engineering vol 69 1900-01-05
DESCRIPTION
Engineering Vol 69 5th Jan 1900TRANSCRIPT
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A R Y 5, 1900. VOL. LXIX.)
•
THE
ELECTRIFICATION OF THE
AT l
\:IO
'PHERE.
FROM a
report
recently issued by the Un ited
States
Weather
Bureau, we
gathfr that the
elec
tricity of
the
atmosphere continues to
be
a subject
of
systematic observation for several American me
teorologists. It is curious to notice the extensive
use which
they
make of kites as a means of elec
tri cal explo
ra
tion.
Th
e kites flown by Mr.
Alexander McAdie and his associates are not,
however, quite as simple in build as
the
memor
able one sent
up
from a field
in
the neighbourhood
of the :Philadelphia of 1752 ; they differ as much
from Franklinian original as the air
-s
hips of to
day differ from the .fir
e-bA-
lloons of Montgolfier.
The well-proportioned kites of the Hargrave patte
rn,
while better able to cleave their way through the
air and
to
remain poised in equilibrium for a long
time, have only this branch
in
common
with
their
historical
pr
ototyp
e that
the
fine
cord which serves
to fly them has a thin copper wire wound spirally
round it.
The
end of this conductor is co
nnected
at the observing station with the needle of an elec
trometer, one pair of quadrants being k
ept at
a
constant high potential, a
nd the other
at
an eq
ual
negative potential. This arrangement affords
the
best means we have to-day of determining t he elec
trical conditions of the higher stretches of our
atmosphere. During the
fi
rst few months of 1899,
10 kite ascents were made at the
Blue
Hill me
teorological observa to ry, situated 10 miles south
west of Boston. The average al
titude
attai
ned
was
7600 ft., the greatest being 12,300 ft.*
Th
e most notable results obtained in the ea
rlier
experiments made at the Blue Hill Observatory,
showed
that
showery or
thunderstorm
weather
is
not
th e only meteorological state which gives
strong electrical indications.
At
other t imes,
even with a clear and cloudless
sky
, the needle of
the electrometer would move sometimes creepingly
and at
o t h e
times violently from its zero position.
From
the In
st
rument-room of the observatory, it
was easy to tell,
by
watching
the spot
of light
focussed on
the
scale,
whether
the
ki te
was rising
or falling, or whether it was
stat
ionary,
the needl
e
pro mptly responding to every change of altitude.
On one occasion, a kite was raised
at
11 in t
he
morning, and
kept up
until10 at night. Towards
sunset the spot of lig
ht
became res tless, and shortly
afterwards a s t ~ r was o ~ s e r v e d looming
up fr
om
the west. While It continued, a perfect fusillade
of sparks could
be
drawn from the wire·
and
as
the
darkness i ~ c r
a s e d
a torrent of
spark
lets played
between the
au-gaps
of the
quadrant
s the
inc
essant
si
zz
ling threatening at times to b u ~ the instru
ment out .
For the
sake of safety it was decided
to sever the connect ion
with
the electrome ter · but
this w ~ s not effected with,out some appreher{gion,
and without the operator s
exper
iencing a shock
which is describe.d as somewhat more than ge
nt l
e.
Th
e end of
the
wue was finally carried
out
of the
M Teisserenc _de
B o ~ b se.nt
up
a
kite fr
om
t
he
Trappes meteorological stat10n m France which is said
to ha
ve
~ e a c h
a
heigb_ of
4300
met;es (14,100 ft.).
These he1ghts are a.scertamed by measuring a Lase·line
and t h ~
e e .
of elevation of the flying-kite at the t w ~
ex.trem1t1ee
of
1t.
•
•
observatory and made fast on the hillside, a little
distance away.
When
courage was restored, various
experiments were tried, as t he opport
unity
was
considered to be too good to be thrown away. A
105-volt l
amp
was conn ected
with
the wire, but
there
was no incandescence of
the
filament,
t h o u ~ h
some ill umination was observed, which was probably
due to a creeping of the charge over the surface of
the
bulb
. Stinging
spa
rk s were
drawn
fr om t he
wire, which were grea
tly
augment ed in brightness
and report by pl
ac
ing a condenser
in
the circuit.
This l
ea
ds one to think that in teresting resul ts
should be o
bt
ained by forming
the
receiving end
of the kite-wire in to an
appropriate
coil,
and
pla cing a suitable seconda
ry
within it. Then, on
inserting a rapid contact-breaker
in
the
outer
primary, the current derived from the air could
be
transformed down
in t
o one o f lower potential and
greater amperage, thereby harnessing th e elec
tricity of t
he at
mosphere, and realising
at
la
st the
arde
nt hopes of many a modern
Franklin.
But of
co
ur
se such a transformer has to be built, and
the
means of se
curin
g a
constant supply
of high voltage
to
be
found.
Mr.
Frank Eddy,
of Bayonne,
N.Y.,
was pos
sib
ly
working on these, or on parallel lines, last
F e
bruary.
His
experiments,
however, appear to
hav e had more of the sensational
element
than of
the
plain scienti
fic
character about them. On one
occasi
on
he sent
up
a kite to which was at tac
hed
a
pasteboard Leyden 15 in. in diameter. When it
attained
a height of
about
400
ft:,
spark s were
easily drawn from the wire. Two jars were then
joined
up
together, and
when this
battery
was
connected
with
t he kite-wire, powerful discharges
are said to ha
ve
been obtained. Thi s
achievement
is
spe
cia
lly
noteworthy,
as
it is probably
the
first
inst ance we have of a condenser be
ing
s
ent
aloft.
The following
Tabl
e shows the potentials re
corded
at
two stations in Washington on a Novem
ber day, the first being 500 ft. above the grou
nd,
and the second 45 ft. The apparatus used at both
were
the
usual
water-dropping
colle c
tor
and its
as
sociated electrometer.
Time.
.Monument. Signal Office.
Difference.
p.m.
volts
volts
volts
1.30
9
216
684
1.32
888 246
642
1.
34
9 216
684
1.
36
862
246
616
1.88
875 24
635
1.40
825
222
603
.Mean
•
•
875
231
644
Hi
gher potential differences
frequ
ently occur in
electric storms.
Mr. McAdi
e re
la
tes that, one May
af ternoon, while up in his
Washington
eyrie, 500ft.
above
the
s
ur r
ounding
thoroughfare,
he
noticed
over
the
Virginian
hills a patch of dark clo
ud
, and
thereby knew
that
a t
hund
ersquall was
at
hand.
" At ten minutes to three, he writes, · ' the clouds
ar
e ove
rh
ead, and this is the last we shall see of
the
ou
ts
ide
world
until the storm is
over
for
it
is necessary t ha t the heavy marble o o r - ~ i n d o w s
be swung to. All is dark
in the
monument save for
the beam of reflected light travelling t he
groun d-glass scale.
From the
south window, the
•
•
•
•
nozzle of the water-dropping collector protrudes
through a
small
opening. Th e
wind
rises, and we
notice the ne
ed
le moving steadily towards
the
point
ma
rked 1000 volts positive.
This
mea
ns th a
t t he
pull up
on the air is steadily increasing. S
uddenly
the
needle
fl
ies
to the
ot
he r s
ide
of
the
scale,
and
we know that the air, like a piece of overst r
etched
rubber, has
snapped
and given way under the
strain.
Th e
pull
is now negative '; the needle
dances about, and we hear outside
the
rumble of
the
distant thunder. Nearer comes
the
storm,
j udging
fr
om the rapid fluctuations of t he needle.
Values of 3000 and 4000 volts are recorded.*
The
defl
ect
ions
are
at
times greater
than the scale
limits. Placing the eye close to
the
peep-hole
through
which the nozzle prot rudes,
the
li ttle
stream of water is
seen tw
isting and break ing in to
spray, but becoming n ormal as soon as a flash
occurs, only to begin to
tw
ist and disturb itself
again.
Such, in brief, is the hist ory of m
ost
of our
thunderstorms, as it also is of snowstorms, and
especially of hail
stor
ms. During
these
last, th e
behaviour of the
spot
of light is often of
the
wildest
character,
th
ereb
y d eno
ting
el
ectr
ical
di
st
ur b
a
nce
s
of a high order. Th is fact, taken in connection
wit h
Mr
.
Frank W. Very
's ob
servati
on of
the
existence
durin
g such A-tmos
pheric
perturbations of
vast whirlwinds with horizontal axes,
ha
s enabled
that American meteorologist to propound a theory
of t he formation of hail which appears son1ewhat
plausible. Such a wind wo
uld
whirl the warm,
damp, surface air up
to
high, cold regions. In
passing
through these
refrigerat ing
layer
s, the
vapour
wo
uld
condense and f1 out in
to
s
mall
ice-crystals. These nee
dl
es, in itially small, would
sha re in
the
gyratory movement of the air, and be
carried round
the
spirals of
the
whirlwind, making
imp
orta
nt additions
t o t heir masses at each passage
t
hr
ough
the
lower moist stra ta .
I t will be
seen
that t
hi
s
explanation
accoun ts
for
many of the peculiarities of a hailstorm, such
as
t
he of temp
erat ure, the zonal structure
of
the
hailstones, and the
accompanying manif
es
ta
tions of
electric
energy.
Inde
e
d, the
whirling
mass .of a r, t ~ g e t h e r with its
granules
rapidly in
creasing
1n s1ze and
number, fo
rm
s a veritable
electric
ge
nerat
or of the frictional type.
As already stated, t he continuous observation of
atmo
sphe
ric
electricity shows that the air
is
elec
trified at
all
times, storm or no storm ,
and
also
that
t h ~
d i s ~ r i b u t i o n of .el
ect
ric density is far
from untform.
In
fau weather
th
e potential
of
th
e au the normal potential as it is
calledt
is. u ~ l l y positive, its nu meri cal value
increas
ing
with
dist a
nce
fr
om t he ground. In
Great Britain
the
_ise
is
about 50
volts
per foot, but steeper
gradie
nts
are not unc o
mm
o
n.
In
warm, dry
coun
tries
the rate is
still
higher.
I t has been asked whether this electric
fi
eld
At
the Eiffel Tower, in Paris, values as high a s
10,000 volts have been registere
d.
t Elster and.
e ~ t e
indefatigable workers- ha
ve
done good v l C ~ m ms1stmg on the distinction between
the nor l electn c field and the a
identa l. The latter is
of
~ b e
nature of a disturbance brought about by precipi
~ a . t i O J ; t the presence of clouds, snow dust, smoke wbul-
mg au, &c. '
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2
which surrounds
our
globe, extends indefinitely out
into space or
whether
its lines of force pass beyond
the
region of clouds, and end where invisible par
ticles
separate the
s
unset red
from t
he
midday
blue.
To
answer
this
question, we must appeal to
observations taken at the greatest possibledistances
fr
om the surface of the
earth.
An analysis of
the
records of the Sonnblick Observatory, situated
in
Salzburg, at an alt
itude
of 10,000 ft., as well as of
observations
ta
k
en
in balloon ascents,
tends to
show
that this normal
field, like
our
atmosphere, is con
fined within comparatively small limits. While the
la
tt e
r does not much exceed
100
miles
or
so,
the
former
s
ee
ms
not
to exte
nd
beyond
10,000
ft. or
15
1
000 ft. At this and greater al titudes there
appears to be such little appreciable variation of
potential, t hat we may say
the
field is practically
constant. This would mean that t he earth's lines
of electric force end at about
that
elevation,
and
t
ha
t we have
there the
location of
the
positive
charge corresponding to the negative electrification
of the ground.
Thi
s layer
and the
s
ur f
ace of
the
earth
form
the
coatings of
Nature's
g
reat
con
denser. Our bui
ldin
gs and mon
umen
ts
project
some
little
di
stance
up between them,
and
the
heavier clouds of our skies sail
about at
varying
heights through
this
he terogeneous dielectric.
- I t is
not
enough, however,
t
recognise the fact
· of
this
electrical
separation;
we want fur
the
r to
know what may be the causes of so remarkable and
permanent
a phenomenon.
At
one time, evapora
tion
vure and
simple was looked upon as t
he prin
cipal agent ; but Faraday dispelled t he illusion by
sho
wing th
at
the
e
le
ct
rification observed
in
labora
tory
experim e
nt
s was due,
not to
thd mere escape
of vapour particles from
the
su
rface of
the
heated
liquid,
but
to
the
friction which took place between
the spray produced
and
the sides of the vessel.
This conclusion has never been invalidated; recent
researches, on the contrary, tend to confirm it.
Abandoning,
then, th
e evaporat ion h
ypot
hesis,
we have
noth
ing left as an efficient cause of the
electrification of the air, but ' ' some form of contact,
as Professor Schuster says,
''
or of friction, between
drops of water and air, or between water and ice,
or between any two of
the
various bodies present
in
the
atmospher
e . According to Trowbridge,
' ' the frictio.n of water part icles again
st
material
subst
ances is ab undant ly able to produce a high
degree of electrification.
Dr.
Lodge
at tribut
es
the
electricity of the atmosphere to t he same cause
which produces
the
charge in
the
hydro-electric
machine. Here the exciting agent is known to
be
the
friction of w
ate
r drops, driven by
stea
m, over
the
solid surface of the jet. In like manner, winds
driving the
spray
of
mist
against rock and ice sur
faces
must
Eet up a differP.nce of potential between
the
higher layers of t he atmosphere and the
earth
.
Professor Tait is of the same mind, for he holes
that
the mere contact of particles of vapour with
those of ai
r,
as they interdiffuse according
to the
kinetic theory, is sufficient to bring about a dif
ference of potential.
The
rubbing
of dust and sand
panicles
against
the
air has also been referred to as a potent cause
of electrification, and t his is well borne <u t by ob
servations made in t he Sahara, especially during
the prevalence of the warm dry wind known as
the
·'
si
rocco, * and also in
the
neighbourh
oo
d
of the
Pyramid
s, as shown by
the
following very
curious experience of Dr. Werner von Siemens.
Having ascended
th
e
Great
Pyramid of Cheops
with a
number
of friends, he relates that he soon
obtained evidence of
the
hi
ghly
elect
rical c
on
dition of the
su
rrounding medium, notably from
a
bottle
of wine which he held in his hand,
and which surprised him w
ith
a strong shock
when he attempted to touch the tinfoil covering
of the cork. He then realised that he was hold
ing
not
merely a
bott
le of invigorating liquid,
but an electrical condenser of unexpected capacity.
The
inner
coating-the wine- was brought into
connection with
the
tinfoil through the damp cork,
whilst the metallic label form ing the
outer
coating
was
earthed
thr ough
the
hand of the experime
nter
and the
body of
the
Pyramid.
In
the interesting account of t his event which
Dr. Siemens has left, he adds
that
the Arabs, haY-
* A. Feret, writing in
o
srr
ws, October 17 1
899
, says:
l
suffit a.lors d'une couverture brus
quement
deployee ,
d'
un
peigue vite passe dans les cbeveux ou la. ba.rbe pour
proGuire de3
et i
ncelles. Les tentes se transforment en
nutant
de bouteilles
de
Leyde. d'ou l'ou
peut
tirer, au
plu s leger frolement, des et incelles de
15
et meme 25 centi
metres.
E N G I N E E R I N G.
[JAN . 5, I9 0 0 .
MELBOURNE
WATER SUPPLY.
(
Fu ·
Description, see o
ppo si
te Page .
•
•
•
T
HE
T
OURROURONG
RESERVOIR.
•
•
•
•
THE
ToURROURONG
RESERV
OIR.
ing watched his proceedings for several days with
suspicion,
and
having discussed the matter among
themselves, concluded
that
the travellers were a
party of sorcerers, and, therefore , ordered them to
discontinue t
heir
incantations.
Perce
iving
that
there
might
possibly
be
some t rouble,
he
took out
his biggest
bottle
and charged it from the ambient
air, believing that it might prove an excellent
means of defence in case of aggressive measures
on the part of the sons of the desert. And it was
'Veil
he
did so, for
the
Arab chieftain,
irritated by
his persistence, suddenly seized him by the arm,
and tried to drag him down the slope of the
pyramid.
A t
this critical moment, writes
Dr.
Siemens,
I
brought the top of
the
bot tle to within
st
riking distance of the t ip of his nose.
The
charge exceeded my
utmost
expectation. The
chieftain, whose nerves had never before received
such a. shock, rushed away with a loud howl and
vanished from
our
vicinity, followed by all his
comrades.
A very impo
rtan
t contribution to
the
subject of
atmospheric electricity was made in .racent years by
Dr. Philipp Lenard* in his papers on
the
electr ical
*
Formerly assistant to Dr. H ertz and now Professor
of
Physi
cs in
the
U
ni
versity of Kiel.
•
condition of the air in
the
neighbourhood of foun
tains and waterfalls. By a very careful
i n v e s t i g ~ -
t i
on he
showed that when drops of water fall
upon a water sur face, they give a negative
charge to
the air
;
and
if
allowed
t
fall upon a
hard
wet s
lab
of any material,
the
air-charge is
considerably increased. He also satisfied himself
tha t no charge was communicated to
the
air while
the
drops were actually falling,
the seat
of electrical
disturbance being the agitated water at the foot of
the fall, or t he roc
ks
on which the drops impinged.
He also found that the negative electrification of
the air was modified by t he presence of common
salt dissolved in
the
water, as small a
quantity
a<
1 per
cent
sufficing to change its sign. With 5 per
cent., the development of positive electrification
•
was a max1mum.
These results appeared to have such an impor
tant
bearing on electrical theory
n
general, and also on
the
origin of at mospheric el
ect
ricity, that they were re
pe
ate
d
by
Lo
rd
Kelvin and Mr. Magnus McClean in
t he physical laboratory of the University of Glasgow.
All Lenard 's observations were confirn1ed
but
o n ~
the exception being a very important one.
The
se
Glasgow expe
riments did
not
show, as
Lenard
inferred
fr
om his, the absence of all electrification
-
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E
E
R I
T
G.
3
T H E
n1:ELBOUR
E
W A T E R
SUPPLY
OuTLET TUNNEL FROM Tou RROURONo R ERYOIR .
while the drops were passing down through
the air; for, when there was no obstruction
<
the SLrtificial shower, evidences of a small
degree of negative electrification were always
det
ected. Thi is a very significant and sug
gestive observation, because meteorological
records almost alway indicate strong nega
ti,·e values while rain is falling.
From these researches, we conclude
that
every rain-drop falling on the ground or on
ponds, lakes, and rivers, as well as every
drop of fresh-water spray, falling back on a
fresh-water surface, sends a minute
quantity
of
negative electricity into the
air ;
whilst
every drop of salt-water spray falling back
into the sea from breaking waves sends
positive electricity into the atmosphere. As
by far the greater part of the earth's surface
consists of saline waters, positive electricity
must greatly
pr
eponderate.
I t
is not unlikely, then, that we have in
the tossing and wind-driYen surfaces of our
oceans a distrjbuted power-house ever
at
work
in generating the normal positive electrifica
tion
of
our atmosphere.
I t
is
true that negative electrification has
also been registered during fine weather; but
this could generally be attributed to the
heavy rains which fell
in
the vicinity, or at
least to the very moist conditions that pre
vailed there.
•
w
AI .I . ABY CREEK AQUEDUCT.
•
•
-
THE
CA SCADE S
FROM \V
ALLABY AQUED
UC
T.
In the case of s n o w - ~ t o r m s
it
has been
noticed that when the flakes were large, the
sign
of
the electrification was often nega
tive. This, too, is precisely wh at one would
expect, inasmuch as large flake are remark
able for the incompleteness of their crystal
line structure, and also for
the
amo
unt
of
condensed moisture which
th
ey contain.
They are practically equivalent to
an
assem-
blage of tiny water-drops held toget
her
by
the
tex- not, indeed, until
the
clouds b
eg
in
to
rain that
the
ture of the flake, and hence the negative electrifica- electrometer gives notice of any disturbance. Then
tlon which they pr oduce as they slip through the the variations of potential follow in
great
rapidity,
uccesEi,·e layers of the atmosphere. being often so viole
nt
as to
send
the spot of lig
ht
We ha,·e already referred to the marked elec- off the scale. Fr
om
what has preceded, we can
trical manifestations that freq uently accompany readily understand the fitful behaviour of
the
elec
a hailstorm.
For
a satisfactory explanation,
we
trometer-needle as soon as rain begins to fall, but
must rememLer two fact
'i
established by e.·peri- how are we to explain its previous inaction Pro
ment, \;z.,
that
water
be co
mes positive when
fe
aso r Schuster supplies the answer. Th e two
rubbing against air, and negative when rubbing oppos
it
ely electrified cloud masses, or electrified
against ice. From the e we infer that there must layers at different levels, produce strong
fie
ld
be a trong potential difference between ice
and
air,
1
between
them and
weak ones without. The storm
the former
b e i ~ g
p itive to the latter. Conse- cloud from which the lightning strikes is nearly
quently, the d1splaceme
nt
of the ice-particles as always associated with a cirrus layer above it, so
they nre churned round and round in a hailstorm that the flash occurs more frequently between these
mu t be c o m p ~ t to develop no in
co
nsiderable than between
the
cloud and
the gr
ound. Therefore,
degree of elec tnficahon. " . . the inst ruments of our observatories, being so far
. Although people say there ts thunder
1n
the
away from
the
field of force, can
but
imperfectly
a1r
,:' when
~ b e y
really mea l
t ~ a t
the
ir
feelings, or indicate
the
electric stress or the distribution of
thetr
e x p ~ n e n c e ~ o t h
.mdtcate the
appr
oach of electric potential in
the
neighbourhood of a cloud.
an e l ~ t n ~ storm,
1t 1s
cunous to note how
reticent The
whole
subject
of
at
mospheric electricity is
electncal m trument.'i
are
about the matter. I t is one that comes directly home to us. \Ve
are
THE OUTLET OF Y.L'i YE N RESERVOIR.
familiar with its most impressive manifesta
tions, and
we
are naturally anxious to know
the agents
that are
concerned in establishing
the
earth's
normal and accidental fields, as
well as the precise mechani m which liberates
the horse-power of our electric storms. But
we must be content, for the present, with
very slow approaches to
the
solut ion of this
great meteorological problem. I t is a difficult
one, because it aims at nothing less
than
a
close inspection of
the
inner workings of
Nature. The old Roman was particularly
well inspired when he wrote :
'' Felix qui potu t rerum coonos
cere
c tu
.
The few advances made during recent years
encourage the hope that we may soon be able
to penetrate further, and that the older
theories and terms which we cannot yet
abandon, may
be
replaced
by
views
and
a
terminology that will correspond to some
thing
neither
fictitious nor merely descrip
tive, but very real in the world
around
us.
~ I E L O U R N E WATER
SUPPLY.
ABouT 20 miles to
the
north-east of Mel
bourne there lies a lake surrounded by hills
of moderate height, some steeply sloping to
the water's edge, others with undulating
curve. Away to
the
no
rth
Sherwin's Ranges
rise, a bold background with thickly tim
bered
sides, while all
around
the htlls are
covered with dark green pine and euca
lyptus of various kinds. The whole pre
sents a scene of quiet beauty, scarcely to be
~ u r p a s s e d in Victoria.
Not
until the visitor
reaches
the
south end, a
nd
finds there a
huge
embankment,
will
it
dawn on
him
that
this sylvan lake, with its undulating shores
and glassy little bays,
in
which
the
graceful black
swans
and
the wild ducks lie unmolested, its hill
sides partly wooded and partly verdant
with
grass
and
fio'YYers,
has been made by the hand of man.
This, however, is the case, and the lake (Yan Yean
by name) is o
ne
of the sources from which is drawn
the
water supply of Melbourne, a city of 460,000
inhabitants.
ln
the early days, that is from 1835 to 1850,
Melbourne obtained
its
water from two main
ources; in
the
fir t place
there
was
the
Yarra,
which was then not a filthy sewer, but a
river
of
clear, sweet water. A natural 1eef eros
ed
the
river close to what is now Queen's Bridge, and this
was heightened artificially so a. to prevent the tide
from going any higher up
the
stream. Thus, the
upper waters were
kept
unpolluted. Water
-carters
were
then an
influential
and independent
part
of
the
population,
and
water was sold to
the thirsty
householder at so much
per
bucket
or
barrel. The
seco
nd
supply came from the rain, which the careful
ones collected in cask and receptacles of all
kinds,
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4
E N
G
I N E E
R
I N G
and thus fortified were able to pass
through
the
droughty
summer.
From the outset, however, Melburnians were
ambitious men, with a firm belief
in
the
futur
e
greatness of their ' 'towns
hip," and by
the
end
of
1850
it
was generally
felt
that the
time had
come
for
putting
the water supply
on
a more satisfactory
footing. In that
year
a steam
engine
was erected,
and the river
water was
pumped
by it
into
a
large
tank
in
Flinders-street.
In 1851 gold was dis
covered in various parts of Victoria,
the
population
increased by leaps and bounds, and the necessity of
a better and ampler supply became apparent.
Accordingly, a
Select Committee
of
the
Legislative
Council was appointed in 1852 to consider several
schemes which had been suggested, and
in
1853, on
their recommendation, Commissioners of Sewers
and Water
Supply
were elected to carry out the
most
desirable scheme.
Mr.
M. B.
Jackson
was
appointed engineer, and,
after
a careful examina
tion, he
ad
vised that a large reservoir be constructed
on the site of
what
was then called
Rider's
Swamp,
situated to
the
east
of the Pl enty River,
about
20
miles from Melbourne,
and
600 ft. above sea-level,
and the
water be conveyed from
there
by means of
pip
es
to
a distributing reservoir, which was
to be
made
at Pr£ston, a suburb
about
six miles from
Melbourne, and thence into
the
city.
miles from the reservoir, by a
stone
bridge, which
had
been built
originally for carrying the main at a
he
ight
which seemed absolutely safe from
any
danger
of flood ;
but,
only two years a f t e ~ the
completion of the aqueduct, a very heavy rainfall
(5 in.
in
two days) occurred.
This caused a
tremend
ous flood,
and
in the early
morning
of
March
16 one of
the
caretakers
brought
to
the resident superintendent, Mr. J. Wil
so
n, ~ h e
astounding news
that
the flood waters had carr1ed
away the bridge and a
c o n ~ i d e r a b l part
of
the
aqueduct. Thi s left Melbourne dependent on some
13 million gallons of water then stored in the
Preston Reser
voir,
and
completely
cut
off from
Yan Yean.
Mr. JackEon 's scheme, though fiercely opposed
by many citizens of note, was approved by
the
Commissioners, and they decided
that
provision
should be made for the supply of six millions of
gallons
per
day.
The first sod was turned by his Excellency C.
J.
L1. Trobe,
Esq.,
Lieut.-Governor of Victoria, on
December 20, 1853,
and on
December 31, 1857,
the then Governor,
Sir
Henry Barkly,
K.C
.B.,
turned
on the water.
During
these four years the
reservoir had been completed,
the main laid
from
Yan Yean to
the
city,
and
reticulation pipes
put
down
in the streets.
As mentioned above, the reservoir was made on
the
site of Rid er 's Swamp. This was a large
marshy lagoon lying in a small valley east of the
Plenty River, a stream which rises in the
southern
slopes of Mount Disappointment. In times of
flood the waters of the lagoon overflowed, and
fell into
the
Plenty by a small creek or rivulet.
A few
hundred
yards from where th is joined the
river, the hills which were the boundaries of the
valley, narrowed
to
nearly half a mile, and it was
there
that Mr. Jackson decided to build the em
bankment.
This,
in
itself, is a work of considerable
size, as
it
is 49 chains,
or
nearly mile, long, 30 ft.
high, 20ft. wide on top, and 150 ft.
at
the bottom.
This was sufficiently high to form a lake of more
than two square miles in area, with a maximum
dep th of 25 ft.,
and
a holding capacity of
6,400,000,000 gallons. The supply of water from
the Plenty
River
was obtained by means of an
aqueduct, 2 miles long,
21
ft. wide,
and
7 ft.
deep, which
entered the
reservoi r by a
tunnel
440 yards long. At the river
end
of the aquedu
ct
flood gates were erected
to re
gulate the quantity
of water received from
the
river.
The Plenty River
is formed by
the junction
of
several mountain
streams, which flow down from
Mount Disa
ppointment
in the
Pl
e
nty
Ranges. The
principal of these streams are Jack's Creek, Bruce's
Creek, the Eastern
and
the Western Plenty. The
population of Melbourne was then 100,000, so
that
the
supply seemed
far in
advance of
the
demand ;
but the city grew so fast that additions soon
became necessary. In 1864 the Pr e8ton Reservoir
was built, with a capacity of 16 million gallons, or
about
three
days' supply. In 1868, as the popula
tion had nearly doubled, it was found necessary
to
lay down a second
main
from
Preston
to Co lling
wood, by means of which
the
s
urplus
water stored
in the Preston Reservoir could be used during the
day.
In
1876 the ci ty
numbered
within its borders
250,000 inhabitants, and another main was needed.
Iron pipes were th en at an abnormally high price;
so, in order to save cost, the pipes which had been
laid in the six-mile section, from t
he
reservoir to
Morang, were raised,
and
an open brick-lined
aqueduct co
nstructed
in
their
stead, capable of
carrying
3B OOO OOO
gallons per day.
The pipes thus obtained were relaid between
Morang
and
Pr esto n.
Thus
the water,
in its
course
to
Melbourne, passed first through six miles of
open
aqueduct
from
Yan Yean
to Morang,
then
by
two lines
of pipes from
Morang
to
Preston, and
thence by
several mains to the city and its suburbs.
The aqueduct crosses the
Plenty
River, about thre0
By
daybreak Mr. Wilson was on the scene. Find
ing
that
the breach was too large for him to attempt
to restore,
he
at once rode into Melbourne, reached
the
Government Offices
about
9
a.m.,
and reported
the catastrophe to his superior officers, Messrs.
Steele
and
Davidson.
They
took prompt action,
and
such was the zeal with which operations were
carried
on
that
in
less than
three
days a wooden
flume was
constructed
across the
river and
the
water laid
on
again.
In
1879,
it
became evident that
the
reservoir
was
not large enough to
supply a
populati
on of
more than a quarter of a million, and attention
had also been called for some time to serious
defects in
the
quality of
the
water. When th e
reservoir was made, there was very little settle
ment
in
the. surrounding district, but in course of
years
this
had
been
altered, and,
in
particular
, a
small hamlet called \Vhittlesea had grown up near
the
junction of Bruce's Creek
and
the
Western
Plenty, and
the drainage from
this
found
its
way
into
the r e a m
greatly to the
detriment
of
its
Wbt
ers. Another
matter
was that the superinten
dent, know ing that the supply was scarcely equal
to the
demand, was compelled
to admit
flood water,
which was more
or
less muddy
and di
3co loured.
From these causes the
water
was certainly l i a b l ~ to
suffer pollution. Thus both a further supply and
a purification of the existing one were needed.
I t
was decided to obtain water from t h ~ vatts, a
large tributary of the Yarra, distant about 40 miles
from Melbourne,
but
the
need was so
urgent that,
pending the construction of the Watts ' scheme, an
attempt was made to augment
the
supply
to
the
Yan Yean. As mentioned before, the Plenty ~ e s
on th e so uthern slopes of
Mount
Disappointment,
the central mass of
the Plenty
Ranges. These
form
the
water-
parting," and the
streams
rising
on
t
heir northern
lo
pe
s
flow
to
the
Mun'ay. Ac
cordinRly, it
was suggested that
an
examination of
these should be made, to see if any could be
diverted. Mr. W. Thwaites, C. E., was sent out on
this mission,
and
found that it would be quite
possible to divert the waters of two splendid moun
tain rivulets,
the
Wallaby
and
Silver Creeks, from
their
natural
channels. This was do
ne
by con
st ructing a weir on the co urse of the Wallaby
Creek,
and
an aqueduct which
run
s along
the
side
of th e chief
northern spur
of
Mount
Disappoint
ment
to a low saddle of
the
Dividing Range,
and
then
into Jack 's Creek on
the
southern slope.
