at Swindon for the utilisation of some waste
power. There they tested throe locomotives a day.
In p lace of running these ou t on the line, t h ey
would be worked in t h e sh op on rollers in a way
well known. They proposed to utilise the power
exerted by the locomotives during a test for working the air compressors.
Mr. Alfred Hanssen, from Messrs. Shone and
Gvvc.rOllldl t

E N G I N E E RI N G.

[l\1ARCII JO, I 900.

ARCHED BRIDGE ACROSS THE RIVER RHINE AT BONN; THE PORTALS.

(For De$cription, see Page 408.)

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E N G I N E E R I N G.
Ault, having had considerable experience with
pneumatic machinery, wished to make a few suggestions. First, with r egard to wear and tear of
the pneumatic tools. He had noticed that compressed air contained a good deal of grit and dust,
he had held his hand in front of a jet of air and
found this grit sharp enough to draw blood from
the hand. Naturally, such grit would wear out
the working parts, both of the air compressors and
of the air-driven machinery. The r emedy was to
filter the air before compression, which could be
readily done by passing it through a wet screen, a
wet coke-filter, or by washing it in a scrubber.
His second suggestion was wit h regard to the
economy in working t he tools. Complaints had been
made of the low efficiency of pneumatic transmission.
The reason of t his was that a great part of the work
of the air-compressing engine was being converted
into heat, and as the air was used cold and nonexpansively in the tools, all this heat was lost.
7
"'\\ hen working with an air pressure of 100 lb. per
square inch, and exhausting into the atmosphere, it
was impossible to get a. higher efficiency than about
28 per cent. from the indicated power in the steam
cylinder to the indi~1.ted power in the work ing
cylinder of the tool. The loss of power was therefore
72 per cent. This loss, could, h owever, be materially r educed by working with a closed circuit, using
a. return main in the same way as it was used for
hydraulic and electric motors. The loss of power
due to heating was not dependent upon the working
pressure used in the tools, but upon the ratio of
compression, that is, the quotient of the higher
pressure divided by the lower. Working with air
of 100 lb. pressure, and exhausting into the
1

a tmosphere, the quotient is ( ~ :

=) over 7,

but

working with a closed circuit, the lower pressure might be kept at 100 lb. per sq uare inch,
and the upper pressure at 200 lb. This would
still give an effective working ratio of corn pression instead of being over 7 would be reduced
t o ( 215 = ) less than 2. He, therefore, recom115
mended that the air compressor should draw air
from a. low-pressure air receiver, where the pressure
was 100 lb. per square inch, and discharge it in to a
highpressure air receiver at 200 lb. per square
inch , and that the pneumatic tools should draw
their air supply from t he high-pressure air receiver
and exhaust into the low-pressure air receiver
through a. return main. The compressed air would
thus be used over and over again. This system
had been used s uccessfnlly in some American
mines, but did not appear to be generally known.
It involved some additional complication in the
mains, but working in the manner described it was
p ossible to raise the efficiency from 28 to 53 per
cent., and the working expenses could thus be r educed nearly to one-half without making any alterations in the tools themselves. He thought that this
matter was well worth the consideration of t hose
who intended to introduce pneumatic tools into their
workshops.
~Ir. Samuelson, in replying to t he discussion,
said he wished it to be understood he did not infer
that power hammers would take the place of stea'!l
hammers for all purposes. From present experience he would not care to undertake to build a
power hammer over 10 ~wt. He was not ~ure th~t
he quite grasped the 1mport to Mr. S1mp13on s
question. In the paper the steam and power
hammers had Leen compared at full stroke and
utmost capacity, as t hat appeared to be t he fairest
method. His old friend , Mr. Chambers, who spoke
at the previous meeting, had been so mew hat inaccurate in his statement; he, the speaker, had found
that the first hammer had been down for seven
years and uot five year.s, as stated . He had never
been in a position, unttl recently, to know., what was
the nature of the work b eing done by Mr. Oha.mbere.
Mr. Chambers determined to do everything for hi~
self and kep t it all secret, and took all respo~sl
t>ility of design. Ho had overtasked t he machme
which, h e bad said, had been returned as a wreck,
but this hammer, as a matter of fact, after a fe.w
repairs, was disposed of as a second- ban~ tool1n
1896, and had b een put to work aga,m u p~n
10 h our's daily and continuous work, and was still
running. Th~y found s ubseq uently that the work
done by Mr. Chamben; was l"leing stamped on both
s ides of the tupp, as well as und.er t he centre, tl~us
setting up severe alternate strams and a?countmg
for the deterioratio:1. In rrgard to the adJ US'ments

for which Mr. Chambers asked, all had been given

him except the one which had only been stated
to be found necessary by Mr. Chambers after an
inten~al of eight years. Mr. Boorman had said that
a single blow could not be given. He thanked
Mr. Chambers for having denied this, and he
himself wished most emphatically to state that a
single blow could be struck almost as easily with a
Longworth hammer as with the steam hammer,
after the . operator had obtained a very little practice. He had not considered the problem of
using compressed air in a s team hammer.
Mr. Amos said that he was not responsible for
the arrangement of illustrations in the paper. If
more attention had been given to one hammer t han
another, it was because one had only just been
s tarted in this country, whilst of the other there
was considerable experience. The pressure of air
required varied according to the class of work to
be done. For s triking a blow and riveting the
pressure should be higher than for drilling, unless,
with t he latter, for very heavy work. In t he mains
the pressure should start at lOO lb. to 120 lb., and
t here should be an easy means of reducing pressure.
In bringing the meeting to a close, Mr. Wicksteed said that the next meeting would be on
April 26, when Professor Hele-Shaw would read
a paper on "Self -Propelled Carriages, , Mr.
Donkin having kindly withdrawn his paper on
" The Condensation in Steam Engine Cylindera ,
for the present to suit the arrangements of the
meeting.

ARCIIED BRIDGES OVER THE RHINE.*

(Continued from page 349.)

WE come now to the superstructure.

The
different competitors had proposed arch, suspension ,
h
and girder bridges. A girder bridge, it was thoug t,
would require considerably more material and
hardly please the public taste. Suspension bridges
h
need high piers, and do not convey t e impression
of the solid strength of the arch . Preference was,
therefore, given to the arch. To arrange the
road way tangential to the crown of the arch was
out of the question, considering the fiat banks of
the Rhine, which enters the lo wlands at Bonn,
and t he clear waterway required for shipping. The
case is different at Niagara Falls, at Mtingsten, and
\vith the I{ornhaus Bridge at Berne, to q uote a few
recent examples of fine arched bridges, where steep
bluffs rise from the river . This applies also to the
L evensau Bridge over t he North-East Sea Canal,
which, as we pointed out in a previous article, was
built by the same firms, the Gute Hoffnungshutte
and R. Schneider, of B~rlin . It was decided at
Bonn to place the roadway underne.'\th the arch,
so far as this is possible ; as we shall see, only
th e first two panels are intersected by the r oad way.
An intermediate solution was also thought of, the
one adopted at the Grunenthal Bridge over the
N orth-Ea.st Sea Canal. In the Gri.inenthal cutting
t he rail track crosses the crescent-shaped girders at
about mid height. Our readers may compare the
L evensau and the Griinenthal Bridges in our issue
of August 16, 1895. Personally, we share the
liking for the graceful crescent-shaped arch which
seemed to predominate on the canal. But we
readily acknowledge that the bowstring girder arch
appears better adapted to t he local conditions on
the Rhine, and that the Gute Hoffnungshutte has
erected a handsome, harmonious structure.
The road way is suspended from the main arch and
borne by t he side arches, which, indeed, appear as
continuations of t he lower members of the main
girder . The rise of the main arch- of which we
shall speak now-is such that at full load the res ultant of the t hrust on t he piers would cut the
axis of tho pier base. The maximum pressure of
the iron structure against t he Rkewbacks is 50
kilogrclmmes per square centimetre (711 lb. per
square inch). This maximum pressure could arise
in two ca.ses; during the construction, because the
main arch was erected before t he side arches ; and
afterwards, with fully loaded side arch and unloaded main arch . 'rhe maximum pressure on t he
subsoil, corresponding to t hese cases, would be
5.2 or 5. 6 kilogrammes per square centimetre. By
erecting the main arch without the footpath in
t he first instance, the figure 5.6 has been reduced
to 4. :~. The strcsse::; in t he stone pier do not exceed

--

* Th e

pr~v ions articl~s

F~bru:l.ry !) and ~!arch 16.

appea.rt_d_ i_n_ o_u_r -

i-s~-UlS ~

[MARCH 30, I goo.

12 k~logrammes per square centimetre. Thecalculatwns for the bearing capacity of the superstructure .h~ve beon based upon the most unfavour
ab.l e co~d1bons ?f. dead and moving loads that might
anse, smgly or JOintly. The maximum load for the
footpaths crowded with people has been estimated
at 500 kilogrammes per square metre for the whole
bridge at 400 kilogrammes per squ~re metre. As
regards the roadway, steam and electric trams a
13-ton steam roller, and cart.q have been taken
consideration, and the moving loads are reckoned
equivalent to 1.3 of the dead loads. The wind
pressure has been allowed for at 150 kilogrammes
per sq uare metre (31 lb. per square foot) of
actual surface when under load, including a belt
rising 2. 5 metres (8 ft. 3 in.) above the roadway, and a.t 250 kilogrammes for the wind area not
under load. The temperature fluctuations may
have a range of 60 deg. Cent., between - 20 deg.
and + 40 deg. (- 4 deg. and + 104 deg. Fahr. ).
The calculations proved that the most unfa vourable
condit ions would occur, when the trackway and the
one footpath be loaded to their fullest capacity,
while the other footpath remains empty. The
graphic statics of Muller-Breslau limit under these
circumstances the stresses per sectional unit, owing
t o vertical dead and live loads, to

U:to

k=950 (1+

~min. 8 )
max. S

in kilogrammes per square centimette, where S

indicates the absolutely lowest or highest strajn.
The maximum permissive stress for vertical load,
wind pressure, and temperature variation is 1425
kilogrammes per square centimetre (9.05 tons per
square inch). F or parts exposed to wind stresses
only, the limit is 700 kilogrammes per square centimetre (4.4 tons per square inch). For rods under
compression, a factor of safety of fire, according to
Euler's formula, has been demanded as a minimum.
Mild steel, mostly from basic Siemens-Martin furd
naces, has exclusi\'ely been used. Two hundre sets
of samples were tested, and six of these rejec~d.
The breaking tests yielded as averages, longitudinally
~ 9 . 8 kilogrammes per square millimetre (25.3 tons
per square inch), with an elongation of 26. 6 per cent.
(the stipulated limits were 37 to 44 kilogrammes,
and 20 per cent. ); and transversely, 40.11 kilogrammes (25.4 tons per square inch), with an
elongation of 23 . 85 per cent (limits specified, 36 and
.
.
45 kilogrammes and 17 per cent.).
The members of the girders are fix ed m vertical
)
Th f 11
planes, 9 metres (29 ft. 6 m. apar~.
e. u
width of t he r oad way and footways combmed
) h f t
being 14 metres (45 ft. 11 in. , t e oo wa~s
project by 2. 5 metres (8 ft. 3 in.). The span IS
187 . 92 metres; the rise of the lower boom 1s 29.6
metres. The distance between the two members
in the same vertical plane decreases from 10.6~7
to 4. 8 metres (about 34 .5 ft. and 15.8 ft. ). The pm
of the bearing lies at + 9.52 metres B.P.; the
arch culminates at 45.5 B.P., 42.75 metres
( 141 ft.) above mean water level. The arches
are divided into panels of uniform length, 7.8
metres (25 ft 7 in.), and the panels are num~ered
1 , 2 _ 12 from the piers to the middle of the brtdge.
In most of the diagrams the ,erticals are nu~bered,
beginning with vertical 0 next to the p1er (see
Fig. 43 on our twopage plate).
The arched ribs are box girders, but only the upper
members are covered in throughout ; the lower
members are mostly open on top and bottom. I!l
Fig. 45 , at the bottom of our twopage pl.ate, maXI
mum and minimum sectwos
of th e gnders are
grouped together, three of the upper members
being marked U, those of the lower L
. ; the V refers
to the verticals the D to t h e d 1agona1s. The
smallest section; of the main arch ribs are for~ed
by webs 680 by 8 millimetres (26.8 in. by 0.3 m.),
544 millimetres apart, with fou.r angles of. 14~
by 140 by 15 millimetres (5.5 m. by 0.~ m.),
the efficient area is 269 square cent1metr~s
(41. 7 square inches). The central panels conta1~
the weakest lower members, two webs, 7~~ by 1
millimetres (:30. 7 in. by 0.47 in. ), 538 m1lhmetillr~s
( 21. 2 in.) apart, four angles 160 by 160 by 19 m
metres ( 6 . 3 in. by 0. 75 in.), and four ~aoge plates
the efficient area is 506 square cent1metres (78.
square inches). The webs of t he upper boom~
were all rolled in full width, those of t.h~ loweer
members in two paTts, 525 and 255 mtlbmetr
( 20. 7 in . and lOin. ) in height. The segments are not
~tr~i ght, but curved to circular arcs. The w~bs
had, tlurefore, Lo pass t~uough a special pla~dlD~
machine, in which the hon zontal plates were gut e

1:
4

fvlARCH 30, I 900.

E N G I N E E R I N G.

--

. cular path and cut simultaneously by two them plates, of 310 by 10 millimetres. The gal~~~rs c~ both edges. The gradual streng~hening vanised 6-millimetre (0. 2 in.) buckle plates (Fig. 50)
of the rib sections u~ to 9~9 square centimetres are fixed to these last-mentioned flange plates.
...
are inches) ruaxm1um m the case of the upper The general arrangement of the road way will be
(10 5 ~:rs and to 1630 square centimetres (253 understood front Figs. 43 and 44; details of the con~~:re in'ches) in the case of the lower ~el!lbers, nections between the rods and the transverse
,!s effected by weans of one or two 15-nulhmetre girders can be seen in Fig. 52, page 406; Figs. 49,
_ in.) plates on. the w~bs, and up to t~re.e 60, and 51, on our two-page plate, show con06
l9-millimetre
(0. 75 m.) flat uonE', or two 10-milh- structi ve details of the girders. Vve notice in the
metie (0.4 in.) flange plt~otes. The lower angles of webs, apertures for the gas pipes, which are
the two halves of the upper members, and the upper spirally welded, and for the drain pipes. The
d the lower angles of the lower members, are hrackets are built up of two [ -irons with an interafffi
ed by means of lattice bars, as well as by the mediate web as upper boom, and two angle and a
81
t~~ls which are riveted into the girders and the plate of 105 by 12 millimetres as lower boom.
~~r ~ragms of the wind bracing. Figs. 46 and 47
Of the longitudinal girders, five run und erneath
~a~
oints in the booms. The diagonals D of Fig. 43 the r oadway proper, and two under each footpath.
0
s sJt of two or four plates from 340 to 400 milli- rhe extreme footpath girder is 0. 65 metre (25. 6 in.)
contres (13.4 in. to 15.8 in.) wide, and from ~2 to from the outer edge. The five are at equal in~eo millimetres thick, joined to both the Inner ter,als apart (Fig. 44); three of t hem are 1-beams,
su~faces of the webs, and of t'Yo angle:irons 10~ by 750
6~~ millimetr~s (29.5 or 2~.6 in.) h~gh, best
100 by 12 or 14 millimetres (4 m. by 4In. by t 1n. ). seen 1n FIg. 53 ; the two outer gtrders, still under
osite
angles
are
connected
by
lattice
stays.;
the
~oadway proper, a:e connected with the. wind
0
tt!sections of these diagonals vary betwec~ 16.3 : bracUJg, a~d are lathc~d: The footJ?ath grrders
and 301 square centimetres (25.3 an~ 46.7 s~.. In. ). have. a ~e1 gh~ of 500 millimetres (20 I_n. ). These
Close to the pier the road way Is, as l.i 1g. 43 long1tudmal girders are not to act as tie~, and are

o:

pose, there have been put i.n the plane of the

upper members at each vert!cal, .cross-stays, c~n
sisting of 400-millimetre latt1ce guders, each with
two angles, 100 by 70 by 8 millimetres, al?d
further double diagonals. The la:tter _are ~mlt
up each of four angles varying m d1mens1?n.s
between 14.0 by 140 by 16 and 65 by 65 by 8 millimetres at their intersection the angles are 350
millim~tres (13.8 in.) apart, and they taper towards
both ends The horizontal sides of these skeleton
boxes are latticed with flat irons, 50 by 8 millimetres, the vertical sid es with angle irons, 60 b.y
80 by 8 millimetres. Very good photog~ap_hs of thlB
wjnd bracing will be found in the descnptwn _of the
Du sseldorf Bridge, which will follow th1s art10le on
tho Bonn Bridge. The photograph of the po~tal reproduced in Fig. 54, page 406, gives a clear Idea. of
the general a.rrangemenb. We also see that w1th
vertical 3 a lattice-girder bracing is introduced between corresponding poi~t s of the lower girdc~s, as
well as a system of diagonals, formed of angle u ons
of 70 by 70 by 9 millimetres, placed in t he plane of
t he verticals (Fig. 49), which transfer the stresses
over to the upper booms. The same stiffening is repeat ed between the lower booms and the roadway.

I
I

I
I

Fig.58.

--

'

0
0

'?
I

------ ---- - -------

---...zsoo--- - --)il

-..-.----- - -t- -n~r.f--34-:ur - - ----)11

shows, supported by the v~rticals matked V . in

Fig. 45. Apart from the vertical No. 2, down whiCh
the wind bracing is carried, they are all !-beams,
500 millimetres (20 in.) in height, with four angles.
Their efficient eection increases from 261 to 348
square centimetres (40 to 54 square inches); they
fit exactly into the ribs; in the weaker panels
only, intermediate plates have been inserted. The
suspension rods are joined to the third and the
subsequent verticals, and consist of webs 476 by
8 millimetres (18.4 in. by 0. 3 in.), and four angles
100 by 100 by 10 millimetres. These rods have to
bear the direct load which may amount to 75 tons
and, further, to absorb the longitudinal temperature
distortions. Rods 4, 5, and 6 have, therefore, a
web thickness of 12 millimetres ; while the angles
have been reduced to 80 by 80 by 10 millimetres.
The latter two rods have lengths of 8.5 and 11
metres (28 ft. and 36 ft.) ; rod 4 is only 5. 5
metres (18 ft.) long. At this last point a further
strengthening was required, and a kind of elastic
band joint has been adopted, the feur angles being
replaced by fishplates : two in the upper part
coverin.g a length of
in. ; two in the lower part:
extending over 24 m. Further details of the
arched ribs and verticals can be seen in Figs. 48,
49, and 59, the two former on our two-page plate
and the latter on page 407.
Corresponding to the panels of the arched ribs
the roadway is divided into sections 7.8 metres i~
length. The suspension rods are connected with
transverse girders which are produced to form
t~e lattice. brackets of the footpaths. The cross
~~ders_ (Ftg. 49) are deepest-1210 millimetres
h4~.6 m.)-about the longitudinal axis of the
ndge, over a length of 3.6 metres the depth
:r~es to 1~10 millimetres (39. 7 i~. ). At the
~bum sect_10~, the girder consists of a web
121 . ~ 12 millimetres, angles of 100 by 100 by
12
~m~etres, two lower flange plates 260 by
100
~
tmetres, and two upper flange plates the
pP1ates 210 by 11.6 millimetres, and under~ea.th

;6

hence cut at vertical No. 3, as will be explained

presently. The roadway is further supported at
equal intervals of 1.56 metres (61 in.) by cross
I- beams, four of which belong to each section of
7.8 metres length. To these beams correspond
smaller-sized beams under the footpath s ; they are
secured to the girder next to the gutter, and
rest upon the extreme girder n ear the parapet.
The concave buckle plates of the roadway are
110 millimetres (4. 3 in.) in depth ; they are
covered with b eton, the l~yer varying in depth
between 75 and 190 millimetres (3 in. to 7. 5 in.),
and levelled above with 20 millimetres (0. 8 in. )
of cement. The tram rails are en1bedded in cement
mortar. Of the wooden pavement of Swedish pine,
longitudinal rows were first laid along the rails ;
then came the other blocks which are separated by
cross joints 0.4 in. in width, filled with cement
mortar. The two rows of blocks along the gutters
are lower and cast with asphalte cement. Plane
plates reach over from the edge girders of the roadway to the inner girder of the footpath (Fig. 53,
page 406). The kerbstones of basalt lava are fixed
on these plates by means of riveted brackets and
angles. Behind the kerbstone, conduits have been
provided for water pipes ; the conduit on the
down-river side contains for the present only a
cable by means of which furth er pipes or cables may
be drawn in. The footpath is paved with 40-millimetre (1.6 in. ) slabs of beton, 0.6 metre (2ft.)
in length laid between the fl -irons ; over these
comes a. layer of rammed-down beton, 2 in. in
thickness, and finally 0.8 in. of aspha.lte.
Both the girders and the roadway are provided
with wind bracings. The main wind bracing begins
at the bearings of the arch, follows the lower
membero up to vertical 2, ascends in this vertical
which has been developed into a str ong p ortal
(Figs. 54 to 58, page 406 and present page), and
then proceeds along the upper metnbers. The
right and left halves are symmetrical. In addition to strengthening the main ribs for this pur-

As already pointed out above, the wind bracing

of the roadway (Fig. 53, page 406) is joinfd to the
edge girders of the roadway proper. Flat plates
riveted to the girders reach over to the inner longitudinal girders of the footway. These plates and
the buckle plates make the upper bracing. The lower
bracing comprises webs of 400 by 12 millimetres,
with two angles of 110 by 110 by 12 millimetres
connected with the lower booms of the longitudinal
edge girders ; further, t here are the transverse
girders and a double system of diagonal stays. The
arrangements resemble those just described for the
arched girders, but smaller sections have been
adopted. The bracing would have afforded sufficient strength. In order to meet all lateral vibrations, however, the extreme longitudinal girders
under the footway have, by a reticu]ar system of
stays, been joined with the buckle-plate girders,
special calculations having proved that the extreme
longitudinal girders would not be unduly exposed
to stresses by this connection.
The longitudinal girders and the roadway wind
bracing could not be made continuous lest the
roadway should participate in the stresses of the
arch. The cut is at vertical 3, as shown in
Fig. 55 above and Fig. 57 on page 406, and 1nore
in detail in Figs. 63 and 64 on our two-page
plate. Brackets riveted to the transverse girder
of the roadway at that point form a bearing,
on which the edge longitudinal girders rest with
their upper booms, and the three inner longitu..
dinal guders with their lower booms. Castings

E N G I N E E R I N G.

410

[MARCH 30, I 900.

12-POUNDER QUICK-FIRING FIELD GUN AND CARRIAGE.

CON TRUCTED

BY

:.ME '

' R~.

V ICKER ',

SON ' ,

AND

:MAXIM,

LIMITED,

AT

THEIR

WORK~,

ERITH

KENT.

(For Description, see Page 412.)

... - .

"'

'4

,._

FIG. 50 .

-Fig. 51.
Soale

18

tA

0
0

0
0

Fig . 62.
r

o o

ooo 00
Oo oo o o

ooooo

f--

---

- - -

..........---.-

- - - - - - - -

-1~?-

4 it

E N G I N E E RI N G.

MARCH 30, I 900]

=

12-POUNDER QUICK-FIRING FIELD GUN AND CARRIAGE.

CON TRUCTED

13Y

l\IE

RS.

VICKEH. ',

'ON. ',

AND

l\lAXlM,

LIMITED,

AT

THEIR

ERITH

\VORK.,

KENT.

(For Dcsc1iption, see Page 412. )

Fig.54.

'I

I
I
I

I
I
I

I
I
I

\
I

'I

I
I
I

'

I
I
I

1-------

.. ----

. 55." -----'

----

F rcs. 53 r o 55.

.1

'

BREECH M ECH ANI SM .

:,..

.
~

1ot;

--

'

F IG. 56.

LIMBE R AND \VAOON.

lt

fixed to the transverse girder on t he one side I plate, has t wo sliding bearings on t he pier, also a ' clearing may vary by 30 millimetres,
in. in all.
r~d t~ the lower booms on the other, preven t any guide block, sliding in a trough in the pier, and, The joint is covered by 13-millimetre (0.5-in. ) plates
a era sway. That. part of t.he roadway is thus furt her, n ear the bearings, double anchors, which, of corrugated iron which are fixed to an iron of
~upp.orte.d by th? pter, wpere it has free~om of whilst allowing. oscill~tions, tak.e up any tilting [ .section, serving as k erb for the wooden paveongttud.mal mot10n, and by the suspension rod moment. t hat mtght anse from d1fferences of level. ment near t he pier (Fig. 66). Corresponding to
~ vertt~l 3, whi~e it is fixed in the por tal. \Vith the extreme temperature deviations of 30 deg. this [ -beam is a Z -girder, bolted to t he p ier ;
tra~ de~ F?ross grrder of the roadway, illus- Cent . (54 deg. Fahr.) from t he mean temperature t he upper edge of t his girder lies 1.25 in. below
e m Igs. 66, 66, and 67 on our two-page of 10 deg. Cent. (50 deg. Fahr. ), the width of th e 1 t he [ -beam. Small gutters lead away any water

E N G I N E E R l N G.

412
dripping throu~h the gap.
On the footpaths,
which are earned r ound the t owers of the piers,
t~e cut st arts from the bracket joined to the vertiCal 0, and proceeds obliquely out ward, as is
marke~ in Fig. 44. The [ irons and corrugat ed
ex~answn cover-plat es are of the kind just d escrl bed, and similar provision has been made on
the other side of the pier where t h e side arch b egins.
The .end c~oss girder an~ t he expansion plates are
pr?vided w1th grooves ( F1g. 65) for the rails. The
ratls themselves ~re provided wit h expansion joints,
long fishplates w1 th oval bolt-holes, which leave the
b olts some long itudinal play. A similar adjustme~t ha.~ been provided for the extreme longitudinal girders under the footway. The level differences between the tw0 parts of the r oad way
c~used by the elo~gation and t emperature cxpa.n~
swn of t he v~r~lCals and s uspension -rods, n1ay
amount to 12 m1lhmetres (0.47 in. ). T o counteract
t hese effects, t he bolt connections, three in each
case, between t he end cross girders, the upper
booms of t he longit udinal girder, and the vert icals
of ~he lower latticed wind bracing, have been allowed
a h t tle play. The longitudinal variations in the
open join t at vertical 3 m ay reach 20 millimet res
(0. 8 in.) in eit her direction. The adjustment has
b een effected in practically the same manner as
n ear the st one pier, but oak balks have bet!n s ubstituted for the sp ecial girders spoken of.
The arch rests with t wo pin bearings on each
pier (Fig. 43). The bearing block (Figs. 60, 61,
and 62), is a ribbed piece of cast iron 2.2 by 1.8
m etres (86.6 in. by 71 in.) on its lower, and 1.2 by
1.25 metre (47 in. by 49 in.) on its u pper base, 0.8
m etre (31.5 in .) high, weighing oYer 10 t ons . It leans
against the ske wbacks of granite, which are carefully coated with cement mortar, and ar e entirely
embedded in bricks. A piece of sh eet lead, 4 millimetres (k in. ) in t hickness, forms a cushion for the
iron block, which in its turn holds the saddle bear ing ; the latter is secured by m eans of four lat eral
steel wedges and by as many underneath. Temporary wedges wer e inserted during the erection of
the arch. The arch ends in a semi-cylindrical shoe
which corresponds t o the bearing shoe of the saddle.
The flanged p in, lying on these shoes, has a length
of 925 millimetres (36. 4 in. ), and a diameter of 250
millimetres (10 in. ). All these parts are in st eel.
The largest gran tte blocks of the skewback are
1.195 by 2.4 by 0.7 m etres (47 in. by 94.5 in. by
27.6 in.). U nderneath are blocks of basalt Java.
(To be con tinued.)

MODERN FIELD ARTILLERY.

(Continued from page 373.)

THE 12-P ouNDER GUN AND ITS E QUIPMENT.

MESSRS. V IOKERS, SoNs, AND M AXI M manufacture several types of 12-pounder breech loading
q uick-firing guns, including a naval gun with a
muzzle energy of 632 foot-tons, us ually fitted on a
conical mount; a field g un ; and a separate g un, t he
latter made t o be detachable in parts along with the
carriage, so that men may carry it in sections with
its equipment. This latter gun we shall illustrate
in our n ext art icle ; in this issue we illustrate the
equipment of the field gun, a general view of the
carriage being shown in Figs. 51 and 52, page 410,
while the engraving, Fig. 50, shows the carriage
limbered up.
The gun itself is of st eel and of wire construct ion; it is 22 calibres long in the b ore, the total
length from the breech face t o t he muzzle being
5 ft. 11.05 in. It is constructed with a str ong inner
tube, round which wire is t ightly wound, t h e wire
extending over the chamber and t hat portion of the
bore where the highest pressures ar e exp erienced.
The wire is covered by a s teel j ack et, which ext ends the whole lengt h of the g un, and is connect ed
by shoulders t o the inner tube at the chase and
muzzle. At the breech end a bush is screwed into
the jacket holdin~ the inner tube in .posit ion. The
bush is scr ewed Internally to receive the b reech
plug of t h e mechanism. . On t he ja:ck et t here a: e
formed t ru nnions by wluch the gun 1s supported 1n
the carriage, and there are bosses for taking t he
sigh ts.
Th e BrePch lt!echrcnis1n (F igs. 53 to 55, page 411).
- The b reech mechan ism is opened or closed by t he
h orizon tal m ovement of t he hand -lever, so t hat t he
same action rotates, locks or unlocks t he breech
plug, and swings it around t he pivo.t on whic~ it
is m ounted . The arrangemen t consists of a hnk,
one end of which is pivot ed on a pin projecting
from the r ear face of the breech p lug, so that the

link works in a plane parallel t o the breech

face of t he gun. The other end of t he link is
pivoted to a short crank, which is mounted on the
plug carrier, and around the b oss of this crank
are formed sk ew gear teeth. The hand-lever i or
actuating the breech mechanism is pi voted on the
plug carrier, and m oves in a plane at right angles
to the breech face of the gun. Around the boss of
this hand-lever is fitted a skew gear wheel which
gears with the sk ew gear t eeth formed on the boss
of the crank.
The whole is arranged and proport ioned in such
a manner t hat when the breech is closed, the handlever lies close up to the breech face of the gun ;
the centres of t he link and crank are so arranged
that when the breech is closed the centre lines of
t he link and crank form a nearly straight line, the
pivot j oint at the link and crank being a lit tle past
the d ead line cent re, thus forming a locking point.
This arrangement of centres and pivots, together
with the relative lengths of the link and crank, provide great power when opening or closing the
breech. On swinging the hand-lever away from
t he gun when opening the breech, the crank moves
the link past the locking cent re a short distance
wit hout causing any perceptible movemen t of the
plug. The further movement of the hand-lever
causes t he cran k to turn, and by means of the link
rotat es the plug, at first very slowly (thus obtaining great power), and t hen more rapidly until it
becomes unscrewed . The carrier then m oves with
the lever swinging the plug clear of the gun.
The firing gear is arranged for firing with friction
t u be, and is operat ed by the link of the mechanism,
so that at the first movement t o unlock t he breech
plug it becomes impossible to fire the gun. An
extractor is fi t ted t o t his firin g gear, which automatically ej ects t he em pty tubes during t he opening of the breech m echanism. A retaining ca tch
automat ically worked in connection wit h t he extractor prevents the t ube from being jerked out
when closing the breech.
The breech plug is of special construction, and is
thread ed in segmental por t ions in st eps of varying
radii. By this arrangem ent, the plug, which is
divided into six segments, has two-thirds of its circumference threaded and useful for m eeting the
st rains on the breech, while the ordinary breech
plug has only half its circumference threaded, and
similarly useful. This enables the breech plug to
be very short, so that it can be swung clear of
the breech after unlocking, without any curvature,
and without the usual longitudinal withdrawal of
the plug.
The Field Carriage (Figs. 50 to 52). - The carriage, which is illustrat ed on page 410, is p rincipally constructed of steel, and consists of a top
carriage wit h elevating and t raining gear, trail
r ecoil buffer, axle, and wheels. The top carriage
is pivoted at its rear to a bracket con tained on the
t rail, and at its fron t end is clipped to another
bracket on w hi eh it is free to m ove so as t o give
P articulars of 12-P ounder B1ecchloading F ield Gun .
12.5 lb.
...
Weight of projecbile ...
3 in.
... .. . ...
Diameter of bore

Length of bore ...

...

...

22 calibres

(66 in. )
71.05 in.

Total length of gun . . .