This aqueduct is miles long, 12 ft. wide,
4ft. 6 in. deep, and draws from Wallaby Creek an
average daily supply of 7,000,000 gallons.
I t
was
finished in 1883,
and
the additional water thus
obtained removed at once all danger of a water
famine.
The
next
thing to be done was to make sure
that
nothing but
pure
water should reach the Yan
Yean. This was accomplis
hed
by
the
construction
of a reservoir at
Tourr
ourong, about
three
miles
from Whittlesea, to receive the waters of the
Ea
ste rn
Plenty, Jack's
Creek,
and
Wallaby Creek.
The
water
from
the Tourr
ourong is
then
conveyed
into the
old
Yan Yean
Aqueduct by a "Clear
Water Channel," which, when it nears Whittlesea,
is roofed with iron, in ord
er
to prevent any pollu
tion from the traffic. The channel is made of
13i ft . wide and 4 ft. deep, with a carrying
capacit.y of 120,000,000 gallons
per
day. In it are
numerous drops or artificial cascades, which, in
addition
to
preserving
the
uniform grade of the
channel, aerate,
and
thus improve the water. Thus,
by impounding the water
in
a reservoir situated
among the hills far away from
any
settlement,
and
conducting it from
there in
a stone channel covered
in
parts
a
nd
fenced
and prot
e
cted
all along
its
course, all chance of pollution is prevented and an
absolutely pure supply guaranteed.
In
1886 this supply was increased by div
er t
ing
[JAN. 5 I900.
the waters of Silver Creek, and bringing
them
by
an aqueduct
8 miles long to
the
Wallaby Weir.
The average daily flow is
about
5,000,000 gallons.
One of
the
prettiest drives to
be had in
Victoria
is from
Whittlesea to
the
Tourrourong, and
thence
along the course of
the
aqueducts.
About
3 miles from
Whittlesea
is a large white gate
which
marks the
entrance to the Water Re
serve, and keeiJS out all intruders who do not
possess a permit. This stands just at the top
of a high hill, and immediately
on
entrance we see
the little Toorrourong, lying far below in
its
sequestered dale, like a
sapphire
set in emerald.
Steep
hills, covered
with
dense
forest,
hem
it
n
OJ\
either
side. On descending the hill, the road
turns away from the reservoir and runs along
the
winding valley of Jack 's Creek
till
the Cascades
are
reached. These are a
se
ries of artificial falls
by
which the waters come down from the Wallaby
Aqueduct. Along the sides of
the
stream, fern
t.rees with their waving feathe
ry
fronds,
and their
trunks covered with pale-gr een moss, staghorn,
and
other
small ferns,
delight the
eye.
In
August
and
Septem
her,
when the
wattles and
light
woods are
in
bloom, the scene is almost ind escribable.
Imag
ine
the wattle-trees, 10 H to 20 ft. in height ,
so densely covered with blossoms that
the
leaves
are scarcely visible ; the colour of the bloom is a
brilliant yellow, bright as
the
golden gorse, and
the effect
is
simply dazzling. In termixed with the
wat tles are the lightwoods, much
larger
trees,
shaped as symmetrically as if pruned by a gar
dener's
knife,
with dark green
glossy foliage
and
blooms of a pale yellow tint.
In
addition to these
there are the
yellow blooms of t
he
mimosas, which
Nature has armed with s
harpest
prickles to save
them from
the
spoiler. 'fo
these
beauties add a
grass swa
rd
teeming with wild flowers,
and
you
have some
idea
of what may be seen
in
Victorian
Ranges
in the spring
of
the
year.
When the
top
of the Cascades is reached, the
road follows the course of the s
pur
on which the
aqueduct has been made . The scenery is splendid;
to the right the hills slope downwards, to the
left
they rise for
hundreds
of feet, all covered
with
lofty
trees
and den se scrub. The fern-trees are in
countless myriads, raising their g
ra
ceful, palm-like
tops
to
a height of from 10ft. to 30 ft. A
pl
easant
drive of
about
five miles through a never-ending
succession of forest ends at
th
e caretaker's cottage
near the
Walla.by Weir.
Having
described the principal sources from
which t he
water
comes,
and the
mean
s
by
which
it
reaches
the Yan
Yean
in
a
pure and
unpolluted
state,
it
remains to deal with
th
e improve
ments
which have been carried out in connection
with the Yan Yean itself. When this was
first constructed, private individuals owned land
not only in the vicinity, bu i
right
down to the
water's edge ; cattle grazed and wandered
round
the
shores, as the Shire Co
mm
on was close at hand.
Now, however, eT'ery farmer within t
he
catchment
area. has
been
bought
out
at heavy cost,
and
no
cattle are allowed
to
graze within
the
precincts.
The
shores are heavily grassed,
and
also the hills,
so
that, when th
e
rain
falls, the
water
fi l
ters
through
the
grass
and
reaches
the re
servoir
in
a clear state.
Dry Creek , whi
ch
is now
the
only natural stream
falling directly into the reservoir, has been dammed
in several place8 so that , when a flood comes down,
the water is forced out from the channel into the
valley alongside,
and
spreads
out
for
hundreds
of
feet. This, of course, prevents a rapid current, and
the consequent scouring of t
he
channel. The water,
therefore, does
not take up any
earthy or clayey
matt
e
r,
but trickles through t he
matted
g
ra
ss,
and
flows into the reservoir without becoming dis
co loured.
The
shores from high-water
mark
have
been
lined
with rough bluesto
ne
pitchers, so as to
prevent the
waves fr om washing away
the ea
rth .
Thousands of pines and other ornamental t rees
have been planted, and are being planted, all round,
to take the place of those which were cut down by
the first occupants. As mentioned above, the
lake is bordered by hills, and on the highest of
these, to the north-west, stands
Bear
's Castle,
called c, Bear's Folly, " an old building constructed
abo\lt fifty years ago by a resident of that name.
I t
ha
s been suggested that this was
built
as a
protection against the blacks, who were both
numerous
and
troubl esome at that time ; but the
more
genera
l opinion is
that
it was
intended
to
rem
ind the
owner of an old castle in Devonshire
near which he
had
lived before emigrating. From
the
top of this castle, which is reached by a
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] AN. 5, I 900.]
winding staircase, by far the v i e ~ of.
lake
can be obtained. Lake scenery In VIctor1a
IS
very
scarce and
that
is, perhaps, one of the reasons
why the Yan Yean is so much .admired.
As it has been stocked with Murray cod and
English perch, in
~ d d i t i ~ n .
to t ~ e ee.ls a
nd . b l ~
fish which were 1ts ongmal mhabitants, It l 8 a
g r e ~ t
re
sort
for anglers.
The
best fishing place is at
the
mouth of
the
aqueduct, which pours
out
a con
tinuous stream of fresh wa
te
r, and, consequently,
fre
sh
f
oo
d, into
the
lake ; it is a well-kno
wn
axiom
among fishermen that where the foo d is,
there are
the
fishes uathered together.
The
distance
fr
om
Melbourne
is
not great, a
nd
it
is a favourite
trip
for persons who
want
t <> ~ e t away from the
dust
y
city and breathe
pure
a1r In a scene of sylvan and
lacustrine beauty.
In 1886 (the date of the completion of the Silver
Creek Aqueduct) to 1891, l\1elbourne's sole
supp
ly
was
the
Yan Yean ; but
in
that
year
the Watts '
River Scheme was completed, and the two cotn
bined give to
the
city and its
num
erous
suburbs
a
wa
ter
supply which is almost
perf
ection,
both
in
quantity
and
quality. The
summer
of 1897-8 was
the
h
ot
test that had
been exp
erienced for 50 years ;
creeks and rivers ceased to
fl
ow which had never
failed before ; but the happy Me
lburnian
feared
not ; he had only to
turn
the tap and out gushed
the
plenteo us
st r
eam. The demand was enormous,
but the
supply was fully equal
to
it.
A few facts
and
figures may, perhaps,
be
given
in order to show better the magnitude of the affair.
On November 26, 1897, the reservoir was full and
the
bywashes
running
;
by
December 31
it
had
sunk to 23 ft. 8 in.; on
Janu
a
ry
31, 1898, the depth
was
21ft.
7
in.;
on February 28 it was 19 ft. 10 in . ;
on March 31, 18
ft.
1 in. ;
and
on May 14 only
17
ft. 5
in
.,
the
lowest record for several years.
Then the drought
wa
s ended by a heavy fall of
rain and the reservoir rose fast.
In
January the
greatest consumption of
Yan
Yean
water
for one
day wa s 39 million gallons, in February, 38, and in
March, 32. It can, th erefore, easily be seen why
the
water fell so fast. It
must
also be remembered
that
about 18 million gallons were drawn daily from
the Watts River.
More
than
1000 miles of pipes have
been
laid
down and several service reservoirs have been con
structed in order to insure a regular
supply
to the
consumers.
t
would be scarce
ly
fair,
in
a description of
the
water supply of Melbourne, to omit reference
to the
gentlemen who have been
the
controlling powers.
Mr. M. B. Jackson was the father of the scheme, and
it
Fays
much for his foresight
tha
t
he
also pointed
out the possibility of diverting
the
streams from the
northern
watershed into the Plenty. One of his
ablest assistants was
Mr.
C.
J.
Taylor, who super
vised
the
construction of the
embankment
and
other necessa
ry
works . This gentleman held the
office
of res
ident
superintendent for many years,
and under his fostering care
the
reservoir
and its
surroundings were gradually improv€d.
When
he
became engineer of the water supply, his place
w ls filled tern porar ily by
Mr.
Bell,
and
then by
Mr
.
J. Wilson, who wa s appointed
to the
post in
1876. This gentleman still holds the position,
and
the
amount of work which has
been
accom
plished under his supervision, is very great. l\[r.
C. J .
Ta
ylor was engineer of water supply ti ll
1878, when Mr . W. Davidson was appointed, and
he held office till 1891,
during
which period the
scheme of water supply was extended
fr
om a sy
ste
m
supplying 9 millions of gallons pe r diem to one
which supplied 50 millions.
In
1891
the
Government
hand
ed over .the con
trol of the water supply to the Melbourn e a
nd
Metropoli
ta
n Board of Works, a rather cumbrous
body composed of r
ep
rese
nt a
tiv
es of the muni
cipal c01porations of Melbourne
and suburbs.
This is
pr
esided over by
the
famous
White
Knight, Mr. G.
Fi t
zGibbon, an Ir ish gent leman
wi th a long pedigr
ee and
an
un
s
tained
name, who
brings to its meet ings
the
experience and savoi ·
faire gained by him as Town Clerk of Melbourne
for more than twenty y
ea
rs. Mr. W. Thwaites,
M.
Inst.
C.E ., was appointed En g
in
eer-in-Chief,
and under him
Mr
. W. Dowden, and these gentle
men still continue to hold office. In c o n c l u ~ i o n
it may be stated t.hat the information from which
thi
s article has been compiled
and
illu
st
rated is
drawn from t
hree
sources : first, from
pers
o
nal
ob
servation; second, from a pamphlet by
Mr.
Dowden,
and revised by
Mr.
FitzGibbon ; thirdly, from
Mr
.
J . Wilson, the
present Superintendent.
E ~ N G I N E E R I N G.
a
THE
DIESEL
OIL ENGINE.
~ I O N G the various oil engines which have la te
ly
been introduced in Germany , few hav e excited so
much theoretical
interest
as
the
Diesel.
The
in
ventor has been studying the subj ect of t he utilisa
tion of heat in gas and oil engines for about fifteen
years,
and
has embodied
the fruit
of his
re
searches
in
a small book entitl
ed
' 'Theory
and
Construction
of a Rational
He
at Motor (J. Springer, :B erlin,
1893), an English t
ran
slation of which has been pub
lished in London by Messrs. Spon. In thi s vo lume
Herr
Diesel lays down the principles which have
guid
ed him
in his studies, and which have given rise
to what he
terms
a
ne
w
th
eo
ry
of combus
ti
on. Start-
ing from
the pr
opos
it i
on that steam, gas,
and air
en
gines are worked
up
on a defective principle, and that
no improvementin them will produce better results,
as long as
this
principle is
re t
a
in
ed, he proceeds to
formulate the th eory and conditions he wishes to
s
ub
st itute for them. A distinguis hing f e ~ t u r of
his engine is that it is based upon a new theory,
and the
details of construction
are
not, as is often
the case, first laid d
ow
n, and th e theory worked
out from them.
Th e relatively low heat efficiency of
ste
am en
gines, even when driven
wi
t h
su
perheated steam,
is well
kn
own . This is chiefly traceable to the
nature
of steam, the loss of heat in the boiler
during
generati on being 20 to 30 per cent.
The
small theoretical he
at
efficiency of a s team engine,
the sensitiveness of
st
eam to changes of
temp
era
tu re, and its
tenden
cy
to
condense against the
wa.lls
of cylinders,
mu
st
also
be take
n
in t
o account.
F or these reasons
llerr
Diesel is of opinion that
this
cycle cannot
be
much
furth
er improved, and
that increase of efficiency in power engines
mu
st
be obtained by changing the method of treating
the combustible. A greater range of temperature
in
the mo
to
r cylinder is also
de
sirable. Since
there
are physical limit s
to this temperature in
o
ne
direc
tion ,
ic
mu
st, to give the maximum range, be raised
in
the other,
either by
increasi
ng
the pressure, or
by
combustion in the cylinder itse
lf
. Both
these
methods have been adop ted in the later types of
gas and oil engines ; the chief
novelty
in the
Diesel is that co
mbusti
on is regulated according to
a system different to
that
usually e m p l o y ~ d
After examining the m
et
hods of work in the cy
linder of
an internal
.combustion engine, H err Diesel
fo
rmulated
the following principles, which o
ught in
his opinion
to
govern such engines,
to obtain
the
maximum
heat
efficiency.
Hi
s propositions
are
based
upon
the pure Carnot cycle, which
many
of
the
be
st
German
authorities
think is better realised
in the Diesel than in any other heat engine. To
construct a motor in which all he heat
generated
by
combustion shall
be
converted into work is
impossible,
but the Di
esel approximates more
ne
arly
to
th i
s ideal efficiency than has hitherto
been fo
und
practicable. As is we11 known, the
heat
losses in a good gas
or
oil eng
ine are
la
rg
e,
between 76 per cent . and 80 per cent. , or a he
at
efficiency of 20 per cent. to 25 per cent. ; and if an
att empt be made to diminish the to the co ld
walls,
or to the
cooling jacket,
an
increased loss
to the exhaust is the result, and no practical gain
is obtained. It was first pro
po
sed to reduce th ese
losses by iso
thermal
combustion,
or
combustion at
constant temperature instead
of a t
constant
volume
or pressure. This was secured by
introducing
a
small quantity of combustible gradually into a
volume of
c o m p r e ~ s and
highly
he
a
ted
air,
where
it kindles spontaneously. The piston is forced
out
at the Eame time
in
such a way that
no
increase of
temperature takes
place, because the heat dev e
lop
ed
by each particle of combus
tible
is
instantly
absorbed by the cooling du e to expansion. Any
improv
ements in the cycle of work in
an
internal
combustion engine should, in
Die
sel 's opinion, be
carried out
in this
direction.
To effect them, he laid down some
year
s ago
the following fundamental conditions
for
combus
tion :
1.
Productio
n of the highest
temperatur
e of t he
cy cle, not by and during combustion, but before
and independ
e
ntly
of it,
entirely
by mechanical
compression of the air.
2.
Gradual
int
roducti
on of a small a
nd
carefu11y
regulated quantity of finely divided combustible
into
the highly compressed and heat
ed
air, in such
a way
that
no
increase of
temperature takes
place
during the motor stroke, but all
the
heat generated
is a t once ca1 ied off
by
the
expa nsion of the gases
of combustion.
(The
combustible, he ::ays,
may
be
5
gaseous, liquid,
or
powdered coal,
but up
to now
only oil has been used. ) . . .
3. Introduction of a large quantity of a1r.
In
cess, in
st
ead of a
dmi
tting only
much
air as .Is
required to obtain proper combustiOn of
the
fuel1n
the cy linder. . .
Oriainally t
here
were two other conditiOns,
which
0
have
been relinqui
shed for th e
present. Th
e
air was to
be
compressed, first isothermally. w a ~ e r
being
injected
to carry off the h
eat,
then i a b a t i c -
ally, th us embodying the
Carnot
cycle.
This
m
etho
d
involv
ed
such eno
rmous pr
essures of
fr
om 100 .to
250 atmospheres that it was abandoned, and adia
ba
tic compression only, from
30
to
50
atmosp
heres,
was
adopted
.
The
modification is b
ased upon
a theoretical diagram, in which
the two
extreme
po
in t
s, that of the maximum pressure of combus
tion, and the minimum pressure (expansion to
ex
haust
),
are
cut off.
Th
ere is practically
no
dimi
nution in the a.rea of work,
the
construc t ion of the
cylinder is
mad
e simpler, and a working, instead of
an unwo
rkabl
e, cycle is o
btained.
Further, the
second condition for combustion was
to be so
carr ied out that
no
wa
ter
jack
et
was requi red, but
it was fo
und
that to work
without
one
nec
essitated
much
larg
er
dim
ensi
ons
of t
he
cylinder, and for
practical reasons a water jacket is now always used.
Th
e fundamenta l idea, on which t he whole scheme
of the
mot
or e s t E ~ is that the number of heat
units,
or quantities
of
heat, contained
in oil or
other combustible, are too great to be utilised in
an engine cylinder
without
a
large
excess of a i r -
100 per cent.-
to absorb them.
Since, however,
in
all
pr
ocesses to
obtain
power
from heat, a
certain
portion must
be
sacrificed, the heat efficiency can
never
equal unity. 1'herefore, a wa ter jacket
is
not
an
evil,
or
the main cause of the waste of heat
in an engine, as it is generally
supposed
to be. If
the heat carried off
by
it be ke
pt
within certain
limits
and
carefully regulated , it forms an
auxiliary
like the condenser of a
steam
engine, besides being
theoretically necessary. Moreover, combustion
should not be left to itself, but by a
suitable
ar rangement of valves, &c.,
be
adjusted
throughout
the
motor
stroke, to maintain
the
right proportions
between temperat ures, pressures, and volumes.
Apatt from
theory,
the Diesel engine fulfils
one
of the principles
upon
which
all
the latest
writers
on internal combustion moto rs insist, namely, that
the best way to improve
the
heat efficiency is to in-
crease compression. Th is seems at prese
nt to
be
the la
st
word of science
on this
s
ubject,
but
to carry
it
out in
practice
is not
easy.
Even pres
s
ures
of
air
of 30 to 40 at mospheres, to which
Herr
Diesel was
obliged for some
time to
confine himself,
were high
enough to cause great practical difficulties,
and
re
quired careful designing. Pro
bably
the
small but
imp o
rtant
details of valves, joints, &c., in
making
which skilled labour is essential,
have
contributed
to retard the appearance of
the
engine in
the
market;
and
even now, few appear to be sold in
Germany. Critics
pr
ophes
ied
that t
he
se
hi
gh pres
sures and
the
negative work involved, would im
pair the mechanical efficiency, and
counterbalance
the gain from the improved cycle, and a
lower
ins
tead
of a higher h
eat
utilisation per
brake
horse
power would be realised. As will be seen from
the r
esults
of the trials, th ese forebodings
have
not
been
justified, and the
theoretical adv
a
ntages anti-
cipated
were
so
important
that
Herr
Diesel was
urged
to continue his efforts. At first he proposed
to use powdered coal, but
the
difficulties were
so
great that the scheme, however fascinating, was
abandoned.
Hitherto
the engine has
only been
made to work
with
oil, a
small
quantity of
which
is
injected
in a
liquid
state into the compressed and
heated
air,
and instantly
vaporised. Experiments
are, however, in
pr
ogress with lighting gas,
and
cheap or power gas.
As originally designed, the
engine
was vertical,
inv e
rted,
hav
ing
three cylinders s
ide
by side,
all
unjacketed, the two smaller of
equal
diameter
single-acting, and the cen tral of larger diameter
double-acting. The
ordinary
four-cycle was used.
The ~ w o
outer
cylinders ca:
rrie
d
plunger pistons,
and au alr
ea
dy compressed n
th
e ce
ntral
cylinder
sent on to
them,
and furt her
compr
ess
ed
dur-
mg
the
upst
roke. Th e combus
tibl
e was then
sup-
posed to
be e c ~ e
alternate
ly
t
he
tops
of
th
ese smaller cylinders ;
combustion
and
partial
expansion
took
place during
the
down motor stroke,
and
the c h ~ r g e passed to the l
arge
r central cy
in-
der, where It
was completely
expand
ed and dis
charged to ~ t ~ o s p h e r e . The cycle of operations
was thus d1v1ded between three cylinders, the
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6
E N G 1 N E E R 1N G
2 H O R S E P O W E R DIESEL
OIL
ie· 1
0
I
•
I
•
•
I
•
I
I
I
I
I
•
I
Ll
I
I
•
I
•
I
•
I
.
I
•
I
•
I
•
I
•
I
0
I
•
I
-,.
I
I
I
y
initial comptession
oi the
air and
the
final expan
sion of the charge
taking
place
in
the central.
There
were
eight
valves
driven
from a horizontal
shaft, and each piston worked on to a
separate
crank,
the three
cranks being
180
deg.
v
lV
•
u ;
apart.
The
large excess of
air
introduced
into the
cylinders was supposed
to absorb the
heat,
and
obviate
the
necessity for a
water
jacket.
I t
was
intended
to
~ t i n
pressures of
250
atmospheres,
and
never
to
allow
the temperature in the
cylinders
[JAN
5, I900.
MOTOR.
to
exceed
800
deg. Cent.
The
heat generated by
combustion being instantly carried off
by expan
sion,
only that produced
by
compression of t he
air
affected
th
e cycle.
So complicated, a working
method
was only
possible
in
theory. The engine does
not app
ear
to
have
been
constructed,
and
a modified cycle of
combu
stion
was soon introduced . F or small
powers
and hith
e
rto
the Diesel oil engine has only
been made for such), one cylinder only is used,
in
which all
the
op
erat
ions a
re
con1pleted in two re
volutions,
or
o
ne
mo
to
r
stroke
in
four, as
in
most
other
gas
and
oil engines.
Even thus it
was found
that
the
three
main conditions of combustion could
not
be
strictly
realised.
The
curve of combustion
is not
perfectly isothermal,
and
a s
light
increase of
temperature or
pressure
is
usually produced,
but
these differences do
not
affect
the
principles on
which
the
cycle
is
based.
Diesel has
been
strongly
attacked by
Herr Capi
taine, who,
in
a
recent
article
in the Z eitschrijt des
Vereines Deu tscher ng
enie IJ
re
maintained
that
his
own
paten
t had been infringed, and
denied that
there
was
anything
new
in the
Diesel
heat
motor.
It
is certainly
true that
many writers, including
Herr
Capitaine, have strongly advocated
the
use
of higher compression,
and
h
a Ye
proposed to regu·
late the
process of combustion
by
mechanical
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JAN.
5, I
900.]
E N G I N E E R I N G.
7
.
,
:
DIESEL
OIL ENGINES
AT
THE MUNICH EXHIBITION.
• •
I
•
•
•
•
means. The fact, however, remains
that
Diesel
wa
s the first to produce a working engine based on
these principles, and
in
which compressions more
than double those used
in
other motors
ha
ve been
attained.
He
has also succeeded
in
making his
engine work without
externa
l la
mp
or flame of
any
kind, n
ot
even at starting. H e appears to have
made good his claim to produce a motor
in
which
the
t emperature required for combustion is ob
ta
ined wholly
by
compression of air.
The
injec
tion of a minute
quantity
of oil is then sufficient to
cause ignition of the charge. Thus he has been
the
first
to
co mbine the requisites f
or perfect
com
bustion, and carry them o
ut
on a practical scale.
Scient ific men
in
Germany, especially Professors
Linde, Zeuner, Schroter, Slaby, and
ot
hers per
ceived that the theoretical advantages of the Diesel
m
ot
or were so great
th at to emb
ody th
em in
a
working engine was worth much effort.
The
first
to take
up the
invent ion were
the
la rgest engineer
ing firm in South Germany-the Maschinen
Fabrik
Augsburg, and Messrs .
Krupp,
of
Essen
.
Th
e
rig
ht
to manufacture has also been acqu
ired by
Sulzer Br
ot
hers, of Winterthur, and MM. Carel, of
Ghent. 'Vith this
array
of first-class names, both
th eo retical
and
practical, we might
expect
by this
time
to
find fairly Gheap engines
in the market,
so
ld
in
some number,
but
we are bound to sta
te that
such has not hitherto been the case.
I t was determined to constru
ct
a single-c
ylind
er
12 horse-power engine as being simpler
in
d
eta
il
than
the com pound type, and to use
petrol
e
um
o
nly
as
the
working medium.
Thi
s
experimental
engine consisted of a single-acting
ve
rtical cy
linder with plunger
piston
working downwards
on
Hi
fd
u
[ p
r '
I ll
FIG. 4.
to the
crank,
and
especially
adapted
for
the
high
pressures required. The valve shaft placed at
the
top of
the
cylinder was worked fr om
the
motor
shaf t by conical gearing two to one, and ca r
ried
three
cams opening
the
air,
petrol
e
um
and
exhaust
valves.
The
pis
ton drew in
air
only durin
g
its
down st rok
e
the air valve was then released by the cam and
closed by a spring, and
the
a
ir
compressed by the
up stroke ti
ll
it
s temper
at ur
e was
rai
sed to
the
req
uir
ed
i
gnit
ion po
int. The piston then
descend
ed
motor st roke), the oil being
in j
ected
during
the
first part of the stroke by a small pump worked
from
th
e valve
shaft.
Th
e
la tter
carried
th r
ee
cams,
and
according
to the one bro
u
ght in t
o play,
th
e oil was admitted
during
eith
er
2 , 5, or 10
per
cent. of the stroke. Th e period of adm ission was
thus definitely regul
at
ed, and gradual combustion
concurr
en t
ly w
ith
admissi
on
is sa
id
to have been
obtained. Th e supply of oil was th en
cut
off, the
air expanded till the lower
dead
point was reached,
and the next up stroke discharged the
pr
oducts
of combustion.
Th
e engine was started
by
a special
valve
fr
om a reservoir of compressed
air previ
ous
ly
filled while
runnin
g. According to Herr Diesel, it
worked
at
first without a cooling jacket. Great
difficul ties were experienced on account of
the
ex
treme
ly
high
pre
ssur es, and each detail had to be
separate
ly
studied. The accurate admission of so
small a quant
ity
of oil at a given moment was also
not easy,
and
t
wo
years were
spent in
t e
ntat
ive
efforts.
By the
e
nd
of 1895,
the results
justified
the
expectations of the inv entor.
In
1897
this experimental
engine
was replaced
by
a 20 horse-power oil moto
r, in
which
the pr
e
vious co
nstruction
was modified, chiefly
by
the
•
•
•
additi
on of a
water jacket
and
air
reservoir.
This
engine, shown
in
Fi gs. 1,
2,
a
nd
3, ta
ken fr
om
the
Z
t i
tsc
hrijt les
Vereines Deut
s
her I ngenieure
is
also vertical, and a
pi
ston with rings has been substi
tuted
for
the
plunger. A small air
pump, worked
dire
ct from
the
connecting-
rod,
compresses
air
at
a.
pressure
ab
ove that
in
the cylinder into a
receiver
at
the side, connected to
the
admission valve
n
wh ich
the same
high
pressure is mainta ine d
.
The
oil
injec
ted into
this valve
by
a small pump
is
bro
ught
into
immediate
contact
with the air at
high pr e
s
sure, and thoroughly
br
oken up. In the engravings
is
the
crankshaf
t,
P the
piston,
and
C
the
water
ja
cket, Q t
he
air pump worked
by
levers
z
and X
from the connecting-rod to fill
the
reservoir L with
comp ressed air. Sis the pipe
eq
ualising
the
pres
sure be
t we
en the
a
ir pump,
t
he
reservoir ,
and the
admission va
lv
e ch
ambe
r D at
the
top of
the
cylinder. B is t he valve shaft work ed
by
gearing
from the crankshaft and driving
the
admission
va
lv
e
vl .
or
the
com
pre
ssed
ai
r,.
the exhau
st
v2
and the ml pump
not
shown) wh10h
sends the
oil
on
to
th
e
injecting
nozzle n
and so
to the admis
sion and 1nixing chamber D.
The engraving shows
the ~ e t h d of main
ta
ining
an
equilibrium
of
pres
sure m
thts
valve chamber. The
curve
of
combu
stion
can
be regulated by varying either the
time
or
the
point
in the
stroke at which the oil is injected, or
t
he pressure in the air
r eceiv
er. The
valve
shaft
carries five cams,
under normal
conditions
three
are used, actuating valves Vu V
2
and
the
inj
ec
tion
n
To
sta
rt
the
engine, a
lever directly
con
nec
ts the cylinder
t o
the reservoir
of
air
the
o
rdinary
cams thrown
out
of gear,
and two
others brought 1nto play. Aa soon as the engine
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8
started, the
moving
of a. small rod ~ h r o w s o ~ t
auxiliary cams,
and
shifts
all
mto th e1r
places.
E N G I N E E R I N G
Tests of 20 Horse-Power D
iesel
Oil Engine.
Full Power.
Half
Power.
The
governing
is very simp
le.
The pump draws
from a rece
iver,
and
sends
it on under
pressure
the injection nozzle.
Here
there
are two
valves,
N_um_b_e
r_o___
s_t_ _
_·
_ _
_·
_ _
_ __· _1 ._
ordinary
admission
and an ove rflow
valve. As
Number of re
volutions per
minute .. 171.8
n
g
as
the latter, which
is
open to the
air, is
free, Metric indicated horse-po
we
r (mo to r
II
I II .
I V.
154.0
54
.2
d
h
· A cy
lind
er
only)
. . . . . . . 27.85
the oil pumped
is
returne
t o t
e
recetve
r. s
Metric
brake
horse-power
(motor cy-
24.77
17.71
17.72
pump
piston descends, it carries wit_h it_ a ram linder only) . . . . . . . 19.87
fl
1
d h
1
th Mechanical effioiency . .
per cent.
74 8
sing the over ow va ve, an t e
01
IS en Consumption
of
oil per indicated horAe
17.82
9.58
9.8
75.5
57.8
59.6
to flow
to the no
zzle . The quantity
passing power per hour
. . . . . lb. 0.40
the cylinder is regulated by the
descent
of the
Consump
tion of oil
per
brake horse
0.39
0.61
0.61
d h
•t•
f h ·
power
pe
r
hour
. . . . . .
lh
.
0.54
a
nd
this
dep
en
s
on
t e
post ton
o a
or
1- Temperature
of
exhaust
gases deg
.
0
404
0.52
0.61
O.f O
378 260 260
wedge, connected to the
governor, which
is Piston speed.. . . feet
per
minute 450
the latter between the ram
and
the
valve,
more
or
less according to the speed.
400
400
410
In
Di
esel'
s
original
paper (Zeitsehrijt d
es
erein
es
Deutscher I ngenie1we, July
10
and
17,
an
interesting
series of indicator
diagrams
found,
obtained
during
the gradual evo lu
of the engine. I t was worked with
benzine,
rdinary oil, lighting gas,
and
various
explosive
and six per iods are di
st
inguished, each
arked by
s
uccessive
improve
ments in the combus
ion. These
diagrams give
evidence of the great
care
with
which the
engine
has
been designed and
the
various
modifications made in its
construction,
the theory remaining the
same.
The best are, of
course, the
last,
taken during repeated tests by
German
and
French
engineers and
scientific men
.
it only increased 15 per
cent.
when
the
engine rGLn
at
half
load ,
and was relatively low
er
when
running
empty.