. ..
. ..
3.4 ,,
Diameter of chamber .. .
.. .
. ..
9. 66 ,
Lenp;th of chamber . ..
...
...
14.5 tons
Ma.x1mum pressure in chamber
...
13,75 oz.
.. .
...
. ..
Weight of charge
605 lb.
Total weight of gun and mechanism
Muz:de velocity
...
...
. .. 1560 foot-sec.
12
.. .
Rounds per mmute ...
. ..
30 in.
Length of recoil
..
...
. ..
60 ,
...
...
Diameter of wheels ...
62 ,
Track of wheels
.. .
. ..
. ..
16 deg.
Angle of elevation . ..
...
. ..
5 ,,
,,
depression .. .
.. .
.. .
8 ,.
,
training
. ..
.. .
.. .
44.75
...
. ..
H eight of axis of gun . ..
cwt. qrs. lb.
...
.. . 12 3 20
Weight of carriB~ge ...
,
limber, including stores
and 40 rounds of amm unition ... 14 1 22
Weight of wagon with storei and 60
rounds of ammunition
...
... 17 3 19
4 deg. training on either s id e of the centr e line ;
it is p rovided with bearings and cap-squn.res for
taking the t runnions of t he gun.
The elevating gear is contained in th e top carriage, and consists of a hand wheel with a spindle
actuating a pair of bevel wheels, one of which is
formed as a n ut in which t he elevating screw
works ; this screw is conn ected to a lever hinged
to t he top carriage, and on this t he gun rests.
The training gear is placed on t he left-hand side

[MARCH

30, I 900.

of the trail and consists of t wo bevel wheels and a

s?rew working in a nut connect ed to the top carriage.
'l'he trail, which is constructed with steel plates
streng then ed by transoms, is fit ted with a sho~
provided ~ith an eye for limbering up. In front
of the tra1l and on t he other side is a bracket
for a tt aching the piston of the recoil buffer. The
axle is secured to the trail by brackets.
The axle is stiffened by means of a st eel plate
fit ting over it , and on t his plate are fastened, as
shown in Fig. 52, two ammunition boxes, which are
each fitted to hold t wo shells, two cartridges, and
two fuses ; the shells may be carried fused if required.
The recoil buffer consists of the piston, hydraulic
cylinder and spring (Fig. 51).
The hydraulic
cylinder, which is connected to the trail by chains,
is fitted with a strong spade at t he rear. All parts
of the carriage are free to recoil except the recoil
buffer.
On firing, the spade is forced into the ground,
thereby arresting all movement of the cylinder
r earwards, but the trail being free to move to the
rear, forces the piston-rod into the hydraulic cylinder, thereby displacing the liq uid, and at the same
time compressing the spring. After the energy of
r ecoil has been absorbed, the part stored up in the
spring serves to run t he gun forward into firing
position again. If required, the recoil buffer can
be removed and the mounting used as an ordinary
fi eld carriage.
The carriage is fitt ed with a travelling brake,
which can be manipulated both from the rear and
front of the carriage. The brake is housed against
t he sides of the trail during firing. A handspike
made of steel t ube is provided for moving t he trail,
and is housed on t he trail in two bracket~.
TheLirnber ( Figs. 56 to 58, page 414).-The limber,
of which various views are given, is constructed to
carry 40 rounds of amm unit ion, and consists of the
axletree, framework, limber, box wheels, and pole.
The axle is built up, and consists of a thin steel
tube around and along which are fitted two girderplates, with their flanges riveted together, and the
di verging top flanges riveted to the steel angles
forming the frame of the limber. To this frame
work ar& fixed the axle-arms, which are finished to
receive the same pattern wheels as u~ed in the c~r
riage. The drag-hooks, the extenswns of whiCh
serve as stays for strengthening t he framework, ar
fixed to the front angle of t he frame ; to this is also
attached the fitting for the pole. The footboard
consists of a perforated steel plate riveted on lo the
frame. To the r ear end of the frame is fixed the
limber hook, which has a projecting plat e for the
buffer spade to rest upon when travelling.
The limber box is composed of a skel.eton frame
covered wit h t hin steel plates. In .t~lS skel~ton
box are, housed in guides, t he ammumt10n ~arners,
which serve as stores and portable mag~zmes for
transferring t he ammunition from the hmber . to
the gun. The pole is made of steel tube w1th
necessary fittings for at t aching the same to the
limber.
..
Wagon (Figs. 56 and 59).- The am~u.rutio?
wagon, which carries 60 rounds of ammu~1t10n, lB
construct ed on the same principle as the hmb~r as
regards axle, frame, and box. It is fitte~ w1t~ a
short t rail pole, provided with an eye for limbe~ng
up. It is also fit ted wit h a travelling brake, wh1ch
is actuated from t he r ear of t he wagon.
.
Amnvnniti on Oar1iers.-The ammunition earners
are made of aluminium alloy, and provided with a
leather handle for carrying ; they are arr~nged
internally t o hold t hree shells, three cartridge~,
and t hree fuses, and are fitted with a. loose ~artl
tion, which separates t he shells from t he cartrtdg~
and fuses. This partition is so arra~ged tha~ 1t
can easily be r eversed, and by so domg suffiCI~nt
r oom is obtained t o enable the shells to be earned
fused.
(To be continued. )

TH E LANGEN !t'IONOR.<\IL SUSPENDED

RAILWAY AT ELBERFELD-BARMEN.
in June 1897 * we last referred to sus
pendcd r~ilroads, ~unni~g on one, or chiefl y on one,
rail, we described what was only a bold and '"ery
interesting experiment. To-day we have ~o record
real progress- a suspended railway ?ar~1ed over
narrow streets, and following t he wmdmgs of a
WHEN

* See ENOlNEERINO, vol. lxiii., page 788.

MARCH 30, 1900.]

E N G I N E E R I N G.