The heat ba
lance of
the engine
during
the
above
two
full-p
ow
er tria
ls
was as
follow :
Herr Diese
l
claims
a
theoretical
heat efficiency
of
60
per
cen
t.
for
hi
s
single-cylinder engine,
and
70
per cent. for the compound type,
which
he con
siders
as
representing better
his
theory of com
bus
ti on. The heat efficiency of good gas and oil
engines varies usually from 15 to 25 per
cent.
From
31
to
40 per cent.
of the heat
actually
r
eceived
is
converted
into
indicated
work in the
Diesel,
and the
mechanical
e f f i c ~ e n c y
is
71 to 75 per cent.,
making
the
brake
heat efficie
ncy26.6per cent. The consump
tion, even
at
this early stage in its
development, is
said to be lower than
that
of any other oil mo to r,
as shown by an interesting diagram, in which
the
consumption
of
oil
in
the
different engines tested at
full
and ha
lf
load by
Profe
ssor H art man, at Berlin,
in 1894,
is
plotted. F or the
Diesel
the consumption
increases
le
ss
with diminution of the load than for
a.ny
other
motor, because the
increase
in thermal
efficiency
counterbalances the lo
ss
in mechanical
efficiency.
Since
an engine
is seldom worked
at its
maximum power this
is
an
advantage,
es
pecially
with
frequent
changes of
load.
Th
e
du
ty
of
the
engine
varies
with the length of time during
which
the oil is admitted. I t
is
very sensitive to t he
governor, and miss-fires are impossible, since ~ h e ~ e
is neither ignition tube
nor
lamp.
Th e eng1ne 1s
very easily
st ar
te
d
with compressed air, as
the
writer ha s had opportunities of seeing, and
after
a
few
revolutions
oil
is
admitted.
Combustion
is
said to be
so complete
that
th e interior of the
cylinder is perfectly clean,
and
the exhau
st
without
smell.
Th e
construction is
simplifi
ed by the abse
nce
of
a lamp, el
ec t
ric
ignition, vaporiser, pulveriser,
or
mixer.
Th e consumption
of
oil
does
n
ot, as in
other
engines,
vary
great
ly
according
to the
power
developed. Experiments
have already
been made
with
lighting gas,
and
at
Augsburg
a 150 horse
power engine driven with power
gas is
in course of
construction.
Professor Schroter,
of Munich,
confirms the
views of the inventor. From the first, he says, he
was convincQd that the
theoretical principles
on
which the
engine
was based were sound, while his
tests
at Augsburg in February,
1897, on the 20
h orse-power
engine
l.eave
doubt
.
that
t h e ~ e
prin
ciples
h a v ~
been
f a c t o r 1 l y c a ~ n e d out 1n prac
tice. Durmg the t r1als the 1nd1cated and brake
horse- power,
consumption
of oil,
amou
nt a
nd
tem
perature
of the cooling water, and temperature of
the
exhaust, were determined.
The
composition of
the oil,
analysis of
the
exhaust
gases: a n ~
h ~ a t i n g
value
of
the oil were al
so
taken. Th e 1nd1eator
diaarams
were found
to cover
each
other
with
the
s a r ~ e
reg
ularity as
in a steam engi
ne.
Four
trials
were made, two at full R.nd two at half power, the
speed being va ried by
m e ~ n
of the g o v e ~ n o r . The
diameter of
t he mo
tor ptston was 9.8 m., stroke
1
5.7
in . ; diameter of
the air
pump,
2.7
in., stroke
7.8 in. The mean heating
value
of the oil u
se
d was
18 370 British thermal units
per
po
und,
and each
t r i ~ l
lasted one hour.
The
annexed Tabl
e
gives
th
e results of the triaL
A
consumption
of t
lb
. oil
per brak
e horse- power
per
hour is
a
striking
result, as is also
the fa
ct that
,
Heat Balance.
Percentage of
heat in th
e oil
turned into indicated work
Percentage of heat in oil lost
to cooling jacke t water ...
Percentage
of
beat in oil lost
in other ways
..
. .. . . .
I.
II.
Per Cent. Per Cent.
33.7
39
.0
27.3
100.0
34.7
40.3
25.0
100
.0
Percenta.ge of beat in oil -
turned into work on the brake 25.2 26.2
The lower indicate
d and
brake
efficiency during
the
fir
st trial are attributed to the greater speed.
The mean of the four
trials,
two at full
and
two at
h
alf
powe
r, work
out
as
follow :
Fu Powe
r.
Heat
turned into indicated work ...
actual work on
th
e brake
a
lf Po
wer
Both
Tri
als.
Per
Ce
nt .
34.2
25.7
Heat
turned into indicated work .
38.5
t
actual work on the brake 22.4
Th e
se
results have, we believe,
not been equalled
by any other
engine.
The
gases of
combustion
analysed in the usual
way gave by volume and at full power 9. 96
per
cent. C0
2
;
4. 70 per cent. 0
;
0.20 per cent. CO
;
85.14 per cent
.
N.
At half
load
t he
re
was
no trace
of
C
0.
From
the
percentage
of nitroge
n
the
excess
of
air
was calculated by
Professor
Schr
ot er
according
to
the
fo
llowin
g
formula
:
Excess
of
air = - N 0 = mean excess
of
air at
79
N
-
21
full power, 26 per cent.
Excess of
air
= N 0 = mean excess of air at
N _ 79
21
half power,
160
per ce
nt
. Pounds of air theo
retically required for complete combustion, calcu
la t
ed from the chemical composition of the petro
leum
= 14.78
lb. per pou
nd
of oil.
According to
Herr
Meyer, the
Diesel engine
marks the highest point to which pressures
can be
carried with our present methods of construction.
Th e
high he
at efficiency obtain
ed is du
e,
in hi
s
opinion,
not to combustion
at constant
tempe
ra
ture, but to
the
separate compre
ssion
of the
air
and oil, so that the maximum pressure has alr
eady
been
reached when combustion
begins,
and
it pro
ceeds
at
constant pressure.
He
considers
that
th e
very
large excess
of air,
by r e
ducing
t he
maximum
temperature,
dimini
s
hes
loss to
the water
jacket.
The minute
quantity
of oil injected into this highly
heated air is instantly
burnt
before
it
has
time to
reach
and
be condensed
against
the
cylinder
walls.
Hence
the
small
consumption
in Schroter,s trials,
corresponding to
the
minimum in gas engines
.
In
all other
petroleum
motor
s,
owing
c
hi
efly to
con
densation
of the oil
in
the
cylind
e
r,
the
heat
ex
pended
is
greatly in excess of what the corr
espond
ing amount in a gas
engine
would be.
The first public appearance of the Diesel oil
engine
was
at
the
Munich Exhibition in
1898,
when
the following German firms exhibited
en
gines
: Tho
Maschinen
Fabrik Augs
burg,
the
pionee
rs
in the
con
s truction of the motor, showed
a 30 brake horse-power single-cylinder oil engine,
driving
a
pump
;
Krupp,
of
E ss
en,
exhibited
a
35
brake
h
orse-power engine workin
g a
rotary pump;
the
Maschinenbau Gesellschaft Niirnber
g a 20
brake horse-power experimenta l
engine,
while the
[j
AN. 5
I
900.
Gas
M
otore
n Fabrik Deutz
sho
wed a 20
brake
horse-p
ower engine workinf5 a ~ i n d e
cold-produc
in
g
plant.
Fi
g.
4
page
7, 1s a v1ew of two
of these
engines.
The
writer, who
saw t
hem all at
work,
t
hough
t
them
very well m ~ d e e x p e ve . They
were
all
s
in
gle-cylinder dn ven w1th ordtnary o1l,
and
of the type shown in Figs. 1 to 3, with a few small
nwdificati
o
ns. The
positions
of the gove
rn or a
nd
oil
pump vary, some
engines h
aving them
be l
ow
on
t
he
bedplate,
while the Au g
s
burg
firm
place
s
the
governor above
the
o r i z o ~ t a valve. shaft.
the
engine has no work
on,
1t 1s
eastly
and q m ~ k l y
st arted
but
if the load is thrown on
before
start1ng,
'
secon
d
air
receiver
is
required,
that
the
whole
s
upply of compressed air
m
_ay
not
be e x h a ~ s t e d
during
the
first few
r
evo
lutiOns. A
two-
cyhnd
er
40 hor
se-power
engine has la
te ly been
built
by
the
\Iaschinen
Fabrik
Augsburg. .
. .
Th e engine
is
const r
uc
te d for
Great
B r 1 ~ a 1 ~ by
Me
ss
rs . Mirrlees, W a
tson,
and Ya ryan, L1m1ted,
and
a
company
for France also exists. Fig. 5 gives
•
Fig
6 .
Scale ~ ·ZkihJper sq .c.m .
an indica
to r
diagram fr
om
an engine made
by t
he
Glasgow
firm .
I t
h
as
a
cylind
er
diameter
of 10
io.
with
16 in. stroke, and runs at a s
peed
of 212 revo
luti
ons
per minute. I t
developed
24.75 brake
horse-power during the
trial,
and
consumed 0.47lb.
of Royal
Da
ylight oil
per
brake horse- power per
hour.
Thus
the hea
t efficiency,
taking
th e indi
cated
ho
rs
e-p
owe
r ,
wa
s
35
per
cent., mechanical
efficiency 71.4 per cent.
Th e
se part icu
lars
of
the
fi r
st
engine at work in Great Britain h
ave been
kindly
communicated
by Messrs. Mirrlees. The
late
st
indicator diagrams mark the gradual fall in
pressure
to
which the practically noiseless working
of
the engine
is
due.
The fac t
has
been
noted
by
more
than
one
expert that the mot
ors
exhibit ed at
Munich ran
so smoothl
y
with full work
on that it
was scarcely possible to real ise what great forces
were at work. The
diagram
shows also that the
compression of the air is ca rried far beyond
t
he
ignition
point
of
the
co
mbustible,
and that the
highest
temperature
of the cycle is
produced, as
H e
rr
Diesel
clai
ms
to
pr
oduce
it, not by
means
of
and du ring
combustion,
but
by mechanical
me
ans,
namely,
by compression of the ai r.
As regards
the
method of treating
the
oil, the
following conditi
ons
are,
in
H e
rr Diese
l
's
opinion,
necessary for
the best efficiency.
The liquid petro
leum
must
not be
previous
ly
evaporated,
and
thus
separated into its
heavy
and volatile con
st
ituents; it
must not come in to contact with t he cold walls of the
combustion space, nor should it be previously mixed
with
the cold
air for combustion.
If,
when thus
treated,
the charged be ig
ni t
ed, t he
speed
of
propaga
tion
of
t
he
flame will
depend up
on the method
of
mixing
the
air
and oil, the
heatin
g
val
ue of the latter,
an d th e temperature and pressure at th e moment of
ignition. Th is ought
not
to be the case . The pro
ce
ss of combustion
should, as
far
as possible,
be in
dep
endent
of
the speed of
pr
o
pagation
of the flame,
and t he pressure shou
ld be
raised to a
maximum
be f
ore ignition
begins, bec
au
se a high pressure
driv
es
the molecules together, forces them through the air,
and
facilitates the chemical combinations.
In
the
Diesel engine it is said
t hat :
(n) Th
e
combustible
is injected
into, and thoroughly
mixed with,
the
air; (b)
the air
is
previously
heated
by
compression,
and thus well pr epared to receive the
combu
st ibl e,
and the process of
combustion
depends on
ly
on th e
method of admission; (c) Th e combustible is not
previously
treated;
all
the
particles,
h
eavy
and
volatil
e, b
urn instantly
, and
ther
efore
any kind
of
raw oil or liquid
combustib
le
may be
u
sed;
(d) the
oil has not time to come in contact
with,
and· be
condensed
again
st,
t he cooler walls of t he cylinder ;
(e) the combust ible is not pr eviously
mixed
wi th
air
and
thus cooled
;
(f)
t he process
of combu
st ion
is entirely independent of the
speed of pr
opagat
i
on
of
the
flame,
because each partic
le
of
oil
admi
tted
to the cylinder finds sufficien t
air
for its
combus
tion.
The
hea t
ing
value of th e combustible, size
of compression
Apace, a
nd
sp
e
ed
of
pi
ston
do
not
affect the
combustion
; (g) la.st
]y
, the
maximum
pressure
of the
cyc
le
is r e
ached previous to
com
bustion.
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 9/37
JAN
5 1goo.]
Many different oils, of densities v:\rying from
0. 79 to 0.96, such as benzine, ordinary lamp oil,
American naptha, raw heayy petroleum, and light
spirit, have been tested
in
th is
~ n g i n e ,
and
yielded
s ~ t i f a c t o r y
results.
Expenm
e
nts
have
been made by Professor Sauvage, of
Paris,
at
Augsburg, on the 20 horse-power engine described
above, with results practically the same as those
obtained by
Prof
essor Sc
hr
oter . The heating value
of the oil was 18,360 British th ermal units per
pound, consumption per brake horse-power hour
in two full-power trials 0.53 lb. a
nd
0.59 lb ., and
the heat efficiency, taking the brake
hor
se-power,
from 21 to 25 per cent. I t will be noted that these
results are yielded by
an
engine which has,
perhap
s,
not
yet
reached its full development, and und
er
average
co
nditions,
and
not, as
in
many
other tria
ls,
when worked
at
its maximum power. The late st
tests give a consumption of 0.47
lb
. oil
per br
ake
horse-power hour, corresponding
to the heat effi
ciency, taking
the
brake horse-power, of more than
30 per cent. In a
30
horse-power engine l
ate
ly made
by the Augsburg firm, the
co
nsumption has been
reduced to 0.43lb. oil
per
brake horse-power ho
ur
.
Th
e Diesel is the m
ost
economical oil motor yet
made, with very high compression and without
tube or electric ignition, and
it
is well wo
rth
study
ing, especially by yo.unger engineers.
Whether
it
is a success commercially, as shown by
th
e number
so
ld in Germany, France, and elsewhere, is another
question difficult to d
ec
ide
at
present. The writer
in a recent visit
to
Germany found t h
at not
many
appear to have been sold. This is probab
ly
owing
to
their
relatively high price as compared with
ot
h
er
oil engiues,
but
the
la tter
are n
ot
so economical
in working, a
nd
give a lower h
eat
efficiency. Now
that the st ruct
ur
e of
th
e
Die
sel engine is nearly
co
mplete, what is \Vanted is, as far as possible, to
cheapen its manufa
ct
ure,
and
this,
it
is hoped, will
be done w
it
hin
the next
few years.
THE WAVERLEY
STATION,
EDINBURGH.
E N G I N E E R I N G.
the centre,
and
clos
er
together towards
the
ends.
The web is § in.
thick,
the angles 4 in. by 4 n.
by
i
in ., and
the
flange-plates 20 tn. by m .
thick. At
th
e maximum span there
are
fo
ur
cover plates, each girder being designed to carry a
load eq11al to the h e
aviest
ro
ad
locomotives
in
use,
with wheels
at
6-ft. centres, and each axle loaded
with 15 tons. As shown on t he cross - section
(Fig . 45) tie-bars 1 in.
in
diameter, f i t t e ~
at
2 ~ f r .
in tervals th roughout the length of the brtdge, bind
the
seven lines of t he bridge together,
a
-in.
plate being fitted on
the
web of each gird
er
for
the
bolts.
Th
ese tie-rods
ar
e protected by being
encased in cast-iron tubes of a considerably larger
diameter,
and the
a
nnul
ar space is
run
full of
hot
bitumen.
Th
e girder
>
are spaced 12 ft. apart,
which gives a full width of 72ft. Between
the
girders,
Staffordshi re brick semicircular arching of three-ring
work has been thrown, the spandrils being filled
with concrete, the
sur
face covered with asphalte,
an
d
the
usual grani
te set
paving laid.
There
is a
footpath 12 ft.. wide on each side, and a roadway
46 ft . 6 in. The s
pa
ce bet ween two of
the
girders
is formed into a pip e chamber
th
e full length of
the
brid
ge, the floor of the chamber (Fig. 46)
being formed by rolled beams carried on the bottom
flanges a
nd
fiat jack
ar
ches overlaid with gra.no
lithic.
Th
e top of
the
chamber is arched
in
the
same way as the adjoining spaces. Manholes, it is
scarcely necessary to add, are left
at
convenient
intervals.
Th
e cast-
ir
on parapet of
the
old bridge
is used again, with certain additions;
it
is 5 ft. 3 in.
high above t he f
oot
pavement.
In
dea
lin
g with
the
wo
rk
of
erectin
g
the brid
ge,
reference may first be made to the foundations
for the rows of columns supporting
the
bridge. The
armoured system of cement concrete was adopted,
and
the
length of each found
at
ion was made con
siderably greater than
th
e width of the
br i
dge.
Thi
s
was necessitated by
the
soft
nature
of
the
ground.
Th
e t renches were timbered immediately upon
excavation, and after a 2-ft. layer of concrete had
been
put
in, ord inary perman
ent
way sleepers
were laid across
it at
t he usual distance apart for
(
o tin ued j1·o rn page 494, vol. lx t
i } the full length of the
fo
undation, and on these
FURTHER west than the North Bridge,
the
re- ord inary cas
t- ir
on chairs were spiked and parma
con
st r
u
ct
ion of which
we
described in the preced-
nent
way rails keyed to them.
The
rails were
ing articles,
the
valley
occ
upied
by the sta
tion is fished
at the
joints. Two lines
and in
some cases
spanned by the Waverley Bridge, connecting three or four lines were put in each foundation.
Prin
ces-stre
et
with Cockburn -s treet, one of the The concrete was then filled in over
the
pe
rmanent
main thoroughfares which winds up to
the
old a
nd
way material and was thoroughly consolid
at e
d by
historical High-street. Thi s bridge had also to be packing and
beating
until the rails were completely
rebuilt, al
th
ough it was of much more
recent
date embe
dded in th
e mass.
Th
e conc
re t
e was
then
than the old North Bridge, having heen built abo
ut
levelled off
and
another narrower layer, about 2 f t.
1
872;
but the necessity to widen
the st
ation,
and
thick, laid on
th
e top of
it.
On
this latter
being
to rearrange intermediate columns for supporting levelled up, the granite base blocks, which are t .
the bridge girders to suit
the
new plan of the thick, were placed in position.
Th
e cast-
ir
on
tation platforms, made a reconstru
ct
ion unavoid-
co
lumns supporting
the
bridge stand on these blocks.
able. 'l he new bridge is 55 ft. longer
than the Th
e supe
rstructur
e was
built
in two portions,
the
ormer structiure, the total length being 344 ft. wes tmost haJf being dealt with first . A temporary
There are seven spans, varying in length to suit t he wooden footbridge 12 ft. wide was erected still
platforms and railway lines, which here begin to
further
west to accommodate the foot-passengers on
onverge into the four lines
pa
ssing through the
that
side of
th
e
street
(Fig. 62). On
the
comple
three tunnels under the Mound. As in the case of tion of
th
e west half
th
e eastmost portion was dealt
ur description of the North Bridge, we may first with
in
a similar manner. Owing to
the co
ngested
escribe
the co
mplete struct ure as
it
now stands
state
of t
hat part
of the station, the erection of
the
af
te
rwards deal with
the
process of
c o n s t r u c t i o ~
steel wo
rk
was mo
st
ly done
during
the night, a
nd erection. Some of the interesting details are heavy travelling
crane
and sheerlegs,
ru
nning on
llustrated on page 10. the ordinary rails
in
the station, being used for
the
In
th
e width of t
he
bridge
there
are, between
the purp
ose.
asonry
seven lines of continuous gir-
The
Wave
rl
ey Bridge,
the
construction of which we
ders, as on
th
e ha
lf
-s
ection,
Fj
g.
45.
The
have
de
scribed, is utilised for
pr
oviding cab accesses
oller bear1ngs a
.t
the are shown by
Fi
gs. to
the
station platforms, while abu
t t
ing against the
7
to 59.
At
mtervals varymg from 46 ft. 3 in.
east
side of
the bridge-between the
two cab
ramp
s
up to
.65
ft. the:e .are
in t
ermediate supports for - a structure has been
raised
on columns and plate
gtrder, conststmg of seven cast-iron columns girders, having two floo
rs
above
the
station platform,
amental bases and caps. The foundations
the
upper being level with
the
paving of the bridge.
or these, to which we shall refer later, were made On
the
first
fl
oor a parcel office has been
arrang
ed,
the
site of the o
ld
Nor' L
oc
h, and are of con- and on the second a receiving and delivery office in
of great depth and area. In length they the cen
tre
of a yard for the loading and discharging
about 90 ft. At
the
base
the
foundation is of vans.
Th
e arrangement will
be at
once under-
ft. wide, stepped
to
10
ft
. at
the top
where stood
by
reference t o
the
gene
ral
sections
on
page
grani
te
block 4 ft. 6 in. square by 2 ft. thick 11 (Figs. 60 and 61), and the plan (F ig. 63). This
orms the bed on which each column rests. In structure is 150 ft. long and 60 ft. wide, and t he
case of
the
four cent re spa
ns the
columns are two cab roads on
either
side make the full width,
in height, while t hose
at the
ends
ar
e 27
ft
. 185 ft. ov
er
all.
The
remaining
width
of
the
are c r e c t ~ d in t ~ e cent
re
of the platforms station
(F
ig. 60> is roofed in, and to t his we shall
one w h l C ~
latter
is placed close
by
refer when dealing with
the
roof of the station. The
suburban lm es passmg
under the
bridge at
structure
extends across
three platf
orms, with the
ts.
o u t ~ end
.
l: h
e minimum headway under the treble lines of rails
betwee
n, and in addition it
ge 1s ft.
?
n.
above rail level.
The
columns
pr
ojects
at
one end
over
other lin
es of railway.
shown F ~ g s . 41 to
.44.
The main girders supporting
the
building
and
cab
The matn girders
to
56) are of
the
accesses we
re ther
efore made to pro
ject
at
this
end
a t e t ~ p e
6ft.
e ~ p
d1v1ded mto panels.by the ver-I cantilever-wise beyond th e last of t he co lumns
stiffeners, whtch are spaced 6 ft 3 1n.
apart
in (\rected on
the
platform, as sholl n in J ig. 60.
9
These girders
are
continuous for
the.
186
ft.,
sn.d
the extent
of
the
overhang
at
t
he e_nd
1s ft. Th1s
interesting structure is illu
stra
ted
1n
det ail on page
11
and
on our two-page plate.
The
foundat ions for
the
large square columnP,
which here
carry
unusually heavy
a d s
were formed
in a similar way to th
at
adopted 1n the case of
the
foundatio
ns
for the bridge columns, except that no
pe
rman
e
nt
way was used
in
them. V
b r o ~ d
and deep concrete foundations were put 1n, and 1n
several cases the ground had to be piled,
th
e tops of
the
pi
les being braced together
and th
en t
hor
oug
hly
em bedded in
the
mass of concrete.
Th r
ee rows of columns were built to support
these girders,
one
row a
lmost exactly und
er
the
eastmost girder of
the
Waverley Bridge
and
t
he
ot
h
er
two at 27-ft. a
nd
32-ft. distances (Figs. 77,
78, and 86 on our two-page engraving given this
week). These
co
lumns, as well as those for the
cab accesses, are 2 ft.
sq
uare wit h 3 ft. 6 in. bases,
and
are of
cast iron
1
in
.
to
3 in. t
hi
ck.
They
are carr ied on granite blocks 5 ft. square a
nd
2 ft.
thick, resting again on concrete
10ft.
square and
of
an
average thickness of 5 ft. (
Fi
gs. 85
and
86).
In
some cases, however,
these
co ncrete foundations
were carried down to a depth of 16 ft . On the
three rows of columns are carried continuous plate
girders , 5
ft
. 9 in. deep (Figs. 77, 79, 80, 81,
and
85). Fig. 90 shows the scantlings of the girder
nearest the east side of
the
Waverley Bridge,
and
Fig
. 91
that
fur t h
est
from t he bridge.
Betwe
en
these main girders, riv
et
ed
to their
wel:s
a
nd
to the b
ottoms
of the t op flanges, are
girde
rs
2 ft. 6 in. deep, carrying jack
arching and gra
no
lithic
fl
oorin g
up to
12-ft. sp
an
(Fi gs. 78
and
86).
Thi
s forms
th
e first storey of t he st
ructure,
which
is 15 ft . above rail level and 12 ft. above t he plat
form level, but is sti ll fully 10
ft
. below
the
surface
of
the
Waverley Bridge. Between
th
e bottom of
the gir
der of the bridge
and the fl
oor a
stee
l
pla
t ing
and brick wall are fitt ed to finish th
at
side
of the
st r
ucture (Figs. 73
and 87
to 89) ; the
three other
sides are enclosed
in
a similar manner,
but
having
glazed windows loo
king
on to
the station
platform.
On this floor, in line with the main columns,
there are lighter steel columns to carry
th
e
upper
storey
at
the bridge surface level
(F
igs. 85
and
86). In
this
case
the
eastmost
girder
of t
he
bridge is utilised along with two light plate girders,
carried on
the
columns,
and
running parallel with
the
bridge (Figs. 73 and 86). As
the
parcel office is
built
partly on this
eastmost
girder of the brid
ge
,
it
was deemed
de
sirable
to incr
ease
th
e size of
the
bracing rods passing through all the seven girders
of
the
bridge
at this
po
int to
2
in.,
so t
hat
all of
the
girders
and not one alone would contribute to
the
support of the structure butting against it.
Th
e
par
cel office is 70 ft. long
and
28 ft. wide. Two
hydraulic hoists from
the
s
treet
level and two from
the intermediate level to the platfo
rm,
greatly
facilitate
the
work of this department, which is
entirely separated from t
he pa
ssenger service.
As to
the
cab accesses,
li
tt le
need be
said, as
the
drawings
reproduced
show the w
or
k clearly. The
ramps are built
up
of main longitudinal girders,
s
up p
o
rted by
cross girders
at the
columns, a
nd
buck
le
plates over which
the
roadway is made, as
shown in Figs. 64 to 71 and Figs. 92
and
93.
The
main girders and cross girders a
re
for
the
most
part
carried on columns, varying
in
height from
7ft.
6 in.
to 18ft., the
latter
weig
hing
15 t ons; but where
the
cab roadway
adjoins
th
e parcels building,
the
o
ut
er main members rest on the top of
th
e canti
leve
red end
of
the
5 ft. 9 in. girders already re
ferred to. U
nd
er t he cab accesses, rooms have
been arranged for lamp-trimming, warming foot
pans, &c.
The
Waverley Bridge, cab accesses, and
adjoining steel work were
co
n
st r
uct
ed by
Arrol's
Bridge and Roof Company, Limited, Glasgow.
Befo
re
turning t o t he s
ubject
of t he station roof,
&c., a word may
be
said
about
the footb ridges
across
the
station,
of
which
th ere are two;
one for
the use of the public
at
the east end of
th
e statio
n,
from Low Ca
lton
to J effrey-st reet in
the
old town,
and
an
other at
a lower level
in
the
centre
of
the
station, havi
ng stair
s to
the platf
o
rms and
con
nection
at
either end with
the
old
and
new town.
Immediate
ly
over
it there
is a special footbridge
fr
om t
he main platf
orms
to
t he imm e
ns
e h
ote
l
being built by the
North
British Railway Com
pany
in Prin
ces-str
eet, immediat
e
ly
a
djoining
the
station,
and
passenger a
nd
luggage hoists hav e
been
p r o v i d
from
the platforms
.
o
t
his
foo
tbrid
ge .
Th e
re
IS another short footbn dge from the main
up -platform to the J,.jow Calton dist rict .
Th
e
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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10
E N G I N E E R I N
G.
[JAN. 5, I
900.
DETAILS OF
WAVERLEY
BRIDGE; NORTH BRITISH
RAILWAY
STATION,
EDINBURGH.
MESSRS. BLYTH AND WESTLAND, EDINBURGH,
EN
G
INEER
S ; ARROL S
BRID
GE AND ROOF CO., LTD., GO ,V, CONTRACTORS.
(Fo
T D
esc1·iption
,
see Page 9.)
•
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43.
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7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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E N G I N E E R I N G.
I I
-
WAVERLEY
STATION, EDINBURGH; CAB ACCESSES
AND PAR
CEL OFFICES.
:JIE· ,'R,'. BLYTH AND
'VE
'TLAND,
ED
INBURGH,
ENGINEERS;
A R R O L ' ~ BRIDGE AND ROOF CO., LTD , GLASGOW, CONTRACTORS.
•
Sii-11}
Fi1J.63.
q
,;
D
COL f
• •
• I
C )
. .,. o
OOOA
CROSS SECTION OPSTATION U T
OF WAVERLEY
BRIDGE
CIIOSS SECTIOr• OF
W.AVt
RLi:Y CRIDCC
P.AACf.l.O,IClS
. . .
c::)
NORTH ACCE
SS
.
i
GENERAL
PLAN OF
ACCESSES
.
SOUTH A CCES S
I 1 N lSi.
• ::: J
'
\i)
i
OOC II l N
U
. 6
q.
. 4.6rwuJ;e, Cubes.
F I
G.
62. TA K
ING
DowN
THE
OLD \V
AV.ER
L.EY BRIDGE.
CROSS
S
ECTION
OF
SPAN
C . ] 7 1 { £
~ t r D T
P C R G O r - I L ~ }
~ - - - --
-_____ _i1J_._
~ : ~ n
•
" - . . . . . . - - - - · - - •
•
Fif1·68.
Cashng-
• GIRDER 8 '
CIRDERC .I 7.
GIRDERD
.
al.7
.
-----------
------
------
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C.
GIRDER
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•
-
- - -------------- - D J 0 )
•
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..z
., ---------
··---
-------------------------:.-
CROSS GIRDERS
c:o:
E:r .G lJ.iNct di..a.-
Fr1J 66.
.
-·
.
-
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.
12
Q 1 2 8 4 5 6 ? 8 9
10
7b
6
81)
LONGJTUOINAL GIRDER.
SECTION Of CROSS GIRDER.
I \
I
pot- ilion of
the
se several footbridges is shown
on
the
plan n page
4 ~ 4
of vol. lxvi. (Fig. 2). Th e
re
is
y
et
anot
h
er
bndge
from the
station
buildings
to
the
G ~ n e r ~ l
P ost Office
~ o r
the special conveyance
of mails d
1re
ct. In therr constructi
on
th ese foot
bridges do not differ much.
With
the exception
of the
latter
,
they
are
supported on
columns
fr
om
- - - - -
- -
- . . . . . . -_ _ _ _
.
-
6·8; - M •I
W e . h 4 %
EAST ENO
CIROER H
the
.
platf
orms.
Th
e
girders are
of the
ord
inary
lattice type, c
onst
ru
cted
in 12-ft. bays. They a
re
11 f t .
and
a
re
s p a ~ e d
to
give a roadway of
16 ft . n
w ~ d t h .
H o ~ s s flooring has been used,
overla1d w1th Stuarts granolithic. The Jeffrey
s
tr
eet f
oot
bridge is above the level of the roof
girders ,
and
is
carried
on these
by
mean s of cross-
girders resting on the
main
r oof girders. The
bridge is coverod for the whole width of the
station
roof, t.he roof being g
la
zed with patent glazing, and
the s
ide
s lined
and
panelled.
In
th is bridge there is
a ?ont
inuous
arc hed floor, 13ft. 6 in.
span
fo
rmed
of
t -In. plat
es,
and
covered
with granolithic
.
In
c
on
nection with
the
stat
ion f
ootbridge
, an
unusu
al
plan ha
s
been adopted at
the
southern
e
nd, wher
e
the. b
ridge
leads do
wn
from
the high
l
eve
l of
Market-
s
tr e
et . I t
is
imnlediately
over the
sub
ur
ban
lin es,
and it
was not possible
to
put in t
he
usual columns
supporting
t he girders where there
was a change
fr
om a flight of
stai
rs to a platform .