part of which was in working order all last t ion of an upright and an inverted T with two correct. A stron g deviation by the carriage from
rtver, er and which will be opened to public traffic rails on th e upper, and two on the lower boom. It th e vertical is n ot in itself h azardous, n or must
~~~:a c~urse of this year. Tl~e system. is th at of has the appearance of simplicity, without t h e it n ecessarily lead to oscillations, even when sp eeds
are adopted on sharp curves which would not be
nn<YeD and the locality the SlSter towns reality.
L
h W
R'
.
Eugen ,. o ,
The r ailroads of Cook, exhibited at t he Chicago tho ugh t of on ordinary double-rail t r acks. Thus
Elberfeld
and
Barmen,
on
t
e
upper
1ver
m
0f
.
Exhibition in 1893, and of Dietrich, Berlin, 1895, cur ves of radii of 50, 2o, 10 metres have been
Rhenish Prussta.
.
Eu<YeD Langen, bor~ ~83~ m .Cologne, where he may be classed in a second gr oup. The car riage passed over at speeds of 66, 48, 26 kilometres per
died fn 1895, gained d1sttnct10n m sev~ral branc~es is eccentrically suspended from an apparently hour (41, 30, 16 m iles), and with the carriages def
noineerin
<Y.
He
had
taken
part
m t h e destgn simple c~ntral post and supported by g uide r ails fl ected by 35, 36, 27 deg. ; the passengers did not
0
The cent r e of gravity is to feel any swinging motion. But it is, of course, necesf ~h: Otto gas engine of 1867, whose appear- n ear its bottom.
~nce marks the beginning of the practica~ er a the s ide of t he rails, and t he torsional strain~S sary that the t ransition from one cur ve into anoth er
of gas motors. Otto and Lan~en established still greater t han in the former cases. Nor would is sufficiently g radual to allow the carriage to come
tl 6 gas motor works at Deutz, s1tuated on the matters be mended by having al ways two carriages back from its deflected position with out starting
_1 t1t bank of the Rhine, opposite Cologne, and in motion, running in opposite directions on adjacent to oscillate. The time occupied on an intermediate
rJg early experiments w1t 11 sus pend e d r a il ways tracks. A third group is r epresentecl by E nos and arc must, it has been demonstrated, at least be
the
were made at Deutz. Langen also t ried h~ skill Perlay H ale and many others. The cars ar e s us- equal to the oscillation period of t he carriage
electrotechnical manufacture. He was constdered pended from T-posts ; t he cen tre of gravity is itself. Though deflections of 30 deg. have been
~ expert on patent legisla~ion, and w~s concern ed below t h e upper wheel, and g uide rails ar e placed fo und quite safe, th e carriages of the actual railway
in many industrial enterprises. The tdea of sus- e ither under t he b ottom of t he carriage or on t he at Elberfeld do n ot diverge by more than 7 deg.
pended cars was suggested to him b:y the t ransp?rt top, in which latter case long suspen sion h ooks from t h e perpendicular.
Oth er causes which might disturb t he equilidifficulties in the . sugar ~orks whiCh he had In- are required. The objections a re less str ong t han
brium of t h e carriage may apparently b e n eglected.
herited, and in whtch he ~ntroduced sever al note- in th e second case, but t hey exist.
It would appear t hat the designer s or cons tructors It is only the centrifugal force which has to be conworthy improvements of hts own. I n the field of
monorail railways he was, of course,. ~ot ~ne of t he of these systems were afra id of the oscillations of sidered. The wind force has n ot made itself felt,
first. but it will be seen t hat he dtffers tn several the CcLrriage. The mass of t he carriage is, how- neither on t h e experimental track, nor on the Elberimpo~tant respects ft:om his predecessors, a~d t he ever, so g reat, and its vibrations are so slow, t hat feld Rail way ; in exceptional cases it would, we
Elberfeld Railroad ts certamly the only hne to we s hould be able to avoid unpleasan t oscillations pres ume, interfere. It seems to be very diffiwhich the term " monorail " can strictly be without having reco urse to auxiliary r ails . For cult to set up oscillation s by any commowith g uide rails we sacrifice most of the advantages tion within t he carriages. The passenger s have .
applied.
.
Vve reviewed the early htstory of so called m ono- that s uspended railw~ty carriages may offer. The repeatedly been asked to si t down on t he one
rail systems in 1886, * and ther~ is n o n eed of our fascinations which suspended mon orail systems s ide, to rise simultan eo usly, and to change over to
traversing the same ground agam. A few remarks exercise on some minds ar e not shared by all en- t h e other side ; the oscillations were hardly percepwill however, be apposite. I.tenry Robinson gineers, so t hat it m ay be worth while to examine tible. The getting in and out is a little m or e n otice Pal~1er who is the first inventor on r ecord the q uestion for a moment with r egard to the able, and migh t create a difficul ty, as it would cause
in thi; subject, really started in 1821 with claims put forward by t he advocates of t he the carriage to s way as it left t he station. The
one rail. His car con sisted of two panniers Langen system. I t is suggested that, apar t from t rouble can, ho wever, be overcome by providing th e
suspended fr~m either side of th~ cross yoke th e speed limits which points and s wi tch es impose bottom of the carriage with a. spring which bears
connecting hts t wo wheels, runnmg t h e one upon us, th e two rails of s urface tracks are t h em- agains t t h e platform of the station.
behind the other. It is interesting to r ecord sel ves detrimen tal, inasmuch as t heir parallelism
(To be continued.)
that as early as 1826, a model of t he Robinson and equal level cannot always b e maintained, so
Palmer system was exhibited in the museum t hat the carriages must vibrate, and t he permanen t
gardens of Elberfeld, in order to arouse interest way suffer. On curves t he outer rail is elevated .
.AN AMERICAN HIGJI BUILDING.
for the scheme of a P almer coal railroad between This must not be overdone, and t h e level difference
ON page 418 we publish two views of the new offices
Elberfeld and Barmen. The centre of gravity of is correct only for one par ticula r speed. Then as of the United Gas Improvement Company, situated at
that carriage was high, and its stability, when un- to t r amways, anyt hing like quick t r avelling being the corner of Broad and Arch streets, :Philadelphia.
loaded, very small. In order to overcome that impossible on s treet s urface lines, we have to resort This company, some years ago, acquired a lease of the
difficulty, many of the subsequent inventors, of to elevated 6tructures, which, wi th t he h eavy gas works from the municipality of Philadelphia, and
whom there is a great number, resorted to a uxiliary double-rail tr acks, ar e ugly, dirty, and noisy, and no w control the entire gas supply of the city. The
carrying rails or guiding rails. The g uide rails are shut out the ligh t . A m onorail track will be ligh ter building, as usual in these high structures, is of steel
designed to take up side pressures, which may and simpler , and less ob trusive, and curves can be skeleton construction, filled in with p anels, of pink
become very important, and preven t lateral s way. managed wit hou t undue oscillations. Finally we granite up to the first storey, and of brick and terracotta of a nearly white shade above. The mecha,uical
come
to
the
much-boas
ted
safety
of
susp
ended
carThere can, however, be n o free s usp ension in
equipment is very extensive and complete ; it comsuch cases, and it is in this chief respect that riages which , it is csually claimed, cannot d er ail. prises three Sprague electric elevators driven by
Langen has gone back to the essence of t h e matter, Of course, if everything is all r ight, t hey can no Sprague motors. All the other motors are Crockerwhich other designers appear to have lost sight of more derail than t h e common surface ca rriage, and Wheeler; t hese motors are numerous, being required
in dealing with the diffic ulties of their schemes.
if something goes wrong in the high structure, for pumping, driving fans, &c. Steam is used
In the review mentioned, we brought the pro- or in the foundations, they can s uffer accidents only for heating; a low-pressure system being emblem down to the Lartigue system, which was in that as well as oth er systems, t hough actual derailing ployed, either with direct radiation or by a supply
year, 1886, on trial in Westminster. Eleven years may be less t o b e feared . As the safety of the of filtered warm air by means of fa ns. The power for
later, Mr. F. B. Behr, who built that line, came L an gen system depends upon special features later driving the dyn amos supplying current is obtained
forward with a still bolder experimen t during the to be explained, we will not now dwell upon this from t hree Westinghouse a utomatic gas engines,
indicating 90 brake horse-power; the dynamos are of
time of the BrusselR Exhibition, when h e erected point.
his experimental track, a loop three miles in length,
How d eeply the two-rail idea is rooted, is shown the Thomson-Ryan direct-connected type; t hese furnish current for lighting as well as driving the motors.
at Tervuren. The carrying rait was gripped in t he by t he fact t hat Langen's first experimental pas- As t he power station is usually stopped at night, any
apex of an A-trestle work of steel, and two pairs sen ger track of 1893 h ad two r~ils, the adoption of sudden demand is met by a battery of chloride accuof guide rails were fixed to the sides of the trestle a m onorail haulage system being still regarded as mulators, with a capacity of 340 kilowatt hours. The
members. The latter rails underwent pressure too bold. The firms inter ested in t hese experi- water supply for drinking purposes is taken from
?nly with unevenly distributed loads or un~er the ments were the Continentale Gesellschaft fur Elek- the city main ; for the boilers and other r equirements,
mftuence of lateral forces, which would arise on t ische Unternehmungen, at Nuremberg, which wells have been driven. I t will be seen from our
curves, for instance. These pressures are, how- owns E. Langen 's patents ; t he ElektriciUits illustrations, one of which shows t he building com?ver, by no means to be neglected, and may s ub- Actien- Gesellschaft, late Schuckert and Co., pleted, that the difficulties of design inseparable from
Ject
. the structure to sever e torsional stresses, and if of the same city; the Ver einigte Maschinen- these lofty buildings have been admirably overcome
~~ were.attempted to give the carriage an inclina- fabrik Augsburg und M aschinenbau -Gesellsch a ft by t he engineers and ar chitects, Messrs. Wilson
tton whtch would correspond to a certain speed t he Nurnberg; and t he Railway Carriage Works of Brothers and Co. , of t he Drexel Building, Philadelphia.
whole structure should be inclined. That means't hat Van d er Zypen and Charlier, of Cologne-Deutz.
the tre~tle work w~uld assume a helical shape, and We a r e indebted for our information to t he Brit is h
THE PHYSICAL SOCIETY.
would mvolve ~ons1derable constructive difficulties. Schuckert Electric Company, Limited, of Clun
AT the meeting of the Physical Society, held on
Under these Circumstances it would seem hardly House, Surrey-street, Strand, and to Mr. W . March
232 Professor W. E. Ayrton, F .R .S., Vice.Presi..
worth while to abandon the common surface t rack Schmitz, one of th e E lberfeld engineers.
dent, in tne chair, a paper on "Some ExperilmentB Illus
For the chief conditi?n which ju~tifies the speciai
The track of the early experiments was held by tratilng Syntony" was read by Mr. P. E. Sbaw. The
~ype of structure, e:usts only m particular cases, iron p osts of the shape of an inverted J, and formed experiments described in this paper have been devised for
m the desert, e.g.. where sand storms mi 0<Yht bury an oblong with t wo semicircular curves of 10 m etres the purpose of showing in a. lecture-room the principles of
magnettc space telegraphy, the distance between the
the whole surface track.
radius. A monorail track was, however, soon fixed sending and receiving circuits being a.boub 15 yards. A
Somewhat similar considerations may be applied to the same posts, underneath the former, and current flowing in a main circuit was interrupted by a
to the systems of Decauville Fell Haddam advantages were at once observed. The speed tuning fork of 100 vibrations per second, and a fraction of
~e ~oy-Stone, Meigs, and other~, all distinguis hed of the s uspend ed bogie carriages co uld safely the current was passed through the sending coil. The
Yt. ree or more rails in which t he centre of be raised from 12 to 25 k ilmnetres, and yet th e sending coil was placed in series with a coil of adjustable
gr~lty of the carriage is above the level of t he carriages kept steadier than before. An inclination self-induction, and the two coils were shunted with a
condenser of variable capacity. By suitable adj ustments
~ They ~urth~r hold for the system of Beyer, of 25 deg. was, indeed, observed on the curves, an
oscillation of frequency 400 could be maintained in the
fho ?laces hlB hor1z~mtal guide wheels on the top but t he passengers were n ot tossed abou t when sending circuit. The recei ving coil was in series with a
0
t .e car! the. gmde rail being just above the standing, and t he water contained in open vessels, variable self-induction and a variable capacity, and was
carrymg ratl whiCh is arranged as in t he Lartigue placed purposely in t h e carriage, was n ot spilt. tuned to respond to the waves given out by the primary.
system. The double track resembles a combina- The oscillations about on e cen tre would p r esumably The current inducod in the secondary coil was passed
round a light drum fastened to a wire tuned to 400 vibrabe much smoother than the to-and-fro throwing of tions per second. The drum was placed in a strong
* See ENGINEERI NG, V()l. xlii.,page 633.
a car on two rails whose level cannot b e perfectly magnetic field, and the electrical o3rillations caused

=.

E N G I N E E R I N G.
mechanical vibrations of the drum. On to the drum was
att~ched one carbon of a microphone, and the induced
osc1llations were thereby considerably magnified in the
microphone circuit. This circuit was also arranged in
the same way as the former, and by means of another
microphone the vibrations were transferred to a nother
circuit, where their intensity was sufficien t to actuate the
diaphragm of an ordinary telephone receiver to such an
extent as to render the sound pArfectly audible.
~Ir. \Yatson described some experiments which he had
shown to illustrate syntony, both by obtainina- galvanom eter dafiections and sparks in the secondary Circuit.
Dr. L ehfeldb asked bow the circuit was tuned when it
~ontait;ted both a variable capacity and a. variable selflnductlOn.
~I~. Sha_w said tbab the valu~ of the ca.pac.ity and
self-mduct10n were connected w1th the vibrat10n freq uency by a. formula given by Dr. L odge. Starting with
a known capacity, the necessary self-induction was calC?ula.ted and small alterations produced by means of an
u on core.
:Mr. Shaw then read a paper on "An Electrical ~licro
meter." In this paper the motion of the centre of a telephone diaphragm was meas ured by means of a system of
l~vera and a s~herometer screw. 'be screw, which had a.
p1tch of 0.5 millimetre, and a head divided into 500 parts,
pressed against the long arm of a.n aluminium lever. The
short arm of this lever pressed against the long arm of
another, and so on through three levers. In this way
a ny motion of the spherometer screw was transmitted to
a fine pla.tino-iridium point close to a small pla.tinoiridium disc fasten ed to the centre of the telephone
diaphragm. Since the hea(l of the spherometer could be
accurately read to 0.1 of a division by means of a. t elescope, and since the system of levers minified any motion
a hundredfold, it follows that an accurately observable
twist of the spherometer bead corresponds to a movement
of a millionth of a millimetre, or 1 1.1. p. of the fine point.
To test the action of th e levers, the point was removed,
and a. convex lens was substituted. This lens formed one
of a system by means of which Newton's rings were pr0duced and observed. By means of an optical experiment
the author has found that 0.1 of a division on the
graduated bead equals 1.033 p. J.1. at the platino-iridium
p oint. The point and the diaphragm th~n formed p art
of a circuit containing an ordinary telephone, and the
levers were so adjusted that the point just touched the
diaphca.gm. A sharp check was then heard in the telephone. A small current was then sent through the
electromagnets of the original telephone, and the displacement of the diaphragm was measured by turning the
spherometer screw until the point just touched it, and a
second click was heard. By carrying out a series of experimf:nts of this description, a curve has been dra.wn,
showing the relation between current strength and
diaphragm displacement. It is then interesting by exterpolation from the curve to find the movement w hich
corresponds to the least audible sound. The author has
done this, a nd finds that he cannot hear sounds if the
amplitude is less than 0.37 J.I.JJ., A motion of 50 P.JJ. gives
comfortable sounde, 1000 J.1. JJ. uncomfortable sounds, and
5000 J.l. J.I.SOunds unbearably loud. Throughout the experiments it was necessary to get rid of extraneous vibration
by means of india-rubber balls and door-spring suapenSlOns, and by working at night.
Professor Everetb expressed his interest in the delicacy
of the system of measurement, and asked if the micro
m eter had been used to d etermine the form of the plate
when vibrating.
Mr. Phillips asked if experiments on the smallest
sound audible had been made on different people, as it
would be physiologically interesting to know if this
minimum value were constant.
Mr. Campbell asked if the sound was expected when
heard.
Mr. Shaw said be bad not conducted experiments on
the form of the plate when vibrating, a lthough he had
investigated its law of damping. He said the small
sonnds were exp~cted, and the limit varied.
The Chairman said he found it easy to rid ga.l vanometers and electrometers from extraneous d isturbance by
placing them on a block of stone resting on a thickness
of 3 fo. or 4 ft. of slag wool contained in a. hollow brick
pillar.
The Society t hen adjou rned until A pril 27, wh en t?e
meeting will be held at eight o'clock in th e 8 ola.r Phys1cs
L aboratory of the Royal College of Science.

[~1 ARCII 30, I 900.

LIMBER A D WAGON F R 12-PDR. QUICK-FIRI GG N.

VI 'KER. ', .'ON'
. ' AND ~L\.XI~l , LDIITED.

BLAST-F URNACES IN THE UNITED STAT&s.-The number

of furnaces in blast in the United States at the commencement of March was 293, as compared with 257 at the commencement of September, 1899; 192 at the commencement of March, 1899; 186 ab the commencement of
September, 1898; 193 at the commencement of March,
1898; and 161 at the comme~cement of Septembe.r, 1897.
The weekly productive capa<nty of the furnaces m blast
was as follows at the dates named : March, 1900, 292,642
t ons ; September, 1899, 267,335 tons;, March, 1899,
228 195 tons September, 1898, 213,043 ton ; March,
189S, 234,430' tons; and September, 1?97, 185,~06 tons.
It will be seen that the weekly _pr9duc~1on exl?er1enced. a
oheck in February, although 1tl 18 stlll cons1~era.bly m
excess of the corresponding weekly prod uctJOn twel ~e
m onths since. The check in producti on in February 1s
attributed to the increase in furnace stocks sold and
unsold in the United States. These stocks amounted
at the commencement of :M arch to 185, 152 tons, as compared wit h 148 336 tons at the commencement of February; 127,3!6 'tons at the commencement of January.;
113 693 tons at the commencement of December; 111,543
ton~ at the commencement of November ; and 120,541
tons at the commencement of October.

(For De script irm, .ser Page 412.)

F10. 0. . I.
~

FRONT VIEW OF LnrnER.

_...

Fro. 58.

BACK

F l G.

FlO.~T
\'lEW OF \VAGO!\ .
'

0.. (\
v.

Vn;w

Ol!' LIMBER.

MARCH

E N G I N E E R I N G.

30, 1 goo.]

THE " SENTINEL" AIR HOIST.

CON TRUCTED BY MESSRH. ALLEY AND ~IACLELLAN, ENGINEER , GLA. GO'~'.

Firf .Z.

FlfJ .1.

.,
processes where it is necessary to obtain correct tern
peratures up to about 950 deg. Fa~r.
.
The principle of the inst rumen t ~s as follows : A, tn
F ig. 1, is a strong cylinder of nuld steel, called the
"container " which is closed at one end, and tapers off
at the oth~r to a very fine bore in a steel ~ire ~' the
bore being less t han -h in. in diameter. Th1s oaptllary
wire B may be of any length, from ! in. to 50 ~a.rd s,
and connects the container with n st eel spiral sprmg C.
This spring consists of a solid-drawn steel tubo wit h
t hin walls, which are rolled flat until they meet
within 1 60 in., and are coiled as shown in the illue~ra
t ion. The container, t he capillary wire, and the aptral
spring are filled with mercury, after which the upper
end of the spring is hermetically sealed. The mer cury
is t hus contained in str ong steel walls.
Now, if the mercury in the container is heated it expands, and t he surplus volume is forced into the spiral
spring causing it to par tly uncoil, thus making its free
end rotat e. If the temperature falls the mercury contracts, and t he spring moves in the opposite direction .

Bg.8.

-+ ! ---------- ---

.,

+-+----::------ -

. 'I
I

I "'

...

...'

Fig.4 .

.
''

''

FIC.2.

FIG. /.

c
IJJJsl)

animated and prolonged discussion which has

taken pla~e at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers
at the last two meetings (see page 403 of this issue and
page 280 of our issue of March 2) on pneumatic t ools,
shows the great interest which is felt by engineers in
these very useful and handy appliances, which pr?mise to greatly reduce the amount of hand work 1n
engineers' shops. We are quite certain to see a. very
great increase in the use of compressed air in the immediate fu bure, particularly in the matter of light
hoists, such as that illustrated above, which possesses
several novel features, and which has recently been
put on the market by Messrs. Alley and MacLellan,
of the Sentinel Works, Glasgow. The cylinders for
all sizes are of cast iron, and t he pistons and glandR
leabber packed. In the top cover is formed a ball-andsocket joint which permits of the hoist being swung to
a considerable angle in any direction. This, in many
cases, increases the radius of operation of a. hoist , as it
can collect its load from over a larger area. The
construction of the operating valve is plainly shown
in our illustrations. It is provided with a clear inqexplate showing how t he valve has to be moved to lift
or lower the load, and is worked by a T -handle,
which in the larger hoists is fitted wit h two chains
within easy reach of the operator. The plug or valve
is separate from the spindle which is ~Slotted t o receive
a projection on the plug. The latter is thus relieved
of all jamming action due to the pull on the handle.
The valve-works with perfect freedom and is absolutely tight. The object of the small supplementary
exhaust passage or bye-pass in the valve shell will be
seen later.
In the bottom cover are fitted two va.hres which form
acombi~ed ai~-sa.ving and balancing device. The makers
found, m usmg some old types of air hoists in their
workshops, that when light loads which required t he
us~ of, say, only one-half of the pressure, were being
ra1sed, when the piston reached the top of the stroke
there was a great tendency to leave t he valve open t~
:'make sur~. " This. allo~ed t he full main pressure
1~to the h01st, resultmg m t he use of twice as much
au as was required. In the " Sentinel ' ' hoist t he
aotion is as !ollows : The operating valve being left
open,. the l~etght of the lift is determined by the posit~on m wh1ch the small sliding collar is fixed to the
ptstonrod by the operator. When the load has
reached the desir~d. height, t he collar, rising against
the C~OSBshaped shdmg sleeve, lifts the latter against
a hehcal spring, raiRes the air-saving piston vahe
THE

on the left-hand side, and cuts off the air supply.

When a load is left for a considerable time at a fixed
height, a small leakage of air may take place, and the
piston-rod fall sligh tly , taking with it the adjustable
collar. This allows the piston vahre t o move downwards, admitting air t ill the piston-rod again rises to
shut off the supply as before ; the renewal of air lost
by leakage is thus cont inually and automatically
effected.
If the load should become lightened, as, for example,
when metal is being poured from a ladle supported by
the hoist, the air in t he cylinder expanding, raises the
piston-rod, and the crosshead lifting the small relief
valve to the right-hand side, allows t he excess of air
to escape. By the action of the piston valve, the hoist
cannot use more air than is necessary for a given load ,
and by the combined action of the valves, a varying
load may be automatically balanced wit hin very
narrow limits at a ny position of the lift. I t will be
seen from our illustration that the piston valve when
shut closes the ex haust from the main outlet. On
reversing the handle to lower the load, release first
takes place through the bye-pass, to which reference
has already been made, and when the pressure in the
hoist has been reduced the piston valve opens and
allows the air to escape through the main outlet.
An air cushion is formed in the upper end of the
cylinder by drilling a. small hole near t he top. The
piston on nearing the end of its stroke blocks the
hole, t he remaining a ir forming a cushion and bringiug the load gradually to rest. In the event of a
sudden failure of the air supply, the load is prevented
running down by the automatic closing of the check
valve in the top of t he vert ical air pipe.
These hoist s are made in sizes from 4 in. to 20 in.
in diameter with lifts from 4ft. to 10ft., and of
capacities from 5 cwt . to 10 tons.

STEINLE'S STEEL MERCURY

THERMOMETER.

The rotary motion of the spring is conveyed by

means of the rod D, shown in Figs. 1 and 2, through
suitable gearing to the dial-hand of an indicator,
which is very similar in appearance t o an ordinary
steam pressure gaugP, and t he temperature can be
read off with ease. These t hermometers are made in
three principal types, viz. :
1. The rigid type, suitable for temperatures not exceeding 300 deg. Fahr.
2. The rigid type, for temperatures up to 950 deg.
Fahr.
3. The flexible type, with long capillary wire connection, which is available for any purpose or position,
and any temperature up to 950 deg. Fa.hr.
We understand that these thermometers are very
durable. W e ourselves tried one for some time, for
taking t he temperatures of flue gases from a stationary
boiler, and found it work very satisfactorily; it was
also very easily applied.
The general agent for t he United Kingdom is Mr.
Hermann Kiihne, 25-35, N ew Broad-street, London

A COMPACT, handy , and reliable thermometer which

will regis ter temperatures up t o 950 deg. Fa.hr. has,
we t hink, been a long-felt want; for, although there
are many kinds of pyrometers which give more or leas
accurate indications of temperature up to the point
mentioned, they are not all of them as handy to use
as might be wished. We think, therefore, that the
Steinle steel mercury t hermometer, of which we annex
illustrations, ought to fill a useful place in many E.C.

'

EN G I N E E RI N G.

NOTES FROM THE UNITED STATES.

PHII.A DRLPHIA, March

21.

T HE American iron and steel markets have gained

strength very suddenly during the past few days.
Up to a week ago, rumours and predictions of a decline
in pri?~s were fre~uent. Later inquiries for l arge
q_uant1t1es of matenal have been received a nd q u otatiOns have been m ade, but no particular importance
was attached to this fact. Within a few days, boweve r, la r ge orders have been placed for steel rails
struct~ral material, billets, Bessemer pig, and othe;
m atenals. The outlook is better than a week ago.
Ste~l rails ~re selling at 35 . dols. per ton.
The
proJected mtleage now ascerta med is close to 60 000
miles, a large. portion of which will be built j ust as
soon as m atenal can be had. The extraordinary increase in traffic, the high margins made by most railroads, th.e excellent outlook for old rails in general,
all contr1bute to encourage railroad building. The
country is settling fast thr oughout the South and West..
Cotton in t he South has reached 9 cents so far, and in
the West, cereals and m eat stuffs hav e brought good
prices. The agriculturists throughout the West and
South a re preparing to cultivate a much larger area
during the coming year. Again, the new Currency
Law, passed by Congress, and signed by the President,
shows an increase in currency amounting to several
hundred million dollars.
With this increase it will
b e possible to do a good deal that otherwise would be
impossible. The iron t rad e is certainly in a good
condition. Mills a nd fur naces are e\'erywhere oversold. During the past three or four days large order s
have come in, and a good many of them have been
turned down.
There were several orde1s from
Europe fo r 10,000 tons of pig iron which could not
be s old. Foundry iron is thoroughly active and will
now be more a ctive. Mill owners are making inquiry
for large quantities of forge. Merchant bar mills
are crowded up to about June 30. Structural mills
are oversold under orders for bridge- builders.
There
is a heavy demand for old iron and steel rails, and
prices have advanced 1 dol. a ton. All kinds of s k elp
are wanted, and t he supply is below require ments.
The finan cial situation is a ll t hat could be desired.
The tinplate industry is in excellent shape, and the
entire produc tion is bein g promptly marketed and
sold. Copper is looking upward on account o f the
heavy demand, both at home and abr oad. Th ere is
nothing new in the coal trade beyond the fact t hat
the string ency is perha ps more serious than was at
first supposed . Coal will be considerably hig her,
because of the a d vance in wages averages about 10 per
cent.; the freight rates are considerably higher than
last year. The four lea ding coal r oads delivering coal
a lon g the Atla ntic coast estimate a n increase of
16,000,000 dols. in freigh t rates by coal alone. The
consumers have to pay t hi3 increase in profit.

NOTES FROM THE NORTH.

GLASGOW, Wednesday.
Glasgow P ig-11'fYn Ma,.rket.-Business was fairly active
on the pig-iron warrant market on Thursday forenoon,
and the tone was very strong. Cleveland iron s till took
the lead, being in active d emand for Germany, and as
the price was very much higher than that of local iron,
little of it was being brou~ht in here, and Scotch iron
was, therefore, being taken 10 its place. About20,000 tons
were dealt in, and Scotch rose 9!d. per ton, Cleveland
l s. l~d. , and bematite iron 9d. per ton. Scotch iron
was within 2s. per ton of the highest _'Point touched
last year (75s. 7d. per ton ), a nd Cleveland was
6d. under it l75s. 6d. ), while Cumberland hematite iron wa3 ls. 8~d . above the highest figure
(80s . 1 ~d.) reached in 1899. In the afternoon some
r ealising was engaged in, understood to be on London
account, a.nrl prices lost the bulk of the forenoon gains,
Scotch reaching 6i d ., Cleveland 6d., and hematite iron
2d. per ton. The sales amounted to 10,000 tons, and the
settlement prices were : Scotch iron, 73s. per ton ; Cleveland, 74s. 6d.; Cumberland and Middlesbrough bematite
iron, 81s. 6d. and 82s. 6d. per ton. The market opened very
flat on Friday, on cables received from America r eporting
a d ecline there of 1 dol. per ton in the price of p1g iron.
There was a moderate recovery from the lowest poin t, but
on the day Scotch lost ll! d. per ton, and hematite iron
9~d. Cleveland was not dealt in, and sellers' quotations
were unaltered from those of Thursday. Only a small
amount of business was d one, and the closing settlement
prices were: 72s., 74s., 80a. 9d., and 833. per ton. A
moderate amount of business was done on Monday
for enoon, and the tone was steady.
About 15,000
tons changed hands, and Scotch rose 1d. per ton,
and Cleveland 3d., but hematite iron dropped 3d.
per ton. Close on 10,000 tons changed hands in the
afternoon, and the tone was firm, especially for Clevela nd iron, which rose other 4!<f. per ton. Scotch iron
made another ld., and hematite iron recovered ~d. per
t>n. Thesettlementpri~es were: 72s. 3d., 753., 80s. 7~L,
and 82s. 6d. per ton. On Tnesd}ty forenoon the pigiron market was strong, with about 10,000 tons sold at
appreciable advanGCs. Rcotch warrants gained 8d. per
ton at 723. lO}d. cash, with buyers over. Cleveland
which was not d ealt in, was quoted l~d. per ton
up at 753. cash buyers. Business was d one in the
afternoon ab 733. and 733. 2d. cash, and a t 73s. 5;d.
per ton one m onth, and the settlement prices were 1

73s. 4~., 75s. 9d., 8ls. 10~., and 82s. 6d. per toa
About 15,000 tons of iron changed hands this forenoon.
The t one of the market was exceedingly s trong, and
great nervousness was shown by the "bears." Advances
ran ging from 7d. to ls. 3d. per ton were made. The sales
in the ~fternoon .ranged between 10,000 and 15,000 tons,
and pnces remamed very firm. The settlement prices
wer e : _74s. Gd. , 77s., 82s. 6d. , and 83s. 6d. per ton. The
followmg are the quotations for makers' No. 1 iron :
Clyd~, 84s. per ton ; Calder, 88s. ; Summerlee and Gartsherne, 90s. ; Colt ness, 90s. 6d. per ton-the foregoing all
shipped at Glasgow; G lengarnock (shipped at Ardrossa.n), 83s. 6d. ; Shotts (shipped at L eith), 88s. ; Carron
(shipped at Grangemouth), 87s. . per ton . T he followmg are the returns of the shipments of S cotch pig
iro~ for the week ending last Saturday : For the
Umted States, 125 tons; for S outh America, 164
t ons ; for India, 210 tons ; for Australia, 844 tons ; for
Italy, 1810 tons ; for Germany, 640 tons; for Holland,
500 tons; for Belgium, 110 tons; for Spain and Portugal, 150 tons ; for China and Japan, 100 tons ; s maller
quantities for other countries, and coastwise, 5292 tons,
the total for the week being 10,285 tons. The heavy r eduction in stocks, a nd the grea t scarcity of iron in every
district, induced consi d erable "bear " covering, and to
this much of the excited buying lately prevalent can be
traced .
On Friday the first react10n during this
upward movement occurred, when prices r eacted l a.
per t on. The fall was due to the announcement of a
r eduction of 1 dol. per ton in American iron. Scotch
makers' prices have advanced sharply. A sale of 800 tons
of Scotch pig iron-Calder brand-has j ust been made for
shipment to Canada. It is al.Eo reported that 1000 tons of
Cumberland hematite iron-Millom brand-have been
shipped from the Clyde during the past week to the
Umted States. One of the furnaces working on ordinary
iron at Shotts has been blown out. The stock of pig iron
in Messrs. Connal and Co. 's public warrant stores stood
at 187,474 tons yesterday afternoon, as compared with
195,361 tons yesterday week, thus showing a reduction
amountin~ for the past week to 7887 tons.
F inished l1'on arul Steel T1'ades.-As the first quarter
of the year draws to a close, more movement is apparent
in the Scotch manufactured hon and steel trades, and
cons umers who have been holding back in the hope of
getting better terms, ar e now evin cing some disposition
to arrange forward business. Notwithstanding the temporary lull of the past two or three weeks, prices have
still gone on hardening, and consequently the following
communication to Messrs. J ames C. Bishop and John
Cronin, joint secr~taries of the Scottish Manufactured
Iron Trade Conciliation and Arbitration B oard, was
not unexpected: "149, W est George-street, Gla~gow,
March 26, 1900. Gentlemen,-In terms of the remit,
I have examined the employers' books for January aod
F ebruary, 1900, and I certify th11.t tbe average realised
net price at works brought out is 8l. Os. 0.11-16d. p er
ton.-I am, Gentlemen, your obedient servant, John ~I.
MacLeod." The effect o f the above wi ll be an increase
of 5 per cent. in the wages of the workmen dating from
Monday, April 2, 1900. Makers are encouraged in holding for full rates by the further sharp r ise in the speculatl ve market and the strong ad vices from the Continent,
where for fresh forward business no concessions are
to be secured. American advices are still of a wavering character, one r eport b eing to the effect that
further large interests bad been sold well into tbe
summer, and others that output in the States is
not moving off so freely. Should this latter fact become more prominent, the fear would, of course, be
revived of the Americans finding an outlet for surplus
stock in European markets, and the fact would quickly
influence our iron and steel t rades. Be that as 1t may,
makers held for the f ull revised lists, although consumers
continued to confine their wants to dire necessities. The
lull in shipbuilding JX'ecludes the possibility of makers
securing an equivalent rise on ship-plates. Makers of
finished iron have booked some fres h work, but not very
heavy ord ers, as the ruling quotations are frightening off
buyers. Light castings have also suffered from a like
cause. Tubemakers report no change in the position, as,
in deed, do all others engaged in allied t rades.
Sulphate of Ammonia.-This commodity is firm at
12l. 5s. per ton f. o.b. L eith, spot. Business has been
done at that price for April d elivery.
Shotts A mnnonia W o1'ks.-A serious disaster occurred
last Saturday morning at the awmonia works connected
with Shotts I ron Works. They were erected many years
ago by Messrs. D empster and Co., Manchester, and by
them they were owned, or leased, and worked. Latterly
they have been able to get delivery of 20 to 24 or
25 tons per week with five furnaces going, but one
of the blast-furnaces has quite lately been blown
out, so that the yield will be to some exten t affected
by the r eduction in the number of furnaces in
force. Early in the morning a series of explosions took
place in one of the scrubbers rising to a he1ght of about
120 ft.; and they were followed by a serious fire which
was extinguished by the N ewmains Fire Brigade from
ColtnP.ss Iron Works some four or five miles distant.
By the time that Mr. Walker, manager of the "sulphate"
works, came on the ground the scrubber bad fallen in
front of the blow furnace, and bad become a comple te wreck. Only one man, J oh n M'Kni~bt, was
wit hin the range of ace:ident, and he suffered so
severely that he had t o be taken to G lasgow R oyal
Infirmary, but his injuries proved fatal on Sunday,
and consequently an official inquiry will have to be
held a.s t o the cl\uses of the disaster. The blast-furnaces
were at once left idle until a clearance of the wreck wa.s
made. Byand-by the other scrubber will be connected
with the furnaces, and things will go on as formerly.

(MARCH

30, I 900.

~otb Mr. Wa:lker and Mr. ~urnbull, the manager of the

Iron works, dtrected operat10ns on Saturday.
Glasgow Copper .Ll farket.-Copper was not dealt in 00
Thu~day. In t~e afternoon the prices were quite
nomm~l. No busmess wa.s done on Friday, and the price
asked 1n the a fternoon was 78l. 15s. per ton cash. On
Monday forenoo!l there were cash buyers at 78l. 7s. 6d.
per .ton,. but w1tbout sellero. The market was quite
nommalm the afternoon . . The market w~ quite idle on
T uesday. Copper was qutte neglected to-day.
N ew Sk~pb;tilding <?ontract.-Messrs. Flaming and Fer.
gusson, Limited, Pa1sley, have received an order from
the Government of Queensland for two powerful twinscrew steel ste';\mers. ':f-'hey are for special service in the
col<?ny, and wlll be deh vered there by the builders under
their own steam.
Oonflracts for Locomotivu.-Mesars. Reid Neilson, and
0<? Hyd e Park Works, Springburn, Gta.s'gow, have re.
ce1ved a n order for a d ozen locomotive engines for the
R~odesian rail ways, and ten engines for the Egyptian
railways.
A M emorial Lighthouse.-The plans for the beacon
light to be erected. a~ Duart P oin t, Mull, as a memorial
to the late Mr. W~am Black, the novelist, have been
prepared by Mr. Le1~r, the S cotch architect, and the
tend er of Messrs. M'Dougall, of Oban having been
a~Jcepted , the work will sbortlv be commen'ced. The cost
of the light will be a.pproxim&tely llOOl. The American
committee have se!lt 200~., and it is hoped the balance
of 180l. no~ r equired will be soon contributed. The
Northern L1ghthouse Board are of opinion that two
wreck.s which took place in the Sound of Mu11 during
the wmter would have been avoided if the light had then
existed.

NOTES FROM SOUTH YORKSHIRE.

SBKFFIBLD, Wednesday.
MeSS1'S. (J/uvrles Carr111nell and Co., Limited.-At tbe
annual meeting of shareholders in the above company
held to-da.y, the chairman (Sir Alexand er Wilson) said
b~ thought a profi t for the past year of 244,689l.,
a dividend of 17! per cent. , and the carrying of
76, OOOl. t o reserve would be satisfactory to the share
holders. In explaining various items m the balancesheet, be said they bad expended large sums in ex
t ensions a.nd in the development of their ore mines
in Spain. They bad, no doubt, read wbab bad been
said about the supplying of armour-plates to Her
Majesty's Government. He assured them that there
need be no alarm on that score as far as Sheffield was
concerned, and their company in particular. Any demand
that might be made upon them would be quite within
their capacitr, and in case. of necessity they were prepared to go s till fu rther and m crea.se then output to meet
the req uirements of the British Admiralty, whatever
they might be, notwithstanding the fact that during the
last two or three years they bad been spending enormous
sums in extending their armour-plate plant. With regard
to the reservists, about 100 of their men bad been called
up. Their situations were being kept open, and those
dependent upon them amply provided for. The report
was adopted, the dividend declared, and the retiring
directors, Sir H. Watson, M r. J. Duffield, and Mr. S.
Roberts were re-elected.
Railway E xtensio-ns m Yorkshi1'e.-A detailed estimate
of the cost of the new works proposed to be constructed
under the North-Eastern R ailway Company's Bill for the
present session shows the total to be 1,006,012l. The
following are some of the details of the estimate: New
railway~, widenings, and impronments in Northumberland, Durham, and Cumberland, 651,526l. ; proposed
railway from the Y ork and Harrogate Railway ab
Wetberby, 141, 700l. ; widening of the York and ~or
man ton Rail way from Bur ton Salmon to Milford J unct1on,
50,304l.; widening of the same railway from Church
Fenton Ulleskelf, 17,694l. ; and from Copmantborpe to
Cbaloner's Whin, 19, 948l. ; widening of the Leeds and
Selby Railway between Neville Hill and C~gates,
-!3, 506l. ; widening of the Hull and Selby Railway between H assle and Ferriby, 57,076l. ; new roads, 24.,258l.
To cover this expenditure Parliament is to be aaked to
increase the capital powers of the company by 1,500,000l.
P i1'ating of Sheffield Ma1'ks.-A prosecution has been
commenced of certain German cutlery manufacturers
for having supplied to a Sheffield firm cutlery manufactured in Germu.ny, and stamped "Warranted Sheffield."
The case is expected to come on shortly before the oourb
at Elberfeldt. The Soliogen Chamber of Co?lmerce are
actively assisting in promoting the prosecutiOn, on the
ground that reputable houses in that country are losers
rather than gainers by fraudulent practices of others.
The P1'otecti<m of the Holderneas Coast. - A movement
is on foot for protecting the Holderness coast from
furth er erosion. The astonishing statement was mad~ ab
a meeting at Hull that while formerly the rate of erosiOn
was about 4 or
yards per annum, during the last 10
years it bad been from 10 to 13 yards per year. The la~d
affected along the 45 miles ~f .coast fro~ Spurn. to Bndlington would be worth 4~ millions sterling. Qu1te 4 ~ 5
miles had been lost, r epresen ting a value of _nea.rly
IDl~
lions. The cost of the scheme for stoppmg eros1?n ~s
roughly estimated at from 135,000l. to 150,000l., wh1ch 1b
is proposed to raise, if it is gone on with, by a rate on the
o wners o f the land affected.
I ron arul Steel.- There are still very strong co~plain ts
of the scarcity of iron, and the opinion is ~e!d 1n .some
quarters that quotations for fimsbed qualities Wtll go
higher yet. A ll branches of the steel trade a~e well ~m
ployed, both on home and foreign accounb. Fums domg

s;

rvlARCil

30,

I 900.

(general manager) presiding over a. numerous assembly. of iron and steel in India. has just been PU;bliahe~ by the
The chairman, in proposing the toast of the evening, sa.Jd Indian Government. Considerable depostts of uon or.e
that since October last the L ondon and South-Western are, he states, available, those in the. Madr~ Preat
Railway had conveyed over its system no less than 167,552 dency being the best in J>Oint of quality. Limestone
officers and men, and out of that number 103,475 were can also, he states, be obta.med, amongst other quarters,
embarked from the company's docks ab Southampton. from the Andaman I slands, where there ar~ enorm<?us
In addition to all thie, the company had carried 20,456 deposits of aeashe1ls. As to fuel, early expenments w1bh
horses, 283 gnns, and 860 military wagons. Referring to Indian coal were far from favourable, as the cok.e pro
the general traffi c of the company, the chairman said that duced was soft and friable; but more recent expenments
since 1897, when it was thought that the South-Western have shown that certain collieries produoe coal from
NOTES FROM CLEVELAND AND THE
Railway had reached its highest point, there had been an which an excellent coke can be frepared. On the whole,
NORTHERN COUNTIES.
enormous increase in hoth passengers and goods equivalent ajor M ahon thinks that 11: stee W?rks started on 9: suffi.
MIDDLESBROUGH, Wednesday.
to about 80 trains per day.
01ently large scale, and equipped With modern machmery,
The (Jlevelamd Ir<m T1ade.-Yesterday the a.t~ndance
would in all probability pay well.
Great
W
estern
Raitway_.-If
the
Cardiff
Town
Council
on 'Ohange here wa.s large, the market was very amma~ed,
An article in a recent issue of the Aust1alialn Minilng
and a fair amount of business was transacted. QuotatiOns and the Great Western Railway Company can come to
f
ig iron moved upwards, and there were many com- terms upon a Bill which the company is promoting this Standcwd calls attention to the unsatisfactory nature of
~r .Pts of the short supply. In the early part of the day, year in Parliament, some important improvements will the mining laws in the Australian colonies, which now
~~m3 g. m. b. Cleveland pig iron sold at 75s. for prompt be made in western Cardiff. With the exception of absolutely prohibit the developme!lt of many va.lna?Ie
f b delivery but later on sellers would nob quote below an occupation road leading to the sanatorium, the whole low-grade properties. In Tasmama these laws provtde
6d and they reported that they were able to get of the level crossings in Canton will be replaced by that one man must be employed for every acre taken,
't s. No'' 1 Cleveland pig was put at 77s. 6d.: No. 4 bridges. Mr. Harpur, the Cardiff borough engineer, had and as a. good low-grade property must necessarily be ex{ ndr 74s grey forge, 73s. 6d.; and mottled and a consultation with the engineer of the Great \Vestern tensive, the observance of the law would necessitate the
:bite ~h a~ut 72s. 6d. Middlesbrough warrants opened Railway Company, at Paddington, a few days since, engagement of a whole army of men for whom no employat 76s~, and by the close of the m~rket.adyanced to 75s. 6d. upon clauses which the Town Council requires the com- ment could be found during the usually prolonged period
cash buyers. East coast .hemattte ptg rron was a good pany to insert in its Bill, and it appears that the com- of shaft-sinking or tunnel-driving. In the other Austra
deal inquired for, and tb. was sa.td to be even more pany is prepared to meet the local authorities in a fair lian colonies the conditions are less onerous, and in cases
d'fficult to obtain than ordmary Cleveland. Sales were and even a generous spirit.
special leases under much more favourable terms are
~corded a.b 85s. for early delivery of Nos. ~. 2, and 3,
Powell Duffryn Steam Coal CO'ntpany.-In their report granted by the Governments. The Tasmanian Governand that was about the g_enera.l market quota:tiOn. There for 1899 the directors of this company state that the ment, recognising that their present regulations are a
was nothing doing in Mtddlesbrougb hemattte warrants. condition of the collieries has been well maintained. check to the industry, are now proposing to revise them.
Spanish ore was steady and firm. Ru~io was fu~ly 2ls. The output of coal for the year was slightly under
In a note to the "Journal of the Society of Chemical
ex-ship Tees. To-day the m~rket ~ontmued on Its up- 2,000,000 tons, and this quantity would have been ex11
Industry,
Mr. Oscar Guttmann, M.I.C.E., draws attenward flight. Buyers, however, hesitated to folio": the ceeded had there not been difficulties in connection with
rapid upward movement, and the amo~nt of busmE>ss the pumping arrangements at the East Elliotb Pit. tion to a remark of Heise, who points outl that on account
transacted was limited. A~ the same ttm~, those who Operations conn~cted with the Rinking of the pits at of the suddenness of an explosion the surrounding air
needed iron for early dehvery were obliged ~o pay Bargoed have been much de1ayQd by constant water may be so highly compressed as to be heated to a very
the advanced rates named. No. 3 Cleveland p1g .was troubles. The deepening of the Cwm Noet pits has been high temperature. Thus, a compre.s sion of 200 a.tmo
put up to 77s., No. 1 Cleveland to 79s., and mtxed completed. New sidings and screens are nearly finished. ~heres would cause the temperature to rise to 1060 deg.
numbers of east coast hematite to 87s. 6d., while The directors recommend a dividend on the ordinary Cent. ; and since explosives in bore-holes can exert a
:Middlesbrough warrants, after bouncing up to 77s., eased shares at the rate of 7 per cent. per annum, and that pressure of 6000 to 8000 atmospheres, the heat proa littlP and closed 76s. 10~. cash buyers, with sellers a~ 27,115l. 7s. 2d. be carried forward. This is the highest duced by this compression would of itself suffioe to ignite
77s. !i~i. Other quotations were unaltered. It is rea.l~y dividend which can be declared while any of the com- a gaseous mixture in the neighbourhood. Some experiments confirming this view are summarised by Mr.
very difficul~ to understand ho'! the huge demand fo~ p1g pany's 5 per cent. debentures are outstanding.
Guttmann. Two cartridges of an ammonia nitrate safety
iron is going to be met. There IS every reason to beheve
Coal for Russia.-Some misapprehension appears to explosive were suspended a short distance apart and fired
tbatover the spring and summer month:; the requirements
will be greater and already nob only IS the output fully have prevailed with respect to the t erms of contrActs simultaneously, a photograph being taken at the same
taken up, but ~tocka ~re p~c~ically exha~sted. Makers placed at Cardiff by the administration of the Ru 3sian instant. There showed a. luminous flash at the meeting
have }Jractically no u on m hand, and m the w~rranb South-Eastern State Railway. The price obtained by the place of the two waves of explosion, which is attributed to
stores there is only some 40,000 tons of Cleveland ptg and contractors was stated to be between 30s. and 3l s. per the air ab this point being so highly heated by compression
6000 tons of hematite iron. Shipments are excellent, and ton, including coal freight and insurance. The rate of as to become luminous.
promise toimprov~, while inhnd deliveries are also heavy. freight to Odessa at the present time is about 12s. p er
In the fourth and last of his course of Uantor lectures
ton, and when that amount and the insurance premium on "The Photography of Colour,, given ab the Society
Manufacttvred boo. a;nd, Ste~l.-In. the manufact.u~ed are deducted, the free-on-board price would not be more
iron and steel industnes there 1s contmued great act1v1ty than 18s. per ton, or from 3s. to 4s. p er ton below the of Arts this week, Mr. E. 'Sanger Shepherd discussed the
application of the trichromatic method of colour photoand prospects are good. Prices all round are very stiff, current market value of the best steam coal at Cardiff.
graphy to the printing pres~. Dealing first with the
with a strong upward tendency, and though they are not
preparation of the printing surfaces, he described the
quotably altered? more than the market r~~e is ~re9.u~ntly
balf.tone screen for half-tone negati ves, and explained
paid, especially m oases where early dehvery 1s m s1sted
MISCELLANEA.
bow they were reproduced on a copper plate by the
on. Some producers are so busy that they do not care
11
THE
traffic
receipts
for
the
week
ending
March
18,
''
enamelling
process. Coming next to the actual
to book further orders just at present. Common iron
bars are 9l. G3.; best bars, 9l. 15d. ; iron ship-plates, on 33 of the principal lines of the United Kingdom, printing of the pictures, after suitable plates had been
Bl. 7s. 6d.; iron ship-angles, Rteel ship-plates, and st~l amounted to 1,717,176l., which was earned on 19,865i prepared he spoke of the colours and coloured inks
ship-angles, each 8l. 5s.-all less 2!. Heavy steel rails miles. For the corresponding week in 1899 the receipts employed. With the latter there was some difii<;ulty,
of the same lines amounted to 1,652,579l., with 19,604! for it was nob easy to find such as were sufficiently
71. 103. to 7l. 12d. 6d. net.
miles o.pen. There was thus an increase of 64,597l. in permanent.
However, the problem, so far as the
Admnce in Wagcs.-The official return of the accoun- the recetpts, and an increase of 261i in the mileage.
crimson and greenish-blue were concerned, had been
tant to the Board of Conciliation and Arbitration for the
fairly satisfactorily solved, though a permanent and
The
Italia
M
ilitare
e
Marina
states
that
the
type
of
manufactured iron and steel trade of tho north of
transparent yellow had not yet been discovered. As to
the
new
field
gun
for
the
Italian
Army
has
been
at
last
England shows that under the sliding-scale arrangethe conditions of printing, smooth even-surfaced papers
selected.
It
is
the
3-in.
gun
submitted
by
the
Turin
ments, there will be a further rise of 3d. per ton on
were required. But so far only "coated, papers were
arsenal.
The
breech
mechanism
will
probably
he
that
puddling and 2~ per cent. on all other forge and millpracticable, and, unfortunately, these deteriord.ted very
invented
at
the
Naples
arsenal,
which
will
also
supply
w~es to take effect from April 2.
The average net
rapidly. What was still wanted was a paper that would
the
gun
carriages.
The
new
guns
will
be
supplied
to
selhng price for the two months ending February 28
pull the ink from the fine dots of the half-tone block, and
96
batteries
of
six
guns
each,
and
the
Italian
Minister
has been 7l. 6s. 10.51d., as against 6l. 17s. 10.27d.
yet not have the glossy surface, which was by many
of
War
expects
the
whole
of
them
to
bQ
delivered
in
the
for the preceding two months, and 5l. 13~. 2.86d. in
persons regarded as inartistic. It was im portant that
course
of
15
or
16
months.
the corresponding t'vo months last year. The outthe printing press should give a strong solid impression,
put was 26,188 tons, against! 27,664 tons for the preA correspondent of the T'iJmes asserts that ab the out- and ha.ve ample capacity. The great difficulty was to
cedin~ two months, and 25,382 tons for the corre- break of the present hostilities the supply of cordite had obtain exact superposition of the three colour imspondmg period a. year ago. The average net selling fallen to a. dangerously low figure, and, as a consequence, pressions, and many attempts had been made at im.
prices were : Raile, 6l. 17s. 10.14d.; plates, 6l. 17s. 7 .08d.; such great pressure has been put on the factories, that it provements in that reapect. Mr. Shepherd concluded
bars, 7l. 16s. 0.87d.; angl~, 7l. 5s. 4.82d . The advance has been impossible to exercise due care in the manufac- with an explanation of the Orloff colour-printing ma.
in wages this year now reaches 9d. per ton on puddling, ture. He asserts that a batch supplied recently to a. war- chine, which he regarded as overcoming this difficulty
~nd 7~ per cent. on other wages.
ship has spontaneously ignited in the magazines. The of inaccurate register.
Coal and Ooke.-There is a good demand for gas coal, writer further declares that no thorough investigation of
but much of the delivery is on old contract at comp:na.- the circumstance has as yet been made.
tively low prices. There is no alteration in bunker or
In a paper published in Stahl und Eisen, Mr. Fritz
GAs AT PARIS.-The gA.S revenue of the Parisian Commanufa.oturmg coal. Coke is in excellent demand, and Liirman dlScusses carborundum as a. substitute for ferro- ~any for Lighting and Heating by Gas amounted in
the large supply does nob fully meet the requirements. silioon in steelmaking. The ~ubstance in question is, it January to 387, lOOt., as compared with 365,924l., showing
Average blast-furnace qualities are fully 27s. delivered will be remembered, a product of the electric furnace. an increase of 21,176l., or 5. 79 per cent.
here.
Its composition averages 62 per cent. silicon, 35 per cent.
carbon, 1.5 per cent. iron, and 1.5 per cent. aluminium,
THE BRITISH FIRE PREVENTION COMMITTEE TRSTS. to~ether with traces of calcium and magnesium. It is An important series of tests was again undertaken on
NOTES FROM THE SOUTH-WEST.
qutte free from sulphur and phosphorus. It is, more- Wednesday afternoon by the Fire Prevention Committee
Cardiff.-The demand for steam coal has been quite over, an endothermic body, and yields a. considerable
as good as had been anticipated by colliery managers and amount of heat when decomposed. In use, 88 lb. of it at its testing station near Regent's Park. Sir John
holders, and prices have been maintained with firmness; are equivalent to 550 lb. of ferro-silicon, but at present Taylor, K.C.B. (H.M. Office of Works), and Mr. Arthur
the. best descriptions have made 22s. to 23s. per ton, prices it the latter, is more economical, the carborundum Cates (Crown Surveyor), represented the Council, and
1
Mr. Edwin 0. Sachs the Executive. There was an
whtle secondary qu~lities have brought 19s. to 19a. 6d. costing m
the neighbourhood of 160t. per ton.
unusually large attendance of members and visitors,
J)Eir ton. House coal has shown scarcely any change ;
A rapid process of brickmaking is now being worked ab including the leading district surveyors and repreNo. 3 Rhondda. large ha.s been quiet at 20s. to 23s. per
ton .. 9oke has. generally brought former terms, foundry Coswig, in Germany, being the invention of Mr. W. sentatives of the local authorities. One of the tests
q~ahties mak10g 32s. to 33s. per ton ; and furnace Olschewsky, a Russian engineer. The bricks are made of was with a floor of wood joists with concrete filldttt:<>, 293. to 31s..per ton. As regards iron ore, the best a mixture of slacked lime with sand, and are moulded in ing, and a. plaster ceiling on expanded metal lathing;
a. press. They are then exposed in a closed chamber to the concrete, however, protected the joists from below.
rubto has been quteb at 20s. to 20s. 6d. per ton.
st~m, at a. pressure of about 100 ~b. per square inch for This floor was subjected to a test of a gradually
The ~e1o Royal Yacht.-Work on the new Victoria. and penod of 12 hou~. The proporttons of sand and lime increasing fire . reaching to a. t emperature of 2000 deg.
Albert 18 st~adily progressing, but it is now feared that vary with the kind of brick to be produced, the content Fa.hr. for a per>.od of 2 hours, followed by the application
the steam tna.Js cannot take place until the end of June. of the last-named ingredient having an extreme range of of water. Two doors were also tested, one of threeAbout 300 tons of top hamJ?8r are being removed and from 4 per cent. to 10 per cent. of the t otal. The bricks thickness deal, 2~ in. thick, and the other of teak with
200 tons of ballast will be built into her hull.
'
in qu~tion have a. specific gravity of about 1.88, and a a ~keleton of 2 i?. solid material, but the panel in two
. Traffic ~n the South- Westt1-n .Rctilway.-The annual crushmg stren~th of 220 tons per squn.re foot, and are th10knesse~. Thts test was of about an hour's duration
dmner of the headquarter traffic staff and station masters por_ous, a~sorbmg 13 per cent. of their volume of water Among the recent tests a_pplied for are two by the
British Uralite Company (uralite boards), and one by
~the London and South-W astern Railway was held on on 1mmers10n.
Messrs. G. W. Willia.ms and Sons (fire blinds). The next
ednesday at the Freemasons' Tavern, Mr. C. J. Owens
A report by Major R. H. Ma.hon on the manufacture testing day will be Wednesday, Aprilll.
with the Continent say that the strikes in ~ohemia and
other coal centres have adversely affected busmess.
.
Ooal and Ooke.-The demand f~r all classes of C?al 18
bout equal to the supply and prices a~e firm. It ts not
6
ted thn.t values of house coal wtll be changed as
~~J on April ~~ as supplies are still scarce. The coke
trade is very bnsk.

E N G I N E E R I N G.

1t

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UNITED
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C0~1 PAN Y'S

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ENGINEERING,

30, 1900.

MARCH

CENTRAL
SPAN.
BONN
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ARCI-IED BRIDGE ACROSS TilE
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MARCH

E N G I N E E R I N G.

JO, I 900.]

AGENTS FOR ., ENGINEERING."

Vi nna Lehmann and Wentzel, Kartnerstrasse.
AosTJU-' e rd n and Ooreh
0API TOWN: Go cMenzies and Co., 12, Hanover-street.
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(Se~~x~~fi~~nJessrs. A. Asher and Oo., 6, Unter den Linden.

Frankfurt-am-Main : Me&~rs. G. L. Daube and Oo. (for

Advertisements).
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.
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. nBSTKR. John Heywood, 143, Deansgate.
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Gade
41 and 43.
d
16 an d 18 ,
Nsw
~UTD wALKS, Sydney : Tu mer and Hen erson,
Hunterstreet. Gordon and Gotch, Georgestreet.
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QUI
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S lJ AUSTRALIA Adelatde: W. C. Rtgby.
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NITI
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y CJ'ORIA Melbourne : Melville, Mullen, and Slade, 261/264, Collms
~treet.' Gordon and Gotch, Limi~ Queen-street.
GiBJl

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TiLBoRAPmo ADDR&Ss- BNGINEERING, LONDON.
TBWlPDONB NUYBB&-3663 Gerrard.

CONTENTS.
PAOB

The Institution of Meoba

oio~ Engineers (Illus.
trattd) . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Arched Bridges over the

Rhine (Illustrated) .... ..
Modern Fi('ld Artillery (ll
ltUtrated) ..............

The Laogen Monorail Suspended R:lilwoy at ElberfeldBarmen ............

Ao American Uigb Building
(llluat~ated) ..........
The Phystcal Society ......
The "Sentinel " Air Hoist
(l(l1utrated) .........

SlTelnlt~'d Steel Mercury

bermometer( lllmtrtlied)
Notes from the United
~~tee . .. .. .. .. .. . .. . .. .
NO~q
from the ~ortb ......
Notes from South Yorkshire
Notes from Olevelllnd and
the Northern Oountles .
:otee from the SoutbWest
ll ~l!anea... .. ........ . .
UDtNpal Trading ........
Iron Trade Consolidations ..

PAGE

Compulsory Boiler Insoection . . . .. . .. .. .. .. .. . . . .

403 State Purchase of Rail ways
in Japan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
408 Notes .......... . . .. .. . ...
Royal Meteorological So
412
ciety . . ...... .... ........
1 Naval Engineers .. ........
The War in South Africa ..
412 "The Flip or Jump of a Gun
or Ri6e" ..... .. .. . .. ....
413 1Coal Mining Industry.. ..
413 ! Fireproofing Wood Fittings
for Theatres ... .. .......
416 Poeumatio Tools (Rlut

421
422
422
423
423
424
424
42 l
424

I
ttrated) ........ _ ....... . 426
416 British Artillery . . . . . . . . . . 426
I
American Competition (ll
416 I lu.atrated) .. .. . .. . .. .. .. 426
1

416 Launches and Trial Trips .

416 Hand and Maobine Labour
Friedmann's
Meohanioal
416
Lubricator for Locomo
417
tives (IUmtratea) ......
417 Industrial Notes ..... .. ...
419 The Great Central Railway
420 cc Engineerin~' Patent Re
oord (IUmtrated) . . . . . . . .

426
427

428
429
430
431

Ifith a TwoPage Engraving of an .ARCHED BRIDGE

.tiCROSS TB.H RIVER RH/NB .AT BONN; TilE
CENTRAL SPAN.

over the world, by the individual energy and

NOTICES OF MEETINGS.
en terprise of the men of our race. Freedom,
INSTITUTION OF CIVIL E.NGil'I'BBRB.- Tuesdny, April 3, at 8 p.m.
Papers to be read and di.soussed: "Economical Railway Con- the chance of failure, hope of reward, all tend to
struction in New South Wales," by Mr. Henry Deane, bl.A. , produce a people self-rel.iant and tru?. The workM. Inst. C. E. ; and "The TocopUla llililway," by Mr. Robert ing of natural economic laws punishes folly or
Stirling, ?t'f. Inst. C. E. A.t this meeting the last bal!ot .f~r me~bers
for session 18991900 wtll be taken. - Students vtstt, Frtday, sloth, strong and energetic men rise, the weak and
Maroh SO, o.t 1.45 p.m. , to the 9e!l1ent Works of Messrs. John foolish are pushed down; the unfit a~e not coddled
Bazley White o.nd Brothers, I.tmtted, at Swanscombe. Tro.in
frorn Cha.ring Cross (West End) at 12.47 p.m., or from London into prolonged survival to the detri~e!lt of. the
Bridge nt 1. 1 p.m. to Qreenhitbe Stntion.--Students' meeting, breed. It was an article of faith that If s1x Br1tons
F riday, April 6, at 8 p.m. Paper to .be read: "ExEeriments ?D be down in a new country each will build a hous~,
Struts wit h and without Lateral Loadmg," by Mr. H. E. Wlmperts,
and then start to trade; of six Frenchmen, three will
Wh So., Stud. Inst. C. E.
.
ROYAL INSTITUTION OF GREAT BRITA.IN.-Friday, Aprtl 6, at join to form a bureau to regulate the work of the
9 o'olock Professor Dewar, M.A. LL.D., F.R.S. , M.R.T. Subject:
"Solid Hydro~en." Afternoon lectures next week, at. 3 o'clock. other three and incidentally provide themsel ves
On Tuesday, April 3, Professor E. Ro.y Lo.nkester, M.A., LL.D., with official' positions ; six Germa!ls will do ~uch
F.R.S., on " The Structure and Classification of Fishes., (Lecture the same thing in a somewhat different fashwn ;
XI I.). On Thursday, April 6, Mr. Halford John l\laokinder,
bl.A., on "EA)uatorial East Africa and .Mount l{enya (Le~tu re III.). Italians bask in t he sunshine, if there is any ;
On So.turday, April 7, The Right Hon. Lord Ray le~h , M.A., Russians take service; Scandinavians and DutchD.C.L., LL.D. , Sc.D., F.R.S., M.R.I., on "Polarise Light"
men affect solitude; Spaniards, too proud to work
(Lecture V.).
INSTITUTION OF ELBOTRlCA.L ENGINBBRS : STUDENTS' MEETING. themselves, seek the labour of others, or starve. It
-Wednesday, Apr il 4, at 7.30 p.m., in the library. of t he Iosti
tution, 28, Victoriastreet. The following- paper wtll be read : was only t he Anglo-Saxon who vigorously carved
Electric Driving in Workshops," by Mr. J. H. Johnson out his own destiny and forced the road to success.
(Student).
All this, we said, with almost pardonable egoism,
SOCIETY OF ENGINBKRB. - Monday April 2, at the Royal
United Service Institution, Whitehall. A paper will be read, was owing to our free institutions, the absence
entitled, 11 Disinfection of the Maidstone Water Service Mains," of bureaucratic control and official leading strings.
by Dr. 0 . Sims Woodhead, M.A., and Mr. W. J. Ware, Memb. We were great by the voluntary effort of .each unit
Brit. Assoc. of Water Engineers. The chair will be taken at
7.30 p.m. precisely.
of the population. In short, men learned to think
TIIR INSTITUTION OF J UNIOR. ENGINBBRB.-The sixth ordinary and act.
meeting of the nineteenth session will be held at the Westminster
That was the kind of thing one heard and read
Palace Hotel, Victoriastreet, at 8 p.m., on Friday, Apri16, when
a paper will be read on " A Comparison of Railway Bridge not many years ago, before the new socialism beStructures of Moderate Dimensions and of Methods of Determin
ing their Working Loads," by Mr. Eustance W. Porter, Assoo. came fashionable ; but what do we see now 1
Municipalities are to take us by the hand, they are
M. lost. C. E. , Member, of London.
SOCIETY OF ARTS.-Monday, April 2, o.t 4.80 p.m. Foreign .and to dry-nurse trade ; they are to do everything.
Colonial Section. "The Centu ry and our Colonies,.. by theRtght
Hon. Sir Charles Wentwor th Dilke, Bart, M. P. The Right. Hon . Here is a list : "Banking, pawnbroking, coal
Lord Strathoona and Mount Royal, G.C.l1.G., LL.D., will preside. supply, saddlery, telephones, tailoring, manufac- Tuesday, April S, at 8 p.m. Applied Ar t Seotion. cc P rocess ture of electrical fittings, of the residual products
Eo~ raving-," by Mr. Carl Hentschel. William Luson Thomas \vill
preside.-Wednesday, April 4, at 8 p.m. cc Cotton Supplies," by of gas, supply of apparatus for games, Turkish
Mr. John A. Banister.
baths,
cold
air
stores,
refrigerators,
estate
agency,
NORTH EAST COAST INSTITUTION OF ENGINBBRS AND SliiPBUJLDERB.
- Friday, March 80, at 7.30 p.m., in the leoture ho.ll of the printing, and constructing lifts ! " That is t he cataLitero.ry and Philosophical Society, Westgate-road, Newoastle logue of trades in which municipalities are now
upon-Tyne. Paper on " The British Naval Engineer : His Pre asking Parliament to give them leave to engage,
sent Position and Influence on our Sea Power," by Mr. D. B.
according to a paper contributed by Lord Avebury
Mori son.
CLF.VELAND INSTITUTION OF ENGJNEERS.-The fifth meeting of to the L ondon Oh am her of Commerce. The pleas
the session will be held Monday evening, April 2, at 7.46 precieely,
in the F riends' Adult School, Mllllane, Stockton. Paper on for these powers are based on various reasons,
cc Automatic Coal Weighing and Recording Machine " (Lantern but
they may nearly all be reduced to the
Illustrations) by Mr. Cbarle~ Ingrey, A.M.I.O.E., Westminste~.
INB'rl'rUTION OY NAVAL AROJIITRC.'T S.-In the Hall of the Soe1ety .statement t hat those pl'ivate individuals engaged in
of Arts, J ohn-street, Adelphi, on April 4, 6, and 6. The Right various industries are making too much money, so
Hon. the Eo.rl of Hopetoun, G.C.M.G., President of t he Institu their profits ought to be taken away and given to
tion, occupying the ohair. -Wednesday, A~rll 4, moming me~ b
ing, o.t 12 o'clock : Annual Report of Counotl ; Address by Chatr '' the rates." This is a very strong a1gument to
man; Presentation of the Gold Medal to Mr. J . Bruhn, B.So., and those who are not making t he money but who pay
of the Pnmium to P rofessor W. E. Dalby, M.A., B.Sc. The fol the rates ; yet is it quite sound 1 A municipality
lowiog papers will then be read and discussftd : cc The Japanese
Navy," by Rear-Admiral C. C. P. Fitzgerald. cc A Short Account 01\--ns, say, the water supply of a town, and chargof Some of the Changes which have been Int roduced into the ing only a legitimate rate, makes a profit of lO,OOOl.
Types, Sizes, and Construction of Ships, during the Period of My
Connection with Lloyd's Register," by Mr. B. Mar ten. cc Ex_pert in a year. That we are in the habit of being told
mental Work on the Rolling of Ships on Waves," by Captatn G. is sheer gain to the ratepayers ; they are absolutely
Russo, Royal Italian Navy.- Thursday, April 5, morning meet richer by that amount. Let us suppose, however,
ing, at 12 o'olook: cc On Large Cargo Steamers," by Professor J.
H. Biles. cc The P ractical Results of Some Innovations in Modern that the water supply belonged to a local magnate,
Shipbuilding," by Mr. A. B. Wortley. cc The Strength of Ellip and he pocketed the 10, OOOl.; still the town would
tical Sections under Fluid P ressure," by Captain G. W. Hov
gaard. "On Yacht Measurements, together with Some Remar ks probably gain possession of it, or a larger part of
on the Action of Sails," by Mr. H. C. Vogt. Evening meeting. it, sooner or later. The proprietor would pass it
at 7 o'clock: cc On the Balancing of Steam Engines,.. b.v Herr on to the butchers, bakers, upholsterers, lawyers,
Otto Scbliok. cc The Engines of the Cor vette Jeneral BaqueOf course, this
dand," by .Mr. M. Sandison. cc On the Uniformity of Turning doctors, and other inhabitants.
Moments of Marine Engines," by Professor Lorenz. - Friday, statement would have to be modified to the extent
April 6 : cc The Pressure on an Inclined Plane, with Speolal Refer
ence to Balanced Rudders," by Professor H. S. HeleShaw, that the proprietor may spend his money elsewhere,
F. R S.
Oa the Aotion of Bilge Keels: by Professor G. H. say in London, but at any rate the lO,OOOl. would find
Bryan, M.A., F.R.S. cc On the Influence of Depth of Wo.ter on its way into a large number of pockets, as it would
the Resistance of Ships," by Major Guiseppe Rota, Royal Italian
Navy, member. Evening meetitJg, at 7 o'clock: cc On Mysterious in the case of it being given to the ratepayers for
F ractures of Steel Shafts,.. by Signor Roberto Sohanzer. cc Cor the r eduction of rates.
rosion and Failure of P ropeller Shafts,.. by Mr. A. Scott,
It is not to be disputed that a distribution of
Younger, B.So., member. The annual dinner of the Institution
will be h eld on Wednesday, April 4, in the Grand Hall of the wealth is better than its over concentration;
Hotel Cecil, Strand, at 7.16 a. m.
although even very rich men have their place of
usefulness. If our supposed proprietor of water
works owns a. large park which he shuts in with a
brick wall, allowing no one to share t he enjoyment
of it, and producing nothing on it; if he monoFRIDAY, MARCH 30, 1900.
polise the labour of a large number of men in
producing things simply for his personal indulgence;
or if he, in some other way, difficult to think of,
~IUNICIPAL TRADING.
wastes, to a large extent, the labour and natural
THE public will receive with satisfaction the resources of the country solely for his own pleasur e,
assurance of the heads of t.he Government that then, and only then, can full weight be given to
they support the appointment of a joint committee those who claim every advantage fo1 equal disof both Houses to inquire into t he subject of tribution of wealth and no countervailing disadvanmunicipal trading. There is hardly anything upon tages. As a matter of fact, the strictly personal exwhich the public more need enlightenment at the penses of the richest duke, the greatest millionaire,
present time than this question of swamping private are small compared to their incomes. The ad van
enterprise, and substituting for it the largely irre_ tages that arise from the concentration of weal th,
sponsible rule of publicly elected bodies . It seems and the ability it gives to direct large issues, proas if we are abandoning all the old traditiollB and bably far outbalance the cost entailed in supporting
characteristics that hiwe served us so well in the the man of great wealth.
past, and which have put England at the head of
In this new phase of municipal trading, however,
the world as a. great trading and manufacturing we have not to do with the case of very rich men,
community. It used to be the commonplace but of a large class of hard-working manufacturers.
of British writers and speakers that we had We are not at present considering water works
established ourselves so well, not only in this gas lighting, tramways, and other big public under:
little island, but also in more spacious fields all takings, but the humbler walks of industry in the
11

ENGINEERING.

420

list ab ove given ; say, for instance, the manufacture of el ectrical appliances. Now it is very
evident that any works, municipal or otherwise,
must haye management ; and for moderate-sized
factories, that management will gen erally be concen~ra~e~ in ~h ~ person of on~ head. In the ordinary
Ind1v1duah sttc way of busmess- - the old-fashioned
and st ill predominant way- the head will be the
proprietor. That is very simple, and with all
r espect for certain academic theorists, has been
found very effective in raising the prosperity of all
working classes.
The s~lCcess of any business depends, above all,
on effi.Clent management ; a proprietor has every
incent ive t o effort. His whole social existence
dep ends on t he success of his business ; he must
make a profit or go to the wall. In one direction
of making profit his tether is short, for if p rices
are raised unduly, he knows there are others who
will undersell him, and he loses his trade. If n o
competit or already exists, on e is pretty sure to
arise, probably from amon g his own employes.
H e has ther efore t o use every effort to improve his
prod uct by adop ting n ew inven tions, t o cheapen
cost, to reduce work by adopting labour-saving
appliances, to substitute less cost ly material for
that commonly in use, and in a hundred other ways
to make something better, cheaper, and more expeditiously. H e will t hus put a necessary or a
luxury within the gras p of a larger number of
people, or he will set lab our free to produce other
things equally desirable for the community. Whom
do the municipal traders propose t o s ubstitute
for this ever watchful, trained, and enterprising
management ~ A committee or board of a countycouncil, a corpora~ion, vestry, or oth er local body.
Men of all t rades, or no trade, selected almost haphazard, largely by a restricted and ill-informed
electora te. They are-amon gst a few other s of
higher social standing- chiefly t he t radesmen and
shopkeepers of t h e district , grocers, butchers, linendrapers, and, to a surprising extent, builders and
publican s. N o doubt a worthy and useful class,
but among t hem not many with a knowledge of the
cond uct of large affairs ; besides which t heir t enure
is an uncertain one, t hey have their own business
to look after, and such atten tion as t hey can give to
municipal factories will necessarily be of the most
p erfunctory kind and tainted by all t he crudeness
of amateur effort.
There is, of course, the paid manager, t he servant of the council or corporation ; an expert trained
to the business. Still, he is but a servant ; he has
n ot "the master's eye ;" and he is a servant under
many uninformed masters. H e can never rise
In uch above his present condition. If the work
goes ill he may be r eprimanded ; if it goes well he
may r eceive praise. But neither the one nor t he
ot her in so full measure as if he, in one case, offend
the prejudices, or, in t he other case, fl.atter s t he
dignity of his mast ers.
The most s uccessful
manager of a municipal factory will be he who will
devote most of his attention to studying t he charact eristics of the leading spirits of t he board or comnl itt ee of management, and who will n ot be too
proud to make a wise use of his knowledge. If he
is successful in this effor t, t he management of t he
factory may be left pretty well to tak e care of
itself, and he will con tinue to receive his modest
salary un til t he time for r etirement on his savings

arnves.
In t he hands of a scru p ulous man t hat time will
b e much delayed, for t he ealary will be s mall. I t is
to be h oped that t he maj or ity of managers of
municipal factor ies ' vill ha ve a high sense of
honour and be scrupulously honest in t hought and
deed for it is useless t o blink t he fact t hat the
muni~ipa.l facto~y will offer m~ch temp~t~on a.n d
wide oppor t unities for t~ e practlCe of re~e~ v1ng t 1ps
or commissions; a practice already prevaihng to too
grea t an ext ent even in establishme!lts. w~ ere t he
supervision is far close~ t han ever It IS h kely to
be in municipal facton es. We can spea~ more
p lainly in t his matter, as we deal only wit h t he
fut ure. vVe believe B ritish ofticials of all kin ds to
be t h e most straightforward in t he world, but a.
b ody of men who are paid small salaries and have
t he handling of large contracts, and who, moreover,
have no r etiring pension provided for t hem, are
likely to have some q uite black sheep among th e
flock and perhaps a fair sprinkling of greys.
T he ' Inet hod of t heir selection, an d th~ class of
employers t h ey will have over t hem, wlll n~t be
likely t o lead men of t.he most accomphs hed
and dignified class to app ly for the posts. That

E N G I N E E R I N G.
is a q uestion t hat does not arise in the management of a privately owned factory, in which t he
master, whatever his private character, will, at any
rate, be hon est to himself, and he will furth er be
k eenly alive to t he p ossibility of dishonesty in
others under him.
We have spoken of t he possible waste of labour,
due to superfluous luxuries to t he rich ; but t hat
is likely to b e a small matter compared to the
waste of labour t hat will occur in municipal factories. We have had an example of t his in t h e
past with t he London County Council. Members
of municipal bodies depend for their p ositions on
the popular vote, and, not only is t he working man
in the majority as a voter, but he is actuated by
the same motives t hat prompt us all, a keen desire
to look after t he things t hat touch his interests
most closely. That is chiefl.y why the workingman's vote is more potent on county councils that
seek t o be large employers of labour . The ordinary ratepayer is not so immediately affected, and
t he additional burden t o the rates is comparatively a
small matter to him, but t he employed of the
Council vote as on e man and drive all t heir friends
and r elatives t o the poll. The slackness wit h which
work is don e in Gover nmen t factories, where p olitical influence does not come in, is a consideration
serious enough, but if all our factories are to be conducted on t he standard of municipal factory activity
the result will be simply disastrous. This count ry
would have to go without about half the present
things it now enjoys, unless t he hours of work
were very much prolonged; which, of course, is
distinctly opposed to the spirit of t he municipal
factory theory in general.
W e find it difficult to ad va.nce a. single serious
plea in favour of the ne w departure which it is
proposed to in troduce in the industrial arena, if we
may us e such a term in connection with advent ures
so thoroughly opposed to the spirit of industrialism
as hit herto understood. I t seems t o us that t hose
who advocate these measures forget that factories,
whether municipal, socialis tic, or individualistic,
must be ruled by m en with failings, ambitions,
and even virtues ; not by machines all turned
out of one mould, whose action can be for etold with
unerring certain ty. The best check for the failings of human ity, an d t he best encouragement for
its virtues, comes from t he hope of re ward held out
by the old-fashion ed plan, n ow often referred to
somewhat con temptously as the "individualis tic "
plan. W e have failed to discover in any of t he
alternative methods hatched in the seclusion of
academic class-rooms, or less learned cent res, auy
system that would take the place of that which
has grown up by natural selection, and has ser ved
t he world so well in t he past.

I RON TRADE CONSOLIDATIONS.

I T is announced from America t hat the F rickCarnegie law s uit has been settled ; that Mr. Frick
will rejoin t he Carnegie Company ; t hat t he H . C.
Frick Company, which has supplied t he Carnegie
Company with t he largest por tion of its coke,
under a cont ract which is t he subject of lit igation
between the minority shar eholders and t he man agement , has been absorbed; and that the whole
undertaking will be r eorganised wit h a capit al
of 160,000,000 dols. or 200,000,000 dols. The
present capital of the group of businesses united
in t he Carnegie Company is 25, 000,000 dols.,
wit h 20,000,000 dols. paid up: The r eason for
the great increase is not readily appar en t ;
it cannot b e found in t he acq uisition of t he
coke company, for t he capital of t hat under taking
is only 10,000,000 dols. , and as t he Carnegies
already hold more than half of t he stock, t hey are
in a position to dictate a reasoilable selling price.
V nless, therefore, t he int ent ion is to buy up other
concerns as well- a course indicated by t he refer ence to t he establishmen t of a numl:er of subsidiary branches- the only nssumption is that t he
directorate has decided to ' ' water " t he stock very
gener ously, and so to bring t he aggregate capitalisation to a fair t hing, as estimated by presen t profits.
F or instance, an actual profit of 40,000,000 dols. ,
t he sum an ticipated for t he curren t year of grace,
would permit of a r eally handsome dividend even
on 200,000,000 dols. ; and as t he public are not to
be asked to take a hand in t he matter, it is reitlly
of little consequence to t he onlooker t hat t he bulk
of t he sum of capital exists only in paper. I t seems
probable, however, t hat the in creased capital has
been decided up on to enable t he company