The girders have
therefore
been
stepped
for the
two
pl
at form s and
tw
o flight s of st airs
with
out
u p p o r t
Th
e drop in
lev
el thus attain ed is 10ft.
1n
a length of 43 ft., and t
he
totallenath of
girder
63ft. 6
in.
0
To be continued.)
FR ENCH STATE RAILWAYS.-Tbe
Administration
of th
e
F r e ~
State
R a i l ~ a . y s i8
about to
let co
ntracts for ten
a d d 1 t 1 0 n a l l o c o m o t t v E >
•
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12
AMERICAN COMPETITION. No.
XVI.*
By Professor HENRY MoRTON,
Ph. D.,
Stevens'
Institute of Technology.
IN response
to
a
request
for
an
op
in ion
on
the
influence of technical education as carried
out
in
the United
States,
on the competition of this coun
try
with others
in the world's
market,
for manufac
turers
at large,
and
machinery in particular, I would
say, in the first place, that I believe I can best con
tribute
to
the
general information on this subject
by
confining myself
to matters within
my own
personal
knowledge : that is, to the
development
of
technical education,
as illustrated by
the
work of
the Stevens
Institute,
rather
than by
attempting
to
express my ideas or conclusions in
genera
l terms.
Thirty years ago, tec
hnic
al education, as we now
know it, so far
as
applied to manufactures, was
sub
stantia
lly unknown in
this country
; and
the
institution,
over which I ha ve h
ad
t he honour
to pr e
side for many years, was among
the
first established
to
meet this
requirement.
The plan and policy
adopted
in its
incepti
on, and continuously
carr
i
ed
out and extend ed up to the present time, was
characterised
by the
following leading idea, namely,
to
keep the course of instruction
nd
to
that en
d
also
the in
st ruc t
o rs - in
close touch with
the
co
temporary
state
of the art as it existed in
the
best
workshops.
To
effect this,
the
first faculty of
instruct
o
rs
was,
as far as possible, selected from men who had per
sonal experience as designers and constructors ; and
these
were aided and encouraged to engage in such
professional work as would
not interfere
with
their
duties as instructors, but would keep t hem fully
abreast with the
practice of
the day
in commercial
establishments.
This was effected by
estab
lishing a Department
of Tests, to which were
referred
numerous problems
brought
for solu
tion
in connection
with
commercial
work, such as the
testing
of
new
forms of st eam
engines and other
prime
motors, of refrigerating
machinery, of materials of construction (such as
metals
and
a
ll
oys), of
lubricants;
and, ·when
the
development of the dynamo-electric machine began,
all forms of electric generators and motors.
To
en
umerat
e all
the sub
jects which have been
treated in our Department of Tests would occupy
pages : for it is
no
exaggeration to say
that
the re
are
few t
hin
gs of interest
to
the mechanical
engineer
which have not passed through our
testi
ng
department during
these
30 years.
The
direction
and
sup
ervision of
these
tests
hav
e
always
been under the
charge of members of
our
faculty, who have thus not onlybeen
kept
thoroughly
in lin e " with
the latest
' 'practice," but have be
come, from the experience
thu
s acquired, recognised
authorities " on
many
important subjects.
As
the Institute
has
gr
own,
and
additions have
been
made
to its
faculty, these have been sec
ur
ed
from our own graduates, who, besides having the
advantages of a training
under
such instructors as
I have described, have
had
more
or
less experience
in
the
practical operations of the workshop, as well
as
fr
om having been employed as assistants in
carrying on
the
work of
the Department
of Tests.
The above
brief
statement will give some idea as
to
the
method
pursued
n select.ing and keeping up
(or, as I
might say
by way of illust
rati
o
n,
in repair)
the
intellectual
part
of
our plant
; "
and
I will
next refer to our mode of operation in shaping
material for t
he
product " (mechanical engineers)
which we have
been
turning
out
.
In
th is we have had in view
the
object of giving
as large a contact with a c t u ~ l work in
the
work
shops, as was possible within
the time
limits im
posed by other considerations.
To
this end, while our workshop course has
covered a large range of practical operations
executed by the student with his own hands,
at
the
forge, moulder's bench, lathe, planer, milling
machine,
pattern-makers
' bench, wo od-working
lathe, and the lik e, no
attempt
has
been
made to
carry
the
work or practice on
th
ese lines so far as
to
secure
what
may be called ma
nu
al d exterity, or,
in other words, to make the student a
competent
blacksmith, founder, or
lathe
-hand ; but, as soon
as
he
had
gone far enough to know how the work
ought to be
done,
and the prop
er handling of tools
or adjustment of machinery for doing i
t,
he is
passed on to a new operation.
In this way
our
s
tudents
are carried over a la rge
See
pages 347,
379,
413,
445,
479, 515,
549,
583, 617,
6,7,
677,
743,
777,
and
813, vol.
lxviii.
field of practical work, a
nd
acquire
the sort
of know
ledge of
the
same which will help then1 as designers
of machinery or
superintendents
of construction,
rather
than
the
special sk ill in a narrow field which
would make
them
good lathe-hands,
or
sm
it h
s, or
foundrymen, or pattern-makers.
That the
training of hand and eye thus imparted
ha
s, moreover,
been by
no means insignifi
ant,
has
been
abundantly shown by the fact that the students
who, after two years of
the
above shop-work, are
brought into the physical and engineering labora
tories, where
num
erous
instruments
of delicacy
and
precision are placed in their hands, manage these
with remarkable
sa
fety
to
the
in
st
ruments,
and with
an accuracy as to results which has often
been
a
cause of
surprise to their
instructors.
Again, in
the
last two years of their curriculum,
the students are engaged on the problems of what
we have called
our
experimental course, which
to
a
la rge extent involve exactly the same sort of work
which, as graduates, they will be likely to meet in
t
heir
professional career.
The
cha
racter
of
this
work will
be
most con
cise
ly
shown by a li
st
of a few of the problems of
this course. Thus it includes, among ot her
th i
ngs :
Tests
of hot-air· engines, as
to
fuel consumption,
power generated, &c.
Tests of gas-engines, as to fuel consumption, power
genera
ed, &c. .
Tests of air-compressors,
as to
fuel consumption,
power generated , &c.
Tests
of steam boilers, as to fuel consumption,
power generated, &c.
Tests
of steam engines, condensing, non-con
densing, and compound.
Tests of centrifugal fans, jet,
and
displacement
blowers.
.Tests of ord
in
ary injectors, exhaust ejectors, and
eJectors.
Tests of pumps.
Tests of
steam
turbines.
•
Tests of rotary engines.
Tests
of water wheels, Pelton wheel,
hydr
aulic
ram.
Measurement of flow of water in pipes, and use
of Venturi meter.
Tests of refrigerating machines.
Analysis of chimney gases, and various tests re
quiring use of pyrometers.
Experiments
showing effect of counterweights on
the shaking of an engine.
Experiments with belting,
run
on various kinds
of pulleys.
Determination of
the
centrifugal tension
in
a
belt running at high speed.
A glance at the above li
st
will show that the work
included in this cour
se
in troduces
the
s
tudent
to
exactly the character of manipulation, and to
the
use of those ins
truments
and machines, which he is
likely to encounter
and
be
required to
use in his
practical career ; and gives him also such personal
familiarity with fundame
ntal
processes
and struc
tures, as will contribute in t
he
most direct way
to
his capacity
in
designing or modifying mac hines and
processes.
I t
would, ther efore, not be unreaso
nable
to expect
that a student thus trained should soon become
useful to his employers, when he
had
become
familiar
with th
e work carried on
in any
establish
ment in which
he
secured a position, as a designer
of new or modified structures, or by suggesting
improvements
or
economies in methods.
Actual resul
ts
have confirmed
this
expectation,
and I could readily relate numerous instances in
which the work of our graduates has profoundly
modified
meth
ods
an
d f orms of construction, with
the result of contributing important improvements
and economies to the manufactures in which they
have been engaged.
Though limits of space preclude me from entering
into any
d
eta
ils on
the
above subj ect, which would
occupy a large
part
of ENG
INEERING
if fully deve
loped, I will make one
brief
quotation which, by
reason of the universally-recognised abi lity and suc
cess of
its
auth
or
in his selection of
men
a
nd
methods, carries unusual wei ght.
In a recent letter, in which he announces his in
tention
of devoting 50,000 dols.
to
the erection of
a ne
w building for o
ur
engineering lab01
n.to
ry,
Mr. Andrew Carnegie says as follows :
W e owe much to Stevens, for many a valuable
man has come
to
us from it. "
Thi
s testimo
ny
mig
ht
be
supplemented
by
much
more 0f the same kind,
but
I do n
ot
think it needs
such support.
[ jAN.
5,
I90d.
But someone might here quote th e familiar
proverb
: One swallow does not make a summer,
and
suggest that
the
output " of one technical
school
is
too
sma
ll a cause to acco
unt
for such an
effect as is here considered; but to th is I would
reply:
1.
That
of the 700
graduates
who have received
the training outlined
above, more t
han
200
are
to-day in charge of
impor
tant machine-shops, or
departments of the same,
or
in such positions that .
their judgment is a controlling factor in
the
me
chanical side of
the
business
management
; while
the
vast majority of the remainder are on
the
road
to like
s
ituation
s.
2.
That there are
now, and have been, many
technical schools in this country who have followed
more
or
less closely in our footsteps ; and that
3.
A
number of
graduates
(in fact,
40)
are,
and
have
been
for many ye
ar
s, occupying
the
chairs of
mechanical
eng
i
neering
in other technical schools
and universities.
In view of
the
above, I think
that
I
may
reason
a
bly
pass from
the
particular
to the
general,
and
say that I think it reasonable to believe that
technical education in the mechanic arts in this
country
has exe
rt
ed a sensible influence on
the
progress of such arts, in the direction of a world
wide
bu
siness competition, by reason of
the
fact
t
hat
it has
been
kept in very close touch with the
actual daily practice of the
workshop;
while at the
same time it has not been allowed to lose its
educational character, or degenerate
into
a mere
tea
chin g of
hand
icrafts.
As a
sort
of corollary
to the
above,
the
following
idea is suggested :
The graduate
trained as above, wbile of course
greatly inferior
in the re
su
lt
s of many years of
practical experience such as is possessed by the
man
who has grown up in
the
workshop, is,
nevertheless, furnis
hed
with a considerable
amount
of pre
para
t ion to learn quickly when engaged in
practical work, so that he acquires
the
needed
amo
unt
of such practical knowledge within a few
years, or while
he
is
st
ill young enough
not
to have
lost
the
flexibility of mind and readiness to accept
suggestions which
are
essential to
the
progres
sive engineer : especially when
th
e existing
co
n
di tions of competition involve the quick appreciation
and
rapid
adaptation of new ideas.
THE HARFLEUR PROVING GROUNDS OF
MESSRS. SCHNEIDER AND
CO.
B E
ID
ES
the finely equipped
pr
oving grounds for
artillery, ammunition, and explosives belonging to
Messrs. Schneider and
Co.
and si tuated a t H
oc
, near
Havre, and Villedieu, near Cn usot, the firm bas
recently acquired a new polygon in the vicinity
of
Havre. It is a large and long track of grou nd between
the Tancarville Canal and the sea, a t d is of such an
extent that ranges of from 3 to 4 miles can be
secured, the
to t
al length of tr act being about ten
miles. Our illust rations on pag e 18 give vd.rious views
of th is polygon, ~ n d Ehow earthworks, ballistic in
stallations, sea ranges,
c
.
The ma in firing-line is fi tted up with fixed plat
form s for
th
e testing of guns of all ca libres ; at every
kilometre distance from the ma in battery are erected
protected shelters for taking observatione. All th e
shelters are united by t elephone with the central
stand near the main
batt
ery. A narrow-gauge railway
is laid down along the main firing.line. An obser
v
at
ory,
2
metres high, provided with all the re
instruments for r
eg
istering the t e
mp
e
ra
t
ur
e,
barometric pressure, dir
eC;
tion and force of wind, &c.,
facilitates
ob
servat ions from
on
e end to the
ot
her of
t he proving ground. A battery in casemate is built
at
t he head of the firing-line for the t
es
t ing of high
explosive
e.
The proving ground was put in use for
the first t
im
e a few mon t hs ago ; it is admirably
equipped for ballistic tests
and long·range firing
trials.
The principal work carried o
ut
at this polygon is
as follows:
l
Experiments to obtain data for practice tables
for various types of guns.
2. Trials for accurate firiog at long ranges, espe·
cia.lly with field, siege, and garrison guns.
3. Firing tests with high explosives.
4.
Testing explosives.
The location of the Harfieur polygon is very con ·
venient, as it is
no
t far from Havre, and only three
hours' journey from Paris; it therefore possesses ex
ceptional facilities to forejgn Commissionera and in
spection officers, who may require to witness trials, or
report on completed orders.
T EXAS - A
gro
up
of
ca(>itali
sts propose to
work the Llano magnetic ore deposits 1n TE
X
tl
S,
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14
E N G I N E E R I N
G
[} .
5
I
900
•
50-TON ELECTRIC OVERHEAD TRAVELLING CRANE FOR THE EL WI CK WORKS.
_
---
•
CON TRUCTED BY RS. J O E
PH
ADAi\J ON AND CO . , H YDE, CHE.
HI
RE.
For
see
P
ye 1
3
)
•
•
•
•
F
lC
1
•
•
•
-
•
•
•
•
•
•
\
.
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j AN.
5,
I
900.]
E N G I N E E R I N G.
I5
DETAILS
01T
50-TON
ELECTRIC
OVERHEAD
TRAVELLING CRANE.
CON TRUCTED BY l \ f E R . JO EP H
ADA \1.
ON AND CO.,
HYDE,
CHEI.]
HIRE.
(For D
esc-ription
, see Page 13.
. Fig
.7.
WORK
DOifEINIWSI
NG
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D.
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AND
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FFICIENCY
CIVm• POWER CONSUM£D6YMDTDII
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ic
L u . b ~
A:de
-
ooot
'J'u.rned b o l J . ~
m. ~ h o L e s
Fin.6.
•
•
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•
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•
v
WOiKDO t£ ff I S/NG
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EN
CY c;JV
EN
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MED8Y ttOTTR
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•
IIEDUCnON
81
SPUR GEARI
NG
.
80
10
•
-
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•
Q
s
i
Q
•
<J
i
...
Q
l
•
•
0
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•
•
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.
EffiCIENCYCURVEOFMAIN HOISTING GEAR SO TONS CRANE .
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
~ - - - - - - - - - -
NOTES
FROM THE PN
ITED STATES.
PHILADELPHI A December 21, 1899 .
T E
American
ir
on
market
is except ionally
strong
in all branches.
Very littl
e new business
has
been
done during the
pa
st
fe
w
da
ye. Pig-
ir
on prod uction
is now 297,000 tons per wee
k ;
283 furnaces are
in
blast .
It
is now es
timated
that the pig-iron output
for t
hi
s year will exceed 15,000,000 tons. A y
ea
r ago
stocks were 750,000 tons, and now t hey are but li t
tle
oy
er
100,000 tons. The highe
st
limit of demand has
n
ot
yet been r eached , and
it
is
a.
mere matter of guess
work to say just what the
co
nsump tive
demand
for
1
900
will be. Vigorous preparations are being made
all
the
way from the Lake uperior ore fields to in
crease outp
ut
. Within t
hr
ee weeks three new and
large
fu
rnaces have been projected; th is, however,
will
afford no relief for over a ye
ar
to
come.
Larg
e
quantities of steel billets
are
being asked for, but t he
attitud
e of manufact
urers
for bids is for business.
So
me
thing like a deadlock prevails and will
pr
obably
continue until January, when t he necessities of buye
rs
will probably drive t hem into the market ; at leas t,
th at is the view ta ken by a good many billet manu
factu rers, All
the
mills are crowded with b
\tS
iness,
and extraordinary requirements are being presented.
The entire iron tr ade is verystrong, consumption is very
heavy
and
consumptive requi rements are again increas
ing.
Th
e lar
ge
cont ract s
pl a
ced for t he next six
or nine
mont
hs
will
mak
e it possible for consumers
to
remai n
out of
the
market for a long
time
t o come;
at the sa
me
t ime
they
are anxious to secure supplies in advance,
lest
the
hardening tendency may ma
nifest it s
e
lf
.
Ther
e
arc inquiries at the prese
nt
t ime for between 60 ,000
and 100,000 tons of steel rails, but railroad build
ers
appear to be in no hurry to place their orders. There are
also inquiries in hand for ov
er
60,000 tons of structural
ma ter ial and pla
te
iron, but a great deal of th is will
not be contrs.cted for until
Janu
ary. In other
bran
ches
of
t he
ir
on
trade
t here is less doing, a
nd not
qu ite
as
much
inquir
y.
Mer
c
hant bar
is
quiet
but strong
at
2.10
to
2.25
for refined.
The
sh
eet mills a
re
all
crowded , but
are
booking
ve
ry little business a t pre
sent
. Skelp iron is quie t. Merchant steel is also
qui
et,
but consumption is
very
heavy, and it is ex
pected that by the opening of January large require
ments from the New England St ates, and the Far
W
est
will be placed. All of the conditions are about
as they were a week or a month ago, a
nd
the down -
80
•
10
-
-
; ; : : : : : ~
=
...
Q
l
.
~
s
q
-I;
....
·-
10
0
o 1 2 8 a.
s
•S.Ctol LOAD UFTED
IN
T
ONS
.
I
EFFICIENCY CURVE,AUXIUARY HOISTING GEAR SO
TON S CRANE
•
•
•
F IG.
8.
ward tendency of pr ices talked of has not shown
itself, manufacturers are as busy as possible, and have
an abundance of
bu
siness in sight,
and
it is qui
te
pro
bable
t h
at
the coming
winter will
ec
lip
se all
other
winters for
the
vo
lum
e of business done. Old
material
has t aken a t urn downw
ard.
O
ld
iron rails
have
dro
pped
to 27, foundry
and
forge irons
remain where
they were.
December 28 , 189 9.
Th i
s week close3 the mo
st
exc iting
yea
r in t he
American iron and steel trades. The month of De
cember has been th e quie
te
st month in th e year, and
th is week has been
the
quietest in the month. Scarcely
any business is being done or t hought of at present.
The c
onditi
o
ns
of
the ir
on
trad
e were
never mor
e
satis
factory
than n.t pr e
sent. Managers. of
iron and steel
mills
are
more conce
rn
ed
in
ca
tchin
g
up than
in
co
m
pl
etin g contracts and g
ettin
g new business. The
oversold co
nd i
tio n of man ufacturin g plants
th
rough
out the coun
t ry is
well understood. The possi
b
ility
of a slight weakening in pr ices will do much
to prevent new customers from crowding t heir
orders on t he mar ke t . This fact accoun ts for
th
e quie tu
de
of Decem
ber.
If , how ever,
we judge
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6
this market
by
the possibility of
inquiry for material,
the
co
nclusion must be drawn that antici
pat e no reaction
of
pr ices. Th eir conc
lusion
seems to
be that
the pr
odu c tion ca
pacity of ir
on and
steel
plants is so
far
ove
rsold
that
an
upwd.rd
tendency
is
more likely
than
downward
. In all W points,
such as
Chicago, Cincinnati, St.
Louis,
and
s
maller
cities,
a
good
d
ea
l of inquiry
is
under
co
nsidera tion.
Most
of
the furnac
es
in Alabama are sold up for
the first
six months
of the
year. Th ose generally
throughout the north and west ar
e sold
up to that
extent. The only question our m anagers have
to
settle, or
will
be call
ed
upon soon to
se t
tle,
will
be
their policy
for
the
re
maining six
mon t h s.
Some
mills
ar
e
sold
up to
October
1,
but
no
t fully.
All manu
facturers would prefer
to
take
more
large contracts
for
such remote delive
ry. There is
a
noticeable
in
c r c a ~ e in bar iran in all
We
te
rn marke
ts.
peci ica
tions are coming in
to
manufacturers
of
cars with con
tracts in ha
nd. Large
building operations are looming
up in Chicago, and the employers and workmen
are endeaYouring to
come
to terms
with
reference
to
wages.
Labour disputes have been
of long
standing
there, and threaten to
tie
up everything next year.
The requirements
of
agricultural impleme
nt
manufac
turers
throughout
the
W
es
t have
kept the
merchant
steel mills filled up to two or three months.
Inquiries
for black and galvanised iron
at
Chicago are
increas
ing. Orders for about
40,000 to 50,000 ton
s
of
st
eel
rails
will
be
placed at Chicago
in
January.
The Bessemer pig market
at
Pittsburg ha s been quiet
for a
few
days. B e ~ s e m e r is 24 dols.
at
valley furnaces.
Steel bi llets 35 dols. The
beam
pool
held
a meeting
and decided to continue quotations
where
th
ey
were.
A good
deal of
work is
coming
up for structural ma
teri
al.
Ninety-inch
wide plates are quoted
at
2. 50
dol
s.
in Wester n Peonsy
lvania
milJs. Standard sections
of
steel rails 35 dols. to 37 dols. There are
no new de
velopments
in
th
e
Carnegie
eituation,
and if
Mr.
Carnegie bas a grip on
the
situation it
cannot
be
changed under any consideration or by any combi
nation.
Considerable difficulty still
pr
e vails in
certain localities on account of the pr ocuring of
ca rs for fr eight. Copper producers here show no
disposition to sell. H eav y sh ipmen
ts of
pig
lead
are
being made from the West to Ne w
York.
The total
copper production
of
the United States, including out
side
sources
for the
first six
months of
this
year, was
124,487 tons. The product of foreign
mines was
43 ,629 tons. Production
of
copper for the past five
m o n t h to
December 1, 113,911 tons. Foreign product
38
,25
1 tons.
Uuited tates
exports
47,802
tons.
NOTES
FROM THE
NORTH.
GLASGOW,
Wednesday.
Glasgow Pig-b·on Market . Tbe market wa.s quiet but
very
stt::ady on Thursday forenoon, and about 12,000
tons
of iron
were
dealt in
at
rather better
pr i
ces. Scotch war
rants. after being
3d.
per ton up at
64s. 5d.
per
ton cash.
left off
at
64s.
pe
r ton buyers. Cleveland
left
off
6d. per
ton up
at 64
s.
l ~ d . per ton, and Cumberland
hematite iron wa.s per ton up at 71s. per
ton cash
buyers
. There was a further improvement
in prices in the
afternoon
.
Scotch
warrants closed
per
ton up
on
th
e day
at
643.
8 ~ d .
per ton cash buyera,
Cleveland
7 ~ d .
up,
and Cumberland
hematite
iron
4d. up
per ton
cash
buyers. The turnover would be about 26,000
tons. Ab
the
close the settlement prices we
re:
Scotch
iron, 64s. 9d. per
ton;
Cleveland, 64s. Cumberland
and Middlesbrough hematite iron, 72s. and 76s.
per
ton.
A good business was
done
on Friday forenoon, and
pri
ces
were very
strong.
Some
of the business
done
was
report
ed
to
be
fresh buying from
England,
wbile many small
"bear" accounts were eq uated in view of the holidays.
About 25,000
tons cha
nged hands. Th e market was
suspended at
n
oo
n for the
New
Y ear holidays. The
following
a.r
e the
quotations
for No. 1
mak
ers' iron:
Clyde, 83s.
per
ton ;
Gartsherrie,
84s. ; Summerlee
and
Calder, 85s. ; Coltness,
8Gs.
-
the
foregoing
all
launched
at Glasgow;
G
lengarn
ock (launched at Ar
drossan), 82s.; Shotts, 85s. ; and
Carron
out of the
market. Business was resumed this forenoon. A
fair
amount of
dealing
was engaged in.
Some
20,000
ton
s
were dealt
in. The tone
wa.s st
rong, followi
ng
on
the
advance repo
rt
ed from London yesterday. As com
pared with last Friday's close, Scotch iron rose l s. 10d.
per ton. About 20,000
tons
changed
bands
in the after
noon and prices
were
easier
than
in
the morning
by 1d.
to
3d.
per
ton. The settlement prices were 67s.
67s. l d. , 74s. and 76s. per ton. Transac
tions
have not
been
numerous, due, perhaps,
to
the
holiday
season, and the
monot
ony of t ~ e news
fr<?m
Sou th Africa. Amenca.n
reports
are agam
u u c e r t a m ~
owing, doubtl988_
to
the enormous increase in
pr
oduc
tive
power durmg
the pasb few months. The effect
of
tbh
eaormously increased production has
not
yeb had
time
to
tell on consumers' ideas, hence the hesitancy.
Continental inquiri
es
have been much heavier during
the past week, thA late fall in prices
having evidently
brought out buyer
s.
Were
the fears
of dear
money
allayed it seems evident that
the
large decrease
of stocks
in
the
public
warrant
stores
here
would
attract the
at
en .ion of speculators to
a.
much
greater extent
than
it 4one. T ~ e
n u r u b e ~
of blast
furnaces in a' ti ve operat10n
IS 97,
agamst 83
at
t1me of last
report,
and 82
at
the sa
me time
year
ago.
The
stock of
E N G I N E E R I N G.
pig iron in Messrs.
Connal
and Co.'s public
warrant
stores stood yesterday afternoon at
245,258 tons,
as
com
pared with 247,378 tons
yesterday
week,
thus
showing a
reduction of 2120
tons
for the week.
n i . ~ h e d Ir0t11 and Steel. There is still a brisk condi
tion of things in the finished iron trade ;
at
the present
moment,
however, manufacturing
operations
are sus
pended on
account of
the New Year holidays.
In
the
stee
l
trad
e, the
same condition
of things is the rule.
The
Steel Company of
Scotland
have had a very busy
year,
and
so also
have
the other big concerns in
the
West
of Scotland-Colville's, Beardmore's, Glasgow Iron and
Steel Company, &c., a
nd
prices have
been
well
main
tained.
F
tt/Mta( es
out
of
B
last.
Four
blast- furnaces-three
making
hematite iron
and o
ne
making ordinary i ron
at
Clyde Iron Works, have l>een put
out
of blast, leaving
79 in active operation. Of
the
total now blowing, 38 are
producing
hematite iron, 3G
ordinary
iron, and 5 basic
iron. Scotch
hematite, laid
down
at
the steel works, is
quoted
at
80s.
to
81s.
per
ton.
Glasnow Copper
Market.-Copper
changed
hands last
Thursday forenoon to the
exten
t of 25 tons,
and
the
market
seemed
to
have assumed a healthier position, and
small contango being obtainable. There was nothing done
in the afternoon, but the quotations further hardened to
69l per ton cash and
to
69t 5s. three mo
nths.
The
metal
was
not
dealb in on Friday forenoon,
but
it was quoted
at
lO
s. per ton
up at
69l
lO
s. buyers,
and
12s. 6d. up for
th ree months,
a.t
69 l 17s. 6d. per ton.
Th e Nickel Ore In dustry Word has arrived
in
Glas
gow to the effect that the Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario
has signed an Order-in-Council making it a condition of
ll future
patents
for
ni
c
kel land
s that neither the o
re
nor
the matte shall
be
ex(>Orted from Ontario. The effect of
the
order may
result
m
the
establishment
in Ontario
of
extensive works for
the
producti
on of nickel.
I t
is
said
to
be
the intention of the Coloni
al
Government to re
open
n
egotiatio
ns with the Imperial authorities, under
which
the
Lords Commissioners of the
Admiralty may
obtain
an interest
in the
still unpatented nickel la
nds
of
the
province of Ontario, and by means of theirdevelopment
secure
a.n
unlimited supply of nickel
ore
forthe
manufacture
of armour-pl
ate
and other materials for the protect ion and
equipment of
ships
of war. A Rimilar offer was made by
the Provincial
Government in 1891, but
as
the
merits
of
nickel
in
connection with the manufacture of
arm
our
plate had not then
been
made apparent,
the
Lords of the
Admiralty
did
not deem ib wise
to
avail themselves of the
privilege tendered. Th e Order-in-Council provides a lEO
for the refining in
Ontario
of
ni
ckel ores produced from
lands
that
may henceforth
be
patented.
Funera l
of
Mr. Johln Nap
ie1·
. The
remains of the late
Mr. John
Napier,
of
the
well-
known
Clyde shipbuilding
firm of
Me
ssrs. Roberti Napier and Sons, ware brought
on Monday evening to Glasgow from London, where his
death took place last week, and where be lived almost
con
st a
ntly f
or
many years,
a . . . ~ o c i a t e d with
Sir
Donald
Currie
in the
management
of the Currie
"Castle" Line
of
steamers
.
On
the
fo
ll
owing
day
the
de
ceased gentle
man wa.s buried
in the
family vault
at
the
Necropolis.
His brother, Jam£-s
R.
Napier,
F.R.S., died fully fifteen
years ago. The
two brothers
were the "
sons"
of the
firm of R. Napier and Sons.
Death of Mr. Oliphant,
Engineer. Mr.
James Oliphant,
of Broompark, Denny, near Falkirk, died on Friday morn
ing,
at
the adva.nced
age
of
eighty-eight
ye .rs.
He
was
partner
of the
late
firm of Messrs. T.
and
J. Oliphant,
engineers
and
millwrights, Denny, on
an
extensive scale.
He gave up business many years ago.
Steam.ship Contract. Messrs. Ba
rc
la
y, Curle,
and
Co,
of
Whiteincb,
Glasgow,
have re
ceived
an order
from
the
Penin
sular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company for
a steamer of about 7000 ton s.
Electrical Engineer
j YI·
the N ew Zealand Government
Railways. Mr. H. Wynne,
the
signal superintendent of
the Highland Railway Company,
has
heen chosen out
of a large number
of
applicants for the important post of
chief s ignal and electrical engineer of the
New Zealand
Railways.
NOTES FROM SOUTH YORKSHIRE.
S B E l
I E L D , Wedn
esd
ay
.
The Holidays. In
all
the large
manufacturing centres
of South Yorkshire the Christmas and New
Year
holi
days have been taken a.dvnntage
of to
the full
extent.
W
or
k is plentiful, and the
pr
essure in some branches of
the engineering
trades
extreme. The dislocation of
trade, however, caused
by the
difficulty experienced in
obtaining supplies of fuel has been such
d
to induce
manufac turers to prolong the holiday recess as long as
possible, in the hope of securing
a.
reserve of coal. Mo
st
of the
large
firms resumed work
at
the beginning of the
week, but some departments only restarted to-day. _
Shc.flield Electric Tr amways. The Sheffield Corpo
ra
tion
are experiencing great diffi
culty
in obtaming
machinery
to pr
ovide
the
necessary
power to
drive their
cars. The three
routes
on which electric
traction
is now
in use overload the engines in their possession, a
nd
a l t h o u ~ b other sections are ready for
the
cars, they are
comp9lled to
limit
the existing service, and quite unable
to
undertake new districts. Machinery which should
have
been working weeks ago
ha.s
not been delivered,
and in
consequence of thi s lack of
driving
power,
the
ex tensions have been brought to a sta nd
st
ill . Very
shortly the tramway committee will have 138 electric
cars
at
their disposal, but it is
estimated
thab
at
least
250
cars
will
be required by
the time the various ex en-
[J J I
900.
sions are
comP.leted. The committee
are at
present
themselves bu1 lding a sample car to
ascertain
whether ib
would be more economical for
the
Corporation to manu
facture
its
own cars
in
future.
Yorkshire Milners A ssoci
ation. The
annual meeting of
the
above Association
was
held
at Barnsley
last week, and
discussed the wages question with regard to the
terms
drawn
up
by the Conciliation Hoard. The recommenda
tion
is
th
at the Conciliation Board, which expired on
December 31, should be pro longed for a further term of
three years, with
the
present minimum of 30 per cent. on
the 1888 rates, and increased maximum of 60 per cent.,
with an
advance
of 5
per
cent.
to underground
lab
ou
r
from the first
making-up day
in J anuary
next. The
Council decided by a large majority to accept the proposals
of
the
Concili
ation
Board.
Steel and Iron. The holidays have prevented much
business being done in tho steel and iron trades of th e
distri
ct, but supplies are still
being
eagerly bought
up, and pr ices show every sign of further substantial
ad
va.nces.
South Yorkshire Coal Tr
ade. The dislocation of traffic
on the various lines in South Yorkshire
has
not yet been
overcome,
although
the
pits have
been absol
utely idle
throughout the holidays.
The glut
on
the
railways is
having
a serious effect on trade, and much inconvenience
and loss is experienced.
I t
is now feared that even should
the congestion be relieved
at
an
early
date, there will
still be
a
great scarcity
of fuel, for the demand
has
for
long been sufficie
nt
to take all th e coal that could be pro
du ced if
the
collieries e r ~ working full time. This they
have not
done
for weeks. and
stocks
have
been
so
de.
pleted
a.s to
be pr actically non-existent. Gas companies
10
some districts
have barely
enough f
uel to
l
ast them
from
day
to day,
and
slightest
further
breakdown
might
plunge
a whole district in darkness. Prices are advancing.
Lists are practioally withdrawn, and coal that can
be
promptly
delivered
is snapped
up at
whatever
pr i
ce is
asked.
NOTES FROM CLEVELAND AND
THE
NORTHERN COUNTIES.
MIUDLESBRO
UGH
, Wednesday.
Th e Clereland Iro n T
rade.
The
Exchange
w
a.s
re
opened to - day after t he holidays, but few people
attended, and it
wa
s not easy to obtain informat10n
as to
the
state
of the ma
rket. There
was ce
rt
ainly
a better
tone
than was
ap{> rent
just before
the
h o l i d a y E ~ but traders were m no very great hurry
to
do business.
At
the
same
time a cheerfnl view of
the future was taken, and brisk trade was genera.lly
predicted. With makers' No. 3 Cleveland
pig
was 68s.,
a
nd
thab
pr
ice was
paid,
but merchants sold
at
67s. 6d.,
which was also about the price of foundry No . 4
and grey
forge.
Middle
sbrough warrants advanced
to
67s. 4d., but
they eased later in the day, and
at
the clo e
of
the market
were
67s. 1 d. cash buyers. There was
little doing
in
east
coast hematite pig, owing
to
the fact
that there
was
pra
c
ti
ca
lly
no
iron
a
va
ilable for sale. Mixed numbers
were
quot
ed 77s. 6d.
to
80s., sellers,
a.s
a rulel
adhering
firmly
to
the
latter
figure. Spanish
ore
snowed
change.
Manufactured I ron and Stecl. The finished iron and
steel
wo
rks
are again in operation. Producers of nearly
all descriptions report that they are very full of orders
and pressed for delivery. Prices all
round are
strong,
and the tendency
is
to advance them, but it
can hardly
be said that any quotable change has occurred since we
la.st reported. Common iron bars are Sl. 153., best bars
9l 5s., iron and
steel ship-plates
each 8l., and
iron
and
steel
ship-angles eaoh 7l 15s.
ll less the customary
per cent. discount.
Middlesurough Iron and
Stee
l Exports. T he
Customs
returns of
pig
iron, manufactu red
iron
and steel, from
Middlesbr
ougb, for December, sho w
th
at
although
there
was
a.
heavy
drop in the exports
of
pig ir
on
as
co
mpared
with November, it is a ::5atisfactory December return,
and shows great trade activity in the district . The
figures
were
: Pig iron, 76,054 tons ; ma
nufactur
ed iron,
15,784 tons: steel, 17,623 tons. Details: Pig
ir
on
Scotland, 16,568 tons ;
Wale
s, 1330
; Tyne,
3456
; other
part$, 2839 to tal coastwise, 24,183 tons ; Holland,
20,690 ; Germany, 2990 ; France, 8644 ; Denmark, 1425 ;
Sweden, 3610; Belgium, 6 8 ~ ; Italy, 5080; Norway,
2895; Australia (Queensland
),
20; India, 70; Hong Kong,
100;
Singapore,
100; Japan, 54-totnl
foreign, 51,871
tons.
~ l a n u f a c t u r e d iron
: Scotland, 844 ; Wales,
40 ;
other
part
s, 10,869-total coastwise, 11,753 tons; Hol
land, 1299; Germany, 2; Sw eden,
20;
Belgium, 20 ;
Norway, 75; India, 1263; Hong Kong, 17; Japan, 72;
Ru ssia, 11 ; Natal, 700
;
Portuguese East Africa,
556-
total foreign,
4031
tons. Steel: Scotland, 158 ; Wal
e..q
424 ;
other
ports, 3007- total coastwise, 3690
ton
s
;
H ol
land,
3320
; Germany,
398
; Denmark, 2324 ; Sweden,
83; Aus tralia (Queensland), 1384; India, 550;
Japan,
448 ; Russia.,
157;
Natal,
300;
Portuguese East Africa.,
4855; China., 35;
Egypt, 69-total
foreign, 13,933 tons.
NOTES FROM
THE
SOUTH-WEST.
Cardiff. There
have been
fairly nume rous inquiri
es
for steam coal for
ahipment
this
month,
Buyers, how
ever, are not inclined
to
pay
the high
prices
demanded.
The best steam coal
has
been qu oted
at
27s. to 30s. p er
ton, while secondary
qualities have
brought
24s.
to
26s.
per ton. Household coal bas shown li tt le chan ge; No.3
Rhondda.
larg
e
has
made 20s.
to
21s. per ton. Coke bas
aboub
maintained late
ra t
es; foundry
qualities
have
brought 28s.
to
30s.
per
to
n ;
and fnrna.ce
ditto
26s.
to
•
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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J
J
E N G I N E E R I N
G.
~ ~ · ~ 5 ~ = = = = = = = = = = ~ = 7 = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
=
addition
to
the above,
a n o t ~ e r
a.llor is &dded
to
the metal,
28s.
per ton. As regards
ir
on ore,
th
e current quotation MISCELLANEA. the nature of
this
ingredient bemg kept secret. ~ h e
17
for the best rubio is 19s. to 20s. p er ton. . d f
1
t . Kruhp plates are, Admiral O'Neil Rtates, much .sup.er10r
. THE
applicati
ons for
Proviswnal
r ers
or
e ec nc t t
Llamelly.-Reporting to Sir A. S tepney upon
an u;n
- lighting deposited with the Board of Trad6before Decem- to t e Ha.rveyed. With the
Ha r
.vey.
pr
ocess I no
proveme
nt
scheme of the Llanelly
H ~ b o u r
C o m ~ I s - ber 2llast, numbered 108. possible to extend the super-carbomsatwn beyond
lm.
sionel'8, Mr. G. N. Abernethy observes:
In
connectwn l
i
n. from the face of the plate; whilst,
with
the Krupp, thiS
with any future work, I would most strong:ly recommend The gold yield of New South Wales for the month of super-carbonisation can be extended
t?
any p t h a n ~ t ~ e
that the north trai?i?g wall should. be ent uely removed, December amounted to 50,058 oz., valued at 172,274l. progress of the operation tested from time to time, which
and that any trammg or protectmg at
.o
r n ~ a r Exclusive of 10,719 oz sent to the Victorian Mint, the not possible with the Harvey
pr
ocPss, and the _latter 18
Llanelly Lighthouse should be constructed m a lme with yield for the yea r 1899 was 509,418 oz., valued at
thus
less certain. Th e back of
a.
Krupp plate 18, more
th
e fl
oo
d current. The only effect
produ
ced
by
the
sout
h 1,936,985l. over, exceedingly tough, and will thus . s
tand
ex
wall is
to
dee
pen
and
maintain
a short, de
tach
ed, and
t
s
rum
oured
in Paris
that
the
o m m i s e ~ i o n apJ>ointed
tr
emeJy
heavy
h m e n ~ wttbout cra
ck
1
ng. The
useless channel
at
a distance of half a
m i l ~
so .away
by th
e
Pr
esident of
the United
States
to inquire mto th
e prese
nt
acceptance
test
for 6·m. armour for Umted
States
from
the
entrance
to Ll
anelly _Harbour. Th1s
IS
obVlously present status
an? the
future
~ s i b i
~ i t i of
the
a n a ~ a . warships requires that the
plate
shall a.Lsorb 3324 foot
nob
the position
that a..
navtgab le to Llanelly Canal, with a. view
to
comparmg
It
s advantages with tons of energy,
whil
st
the
specific
ati
ons for Krupp plates
should
oc
cupy;
but
as
th1
s south .wall a. work of those offered
by the Nicaraguan
scheme, will report in call for
an
absorption
of
7389 foot-tons. The cost
of
siderable magnitude, I should hes
itate rec
ommend1ng favo
ur
of the Panama. plan. providing
eq
ual degrees
of
protection with
Harv
eyed a
n.d
its alteration or removal at present; Lnt It must be borne
The
traffic recei
pts
for
the
week ending December 24, K rupp
plat
es is nob widely different , but the
l ~ t t e r
18
in mind howev er,
th
at thi s work is also along
the
line of on 33 of
th
e principal lines of
th
e United Kingdom, somewhat more expensive. With
the
same u ~ h t of
the c u ~ e n t and in all probability it would ultimately amounted to 1, 873,821l., which was earned on 19,548 armour much
gr
eater p r o t is afforded by the Krupp
prove e c e ~
a r y
to remove and divert it. I think it pos- miles. For the corresponding week in 1898 the receipts plates, but the cost i s correspondingly higher.
sible, howev er, that if proper means were taken. o p r o t ~ of the same lines amounted to 1,823,244l. , with H G d
bl'
h d · tJ
the
north
C
hannel, and
to
remove
the
obstructions wh1cb
4
A paper
by Majo
r A. . 1 on, pu IS .e
m
a
re
c.en
miles open.
There
was thus
an
increase of 50,577t. in · f th p d ' f th R 1 Artillery Institu
exl
s"
off Penrbyn-gw
yn Point, co
nsiderable improvements
3
Issue o e rocee mgs o e oya. ·
II the c e i p t
and an
increase Of 2944 in the mileage, t ' • ' t t ' • f t ' o a
tO
the per
might
be
effec ted at
the
e n t r a ~ l C e to LlaneJly
Harbour
. 1on, gtves some
m
eres
mg m
orma ton ' . -
I am
co
nvinced, from my expenence, that any
attempt to Machines
for registering and counting votes are, it formances of the
Lyddite
howitzers. Last
year
a. bnga.de
form a straight, navigable channel from Llanelly to
Barry
would seem. now being used in several citi E::s in
the
U ni ted division of
th
ese weapo
ns
we
re
exercised at Okeha.mpton
Port
th r
ough the extensive sandbanks which exist, and States. A favourable
rep
ort on the working of these
ma.-
for th e first time, and
the
results excee
ded
expectatwns.
in a' contrary direction to the
set
of the flood stream, chines has been presented
to
the town of Ithaca.
by
a. com-
The rate
of
batt
erv fire , averaged 11.06 seconds, and
would be absolutely futile. " mittee comprising amongst its members Professor R. H. when firing behind cover making use of observation parties
(
L . · d) h Thurston. One great advantage possessed by these ma- about 2000 yards
to
a. flank, excellent practice was made,
N ett ejolds at N
e w p o r t N e t t l e f o l d
tmlte ave chines lies in the fact that every vo te is counted when
although the
target could not be seen
by the
layers. Thus,
recently acquired a.
strip
of land frontt.ng
the
Usk,. near regi
ste
red, so that at
th
e end of
the
polling day,
the
totals at a range of 3550 yards 25
out
of 44 she1ls pitched on the
the Old Docks, Newport, for
the
purpose of e r e c t m ~ a. can be imm ediately read off and the res
ult
declared with- target, which was a rectangle, 150 yards wide by
nail factory upon it. For several years,
th
e company as out loss of time. 50 yards deep, the lo
ng
s
ide being
at
right angles to
carried on large works at Rog
ers
one, near
Newport.
the line of fire. For all elevations exceeding 8 deg.
The American Consul at Rouba.ix reports
that an
Ad
vancing Coal Within a month, there have been artificial stone is now being imported into France from inclinometers are used for laying, in place of tangent
three advances of ls. per ton in the price of Forest of Belgium. The is manufact Jred at u ccles, near sights. As th e range at 10 deg. elevation with full charge
Dean house coal; and, as compared w i t ~
~ h e
summer, Brussels, and cons
1
sts of 80 parts of extremely clean and is only 1600 yards, it will be seen th at
the
inclinometer
coal is now 4s. 6d. per t Qn dearer. Within the same dry coarse sand, mixed with 20 parts of very finely ground muat be used pr actically exclusively. Howitzers
are
period colliers' wages have been
ad
vanced some 20
per
hydraulic lime.
The
mixture
Is
pl
aced
in an iron mould
s
tated to
be
parti
cularly useful for
indirect
fire,
as
their
cent., 'and they now stand ~ i g h e r than for many years
and
plunged into water, which is then boiled for
7
2 hours high trajectory faci litates the placing of them
behind
past. The best blcck coal 1s quoted at 16s. 6d. per ton at a temperature of 320 deg. Fahr. The stone
thus pr
o- cover. In such conditions the guns
are laid with
the
at the
pits.
The
fourth
and last advanc
e of
1a. per ton
duced
harden
s
rapidly on
exposure to air,
and
costs,
it
is s.ssis
tance
of
aiming posts driven into the ground
about
ann
0unced
by the
Associated H ouse-Coal Owners was s
tated, only
1d. per cubic foot. 50
yards in
front of
the
gun,
and in aline between it and
made on Monday.
The
coalowners at a recent meeting the target, Auxiliary marks
are
also made use of, this
were strongly inclined to
a.
rise of 2s. per ton, it being The annual report on the engineering trades issued by being facilitated by the fact
that
the eights can be
urged by coal factors
that
such an advance was justified; Messrs. Matheson
and
Grant rep orts that there is
great
swivelled 9
d e ~ .
to the left of the line of fire, and 7 deg.
but more moderate proposals were accepted, it being held ac tivity in all branches of tr ade,
and
prospects for t he to the right. Difference of le
ve
l in the gun wheels intro
that
an advance of 1s.
per
ton would be likely
to
be of a
immediate
future are g
oo
d ;
but
the rise
in the bank rate
duces an error. Its amount is ob
tained by
a
clinometer
permanent. c
h l'ra
cter. .One . consequence
.of the ex
tra.- may, it is
stated,
check the
pro
sec
ut i
on of
many enter-
s
howing the
inclination of
the
axis
to
th e horizo
ntal, and
ordinary
r1se
m coal
pnces
1s that
the
Cmderford Gas pr ises
by whi
ch engineers would benefit.
The
rise of is corrected
by
swivelling
the
e
ights right or
le
ft. The
Company has given notice of an
advanc
e
in the
pr ice pr ices has been general. S
team
co
al
f.
o.
b. Cardiff
is now
work
of
running
up the
guns is s
aid to
be ve
ry
heavy,
of gas. 19s.
per
ton; whilst
in
1898 was
1l s
.,
and in
1
896, 10d.
and
the
shells are also of considerable weight, so
that
SmeltingatBarry.-TbeArmstrongSyndicate,Limited,
Middlesbrough pig which
in
January, 1895, was H 15l. fnll detachments
ar
e nAcessa.ry for efficiency. As to
London bas now
co
mpleted branch s
melting
works on
per
ton now s
tand
s at
3l.
5s.,
and
steel s
hip
·plates
4l.
15s. mobility,
whilst the
howitzers are much heavier
than
the
Sully Moors, Cadoxton, in the
immediate
vicinity of
the
per ton in January, l 895, now stand at 8l per ton. 15-pounder field pieces, they are
stated to
be as mobile
Barry No.2 Dock. The e c e s s a r ~
ma..
chinery .has On December 28, the last rails were laid down on the as the latter for s
hort
advances.
been laid down, so that everythmg Is. practtca.ll;r ID Trans-Baikal section of the Siberian Railway, thus com-
An
elaborate investigation into the resistances experi
readiness for the commencement of workmg operatwns. plet ing for the
pr
esent the great enterprise begun in 1891, enced by bicycles, conducted by Professor R. c Carpenter
In
a ~ d i t i to th is, the first cargo of silver ore has and establishing uninterrupted steam communicatjon and published in the Sibley J
ournal
of En
gi
neering, shows
arrived at Barry Docks, and several additional cargoes between Western
Eu r
ope,
~ b .
Petersburg, and the ex- that the most important of these is due to wind pressure,
are to follow. treme eastern limits of the Russian Empire on the Pacific after which comes losses in the tyres, and finally in the
Electr ic Power
n
Wales
. A
Bill for
in
co
rporating and
Coast.
The
length
of
this
last
section
just
finished
is
transmitting
mechanism.
The
losses occurring
in
the
c o n f e ~ n ~
powers on ' ' The South
Wales
.Electrical
Power 693
miles, from
the eastern
shores of Baikal, going
la
st are, however, ge
nerally
very small.
The tyre
resis
Distnbutwn
CemJ>a.ny "
has
been deposited for
the
con- thro\fgb
Chita to
Stretensk on
the river
Shika., a
tributary
tance
vari
es enormously with differe
nt makes
. With
the
sidera.tion of Pa.rha.ment
next
session.
The capital
of
the to
the
Amur. The
trains are
transport
ed across the worst tyres tested,
th
e efficiency,
at the
moderate
company is to be 750,000l. , divided into 75,00U shares of Baikal
Lake
on
the
ice-breaking
ferry boat built by Sir
power of 3000 foot -
pounds per
mmute,
corresponding
10
l. eac
h; but
with
the
right
to divide these
shares into
William
Armstrong and Co., and from Stretensk
the river to
easy riding,
was
42
per cent.,
whilst
with
the best
preferred ba.lf·shares
and
deferred half·sha.res.
Upon
ro
ute
must be used to arrive
at
Kha.barovsk, whence
the tyre th
is was raised
to
70
per
cent.; so
that,
so
far
this capital it
is
proposed
to
rajse a further 250,000l. by Uszuri section of
the
railway runs on
to
Vladivostok . as this element of resistance is concerned, the wheel
the creation of debenture stock; but it is exp re ssly pro- Large extensions are about to he made to
the
electric could have ridden 70 miles on the best tyre
with no
vided
that
no compulsory powers shall be put in force lighting
plant
belonging to the Dublin Corporation. greater expenditure of energy than was needed
to drive
until at least 100,000l. of the share capital shall have been Acting on the advice of their consulting engineer, Mr. the former 42 miles. The best chain gears are so
mewhat
subscribed, under co
ntra
ct binding on the parties. The R.
Hamm
ond, M.
In
st. C.E., the Electric
Lighting
superior to the best cbainless, but chains vary
greatly
in
proposed area of supply is to be the wbole of the county Committee propose that a new station should be erected efficiency, and some, moreover, are mncb more affected
of Glamorgan, and so much of the county of Monmouth at Pigeon House F ort, with capa-city sufficient to supply by dirt and dust than others. With the best chain
as lies between the county of Gla.morgan and the River 100,000 eight candle-power lamps, all running at once, tested the loss in transmission was o
nly
2 per cent.,
Usk to the west of that river, including the whole of the which is held to be equivalent to 150,000 lamps installed when a power of 2500 foot-pounds per minute was
county boroughs of Cardiff, Swansea, and Newport (part on consumers' premises. The plant at Pigeon Ho use applied, and this loss steadily diminished as the load was
of which last -mentioned borough is east of the River F ort is to be of the t h r e e p h ~ e
alternating
ty pe, provid- increased down to 0.4 per cent., when the power trans
Usk), and all cities, boroughs, county boroughs, urban ing current at a potential of 5000 volts. a portion of
mitted
was 25,000 foot-pounds per minute.
With
this
and rural district councile, parish councils, and other which will, at the existing s
tation
at Fleet·street, be chain a kind of knife edge was substituted for the rivets or
parishes, townships, and places
situated within
such area..
tran
sfo
rmed
do
wn to
a. potential of 2400 vo
lt
s, and
di
stri- pi
ns
usually used.
With ordinary types
of chain the
The
Bill provides for the erection
of
three
~ e n e r a . t i n g or
buted over the five fee
der
s now s
uppli
ed from
th
at po
int.
res
ult
s
are not
as good,
still the worst of th ose
tabula ted
power stations. The first will
be
erected
m the
parish
Hitherto
these
have been
wo
rked at
a
potential
of
by Professor Carpenter gave an
efficien
cy of
90 per cent.
of
Lantwit
Va.rdre, on an area. of 19 acres, between
the
2000 volts, so
that their
capacity
will
be
considerably in-
at
low
loads,
and
96.2
per
cent. with heavy
the
Ta.ff
and the Ta.fi
Vale
Railway (Cardiff
to
Pontypridd crease
d. Th
e
rem
ainder of
the en
ergy deliver
ed
to this power transmitted being as before 2500 foot-pound;
per
line). The second station will occupy an area of
di
stributing s tation will be
sent
on at its full potential
minute in the
one case, and 25,000 foot-poun ds per
acres in
th
e parish of Panteg, between
the We
stern
to 19 tran
sformer sub-s
tation
s, whence it will be
di
str i- minute
in
the other. Figures almost identical
with
th
ese
{Taff Vale and Aberda.re Extension line) and
the Great
buted to cons
umers
' e m i ~ e s . Slow-speed engines are to
w e r ~
ob.tained with th e of
the
c h a . i ~ l e s s gears, the
Western (Monmouthshire) Railway
(Eastern
Valley sec- b e used at
the
generating st tion,
the
plant
there
consist- effim enc1es under
the
cond1t10nsnamed bemg respectively
tion). The third station will be erected in Neath, on an
ing
of two 1000-kilowatt
and
two 500-kilowa.tt gen
era
tors, 91.67 and 96
.5
per cent. The air resistance,
Profe
ssor
area of acres, between the Rhondda and Swansea Bay whilst will also be two exciters. Th a gene -
Carpenter
states, is found to corre spond well with the
Railway and the Neath Canal. ra.tors will ~ e n e r a t e the curren.t at a low voltage, the line following
formula:
W
els
h House Coal. During the past six months house pressure bemg af terwards obta.med by means of s tep ·u.P
R=AV2
coal bas advanced in the Swansea Valley from 14s. to
t r a n
f o r z : n e r ~ . . The reas?D: given f o ~ th is a r r a n ~ e m lB
22s. 6d. per ton; while the supply is now insufficient. the a.dvtsability of avmdmg the r1sk
to
the msulation
which might arise owing to salt from the sea enterin8.: the
The Electric
Light at
Mon
mou
th . At tha monthly sta.ti?n d u r i ~ g stormy weather: The boiler-.house will he
meeting of the Monmouth Town Council on Monday, ib provided w1th water-tube bo1lers
£tted with
automa tic
was decided that another turbine and another engine of stokers.
100 hors
e-
power would be required,
in additi
on
to
an In a rE:'port
to the
united
States Goverment,
Admiral
ext
ra.
turbme
now on order, to meet
th
e increased
demand O'Neil
co
mpares the merit
s of
the
Harveyed armour and
for the electri c
light
in the town. Krupp plates.
The
Krupp plates co
ntain three
-quarters
Public Works at C a r d -A Bill, promoted by
the
of 1 per cent. more nickel
than
is usual in Harveyed
Cardiff Town Council in Parliament thi s year, will,
if
it plates, and, in addition
to thi
s, 45 lb. of chrome metal
passes substantially in its present form, provide for an ~ e r ton of ingot. ingots weigh two and-a.-quarter
expe
nditure
of 770,000l. This, however, is
an
extreme
times as much
as
the
fimshed platt-,
and
all the
c
hromium
estimate. The items specially mentioned in the Bill are co
ntai?ed
the r ~ p is lost on ~ e m e l t i n g . ~ r h e use of
the following: Construction of Fewers, 181,000l. ; road chromtum m steel 1s at tended w1tb much difficulty as
works, 116,000l
. ;
construction of tramways, 260,000l
. ;
ingots containing it are liable to crack in m a n u f a c t ~ r e .
purchase of Penartb County School,
7067t
but these drawbacks have been overcome by Krupp.
200
where R is the resistance in pounds, A the area expOsed
normal to the line of motion, in square
feet
and V the
v e l o c ~ t y miles per hour Y bending
the
rider
can,
It
1s s t ~ t e d reduce hiS effective area. to about 1.5
square feet.
N Ew CoAL-MINING CoMPA
NY.-
A new company, to
be
known
as
the Hulam Coal Oompany, ha s been formed to
open out coalfields along the coast between the
Hartl
e
and
Sea.ham Ha.rbou.rs.
The
capitn,l of the company
Will
be
400,000
l,
of
which
260,000l.
bas been raised
~ g r ~ e m e n t s
as.
to
ro.
yalties
have been concluded, and
smk10g. operations w11l
be
commenced
wh
en
a.
proposed
new
ratl
way
be tween Hartlepool
and
SeahQ,m bas been
constructed.
•
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7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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J AN. 5 I
900
.J
:
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MAN
C
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F
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hn Il
eywood,
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a:
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and 43.
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TE
LE
G
RAPITI
C ADDR.E
s -ENGINEERING,
LONDON.
E L F . P
O ~ E N
uMBE
R-
3663 Gerrard.
CONTENTS
PAGE
The Electrificat ion of t he
PAGE
The Late Mr. James D
eas
Atmosphere .. . . . . . . . . .
Melbourne Water Supply
ll l
mtrated)
The Diese l Oil Engine
I l-
lustrat
e
d
. • .
The Waverley
Stat
ion, Edin
burgh
l l lmt
ra ted) •
American Competition.-
No. XV I. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Harfteur
Pr
oving
Grounds of Messrs. Sob·
neider
and
Co. l lm.
Elect ric Tra velling Cran es
ll
ustrated)
1 With P ortrait) ..
. . . . . . . .
23
American Competition . . . . 24
3 I a ~ ~ ~ u e e ~ ~ · c · e . .
~ ~ ~ ~ ? :
25
6 Superfluous Royal Engineer
I
Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
9
Fire
Prevention in 1899 . . . . 25
Armoured Steam Oars for
E N G I N E E R I N G.
I
NOTICE
TO
CONTINENTAL ADVERTISERS.
Advertisements from
Germany should
now
be sent
through
Messrs. G. L. Daube
and
Co.,
Frankfurt-am
Main,
who have been appointed our
Sole Agents for
that
country
for
Trade displayed
Advertisements.
Advertisements
from France, Belgium, and Bol·
land
should
be sent through the Agence Havas,
8, Place de la Bourse
,
Paris,
our
Sole Agents
for
those countries for similar Advertisements.
NOTICES OF ME ETI NGS.
INST
IT
U
TI
ON OF CIVIL ENGlNEElR
S .-
Tuesday, J an uary, 9, a.t 8 p m.
Pap ers to be read with a view to
s s i ~
: 1.
~ h e
Ptmftca ttOn
of Wate r after it Use in Manufactot·tes, by
m l l d
A. Tatton,
M.
In
s t . C.E.
2.
"
Experiments on
the
t o n
of
W
ater
from Factories
by
W.
0.
E. l\l
ea
de-Kmg,
M
. Inst. C.E.
At
this Meeting a Ba.hot ·for members will be tal<e n. tude
nt
s'
M
ee t
ing, Friday, J a
nu
ary 12,
at
8 p.m. A
ddre
s by
Pr
ofessor
T. Claxton FidJet·, M. Inst . C.E., on "
Th
e
Th
eory of St ruc ture s
and t rer•gtb of Ma te rials.
INST ITUTI
ON
OF ELECTRICAL E N G I N E E R S . - T h u r s d a ~ • , ~ a n u a
Ordinary General Me et ing at
8
p.m., at the Instttullon of Ctvtl
~ n g i n e e r s . " Rep
ort
of the Institu tion'
s.
Vi
to d n d
The Repo
rt
will be taken as read and the dt a . ton wt ll be ?pe ned
by Mr. Crompton, by a comparison between Bn ttsh and Contmental
pr
actice in elect rical engineering.
IN TJTUTION OF MECHAN ICAL ENGINEER
.
Monday, J anuary 8, at
7.30 p.m. Graduates' Meetin g.
Pap
er on
' 'Treatment
of ewage
and Sewnge Judge in
Rura
l Districts," by Mr.
H.
H: Mogg.
SOC
IETY
OF
n E ~ J l
C A L
I NDUSTRY.- IA>ndon
ec t
ton. Monday,
J a
nuar
y
8
at
the
Chemical Society's Rooms, Burlington House,
Piccad{lly' wh en
the
following papers will be read a
nd
discussed :
Co lom:P hotography," by Mr. J . W. Hinchley, Wh. c .
. R . S . ~
Cinchona," by Mr . J . M Vargas
a . ~ · a
F.C.S. "
:1\-h
croscopto
Oharaoter of Vi cun na, C
am
e
l-
hair, and Alpaca," by
.Mt.
R. M.
Pl'ideaux. The m
eet
ing
w
ill co
mm
ence
at 8
p.m .
ENGINEERING
FRIDAY,
JANUARY
5, 1900.
THE
RIGHTS OF
RIPARIAN
OWNERS.
THE
demand f
or pure
w
ate
r daily becomes more
and
more urgent , n
ot
only f
or
domestic purposes,
but for a
number
of manufacturing processes
in
which it plays an impor
ta
nt part.
The
country
suffers for the benefit of
the
large towns.
Water
which formerly found i
ts
way from
the
spring to
the sea is now pumped and sent
thro
u
gh
miles
of pipes to d
is t
ant cities. Millowners who have
established themselves on
the
banks of a stream
with a view to being within reach of a constant
supply, find the flow diminishing or becoming so
impure
as to be useless for the purposes to which
they intend to put it. Wells, whether shallow or
deep
are sunk in
vain,
and
the manufacturer
must
needs consider
in what
way
he may best
pr
ote
ct
his
right
to the undiminished
and
unpolluted flow of
the
water which laves
the
wall of his mill.
Dealing first with wa
ter
which flows
and
has
flowed along a
natural
co
ur
se from time immemo
rial, it should be remembered that
the
riparian
owner is e
nt i
t led to th ew
ate
r l
S
qHes ad
·medi
um
filum
aqu
e
. This must not be
taken
to mean that he
owns the water. He is entitled to make use of it,
and to protect his right to make use of
it
in its
pure and unadulterated condition. He is entitled,
mo
re
over, to
restrain any undue
interference with
th e speed of
the current. Thus in the
case of
Robinson
v.
Lord
By r
on, which was
tried in
1785,
it was decided that an action lay agai
nst
a lower
riparian owner, who
by
constructing a dl\m checked
the
rapidity of the stream. I t stands to reason
that the damming of
the
stream higher up could be
restrained
in
a similar manner.
Not es fr
om
the United
I t
ha
s
been
said t
ha
t
the
riparian proprietor
is
entitled to
the
water in
its
pure state. I t has
long been
the
law of England that a man
has
no
rig
ht
to allow noxious ma t
ter
to flow in to a st re
am
to the
prejudic
e of persons lower down,
but
there
are cases
in
which a
right
t o do so may be acquired
by pr
escription. N evertheless, it
is
conceivable
that
water holding a small a
mount
of
impuriti
es
in
suspension or solut i
on
would
be
useful for some
purp
oses. In such a case th e rip arian owner can
res
train its furth
er pollution,
and
it would be no
26 answer to an action that other manufacturers are
27
contributing their quota of noxious material.
12 I South Africa . . . . . . . . . . . .
25
The Old
North
Bridge at
Edinburgh .. .. .. .. . . .. . .
25
12 Barnaby's Theory of Cavi·
ta.tion ( l llmtrated)
. . . . . . 25
l S
Launches
and Trial Trips . . 26
Diagr
ams
of Three Month
s'
Fluctuations in Prices of
tates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
N
otes
from t b e ~ o r t h . . . .
..
Notes from South Yorkshire
Notes from Cleveland and
16
16
Metals .. .. .. .. . . .. .. . .. .