30, I 900.

[MARCH

to ~cquire such other undertakings as may be

des1r a.ble to strengthen and enlarge its operations.
To all inten ts a~d purposes, as the
reade! knows, the Carnegte Company is a vast
COJ?~lne, capable. of c~m peting wit h any other
exiStmg aggrega.twn of Interests in all the United
States. But t he other great trusts - the National Steel, Tinplate, American Wire and Steel
and others- -appear to have fixed up a work:
ing combination among t hemselves ; and as th e
Carnegie Company refuses to join, it behoves it to
be prepared for a. possible c~tting of prices, and a
general. endeavour to break 1ts power. Again, the
Car~egtes. are very wel~ aw~re that t he high tariff
du t1es wh1ch the Amer1ean uon 3.nd steel industry
now enjoys, and by which alone phenomenal profits
are possible, will not be perpetuated beyond the
life of the R epublican administration, and it has
probably occurred to t hem to anticipate tfie
time when it will be necessary to produce much
more to secure a net profit equal to that of to-day.
The quarrel between Mr. Carnegie and his junior
partners is not of much direct consequence to us
in t his country ; and as it has been settled out of
court, there is still less reason why we should dwell
upon it at any length. It should be observed
however , that while in his legal answer to th~
charges of Mr. Frick, Mr. Carnegie indulges in
many recriminations of some violence and manifest
injustice, he does not dispute the figures of profit for
last year. He does cer tainly say t hat the 21,000,000
dols. '' refers only to the difference between the
sales and t he actual expenses of manufacture," and
the estimate of 40,000,000 dols. for 1900 he speaks
of as a mere guess made over lunch. But too much
notice need not be taken of those parries ; and
having r egard to all the circumstances-the year's
work being already in hand- t he " mere guess"
cannot be very far out.
The giant steel t r ust, which was to have included
the Ca.rnegie Company when we first heard of it
about t he middle of last year, is too inchoate an
entity to deserve serious consideration at this
momen t . But it will probably be heard of as an
accomplished fact wit hin t he next three or four
months. In t he meantime it is of interest to find
that Mr . C. Kirchhoff, of the l ?'O?t .Age,:has recently
been giving in New York a succinct statement of
the relation of t hose combinations to the iron
t rade. That gentleman's views are deser~ing of all
con sideration , because they are the views of an
American who can speak with singular knowledge. Mr, Kirchhoff considers, according to the
reports, that trusts-or '' consolidations " as he
prefers to call t hem- have been made necessary by
the wasteful and hazardous operation of individual
competit ion. H e does n ot deny that ther~ are
siO'ns t hat the remedy is not altogether satiSfacto~y. "It looks," he says, " eo far .as th.e iron
t rade is concerned, as if concent ratwn w1ll not
save us from the evils of competition. It is
quite clear, from what has already developed,
that some of the managers of these great corporat ions are determined to ignore for temporary
gain t he teachings of recent history. It looks as
thouO'h it would take another period of savage com
petition before t hey or their successors .will appreciate t he fact that safety and t he enJoyment of
continued prosperity lie in the exercise of modera
tion : that every economy realised must be followed
by a prompt lowering of t he price to t he consumer ." I t would appear from t his t hat the one
t hing in a trust which is dangerous to ~he general
interest, th e und ue raising of t he pnce of ~he
product to t he consumer, is the one thmg
t hat will invite competition and th wart ~he. purpose of the consolidation. In t he end, th1s. 1s so,
n o doubt, unless the competition is _neutrahsed as
it arises and the consolidations gam strength as
t hey go.' Sooner or later there may be a general
smash-up, but it will be late rather than soon ;
and cer tainly t he present tendency seems to be
for t he whole indust ry to fall under the control of
a mer e handful of concerns, who will not neglect
t heir chance of making the purchaser pay th~ough
t he nose. Mr. Kirchhoff considers there ts no
likelihood of t he control of either the sowces of
raw material, or t he means of production, such
as would bar t he entrance into t he field o~ new
Capital ener O'y brains and labour. Pract1cally,
h d
on a large scale, and over a long period, t .e a. vantages of consolidation of capital and o~gamsatwn of
capacity can be enjoyed only by keepmg the profit
so low t hat it does not tempt new efforts to get a
share of it. There is hope here, but much de'

E N G I N E E R I N G.

MARCH 30, 1900.]

:z ends upon the l~n~th of the period of ~robation.

~his authority, 1t 1s to be noted., cons1ders . the

tariff as "no longer necessary to stimulate the rron
industry. , Its effect, so far, has been to promo~e
great competition in the home market ; ~nd, "If
the consumer has for many years bnbed the
industry by a tariff, he has . reaped the corresponding advantage of havmg for yea~s following the panic of 1893 been suppb~d at
rices that hnve never been approached In the
~ivilised world." In th.e actual situation, "in. the
greater number of the different branches of the 1ron
industry, the tariff has become merely a safeguard
against raids upon our markets on the part of
foreign producers. " . But is this a fu~ction for the
legislation 1 There IS another question- the probable influence of consolidation upon labour. The
employers have anticipated t~e dem~nd. for advances in wages. Bu.t Mr .. Kirchhofi thm.ks the
,, concentration of capttal will lead to the extstence
of a more powerful labour union than has recently
existed ;'' and the vista. opened up is not exactly
pleasing.

=======

001\IPUL ORY BOILER INSPECTION.

THE report w~ich we gave last week of .the recent
debate in Parhament, when Mr. FenwiCk moved
the second reading of his Boilers R egistration and
Inspection Bill, shows that there is a general feeling on both sides of the House ~favour ~f some
steps being taken for th~ prevention of bo1ler explosions. Upwards of thrrty years ago Mr. Ferrand
and Mr. Sheridan obtained leave, for the first time,
to bring in Bills to enforce the inspection of boilers,
and at intervals since then other members have introduced various measures with the same end in
view but none of them have passed beyond the
initi~tory stages. The Boiler Explosions Act, 1882,
which Mr. Hugh Mason succeeded in carrying
through the House, followed in 1890 by an extension of that Act, has been extremely useful and
has conclusively proved that boiler explosions are
not in any sense accidental, and that all that is
needed to prevent by far the greater number is
careful inspection. The experience of t.he Board
of Trade, and the information circulated by means
of their investigations and reports under those Acts,
has given an official stamp to the wide- spread
opinion which has so long prevailed in favour of
some remedy being adopted. The great difficulty
has been to produce a Bill which shall effectually
define a boiler and an explosion, to designate by
what authority and by what inspector the examinations shall be conducted, to secure the competency
of the inspectors, tu retain the requisite amount of
responsibility rightly attaching to the owner of a
boiler, to prevent explosions and at the same time
to avoid unduly interfering with trade and fettering
progress.
With the object of enforcing boiler inspection,
and preventing the present loss of life from explosions, there are now three Bills before the House
of Commons, while there is also a fourth Bill,
which though not dealing with inspection, yet aims
a.t tlie same laudable result as regards the saving of
hfe. The first of these is t he Boilers R egistration
and Inspection Bill, read a second time on March 7,
prepared. and brought in by Mr. Fenwick, Mr.
John W1lson (Durham), Mr. Woods, Mr. William
Allan, Mr. J . Samuel, Mr. Walton, and Mr. Provand. .The ~econd is the Boilers Registration and
Inspect10n Bill (No. 2), introduced by Sir William
Houldsworth, Sir E. Gourley, Mr. Maclean, Mr.
PI:ova~d, Mr. Clare, and Colonel Denny. The
th1rd lB the Factory Bill, introduced by the Home
Se~reta.ry, and containing a clause relating to
bot~ers. The fourth is the Steam Engines and
Boilers (Persons in Charge) Bill, backed by Mr. J.
Samuel, Mr. J. A. Pease, and other members.
Mr. Fenwick's Bill proposes that the Board of
Trade shall keep a register, in which every boiler
shall be entered un~er a separate num her, that
nu~ber, together wtth the maker's name, being
pl~mly marked on some accessible part of the
boiler. If not so marked the boiler shall be
d~emed not to be duly registered in conformity
~!h the Act. Any perso~, whether h~ is or is not
h maker, who sells a boiler, has to g1ve notice of
~be sale, together with the name and address of
b ~I PU!chaser, to the Board of Trade. Every
01
b t~r lR to be examined by inspectors appointed
~ e Board of Trade, two complete examinations
'!I en ~ot under steam, and not less than three
lnspechons when in use, being made every year.

The inspector is to report the result of his examination to the boiler-owner and to the Board of Trade.
If a boiler is reported to be unsafe it is stipulated that it is not to be used until the defects
are remedied, and the inspector reports that
it has been rendered safe. The Board of Trade
are n ot to appoint any person to be a boiler inspector unless he is a technically trained and duly
qualified boilermaker, and has served an apprenticeship, and worked at his trade as a journeyman for
t he term of five years; while, furth er, he must
have passed a Board of Trade examination as to
proficiency. The Board of Trade are to provide
for the examination of persons desiring to be boiler
inspectors, and the cost of administering the Act
is to be met out of money provided by Parliament.
Domestic boilers, boilers on board passenger vessels
already under the Board of Trade or Lloyd's supervision, the boilers of locomotives belonging to railway companies, and boilers used in the service of
H er Majesty are excluded from the operations
of the Act. Finally, various penalties are provided
for in the event of the terms of the Act not being
complied with.
These are the leading featu res of the Bill. It
possesses one or two good points, but in its general
character it is so drastic and unsatisfactory that if,
by any means, it happened to pass, it would be
certain to raise strong opposition throughout the
country. The stipulation that every boiler is to
be registered is a necessary part of the carrying
out of any Act, and such a register, if it contained
a description of the boilers in use in the United
Kingdom, the pressures at which they worked, the
amount of coal consumed, and the power developed,
would become an exceedingly useful authority.
These points, however, do not appear to be included. The suggestion that the maker's name
shall be plainly marked on every boiler, though a
wise oue, would, we fear, be difficult to carry out
generally, inasmuch as, in many cases, the name is
lost, the boilers having worked for many years, and,
perhaps, having bee,n sold and resold over and over
again. The clause requiring the seller of a boiler to
notify the sale to the Board of Trade is a valuable
one, and might possibly be ut ilised in future legislation. It would do much to prevent unprincipled
brokers selling defective boilers to parsimonious or
to unwary purchasers, a practice which has frequently led to explosions, and to which we have on
many occasions drawn attention. The grave defect
of the Bill, however, in our opinion, is that the inspection of the boilers is to be placed in the hands
of the Board of Trade. That would be a decidedly
unwise step, and we do not think it would for a
moment meet the approval of boiler-owners, or
that the persons appointed by the B oard of Trade
to examine boilers would be the best that could be
selected for the duty. The responsibility for
the safety of boilers would be taken from
the owners and thrown upon the Board of
Trade. Government inspection on the Continent
has by n o means been an unqualified success, and
in some districts concessions have been agitated for,
and obtained, for voluntary organisations to undertake examinations, with decided advantage to the
boiler-owners. We have known instances in which
boilers sent abroad from this country, though up to
date and perfectly safe at a very high pressure of
steam, have been tardily accepted by the Government inspector for a much lower pressure, or have
been rejected on what has really been a most flimsy
pretext. It may be said t hat these things would be
managed better in England : that may be true, but
we doubt if a system of Board of Trade inspection
would not tend to cripple the legitimate freedom of
our industries and impede progress and invention
in the construction and working of boilers and
their fittings, together with the engines they are
intended to drive.
The Board of Trade at the present time have, we
should imagine, quite as much as they can do in
looking after boilers on board passenger steamers,
and it is improbable that they would care to extend
their duties, and undertake the survey of boilers
on land. The proposed met hod of selecting and appointing inspectors is also open to objection. B oilermakers are by no means the best men in the world to
examine boilers. Within our knowledge cases have
occurred where they have been hopelessly lost when
it became a question as to the reliability of corroded
plates, the strength of furnace tubes, or the safety
of certain boilers to withstand certain pressures of
steam. Some have not even known what a factor
of safety was, and the Board of Trade time after

42I
time have reported on explosions from boilers
previously examined and passed as saf.e by
recognised boilermakers, who would, wt~hout
doubt consider themselves as fit to be appo1nted
by th~ Board of Trade, should Mr. Fen~ick's Bill
become law in its present form. If bo1lermakers
only, however competent they might prove t.o be,
were allowed to inspect boilers, an undesuable
monopoly would be created ; many thoroughly
reliable engineers and fir~s of ~ep_ute, as well as
the existing Steam Users AssoCiatiOn (th~ fatl~er
of periodical boiler inspection) and the various Insurance companies, some of whom ~ave m~de
praiseworthy effor ts to prevent explosiOns dunng
the last thirty or forty years, would all be excluded, although experience has shown their fitness
for tho duty. In his remarks, when moving t he
second reading of the Bill, Mr. Fenwick said that
it was not advisable to create a ring fence round any
particular branch of industry or class of workmen,
and that he, personally, could n ot support such a provision, since he considered that the utmost freedom
and latitude should be allowed in the selection of inspectors. Another point to which opposition will be
raised is the proposal that the inspector shall pass a
Board of Trade examination as to proficiency. There
are many engineers who are quite capable of satisfactorily examining a boiler, but who could not
pass a Board of Trade examination, which, by the
way, might possibly be formulated by some official
who has had little experience in the inspection of
land boilers. Even if the candidate by dint of
diligent cramming, and by the extent of his theoretical knowledge, should succeed in passing the
examination, it by no means follows that he would
prove to be a go )d workman as regards boiler inspection. A man who passes an examination may
be clever and brilliant, but his brilliancy is not
always practical and permanent. Further, the
proposition that a boiler shall be laid off twice a
year for complete examination will, as one of the
speakers during the debate said, be opposed by
steam users, who will rightly complain of the inconvenience of stopping their works, and will contend that the system, adopted by the existing inspecting authorities, of making one careful examination over all parts of the boiler annually, is sufficient to insure safety.
Then, again, there
appears to be no provision for appealing against
the decision of the inspector, in whom is vested
the exercise of a. somewhat arbitrary power. No
boiler if unsafe should be used, but we think the
creation of certain safeguards would be necessary
to prevent friction between the: inspector and the
boiler- owner. Another weak point in the Bill
is that the cost of the registration and inspections
is to be borne by Parliament. To this a firm pretest would probably be made by the Chancellor of
the Exchequer. Mr. Emmott stated, during an
admirable speech on the Bill, that the cost of
examining a boiler is from 30s. to 2l., and that as
under the definition of the term '' boiler," adopted
in t he Bill, the probable number of boilers and
vessels coming under review would be, he supposed,
450,000 or 500,000, the expense to the country
would be about three-quarters of a million of m oney
annually. We think that any Government agreeing
to such an expenditure would render themselves
deservedly unpopular, and as a matter of principle
we fail to see why the boiler-owner should be relieved at the expense of the already overburdened
taxpayer. It would be to the advantage of the owner
or user of a boiler to have it carefully examined at
stated intervals ; why, then, remove from him the
duty of paying a fair sum for the benefits he has
received 1 If he can afford to p ossess and work a
boiler, he ought to be able to afford to pay for its
being kept in safe working condition. Careful
steam users at present voluntarily submit their
boilers to inspection, and pay for it without feeling
it to be a hardship; and there is no reason why
those who are careless should be placed on a different footing.
The Home Secretary, while assenting to the
general principle of securing the greater safety of
boilers, said he could not conceive of any Government undertaking the compulsory inspection and
granting of certificates to the boilers in the United
Kingdom. The best plan, he thought, would oe
to submit the whole matter to a Select Committee,
when the present Bill and others before the House,
including his own Factory Bill, would be considered. This is undoubtedly the wisest arrangement. Any useful suggestions which Mr. Fenwick's
Bill may contain will doubtless receive attention,

422

but its main and most objectionable features will

probably not survive the ordeal of criticism by t h e
Committee.
In our opinion no Act of Parliament will succeed
if it inflicts an injustice upon the large number of
steam boiler-owners and users throughout the
country who already are endeavouring faithfully
to take all reasonable -precautions for keeping t heir
boilers safe. It is the ignorant, the indifferent, and
the stingy owner who has to be brought under control, and it would be manifestly unfair to harass the
innocent in the attempt to deal with the guilty.
The question arises, can a system of compulsory
inspection be instituted, which, while controlling
boilers that are at present uncared for and dangerous, will, at the same time, not materially alter
any efficient arrangements already made, or place
impediments and harsh restrictions in the way of
the steam user who is fulfilling his duty to his
workpeople and to the public 1 This is the problem which the Select Committee have to solve,
and it may possibly be found that the Bill which
Sir William Houldsworth has introduced is more
likely to lead to a satisfactory result than any other
now before Parliament. With this Rill, as well
as with the Home Secretary's Factory Bill, and t he
Engines and Boilers (Persons in Charge) Bill, we
propose to deal on a future occasion.

STATE PURCHASE OF RAILWAY,

IN JAPAN.
THE subject of the purchase of the railways of
Japan by the State is one which for a considerable
time has been very n1uch discussed by public men
and journals, and a perusal of the opinions expressed is interesting as affording an index to the
prevailing tendency in the country. There, as in
t his country, the capitalists are, as a rule, against
t he proposal, while a n increasing number of those
who think out economic problems for themselves
seem to be in favour of it. Professor E. Foxwell,
of the University of Tokio (a brother of Professor
Foxwell, of U niversity College, London), has
written an article which appears in the Kokwtnin
Shimkin, in which h e attempts to state impartially the pros and cons of the subject. Dealing
with the argument that the State ownership of
rail ways is necessary for one consistent scheme of
national defence, w bile admitting the necessity in
the case of an inland State like Germany, hedged
round by foes, it is not so obvious in the case of an
island like Japan, and h e points out that Britain,
surrounded by many possible enemies, has a
crowded complexity of private lines alone. Those
in favour of the proposal are not likely to be much
influenced by this latter argument, as they will
point out that the present arrangement has n ever
been put to t he test of war. The argument that
foreigners might come into possession of the railways unless the State secures t h em might, of
course, be applied to many other important things
besides railways. The business men who support
State purchase do so in the hope of obtaining
thereby lower rates or greater facilities, but Professor Foxwell evidently places more r eliance on
individual initiative t han State management. In
fact h e says plainly that, apart from wounded
pride, it would be a good thing for t he business
men of Japan if their railways were owned and
managed by foreigners. Those who build their
hopes on a large revenue from the railways of course
contradict the business men who would like lower
rates and greater facilities. While admitting the
economic ad vantage of large combinations of industries, Professor F oxwell points out that to manage
such combinations successfully the very highest
bus iness ability is required, and he asks, Can t he
Japanese Government command such ability among
its own people ?
As to the opinion that State purchase would
remedy t he present scarcity of capital, I'rofessor
Foxwell asks whethf\r it is not prob3.ble t hat a
sudden flush of capital would not excite reckless
speculation and a crop of foolish enterprises, and
he expresses the opinion t~at scarci~y of ca~ital
is best remedied by a natwnal hab1t of savmg,
which avoids the additional taxation inseparable from State purchase.
Professor F oxwell
believes that the State purchase of railways is only
a step to State socialism, and while he ad.mits that
all capitalistic producti~n is ac.compan~e~ by a
certain amount of injustice, he lB of op1n10n that
out of concern for the future vitality and higher
development of the nation t he tendency to State

E N G I N E E R I N G.
control should be kept within limits. The two
strongest nations, Britai n and the United States,
are those in which individuals have always done
most, and Government least. He believes that in
Japan at present t here is no political necessity for
State rail ways, and the scheme of purchase might,
by increasing the amount of Government obligations, impair the national credit, and so render it
less easy to raise t he next foreign loan.
Just now the management of railways offers a
useful training school for Japanese individuals; they
mana~e rail ways better than export or import trade.
The State should insist on proper maintenance of
permaneLt way and rolling stock, and should veto
any action of private companies which is unpatriotic
or seriously unjust. Meanwhile the two systems,
State and private railways, improve each other by
rivalry. Let t h e State management prove by
greater success than it has yet attained that it can
make railways a source of national str ength ; then
at a later date it could absorb the other lines without any loss of credit. In making this admission,
however, Professor Foxwell practically t hrows
away almost all his chief arguments. Probably the
Japanese think that t hey need not go through all
the experience of other countries, but by taking
advantage of the results of that, as they have in
other departments, place their railways in the position which modern industrial and economic conditions demand.

N 0 T ES.
HIGH-SPEED E coNOMICS.
THE cost of high speed on railways has recently
formed the subject of a debate at the ' Vestern Railway Club, Chicago, and t he speaker. , with scarcely
an exception, were agreed t hat from the financial
point of view high speeds were highly unde. irable.
Quite apart from the neces~ity of running lighter
trains and thus using more fuel for a given amount
of pr1.ying load transported, it was a. serted that
indi1ectly t he fuel consumption of the ordinary
trains was increased by t he fact t hat these
had to be side tracked to permit of the fast
expresses passing them. Furt her, as in highspeed runs, the locomotives are w01ked near
t he limits of their powers, it is a difficult matter
to make up time if any has been los t, and
the delays to the ordinary tlaftic may t hus be substantially increased beyond the periods fore een in
the company' timetables. With the enormou
weight of modern passenger express trains, which
on certain American lines amount, it is stated, to
between 4 and 5 tons per pa senger carried, large
and heavy locomotives are essential for the successful handling of fast trains. These increase the
wear and tear of the rails, and render it n ecessary
to effect replacements sooner than would otherwise be necessary ; a track quite good enough
for traffic run at speeds not exceeding 35 miles per
hour being inadequate when heavy trains may pass
over certain sections at quite double this speed .
Further, it was contended that the adoption of one
or two fast trains soon led to a general speeding up
of the whole service, freight trains included. This
in t urn has educated consignees, who now insist on
prompt delivery of goods t hat a few years back
t hey would have been quite content to recE\ive by
slow freight. Altogether the meeting appeared to
be of opinion that high speeds were disadvantageous from every point of view, though one speaker
did assert that since the general speeding up referred
to, accidents had decreased, probably owing to the
fact t hat t he section men felt compelled to keep
the track in first-class order. Other indirect
benefits of high speeds were, however, passed over
without mention. High speeds stimulate traffic, so
that whilst the actual cost of fuel, oil, and the like
may be increased, t he general result may be a n et
gain. How detrimental slow speeds may be, is well
shown by the present condition of things in the
Metropolis, where certain districts, long given over
to boarding houses and the like, are now being
reoccupied as residences by people who a few
yearA back would most certainly have lived in
the sub urbs. Perhaps even a more powerful
inducement to t his immigration of the well-to-do
is to be fow1d in the fact that the trains, slow as
the timetables show them to be, prove even
worse in practice. A man when he chose a residence might be quite prepared to spend 20 or 40
minutes on the journey, but when morning after
morning he found on his arrival at the platform
that the train failed to put in an appearance till from

(MARCH

30, I 900.

5 or 15 minutes after its advertised startina time he

might he pardoned for thinking that the adva.nt~ges
of a suburban r esidence were more than offset by
the constant worry and annoyance of these unreasonable delays. Of course, we all know that in
spite of this, the volume of the suburban traffic is
constantly increasing, but the railways owe this
rather to the poverty of their clients compelling
them to live where rents are moderate,' than to the
attractiveness of the service provided. That hiah
speeds pay when the volume of traffic is sufficie~t
can hardly be disputed nowadays . At sea a high
speed costs relatively more than on land, yet the
Atlantic shipping companies have found it profitable to build t.heir Greyhounds, and have thus
attracted across t he ocean thousands who would
n ever have left their native shores had the old 12
or 14-knot service been maintained.
A JAPANESE STATE

MAN ON THE
JAPAN.

FINL'lCES

OF

For some time past Japan has been suffering

from financial depression, arising in great part from
the large amount of capital which has been locked
up in enterprises, which as yet, are not productive,
and many proposals have been made for getting
over the difficulties. The subject has been very
fully discussed at the meetings of the economic
societies in Japan and among others by Count
Inonye, the well-known statesman, whose opinions
have been summarised by the Japa n W eekly Ma il
in t he following points : First, the country is
t hreatened with embarassment owing to the outflow
of specie, and the nation must endeavour to be
more self-supplying . Secondly, one of the great
obstacles to material progress in Japan is want
of intelligent combination ; railway companies,
store houses, and in a general sense, all per ons
engaged in industrial and commercial enterprises,
seem to be ignorant of the immense advantages
resulting from co-operation ; they prefer dislocation
and wasteful competition, the result being that the
whole machinery of transport and of business
transactions moves in a slow, cumbrous fashion.
Thirdly, the hopes founded on treaty revision have
proved illusory, so far as t he h1flow of foreign
capital is concerned. According to present appearances, direct loans from abroad, seem to be Japan's
only way of getting foreign mone~ ; but sue~ loans
involve a yearly outflow of speCie and the1r products do not go at once to the developm~nt of
commerce and industry. There has been evtdence
that foreigners are willing to come to Japan and
start larae undertakings, but at the eleventh
hour the;have been deterred by the discovery that
land could not be held in their names, and that
various restrictions are imposed on their parti.cipation in important companies. Re was of opm10n
that all obstacles of that nature should be removed,
for unless Japan can obtain foreign capital and
employ it not only to develop her o:wn resources,
but also to aid in opening up Chma, and th~s
creating a market for he~ ~rodu?ts, her .f~t.ure LS
not brilliant. Fourthly, 1t I S futlle ~ cr1ttc~e the
country's foreign politicians as not bemg .suffiCiently
active. The plain truth is that the nat10~ has not
kept abreast of its foreign ~olic~. D~plomacy
gained for Japan large concess1ons m Ohm a a~ter
the war in 1894-5, but the people have utterly fa1led
to utilise them. Count Inonye seems to favour the
trust and syndicate system, which h~s taken suc!l a
hold on the U nited States of Amertca, and wh1ch
is bringing about economic pro~le~s of a very
difficult nature. The tendency lB m the same
direction in Japan, and in fact it seems to be the
inevitable result of our present system of trad~ and
industry. The solution of such problems IS of
more importance to the great masses of the peopl.e
t han those of a. merely technical natu:e, and ~t
would be well if scientific men would .dtrect . thetr
attention to it for in economies, as m engmeering, the forces ~t work must be utilised, not opposed
or allowed to r un to waste.
THE C.Al\IBERING OF STEAMERS' KEEt.S.
The House of Lords as the Supreme ~ourt of
Appeal, gave an important dec~io~ thlB wee~
arising out of a contract for th~ buildi.ng of ste~m
ships, and turning upon the mteres~mg question
as to whether it was a common practice t.o cam~er
the keels of steamships. A Glasgow shtpown~g
firm, Messrs. Burrell and Sons, ordered cer~m
steamers from Messrs. Russell and Co:' shlpd
builders Port Glasgow, to carry a st1pu1ate
load an'd when they were finished it was fo~nd
that'in each the keel was cambered, a result bem~

MARCH

30,

1900.]

;hat one of t he s hip sh owed s igns o~ "bu ckling ,,

when docked at . S yd u ey.
The. s htps w er e defi n t in ca.pa.01ty, t he coefficien t o f finen ess
h~~~ng been increase~, a nd a l togeth er t h e owner s
d for 40 OOOl. 1n nam e o f dam ages a n d
s~eexpenses i~curred in repn.ir ing t h e fau lt . ~he
~) ter and Inner Divis ions of t h e Cou r t ? f S~sswn
inuEdinburgh decid ed in favour o f t h e s h tp.bmld er ;
but one of t he judges, L or d M cLaren, dt~sented,
d his view has n ow been accepted u na.nuuou sly
~n the House of L ords. The L 01:d C ha n c.e llor
p~inted out that by expr ess la n g uage m t h e wntten
contract t he pla ns formed par t of t he contrac~, a n d
although the steamers h a.d b een accepted ~nt~out
complaint, such com p lam t was m ade wtt hm a
reasonable t ime . Th e plan s s h o wed n o c.aru b e.r ,
but it was con tended t hat a camber w as gt ven . 1n
many cas es to cou nteract t h e t endency o f saggm g
when the machinery was place~ o n b oa rd. 'rhe
q uestion in Jaw was as to t~e e v tden ce n ecessary to
j u~tify . variation in t he wr1tten ?o~tract, a n d o n
t h 18 pom t t he L ord Chancello r s a td .
" This was a contracb _of a very i~portant c~aracter
between shipbuilders of btgh commermal repu.tat10n an.d
owners who desired to have what was a t the t tme of thts
contract the largest cargo ship in the world, the ~ontract
price bein~ upwards of 160,000l. It was nob dom~ that
the ship, If it retained the camber, would be su? Ject to
great inconvenience and danger. It was not dem ed that
the givins: thjs ve~sel a camber at a~l as a stea~er and
nob a sAiling sbtp was an expenment, and It was
grav~ly put forward that t~ is ~erious experimen t, a.nd
one on so great a scale which m a. s teamer had never
been tried before by the defenders, was s uggested
and agreed to between the par t ies without a single
line in writing from the commencemen t to t~e close of
the transaction, although t he cont ract was mm';Ite and
specific in its written terms . .. It would req mre very
cogent evidence to con vince one that any such arrangement was made, and certainly the sor t of evidence tendered could not be so described. The d ifference between
A ship wi th six or seven bulkheads such as these v~els
and a sailing vessel with only a few could not possibly
have passed unnoticed by those who were agretling to t ry
.
t . JJ
a new experimen
His lordship was inclined t o agr ee wi th L ord
McLaren that t he cause f or t he cam b er w as t h at
the shipbuilders, a fter g uar anteeing a ce r tain carrying capacity on a g iven coefficien t of fi ne n ess, fo und
that they had made a. m is calculation, and, t h er efo r e,
resor ted to camber. The coefficient wa s . 781 in s tead
of the contract. 770. Their lor d ships found t h at t h e
changes could not be j us t ified except on undo u bted
proof in writing of a cha nge in t h e contract , a nd
decided in favour of the o wners, a ssess ing the
damages at 16, OOOt., wit h all t he costs.
Rus!50 A ~umrcA N ENTERPRISE.-The

Russian-American
Export and Import Company is the title of an organisation just formed to develop trade with Russia and
Oriental conntries, especially m machinery, tools, rail way
material, and manufactured iron a.nd steel.
HA.nnoun.- The Midland R ailway Company
is pushing forward the construction of a new harbour at
Heysham, in view of its opening next year for a s team ship service to Belfast, t he I sle of M an, L ondonderry,
and Dublin. With this objecb, t he comp any proposes
to have builb three fast passenger and ca rg-> boat.o,
suitable for the Belfast and I sle of M an ser vice, which
are to steam at 24 knot3. The idea at presen t is that
these eteamera shall be fi tted with water- tube boilers,
as. the best means by which steam can be gener ated
quiCkly.
HEYSIIAM

SociE'l'Y lliETINGs.- A meeting of the M anchester

brnnch of the British Aesociation of Dra ugh tsmen will
be held on Thursday, A pril 5, when Mr. G. J. W ells,
A.M;.I. C.11E., will rea<i a paper on " S peed Regulation of
Engmes. - The Geologists' Association will hold their
next ~eeting at U niversity College, Gower -street, W. C. ,
o~ Fnday, April 5, when Mr. G. E . D ibley, F . G.S .,
will read a paper on " Zonal Feat ures of t he Ken tish
Chalk P~.ts betwee~ Lon~on and the Med way V alley."
-The Rontgen Sootety wtll meet on T hursd ay, April 5,
a.t20. Hanover-squa.re, when a paper will be r ead by Dr.
Nom s Wolfenden and D r. Forbes Ross, on " The Intluen~ of the X-Rays upon the Growth and Developmen t
of Micro.Organisms.,,

PE~SONAL.-The business of the Pridmore M oulding

~
I
ehme European Agency will in future be carried on by
41

essrs. J. Vf. J ackman and Co., who are removing to

larger premtses at 39, V ictoria-street.- It is announced
~at Mr. F . T. Marsball has been appoin ted a director of
essr3. R. and ,W. H a.wthorn, L eslie, and, Oo., L imited,
of the St. Peter s Works, N ewcastle-on-T yne his father
wr. F. C. Marshall, having retired from the board. -Th~
a~nt Shaft and Axletree Compan y Lim ited of W edn:3~ury,. ann~unce that they have op~ned L ondon offices
8
Mr ~ ~totona..street, S. W ., which will be in charg_e of
Iooln Obandler.-The business of M essrs. J ohn
!;:d gfifli and Co., of 11, Bl~ckfriars-street, M anchester,
inro 0 1 ~ted
rn~-s~.eet, D ukinfield, has been con verted
a 1m1 habthty company.

E N G I N E E R I N G.
ROYAL METEOROLOGI CAL SOCI ETY.
T a.E mon thly m eeti ng of t his S ociety was held on
Wednesday evenin g, the 21s t inst ., at t he Institu tion of
C ivil Engmeers, G reat George-street~ \ Vestminster, D r.
C. 'l'heodore Williams, P residen t, in tne chair.
Reference was made to t he loss which the Society had
sustained by t he d eath of Mr. G. J . Symons, F. R. S., who
had held t he office of secretary from 1873 t o 1899, except
for the t wo years 1880-1, when he was p resid en t . At the
annual meeting on Jan uary 17 last be was elected presid en t for t he second time in order t o preside over the
J ubilee celebrations of t he SocietL next month. Owing
to being seized wit h para lysis on Febr uary 14 he had to
resig n the presidency, a nd, as he never rallied, be died
on t he l Oth inst . A vote of condolence with his relatives
was passed by the meet ing.
Twen tyseven new F ellows wer e elected, as well a.s t wo
honora ry members, viz., M onsieur A lber t L ancaster,
Directo r of t he Belgian M eteorological Service, Brussels,
and General M . A. Rykatcbeff, Director of t he Cen tral
P hys ical Observatory, St. Peterabur~.
T he following papers were read : 1 T he ~ther S uns hine
Recorder, " by M r. \V. H. Dine~, B. A .; " Remarks on
t he vVeat her Conditions of the Steamship Track bet ween
F ij i and Hawaii," by Captain M . W. 0 . H epworth ;
a.nd " Comparison by Means of D ots, " by b'I r. A. B.
M acD owall, M . A .

NAVAL ENGINEERS.
T o THE EDITOR OF ENOINRBBING.
Srn, - I have j ust read an article in your issue of
March 9 dealing with the "Status of N aval E ng ineers."
Y ou will forg ive me if I say t hat I think the view presented
is ra ther ex treme. I am myself a.n execu tive officer in
the N avy- I hope a broad -minded one- but of t his you
will be better able to j udge than I , and as such, I know
that the views I bold ar e mor e or less acceptable t o a
n umber of other officers in my line, though possibly not
to the small number of rabid d efenders of the old faith
s till ex isting, and holding, as you say, that a ' 1 L ascar
with an oil can " is good enough to d o eng ineer's work.
This latter par ty is principally m ade up of old gentlemen
who s it in the bow windows of clubs, and spend most of
their t ime in explaining t o each other how t he service and
the country are going to the dogs. I thought that possibly
a very sligh t survey of the ques tion from another point
of view migh t be of in terest.
I wis h to expound, firs t of all, my principal belief,
which is that the primary object in a warsh ip is offensi ve po wer, in other word s " guns." You may ha ve a
warship wi thou t engines, but you cannot have one
wit hout g uns or their equivalent in some other form of
destructive m achine. In some olasses of warships t he
guns are supreme, and their number and power are the
d ata laid down t o which all other components of the
vessels must conform. I n some, such as the fast cruiser
classes, guns and eng ines ar e more or less mutually inter d ependent, endeavour being m ad e to obt ain high offensive power and high speed combined. In other small
classes, again, speed is the essential factor, and the ~uns
ma.y d epend , and som etimes do, upon the space available
when the eng ines and boilers a.re dis posed of. F rom this
belief of mine, it seems to me to follow logically that t he
man who has charge of the offensive power of a ship must
be in absolute com mand of all the componen ts which go
to m ake that power effect ive in t he highest d egree.
T ak ing the points raised in your article in sequence, I
come first t o r ank. The title a m an holds ap pears from
you r article to be of the firs t impor t ance, while in my
humble opinion it is a vor y small matter indeed; i t is a
man's indi vid uality which gives him command over his
fellow-creatures. I have s poken with man y engineer
officers with r egard to t his question, a nd have been
told with curious unanimity that generally the title is
consider ed unimpor tant, and that t he q ues tion has been
b roug h t to the fron t by a small body of m alconten ts,
who cer tainly feel aggrieved, but as cer tainly d o not
know what t hey wan t . \ Vhat are engineers to be called ?
A re we to have engineer -lieutenan ts in t he same way as,
a short t ime ago, ther e were brigad e-surgeonlieutenantcolonels in the A rmy ? or are we to have lieu tenants R oyal
Naval E ngineers Corps? Then whn,t a bout the d octors
and paymasters ? U nder this scheme the number of lieutenan ts on a battleshi~ would surely be confusing. Y ou
say that an engineer IS consid ered as a civilian ; ib has
never struck me tha t s uch is t he case. I t hink you m ake
a mistake in your consideration of the t er m "rela ti ve
rank ; " for ins tance, in the Navy L is t you will find that
commanders rank " with but a fter " lieu tenant-colonels in
the A rmy. 'l' his does not imply that commanders a.re not
commissioned offi cers, or tha t they are in an y way inferior to lieutenant.colon els, excep t in the point of a
slight actual jun ior ity in rank. Every one recognises
that the chief engineer of a ship, his assistan ts, and his
men would, in an action, be in posit ions calling for t remendous exertion and g reat p owers of endurance, and
they migh t be exp osed to wholesale loss of life. Courage
is not the p rincipal m atter, there is n o reas on to suppose
that one E nglish man would be more deficient than another in that. W hat is required more in the cap tain t han