Automatic Tapping .Machine
for Pipe Fittmgs lu8. )
the Northern Counties •• 16
Notes from the South-West 16
MisceJJan
ea
. . . . : . . . . . . . . 17
The Rights of Riparian
Industnal Notes . . . . . . . . .
ShipbuHding and Marine
Engineering in 1899 ll·
lust
r
ated.
.
Owners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Electrical ln st
aJJ
at ions on
Bat tleships (I llustrated )
20
Iron Manufac t
ure
in the
E n ~ i n e e r i n
in
the
United
States Navy . . . . . . . . . . ..
27 But perhaps
the
most important right which a
riparian owner may exercise is that of taking water
29 for use
and
consumption. To take water
fr
om the
river is the
universal
privilege in
such ca
ses, the sole
30
que
st
ion being one of amount.
This
depe
nds up
on
what
is
re
asonable for his n
ee
ds
and wha
t
prop
o
r
t ion of
th
e water
in the riv
er shou
ld be
allowed
to
flow
past
for the benefit of owners lower down.
Between these conflicting interes
ts
there lies a
happy mean which must
be
investi
ga ted by
the
Court. The principle t o be applied in these cases
Greater Britain
at
the Paris
Exhib
it
ion
. . . . . . .
.
. . . . .
n i ~ States .. .
.
.. .
.. .
3321 Sludge
. . . . . .
..
..
. .
.. ..
.. . •
34
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
22 ''
E ngineeri ng Patent Re-
cord ll l
tt trated). . . . . . . .
35
With a T wo
-P
age E
ragr
alling of the W A VERLEY STATION ,
EDINBURGH ; ACCESS FROM BRIDGE,
WI
T
II PAR
·
CELS DEPARTME.YT .
19
:
was clearly
o u n d e d in Embrey
v .
[1851
6 Ex. R.
p .
:371J.
In th e course of his
d g m e n t
Bar
on
Park
e said, ' ' On
the
one
hand,
It cou
ld
n
ot be
admitted
that the
owner of a tr
act
of many
t hou
sand
acres of porous soil. abutting. O one part
of
the
stream could
be permitted
to rrrigate
them
continually
by
canals
and
d r a i n
and
to cause a
serious diminution of the quan
tity
of water
. .
·
;
on the other hand, one 's coml' lon. sense would be
shocked by supposing that a ripanan ~ n e r could
not dip a watering pot into
~ h e r ~ a m
m ?rder to
water
his
garden,
or
allow hlB f
am
ily or catt le
t o
drink
it. "
And
Lo
rd King
sdown
ha
s
said
that
ev
ery
riparian owner has a right t o t he
ordinary
"
use of
water
w
it h
o
ut
regard
to t he effect
up
on o
th er
proprietors, but that
he
can on
ly
it for ' '
traordinary "
purp
oses if
he
does not Interfere
Wi
t h
the rights of others. . . . . .
Having dealt with th e ri
ghts and
liabilities of
riparian owners, in so far as
they
~ f f e c t e
by
the principles of the common law,
It
Is
Interes t
ing
to observe how that law has been modified by
statute, and in view of a recent case in the Court
of Appeal, this investigation
b e ~ o m
all t ~ e more
instructive. The Rivers P ollution Preventwn Act
was passed
in
1876 " to make .further provision f
?r
the
prevention of
the
pollut10n
?f
riv
er
s,
and 1n
particular
to prevent
th e establis
hment
of
new
sources of pollution.
By
sect ion
2,
ETery
person who pu ts, or causes be put or .to
f ~ l l ..•
int o any stream so as
to
m
te r
fe re with 1
ts due
flow, or to pollute
its
waters, the solid refuse of
any manufactory, manufacturing process
or
qu arry,
or
any rubbi
sh or c
ind
ers, or
any
o
ther
waste,
or
or any putrid solid matter, shall be deemed to have
committed an offe
nc
e against this Act. I t will be
seen
that
· this sect ion deals en tirely with
so
lid
ma
tt e
r from
manufact
ories. By section
17 it
is
pr
ovi
ded
that the
Act
shall n
ot apply to
, or aff
ect
the la
wful exercise of
any ri
ghts of impounding
or
di
vert
ing wa
ter,
and by section 20
' 'so
lid
matte
r "
is
not to
include part icles of m
atte
r
in
suspension
in
wat er.
There
are
other
sections of the Act
which deal with sewage, t o which we need not
re fer.
In th e River Ribble
Co
mmittee v. Halliwell, which
was heard in the Court of Appeal on July 3 last,
the facts were as follows : The respondent was th e
owner of cotton mills on
th
e River Darwen, worked
by steam. He had the rig
ht
to divert and
imp
o
und the water
for th e
purpose of hi
s mill.
This
he did by
means of a go t, t
he riv
er being
caught
in
a
rese
rvoir.
Hi
gher
up
the river
th
e
re
were certain paper mills
in
which esparto grass was
la rgely used,
and
from which quantities of vege
table
matter
were discharged into the
strea
m. It
was proved that
if
this
sub
stanc e had been allowed
to flow down
in the
ordinary way it would never
have decomposed, bu t when ca
ught
and allowed to
stand
in t he respond ent Halliwell's reservoir it
rapidly
become putrid. After
the
water was allowed
to settle in the first reservoir,
it
was pa
sse
d on t o
a
smaller
res ervoir, where it was used for condens
ing
purp
oses.
On Sa
t
urday afternoons
it was
the
practice
to
open t he sluice
and
allow all
the water
in the
first reservoir t o escape
with
a view
to pre
venting
the
fonnation of
mud and
the choking up
of
the
reservoir.
No
t hing passed out
in
t his way
except
what had
come down the stream. I t was
proved that upon one occasion the
mud
had been
st i
rred up with
a
ra k
e
in
o
rder
to
enable
th
e
re
ser
voir to be emptied sooner. According to the evi
dence, the effluent from the re servoir contained
2.4 per ce
nt.
of solid mat ter, which was admittedly
putrid, the whole question being, was i t " pu tr id
solid
matter
" within
the
meaning
of the Rivera
Pollution
Act, 1876 (39
and
40 V., c. 75)
?
When the
case came befo
re him in the
first
in
stance,
the Lord
Chief
Ju
st ice in the course of
his
judgment said
:
The
re s
pondent had
a
ri
ght to
u n d the ~ a t e r , ~ n d it seems to me very
difficult to see In prinCiple or reason how
he
is to
be made responsible for th e necess
ary
consequences
of the ~ . . b l e exercis? of the right which,
by
the statute, 1s saved to h1m . Th e things
required
to
constitute t
he
offence are th at
the
ma tter should
be putrid,
that
the matter should be
so
lid and
th
at that matter, pu t
rid
and solid, should be let
~ n t o
the
~ t r e a . m :
In d e a ~ i n g
t
he question
of
Impounding, his
Lo
rd
s
h1
p
sa1d: Having
a
ot
t he
wa
te
r by mea
ns
of
his goit
i1npounded in °the r e
servoir, it is necessary for
him
at t he week end to
his
s l ~ i c e - g a . t e s .
for ~ h e . purpose of cleansing
h.1s r e s e x : v o ~ . ~ s this, Is It no t , a necessary in
Cident to h s r•ght to d1ve1t
or
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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20
which
he
could
not
beneficially
enjoy or
exercise
unless he
also,
as
the evidence shows, was
permitted
from
time
to
time to
open his sluice-gates for
the
purpose
of cleansing
out
his
rese rvoir
I t
seems
to me that any
act-properly
and
reasonably done
in
the
exe
rci
se
of
those
rights
shall not be
an offence
against the
Act.
In this
he
was
uph
eld
by
all the
members
of t.
he
Court
of Appeal.
Th
e
importance
of
the
decision
can hardly be
over-rated. Scarcely a
quarter
session passes
in Yorkshire
without the occurrence
of some
quest
ion re
lating to
river
pollution.
This
opinion of t.he
High
Court, which, curiously enough,
is
the
first which has been delive
red
upon
the
meaning
of
the
expression
"solid matt
e
r,"
may
serve
to
reduce the
number
of disputed cases.
Although, as we
hav
e seen,
the rights
of a
riparian
owner to make
use of the wa
te
r which
flows
past
his land
are
comparati
·
ely large,
it
is
an
established
principle that
he cannot
confer
th i
s
right
upon anyone else.
Riparian
rights
are,
in
a sense,
inseparable
from
the
land,
and
cannot be assigned
away from
the proper t
y
it
self.
This
principle,
alth
ough
not
new
at that
time,
was clearly laid down by the
late
Mr. Ju st ice
Cave
in Ormorod v.
Th e
Todmorden Joint Stock
Mill Company [11
Q. B.
D.,
155].
There
the
plS\intiffs were riparian millowners
on
the
Burnley
River,
who
had be
en
in the habit
of using
water
for
many years
for condensing
purpose
s.
The
defendants were not ripari'ln owners ; but
by
means
of a
pipe laid th r
ough
the land
of a
riparian
owner
about
50 yards above t he plaintiffs'
intak
e,
they
removed a
quantity
of
water
from
the stream,
near1y all of which was
subsequently returned in
a
heated condition. Although the jury found that
the
damage do
ne
was
almost
inappreciable,
it
was
held that the
plaintiff was
entitled to
an
injuncti
on.
Lord
E sher, M.R., at
the
conclusion of his judg
m
en
t
when the
case came before the
Court
of
Appeal, said :
"The
grant
of a
right
to
flowing
wat
er
by
a riparian ow
ner
is valid
on
ly
agS\in
st
him
se
lf,
and cannot co nfer rights
as against
ot
hers.
Th
e law as
to fl
owing
water
is
part
of
the
common
law of
England
; but
it
only exi
sts
as
between
riparian
owners ;
it
does
not
extend
to
those whose
lands do not abut on
st re
ams
an
d rivers." I t
would seem, however,
that th
e fact of some
damage having
be
en occasioned was of
the
es
se
nce
of
this
decision, for in the case of
Ken
s
it
v.
the Great
Ea
ster
n Railway Company (23 Ch.
D.,
566),
where
the
owner of
land
n
ot abutting
on
a
river
took
water with
the
license of a riparian
owner, and,
after
using
it
for cooling purposes,
r
eturned it unpollut
ed
and
undiminished,
it
was
decided that a low
er riparian
owner co
uld not
obtain
an injuncti
on
either
against t he
land
owner
taking
the water
or
agains t
the
riparian owner
through whose land
it
was tak en.
In the
case of
Smith
11.
Barn
ham [34 L.T .,
7 7
4]
the
facts were as follow :
The
plaintiff was con
victed
under
a
statute pa
ssed
in the 14th
Geo.
III.,
c. 96, which was
an Act
passed
to
impr
ove
the
navi
gation of
the Aire and
Calder.
By sect
ion 97 of the
Act it
was
pr
ovided that
any per
son wilfully throwing
any
ballast "into
any
part
of
these
rivers
or
of
any
watercourses
thereunto
belonging " should be liable
to a penalty. I t
appears that
mith, who was a
tanner, from time
to
time discharged rubbish into a
beck adjoining his premises, at a
point about
four
miles from
the
Aire,
into
which
it
flowed, where
the river
is navigable. I t was held
that ina
smuch
as
the
beck was
not
a
tributary
stream, th e convic
tion
could
not
be maintained.
Having dealt
with
natural st reams we pass
on to
consider
the
right."
and
liabilities of
riparian
ow
ners
in
con nec
tion with
artificial watercourses. Such a
stream
may have been
made under
such conditions
as
to
confer
up
on
the
adjoining la
nd
ow
ner
s all
riparian
right
s. I t is, therefore, wrong for
the
Judge
to tell a
jury
that if
the
st ream was artificial
and
made
by
the
hand
of man
the
plaintiff would
have no cause of action. Sutcliffe v. Booth
[32
L.J.,
Q
B.,
136]. . .
\'Vith rega rd
to water
r
eta
tn
ed
or
kept 1n
a pond
or lak
e a marked
di
stinction must be
drawn between
water in it
s n
at
ural
and water in an
artificial
state,
and th
is distinction becomes especially
important
when we consider
ihe
question of liabili
ty
for
damage caused
by
esca
ping wat
er.
If
a
river
fl
ows
through
a man's
land in
it
s
natural
course,
he
is not responsible for
an
y damage
it
may do in time
of flood,
but
where he has
brought
water
on to
his
la
nd
and has accumulat
ed it
in a reservoir , he may
be held liable for
any
damage caused
by its
escape,
E N G I N E E R I N
G
alt hough he
may hav
e
taken
every precaution
to
avoid accident.
Th i
s
doctrine
applies to
water
held
back in
a canal.
In the
case of E vans
v. the
Man
chester, Sheffield,
and
Li n
co
lnshire
Railway
Co
m
pany
[36 Ch. D. 626], a company with
statutory
pow
er
suffered
water to
perco
late
from t
heir
canal
into an adjoining
mill
and
cau e
dama
ge. I t was
proved that the
perco la
t i
on
was caused
by
mining
o
peration
s
underneath the
canal
and the
mill. I t
was decided, however,
that the
Canal Company was
re
sponsible
and
that t
hey must pay
damages
to be
assessed as
provided by the
Canal Act.
We
have
now reviewed
the
general law
relating
to
surface waters.
Wh
olly different considera
t ions
apply to
subterranean
wa
te
rs unless
they run
in
defi
ned
channels, such, for
in
sta
nce, as
the
bed
of
an
undergro
und
river.
To
the well-known legal
maxim
cujus st solum ej ILs st usq'lte ad coelum
there
is
an important
exception
in
the case of
wat
er
which percola
tes throu
gh
the
crevices of
the
rock.
While
a
man
owns
everything
elsewhich can
be
fo
und
above
and
beneath his land, he has no prope
rty
in
the wat
e
r;
that is
to
say,
he
has no right of action
against a neighbour who removes
it
by
pumping.
On the
other
hand, he may himself si
nk
welli in
and pump wat
er from his own
land without
a
ny
consideration for
the
owners of neighbouring tene
ments. In no
department
of
the
law
are there
more freque
ntly
cases of
apparent
hardship.
Th
e
establishment
of a
pumpin
g
station,
or
of
an
ex
tensive system of irrigat ion,
may
decimate
the
sup
plies of
wat
er which
turn the
millwheel,
and yet
if
t
he
defendants can show
that the water
was ob
tained by pumping fr
om
bene
ath
their
own l and,
the
millowner may seek a remedy
in
vain.
In
t
he
case of
R. v.
the Metropolitan Board of
v
orks
[3 B.
and S.,
710]
the
plaintiff was
the
owner of
an
estate
upon
which
there
was a
pond
which
had
existed from time immemorial,
and
in which
the
water
rose
naturally in
a considerable
quantity
from several powerful springs
at
t
he
bottom of it.
The
d
efendants
while constructing a sewer
cut
through the
bed of grll.vel which supplied
the
springs,
the re
s
ul
t of which was
that
the
pond ran
dry
.
It
was decided
that the
plaintiff
had
no
right
to
compen
sat
ion
at
common law,
and the statute
und er which the defendants
had
obtained
their
powers was also held
to
afford him no protection.
f the water
fr
om a
spring
comes
to the
£mrface
and then flows away along a defin
it
e channel, and
it
can be shown that
it
has
d.:>ne
so
fr
om
time
im
memorial,
any attempt
to
divert the
wat
er at
its
source will be
restra
ined by
injunction.
This was
decided
in the
ca
se
of
Dudden v. the
Guardians of
the
Clutton Union
(11
H.
and
N ., 627),
and
was re
cently confirmed by Mr.
Ju
st ice .Byrne.
ENGINEERING IN THE UNITED
• TATES
NAVY.
WE have already commented upon some of
the
leading featu res
in the
recently-issued
report
of
the
Engineer-in-Chief
to th
e
United
St
ates Navy,
Rear-Admiral Melville, and we now propose dealing
with some d
eta
ils of professional
and
technical inte
rest
brought
forward
in
this admirable document.
Referring to the
Rear-Admiral's r
emarks
of a
general
nature
on the subject
of water-tube boilers
lready quoted in our former article- it may
first
be stated
that several
tests
of boilers of this
class have
been
mad e
during the
period covered
by the
report,
and some of
th
e principal results
of these
are
gi\len
in its
pages.
The
first-mentioned
is
that
of a Babcock
and
Wilcox boiler
built
for
the
t T .S.S.
Alert. The
gene\.'al design of this form of
boiler is now well known, for, though an American
invention,
it ha
s been thoroughly acclimatised
in
this country for many years
past in its
form of a
l
an
d
boiler;
whilst
by
means of illustrations
and
exhibits at exhibitio
ns the
marine variety is
also fairly famili ar
to the
public.
There
appears
to
hav e been a new system of baffle plates
introduced, but this arrangement is
not
specifically
de
scrib
ed.
There
was also
an
air-heating device,
which was improvised
in
order
to test
its
efficacy.
I t was concluded, however, that "the compara
tively low
temperature
of
the uptake
gases during
all the tests,
both
with
and
without
the
air-heater
in
use, seems
to
indicate that
the air-heater
is
not
a
necessity
in
combination with a boiler of
the
de
sign
under
consideration,
and cannot be
considered
a
de
sirable adjunct, except possibly when working
at
very high
rates
of combustion."
I t may be said at once that
the
tests were ' 'gene
rally reg
arde
d as most
sat
isfactory. ,
The report
-
goes
on to say
:
The
boiler
did
i
ts
work
under
natural and
forced
draught
with good economy
and without di
stress. "
The Alert
is
to
hav e two of
these
boilers.
Th
e
lower row of tubes immediately over the furnace
are
4
in.
in
diameter,
and
above each of
these tubes
are
seven
groups
having four 2-in.
tubes in
each
group.
Thus an
element consists of one 4-in. tube
and tw
enty-eight 2-in. tubes.
The
sides of
the
boiler
are
formed
by
tubes,
which
lead into
forged
steel boxes of square section, the
latter
con
st
ituting
the
corners of
the
boiler.
The
lower
tubes, opposite
the
furnace
are
of
square
section.
There
is
the
usual longitudinal
steam drum
con
necting the front and
back
header
s.
The diameter
of
this drum
is 42
in
The
floor space occupied
appears to
have been
about
11 ft. by ft.
9
in. 'l,he heig
ht is ab
o
ut
10ft. 9 in.
The
total
number
of 2-in. tubes is 364,
the
exposed le
ngth
of
E><ach being 9ft.
2 in.
Ther
e
are
also
eighteen
4-in.
tubes 9ft.
2 in. long,
and
fourteen 4-in. tu bes 7 ft. 11 in . long.
The
total
heating
surface, including boxes
and drum,
iR
2125 square fee t .
The
length of t
he grate is
6ft.
4
in., and
surface 48 square f
eet
.
The
total
weight of th e boile
r, without
wat
er
, was 46,110
lb.,
of which
the pressure parts contributed
27,352 lb.
With water
at
steaming
level, the
tota
l
weight
was
53,
770
lb.,
the water
being at boiling
point
at
200 lb.
pr
essure.
Four tests were made
in April
last, t
he
first
being
with
cold air, closed
ashpit,
a blower being
used, aided
by
a steam
jet
in
the
chimney.
The
combustion of coal was at
the
maximum intended
to be
attained
in practice.
The
seco
nd test
was
with open ashpit, but with steam jet giving a par
tial
vacuum equal
to about
0.45 in. of water,
this
being
the equivalent
of
the natural
draught
that
would be given
by the
funnel of
the
ship.
The
third trial
was made with
heated
air. On
these
three
trials Cumberland coal of good quali
ty
,
with
a
bout
7. 39
per
cent. of ash
and
4
per cent.
of sur
face moisture, was u
sed
. A fo
urth
trial,
with
cold
air,
and
burnin
g
anthracite
coal, was
mad
e.
Ex
periments
were also
made to
test
the
time
ne
eded
for raising steam.
From these it
would
appear
that, starting with all cold, in 11 minutes steam
began
to appear;
in 13
minutes,
5 lb.
pressure
was
registered on
the gauge; in
16
minutes 25lb.;
a
nd
in 181 minutes 50
lb. At
20 minutes
there
was
65 lb.
pre
ssure,
and the
blower was
turned on
;
in
2l
i minutes, 100 lb. ; in 23 minutes, 160 lb. ;
and in 26
minutes, 225
lb
. ; at which pres-
sure the
safety valve
lifted and the
blower was
stopped.
This
record of steam raising
is
cer
tainly
excellent, if not rema
rkable
; but every
thing
appears
to
have
been
do
ne to
get
t
he pr
es
sure up quickly, kerosene being thrown on
the
fire
after it
was lit,
an
d soft coal being used. In
some
tests
we have o
ur
selves m
ade
with
the
Bab
cock
and
Wilcox boiler on board a
North
Sea
steamer
, a pressure of 60 lb. was reached a few
seconds over 20
minut
es aft
er
smoke fir
st
emerged
from the funnel, starting with all cold.
Th
e in te
rest ing point with these
small-
tube
boilers is to
n
ote
fluctuations in steam
pre
ss
ur
e on ope
ning
out
the
engines : a d
eta
il
in
practice
that
has been fatal
to
more
than
one
water-tube
boiler in t
he
past.
Thi
s naturally is
not
referred to in
the
report. In
our
o
wn
experience wi th
the
Babcock and Wilcox
boiler,
on
the
voyage of
the ship
r eferred to, we
fo
und
the
action satisfactory
in thi
s respect ; for
though
there
were
naturally
quicker fluctuat ions
in
pr
essure
than th ere
would
be
with
an ordinary
return-tub
e boiler, t hese did
not
amount
to
any
thing
serious, such as would cause in
co
nvenience
to
the
engineers in obeying
any
orders from
the
bridge. When t
he ship got her
anchor in the
Humber,
t
he
pressure was 170 lb. On
the
engines
being
started
ahead, this fell quickly to 160 lb.,
after
which
there
was a gradual
recovery; un
til, in
about ten
minutes,
the standard
working pressure
of 206 lb. to
the
square inch was shown, the gauge
remaining
steady at this during
o
rdinary
w
ork
ing
t
hr
ougho
ut
the
voyage.
To
return to the
American
tria
ls:
the
first
test
made was of
six
hours' duration.
As stated,
both
the
steam
jet
and
a mechanical blower were used
to
urge com
bust
on in the furnace.
Thi
s combination
was adopted
partly
because
the
steam
jet
was
not
powerful enough
to
give
the
required
draught,
and
also for
the
reason
that the
blower deliverin g into
t
he
closed as
hpit
would hav e been like
ly to have
caused flame
to
come out of the furnace doors
whilst coaling.
The tendency
of
the
steam jet
to
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 22/37
•
J
AN
.
5
I
900.]
E N G I N E E R I N G.
- b t b I d
th
Colonies will be represe
nt
ed may be rega
rd
ed
as
cr
e
ate
a vacuum
in
the
furnace
a ou a ance e
I .
d
ll
t t d
Power
O the
fan
to cause a ple
num,
and atmo- cer ta in bu t that the very imite space a o e
to the:U in the Trocadero-gardeus
will
be
ph
eric press
ure
w
as
thus r each ed. h t t I t
The following data are
ex
tracted from th e report cro wd ed, is probably too mu c o expec · Is
O
f the four t rials
ref
e
rr
ed to: for t
un ate ly im
poss
ibl
e
ac
curate
ly
t o forecast t he
-
fu
t
ure, and
we can o
nly
for the
present pl.a
ce
:
j on r ecord
what
were t he
in te
n tions of the Coloni
es
,
t est N
o. 1.
r est No.
2.
T
est No.
3. Test No.
4
f C d th
_
_ _ co
mm
enci
ng
wi
th
the Do
mini
on o
ana
a, e
D uration
of
test .
6
hours 10.1 h
ou
rs
6
ho
ur
s 6h
ours Empir
e of India,
and
o ~ . t hr
ee
Dry
coa
l
co
n
sume
d . 1
3,073
lb. 9,634
lb.
l
b. o 3 ~ 0
c
ountrie
s which of course , Will exhtbit Ind epe n -
Retuse . . . .
. j
967 ,
,
1,26' , ' h . . t ·
water fed to b
oil
er .. 10
4,4
76 , 90,00o 11 102 ,
357
,
76,
046 , den tly of G
re
at
Br i
tain , have sho
wn
t eir 1n en twn
Temperature of feed 9 .5d
eg.
110 d
eg.
91
5
deg. l1Fla.dbe
1
.g · to do well and it is most devout ly to be hoped that
I
Fabr. F .hr. Fahr. ,
S
h Af .
W
·n
r enperature of up- 619deg. 445 deg. 572. 7deg. 521 deg. the slow
pr o
ar
ess
of th e out nca.n ar WI
take
F
a.
br
.
Fa
hr.
Fa.hr.
Fa
br. n
ot
aff
ect
th
e
fulfilment
of t hose
intenti
ons. U
nd
er
T
em
pe
ra
t
ure of fir
e-
71d
eg. 66
.3d
eg.
96.1 d
eg. . e g .
the m
ost fa
v
ou r
a
ble
circum
sta
nc
e, how
ever
, the
r
oo
m
Fahr.
Fa.hr
. Fahr. b
Te
mp
erat
ur
e
of
ai
r . . . .
84.
1 co-o
per
a
ti
on
of Gr
ea
te
r
~ r i t
will_n
ot
e com-
en
tering
h
eate
r pa
ra
ble
(w
ith t he e,
xc
ep
t.wn
of Indi
a) to that
at
P
tessure
(abs
ol ute
)
·..
234 lb
14
3.4
lb
.
2 3 ~ 6 b. 232.8
l
n. W
d F 1893
Th N
Air
pr
essur
e
in ashp1
t
+
0.53
10
. . .
+
0
.51 in
.
+ 0.55 in.
the Chicago o
rl
s au 1n . e
.n
. ew
of water of wa
te
r of water So
uth
Wa les sent no fe
wer
th an 2000 exlub1tors ;
II fur· - 0.43in. - 014 n . - 0.24in. -
O Oi
in. at P a
ri
s her par t icip
at
ion at all seems
so
m e-
na.ce
of . of water
of
wa.tH
Air pressure
in
c
hi
m- - 1.43
10
. - 0
.43
10 . - 1.41
n
. - 0.61
n
. what doub t ful. Ceylon ,
on
the s
ame
occaswn,
ney of Welter of water of wate r filled a floor space of 28,000 squa
re
fe
et
; th e
Coal per
hour
per 45.3 lb. 19.88
lb
. 41.88
lb
. 28.82
lb
. exhibit of Canada was of vast
ex
te
nt
and of
squ9 re f
oot
of grate
Ooa
l per
hour
per l.03lb.
O44
9
Lb
. 0.95lb. 0.6
5
lb. the
highest interest.
Cape Co
lony
,
:a
s a
square
f
oot
of he
at-
large
exhibit
or,
and her abse
nce
from
P an s w_Ill be
in
g
surface
h h d I d
Appar
ent
evaporatio
n
7.99
l
b. 9.
34
lb
. 8.
49
l
b. 9.
16 l
b.
a
lmo
st
in
evi
ta
ble. On
th
e ot er
an
, n
1a
was
fr
om
fe
ed
tem
pera-
practi
cally un repr
esented at Chi
cago ; .
while at
~ ~ ~ at Paris her co
ntributi
on
promi
ses a cer
ta
m de
gree
po
und
of coal of importance. I t is, of
cour
se , to be
rememb
e
red
Ev
ap
orati on
from and 9.
42l
b.
10.76 lb. 1
0.04
l
b.
10 66
lb
. th at
spa
ce was
far
more
plentiful
at Jackson Park
at 212 d
eg
. per h
po
und of
co l than
it
will be in P aris, and t hat, long before t e
Analyses of
th
e flue
ga
s
es
.
are
also give
n,
av
era
ges being for
the four
t
rials
as fo
ll
ow :
A
l
erages of Analys
es of Fl
ue Gases.
c o ~
0 .
co.
-
t
he
per
c
en
t.
10.
7
per c
ent.
7.8
per
ce
nt.
Test No
.1
II
2
II
3
, 4
• •
..
•
•
.
10.9
10.9
1l.l
-
.5
7.7
.02
8.1 .06
8.7
o
I t
will be
remembered that ab
o
ut
fo
ur years
ago
some evapora
tive te
s
ts were made
wit h t
wo th
e
Belleville boile
rs that were afterwards
plac
ed 10
the
Rus
sian Volunteer Fleet s
team
s
hip Kherson. A
br i
ef account of
th
ese tests
appeared in
ENGINEER
ING
at
the t ime (see vol.
lx.,
page 571),
and
that
an
av
era
ge of 8.88 lb . of water were
ev
aporated per
hour
per pound
of We
lsh
coal. on a 12-hours ' test;
when
21.43 lb. of coal were be1ng burnt per
square
fo
ot
of
arate
per
hour,
the
boiler
pre
s
sure bein
g
200 lb.
to the
s
quare in
c
h.
The ratio of grat
e
ar
ea to
heating surfa
ce was as 1
to
31.67.
A steam
jet
was used, a d ~ a u g h t q u i v a l ~ n t to
that due
to
a
chimney 100ft.
hi
gh
being obtained.
GREATER
BRITAIN
AT
THE PARIS
EXHIBITION.
THE heavy war clouds th at have descended on
the Bri
t ish
Empire
bring with
t
hem
yet
more un
ce
rtainty
as
to the
p a ~ t
I m p e r i a ~ B r i : W ~ l l
be
able
to tak
e
in th
e P a
ns Internatwnal Exhibit
iO
n.
So
far as we
are concerned mi
s
fortun
e s
eems
steadily to
at t
end upo l ?ur p e c t of p a r t i ~ i ~ a -
tion.
Th
e charactenstlC
mdiffer
e
nce
of Bntlsh
manufact urers, in tensified
by
recent
untow
a rd
ev
e
nts which were mad
e the foolish excuse to
shriek alou_il for an
impot
e
nt hoyc
ot t on two
historical occasions,
has made it certain
that th
e
representati
un of
Bri
t
ish industry
will
not be
wo
rthy
of
the
le
ading
plac
e we claim
am
ong t he
nations.
And
now a
still more
serious cause pres
ents itself
in the intense an
x
ie
ty and pr eo
ccupation that
fill
every
mind, added to
the
knowledg
e
that however
fair the
future whi
ch
may wait upon
our
arms,
the
coming
year can
be
no
season
for
assisting with a
light
heart, either in business
or
pleasure, at the
gathering of the na t ions. Sudden death
will
hav e
been
too
busy to permit inclination for
gaie
t
y, or
for
the concentrated interest
r
equired of
t
he
suc
cessful
exhibitor.
Th
e
pres
ent
moment, too, wh
en
the
final
prepara
t ions
of
the would-
be
exhibitor
should be
in
train,
is
too full
of
matters of more
serious
imp
o
rt,
to le
ave much
room for
minor
con
side
rati
ons.
The appreciation
of the ac
tual
sit ua
t ion,
and
of the imm e
diate future,
is not mo
re fully
realised in
this
co
untry
than in Imperial Britain,
which
temporary
misfort
un
e
has welded
into
one
with
the
Moth
er
Country
;
so
that,
much
as we
may
re
gret it, th
e
re is
some
chanc
e
of Great
er
Britain
ailing to
carry out what was
r e
ally
a
brilliant,
though no
t a
compl
e
te,
pro
gramme. Th a
t
our
opening of the Exhibi t ion of 1893, public inter
es
t
had
been
un i
versally
ar
ou
se
d
in th a
t
~ u l
undertaking
th r
ough t
he very
perfect
publiCity
or
g
an isati
on
whi
ch occ lpied
t ~ e
a
special
depar
t me
nt. The
co
ming
Exhib1t10n
1s re
markable for
t he
reticenc
e that
has
b
ee
n practis
ed
by its
admini
s
tr
ation. . . .
Accordina t o
th
e latest offiCial h
st
, whiCh
may
be
cons
ider
ed
approxim
ately correct , th ere will be
351 Canadian
ex
hibit
or
s in the space allott ed to th e
Br it ish colonie s, in
addition
to 43 oth ers to
whom
allot ments have been made among British ex
hibi
t
ors
in
the
vari
ous
building
s devot
ed
t o dif
ferent
gro
up
s. The
f o l l o w i ~ g b l ~
.
contai
.
ns the
classification
of
the
Canadian exhibitors In the
variou
s
groups.