in the chief engineer is ability t o r esist ner vous t ension.
The cap tain has t o jud ge for himself, and a wrong order
m ay send t he ship to tlie bottom with her whole crew, t he
chief engineer has, in t he m ain, to obey ord ers, a nd a
wrong order wit h regard to t he d etails of t he motive
power would not ha ve the same terrible effect as a wrong
ord er of the captain's.
' Vith regard to your s tat emen t t hat a Naval E ngineer's
rank d oes not exist, I would again refer you to the Navy
L ist. Y ou will fi nd that an engineer under si x years'
eeniority ranks "with but after " a cap tain, in the Army.

Since a. commander holds a sim~lar relat~on t~ a lie~

tenan t colonel, you will see. tha t If an en~meer s rank ts
non-existen t a commn.nd er's IS also non-extsten t, so tha t
there is no rank in t he Navy ! In t~ e ca~e of rour r efer ence to this relative rank o f t heEngm eer-m-.Chief a.s r~r
ad m iral, you say that if ordered to s ea he mtg ht find ht!llself- in an extreme case- under the ord ers of a.boats~vam.
Suppose he bad the actual ra.nk of r ear.admu al w1th a
d efinite seniori ty, he might - also in an ext.reme .case--;-~nd
himself in com mand of the F leet, and as .m t?~s positiOn
his duty would be to d irect t he general d1sposit10o of the
Fleet eit her in or ou t of action, the r esult would be
e ven ~ore absurd than in the p revious case.
.
Wit h r egard to t he enforcement of orders, I thmk m ost
executive officers recognise that E ngineers s hould have the
p ower of p un is hing t heir men in the same way and to the
same exten t more or less as marine officers at p resen t.
This mean~ that they 'should punish men for s mall
offences against cleanliness and d iscipline. Bu~ for all
serious crimes which involve arrest a nd consig nmen t
to jail, t here can only be one Court in the ship, a nd t~ab
the commanding officer's ; i t d oes not need ~nr e~pla~at10n
of mine to s how t he necessary result on diSmph ne If t wo
or more authorities exis ted t oget her in the same s hip
g iving d ifferent p unish men ts for the same offence, a nd
having divergent opinions as to the d esirability of leniency
in special cases. Your statement that the master-at-arms
ma.y refuse to obey an engineer's orders as to tak ing
a m an on d eck for a. breach of d iscipline is incorrect.
The officer of the watch, of course, ma.y dismiss s uch a
case, bu t I think this is rarely d one. Speaking from p er sonal experience I always consider it best, when in s uch
a case the dereliction of d uty does not appear to be gr ave
enough to merit actual p unish men t, to for war d t he case
to the com mander so that a higher authority than my own
m a y d ecid e upon the matter. Y our act ual instances d o
not speak well for t he executive offi cers involved, b ut
such cases must be very few and far between. In my
opinion this reform is one t ha t E ngineer officers set much
m ore store by than that of titular rank, and I think most
execut ive officers agree wit h their views, wit h the limitations I have d escribed above.
I t hink t hat your statemen t that the executive officer
concludes t hat an engineer is a superior stoker is very
unfair t o the intelligence and good t aste of executive
officers as a bod y. Friction d oes and will take place in
cer tain circums tances, b ut men ar e nob perfect in either
b ranch. If I ha ve once been in a ship in which the
E ngineer has come in to the s t uffy little ward-room in t he
t ropics to lunch, without washing his ha nds or shifting
his eng ine-room coa t, I d o not, ther efore, think that all are
like him, but sim ply that he is an objectionable monst rosity. Similarly because one executive officer m ay be
a "bounder, " and be abominably r ude t o a.n E ng inebr,
ther e is no reason to suppose that all are of the same
class. You speak of hig h intelligence and scientic
tra ining as being necessary in an engineer- they are just
as necessary in an efficien t executive officer, t hough I
gr ant you t hey are not so often found . I have always
consider ed that if a lieutenan t k new all he was supposed
to know, P rofessor H uxley could have nothing more to
say about the Gad arene swine.
Whatever you say about t he effech of a severe naval
engagemen t with rega rd to a r eserve of eng ineers, applies
with equal force to a reser ve of executi ve officers of
lieutenant's rank. Ther e are not sufficienb lieu tenants
for every available e ffective ship, an y m ore than t here
are engineers, and there is a Royal N aval R eser ve d rawn
from t he mercan t ile m arine in both cases.
I agree with you that the E ngineer-in-Chief and t he
Chief Conshructor of the Navy should ha ve seats on the
B oa.rd of Admiralty. I d o nob t hink, however, tha t t he
ideal conditions would bs brought into being by th is measure, in fact, tb ing3 would go much as th ey d o now.
T hough from your ar ticle you a ppear to doubt tha t the
professional opinion of the E ng ineer -in-C hief, for in
s tance, is always called in with reference t o d esigns of
ships, and placing o f eng ines and boilers, I m a.y assure
you t hat such is the case. The Con troller of t he Navy
has too much useful work t o d o to waste h is time in
vetoing the s uggest ions of his technical advisers in favour
of his o wn, on s ubjects of which his knowled ge must be
limited. The only effect of the alteration, so far a.s I can
see, would be to confer well.earned dis tinction on the
heads of two scien t ific branches of the ser vice. T he
a wful complication t ha t would resulb from the creation of
t wo ne w branches in the A d miralty, in consideration of
the presen t difficul ty in getting anything "tltrongh, is
too ghastly to con template.
In the quest ion o f cour ts m artial on E ngineer officer.o,
I again agree with your prim ary sug-gestion- that, where
the subject for di~cussion is t ecb m cal, E ngineer officers
should sit on the board. B u t, as I indicated above, with
reference to punishment o f stoker3, I consid er that p uni sh
ment, in tlie end , m ust r est with executive officers.
~er ha._PS the best way t o com bine t hese. par tially conflict m g v1ews would be for t he court-martial to form a subcommittee of its t echnical m embers, whose duty should
be to repor t t o the court on t he s ubject of respons ibilit y,
the court then considering t he punish ment.
T he alter ations in the lasb 20 years have placed much
more r esponsibility on the E ngm eers, and their d epartmen t has g reatly increased in importan ce, as you say.
B ut you seem t o c_onsider that. all the3~ changes have
caused a correspondmg d ecrease m the d uties of executive
officers ; such is not t he case. M asts a nd yards have d isappeared , it is tr ue, bu t guns and tor pedoes a re now a
science, and executive officers have m ore t o do with the m
~ban you appe~r to im~gine. El~ctrical gear, ~hich you
~ nstance as an mcreas~ m the engm~er's work, 18 entirely
m the bands of executive officers, Wlth the exception of
t he ~enerators, which since ~hey .a~e direo~-coupled are
comuder ed t o be part of the1r dr1 vmg engmes ; if they

E N G I N E E R I N G.
were belt-dri ven, however, they would be in charge of
executive officers, as all the motors and lights are now.
No, the matter is, in my opinion, one of pay, though
that may seem a somewhat base poinb of view. Engineers on board ship are not paid so highly as men in
positions of similar responsibility on shore. But it is difficult t o see how improvement can be made without a
sudden a.nd large increase in the expenditure of the
country. Executive officers ma.y not be to such a large
extent as Engineers a.re, dependent for th'e ir living on their
service pa.y, but a considerable number of them anyway
have no other means of support. They are already, with
the exception of the captain of a. ship, paid lower than a.ny
other branch, and if the pa.y of engineers was increased,
it would be necessary to ra ise that of executive officers
also. In a.n article upon increase of pay in the Navy
which appeared in a leading paper some years ago, it was
said that officers ought to be glad to serve their country
for no pay a.t all. This is true in a limited sense, and I am
aware of officers refusing appointments on shore carrying
double the pay they were r eceiving a ftoab, but the theory
cannob be carried to its idealistic conclusion in real li fe.
l\Ien will not slave at indigestible mathematics or go
throu~b the tedious ro utine of workshops simply for love
of the1r country, in time of peace, though they might do it
in war. So that pay is a. necessity, and it should be fairly
adequate. In the l&at 20 years all costs and prices have
been going up by leaps and bounds, but the pay of naval
officera has, I believe, been nearly as steady as a barometer with a. closed a ir inlet. I am not a.wa.ro of any
agitation dem andins higher pa.y, but I really believe
tliat this is the prmcipal canse of complaint in the
p osi tion of Engineers afloat in comparison with the ir
br~thren ashore.
I do not recognise any considerable
grievance as compared with other ranks nftoab, what
there is I imagine to be principally due t o the question
of punishing men, the small number of well-paid higher
appointments (now partially remedied ), and the small
chance of ever absolutely "bossing the show," which
latter I consider to be incompatible with t>he conditions
of a Navy.
LIEUTENANT.

THE WAR IN SOUTH AF RIOA.

To THR E DITOR OF ENGINEERING.
SrR -Like the lull after a. storm, the past fortni~hb in
South Africa. has been a quiet time as compared with the
eventful month thab preceded the 13th inst. Our two
J>rincipal armies, under the immediate commands of L ord
Roberts and Sir Redvers Buller, have enjoyed a. wellearned and probably a very needful rest. But the cavalry
has been busy, the division under . General French scouring the country near Bloemfontem, and the force under
General L ord Dundonald reconnoitring the Drakensberg
from the Ba.sutoland frontier to De B eers Pass. Also,
there has been no rest for the officers controlling transport
and su~ply or for those who are rep airing bridges, roads,
and rallways and perfecting lines of communication.
L ord Rober~ has been able to give a banquet ab Bloemfon tein and to pledge the foreign a ttaches, his guests, as
"comr~des " who have sharP.d the hardships of the march,
which was afterwards described by the Russian attache as
an "extraordinary and perhaps an unprecedented " one.
Lord Kitchener is said to be returning to headquar ters, having made things s~u re in the rebellious
district to the west of the Ongar River.
Ib was hard luck for the chief of staff to be detached
from the main army during its notable march_, but duty
called him to combat a very real a nd pressm g danger
which t hreatened the army's line of communication. It
is impossible for a.ll t o be ab the front, and those ~ho have
grumbled accordingly may remember the Pneska. rebellion and the above incident with a{}vantas;e. .
W e bear very little a.boub L ord M ethuen s domgs, or
t he detail of his command at or near Warrenton. A
stroke is probably preparing O? th~ si~e of the thea.tr~ of
war, and one c~n scarcely av~:nd t~unkmg of the follo~ng
sum in proportiOn. AB the s1tuat10n on the Orange RIver
was to the relief of Kimberl~y and the march ~n Bloemfontein, so will be the situatiOn on the Vaa.l ~tver to the
relief of Ma.feking and the advance to Pret<?na.
Bub probabilities lend little support to thl.S fancy. The
ad vance will no doubt, be north erly through the Orange
Free S tate, ~nd incline easterly t owards B_uller, rather
than westerly towards Methuen. One t hmg the war
experiences have made certain: th~t an adva??e close to
a. railway will lead q uickl y to a ser1es of po_s1t10ns carefully prepared by the B oers for our recept10n. On the
contrary, a way fro.m a raih:vay, _where the veldt affords .a.
racticable rou te m any d1rect10n, a foe who. ba.ees ~1s
aefence mainly on elaborat e entrenchments,.W~Ich ~Ulre
time is placed at a disadvantage from his I~abihty to
foretell the line or lines of advance. The T tmes leader
of the 19th ins b. says: " The Boers. have pr~v.ed . . . that
while they possess wonderful tacttcal mobthty, they are
a ltogether deficient in what may_, perhaps, be st yle?
strategic mobility. This ~as been st~ally shown by thell'
failure to make any effecttve prepa.rattons .to opp~se L ord
Roberts. From the day when the completiOn of hiS tra.n_sort ave him a real field army, b ~ has had. the game m
P. 0g n bands , A true concluston ; but ts the reason
bts w ? I s. ~ t tr~e that the B oers " possess won d erf u1
correct
tactical mobiltty ?
1 d
h
The term "tactica~ mobility " can_nob be a~p te to t e
movements of a garnson or Its arttllery benmd the ra.mnatts by means of electric or st eam . tramwa.y_s, or what
ot T o so use the term wou ld ratae a amtle. Then,
!h use it, when th e mobility is ~roduced by the move;
me! t of mounted infantry behind ahne of entrenchmen~.
" Tactical mobility," used as a ge?eral t~rm and ~J_>ph~
to the Boers, means, of course, then tacttcal mobihty 1-n
forrc, i.e., when n ey manreuvre a force ~f the th ree
arms (or in their ca~e two arms-mounted 1nfa.ntry and
j;

[MARCH

artillery); and this mobility of troops and guns in face of

a foe can only be obtained by the employment of carefully drilled forces, especally as regards the artillery.
By this tesb the Boers have little or no tactical mobility
in the true sense of the term. On the other hand, they
do p :>ssess a very effective s trategic mobility, as was shown
at the commencement of the war during the raiding of
Natal, and more recently by Cronje in his retreat from
Ma~erafon tein.
The fact that th e Boers p ossess no tactical mobility i.s
fully understood by L ord Roberts, or he would never have
risked his army and his own reputation by a recent flank
march in open daylight, along the front and close to a p osition held by the foe in force. " The Greab English Field
Marobal " (to use the words by which the Russian Attache
truly described him) has ~auged the possibilities of the
enemy to a. nicety. H erein h es his strength as a. commander.
His loss would be a national calami ty, and we must tberbfore hope that be will not again be so near to the fi ring
line as to " p ersonally observe , any further t reachery in
the use of the white flag by the B oers. The army is now
in need of boot s and remounts, and questions have been
asked in P arliament concerning the quality of the former,
and the integrity of Government contrac~ors in general.
An excellent and very useful letter on the subject of
Army contracts a.nd the Contract Branch of the War
Office, appeared in the T imes of the 22nd inst., signed
"Onlooker." My own experience included nearly eight
years at the War O ffice a nd W oolwich, in appointments
mainly connected with scientific warlike stor ~, conc&rning which and boots the same principles apply. I agree
with "Onlooker " that the system of lowest tender is
pernicious when applied to any warlike store- whether a
boob or a balloon, whether picks and shovels, or quickfiring guns. The Contracb Branch is satisfied i f the
stores just pass inspection. Sometimes many are rejected
on delivery, and dE'lay occasioned, which in war time may
have serious consequences. The lowest-tender system
prohibits firstcla.ss work, and firms that pride themselves
on good work cannot secure an order. Shoddy rei~ns
supreme, and laughs in his sleeve at an officialdom which
he endeavours to hood wink, a nd not unfrequently with
success.
It is no honour, as of yore, to be on the G overnmanb
list of contractors.
The duties of inspecting officers a.re unnecessarily
arduous and difficult.
The system strikes a.t all good work. It encourages subletting and sweating, and produces starva tion wages in
some of the trades.
The Government has taken in band the clothes of its
troops, and the result i.s most satisfactory, Boots,
saddlery, and other equipments should be made in the
same manner. Articles which are very special, and not
required in large numbers, should be obtained from trusted
and well-known Government contractors, and fair prices
paid for them.
Whenever large numbers of any store are annually re quired, there should be a G overnment manufactory for
that store. The small number of epecial stores should
be purchased and insp ected by that branch of the service
which uses them. The contract branch a.t the War Office
should be disesta.blished. Ib is worse than useless. It
does harm.
The great problem of the war future is, whether the
B of'rs will continue to fight. Apparently, they mean to
do so; but time is on our side, and when they a.re gradua1ly instructed as to the real position of affairs, they
may sue for peace.
If Mr. Steyn were President of the Transvaal the war
would, no doubt, be continued t o the bitter end. H e is
a visionary and an enthusiast; but the actual P resident of
the Transvaal is a sood man of business, and knows well
on which side of hl.S bread the butter lies. If the war
should continue, I fear tha t ib will degenerate into one of
a brutal type, enta~lin~ great suffering on those ~ritish
subjects who are still 1n the Transvaal, and posstbly on
t he British prieoners in the hands of the Boers.
The threats to destroy private property are very
ominous, and show up the ureconcileables in a lurid light.
If we should unfortunately drift into this morass of
wickedness, Mr. Kruger and others like ~m who own
private fortunes could scarcely hope to retam them after
the war. At the present moment, he could probably make
terms whereby the private property of the Boars, himself
excluded, would be respected, and his personal security
guaranteed. I am, therefore, hopeful that the commonsense of th e man will show him that it is for his own and
hi.s burghers' interests to make terms. If not, be will
have on his head the blood of many brave men on both
sides, who may fall hereafter, as a. personal responsibility
for which he will be called to account by God and man.
FIELD Ol<~I-'ICER IN '84.
M arch 26, 1900.

"THE FLIP OR JUMP OF A GUN OR

RIFLE. ''
To THE E DITOR OF ENGINEERING.
Sm - 1 have read with much interest the article by
Mr.
Bridges-Lee on the above subject; and whilst I
would not say that the theory be there puts for th of the
distribution of weights being the cause is entirely an
error, I think he has failed to grasp-or, a t least, he
has failed to state-what to me seems the most apparent,
if not the only, cause of vertical jump."
ln all small arms, and, for that matter, large ones also,
the recoil is never taken up directly along the axis of the
barrel, which is the direcb line of the recoil pressure, hub
through a point lying some distance below th~, th~ di~
tance varying with the style of _w eapon. Thus m a raft~ It
is about 4 in. below the centre line of the barrel, assum10g
that the r~istan ce is placed in the CPntre of t he end of
the butt. It resolves therefore into t he force of recoil

J.

'

30, I 900.

acting at the end of a 4-in. leve.r, having as its centre,

the centre of the butt, and havmg as a counteracting
~orce, the weigh~ of the rifle acting downwards through
1ts centre of B'f&VJty. The centre of gravity of a. MartiniHenry rifle ts rousbly about 20 in. from the end of the
butt, therefore th1s is equal to the weight of the rifle
actit;tg at the en~ of a 20-in. _le~er. Now a.s long a.s the
re?otl ~rom the d1scharge multtphed by its length of lever
4 I?., 1.8 much le~ tha~ the wetg~t of the rifle multiplied
by 1ts length of lever 2010., t here will be very little "jump "
but as the former resultant approaches the amount of the
latte~, th~ " j_ump" will become more pronounced until we
can 1magme 1t to be of s uch amount as to turn the rifle
right over on the centre of the butt. This latter
result can be quite easily illustrated in the case of an
ordinary revolver, where, taking the centre of the" grip"
as the fulcru "ll, it will be seen that the two levers are about
equal in lengtb1 so that a. recoil a little in exceas only of
the weight of tne weapon will make it turn over.
This, therefore, I consider the true cause of vertical
''flip," and that symmetrical distribution of weight will
only coun teract it in so far as it tends to move the centre
of gravity of the mass further from the fulcrum in the
butt, and thus lengthen the lever on which the weight of
the mass acts.
There is another point in which Mr. Bridges-Lee is also
in error, I th ink, that is, in stating that side "fiip"
caused by firing with fixed bayonet, is due to the ~itton
of the mass or weight of the bayonet. I consider tt is due
to the area of the bayonet exposed to the direct action of
the expanding gases, and not at all to the mass. This
can be proved conclusively, I think, in two ways-first,
by actual experience of firmg with two styles of bayonet.
The old triangular bayonet used by the privates, though
much lighter t han the old sword bayonet used by the
sergeants, caused much more ~ide "flip " tba.n the latter,
due to the larger su rface exposed to the expanding gases.
In the former case, the full fiat of the bayonet was ex
posed ; in the la t ter, only the back edge of the sword.
The second proof I would bring forward is : Suppo~e a
model, made of a.s light a maten a.l a.s possible, of the old
triangular bayonet be fixed to a rifle, but instead of its
being rigid let it have a joint at the bend, so that if pressure be brought to bear on the flat side it wi11 fall away.
The reason for making the model as light a.s possible
is, so that no appreciable weigh t may be add ed to the
rifle and thus prevent the possibility of arguing that the
addition of unsymmetncal weight is the cause of the
results. On firing the rifle the model will regularly be
blown round by the discharge. ~o~ fix t~~ binge or
joint of the mod el so as to convErt It m to a n~d one and
fire a&'ain. The pressure which acted on the hinge model
to dr1 ve round acts now on the rigid mode~ and not
being able to affect it ind ividually, the effect is car~ied
down into the bayonet support, i.e., the barrel of the nfle,
and drives it over bodily. The " flip " due to bayonet
therefore does not take place until after the bullet
has left the barrel. Up to tha.b moment the f~rce!
due to the ex,Panding gas are in equilibrium in all dire~
tions except m t he line of axis of the barrel, and th18
latter is, of course, due to the forward movement of the
bullet. The moment ib leaves the barrel, however, the
following gases begin t o issue, and expa!ld int? the surrounding atmosphere, here they meet With ! eststance on
one side only, that on which the bay~net IB fi~ed, _an.d
pressing a~ainst it, they cause the r1fle to wh1ch It 18
attached to give the side jump.
The above, to my mind, are more nat?ral reasons for
" flip " than those put forward by Mr. Bndges.Lee.
Y ours truly,
Co. D own, March ?:l, 1900.
AN OLD VoLtJNTKBR.

THE COAL-MINING INDUSTRY.

To THE EDITOR OF ENGINEERING.
Sm,-In your "Industrial Notes" ~or last wee~ ~ou
sive some statistics as to time worked m the coalJ'!liDtng
mdustry, and you praise the workm en for workmg so
well, whereas it is a well-known faot thab . they have
never worked worse than they do now, a.r:d thiS accounts
to a great exten t for the present high price of coal.
f
The figures you quote, viz.1 5.69 days per week, re er
to the number of days the collieries furnishing the retori18
have been winding and not the number of days the men
have worked, and ~re consequently misleading.
Yours, &c.,
March 26, 1900.
CoLLIERY MANAGER.

FIREPROOFING WOOD FITTINGS FOR

THEATRES.
T o THE EDITOR OF ENGINEERING.
.
StR,-In your issue of the 16th inst., page 359, ri~eh:~
to fires in theatres, you remark that tb~re sbou . for
"compulsory use of non-flammable text1le matenal .
the scenery, and the impreS"!lation .of all. w~work m
such a manner as to prevent It ca.tchmg alight.
b
Both these objects, as you are doubtless aware, a":
formed the subject of many patents, but so far 88 effh
rience proves, have met but scant success. One ::f 86 ~k ~
failure of fireproofing substances as regards '!
wo ' d
due t o the fact the said wood is only superfiCially bvbre t
with the "fireproof paint," and, therefore, w~en t en~:.
of a. burning mass (of some other mat:enal or auob
fireproofed woodwork) becomes very mtense,
coating shells off and the wood then . becom=d a~
easy prey to the flames. Now what IS wan
a means of impregnati ng _the w~od wttb sOJ:I!: n~b~
inflammable substance whiCh wtll not pe~mt
ab
organic structure of the wood to ~uffe~ combustiOnSe~~ral
any rate, allow the wood to bursb mto flame. .
the
chemical proc~~E'S have been adopted for producmg r
desirable result, but for ~ome cause or other they appea

MARCil

30,

E N G I N E E RI N G.

1900.]

to have become abandoned. There is, however, a. very are reciprocally the actuating valves for each other. Besimple means of ren~ering wo~ non-inflammable, yiz , bind the piston the air under pressure is admitted through
by impregnating it wtth a solu.tton of glue . or ge!atme; the port e1, when the valve is as in Fig. 1 and exhausted
this substance will not catch ahght or burn m an m flam- through ~ as in Fig. 2. In front of the piston the air is
mable manner, and if wood wer~ thoroughly impregnated admitted by e, e3, 3h(Fig. 2) and exhausted by 3, e3 , to~, but
with a solu~ion of glue, the sa.1d wood work would not the port 7 which, w en not covered by the pist on, is a clear

i ite or burn with any flame. T o render the s urface

of the wood water repeUant, the solution of ~lue could be
biohromated {that is, a. small percen~ge of ~tchromate of
potash be mixed with the glue solut10n), wtth the result
that when the wood work became exposed to the air and
sunlight, the glue solu~ion ~ould ~come insoluble i~ water
or other fluids. I thmk 1f expenmen.ts wer~ earned o~t
with these materials by any one suffictently mterested m
the matter that ib would not be at all difficult to render
all wooden' structures in a building perfectly non-inflammable or fireproof.
. .
ome years ago I wa~ commts~uonrd to undertake. research with a. view of formulatmg a. fireproof varmsh,
and it was during my expecimen~ that I w~s fully convinced that in glue we have the ngh~ ma.tenal for produoin~ a fireproofing c~mpound.
A sunilar paint wht?h als~ gave g~od results, as. re ~ards rendering materials (ch1efiy textiles) proof agamst
1gnition or combustion is. a solution of _soap. When this
solution is impregnated m any matenal, and then the
material be steeped in a t;netalltc sa.lt, say such as sulphate
of aluminum sulphate of u on, sulphate of coppert sulphate
of lead &c ~metallic setote ia produced in the fiore of the
materi~ by the action o{ the metallic salt in t~~ fat.ty oil,
and by the fat or oil that has become sapomfie~ m ~he
production of the soa~, and C<?nsequently stde ~y s1de With
each combustible part10le of m flammable textile or wood,
there being particles of. a ~o!l-flamma.ble setot:e by a metal
to hinder or prevent tgmtton of the orgamc structure.
Truly pro bono publico.
Yours faithfully,
March 21 1900.
H. C. STANDAGE.
p S -Ki~dly allow me to thank "Field Officer in '84,"
"&pi>er " and Mr. R&ndall for writing a dozen columns
of inte~ting read in~. Truly they '~go,, fo~ each other
with British rluck ; but really I thmk thetr argument
loses much o its force when they each try to "go .one
better " in personalities. It is strange but true that m a
newspaper controveray each contr~versialist will make
bitter and gibing observations whtch he would. reall.Y
feel o.'!bamed to say personally face to face With bts
antagonist. Verb. sap.

opening to the atmosphere, is the principal front end exhaust. The porb 1 (Fig. 2) is always suppried with full~ressure air from the similar port shown m the passage e.
The port 6 is, like 7, a. clear opening to the atmosphere.
" In Fig. 1 the hammer piston by a. recess in it provides,
in this p osition, a clear passage from the top of the valve
piston through 5 and 6 to the atmosphere, and the
valve has been driven to its top position by the air
pressure acting through c1 past the reduced valve
belt e8 upon the underside of the valve piston.
While the valve is moving up, the hammer piston
has continued its backward movement, closing the exhau st 4, into the back cushioning space, and returned to
pass the position shown in Fig. 1 ; it is now ad va.ncing
under full pressure, with e1 open and 4 closed, and in
front of the piston the air is exhausting through the
free opening 7 and the valve-controlled opening 3, e3 , eo~.
As the piston advances it coverR 7, and at the next instant, at the recess, uncovers 1 and then 2, admitting
full-pressure air to the top of the valve piston at the
instant of impact, and the valve is thereby driven down
to the position as in Fig. 2, s hutting off the air pressure
ab e and opening 4, eo~, and admitting full-pressure air
through e, e3 3 to the front end of the piston. The piston
is thereby driven back, 7 is uncovered, 6 and 5 again put
in communication, and the valve thereby moved to the
Fig. 2 position. It is beautiful bow these ports are
arranged, so that for the front end, only the slight amount
of air for the return stroke has to pass through e8, the
principal exhaust in front being by the free openin~ 7.
This enables the size of the valve to be much reduced.'
Yours obediently,

What "El Pasog" says in the second paragraph of

his letter amounts to this: Two and two make four, and
"Anglophil " has never found it out. H~ attributes,
moreover, to the latter, statements which, as far as I can
see, " Anglophil " never did "indicate."
Dut what a gracious Providence rules over British gun
manufacturers I Here in England a limit is not a limit,
the "elastic limit being not totally ignored, as the s~el
must not permanently stretch more tha:n 0.2 m.,
with a. stram of 21.5 tons in the test piece." Is nob
"El Pasog " mistaken, is it nob .03 in., with a strain of
2l tons?
And such conditions as this one, and those mentioned
in" Anglophil's " letters, are the conditions which govern
British gun construction and tests ! Why was I not oorn
a British gun manufacturer ?
"El Pasog " wants to know more: he wants to know
the French conditions of tests for guns. But although ib
would be interesting to know what are these condit1ons,
has not "Anglophil " stated enough to give us food for
reflection ? "Anglophil, knows, so it fully appears, the
conditi ons of Britis h gun manufacture and tests ; he has
made public wha.b these are, and for so doing he has
chosen the very best medium. If he is wrong, and
Bricish-made guns are the very best, by all means let
British manufacturers get up and eay so if they can.
Yours faithfully,
L ondon, E.C., March 26, 1900.
OuTSIDER.

Al'riERICAN COMPETITION.

To THE EDITOR OF ENGINEERING.

SrR,-In common, I am sure, with all your readers, I
have been much interested in the letters published in
recent issues regarding the competition of the United
States with Europe, and especially Great Britain, in the
world's markets. The introduction of the technical school
as an element of the situation by President M orton, and
J. B.
the comment of Mr. Halsey upon his thesis, bring into
the discu~sion some very important, however novel, considerations. I would like to offer a word regarding the
BRITISH ARTILLERY.
claims for the engineering schools and on the opposite
To THE EDrron OF ENGINEirniNG.
view of Mr. Halsey.
SIR,-I have carefully read in your recent issues the
The engineering school in the United States, not a
letters signed '' Anglophll." He raises a few points, generation ago, was almost an unknown quantity in the
which, to my still inexperienced mind, are of the very development of our industrial system. The military and
greatest importance. If what he ~ays is right, British- naval academies, and the Renssa.laer Polytechnic Institute,
made guns are not as good as they ought to be for the devoted to civil engineering mainly, had, and could have,
money that is paid for, or for the service that is required but small influence upon manufacturing industriet~. The
of, them. When I compare "Anglophil's" statemen ts cause of the later development of those industries was, I
with the extremely desultory manner in which Mr. have little doubt, mainly the freedom, absolute indepenPNEUMATIC TOOLS.
Goschen replied to Sir Charles Dilke's questions in the dence, political and conventional, of our people, which
To THE EDITOR oF ENGINEERING.
SrR,-1 have experienced some difficulty in following Parliamentary mee~l?g of the 8th inst., concernin~ ~he permitted every man to follow the bent of his own
the description of the "Little Giant " hammer recently relative value of Bnt1sb guns, I cannot help entertammg natural talents, toward whatever destiny and whatever
published, but ba\'e lately received from a correspondent most serious misgivings as to whether Brttieh gun con- field of endeavour he might be disposed to seek.
This view is taken, I think, by intelligent foreigners
who ca.n view the phenomenon from the outside. It is
that, I know, for example, of M. Dwelsba.nvers-Dery,
Fig.1.
who writes me in this strain, at times. This political
advantage has been, in this direction, fortified by our
Gianf)'Jla:nvner
most admirably contrived system of patent law, which
has assured to the inventor the proprietorship of the
.Pi8torv ~ Vabe- &u e.;drem.e posil.ono.

product of his brain as completely as the work of his

bands. The Briton and the mtizen of the United States,
throughout all our earlier history, were practically of one
blood and necessarily of one kind. The emancipation of
07
the man from convention, and his perfect freedom to
lJ
__ .,_-----_____ _ -_______
- -- - - -".)
~ 1
---- -------follow what ~eemed to him his own best interests, and to
-------- -- .o
secure full reward for wholehearted and enthusiastic
------.a
labour in his own favourite field of work, are largely ab
the bottom of the difference so strongly brou~ht out by
your. correspondents, Bri~h as ~ell as Amenca!J. The
imrmgrant has not modified thlS state of affaus very
much ; he becomes assimilated and Americanised in the
secon~ generation, and his ~hildren are of~n. quite indis
tingmsbable from the nattve s tock of Br1t1sh descent.
In Europe a man sticks to his family tradition reflarding
the crafb, as well as in other matters. In the United
I
States he commonly strikes out into a new and more

fitting life. In Europe one man in a. thousand finds the

place that he would choose if free and if followin~ the
Fig. 2.
bent of his own talent with earnestness and enthustasm.
In the United States the thousand aim a.t and work for
a. goal set each man for himself, to attain which he is
ca.l~ed by ~atural procl~vity. Such conditions were operative here from the mtddle of the seventeenth century.
Technical, and especially engineering, schools, a~ . an
element of social progress, date from about the tune
of our Civil W~r.. Their. out_put h~ only now co~e
to be important m mflu~ncmg m~ustnal pr~gress. .lb 1S
B
thus evident that the stndes of this country, mdustnally,
------------------------ -marked since about 1873- the period which our would-be
debase~ of the coinage and inflationists of our oun:ency
call "the beginning of mi~fortune , -by an extr~ordmary
and continuous acceleratiOn, have been, mamly, the
result of other favourable conditions than those of t echnical instruction in a systematic manner through the
foundation of our technical colleges &t;ld schools.. In f~b,
even to-day, these schools are few m comparlSo~ \VI~h
those of Germany, for exa~ple, are unsystematised m
form curricula and adaptat10n to the needs of the people,
and, 'as a syste:O, our tech~ical .education is h~rdly. y~t a
national system. Evolutton 18 slowly workmg 1t mto
the following illlustra.ted description which I think struction is really what it should be. Professional effective sba.pe.
Within a few years, however, these schools have come
makes the action of themeobanism much plainer. In the secrecy certainly does not go so far as to prevent a
hope that ib may prove useful to others, I forward it to Minister of the Crown from defending stoutly the Vfay he to have a. considerable output, and .the gr~ua.tes .of the
older and stronger schools are sho~ng the1r ca.pactty ~nd
you, trusting you will find room for its insertion, as there carries out the duties that have been entrusted to h1m.
What replies ~oes "Anglophi~ " get to the statements their fitness. A glance over the liSts of these men, wtth
lS no other means by which I could make it as widely
be puts forward m such energet1c terms1 as they appear their places and positions, given as an a.ppend1x, for
known amongst engineer3.
to me? Simply these : A very nondescnpb !etter fr<?m a exam ple, to the ~nnua.l catalogues distributed freely by
"The I Little iant , hammer is shown in Figs. 1 correspondent who signs "Suum C?ique," m y~ur tSBue the Stevens Institute of Technology and the Worcester
an~ 2. The throttle valve is at H and requires no expla- of the 9th ins b., whom "Angloph1l" answe~s m . your Polytechnic Institute, will show at ~>nee t?at. they are,
nation. The moving parts a.re the hammer-piston Band issue of the 23rd, and a. letter of the same kmd, stgned while still youthful, and before expenence 18 ripe, even,
the valve E, formed with a piston on the top end. These "El Pasog,' in this same issue.

''Lit11e

--

E N G I N E E R I N G.
finding places of responsibility and influence so generally
that they must soon, if they h&ve not already done so, influence strongly the industrial situation. As a pioneer
in this field, I have good reason to know what the cha.nge
means. When, in 1866, I took part in the instruction of
the young professionals of the Navy, including even
then engineering as an essential element, and when, in
1871, I worked with President Morton in the organisation of the Stevens Institute of Technology, ib was
matter of real difficulty for the college-trained engineer
to secure even an opportunity to show his capacity.
The employer, strongly prej udiced against cc bookwork,''
even though supplemented by systematic training 1n
sho{>S and laboratories, declined to admit the educated
engmeer into his place. College men were abused as
conceited, helpless, and useless, and no business man
wanted them or could be induced even to give them a.
chance, except under pressure. To-day all this is changed,
and the leading technical schools are now continually
obliged to inform their correspondents that all alumni
are engaged, a.nd th a t they are unable to supply the men
wanted by tbe now solicitious employer. Hundreds of
young so-called ''mechanical enfineers" are now annually
turned out by these schools; al find their opportunities,
and they are rapidly assuming positions of highest re-

letter from an alumnus seeking a change of position.

They are called for by all sorts of ma.nofactoring establishments, railways, commercial houses, technical schools,
and even colleges of the orthodox "liberal" kind, attempting to teach applied sciences.
The accompanying diagram (Fig. 1) suows the progress
of this country during the century just closing. lt is seen
that its most remarkable acceleration began at a.bou t the
time of the Civil War, and after a. "war tariff " on imports
bad been established, which has been substantially retained. This waa also the period of effective develofment
of the ~xisting system-if system it can be called-o technical, and especially of mechanical engineering, schools.
The form er is generally considered to have had much to
do with the upward trend of our curves; bot it is very
certa.in that the latter is coming to be a most important element. Another ~eneration will see the whole
mdustrial system of the U n1ted States practically under
the hands and the direction of these technically trained
men.
All the great corporations engaged in manufacturing
are falling under the supervision and are subject to the
energetic and discreet management of these young men,
trained in the sciences as well as the arts of their chosen
vocation. The extent to which this cha.n~e baa taken
place is a matter of astonishment to all fam1liar with the
OOLLA IC$ PTR
TOTAl. WEALTH
"D .
INHAIITANT .
fact, but unfamiliar with the enormous difference m value
TNOUS~HD MILUOH DOLL~It$
.C (fl .f .
1SO
.,.
v
1500
between the so called "practical " man without scientific
I
knowledge and the young professionally trained engineer,
1400
- 140
well educated, familiar alike with the facts and the
reasons for them, and capa.ble of making himself "prac'

1300
130
tical " in a wonderfully short time, then constituting the

I
'

:;
ideal "captain of industrl~" The great successes in this
1'200
120
department of life in the United S tates are of yonng men
'

/
of this class. Fighting their way into the superintend
I
t
l
OC
110
encies of shops, mills, factories, railways, and great manuV
,
facturing industries, they are rapidly proving the value

I
J
fOtJO
tOO
of a combination of scientific knowledge with talent and
practical experience. They are a. selected class; fort-very
300
30
man of them, in the case at least of the great schools of
~
engineering, must have secured his admiSsion by meetl/

800
80
ing entrance requirements that the average youth can

?
u
rarely
attain,
even
ifaa
all
these
young
men
must
be,
to

~.
'100
'10
succeed-naturally fitted for the professional work of the
rt
school. This includes, usually, shop-work, drawing, de.f
'1
coo
(i0
signing, chemical, physical, mechanical electrical engif:)~
~t
neering, laboratory work, often serious research supplesoo
60

menting instru ction. The student's fingers and brain are

1.. V
alike cultivated, through four years of the most arduons
I
400
4()
work known in our collegell, in even the professional
V

schools.
L
300
30

It may not be the fa.ct that our technical schools have

V
./
had a very important influence in the past; but they are
UJO
20
/

exerting a wonderfully powerful influence now, and will

'
/
exert a vastly greater power hereafter in the uplifting of
tOO
1v

our ''curves of progress." (See diagram, Fig. 2) .

/
.'
.

Referring to Mr. Halsey'sletter: It is evident that be is

0
YUR 1820 1530 1MO 1850 J860 W/0 1MO 1800 1300
earnestly interested in the trade school movement, which,
singub.rly, has secured very little attention, and has
WRALTU 0~' TBR UNITED STATES.*
made no important progress in the U nited States, not(DATA Jt'RO~I MULHALL.)
withstanding the rapid development of our engineering
schools. The more elementary work of the manual train2
~~~~~R~~~~:~~TT~~~~~~~rrrrlrTTTII ing schools has made much more important advances than
the trade school system ; a.ltbou~h not nearly a.s great a.s
might have been expected from a people reputed as
'
intelligent as ours. Both these lines of techmca.l work
are, however, coming forward, and a few years may see

Cl VfL I
them rapidly developing. The fact, alluded to by this
t-t-+1 M (CHANt CA I. - - H-1-+~H--H-+H-t-t-t--t-t-t-tti
correspondent, tha.t our great captains of industry have
MININC --
been men of extensive prn.ctica.l experience and excep'
tional power in the art, while ignorant of the science of
their departments, is obviously a necessary consequence
of the other fact that, in their day of youthful {>reparation for promotion, there were no such opportumties for
them, a nd what few schools there were were devoted
I
almost purely to the sciences of the surveyor ~nd ci v~l
engineer, and not at all to those of the mecba.mca.l engineer and the mechanical industries a.nd manufactures.
To.da.y such men are almost unanimomdy regretting this,
wbicb they now regard a.s misfortune, and they are gla.d
to send their sons to the modern technical schools, where
they ma~ se~ure .that scientific knowledge, broad.er training, and mstgbt mto the most advanceq and f~uttful and
profitable methods of contemporaneous mdustr:es.. .
11.
Aa it happens, I have long known all the md1v1duals
mentioned by your correspondent, and some of them have
been, for many years, personal friends, and I know tolerI'
ably well tbe1r sentimen~. Such men never visit me
- ~~~4-~4-~~~~~~~i-r+~.~
~~-rri1rt1 without si~bing over the wonderful opportunities of the
young eng~neer of to-day, and often wishing that they
.....~

had not been born quite so eoon. I have, on my letter files,

a. letter from one of theee gentlemen, written some months
a~o, after such a visit, in which he says be would give his
rtght. arm could he e?'<?hange it for the knowledge and
trainmg tbfl.t t~e am~1t1ous graduate of such a sch_ool ~ow
carries away wttb h1m. Another,
whose name I S gtven
1
by
your
correspondent,
~aye : ' A C<?mmon school educa~
C~~ ~~ ,_.
tion is of course, the pnme essent1al ; but, after that,
... .

0
.
' 1885
""'0
the yo~ng man. is va.s~l~ benefite~ by a course of colle'1860
J865 1810 -- , ' 18?S ~
1/JiJO
10<J
giate, or tec~~lCal tramn~g, prov tde~ tha~, at .the same
(UJA)
time be be dthgent and smgle-eyed m fitting htmself for
GRADUATES IN ENGINEERING IN UNITED STATES. t
an honourable career, and so apply himself that as to
(DAT.\. k'ROM WELLINGTON.)
learn
how
to
think
alone-the
latter
a.
rare
quality."
He
sponsibility in the industrial system. Sibley College baa goes on to sal: " Had I a. son to bring up in any line
about 1000 graduat~, and I do not know of <?De out of of business, should give him opportumty for advanced
employ, unles:s ill. Over 1~0 more are expectmg to be- education and culture." Then he says: ' 1 I wish that I
come alumni m June, and 1t seem~ prob~ble that every might have taken a course of such instruction ; but, as
individual will be pro-vided for 1mmed1ately. 0? my that was impossible, I must get on a~ best I can withfiles are letters asking for a dozen where there 18 one
out it."
-of these men once wrote me : '' I should prefer
4
* ' Trend of National Progress," North American Re- toAnother
put my boy into a school where he could get the techview, September, 1895. . .
.
,
t "Technical EducatiOn m the Umted States, Trans. nical and the practical training at the same time." cc If
he was to be an engineer, be should have a good know4. S. M. E., 1893.

'

,,t j

_t,

'I

//

?/

..

~ ~ j-

--- -

(MARCH

30, I 900.

ledge of the two or three trades moet essentia~ to begin

with, taking, at the sa.me time, all the tech01cal know.
ledge he could hold, and should take profeeaional work
on top of that." Still another of these great and typical
mechat?ics writes m~: cc I do believe that a technical
educat10n for the engineer would be of very considerable
ad vantage ; but, to become a master in his profession, it
is indispensable that be shall have a practical knowledge
of the processes of manufacture. . . . The difficulty of
obtaining both is great, and one or other may be sacrificed, which one is usua.Uy determined by circumstances."
He doubts whether, under the circumstances of his life,
commencing in the early half of the century, he would
have been financially as much profited b.Y the tachnical u
he actually was by the vooa.tiona.l, expenence; bot, nevertheless, be " would reserve the higher walks of the profession for those only who are well qualified for advanced
study, whether they have the ca.pa.otty for practical work
or otherwise." Still another-included in the list referred
to, by the way-tells me tba.t he has answered the question of advisability by sending his own son to the neare6t.
and an admira.ble co11ege of mechanical engineering, and
that be now considers him, after some 1ears of businea
life, '' thorou~hly qualified for a.ny pos1tion we can pot
him in." Hts is one of our most extensive and famous
tool-building e.qta.blisbments. Speaking of the young
engineer generally, be further says: cc If he has a. talent
a.nd an ambition to get to the head, be will be bene6~
by graduating from a. technical school ; but, as a. thorough
knowledge of the details of construction lB <I,Uite necessary, he must get tha.t knowledge by practice m the busi
ness which be intends to follow. . . ." "If I had had
the ofportunities for education that my boy has bad, I am
sore would have been a. much more useful man."
These are samples of statements of which ecores, and
~robably hundreds, have been made by this cl888 of
'successful" men. In fact, a. very large percentage of
our students in the engineering schools are the sons of
just such men. They do not a.lways justify the hopes of
their parents; but it ie not because of a defoot m tbe
schools it is a. defecb of the modem well. to-do vooth, who
!s too.often absol.uteJy witbo~t. conce_j)tion of the value or
magmtude of b1s opportumttes. Those who do prove
wise, ambitious, industrious, and well fitted for the ~ro
fession chosen, are, as I remarked ab the outs;et, taking
possession of the business of the coming generation.
Mr.J. E. Everet, ex-President of the American
ociety
1
of Mechanica.l Engiueers, once wrote me: ' You .can
hardly imagine the effect it bad on me wben I went mto
your workshops the other da.y, and sa.w your boys at work.
The chance to go in with them would add 10 years to
life." Other obs~rvers of the training giv~n in expen
we~ tal in vestiga.~ions of . strength of material, ?f steam
engme and of botler testmg, and of all the v~ous t>ro
blems of the mechanica.l engineer, and in maeh.me destgn,
no less enthusiastically testify to the splen~1d J?rO~
now making in engine~ring sch90Is, no~ onJr m this .unton
of science with pract1ce but m lea.dmg m the h18best
methods of contempora;y pr!lctice. ~.t leadershiP. of
schools and school men ia certa.mly now ra1atng the gradien~
of our cc curves of progress."
R. H. TBUBSTON.
Sibley College, Cornell University, Itba.ca, N.Y.,
March 6. 1000.

mr

LAUNCHES AND TRIAL TRIPS.

MEs~RS.

Lnnno, Belf~
launched on the 19th inst. a. steel screw steamer na~
the Corinthian, built t? ~be oder of the Allan~rln~
Steamship Company Ltmtted, of Gla.agow. The .
thian is the third boa.b built for t~~ All~n L1ne by
this firm, and is a. sister ship to the Sictli~n wh1ch.rec:Jtg
left Belfast. The vessel has been spectally dest~n car 0
meet the requirements of a. passenger, cattle, a!l
g~
boat, and is tntended. for
the trade between
tvedryoo
. 1 C _..:a
ports L
n
1 JmenGla.sgow, and t~e P.rmc~pa
an~tan
f . h Sicilian:
sions the CoriDthtan JS a duplicate ho t lded 31 ft
Length, 430 ft. ; breadth, 54 ft. ; dept mou
cattl~
Between the upper and shelter decks permanenhead of
stalls will be fitted to accommodate over 600
is
cattle. Accommodation for 1~0 first-class passengers
provided at the front of the bndge deck.
'VoRKMAN, CLARK, AND Co.,

The new steamer Ventmoor, built by Messr ~I~~r

and Son, of Stockton.on-Tees, to the order of mad~
Waiter Runciman and Co., of Newca.stle-on-Ty9~h inst.
her official tria.l trip in the .Te~s Bay o~e t~ns She
The d eadweigbt cargo C&PS;Clty 18 ~boot
rs' Blair
is fitted wi th triple-expanston engmes by Mess The
and Co., Limited, of 1200 indicated horse-power.
trial was satisfactory.
On Saturday, lvlarch 24. the steel sc::nJW':nd~
Rosario, built to the order of Me~rs.Bp~~e Shipbuilding
ford, of Ne~p?rt, Mon., by t e
Y to sea. for her
Company, L1m1ted, of Bly~h, was ~ken h . 4oft. 9 in.
official trial trip. The vessel1s 282ft. mlen~t ' has been
beam, and 20 ft. 6 in. depJ;~. . The machiDe~! Limited,
supplied by Messrs. Joh.n Dwkm~on a;od So33 in., and
of Sunderland, the cyhnders bemfg n .m., steam being
54 in. in diameter with a. ~troke o 3" JD,,
supplied from t wo large boilers.
tb
boors' coal con
b
The official result show that t e ree boat destroyer,
sumption trials of the Albatross. to2~~- t were of a
which took place on Monday, the t ~ns ~ bad to be
satisfactory chara~ter. A . speed of 311 noThe en~ea
obtained, and ~h1s. was shghtly exceed~th 379.9 revolo
regiRtered 7784 mdtcated horse-power, 10
the boilers of
tion1 per minute, and a steam pressure
240 lb. per square inch.

MARCH

JO,

E N G I N E E R I N G.

1900.]

FRIEDMANN~s
C 0 N S T RU C T E D

BY

MECHANICAL LUBRICATOR.

~J E S ~ R, '.

RI C HARD

K L IN G E:.R

CO. ,

AND

LONDON.

(Fm De3cription, see Page 428.)

Fig .1.

I ig.Z.

% .8,

I
I
0

0/..U

Cup
I

StEam
~

..

6tearrv Ou.J.l.el.
)-

Fig .4.

--

HAND AND IvlACHINE LABOUR.

(Contim.tud from page 376.)
MARBLE AND STONEWORK.

IT has already been pointed out that the cost of

bricks has been reduced by one-third, sewer pipes
by the same proportion, and now we coine to
marble and stonework, where the ratio of reduced
cost is still more marked. In the preparation
of granite balusters, machinery has a very useful
and suitable part, for here repetition has advantages, and it is satisfactory to note that t he labour
cost now is less than one-twenty-third part what it
was in 1873. The data are given in Table LXXXI.
LXXX I.-Produotion of 52 Gratn.ite B alU3Ur s,
2 Ft. 4 In. Long, Ba&e 4! I n . by 6 In., Cap :ij In. by
6 In. ; G-reatest Dia11teter of S well, 6 In.
Mode of Production.
Hand.
Machine.
Date...
...
...
...
1873
1894
N umber of different ope...
rations involved
4
10
Number of workmen employed ...
...
...
21
30
Number of hours worked 8303 h. 23 m. 653 h. 26 m.
Cost of labour
...
... 4638.44 dols. 210.05 dols.
Average rate of wages per
hour
...
...
...
56 cents
32 cents

TABLE

It will be seen that the average wage is considerably less, since the same highly skilled labour is
no longer required; for while stonecutters are still
employed, more of the work is done in steamdriven lathes. But even the stonecutters are only
paid 3 do1s., as compared with 4.50 dols. per day
in 1873; and th~ la.themen get from 2. 50 dvls. to
4 dols. per day. The first operation is the making

of gauges and patterns , and here machine methods

have been effectively applied, the time taken being
as 1 is to 4i. Lathes, of course, are used in turning, and in final squaring at tops and bases, steam
saws, brushes, &c., are used.
In carving .Romanesque designs there is a saving
of about 40 per cent. in the cost of former
years and purely hand m~.b Qds ; and in making
marble cornices the saving 1s about a fifth. It is
when we come to t he work of the ordinary dressing
and polishing the marble that great economy is
achieved. It is scarcely necessary to describe the
operations ; they are obvious. The dressing and
polishing is done in a sixth of the time, and there is
economy in handling as well. The unit chosen for
comparison of the work of dressing, is 150 square
feet. In each case there were three operations
carried out by two workerR, but in 1894 machinery enabled t hese men to do t he work in 19 hours
at a labour cost of 26s. 4d., while the hand process,
in t he year following, 1895, required 243 hours, the
labour cost being over 16l. The wages i:n both
cases were 12s. 6d. per day. The data for handwork on marble polishing were collected in 1885,
for machine work in 1895 ; in both cases the
polisher had about !Os. per day, but in the one
ca~e the 8 squar e feet of marble was polished in
10 hours 7! minutes at a cost of 1ls. 5d., while
with primitive appliances the . time taken was
60 hours, and the cost over 3l.
The preparation of marble slabs affords an even
more striking example of the economical use of
labour as is shown by the following TableLXXXII. The sawyer's wage is exactly double

now: but with the steam saw he does more than

500 times the work of his predecessor of 1852.
T ABLE

LXXXII.-Produotion of 25 Marble Stabs, 8Ft.

by 4 Ft. 1 In. Thick.

Mode of Production.
Hand.
Da.te...
.. .
.. .
.. .
1852
Number of different operations involved ...
...
1
Number of workmen employed ...
...
...
2
Number of hours worked 6000h. 0 m.
Cost of labour
.. .
. . . 500 dols .
Average rate of wages per
hour
.. .
.. .
.. . 8.3 cents

Machine.
1895

3
3
1l h . 10 m.
2.39 dols.
21 cents

In wainscotting again the work done is four times

in volume ; and the labour cost is only a sixth
what it was in 1886.
NAILs, SPIKEs, AND ~rAcKS.
Machinery now enters very largely into the making of nails, tacks, and the like, and in a general
way it is known that the cost of production is very
much reduced ; but few will be prepared for the
great differences recorded in the official r ecords
before us. Under the old conditions two or t hree
men were engaged with forge, vice, hammer,
nippers, &c., carrying out individually nearly all
the successive operations, requisite in the construction of a complete nail, tack, or spike. Now
the iron or steel is cut into strips by machine and
formed into nail, spike, or tack, by automatic
machinery, and thus these two operations, which
are most prominent, take but a fraction of t he
time. F or instance, in the case of horseshoe nails,
No. 14 gauge and lf'a in. long, 147 were stripped in

E N G I N E E R I N G.
the time formerly taken for one ; 1!-in. clout nails
were stripped in a sixty-second part of the time
formerly r equired, and tacks were done in a
hundredth part of the time.
Again, in the
operation of actual making, the saving is still
more pronounced, for 330 horseshoe nails can
be made in the time needed for one of the
same size under the primitive method; 280 cut
nails can be made for one, and so with 255
tacks, the t atio being generally quite 100 for one
under the old conditions. The machine method
involved seven times the number of operations, and as a rule from three to four times the
number of men, and in some cases wages were
lower because less skilled labour was rP.quired, but
in many cases there are advances.
One or two representative cases may be taken.
The well-known 4d. cut nail cost in labour, in 1813,
10d. per pound; now the figure is at the rate of 6t lb.
for 1d. The cost of labour per 100 lb., or per 20,900
nails, is 1s. 3d., as compared with over 4l. This, too,
is notwithstanding that much higher wages are paid,
and is due entirely to more rapid production, for
the unit g iven was completed by machinery in
1 h our 49i minutes, while by hand labour 236 h ours
25 minutes were required. In the one case three
workers carried through three operations, the one
heating iron strips and cutting blanks for nails, the
second heating blanks and heading and tinishing
nails, while the third was engaged in inspecting,
weighing, packing, &c., the nails after they were
made. U nder the modern machine method there
are 20 operations, and 83 men are engaged upon
them.
TABLE LXXXIII.-Production of 100 Lb. Horseshoe
Nails (125 per Lb.).
Mode of Production.
Hand. Machine.
1895
Date...
. ..
...
...
1866
Number of differen b opera2
11
tions involved .. .
. ..
N umber of workmen em21
ployed . ..
...
. ..
1
Number of hours worked 208 h. 20 m. 10 h.3.8 m.
1.28 dola.
Cost of labour
. ..
. .. 52.08 do~.
Average rate of wages per
hour
...
.. .
. . . 25 cents
12 cents
W e give in Table LXXXIII. the general results
of the production of 100 horseshoe nails, the later
make being compressed cold, and here it will be
noticed that t h e wage is jus t half what it was. Forme rly blacksmiths were engaged earning over !Os .
a day ; now much of the work is d one by females
earning 3s. 1d. per day, and the other labour is
for the most part paid at 7s. a day. Thus by improved machinery the product cost but one-fiftieth
the former rate.
TADLE LXXXIV.- Production of 100 Lb. Wrouyht
RatiiJroad Spikes.

Machine.
Mode of Production.
Hand.
1895
Date...
...
. ..
...
1895
Nu mber of different opera6
4
tions involved . ..
. ..
Number of workmen employed ...
.. .
. ..
3
!>
Number of hours worked 4 h. 46 m. 0 h. 23 m.
Cost of labour
. ..
. . . 1.10 dola.
0.10 dol.
Table LXXXIV. gives the labour cost of 100
spikes for rail way use. These w~re 6!. in. Ion~ by
1~a- in. square, and t he companson Is speCially
intere::;ting, owing to the fact that hand and machine data are fo r the same year- 1895. Hand
labour took n early 13 times as long as with machinery, a nd the cost is 11 t imes greater than with
the modern method.
With tacks a similar comparison might be made.
Here t h e time required formerly was about 100
times that now necessary, and 100 lb. of 6-oz. tacks
cost now 1.47 dols. equal to 6s. 2d. , against
77. 30 dols. equal to nearly 16l., while 24 oz. tacks
cost 3s . against 50s .
NEEDLES AND PINS.

It seems remarkable that 50 to 60 workers are

needed to produce a needle or a pin, or a pair of

h ook s and eyes, and yet it is by this concentration
and specialisation of plant that the cost has been so
greatly reduced. Ten thousand hairpins are made
for a labour cost of 3s. 5d ., against 10s. t\venty y~ars
a bao ' 14, 400 of hooks and eyes for 6s., agamst
.
about 26s. ; 1000 knitting needles for 4s., aga~nst
10s.; 1000 sewing machine needles for 9s., against
nearly 17l., 1000 curved se~ing ~achine needles
for 15s. 7d. , against 27l.; whtle p1ns cos t ~n~y 1s.
for 12 packages instead of 22s. Space prohibits an
investigation as to how all t~ese . results are
achieved, for each product has Its ddftrent processes: but some reference may be made to

TABLE LXXXV.-DETAILS

- -

(MARCH

TIME AND CosT oF PBonocTION

MACHINE NEEDLES (18!):,).

OJ.'

OF

30, I 900.

1000 CuRVED SEWING

---

Work Done.

Machine or Tool.

Power.

Straightening, grinding ends, and cut

ting wire ..
..
..
..
. Automatic machines ..
..
Cutting wire to gauge
Au tomatic cutting machine ..

Reducing wire to size
..
Ditto
.

Ditto
.. Cold -s wa~ing machiDE:s
..

Ditto
..
.
D1tto
..

1
Pointing \\;re
..
Ditto
..

Ditto
.. Pointing machines

Stamping name on shank
Marking machine

Grooving wire
..
..
..
Oroovin~ machines

Ditto ..
Dttto
..
..

Ditto
Ditto
..

Punching eyes
Punch preese3
..

Ditto
Ditto
..
..

. . Clipping machine
..
Clippin~ c fi su1.lus metal

Smoothmg nee lea
..
..
Burring machines

Bending needles ..
Bending machines





Inspecting needles . .
. . None used
..

Tempering needles
. . Muffle and tongs

R evolving brushes
Polish io~ needles

Ditto
D1tto
..

Poin~-6nishing ma~hine
Finishing points
..

Polishing grooves
Wire wheels
..
..
..

..
Ditto
Ditto
..
..

Scouring eyes
..
. . Rye-scouring machine


Ditto
Dit t o

. Pliera and gaugE's

Truing needles
..
.
.



1
. . None used
..
ln9pec tinit needles ..

Ditto
Ditto
..
..
..
..

..
. . Ditto
Assorting needles ..

Weighing needles ..
..
Scales

Labelling needles ..
Pa.ete brush

Packing needles ..

None used

Washing and sweeping ftoors

.. Broom, &c.
..

Making dies and keeping IJiachinery in
order
..
..
..
Machinists' tools

Overseeing establishment
Ditto

Ditto
ditto

None used

Furnishing power ..
..
..
Engine

S bovel, poker, &c.

Firing boiler
..
..

:.I

Occupation.

S ~eam

"
"
"
"

"

"
"
"
"

"
Foot

"
Steam

Hand

Hand
Steam

"

"
"
"
"
"
Hllnd
..
..
..

Hand

"

Hand

"

..

Stearu
Hand

Time
Worked

b.

Wal{f S per

m.

Day.

dol a.
Cutler (contro.otor)
0 18.2
3.00
Cutter
0 1.1
2.50
Swager (contractor)
0 18.2
300
Machine tender
0 18 2
2.(0
() 18.2
Machine feeder
1.50
Pointer (contractor)
0 18.2
3.00
Pointer
0 18 2 1 2.00
Marker
0 18 2
1.00
Oroover (contractor) 0 18.2
3.90
Groover
0 1'l. 2
2.00
Oroovers
1 12.7
1.00
Eye maker (colltractor) 0 18.2
5.65
Eye makenl
0 36.4
L58A
Machine tender
0 18. 'l
1.50
Polishers
0 36.4
1 .~~
Benders 1 0.0
1 25
Inspectors
0 54.5
1.25
Temperer
0 18.2
2.25
Polishers
0 36.4
2.37~
Polishera' helper
0 18.2
1.25
Poiot finisher
0 18.2
225
Polisher
4 1 .2
2.e6a
0 18.2
Ditto
2.33A
Scourer {contractor) 0 1~.2
5.15
Scourers
0 54.5
1.25
Truers
3 20.0
2~
0 18.2
Inspector
2.00
Inspectors
0 36.4
1.25
Assortero
0 54.6
1.00
0 18 2
I 25
Weigher
Labtller
0 18.2
1.25
Pa~ k er
0 18. 'l
1. 25
L1.bourer
10 18.2 1 2.00
Mach 'nists
Foreman
Foreman, assistant
Engineer
Fireman

0 54.5
0 18.2
0 18.2 I
0 3.0
0 3.0

L'.&bour
Cost.

2.50
3.50
2.00
3.00
1. 75

dol.
.01}10
.0046
.091
.0607
.0466
.091o
.0607
.0303
.1183
.0607
.1212
.17U
.0961
.0155
.1112
.1260
.1135

I .o6Sl

I .HH
.0379
I

.0883
.0809
.0708
.1662
.1135
.7500

.0607

.0758
.0908
.0379
.0379
.0379

.06117
.2271
.1062

I .0607

.0150
.OO&s

Women workers; t.otalling 28 of the 57 workers engaged.

sewing machine n eedles as a representative case.

T able LXXXV. gives the details for the machine
method. Straightening and cutting the wire into
lengths is the first process, and by special machines
this was done in about one- twent ieth of the t ime
formerly req uired, reducing the wire to size used
to take 285 times the period now required ; and
here it may be remarked t hat one person attends
13 of the cold pressing machines which carry
out this part of the process. In another case the
work was done by cold swaging machine and 33 of
these machines were attended by t hree persons,
and each is paid 12s . a day. This cold swaging machine did t he work in 1}:Tth of the time required
by hammer and anvil. .Pointing t he wire was d one
by steam-driven emery wheels, and took 2 ! nth
of the time n eeded by file, vice, and block ; but
in other cases water-power emery wheels were used,
and t ook much longer than with this steam-driven
tool.
The grooving machines took only Tt 1 th
to ~ 1 th part of the ti me formerly necessary, a:nd
here it should be noted that one person earnm g
Ss. 4d. a day attends 10 t o 12 machines. A punch
s ubsitutes the drill used in the old process for
making t he eye: t he time taken is about the same.
The drilling and reaming is no w done in :rb-xth part
of the time ; smoothing by a burring machine 3\rt.,h
of the time, and other processes a correspondingly s hort period of time. The complete result
is shown on Table LXXXVI., and it will be seen
T ABLE L XXXVI. - P1oduction of 1000 Cuncd Sewing
M achin e N eedles.
Machine.
Mode of Production.
Hand.
1895
Date
. ..
...
. ..
1851
Number of different opera18
27
tions involved . . .
. ..
Number of workmen em57
ployed . . .
. ..
...
4
Number of hours worked !>06 h. 0 m. 19 h. 0.2 m.
3.74 dols.
Cost of labour
. ..
. . . 133.2 t dols.
Average rate of wages per
hour
.. .
. ..
. . . 14.7 cents
1!>. 7 cents
tha t t h e average wage is higher by 2i d. per h our,
notwithstanding that in the former process only
the scouring was d one by females, whereas n ow, as
shown by the ast erisks on Table LXXXV., women
are engaged in 13 of the processss, 28 of the 57
workers being females.
( To be continued.)

FRIEDMANN 'S MECHANICAL LUBRICA'l'OR

FOR LOCOMOTIVES.
W E illustrate on page 427 a lubricator, specially intended for use on locomotives, which is now being introduced by Messrs. Richard Klinger and Co., of Fenchurch-street Chambers, 66, Fenohurch-street, London,
E C. By means of this lubricator several bear-ingo,
steam or otherwiEe, can be fed with certainty from the

eame oil cup without regard to their different back

pressures, t be flow to each being independtnt of that
to the others, no matter how different may be the
pressures against which the oil has to be forced. ~he
instrument consists of an oil cup of the usual km~,
having beneat h it a chamber, with which it commuDl
cates t hrough a. flat rotary vahe. The oil in this
chamber is forced to each bearing in turn by m_eans
of a plunger caused to reciprocate by an eccent_n c on
the same ~:haft as the rotati ng valve above men~10n~d.
The distribution to the different points of lubnc&tlOD
is effected by suitably arranged ports in the valve
seat. Coming to details of construction, a. gene_ral
view of the lubricator, as arranged for _sup~lymg
oil t o four different bearings, is shown m FJ~. 1.
The oil cup, it will be seen from the E~ct10nal
views, Figs. 2 and 3, is fitted with a st1 amer, to
keep gr it or other eolid matter awa_y fro~ the valve
surfaces, aud it is, moreover, supphe::i w1th a s~a!D
jacket by mean<1 of which the oil can be kept fiu1d 10
cold w'eather. The pump chamber below is let~red a,
whilst b denotes the plunger whic~ p~mps the ~11. The
eccentric driving this is best seen m F~g. 4. Thts ec~en
tric is, it will be eeen, cast on a verttc.a.l shaft, dnven
by worm grariog by means of the ratchet wheel c
and carrying at its upper end the . vB:lve d, by mea~s
of which the dist ribut ion of the o1l 1s effected. Th_
1s
valve, it will be seen, is not fixed direct to the shaft t.n
question, but is driven by lugs on the lat~er, an~ 18
maintained against its seat by means of a sptr~l ~prmg,
as shown in Fig. 3, which also shows t he port m 1ts seat
communicating with t he oil cup above. . The ~alve
it self is shown separately in Fig. 5, and ~s J>roVlded,
as indica te(! , with a. single port, cousJstlDg of a
narrow slot in its disc, as shown. The seat on
which it works is well shown in Fig. 6, and . has,
it will be seen, five ports. The largest of_ theec _1s the
suction port whilst the others, of vanous Wldt~{'
communicate' with the branches leading to. th~ dl
ferent bearings. Each of t hese branches, as md1ca~
in Fig 3 is fitted with a. non-return valve. The P udg
'
F'.1g.. 2 fian t
shown immediately
above the plunge_r 1n
also in Fig. l , is used simply to get nd of. alr m.n::d
starting up the apparatus. It may be. spec~ally_pol The
out that all moving parts 'vork enttrely 1n 011.
d
makera guarantee the very best workmanship an
ma terial.

H AMBURCA~IERICAN LlNE.-This company ha.s and

nounced a di v1dend of 8 per cent. for 189~, as cd~pdred
with a similar distribution for 1898. A high~d 1\iJt ~d
could have beell paid. but the directors cons.t er f the
vi ;able to build up ~ large. reserve. The busl~b:sthat i b
co:npany was so actt ve dunng the past 12 mon
t of
08
had to charter vessels from other companies at ~dc bly
llO,OOOl., although its OWJ?- fleet has been cond~re~e!'e
increased of late.. The du-ectors propose, un fl eet still
circumstances, to mcrease the tonnage C?f the the com
furth er; and wi~h thia object, t~e caplt~fOOOl Tho
paoy will be ra1sed from 3,250,003?.. to 4, ~een Hamcompany will establish regular aatllogs ~t
Genoa
bur~ f\nd Nor thern Brazil, and voyagE'S tween
and New York will be ex~endtd over the whole year.
THE

MARCH

30,

I 900.

E N G I N E E R I N G.

INDUSTRIAL NOTES.
p \.RLL\~tEN'r is proverbially difficult to mo.ve, but
mo,:e it does though slowly. The'' private '' member
has of late y~rs bee .1 almost wiped out as a practical
1~gi le.tor but he also he.s his cha nce if he wilL only be
00 the aiert and wait for it. On Wednesday in last
week it was a "private '' member on the Government
side of the House who was able to secure an amendment of the Compensation Act by its extension to the
e. riculture.l lab JUrer. An attempt was made to
i:clude him when the meu,sure was before the House
in the first in1tance. I t is the sa"?e. H ouse, and the
8..\IDe party in power, but the decision of l 897 was
ravers~d in thi~ session of 1900. The Home Secretary
ir l\IatLhew White Ridley, s tated on t he
21st' inst. that . the measure of 1897 . w~s an experiment; it mtroduced a. new prmctple, and
many employers of labour were threat;ened, or
thought to be threatened, with heavy damages. and
costs of litigation. H e went on to se.y that experience
has proven ' 'that the responsibility could be met by a
compe.r~tively Jight premium of insurance.,
It was
contended at the time, in Indus tri~l Notes, that th e
iosurance would Le lighter if all t rades were included ;
that is the contention still. It stands ~o. rea.so~ that
if only the m.ore dangerous ~ra?es -mmtng, railway
service factor1es, and the bmldmg trades, &c.- were
ioclud~d there would naturally be a. higher average of
cases racjuiring compensation than there would be if
the less danaerous
trades were included, and , conse0
quently, the e.verage l?remiumi of in.sura nce would be
heavier. The inclus10n of the e.gr10ultural labourer
will no~ increase the average premium, for his is not
a. dangerous trade.
One o[ t he la rgest employers in the most dangerous
c~lliog of all-c:>a.l mining -was a.n o.p ponent ~ f the
mea~ure in 1897 ; be now advocated Its extension to
the aarioultural labourer. HA stated t hg,t many of the
dang~rs anticipated e.t the time. of passiog th e Act
had not arisen. In the count1es of Durham and
Northumberland the C&Ses of li tigation had been extremely few; he went on to Eay that this wa.s not
owing to the lucidity of the Act itself, but t o the
common sense of the people to whom the Act applied.
He, therefore, hoped that the time was not fe.r distant
when the Act would be extended to other classes of
workmen. The Home Secretary admitted that there
had been considerable difficulty in the interpretation
of the Act of 1897, and he intimated that before long
there would be e. ca~e for e. revision of the Act. He
eaid frankly that "the Aot did not appear to do for
some cla.3se3 of labourers that which the Government
unquestionably desired should be done for them. "
Here the whole case is put in a. nutshell. Some of
the decisions in the Courts have been extraordinary.
Doubts have arisen as to what is a. "place," and what
is a " scaffolding. " Surely legal phraseology is a.t
fault if no adequate definit ion can be found for such.
If it'should be found to be impossible to d efine what
these are then the negative form should be tried, as
is o~ten done in Acts of P~rlie.ment, saying what is
uot a place, aod wh~t is n~t. a. s?affoldi.ng.. The blot
in the Act of 1897 ts the ht1ga.tton which It has provoked the costs of which injure both employers e.nd
employed. Sir Ja.mes JoicAy's testimony in this
respect is good ; very little litigation h~s taken
place in the two great northern coe.l-producmg countiel, The same is true e.<J regards the textile trades
of L1ncashire, HO often referred to in Industrial Notes.
It is to be hoped that the la.w will be made clearer
in the near future.

they give extensive powers to t he ~ ecretary of ta.te.

The intention is good; it is to make regulations for the
safety of peraons employed, both as t o heal t h, and to
life and limb. On beiog "Ea.tisfied th~J.t any manufacture, machinery, process, or description of manual
labour used in factories or workshops is dangerous or
inj urious to health, or dangerous to life and limb,
eith'3r generally, or in the case of women, children, or
any other chss of persons," hA may certify such to be
dangerous, and " make such regulations as appear t o
him to b3 reasonably practicable, and to meet t he
requirements of the case." This is the power given.
I t is a wide p ower, and not wi t hout some dangers to
th ose concerned.
There has been a g rowing tendency to rely upon
those "statutory regulations " of late years. They
save time in Parliament. But while they have all the
force of law, they are seldom subject to Parliamentary
criticism, because they ard not circulated t o members
like Bills, an(l often they a re not seen until they come
into force. Dut they are operative un t il superseded
by other regulations. In t he present Bill provision is
made to meet this difficulty by the publication of
notice of the Secretary of State'd proposal, and of the
place where copies of the draft r egulations me.y be
seen, and also of the time wi thiu which objections ma.y
be made to such proposed r egulations by or on behalf of
the persons affected. So far all the objections to the
present mode are met. But the Bill goes on to provide
that in case of dispute "the matter shall be referred to
a. raferee " to be appointed by the Secretary of Sta te.
Then it provides as to the methods of inquiry, &c.
In reality it is a procedure similar to that of Select
Committees on Pri ve.te Bills, except that instead of a.
committee i t is a. peraon- the referee. An open court
is constituted where the fd.ctory inspector and a.ll
objectors may be examined in person by counsel,
solicitor, or agent. This will bring in the lawyer,
with all the expenses attendant thereupon. Now
the objectors will ei ther be the employer or
the workpeople, who will have to bear the costs
of the inquiry, except the fees to t he referee,
which will be paid by the Home Office. In other parts
of the Bill provis ion is made for two-shift factories, e.s
to overtime, restrictions on employment inside and
outside factory and workshop, certificates of fitness,
&c. Laundries, tenement factories, bakehouses, humidity, particulars as to wages, and a. variety of other
matters are dealt wi th. In many respects the Bill is
an advance on the old li nes, a nd ma.y be productive
of much good. Doubtless employers and labour tr.en
in the House of Commons will carefully watch every
clause, and where deemed to be necessary will move
amendments. The foregoing is but an outline of the

matn
prOVlSlO
nS.
The reports from the engineering centres of Lancashire show that a.ll the leading engineering industries continue in a. satisfactory posit ion, activity
being well maintained throughout. The returns as
to employment by the local secretaries of trade union
branch'!s fully b~a.r out t his statement, for full employment is being found for members, the list of
unemployed being much below the average. There is
exceptional pressure in all sections of electrical engineering and constructive work, particularly for motive
power and traction requireme_nts; the firms engaged
in those classes of work have m prospect e. very large
amount of work for some time to come. As regards
other branches-such as machine-tool making, boilermaking, l?comoti ve a.n~ st,ationa.ry en~i~e b~ilding,
ironmouldmg, and smiths work-actlVIty 1s well
maintained. The supposjtion that there is any falling
off in work is not verified by the facts ; there he.s only
been hesitancy in placing orders, because of the uncertainty of their being complt;ted in reasonable time
a.s desired by customers, and, perhaps, in some cases,
by reason of a. hope that by a. fall in the prices of fuel
and of ra.w and finisbfd material easier terms could be
secured. The iron market has been somewhat unsettled in tone, causing merchants and dealers to be
cautious in operating, while t he consumers generally
are content to buy only t o cover requirements. In
the finished iron branches prices remain exceedingly
strong, as the makers have sold hea.vily1 orders being
uncompleted. In the steel trade the position is st~ong,
prices in some cases adva.ncit;lg. Gener.a.lly the sltua.tion iR good and the outlook ta encouragmg.
In the toxtile t rades of Lancashire there is great
activity, a.nd the operatives seem determined to press
for the advance in wages, which they have notified to
the employers. There appears to have been, e.nd still
is, some fear as to the supply of cotton, but recent
advices show that quite a. fleet of vessels are bound
for the Manchester Ship Canal, the estimated car~oes
of which amount to 100,000 bales. The operat1ves
seem also to be determined to get the reduction of one
hour on ~a.tnrday s, if not by legislation, by negotiation, failing which there is a strong section in favour
of a strike. This, however, ma.y be averted.

The new propoEals in the Factories and Workshops

Bill of the Government do not find much favour in
the eyes of the Labour members of the House of
Commons, though the announcement of its provisions
was wElcomed when it was introduced. It is always
wiee to refrain from expressing an opinion upon a.
Bill until you eee what it contains. Any speech made
on the first reading of a. measure is always made in
the dark, except that by the introducer. The others,
except it me.y be by a Cabinet Minister who has seen
tt, he.Ye really no knowledge of its provision~, or of
the "ea.feguards" to a. principle propounded in the
Bill. The regulations in the D1ll of the Government
which relate to sanitation, Clause 12, e.nd to safety,
Clauses 13, 14, and 15, need not be discussed a.t length.
'be first of these clauses propo3es to amend sligh t1 y
ection 5 of the Act of 1895 a.s to pla.cea injurious to
he~lth. Clause 13 prohibits the employment of a.
?htld to clean m1chinery in motion, if in so doing it
ts po~ible for him to come into contact with moving
machinery. Clause 14 deals with steam boilers, and
provide3, among other things, for the examination
thereof, internally and exte1nally, once at lee.st in
twelve months by a competent engineer. Clause 15
makes fut ther provision for escape from fire. It extends
the authority by whom complaint may be made. Those
proposals will not evoke much criticism in the House
of Commons.
The po: ition of the iron and steel trad~s in the
~e first ele,en clauses of the Bill .provide for the
mllkmg of" Reguhtions for Dangerous Tra.des," and Wolverhampton district indicates very little change,
l

except of a. temporary character. Purchasers of both

ra w and finished material limit their orders to immediate rrquiremeut~, owing possibly to the near approach of the quarterly meetings. Customers seem to
anticipate some roncessions in rates, but producers
expect a continuance of present pricee, especially as
another advance is expeottd in th e wages of the workmen at the ascertainment of prices during the ourrent
week. Meanwhile, producers stand firm to their quotations. Some unmarked bars have, it is reported,
changed hands at 5s. per ton less than quoted rat7s;
but makers with plenty of orders on band dechne
business a.t less than the Association rate of lOt. !Os,
per ton. The prices of black sheets are also reported
to be weaker by 5s. per too, and doubles a re still
weaker. Numerous offers for future supplies of bars,
plates, angles, and bridge-building material at a slight
discount off present rates have been made, but acceptances have been deferred until next month. This shows
that makers do not expect a. decrease in r~te~, nor does
it show that customers are very confident in their
expect..a.tions. Steel, especially for constructive purposes, is in l~rge demand, and producers are advancing
quotations, as there seems to be little prospect of
either pig iron or fuel becoming cheaper, while wages'
rates still point in a n upward direction. There are no
signs of any real slackening off in the chief iron and
steel using trades ; engineers, boilermakers, ironfounders, bridge and girder constructors, tan kme.kers
and gasholder makers all continue fairly busy, as also
are the men in the railway sheds. H ere and there,
from some temporary local causes, a slight quietening
down may be manifest, but not in the e.eose of a
falling off in trade. The same holds good as regards
the hardware trtl.des, most of them being full of
activity ; and where there is a. slackening off, it is
rather in those branches which feel the fluctuations of
the seasons than from any other cause. The near approach of the usual quarterly meetings will help to
steady the market, as both producers e.nd customers wi11
be no longer in suspense at to prices, for a.t least a. time.
In the Birmingham district the iron and steel trades
have been marked by a cheerful aspect, in spite of a.
lull in the demand. The signs of weakness, as noted
in the Wol verha.mpton district, have been manifest
here and there; but producers are full of confidence
e.s to the near future at least. The slight relapse is
fully expected to disappear when customers have got
rid of present contracts, and better things are expected
when the war in South Africa. has passed into another
and better stage, with prospects of its termination.
Makers of rail way rolling stock and of bridgework are
already being pressed by South African buyers to have
the material ready for shipment at call, so that a.n
early termination of the war is expected in Cape
Colony. Orders have also been received for rolling