I t will be
seen from th i
s
Table
th
at
th
e to
tal
amounts to 322, to
which
has to be
adde
d the 43
referr
ed to above, and 29
other
ex
hibitors
wh
ose
exhibi
ts h
ave
t o be divided, and
to
wh
om further me
ntion
will be
made
pr ese
ntly.
I t
will be
noticed
that Canada
will
be st rongest in
Gro
up
X. -
that
of food
products
-
with
72
ex
hibi
t
ors; in Group VII., Agricultur
e,
with
41
e
xhibitors
;
in
Group XL
Mining and Metallurgy,
with 38 ; and in
Group
XIII.
Te
xtiles, with 35
ex
hibitors. The
Liberal
Arts
promi
se
to be
fairly
well
repre
sen ted, but Educatio
n,
in which
Canad
a
was so
st r
ong at the World 's Fair in 1893,
will
be.
practically
absent.
T able
Showiln.g
N
um
bers of Cana dian Ex hibitors
Ar rang
ed by G
rou
ps.
No.
of
Groups. E xhibitors.
I.
Edu
c
a.ti
on and
In
struction . 1
II.
Works
of Art
. . .
12
III. Liberal
Arts
. . . 28
IV.
Mechanical Engineering . . 10
V. Electricity . . . .
2
VI.
Civil Engiueering and
Tran
sport 9
VII. Agriculture . . . . 41
I X. Forestry ; Sports . . . 8
X. Food Products . . . 82
X
I
Mining and MetallurS'Y . .
38
X
II.
D
eco
rati
on and
Furmture
.
..
23
X III. Textiles . . . .
35
X IV. Chemical I ndustries . . ...
2.2
X V. Miscellaneo
us
Industries
..
. . .
11
Add
43
exhibitors admitted to British
sp ce . . . . . . ..
Add 29 exhibitors showing in mo re than
one group . . . . . .
Total
. .
.
.
• • •
.
322
43
29
394
The
foregoing
lis
t
includes
a
number of
official
e
xhibitors, of wh
om
details are given
be
low
:
T able of Oartadian Gov
ernment
and
Oth
e1· Offici
(tl
E xhibitors.
Number of Groups.
ame.
1. Agricultural Depart-
VII., X. , X
IV.
ment, Dominion of
Canada .
.
.
.
2.
British
Co
lumbia, Pro
vincial Government ..
I., VII.,
IX.,
X .,
XI., XIV.
3.
Ca.nadia.n
Government,
Ottawa ... .
.
I.,
VII., IX
., X .,
XI., XI I
.
4.
Cana.dian Government
C
om
ruis9ion . .
III.
.Name.
5. Consei l des
Ar t
s et
Mon-
treal . -· ·
6. Dominion of C
a.nada
,
Ottawa
..
· ·
7.
G
eo
logical Sur
vey
De
partment, O t t a ~ a
:
.
8.
Manitoba
Pr
o
vm01
al
Government . ·
9.
New Bruns
wi
ck Pro
vincial Government ..
10. No
rt
h-west Provinces
Government ... . .
11. Nova Scotia Provincial
Governme
nt
.
..
. .
12. Ont
ario
Pr ov
incial Go-
vernme
nt
. . . .
13.
Post O
ffi
ce Department,
Ot
ta
wa . ·
14. Prin
ce Edwa
rd
's I sland
Pr
ov incial Govern
ment . . . .
15.
Pr
ovince of British C
o-
lumbia... . . .
•
2
;
N umber of Groups
II.
I ., III. I X.
X L
I .,
VII
I I X., X
I
., VI I
.,
X.
I .,
VIU
., X .
I ., V
II .
, I X., X., X I.
I
I VII., IX ' X ., X I.
III.
I .,
VII.
, IX .,
X.
X II.
16. Quebec Provincial Go-
vernment ... . . I ., II . , VII., IX .,
X., XL
17. School of Agriculture,
Quebec... . . .
VII.
I t may be of
in t
erest to
c?mp
ar e t
he
o
ffi
c
ial
represe
n
ta ti
on of Cana
da
w1th t hat of
Gr
e
at
.
Britain :
T able of Bri t sh Offi cial Ex hibi to
rs
.
1. Board of Agriculture... X
VI.
2.
Edu
cational Collective
Exhibit of England
.
.
3.
Edu
cational Collective
Exhib
it
of
Scotland ...
4. Edu
c
at i
onal Collective
Exhibit of Wales ...
5.
Educational Collecti
ve
Exhib
it of
Schools of
Art, United i n ~ d o m
6. H.M
.S. CommissiOner
of Works ... . .
7. Home Office . . . .
I ,
XV
I.
I.,
XV
I.
I .,
X VI,
I.
V III.
X L
8. Royal School of Art X III.
Needlework . .
.
9. War Office .
..
... X VIII.
The
29 C
anadian
exhibitors,
who
are obli
g
ed
to
sh
ow
in
diff
e
rent group
s, will
repre
s
ent
7.2
separat
e
ex hibit
s as will
be
s
een fr
om
the
follow1ng
Table,
which
~ l s o gives a
li
st
of
the s
imilarly divided
exhibi
tors
for Great
Br it
ain,
India, and Ceylon:
Swm
TTU r
y of Briti sh
(40 ),
Can adi an,
29) ,
Indian
(25)
ct
llu
Ceylon (
54}
Ex hibito'rS Sh owing in D i.tt er
ent
Growps.
Number of Exhibits.
Gr
o
up
.
Bri
t
ain
. C
anada
. India. Cey
lon
.
I. Education and Ins
truc-
tion . . . . . .
U . Works of
Art . . . .
III. Li
be
ral Arts . . .
I
V. Me
chanic
al
En
gi
neer·
in
g . . . . . .
V. Electricity . . .
VI. C
ivil
Engineering and
Transport . . . .
VII
. Agriculture . . .
VIII.
Horticulture . . . .
IX Forestry;
Sport
s ..
X. Food Produ
cts ..
XI. Min
i
ng
; Metallurgy.
X
II
. D
ecoration
; F
urni
t
ur
e
XII
Te
x
tiles
. . . . . .
XIV. Chem
i
cal
Indust
ries
..
XV .Misc
ellaneous
Indu
s-
tries . . . . . .
XVI.
Soc
ial Ec
onomy ..
X
VII
.
Col
onisat
ion
. . . .
X
VIII
.
Army
and Navy . .
6
..
3
8
4
6
6
1
4
1
11
6
4
3
5
• •
4
10
2
3
1
•
•
14
1
9
12
9
7
1
3
• •
• •
3
2
3
4
1
3
14
8
1
15
3
5
6
16
15
13
27
10
4
1
37
5
Totals
-
1
1
-
• •
• •
• •
83
72
57
139
Tog
e
ther,
the Empire
of
India,
and
t he Crown
Colony
of Ceylon propo
s
ed
to
contribut
e
228 ex
hibitors ;
but th
e total number of
exhibits will
be
larger t han
this
on account
of
the .
enforced division
in a
number of
cases
into various groups.
As is
shown by the forego
ing Table,
th e
increase in the
actual number of exhibits due
to
this c
ause
is, in
the
case of India, 57, and for Ceylo
n,
139. Apart
from
these,
the official
li
st
show
s a total of
31
Indian,
and 118
Cing
a
les
e,
exhibitors,
distributed
as is
shown in the
annexed
Table :
N wmber of In dia n
a nd
Cey
lon
Ex h
ibi
to1·s in Various
G1
·oup s.
Number of Exhibitors.
Group.
II. Fine
Arts
. . .
III. Liberal Arts.. . . .
VII.
Agriculture .
..
.
.
IX. Forestry;
Sports
..
.
X.
F
oo
d Products .. .
XL
Mining ; Metallurgy
XII.
Decoration ;
Furm-
ture
... . . . .
India.. CeyIon.
. 8
1 19
.
2l
3 28
7 9
1 5
8
2
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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22
X III. Textiles . . .
XIV. Chemical Industries
XV. ~ I i s c e
l l a n
e o u s Indus-
tries . . . .
XV II.
Co
lonisation .. .
XV III. Army and Navy .. .
Add exhibitors in more
than one group ...
Number of Exhibitors.
India.. Ceylon.
2 5
1 1
6
2
-
31
25
-
15
5
118
54
Total . . .
56
172
Nearly half of the limited
numb
er
of Indian
exhibitors may
be
r
ega
rded as
official,
as
will
be see
n
fr om t.he following Tab le :
L i. ft of Official Exhiuit01 s frorn
India
Name. Number of Groups.
1. H.
H
The Gaekwar of
Baroda. . . . .
2. Bengal Government ...
3.
H.H.
Maharajah
of
Bi-
kanir . . . .
4.
Burmah Government .. .
5. H. H. Rajah of Cochin
6.
Conservators of
Fo
rests
7. H.
H.
Maharajah of
Dattia
. . ... . .
. 8. Forest Department In
dian Government ...
9.
Geological Indian Sur
vey Departm ent ...
10. H. H. Maharajah of
Gwalior .. . . .
11. H.H. Nizam of Hydera-
bad . . . .
12.
Imperial Forest School
13. Indian Government ...
14. Inspector - General
of
Forests ... ...
15.
H.
H. Maharajah of Jey-
X II . XV.
XV.
X II . XV.
II.
XI
I.
III. , VII., IX.,
XVII.
II.,
IX
., XIII.
I X.
X I.
X II. , XV .
X
II
., X
III., XX.
IX.
XI.,
X II.
I X.
pur .. . ... ... X II . , XV.
16. H. H. Rajah of Jind ... XI., X
III.,
XV., XV II.
19. H.H. Rajah of Kapur-
thala ... .. . .. .
20.
H. H . Maharajah of
Kashmir ... .. .
II., III., X li.,
XIII
.
XV .
21.
Madras Government ...
X
II.,
XV.
22. Maharajah of Marwar
23 . ~ I y s o r e Government ...
24.
H H. Maharajah of
Patiala. .. . . .
X II . ,
XI II. , XV.
X I., X II. , XV ., XVII.
X III.
25.
Punjab Government ...
26.
H.H. Rajah of Shah-
XI II., XV.
XV.
ur ... ... . .
27.
Tr
a.vancore Government II., X II., X
III.,
XV.
Ceylon will also have a c o n ~ e r a b number of
official exhi bitors, t hough not 1n so l
arge
a propor
tion
aR
Indi
a;
t h
ey
are
comp
ri
se
d in
tho
fo
ll
owing
list :
Table Sho wing Official E
xh
·ibitors from Oey lO n.
Exhibitors. G r o u ~ s .
1 Central Province ... XV.,
XVI.
2:
Ceylon Government ... III., I X., XI., XII., X III.,
XV.,
XV II.
3.
Conservator of Forests...
IX.
4.
Matale (Government
Agent)... . . ...
5.
Mata ra (Governme
nt
Agent)... ... . .
6.
North Central Province
(Government Agent )
1. Northern Province (Go-).
vernmen b Agent)
J
8. North-Western Provin
ce
(Government Agent)
9. Sabaragamuwa Province
(Government Agent )
10.
Southern Province (Go
II . ,
XII.,
XV.
XV., XV II.
I X.
VII., I X., X IV., X.,
XV ., XVII.
I X.
VII.,
XI.,
XV .
vernment Agent) ...
VII.,
I X., X., XI ., XV.
11.
Surveyor-General .. .
III.
12. Trincomalee (Govern-
ment Agent) . . . . I X.
13 Western Provmce ...
· (Government Agent) III.. VII., X., X I. , XV.
F rom the foregoing
lists
it will be seen that bo th
Indi
a
an
d Ceylon shou
ld
f>e
fairly : v ~ l l r e p r
officially, as well as
by pnvate
h 1 b 1 pro.vided
the
in tent ions of these countr1es, are not In ter
fer
ed with
by
untoward
conditions. Th e same
re
mark applies to Canada.
MR J.ar,ms DuNN. -
Ma.ny
of our readers
will
learn
with ~ e g r of the serious i l l n ~ s s of Mr. James D u ~ n
the naval director of Messrs. V1ckers, Sons, and Ma.x1m,
Limited. He was residing at the Furness.Abbey H.otel
when it was partly des troyed by fire dunng the rughb
time some weeks ago, and the shock and
expc;>sure
ex-
rienced have bad u n f o r t u ~ a t e
~ f f e c b
upon biB health.
l ie
baa since been la1d up his
e n c e
at Black e a t ~
complications of bronchitts, pleurlBy, and. pneu
mc:>m
.a
having caused his friends anXIety; but he
IS
n
ow,
1b
IS
hoped on the wa.y to recovery. His illness has been
specially unfortunate owing to the plethora work
which Messrs. Vickers have in hand for the Bnt1sb and
other governments.
E N G I N E E R I N G.
N 0 T E S.
STRAY CURRENTS AND M AGNETIC FI
ELD
. .
PROFE
SOR
MARINI has
made
some
very
t imely
observat
i
ons
on the d isturb
in
g effects
du
e
i? tr oll
ey
wires carr
yi n
g the usual pressure requ1red for
actuating elect ric-
tract
ion
syste
ms.
In
the
~ o u r s e
of
hi
s
inquiry, he
found (1).
that
the.
current
1n
t ~ e
insu l
ated
conductor exerCises a d1rect magnet1c
effect which
can
be
de
tected
at
a
di
st ance of 150
m e t r ~
; (2) th
at
the l
ea
kage
from
the
earthed
for ming the
return
circui
t, extends
out to a dis
tance
of 2000 m
et
res
;
wh
ilst
(3) t he action of t
he
soft
iron masses of the m
otors
was
limited to ab
o
ut
10 met res.
BALLOON
S
IN
THE SERVICE OF SC
IEN
CE .
Extensive
pr e
para
tio
ns were everywhere m a ~ e
for the purpose of observing
the
expected
~ 1 d
shower of last November. I n several countr1es
balloons were pressed
into
the
se
rvice,.
in
order
to
be somewhat
independent
of fogs a
nd
clouds. I n
England one
ascent
was made.
The
observer, t he
Rev.
J.
M.
Bacon,
accompanied
by hi
s
daughter,
st a
r ted
fr
om Newbury, nea r Oxford, at 4 A
M on
November 16 in a balloon in charge of Mr. Stanley
Spence
r. At a heig
ht
of 1500 ft . the b a l l o ~ n be
came
immer
sed in a wet, warm fog,
and
1t was
only after throwing out about 3 cwt. of ballast that
t hey were able to rise
ab
ove this
st
ratum and ma:ke
observations. Durin
g the fir
st
hour
seven le
on1ds
were seen, and more during the second hour, but the
r
ad
iant had then
risen
so high that it was obscured
by
the
body
of
the
balloon.
After an
a
dv
enturo
us
journey, in
the
course of which
the
balloon rose
to
a heiuht of
nearly
two miles, a
de
scent was effected
at b ~ u t
2 P.li. ,
near
Neath, n
ot,
however, without
mishap, Miss Bacon having h
er
right arm fractured.
In France t hree ascents were made. At 1 A M . of
Novembe
r 15, the Aero Club went
up
from
Landy, near St. Denis, with M. Tikhoff, of
Meudon Observatory . He was
very
for tunate 1n
being able
to register 100 leonids, of w
hi
ch 40
were of t he first magnitude. The '' Centaure "
left St. Germain on t he following morning at the
same
early
hour,
with Mdll
e. Klumpke, of t he Paris
Observatory,
an d M
ons
ieur W.
de Fonvielle. Th
e
famous lady-ast ron o
mer
had to be content with ?3
meteors, of which on
ly
11 belonged to the L
e.o
nid
swarm. A
third
balloo
n,
we
ll
named ' ' La V
1e au
Grand Air, " left La V ill
ette
with several passengers,
who went up in order to ma ke an artistic
st
udy of
the sta
r-shower.
The
aeronauts, disappo
in t
ed
in
their expectations, landed near Bayeux, by
the
sea,
after experiencing someof the difficultiesand dangers
attending a re
tu
rn fr
om
t he sky to Mother earth.
In Germany an ascent was made
fr
om Strasbourg,
under the direction of Lieutenant Hildebrandt. The
observer was M
Terens,
of the
Strasbourg
Observa
to ry,
who h
ad
t he mortification of reporting t h a ~
hi
s
expedition to
the
upper air was almost unnotiCed
by the Leonida. The Ru ssian ascent was planned
by
Professor
Ba
cklund,
director
of the observatory
at Pulkowa, and was entrusted toM. Hansky, who
had
been
particularly successful last year
in
detect
inu
w
hi l
e floating
at
a high a
ltitude, many members
o{'t
he vanuuard of the mig
hty
Leonid host. But
the elements conspired again
st
h im t his time, for
he
was caught in a severe snowstorm, and was com
pe
lled, ve
ry reluc
tantly,
no
~ m b t .to
abando
n
hi
s
enterprise. Thanks to the skill whiCh
the
a e r o
displayed
in
handling the balloon, a safe l
andmg
was effected.
THE PoRT oF HoNG KoNG.
So much is being said a
nd
written
about
other
ports of China that
the
import
ance of Hong Kong,
the greatest
of
all our colonial po
rt
s, is apt
to
be
overlooked. From t he report of the
harbour
mast er for 1898 we
see
that
the
shipping
retur
ns
give evidence of
contin
ued progress, and there is
a very good in
dex
of the
pro
sp
erity
of the colony.
Hong Kong
is
a wonderful exan1ple :vhat
can:
be
done by man to improve n
at
ural condi
twns.
F1fty
years
ago, and even less, to
be s ~ n t
"
to
Hong
Kong was almost equivalent to bmng
sent
out of
the world for not only was it
separated
from all
c i v i l i a t i o ~ but the climatic
and
sanitary condi
tions were such that
the
chances of life were very
small.
Not
only was the temperature often very
high
, but the whole climatic conditions were
inimical in a high degree to
the
health of Euro
peans.
There
seemed
to
be
s o m ~ t h i n g
in
t
he
soil which bred fever and other diSorders, and
th
e
absence of all sanitary
ar r
angements gave
the colony the reputat ion of being one of the most
[}AN .
5
I
900.
un hea
lthy
places
on earth. Th e
skill of t ~ e
engi
neer has not o
nly
improved the health iness of
Hong K ong, but also l
argely dev
el
oped
the ~ c c o m
modation of
the h
arbour,
so tha t the colony 1s now
looked
upon as
being
as
healthy as any other
port
in
t he :Fa r
East, if
ordinary
pr
ecautions be
taken
as
regard
s modes of living,
and
it has become a m?st
im portant di
st
ributing centre not only for Chtna
but also for the F ar East generally. From the
r
eturns
we find
that in
1898 the total tonnage en
ter
ing and clea ring was 17,2.65, 780 tons or over
million tons more than 1n any
prevwus
year,
and 1 327 606 tons above the total
for
1897. In
a 'co
mp
arison of
Hong
K
ong
with
p
orts
in
t
his
coun try, however, it
mus
t be reme
mb
ered
th
at
the
se
figures, although
in
teresting .as
B:
test of
p r ~ -
gress, do not
enab
le us
to
make a SC1ent1fic compan
son
as they embrace all classes of tonnage from
junks
and Canto
n river craft to v ~ s s e l s
an
d
ocean-going steamers, w h e r e a ~ port-s I? th iS
u n ~ r y
are usually
credited
on ly w1th t he1r o c e a n g o ~ g
tonnage.
The
river s
teamers are empl
o
yed
1n
li
tt
le else
but
passenger and coolie traffic, and
for these a deduction of 3,534,044 tons has to be
made
of
whi
ch all but
5000
tons
are un d
er the
B r i t i ~ h flag.
Th
en the
junk
t rade is responsible
for 4, 072,981 tons entered and cl
ea
red, of which
total409 840 tons is
made
up
by
conservancy
and
dust boats which really ought
not
to be included.
Still after' all these deduct ions have been made,
there is
still th
e
very
respecta
bl
e total
of
9, 718,755
tons for the ocean-going
tra
de , of which 5,177,529
tons ar
e
under
the
British
flag.
Thi
s
Bri
tish
tonnaue represents 29.9 per cent . of the
total
ton
nage of all
kinds
ente
red
a n ~ cleared, as aga.inst
20.4 pe r cent. foreign. The r1v er tonnage
bnngs
up
the British percentage to 50.3 per cent.
of t he
total.
During the
past
t
hi r
ty
year
s
the
junk
t rade has shown tendency t? _expansion,
the va
ria
tions depending on the conditiOns of the
rice t
rad
e.
In
the ocean-going to nnage the pro
portion of steamers is very la rge ;
the
sailin g vessels
only
amounted
to 121,065 tons, as compared with
4, 750,148 tons for
stea
mers. Of the total
entrie
s
for steamers in the ocean trade, 2,545,055 tons
were British, being a n increase of 154,977 tons over
the previous year. The Ger
man
steam
to
nnage
entering t he harb o
ur
amo
unted
to 881, tons,
or
an increase of 75,400 tons on
the
prevwus year.
The largest inc
rea
se
took
place in t he case of
Japan, the
steam tonnage
of
that nati?n
e
ntering
having increased from 299,658
tons
m 1897
502 618
tons
in
1898.
Th
e increased
tonnage
IS
i ~ f l y due
to
an increase
in
the
amounts of
coal
a
nd
rice
imp
orted, and not of manufactured goods.
The
imports
of coal
amounted
to 817,9?7 tons, or
an increase of 216,423 tons; a
nd
the Impor
ts of
rice to 747,395 tons,
or
an increase of 386,265
tons. The. en tire imports amounted in bulk to
3,388,489 tons, or an increase of 645,428 t o n ~ Of
these
imports 2,24
1,194 tons were transsh1pped,
and 493,651 tons of coal shipped in bunkers. The
t ransit cargoes amoun ted to 2, 020,32 2 tons. These
bring the
gra
nd total of cargoes h a n d l by the
differen t ships up to 8, 143,656 tons, whiCh works
out to 61 per cent. of
the
total tonnage of shipp
in
g
entered and cleared, or 80 per cent.
if
we exclude
the riv
er
steamers, which are mainly
en
gaged in
the passenger and coolie t raffic.
LEE
DS
T
RAM\VAY
s
.-Electric
service was commenced
on \ ednesda.y on t h ~ Heading ey and Chapel own routes
of the Leeds Corporation tramways.
THE LANOASHIRE, D
EBBYSHIBE,
AND
EAST
COAS1 ' RAIL
WAY.-
In
ou r article on this subject last week, we inad
vertently etated that Messrs. Pearson and So ns were the
contractors for the Trent Viaduct, instead of Messrs.
Price and Wills, Westminster.
PERSONAL . -Mr. Harold Cadel announces that be has
opened offices
a b 110,
Cannon-street, London, ;E.C., and
will act as
so
le London Agent for the followmg firms:
The Bristol and South Wales Railway Wagon
C o r ; n p ~ n y
Limited, Bristol
;
Messr
s.
J
a.ckson
and Co.,
L1m1ted,
Road Carriage Builders, Dudley; Messrs. T. Cou lthard
and Co., Preston, Lancashir
e;
and the Castle Hedingham
Steam Joinery Works, Castle Hedingbam.
-
VANCOUV
ER IRON.-Depos
its of high-grade iron
a.re
known to exist on the island
of
Vancouver. These
deposits lie close to coal and limestone. The ex{>Ort
market for Vancouver,
ir
on and stee
l,
would be mamly
China and Ja.pan, where there is a boom in railway
construction.
In
the former country a Canadian firm of
contractors has secured a la.rge section of railway to
construct.
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]AN. 5 rgoo.]
THE
LATE MR. JAMES DEAS.
IT was with much regr
et th
at we learned of
th_e
death on Friday last , of lVfr. James Deas, th e eng1-
r - i ~ h i e f of the Clyde Trust and the _mak er . of
a Glasgow
Ha
rbour as
it
is to-day.
~ h l e
~ a k m g
lunch in a Glasgow restaura
nt,
_he w ~ s se1zed w1th an
affection of the heart, and d1ed w1th a
s u d d
e ~ s
which adds poignancy to
the
bereav
em
e
nt
of h ~ s
·widow and family, with whom a deep sympathy 1s
felt by a wide circle of friends. And yet
th
e m a n n
of death realised his desires, for he passed away m
harness; he bad been bu
sy
at
his office to within .a
qua
rter
of an hour of his death. Sadness, too, _s
mellowed by
the
reflection
that
he bas l
eft
a
s_
plendtd
record of consistently succes sful work. For th1r ty out
of his 72 years of life, he de-
voted himself unreservedly
and witho
ut
ceasing to the
building-up of the harbour
of Glasgow, so
th
at
th
e gre
at
outlet of the city 's manufac-
tures should be such as to
promote industries. On ly
those who can recall the har-
bo
ur and river as it was
•
thirty years ago, can
:Mr. Deas's great serviCes
to the city of his adoption.
He came from the e
ast
coun
try, having been ?orn at
Edinburgh, where
b1s
father
was then a prominent rail -
way engineer, _holding the
posit ion of engmeer. of _the
Edinburgh and Dalke1th hne,
and later of the Edin-
burgh and Glasgow
R t ~ t i l w a y .
It was on these lines that
the subject of our memoir
co
mmenced his training, serv·
ing an apprenticeship with his
father. He was
next
three
yeare- in the
office
of .Mr.
John
i l l e r , C. E., Edinburgh, and
thereafter took p
art
in
the
construction of
va
rious rail-
ways in the south and west of
Scotland, ultimately becom-
ing chief engine
er
of the
Edin·
burgh and Glasgow Railway ;
and, upon
the
absorption of
that concern by the
North
British Railway Company, he
acted in the same capacity on
the
west
er
n section of
the
company's system for a very
short time. I t was
in
1869,
when forty·two e a r ~ of a ~ e
t h
at
he became engmeer-m
chief
of
the Clyde Trust, suC
4
ceeding Mr.
John
F.
Ure;
and there can be no question
th at all experien
ce
has
~ h o w n
t he appropriateness of the
appointment then made by
the trustees.
We have said that on
ly
one
fu
lly acquainted with the har·
.h
ou
r
thirty
years ago can ap
preciate the change. A few
contrasts will help to indi
cate the extent of
the
ad
ditions and improvements.
The quayage bas been in
creased from 3.18 to 18
miles, and the water area
from 76 to 209 acres. There
wera t hen three shipbuilding
yards, and Napier's dock,
oc
cupying water fron tag e
where quays now exist.
The harbour, in fact, then
termina
te
d abo
ut
Finnie-
ston, barely a mile below
Glasgow Bridge; and now it
extends westward a mile
•
•
E N G I N E E R I N
G.
23
has
excl
ted
the interest of harbour u t ~ o r i t i e s
all
and a fourth, at Shieldball,
ha
s be en designed by him, f 1 y s1dmgs
and
th
e trustees hope to obtain power for the construe-
part
s.* A very extensive system
0
ral wa h b
W h"s been laid th roughout
the
harbour.
'Yhen
, e
e-
t iou of
it
in th is year 's session of Parliament. here ' f h ers use
cattle and sheep pastured, there. is now the
Que.
en's came engineer there were no cranes or
8
0
1
PPd T t
h were only five possessed by
th
e ly e
rus
Dock, made in 1872-8, 33 acres m
water
area,
Wlt
a - now they
are dotted
all over the ha
rb
our,
an
d range
de
pth
of 40 ft. below quay level, where formerly the up to 130 tons, of which lif t ing powe_r
ther
e are two.dt
land surface was 40ft. above
it.
The length of quay And as a final instance of progress It _may be
state
is 3334 ya
rd
s. On the op_posite side of the
h a ~ b o u r
t hat th e revenue of the Trust has mcr
ea
sed fr?m
past ure land has again
g1
ven place
to
the Prmces
1
f
t ng
Dock, constructed in 1887-96 , wit h an
area
of 34.66 l50,000l. to 428,000l., and t h
at
the vesse s requen
1
d 3764
ds long * There was no the harbour exceed 4,000,000 tons annually. d
a.cres
an
a quayage yar . . The work thus brie
fl
y indicated was not only e-
gr
aving dock when Mr.
D e a ~
became engmeer : t he
re
D
th 1
de
are now th r
e e
t he first made 1s 555ft. long; t he second, signed but carried o
ut
by Mr. eas as ·e
Y
opened in
18
73 is 575 ft . long; and a third, opened Tr ust preferred to do their work. w1thtut the
eD?
a
yea
r or
two
~ g o ,
is 880
ft
. long, with a width at ploym
ent
of contractors.
The
suLJect o
o u ~
mem?
Ir
entrance, where the walls are plumb, of 83 ft . t All 1had undoubte
dly
the infinite faculty for takmg _paws
which consti
tu t
es a gemus of
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
TH E LATE
MR.
JA.MES D EAS.
•
•
•
•
•
i
ts
o
wn·
he was scrupulously
a c c u r a t in detail, and in
sisted upon the same care on
t he
part
of his staff, wit h
the result that his dep
ar t
ment, involving great minu-
was ad mirably
and
eco
nomically conducted. In the
wo
rk
of design his aim w
as
to
anticipate the require
ments of shipbuilders, and
to make a las ting s
tructure
rather
than to
originate new
methods. In several re·
spects, however, his work
was unique. The founda
tions of the earlier walls
were mostly
constructed
of
wood,
but
when Mr. Deas
became engineer, he at once
adopted an arrangement of
triple
cylinders of concrete,
so arranged as t o insure a
most effective bond. This
system was fully illus
tr
ated
and described by us some
years ago,:t and
it
need
only be here stated that
nearly four miles of quay
walls have been
built
in this
way. I t is t hirty
years
since
such walls were first made,
and y
et
no repairs have been
needed.
The
first cost, too,
was in their favour, for in
th
e New Princes uock, walls
giving 20 ft. at low water
were made, includ ing exca
vation
and
everything, for
80l.
per
lineal y
ard
; walls
for 25 ft. depth of water,
for
90l. ; and
walls for 28 ft.
dep t h, for 120l. As all the
constructive work was, as
we have said, ca
rr i
ed out
without the assistance of
contractors by Mr. Deas,
these figures are doubly in
teresti
ng. In the
ne
w Princes
dock he adopted a two-storey
shed§ which has proved m
ost
advantageous
in
facilitating
work. Up to a year or t wo
ago he was
al
so responsible for
all the mechanical engineering
work ;
but
it had grown too
extensive
with dr
edgers, hop
.
per barges, passenger stea
mers, ferries, dock machinery
for pumping
and
swing
bridges, elec
tric
a
nd
hydrau
lic installations, &c., that a
mechanical engineer was
th
en
appointed. But l\1r. Deas de
signed most of
th
e mechaui
cal
plant
now in use,
and
designed all
th
e dredgers and
hopper barges,
and
some of
and a half furthe
r,
with extensiYe docks on both sides
and the
Y
orkhill Wharf, where many thousands of
cattle are landed. At Shieldhall, again, ex tensive
wharves are construc
ted;
and, moreover,
th
e ri
Ye
r as
well as the harbour has been deepened by 5 ft. for the 18
miles under
the
jurisdiction of
the trust
ees. Mr. Deas
found the
r ugged top of Elderslie rock only
8f
t . below
low-wat
er
level , t hus blocking
up
half of the width of
the
channel ; now, after extensive blasting upon a most
ingenious plan, there is
20 ft.
at
low and
3 0 ~
ft. at
high water above the rock ; and as a general re sult of
d redging operat ions, vessels of 28 ft. can eaeily pass
up and down the riv
er
wit
hout
grounding.