stock for South America and India., and the Oldbury
Carriage and Wagon Company has just had placed
with it a contract worth 8000l. for the equipment of
the new Ceylon Light Railway. All this teuds to
keep up price~, and is conducive to confidence on the
part of makers of ra.w and finished iron. Then it is
assumed that the :1.ccounte.nt's certificate this week as
to the net selling pl ice of iron by the 12 selected firms
will result in a. further advance of 5 l>er cent. in the
iron and steel workers' wages. The final result ma.y
not be any further a,d,ance in prices; but it indicates
that there will be no fall in prices at the quarterly
meetings. It appea s that the efforts to effect a.n
amalgamation of the s1idin~-sca.les of t he North of
England Board of ConciliatiOn and Arbitration and
of the Midland Wages Board have failed once more,
and that there is little chance of t he scheme being
carried out. The diff~rence has arisen, apparently, as
to the basis for the regulation of ironworkers' wages.
Marked bars are reported to be steady a.t the full
rate of- llt. !Os. per ton, with a fair demand. The
unmarked ba.r makers rAport the receipt of good inquiries a.t full rates. The iron, steel, and other metalusing industries continue to be fairly busy on the
whole, wit h here and there a. quietening down in some
branches. Even in theEe the slackening off does not
~eem to betoken depression, but rather a disturbancP,
due to temporary or local ce.uees. Generally the position is good, and the outlook is encouraging.
A dispute in the engineering trade has arisen in
Leeds, the patternmakers having demanded an advance of 2:J. per week, from 27s. t o 29a. per week.
About 1500 men ha,e sent in t heir notices, but it is
hoped that t be dispute will be settled without any
prolonged st~ike ; if, indeed, a strike is re~orted to.
The engineenng trades are busy, and on all s1des there
is a. desire to avoid ceesa.tion of work.

---

The steelworkers a.t the Consett Iron Company's

Works are agitating for an eight-hours da.y, or shift, a.
large demonstration was held last week, when a ree.olution in favour of a n eight-hours day was carried
wi th some enthuaiaEm.
The London County Council have decided to put

__

430

the tramway men on a. ten-hours' day. A year ago

the horsekeepers were granted 60 hours per week, the
other sections having to wait until the cost of work
ing was ascertained after a year's experience. The
chairman of the Tramways Committee has announ ced
th~t the experiment has turned out well, large profits
be1ng secured, and, consequ ently, it was determined
to make the men participate in the result.
A strike of about 2300 printers' tra.nsferers and
cutters, connected with the potteries trades, took
place at Stoke-on-Tr ent on Saturday last.
The
operatives' demand is for the r estoration of the ld.
in the ls. which was reduced on the award of Lord
Hatherton some years ago. It is feared that the
struggle will be an acute one, unless a movement for
con ciliation is favoured by both parties.
The plasterers have once more been victorious.
The dispute arose over a c:lause in the conciliation
a g reement as to damages in case of default.
The
a.trangement now mad e is to substitute a clause for
t h e infliction of a. fine on the respective Associations
of Master Builders and Opetatives, or the expulsion of
members if they fail to carry out any settlement, or
transgress the rules. The employers have a lso conceded ld. per hour advance in w ages, and agreed to
a clause for the payment of fares whic h is to be inserted in the rules regulating the relations between
the employers and the operatives. It is to be hoped
that t he frequent disputes of late will now be t erminated.
The threatened strike of railway workers in South
Wales has fallen through. The question of cessation
of work was put to the vote, by ballot, it being a~reed
that a s trike should only be resorted to if 90 per
ce~t. voted in its favour. The percentage was below
th1s, and, consequently, notices to cease work are not
to be issued .
The dockers at Bristol are agitating for an advance
in wages, of 40 per cent. inc rease on day wages and
48 per cent. on night wages. The demand is a. large
one in any case.
So far, the employers and those
associated with shipping say that the wages a re now
as high as at other ports, and, therefore, the demand
cannot be conceded.
The council of the Durham Miners' Association
have rejected, by a. large majority, a motion in favour
of weekly pa.yment of wages, instead of fortnightly as
at present. The reason seems to he that there is a
fear of greater loss of time by weekly p ayments.
The Northumberland miners have resolved, by a
large majority, not to take p a rt in the forth com ing
International l\1iners' Congress. Hitherto they have
been ably represented at those Congresses .
The miners in both of the above counties have re
solved to support the Bill prohibiting the employment
in mines of children under thirteen years of age. The
Bill, therefore, is likely to p ass.
The coal strike in Bohemia. has ended badly. It
failed, and the men had to r esume work. They appear
to blame the leaders for the failure, and many of them
were badly treated, some being severely injured at the
meetings held to advocate a resumption of work. In
this country, sometimes, the leaders have been,
metaphorically speaking, kicked by both parties, but
violence to the person was not indulged in.
The
Austria.n miners want peculiar leaders, that is certain.

rrHE GREAT CENTRAL RAILWAY.

the ordinary meeting of the Institution of Civil
Engineers, held on Tuesday, March 20, Mr. Charles
Hawksley, vice-president, in the chair, bwo l>a.pers were
read on "The Great Central Railway Extens10n."
The first, by Mr. F. W. Bidder, M. Inst. C.E.,
entitled, " The Great Central Railway Extension:
Northern Division," referred to the line from A nnesley
to Rugby. After giving a concise history of the events
which led to the extension of the Manchester, Sheffield,
and L incolnshire Railway southwards, the author
stated that the Northern Division commenced by a
junction with the Derbyshire lines of the company
near A nnesley, and ran in a southerly direction,
through N ottingbam, Loughborough, and Leicester
to the Oxford Oa.nal near Rugby, the total distance
being 51 miles. 6~ ~~ains. There . were 16 p~enger
stations upon thiS dlVlSton, the most 1mportant bemg the
Central Station at Nottingham, the jpint proJJerty of the
G reat Central and G reat Northern Railway Companies,
and the stations at Leicester a nd L oughborough. Large
goods yards ha-d been laid out at Nottingham, Lou~b
borough, and Leicester, and extensive gravitation sortmg
sidings had ~een provided at Annesley. For the loco~o
tive and carrmge a nd wagon departments accommodatiOn
had been provided at Annesley, New Basford, Notting.
ham and Leicester. The gradients were good, tlie
steepest being 1 in 130 north of Nottingham, and with
the exception of. two short length~. 1 in 176.south of Nottingham, the hne had been latd out w1th very Paqy
cu rves the minimum radius being 80 chains, (;xcept in
appro~ching the stations at Nottingham and Leicester.
T

E N G I N E E R I N G.
Between Annesley and Nottingham the cuttings were in
the magnesium limestone and hunter sandstone; south
ef Nottingham they are for some distance in the
Keuper Ma.rl, Rhaetic Shale being met with near
East Lea.ke. Beyond this point many of the cnttings
were in the boulder clay, and south of Leicester
they were chiefly in the red marl, boulder clay, and
the blue clays of the Lower Lias. The total quantity
of excavation amounted to over 6, 000,000 cubic yards,
hub no great difficulty was experienced in dealing with
the earthworks, every precaution being taken to secure
good drainage where necessaay. There were in all five
tunnels\ \vith a total length of 2430 yards, and 11
viaducts, covering altogether a distance of about 3400
yards. The bridges were very numerous and varied
m character, no less than 224 being required, and of
these 155 had steel superstructures. Whenever practicable, brick arches bad been adoi?ted in prefer
ence to girder spans, both for underbndges and overbridges. The brickwork throughout was built in old
English bond, of common brick, faced with Staffordshir~ brindles.
The coping to bridges and viaducts
consisted of specially moulded Staffordshire blue bricks.
Girder beds, arch springers1 newel and pilaster caps,
&c., were of Derbyshire gnt s tone. Mild steel was
use'd throughout for all girder work in bridges, buildings
and platform roofing,, oast iron being used only for girder
bearmgs, base mouldmgs, corbels, small roof columns, &c.
The total quantity of iron and steel used upon the
Northern Division amounted to over 20,000 tons.
The Nottingham Central Station covered an area of
12! acres, and had two large island platforms, ea-ch about
1270 ft. long and 68ft. wide, with bays for two roads at
the end of each platform, givin~ in all 12 platforms, with
a total length of nearly 1~ miles. The maia roof was
divided into three spans of ~4 ft. 3 in. in t he centre and
63ft. 9 in. at the sides, with small spans, the width of
the platform buildings between them. Awning roofs extended for a distance of 222 ft. both north and south of
the main roof, the total length of platform rovered being
869ft. Two of the largest public road bridges u~n the
line crossed the station, the first being 40 ft. Wide and
280ft. long, consisting of five spans supported upon steel
columns, and the second 80ft. wide between the parapets,
the span varying between 126 ft. on the north side, and
76 ft. on the south, owing to the divergence of the lines
entering the station. The Nottingham Viadncb ~as about
1000 yards in length, and consistEd of 53 brick a rches
and 12 steel girder bridges, the largest of which crossed
the Nottingham p assenger station of the Midland Com
pany, with one s_pan of 171 ft. and one of 104ft. The
viaduct over the River Trent was 830 ft. in length, and
was constructed to carry four lines of rails. There were
ten arches forming flood-openings with spans of 31 ft. 3 in.
and three girder spans of 103 ft. on the skew, over the
river. The girders over the public roadway bad a clear
span of 66ft. '11he girder spans formed separate bridges,
each bridge carrying two lines of rails. The brickwork
portion of the viaduct was 74 ft. 9 in. wide, and the
arches were built for the full width.
The Leicester Passenger Station was constructed partly
upon brick arches and girder bridges, and partly on
embankment with retaining walls. The station had one
large island platform 124.0 fb. in length, with double bays
ab each end. The central portion of the platform was
80 ft. wide, narrowing towards the ends, and was covered
by an awning roof for a length of 820 ft. The station
wa,s carried over three public roads by girder bridges,
the first having a span of 40ft. with abutments 194ft. in
length, the second having a similar span with a length of
115ft., and the third a span of 30ft., and a. width between
parapets of 76 ft.
The Leicester Viaduct had a total length of 1342 yards,
of which 1244 ft. consisted of girder spans. A s a.t
Nottingham, the line was carried .Principally on brick
arches. There were in all17 steel guder bridges in this
viaduct, the most important being those over the River
Soa.r, N orthgate-street, and Braunstone-gate, the latter
having the la rgest span, with main girders 178 ft. 3 in.
and 134. fb. 9 in . long respectively, as the abutments were
at different angles.
The country stations had a single island platform 400ft.
long, and 32 ft. wide for 100 ft. of its length, n arrowing
by curves of 80 chains radius towards the ends. The
booking-offices, waiting. rooms, &o., were on the platform
which was approached by covered s tepways leading from
the public roads.
The longest embankment extended for a. distan ce of
3 miles, and contained 818,000 cubic yards of material,
and one of the largest outtings was ~ mile in length, and
52 fb. in depth, from which 330,000 cubic yards of earth
were taken.

--

The second paper, by !vir. F. Douglas Fox, 1\I.A.,

Assoc. 1\II. Inst. C. E., entitled "The Gren.t Central Railway Extension : Southern Division," described the line
from Rugby to the London terminus.
The length of the Southern Division, including the Ban
bury branch and junctions, was 50 ~ miles. It started at
a point a. short distance n orth of the London and North
W estern Railway Station at Rugby, and 121 miles 44
chains south of Manchester. The railway ran in a
southerly direction through the counties of Warwick,
Northampton, Buckingham, and Oxford, to a. junction
at Quainton Road with the Aylesbury and Buckingham
branch of the Metropolitan Railway in the parish of
Quainton, a distance of about 40 miles of d ouble main
line.
Junctions both up and down were provided at W ood
ford, at 137 miles, with the East and West Junction
Railway, giving accePs to Blisworth a nd Stratford-onA,on.
At Moreton-Pinckney, 138 miles 50 chains from Man

(MARCH

3o, I goo.

chester1 a.. dou~le-line branch, Si miles in length, lef~

the ma.tn hne .m a south-westerly direction to a junction
ab ~anbury w1th th~ G:reat Western Railway Company's
mam London and Bummgham line.
The main line I?etween . Rugby and Quainton Road
passed throug~ a n ch grazmg country, not very thickly
populated, ~b10h. was gener~lly of a. smooth undulating
character, With r1dges runmng east and west of lias and
Oxford clays, and beds of a softish white lim~stone As
the direc.tion o~ the railway was almost due north and
south~ thlS entailed heav.y earthworks in cutting through
the ndges and embanktng ~he valleys. Cuttings and
e~bankments of over 50 ft. ID depth and height respecttvely were of frequ~nt occurrence, and in one case, at
Catesby, where the r1dge was of unusual height a tunnel
o~ 3000 yards in l~ngth was considered neces!?~ry. The
~hfficulty of crossmg such a country economically was
mcrea~ed ~Y. t.he fact that ~he maximum gradient allowed
on tbts d1~1s~on was 1 ID 176, ?r 30 ft. to a mill\
~nd the mtmmum curve 60 chams radius, and that
m _one case only, the non;na~ out ve being 1 ruile
radms. These severe restn cttons were necessitated
by the company's resolve to secure a first-class running
line, as direct as possible, and with easy curves and flat
gr~dients, so as to accommodate high speeds. The highest
P.OIDt above the sea reached by the railway on this diviSIOn. was 503ft., at Cb.arwelton Station, and between that
stat10n and B raokley 1t followed more or less the line of
the watershed, crossing the Cherwell River, which flowed
west and joined the Thames at Oxford, and the Bedfordshire Ouse which flowed east into the Wash.
The paper described minutely the very complete system
of cutting and int~rcep~ing drains adopted, and the
methods of preventmg shps. In soft olay cuttings the
ballasting consisted of (1) a. "blanket " of 2 in. of burnt
clay ballast or coarse sravel, to dry up the foundation
and to keep the (2) 9 tn. of large stone or slag Lottom
ballast from sinkmg in ; (3) over the bottom ballast a
"blending" of 2 in. of coarse gravel, preparing the surface and filling up the larger interst10es of the bottom
ballast for the {4) top ba.llast, some 9 in. deep, of 2-in.
broken ironstone slag fr0m works in the neigh bourhood of
Northampton. On high emba.nkment.q liable to settlement the bottom ballast of large stone was done away
with, from 12 in. to 24 in. (according to settlement) of
hard clinker-burnt clay ballast being substituted in its
place; this was made up as the embankments settled, and
at the very last the normal top ballasb of broken slag was
laid.
The ~ermanent way used consisted of double-headed
steel ra1ls supported ID 51-lb. cast-iron chairs spiked to
creosoted sleepers, 9 fb. long by 10 in. wide, nnd 6 in.
dee_p. Steel fishplates weighing 14lb. were used.
The only three stations of importance on this division
were those at Rugby, Woodford, and Brackley, the other
six being of the ordma.ry country type. In order to econo
mise in land, to enable the stations to be worked with the
smallest posstble staff, and to make fu ture widening to four
lines of way as easy and cheap as possible, the "island ,
platform system was adopted. This allowed the whole
station to be entirely controlled by one man1 who held a
position at the foot or at the top of the stauca.se (which
was the only passenger approach to the station), as the case
might be, according to the situation of the station, on an
embankment, or in a cutting. In the case of a station on
an embankment, as a b Willoughby and Woodford StatioiUI, a staircase led from the centre of the bridge under
the railway to the platform ; in the case of a station 10 a
cutting, the st aircase led from the centre of the bridge
over the railway to the platform, as ab Rugby, Culworth,
and .Braokley Stations. This arrangement mighb have
to be modified in some cases where there was no public
road crossing the railway sufficiently close to the station.
Allowance for four lines of way had been made in all
station overbridges and in other bridges where conversion
in the future would bA otherwise diffi cult. A small hand
luggage lift was provided ab Rugby and Brackley. Ap
proach to the goods yard, &c., was in every case by
inclined roads, 'vith a maximum gradient of 1 in 30.
For the bridges, both over and under, brickwork was
used wherever practicable, to save the annual cost of maintenance. vVhere metal was obligatory a feature in the
design of the steel work was that in nearly every case both
up and down roads bad a complete span and structure to
tliemselves, so that in case of any damage to either half
of the bridge, the other half was available and indepen
dent to receive the diverted traffic; and one half could
be repaired without interference with its neighbour.
:~ even different types of bridges were adoP.ted, .n full
description of which, with illustrations, was gtven m the
paper.
The Rugby Viaduct, crossing 14 lines of w&y, consisting of the main lines from London to the North, tbe
Peterborough branch, and the sidings of the L ondon and
North-Wes tern Rai lway, was made up of:
Clear Span.
Ft.
... ... 166
One lattice girder
...
. ..
... 210
Two lattice girders of 105 ft. each ...
... ... 75
One plate girder...
. ..
...
... 58
.. .
One
,,
...
...
. ..
T otal (steelwork)
.. .
... 508
Next followed a series of 14 arches, namely, one of
14-ft. span and 13 of 26-f t. span, together 352-ft. span
brickwork.
.
A ll the steel work was erected without mterference
with the London and North-Western Railway Com
pany>s traffic.
A full description was also given of the Catesby
Tunnel, 3000 lineal yn.rds long-, the only tunnel on the
southern dLvision, with a description of the geological
strata passed through.

MARCII

JO,

I 900.

E N G I N E E R I N G.

431

plates overlapping t he ends of th e bars and a. headiog of insulating material looked in place by the ola.~p-plates a.nd risi ng above
the b~rs. The alternating-current collector may be adapted for
use w1th polyphase cu rrents ; and the in vention is applicable to
generators, motora, and roh ry converters. The firs t olaim is ns
COMPILED BY
LLOYD WISE.
follows : cc A dy namo-electric machine provided for alternating
IBf.B(fl'RD .ABBTRACl'S OF REOENT PUBLIBHRD 8PEOIFIOATIONS curren t and direct curtent provided with a commutator and
UNDER THE ACTS 1888- 1888.
coll ector overhanging one another in a. plane t ransverse to t he
TM number of views given in the SpeciMatim Dra-wings i8 Rtated shaft." (A ccepted Feb-ruary 28, 1900.)
in tach cage; 1ohere none are mentioned, the Specijication i8
GAS ENGINES, PRODUCERS, HOLDERS, &c.
ttot illtt~lratld.
.
Where inventio11s are commm~teate_dfro"!' ab-road, the Names, d;o.,
7221. W.J. Crossley. Manchester. Starting Appaof the Communicat-Ors are g~uen m ttaltC8.
Copiu of SptcijWations ?Mll be obtained at the Patent OOlce Sale rat.us for Int~z:nal ~ombustion Engines. [6 Figs.)
Branch, 15, So:'thampton Bui~dings, Chance1y-lcune, IY. C., at Aprtl 6, 1899.-Thls mvent1on relates to a. star ter pump for internal
combust!on motors! in w h i~h provi_sion is _made for drawing in nlr
the uniform. 1mce of Bd.
The date of the cutverti8etment of the acceptance OJ a complete on l ~ dur1ng a cer tam deftmte portiOn of 1ts stroke, and gas only
Specification is, in each caJJe, given ajter the _abs~rac.t, unless the dm-tng the remainder of the stroke. The air and gas a re supplied
by _mean a of suction vat ves, and passages are form ed in the p1ston
Patrnt has been. sealed, 'When the date of sealt?lfl t8 gwen.
J ny person may at atly time 'within two months f rom th~ dat~ of whtch open and cut off communtcat ion with these valves as ma>'
the advertisement of the acceptance of a cornple~ S_pec-,flcatton, be requ1red. Two sets of such passages are provided, diametrt
ive n~tice at the Patent Office of oppositi{)'ll to the gran~t of a
~atlnt on anv of the grOtm4s mentioned i ?l the A ct.

"ENGINEERING" ILLUSTRATED PATENT

RECORD.

w.

sponding groovt:s formtd in Lhe in t.erint surface of the shell body,

and inclined to th e axis of the shell at such an angle as to give
the bullets, when diflcharged from t he shell, a. rotary motion in
the opposite direction to t hat p roduced by the rifling of t he gun.
Instead of the st rips, projections may be formed in the metal of
t he case ; and when this is of soft metal, the shook of firing is
sufficient to force such metal into the grooves in the shell body,
and thus to impar t the rotation desired. (A ccepted February 28,
1900.)
MACHINE AND OTHER TOOLS, SHAFTING, &c.

330. J. Marshall, Gatnsborougb, Lincolnshire.

Traction Engine Couplings. [4 P'tgs.] January 6, 1900.
- This invention relates to coupiin~s for t ransmitting motion in
spring-mounted traction engines, and in other cases where relative movement of the driven and d ri vlng parts is to be allowed
for, and in which the wheels are geared to~ethe t throu{lh the
inter vention of a floating ring, in such manner as to allow of
relative displacement. For this purpose t he intermed iate or

Fig .1.

ELECTRICAL APPARATUS.

23 556. W. Lloyd Wlse, London. (A. C. Crehore and

G 0 Squier, Hanover, U.S.A..) Submarine Cable Tele
[4 Figs.] November 8, 1 98.- This invention relat es
to the transmission of intelligence over submarine oables, and its
object is to increase t~e speed ~f such t ransm.iBSion over that which

peaphs.

has bltberte been attnmed . rt lS stated that lt has been discovered

that this may be effected by substituting for the square-topped
waves of electromotive force which have hitherto been impressed
upon the circuit, waves which do not rise suddenly to t heir maximum electromotive force, and fall off abruptly ; but, on the contrary vary gradually and continuously from zero, through a maxi
mum; and back again to zero. These wa.vea may be generated by a.
dynamo or magneto-electric machine, adapted to generate vary-

,\> ~C>CI~ oo OO 0 OO OOOOO OQ.po

0 \) 0 00 0 0 0 0 0

00

~lly ~pposite

each other, o.ne of which sets is adapted to be used

Wlth r 1oh, and the other With poor, gas. By turning t he piston
throl;lg~ 180. deg., either set of passag-es may be brought into
.u o.
prox1m1ty With the valves. Both the a1r and gas pa-ssages may be
m communication with their respective valves for a shor t period
t~ preve~t the formation of a ':'a.cuum in t he cylinder. To enabl~
shght al~rations to be made ID the proportions of the mixture floati!lg ring is connect ed with the driving and driven parts reliners of various th ickneBSes are placed between the orankpi~ SJ?ecttve~y by means ot disos having thereon eooentrio pins these
brnsses and the end of the connecting-rod. (Accented Feb-Mta?"V 28 dtsc~ bemg mounted in r~cesses. in the main driving gear' wheel
1900.)
'I'
,
and m t he frame of t he d1fferent1al balance gear, and their pins
e!lgaging in holes in t he floating ring . By this means the correct
2506. R. W. James, London. (The American Stoke1 Com- d~s~anc~ fro~ ce!ltre to C?entre of t h e main driving wh eels and
pany, New Y o1k, U.S.A.) Gas Generator. [7 Figs.] Feb- pmons La maiDtamed, whtlst freedom of movement within limits
ruary 3, 1899._-This. in_vention relates to gas generators or pro- 1s allowed between the body of the engines and the road wheels.
ducers, and. 1ts pr1!lc1pal feature consists in the provision of (Accepted February 28, 1900.)
!Deans for mtroducmg f~esh coal below, instead of above t he
7060. J~ K. Macdonald, Ktlbowte, N.B. (Singer
mcandescen_t co~e therem ; t~e result being th e product ion
of 11. g:ae wh1ch dtft'ers from ordmary produr>er gas, in t hat it is ManttJaetunng Oonvpany, N ew York, U.S. A .) Ball Bearings
practtcally free from water, tar, and other unstable con- ~or Sewing_Ma_chines.- :rhe crankshafts of sewiog machines,
stituents, and that a portion at least or th e hydrocarbons has mstead of bemg JOUrno.lled m t h e usual manner are furnished
been converted into carbonic oxide. Means are employed to with ball bearings, consisting of cups fitted in 'sockets in t he
machine frame, and containing a number of balls which are
retafned t herein by covers, t hrough orifices in which the ends of

iog electromotive forces which are graphically represented by

lines approximattly of sinusoidal form ; and t hey are preferably
impressed upon the cirouit automaticaJly by means of a tape
provided with a central row of feeding perforations, which
engage with a toothed wheel rotated in synchronism with t he
j[eoerator, and with transmitting perforations on its edges,
through which the terminal brushes of the generator complete
the oircuit. These brushes are connected with the armature coils
through the segmente of a pole-ohanger on t he armature shaft
in suob manner that the positive impulses are invariably trans~
mitt.ed to one brush and the negative impulses to the other, so
~at there is always present an electromotive force of either
s1gn ready to be impressed upon the circuit. (A ccepted F ebruary 28, 1900.)

25,744. The British Thomson-Bouston Company,

L\mlted, London. eH. G. Reist, Sclle-nectady, V.S..A.)
Dynamo.Bleotrtc Machines. [2 Fins.] December 30,

H9lJ. -T~Ismventlon r.elates to dynamo-electric

are pr?vded. with ter~_DJD als both _for direct and

machines which
alternating ourrents, and 1te prln01pal object IS to economise the horizontal
space occupied by the machine, and to permit the employmen t
of a short shaft. The commutator is mounted upon the armature

the crankshaft pass ; t hese ends being of conoidal form adapted

to pear on the balls. Eit her or both of the cups may 'be made
adJ~stable by means of screws on their external peripheries
t~en .sockets being correspo_ndingly internally threaded ; and
pmchmg screws may be prov1ded to fi x the bearings in position
and to prevent t heir rotation with the shaft. (A ccepted F eb:
ntary 28, 1900.)

int roduce the fresh fuel into the lower part of t he producer
t hose described co.nsisti~g of a pair of under-feed stokers of
well - kno\~n form, ID whtch coal IS fed from t he hoppers and
('le,ated ID to t he generator by means of archimedian sorews. Air
and ste~m n~e prefera.~ly supplied by means of a pair of injector
nozzles, t he mtroduct10n of steam may, h owever be dispensed
4753. J. HUI, Manchester. Machine for Whiten
with, air bel~g suppli~d .thr'!ugh tuyeres; altho~gh this is not lng the Edges of Rallway Platforms. [2 Figs.) March
nlt?gether desn able, as 1t 1s satd to be recognised as good practice
to mtroduc~ so much steam as c~n pe decomposed without unduly reducmg t h e temperature Wlthtn the gener~tor. (Accepted
~r- ---~
Febrttary 28, 1900.)
GUNS AND EXPLOSIVES.

7737. Sir W. G. Armstrong, Whttworth, and Co

Limited, an~ A. G. Badcock, Newcastle. Shrapnei
Shells. [2 F'tgs.] April 12, 1899.-The object of this inven

as lo overhana its h b d i . . .
the enlargement('of th u 'nn w t.hm 1t 18 mounted the collector ;
plo}ment or a la
e commutator, moreover, permits the em
low poteotlal diJge number of segments, with a correspondingly
the malu featu ~:rence b~tween. adjacent segments. So far as
forms of comm~= of ibe mvenhon are concerned, any suitable
form11f t'Ommutatotof and collector may be emplored ; a special
upporL tor th r s, however, described, comprismg no annular
e commutator bars, an annular ring of clamp
80

oo
-~~-----..,..11
.tJSJ.

..___ _ _ _.,L _ __ _ _ _ __ J
tion is to _reduce the ~preading of t h e bullets on t he bursting of
the shell , and for th1s purpose they are enclosed in a cage or
ca~ister of s_h eet metal, whi~h may be perforated, and on t he ex- 4, 1_899._-This invention relates to a machine, or apparatus, for
ten or of wh1oh are fiKed hehcal metal strips which fit into cone- wh1ten1ng the edges of railway station and other p latforms, and

,.

432

E N G I N E E R I N G.

[M ARCH 30, I 900.

compr!ees a tank supporte-d on whe'- ls and provided with handles ~pace. than a cylind rical boilE>r of the same heaLing surface, and
and wtt~ a tl\p or valve for regula.tinJ; the flow of liquid on to a. that 1t has a very large beating surface in comp9.rison with the
b1ush bmged to tl:: e hp to enable 1t to be moved out of action
v.:hen not. required. The brush ~as a h?llow stock, the lower
e1de of ~h1c~ 1s pe~forated. the br,1atl~s bem~ thus supplied with
the wht~emng flUid. The macbme 1S rurmshed with a g uide
roller whtch runs along the edge of the platfor m, a.ud which can
be turned up with the brush when the .ma.ohine is not in use.
(.Accepted F ebruary 28.1900.)

. . . ,-o-;o ~~~-

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KININ~ METALLURGY, AND METAL

WORKING.

A. G. Brookes. London.

aud E:Xleoding nearly into a chamber at the tl'lp ~

the ordmary tubes.. The ba.Qe crmsists of a castinrc ba' iorc therern
two super~osed h~nz ntal chamh . rs, to the lower of which the
hot steam tS adm1tted . I t then passes up the inner tubes and
returns downward t~r~ugh the outer 1ubes to the upper cba~ber
?f. the ~ase, 'Yhence tt .1s draWl? otl'. The neceBSity for expansion
JOlnts JS entirely obvtated, smce the inner and outer tubes are
free to expand and contract independently of each other. (.Accepted February 28, 1900.)

5881.

(L. Mach, J ena, Ge1

many.) Alloys of Aluminium and Magnesium.
March 9, 1899. - The applicant states that he has discovered that
an alloy C( m posed of 100 t>arts of aluminium to from 2 to 10 J>9.rts
of magnesium, while retaming the general working p roperttes of
I
pure aluminium, is capable of b eing ct-nsiderably hardened during
......_, ____
O O o ..
t he processes of rolling, d rawing, and pressing ; t his property
being peculiar to this alloy, and not possessed by pure aluminium
or by its alloys with copper and other metals. In pract ice, the
metal is alternately rolled, heated to from 400 deg. to 500 deg.
Cent., and cooled ; this t reatment being repeated until tmfficient
hardness ha.a been attained. The alloy, it is stated, has the
remar kable propert.y, that, while it is annP.aled by heating , and
.:_&4JI '--------..!fi-------_.J
prevented from crackin~. it is nt>t softened thereby, but retains
the hardness imparted to it during the rolling process. The most
suitable p ropor tions are stated to be 100 par ts of aluminium to
f rom 3 to 5 of magnesium ; if less than 2 par ts of t he latter metal volu me of water to be e,aporated, t hough not eo large as to cause
a re used, the alloy does not harden ; while if more than 10 par ts difficulty in connection with t he feed. (Accepted. F ebruary 28,
are used. it becomes brittle and unworkable. (A ccepted Feb- 1900.)
ruary 28, 1900.)
7033. B. McPhaU, Wakefle ld, W a t e r B e ater, or
Steam Generator and Superheater. [2 Figs.] Apr:11,
SHIPS AND NAUTICAL APPLIANCES
1899.-This apparatus comprises one or more nests of curved
21,49.2. C . R . Emrich, Norfolk, Vrgtnta, U .S.A. tubes, t.he upper members of which are horizontal or nearly so,
Screw Propeller. [9 l ''ilfS.] October 27, 1899.-The d riving while their lower members are slightly inclined. Both ends of
face of ea.ch p ropeller blade is such that its line of intersecti on every tube of a nest open into a vertic\l.l tube or chamber
with any C) lindrical surface coaxial with i s shaft is a. segment of which eer,es both a.s a down tube and a. water chamber or
a helix, the pitch angle of whi(h i~ 40 d eg. The hub is circular steam box; these tubes or chambers communicate with each
in t ransverse section, and its d iamet er in feet at the point where other either by pipes, or by a d rum dispo3ed above the water
it meets the leading edges of the blades, is preferably equal to the levE>l, and valves m3.y be arranged in the coo nee tions, whueby
axial velocity (in feet per minut e) of the propeller, relatively to each section can be disct>n nected from the others or from
the water with wh ich it comes in contact, divided by 3.1416 times
5224.

J,t:iu~ f~ee,

I'

Hon. C . A. Parsons, Newcastle, and A. D.

Waas, Walls~nd. Steam Turbines. [3 AgB.J March 17,
1899. - The a.pphcants state t hat they have found by experiment
thllt.a very. lare;e proportio~ of the total energy of steam can 1e
obtatDed Wttb a steam tu rbme uy expanding to a verv low pressure; such a pressure, for example, as onethirt1eth of ao atmo
sphere: A very slircht b~k pressure, such as that due to the
t hrotthng: of ~be exh~ust, 1s, however, sufficient to coosiderably
reduce thts htgh effic1ency ; and for the purpose of obviating all

....

such b1ck p ressure, the lowpressure turbine and the condenser

are, according to this invention, placed in direct communication,
so as to for m p ractically a. single part., connecting pipes anct
t hrott liDg being thus eutirely avoided. The invention is described
and illustrated as applied to a turbine directly connected with a
surface condenser of ordinary conatruction, provided with turbine
or other circulating and atr pumps. A general arrangement,
suitable for a ves~el driven by four propeller shafts, having hircb
presr,ure t urbines on the outer, and low-pressure and revel'!ling
turbines on the inner shafts, ie deacribed in the provisional specift
cation. (A ccepted Febttw.rv 28, 1900.)
MISCELLANEOUS.

3750. J . G. ParviD, London. Prevention ofFraudu

the product of the number of revolutions per minute and the

tangent of the pitch handle of th e helix (which tangent is equal to
unity in the case a.bove mentioned) The blades may be f ..rmed
intE-gral with the hub, or d eta.ohable therefrom. L the latter
case a number of perforated t ransverse collars p roject from the
boss of the hub, and from the blade'3 pr ( ject ftanges enclosing the
collars, and having thereon perforated lugs which fit between the
collars ; the whole being firmly secured and held together by
means of tapered pins pa.ssin~ through the holes in the lugs and
collars. (A ccepted. Februa1y 28. 1900.)

6763. J. Lyall, Glasgow. Liners for Screw Pro

peller Shafts. L2 Figs. ] March 29, 1899.- Tbe tailend shaft

lent Alteration of Cheques. [2 Figs.] February 20, 1899.

- The obj ect of this invention is to prevent fraudulent alteration
of cheques and the ltke; and for t his pu rpose a serie9 or eert a
tions of any suitable d esign are stamptd or crimped by means
of a small h and press over t he figures, or other marks whose
alteration wit hout detection it is desired to prevent. Ai a modi
fication t he ser rations may consist of words t'r devices, or words
or devices which mo.y be impressed on a serrated ground ; aod
t heir depth is diminished towards the edges so as to prevent the
p1per from being torn when stamped. (..Accepted. FeiJruary 28,
1900.)
7015. S . A. Varley, London. Telegraphing by
Means o f Sound Waves. [2 Figs. ) April 1, 1899. -So~od
waves are, by means of a parabolir, t rumpet, cofJverted mto
parallel beams, and traDemitted to a similar t rumpet at the r~
ceiviog station, by which they are brought to a f~us. It 18
stated that by t his means the sounds of t he human votce may be
the d rum. The sections are arranged io a. sui table fu r nacE>, tran s ~nitted over considerable distances; but that when, b~w
the products of combustion b. lug compelled to pass between or ever, the t rans mitting and receiving st.ations are many mtles
a round all t he tubes before reaching the ftue, by means of baffi~ apart, sound waves of definite length or pitch, but of lorger
plates arraDged between t h e upper and lower members of the a nd shor ter dural ion are preferred, and rua.r be us~d in accordance
tubes, which cause the bot e-asEs to t ravel in a curve coincidin~
with that of the tubes. The bottoms of the sections a re connecter!
to feed and mud drums, and each section may be provided with
n.g.t ____._,
a. pressure gauge reliE:f ,a1ve, and other fittings. Two or more

sections may be arranged in a single furn ace chamber, their

vertical tubes being disposed alternately at opposite ends, and
the steam generating and s uperheating sections being separated
'
by a partition. (.Accepted Fe/Jruary 21, 1900.)
.. -.
'
' I

is, according to this invention. fi tted with a. liner of gun-metal extending the entire length of the ster n tube; this liner being pre5107. W. T . Sugg, W e s t m i aater. B eat Badl a t ors.
ferably cast with its middle part thinner than its end par ts, and (3 Figs.) March 8, 1899. - The object of this invent ion itt to iosure p roper circulation of t he steam or other heating employed
in a radiator, and to const ruct the apparatus in such manner thaL

'

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l .... t

:! .. :...

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Pig.!.

Fcg .1.

r -J

~ .z.

,_

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Ftg.a.

with the Morae alphabet, and transmitted t hrough the r~ceivio~

trumpet to a tumng-fork tuned in eynch~onism tberewt.tb, an r
connected with a. sensitive microphone wbtch closes tbe Ci rcuit
a relay and operates a Morae inf>trumen t io the usual mJnoer.
is d esir'able that the t ransmitting and receivin~r trumpet~shftd
be mounted on poles or other wise considerably elevat ; 19
not, however, neceesa; y that the operatof!~ should be at the s~.me
elevation, as t he sounds can be transmttterl through spea tng
tubes. (..4 ccepted February 28, 1900.)

It

r ibbed or corru~ated ~ that when heated and shrunk into posi

tion on the shaft, and a fterwards during working, the corruga
tions allow for fxpansion and contraction of the end parts of the
liner thus preven ting the risk of fracture of the liner and corro
sion ~f the shaft. (A ccepted l<'elntuJ;ry 28, 1900.)
STEAM ENGINES, BOILERS, EVAPORATORS, &c.

25,433. F. W . Golby, London.

(J. Schiitte, Bremerhaven Germa?ty.) Combi n e d Fire -Tube and Water

Tube Bone r . [3 Figs. ) December 22, 1899.-T.his i~vent~"n
relates to a. combined fi re-tube and wa.tertube IJOJler, m wh1ch
the heating gases developed in the ftregra.tes ~re produced in a.
space which is abut off at t he top and at the etde by water-.hea.t
iog tubes and longitudinal wa.ter:dr~ms, these gases rea.c~tDg a
common combustion chamber whtcb lB .form ed on the o~ts1de by
transverse water-drums and water-beatmg tubes connectmg these
drums with a steam collector, and being conveyed from this
chamber through fire-tub es to the chimneys. It is claimed fo r a
boiler thus constructed that it combines the &dvan tages of both
the cylindrical and the water-tube boiler, that it is readily a.ccessible and easy to clean, that it has a. smaller weight and water

UNITED STATES PATENTS AND PATENT PRACTI CE.

thd

~
~

'

"'

--

it is not injured o r its joints looser.ed by the expansion and c-on

t raction of ita parts. For this purpose t here are fitted within and
concentric with t be ordinary pipes, supplemental tubes, which
are fixed at their lower ends to a steam chamber, tbetr upper ends

Descriptions with illustrations of inventions patent~ in

United States of America from 1~7 to th~ present tune, anbe
reports of trials of patent law cases m t he Umte? Sta.tes,&~y0 rd
consulted, gratis, at the offices of ENGu'IEBRlNO '3a and 36,
I
9treet, Strand.
AN ENGINEERING DIWREE.- The German Emperor
b~
11
created a. new academical d egree, that of
doctor 0
engineering." The first recipient of the ne~ defrree from
the Cba.rlottenburg P olytechnic will be Prmce Henry of
Prussia.