Th
ere was
only one small tidal dock-the Kingston- now there are
two additional immense docks in use; a third is
about
t
be con
st
ructed at Clydebank, from Mr. Deas' plans ;
three
are
side by side at the entrance to
the
Princes
Dock ; and the latest earned high commendation from
Sir William White, K.C.B., the Director of Naval
Co
n
st
ruct ion, for t he
gr
eat foresight the designer had
displayed
in
ant ic
ip
ation of the future demands of th e
naval const ructor.
t hese
are th
e largest in
th
e
world. ll I t is intere
st in
g io
note that
the
cost of dredging was reduced by more
than half during his
regime-to
0.4d.
per
cubic yard,
excluding repairs, interest on the cost of plant and
d e p r e ~ i a t i o n
The
a m ~ applies to the depos
iting
of
the
m
at enal
at sea, wh1ch Is now only l
id.
per cubic
yard.
Mr. Deas
took
little part
in
affairs apart from his
harbour work,
and
this applies even to the proceedings
of technical societies. .But when t he
In
s
ti tutio
n of
Mechanical Engineers, or other Institution, went to
Glasgow, he always read a paper on his lat es t
works;
In many other respects improvements haYe been ef
fected.
Mr
. Deas built passenger wharves at Govan and
cattle wharves at Shieldhall. When he became engi·
neer
there
were onJy t wo cross-river ferr ies, now there
are
about
fifteen; and in addition he
had
a l
arge
part
in
organising
th
e service of penny steamers
up
and down
th
e harbour, which has been such a public boon, a
nd
See ENGINEERING , vol. lx., pages 293, 381, 474.
t Ibid. vol. l
x.
, page 295 ; vol. lxvi.
~ g e
287.
*See
EN
G
NEERING,
vol. lxiv., page 756.
t
l bid.
vol. lv., page 819.
:::
I bid. vo
l. xlviii., page 167.
§
l bid.
vol. lx., _page 281.
lbid. vol. lviu., pages 387 and 451.
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and ~ l ~ e s e
contributions were highly valued for
their
pr ec1s1on and suggestivenees. The latest, i t
ma
y be
rememberE.d,
was read. in August, 1
95.
He
made
a
gcod Parhamentary
Wltntss, b€
ca
use of hi s extreme
accura
cy in ?
ct a
il , h.is tenacity of purpose, and, we
may. add, h1s de,•ot10n to Clyde Trust interests ;
and
1n
recent
years
be has bad
Ecve
ral Parliamentary
fi
g
hts against
oppos
ition
to the
Trustees.
As the
Rev. Dr. Strong, in whose chur ch he was
an
elder
said since
hi
s death, he was a simple genial
kind:
h
earted, upright man;
"
and
his wid'
ow
and four
d a u ~ h t and
five sons have the sympathy of his pro
fessiOnal collt'agues in their sudden
Al\IERICAN
COMPETITION.
o THE
EviTOR o ENGINEF.RING.
S n t - ~ n my Jetter which you published on page 839
of y o ~ n
I ~ u e
of :pecember 29, I ascribed the cause of
Amenca.'s mdustrtal advance to her faci lity in invention.
~ ~ t
us now take look at England's early material for
ra1smg
a.
?Orps of m v ~ n t o r s .
I t
shall only be a look,
for on gou?g closely mto the subject we find that to
tell the plam truth would attack
many
cherished i d e a ~
and lead us foul of some existing institutions.
have s ~ e n the
kind
of
material
that founded the
mecha;mc
a.l ~ o r l d
of
the
Yankees
;
in EnglA-nd no such
matenal
.ex1sted.
The
farm-labourer and
the
artisan
from
which
classes
the
rising industries
drew t h e i ~
labour,
were
m
ec
hanics in
the
lowest sense of
th
e term
doing t h e ~ r r?und
.of duties
day day in
a dull, dogged
style;, thmkmg httle
of alteratiOn or imJ?rovement
in
~ n y t h m g
;
kept
down .by class
prejudtee,
woefully
1gnorant, few of them bemg
able either
to
wnte
or
read.
Bo n
·o
w w h ~
cou
ld
not be accused of u nfavourably misre
presentmg countrymen, describes the English
working
classes of hts ea
rly
days as dull, stupid, and heavy. In
stead of such. w rkmen being equal in
intell
igence to the
old
Yankee
s, 1t
1s
very proba.ble
that
even
their
m a . . ~ t e r E I
the English so-called
m i d d l ~
classes, were hardly on
t h e i ~
l ~ v e l , and . they were certa.mly not above it.
Yet
tradi
ttons
a n ~ t d ~ a s
handed down from a. past of old ignorance
and pre)ud1ce, moulds to some
extent
the ideas of the
Enghsh workman of to-day. One feels surprise
at
first
that ~ m e r i c a has not long ago completely beaten Eng
land m the race;
but
we mnst.rem ember that only withm
the few y e ~ r s ha':e the two countries come into sharp
c o n ~ t e t , Amenca bavmg.been heavily handicapped as a
foreign trader by the 1mmense continent she bad to
develop; but as that continent fills up more and morE> her
c o m p e t
with Britain will grow keener. T h ~ b ~ t t l e
ha.s JUSt fauly begun. The French Revolution, among
other
great
lessons, taught a continent weighed d own and
nearly strangled by caste, that abundant military talent
la.y waste among the mass of the populace, ready to step
to the front
at
a fair chance. Let us understand and
thoroughly grasp the fact
that
the real inventive st rength
of a na.tion lies with the common workm
f'
n, who labour
steadily six da ys
a.
week for
a.
living. Ametica treads on
solid ground
herE>,
England
on
sa
nd.
The great majority of American inventions come from
the ra.nks of the common mechanic or " working man " or
from persons
who
began
life
in
poverty.
In
England
the
common workman invents very little; most of our patents
came originally from members of the fairl y well-to.do and
educated classes, and most of them comefrom these classes
still. The
English
working " classes are comparatively
wastema.terial, as
far
as invention is concerned. But tbe
whole traditions of the English mechanic
to
be
against
inventi
on.
Riots and
destruction at the introduc
tion of steam printing-presses,
steam
looms, and ot
her
steam machinery,
~ t r e matter
of co
mmon history;
and the
prejudice ag'ainst new machines among many classes of
mechanics lS well known.
Of
course
there
is still a per
centage of men who speak ope
nly
against the introduc
tion
of
any kind
of labour-saving appliance,
but
we
need
not waste space discussing them. The short
sighted Englishman, trembling for his ' 'job, has
bad
to have machinery
forced upon
him
all
through this
century, and
is
trling
to keep up
the
conflict
st
ill.
Thu
s
in England sktlled labour " has always been against
inventiOn a.nd
inventors;
and
this
feeling is engrained into
the workman's nature, a f f e c t i n ~ him
perniciously even
now when all the wor
ld
knows, If he does not,
th
at with
'JUt new
machines
be
will be a complete fo ssil
in
a very
ew
years.
Who ca
n
u l a t e
the millions
that
Britain
bas
l
ost by this
suici
dal purblind e s s ~ America
began
its industries with
inventiOn,
and
among
American
me
chanics
invention has always been the
o
rder
of
the
day.
Instead
of employers
having
to force
new
machines on
the
ir
workmen,
the men them
selves
are
conRtantly
on the
qv l-ive
to
invent new
machines or
impr
ove old ones.
Thu
s, a current
that in
England bas
always
been
against
the inventor,
in America
carries
his bark
on
its
bosom,
and bf'ars him triumphantly forwa
rd
.
And,
needless to
say, this
same hope
and
probability
of
inventing
some
thing
is
n.
n a
ct ive
stimulus to
the American
mechanic,
making him
a cl
eve
r
workman and
increasing his intelli
gence.
He
is
always
encouraged, too, by his employers,
who give
bonuses and rewards
;
eome
masters
under
take
to
pay
all the patent expenses and experimenta.l
expenses of
an
inventiOn, the pa.tent becoming
the
work
man 's
property
on some arrangement allowing
a.
fair
benefit to
the
employer. The American workman takes
a
lt
ogether a. higher place
in the
industrial world than
the
English one; there
is not between
him and his master
that great
gulf, bridged only perhaps by a. foreman of
narrow intelligence, which we too often see among our
selves.
The workman is expected to have intelligence enough
to
take part in
frequent
consu
lt
ations regarding the work
in
band. The master has no dignity to hurt by con
su
lting
E N G I N E E R I N
G.
h ~ s man; and this frequent intercourse between the two
g 1 v ~
the master complete command of the details of his
busmess a.nd broadens the views, quickens the intelli
gence, and, above all, ra.ises
and
supports the self-respect
.the :work Dan.
He
feels
himself
a man,
an active
h v m ~ .
mttlhgen
ce,
and not
a mere
iron-thumper. The
cond1t10ns under which mechanics
work in
some
English
s
hops
are
enough to deaden th
e self-respect of
even
a
u p e ~ i o r mf -n.
The English employer, as well as
the
Enghsh
artlSa.n,
st a
nds accused of guilt for our backward
ness
in
invention.
When
will they
try
to deserve each
oth.er 's respect,
i n s t e a ~
of
the
one
e g a r d i n ~ the other
as
a kmd of necessary nu1sance ? When will
they
learn
that
the
interest
of
the
one
is
the interest of the
other ;
that
what lowers the master in the standard of the world's
industry is e ~ u a l l y lowering the man ? When will they
unite
in
intelligent,
active, earnest, kindl y effo
rt
to
restor
e
British industry to the undisputed first place in the world ?
The workman too often has a feeling towards the master
as of
an
enemy; when will he h a v ~ intelligence enough
to see in him a friend, or at least a fellow-wor
kman
?
The t i ~ e has
~ o m e
for the English employer to desce
nd
from h1s Styhtes column, and take a closer handling of
the
human
material of his workshop, instead of leaving
everything to a foreman or
manager;
and
the
time bas
equally
come for
the
English
workman
to make a.
st
rong
effort
to
raise
his
own
eta
nd
ard
of
in t
e1ligen
ce
and
know
ledg
e;
in
stead of, after having l
earne
d a trade,
ac
t
ing
a;
if no more
p r < g r e ~ s ,
either
industria
l or social,
r
emaintd
for him, and th e great world wou
ld never
out
grow the
fl
ea-bite of knowledge his
n t i c
b i p had pro
vided ; and, without laying this
letter
open to the
charge
of temperance lec
turin
g,
1 urge
the English orkman to
learn
that
th ere are b1gher destinies in this world
than
acquirements
of
enough
or p, e
nty
of money to rev el
m b ~ e r and tobacco.: neither of which lu xUl ies
are any
help
1n the ra
ce of hfe, but, as he too oftt'n finds, rather
turn
out h i n d r a n c f They ma,y be good
t h i n g ~ in their
place, but
at
p t ~ e n t t t ey a.re considerably
out
of their
placE>, as every
othu
trade-union repo
rt testifies-at
leas t
m rega
rd
to
the
first. The YaDkee workman is a very
ml;lch more temperate man
than
his English rival, and
~ h t s
l a i n
somewhat both his greater intelligence and
m vent1ve p::>wers.
Machinery must come more and more; our very exist
ence . as a man ufacturing people depends on it. Th e
Enghshman bas the clea r choice
put
before him-let him
bravt-ly fa ce the question, and bend all his brains and
energies to prcduce the new ma ':hines and proceEses for
b.imself; or _let him go on. in su1len apathy and opposi
tiOn, and h
1s
employer will have to purchase shiploads
of machinery from foreigners. But inventions will come
in spite of
him-for
a time until the nations use their
own inventions to compete with his g0r ds in th e markets
of the world ; and the English, as the first indus rial
people of the world, will have become history-no more
Already many indust ries have practically passed away
from us, others are steadily going. Watches and clocks,
toys, pianos and organs, machine tools, axEs, sav;s and
b a m m locomotives, rea.perfl, electric machines
and
appliances, steel ironwork, have gone or are going
to America.. Typ ewriters elbow their way everywhere;
and
as the engineer looks over tbe new arrival for his
office, there is the plt'asing reflection th at tbe presumed
chief mechanical na.tion of th e world is representEd in
this
dep
artment
by
one eolitary concern few people even
in
England
know the existence o
f.
We a.re still first
in
s
hipbuilding
,
but
what is to hinder
the
next decade findiog
the
yards of Glasgow and the
T yne half
eopty,
while those of
Philadelphia,
New
York, or Newport News resound with the c
lang
of
innumerable hammers ?
I f
the Yankees build
ships at
whi ch one man and a
machine do the work
of
three
or
four of our high-priced m
E:cba
nics,
with
their ancient
methods, bow can we expect to ho
ld
our ground ?
The
time bas come to wake
out
of sleep. Many of our work
men Sfem to hold
pr
et ty much
the
sa.me opinions about
foreign industry as
the
Boera did about
Thomas
Atkins.
Both parties are
in
considerable danger of beins- uncere
moniously disenchanted In vention
in
machmes and
pr
ocesses
is
only part of
the
work,
invention in
work
shop methods is equally necessary.
American
work
men are a s good a.s English ; i b is certain they do
more work for their money. Tbe o
ld
opposition to
machine- work, to labour·saving devices, should be
rightly r
ega
rded as an inheritance of na.rrow ignor
ance
and
selfishness, from the same century and source
that
hanged
a
man f«)r
stealing a sheep.
I f
a
machine
can
be invented or p u r c h ~ e d to do a job
quicker
and more
profitably
than
man, however small the difference
may
be,
no pains or expense should be
spare
d to
get
it.
The
time
has gone by when the workman can hammer away (as
his forefathers did
100
years ago), until a new
machine
is
shoved on the job before his nose.
When one hears and sees the
trad
e-union demands for
limitationof the number of
p p r e n t i c e ~ ,
sees strikes to force
employers to keep hifZh-priced '' skilled labour at machines
any navvy could work after a few lessons, one can hardly
help
thinking
that
in the tremendous growth of know
ledge and in tel1igence of the last 100 years the mind of
the
En
glish trade-unionist has stood still, or has travelled
back to the Middle Ages. The average workman of the
present day is inclined to scoff at religion and its teachers,
yet the ways of
trad
es- unionism remind the student
11resistably of the medireval monk The ecclesiastics of
the l\fiddle Ages, for their own purposes, made the
monasteries the sole reposi tories of such learning as
existed, just as extreme trade. unionism is trying to.day
to
make
the trade-unions the repository of all ability to
do cert ain kinds of work. You could get very little
education in the Dark Ages, except through a monastery.
But
the
world began to awal<e
and to
get
tired
of all
that. The w
or
ld
want
ed, among other things,
to
learn
[j AK . 5 I 900.
and study Greek ; the monks declared Greek was a.
heathen language spoken by heretios. Th e world wanted
to go on, the monks wanted to stand
still
; the result was
tha.t the world got its Greek in spite of the monks,
who became the laughing-stock of Europe, and tbe
n ~ m e monk
" became
sy
no
nymou
s
with
ignorance,
dirt,
bigotry, and humbug. When
Erasmus wanted to over
whelm an opponent with
opp
robrium,
he
described
him
as
100
mon ks rolled
into
one. "
I f
the
trade
-unioni
st
w.ill
permit
only
a.
.ce
rtain
number of persons to lea
rn
h1s trade,
and
forbids them to
work
'below a certain
wage, or except
under
certa.in conditions, or
in
certain
ways,
the
sure result will
be that
his productions will be
unable to compete with the productions of a free people.
I f he cannot work to sui t the world, the world wJll soon
h o w him, a ~ d is
h o ~ n g
him r e ~ t y plainly already,
that
It
ca
n do
without him.
He
w1ll become
a.
laughing
stock to the world, a.nd be and his product ions will left
severely alone a so
rt
of mummy exhibition
in
the stream
of time.
T ~ e w o r l ~
goes. round and we.
u s t
go r o u n ~
with i t ;
foreign nat1ons will
not
alter
thetr
tdeas and habits to euit
workmen or
masters
; and, to say
the least
, is
it
n
ot
a
trifle
pr
esu mptuous on o
ur part
to imagine they wiU ? Our
existence depends on foreign trade, and if we cannot
adapt
ourselves to give the
nation
s
what
they want
at the
markeb
price, our days are numbere
d ;
high wages will become a.
m ~ m o r y
~ n d the
land will covered
with
useless heaps of
bncks whtcb once echoed wtth the cheerful sounds of indus
try. England, an insular nation, has always been affiict€d
with the
a r r o w n
e s . ~ of insularity, could nev
er
see beyond
its own ideas, manners, and ways. "
What
is good enough
for England is good enough for anywhere else, " said the
Sheffield wiseacre; and he might have added :
I f
foreigners would not take what we offer th em, they can
want which the foreigntrs have disdainfully begun to
do some time ago. not the goods they were offered "
however, but Sheffield itself and all its w o r k ~ . T b ~ y
do n
ot
want heffield, until th e town discovers
that
a.
large acreage
the earth
c t u ~
l l y
lies outs
de England, and
t h a ~ h ~ r nat10ns have some 1deas of then own regarding
their
d a ~ l y
:want3. What t ~ a v e l l ~ r does n
ot
complain of
~ t e E n g l l S h Ignorance of foretgn lands and peoples; of their
Jgnorance even of the British colonies, of India. it self ?
H ~ t v e
n
ot
~ g l i s h engineers foryE>.arssentlocomotives, ap
parently destgned for heavy English railways, out to sli m,
che.ap
hnes
in new countries, with the inevitable ending
wb1ch .could only follow such an unequal yoke.? Agricul
tural Impleme
nts
for Clydesdale horse-power
are
still
shipped from Liv.erpoo.l to fields where the st ronge&t
and
largest known ammal IS a small mule
or
a scraggy horse
three
or
four of which could not draw the load of
Clydesdale.
Our insular annal
s s
upply numberl
ess in
stances of similar shor
t -s
ighted
bungling. From
their
country
th e Yankees
deriv
ed great
a d v a n t a ~ e
over
the
English in thi
s.
Th
ey lived
their
own lives
m,
and
did
all their ear
ly
work for, a
new
country, a
land
of se
tt l
ers ;
a ~ d . p o ~ e r t y
and rude necess
ity made
them
experts at
pro
vtdmg
JU
St the
exact
tool for any given
purp
ose
at the
lowest possible price. Were locomotives wanted for
a.
pioneer line, they
bad made nothing but just such
engines
all their days. Were
light
cheap axes
wanted
for poor
e M ~ ,
who
had
to carry
an
outfit for 5
00
miles
on
a mule's
back
or their
ow n ?
The Yank
ees provided
them
at
once.
Sheffield, w hich had
never
made
~ u c h a x ~
and never
heard of
an
axe being
ca
rr ied further
than
to
th
e coa
l
ce
llar
or to a.
job
up
the
n
ext
street , se
nds its heavy
cumbrous
Engli
sh axes, which
the sett
ler kicked
out
of his way, cursing English stupidity with
much
fervour.
Simplicity
and adaptation
hav
e made
Am6rican
t?ols fam ous.; they are
oust
mg the cumbrous
and
expen
SI
Ve
productions of
Europ
e everywhere.
For
a particula.r
need the
Yankee produces a tool
that
will meet
that need
quickly, di rectly, effectively; he goes
st
raight to th e h
ea rt
of
th
e
matt
er,
_castii?-g
as
id
e all
t b ~ t
is
not
absolutely
nece
ssary
.
Wtth his
clear, sharp
mt
ellect, and e
ntire
f ~ e e d o m
from old n<?tions a n ~
p r e j u d i ~ e s . t h i s
is a compara
tively easy p r o c for
h 1 ~ .
lS the
English
man was
'' busthn g
" to acqmre th1s dexterity, too, if
the
ne
xt decade is not to
Eee him at the
Yankee's work
shop
door, begging a job.
\Ve need to improve our workshop methods too ;
there are old errora to be got rid of, new ideas to be
heartily embraced. We wa.nt more earnestness
in
the
business of life, more enthusiasm. That is an excel
lent trait
in
the American character : they are an en
thu siastic people, and what a force and pleasure there
is
in
enthusiasm
You
see
theY
a.nkee
workman
hust
ling " with might and main, honestly working for the
mc
;mey he gets
at
th e week end.
In
England there is, I
gneve
to say, far too much of the motto,
Take it
easy;
-:-do as
little
work as .possible for the most money pos
Sible.
What
a searchlight glare on the far -famed British
workman appeared.
at
the last
st
rike of " engineers,"
when some apprentices were
put
to do the work of abse
nt
full-fledged tradesmen. The apprentices were actually
found to do more work
in
a given time than the journey
man, and t.o do as well, if no.t better. What garrison
nods drowsily while the enemy
lS
stormmg
at
the gates l
A hundred voices cry, W e know all that-everyb ody
knows i t ; what we want is a remedy. Tell us some
thing we kn ow." You may know, 0 learned
but
England seemmgly does not,
that
the standard of intel
ligence among her artisan population is far below tha.t of
America or Germany; and thirty years' Board-School
cramming has bad little effect in proportion to the money
spent. f i r ~ t duty for her own safety is to raise
the standard of mtelhgence among the
working
classes:"
lay a foundation on which to build a nation of good
h a n i ~
of inventors. But this can be better accom
plished by the " force of public opinion, " by individua.l
~ f f o and local authority, than by Ac ts of Parliament.
\Vhatever way it can be accomplished, get it accom-
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 26/37
plished.
Trad
es unions have long been d e e p ~ y exer
cised about effective means
to
control a.pprenttces ; let
employers have
their
.sa .
now;.
l
et
them i.nsist on all
apprentices engaged m
mdu
stnes for
f o r e i ~ n markets
studying the history, geography, and eco' lomlCs of th.ose
markets.
It
is
not
enough to make premiUm apprentiCes
-sons
of well-to-do people-:-do this. for, has been care
fully pointed out,
our
chief supply of mventors
must
come from
the
common mechanics. School Boards,
societies, local authorities,
ca
n he
lp
greatly by opening
classes for instruction in the wants of f o r e i ~ n countries,
and giving suitable prizes for competition. Every
ma
nu
facturer every merchant, engaged n the foreign trade,
should ~ o t only give such classes
steady
patronage,
but
should
imist
on aJl his
ju
nior clerks attendi
ng them
regu
larly.
This
would be excelle
nt
expe
rience for
the
r ~ s
and some help to the working-lads, :md great help to the
class. Every technical school should
add
a a s ~ of inven
tion to
its
course, or, a.t least,
a le
ctu
re
on the history
and
philoso
phy
of
inventions; and
every
man with
influence
could use
it
to c
reat
e full
and steady attendance
at
that
class.
Our vast Empire and the Navy and Army we have to
eupport make the drain on our country
's
inventive man
hood very great; so
ldiex:s, i l o : ~ Gov_ernm
en t clerks,
commercial c ~ e r k ~ coloma o f f i C i a l ~ emigrants-what a
multitude
there
is of them
all-are
practically
dead
losses
as inventors, and both America and Germany have
great
advantages over us m this respect. We can hope toruake
up for so
m ~ c h
inyentive waste only
by
giving s ~ e c i a l
attention to mventJOn among the men who reruam
at
home. America
's
new expansion policy will likely prove
an active factor in
the ruin
of
the e ~ u b l i c ; but
that will
not h a p p ~ n for some time yet ; and till th en, if England
does not waken to her danger, the Republic's inver.tive
genius will
ha.ve
time to encompass the ruin of
England.
Yours
truly
,
A PRA
CT
IC
AL
EXP
ORTER.
PATENT OFFICE TEMPORARY PREMISES.
To THE
EDITOR OF
ENGINEERING.
Sra , -Were these buildings
taken
over so hurriedly
as to make proper provieion impossible
against
even a
mild winter ?
This day
at one o'clock, with only
a slight
frost, I found
the temperature in the
ce
ntre
of
th
e specifi
tion room to be only 51 deg. Fahr., and in reply to my
complaint,
but
slight hopes were held
out
as to
better
e s u l t ~
in the future.
Why
should the
street
door be
left
wi
de
open with no
other
door
in t
erve
ning be
tween
the
said room
and the
st reet ?
De l:>er 27, 1899.
Yours truly,
M.
R.
FIRE
PREVEN'£ION IN 1899.
To
THE
EDITOR OF ENGINEERING.
SIR,-Being
a subscriber
to your
journal, I of cour
se
read it regularly,
but
it is
not
often you have a leading
article coming down so close
to "where
I live" as that
under
the
above headi
ng in
your issue of December 22.
In
consequence of
that
I
got
a copy of
¥r.
Bla-sbill's
paper on
the
"Architect
in
R
elati
on to
Fire Prevention,"
and read
it
al
so with
great
interest.
There is one point in connection with his paper to
which I would like to draw your attention, viz., where he
appears
to
condemn
the
use of felt between the
sarking
and
the s
la t
es of any building, as being liable
to
conduce
to the spread
of
fire. I am
not
absolutely
certain th
at he
means
to
convey this, but I
think
the average reader
would gather
that
from his paper,
and
nothing can be
more erroneous, as the felt thu s used has the effect of
preventing the passag-e of
air or
smoke,
and
so tends
to
check
and
restrain a fire. f the felt were
not
there,
any
flames impinging
on the
sa.rking would so
on
crack
the
slates, and ~ h e whole thing be
in
a blaze in a very short
time. This, I think, is generally recognised.
Yours faithfully,
(For
Messrs. D. Anderson
and
Son,
Ltd.),
HENRY GRIGG, Man
agi
ng Director
.
La.gan Felt Works, Belfast, January, 2, 1900.
SUPERFLUOUS ROYAL
ENGINEER
OFFICERS.
To THE EDITOR OF ENGINEERIN
G
SIR,-The necessity for genuine and drastic Army reform
having
just
now been brought home
to
all classes, I would
ask
to be
allowed
to
remind you of that branch of
it in
which engineers are specially interested,
and to
which you
have previously devoted some
attention.
The main defence of the present organisation of the
Corps of Royal Engineers to be gathered from corre
spondence which you published was, that the existing
number of
its
officers is based
on military requirements;
th
at
during peace times officers could
not
be
temp
o
rarily
retired
or
all employed on
purely military
duty-;
and
that
their employment
in
civil and semi-civil capa01ties is good
training for them
and
an economy to the public service.
The
war
in South
Africa completely disposes of
this
defence.
Up
to
the end
of November two full
Army
corps
had
been se
nt to
a
seat
of war requiring.
to the
fullest extent, the services of the ensioeer arm. Yet, out
of
a total of over
900
Royal
Engmeer
officers on the
active
list , some 150 only
had
been
sent to the
front.
Adding 75
for a
th
i
rd Army
corps, we arri ve at a
total
of
225, leaving
a
surplus of more
than
doub
le
that
number- 600 or 650, at least . Moreover, of those se
nt
·
oub nob more
than
40 were above
th
e
rank
of
capta
in, so
that
the
superfluity is chiefly
in
the senior ranks.
At
a
mode3t computation,
their pay and
emoluments, which
have wrongly gone
to
swell
the total
of
the Army Estimates
year after year, must have amounted to 250,000l. to
300, l. per annum.
E
N
G 1
N
E
E R I
N
C.
Judging
from past experience, nothing is likely to be
done
to abate this
huge sc
andal
unless the
matter is
se
riously
taken in hand
hy those
competent
to deal with
its
manifold technicalities. These
must be thor
oughly
grasped by a
Member
of
Parliament
(or
by
more
than
o
ne
if they can be found}, before the inevitable debates on our
military sho
rt
comings begin. The M.P. (or M .P.'s)
aforesaid must
be
approached
and
instructed beforehand
by
accredited representatives of
the
engineering
and
allied professions.
There
is, therefore, no
time to
lose ;
but
who or what body is coming forward to perform this
duty- an
act
of loyalty due to their profession and
their
country alike?
December 29, 1899.
I am, &c.,
VIGILANT.
ARMOURED STEAM-CARS FOR SOUTH
AFRICA.
To
THE
EDITOR
OF
E
NGINEERING.
Sm, -
May
I suggest t
he
following, as affording a
possible means of transport and
attack in
South Africa
at the present time ? An armoured
car
of from 8
to 10
tons, ca
rr ied
on six wheels,
the
two centre wheels being
driven by two
separate eng
ine
s;
the
other
wheels being
arrang
ed for
steering; and
all being
under the car
body.
A boiler of
lar
ge capacity
and
power in
th
e
centre
of
the
car, lea vi ng room for machine guns and riflemen at either
end: the car
to
be capable of being driven
in
ei t
her
direction.
I am, &c.,
R E O
J.
AL LEN.
London Institution, E. C., January 2.
BARNABY'S THEORY OF CAVITATION.
To
THE
EDITOR OF ENGINEERING.
SIR,-As
the app re
ciation of the arguments contained
in
my letter
pubhshed
in your
issue of
the
17th ult. would
appear to
have, in some instances, been
pr
ejudiced by
the
C'rudeness of
the
drawings, which were
intended
solely for
the purpose of illustrating and explaining my arguments
in
favour of so locating cavitation as
to
enable its action
to increase the reacting efficiency of the water, I shall
be
thankful
if you will allow me to place the following facts
before your readers,
and to
again express a hope
that
they
will
be dealt with in the
columns of
your paper
in
a <:j
full and logical a manner as, I
Yen
tur e to s u ~ g e s t they
deserve. I n the accompanying illustration, Fig. 1 shows
a view of the reverse face of a propeller
blade
made
in
accordance with
my
inventi
on
,
and Fig.
2 is
a
sectional
view of a similar blade,
the
deflecting flange being shown
at a. Such deflecting flange would extend along the
leading edge of the blade as shown in Fig. 1, the line a b
Ji ig.1.
I I I
I C
I I
I
I
C
Fig..2
represent ing the point d
in Fig. 2,
and the space
c c
over
which cavitation may be procured, being similarly placed
in
each drawing. I n a ~ m u c h
as
the
rapidity with
which
the blade revolves decreases
as
the
point a
Fig. 1,
is
approached, I would
gradua
lly increase
the
deflecting
angle of the blade towards that point so as to increase its
deflecting efficiency.
Another
matter I should like
to
advert
to. With the ordinary propeller blade, cavitation
about
d
Fig. 2,
can only arise when abnormal speed bas
produced a corresponding increase of "slip,"
and
hence
it
s action cannot reduce the tendency to such slip;
whereas, in the case of my propellers the c a v i ~ a t i o n at
d c will arise before
the advent
of snob speed and slip,
and
prevent
its superve
ning; in
addition,
it ca
n
be got with
much less
expenditure
of horse-power,
and
of fuel-with
less powerful engines-and the vast increase
in
efficient
driving pressure thereby procurable, may , when a high
shaft
velocity is being
attained,
be
extend
ed over a much
larger a
rea.
of the blade,
and at
a much more beneficial
angle than is possible
in
a
ny other description
of blade.
Lastly, I would
repeat
that
the
existing methods of
measuring the efficiency of ships' propellers are faulty ;
and
any
conclusions of fact founded thereon are, as
regards cavitation efficiency, obvious
ly
misleading.
Yours
truly,
December
18, 1899. P.
M. STAUNTON.
THE
OLD NORTH BRIDGE AT
EDINBURGH.
To THE EDITOR 0:1 ENGINEERING.
SIR,-The following extract, regarding the o
ld
North
Bridge
at
Edinburgh,
which
sives
some de tails
regarding
that
structure not contained
m the
interesting se
ries of
articles you have l
ately published
describing
the
new
station now being completed, may interest some of your
readers.
t is
taken
from that somewhat scarce book, a quarto,
e
ntitl
ed
M
o
dern Athens Di
s
played
in a Series of
Views;
or,
Edinburgh in
the
Nineteenth Century.
From
Original Drawings, by Mr. Thos. H. Shepherd. London.
Published by JonAs
and
Co.,
Temple
of the Muses,
Fi n
sb
ury
-s
quare.
January
1, 1829." A very choice copy
of
this
book,
with
the
fi
ne
stee
l engravinga unfoxed, is
at
?vlonkba.rns. · 1
'd
th
"The
fi
r
st stone
of the North Br1dge was 9.1 on e
21st October, 1763,
by Provost
D r u m m o n ~ who hag
l ro-
jected
and
recommended the
J;>lan
of formmg a. r
oa r1m
the Old
Town to
a
district
wh1ch was
to be
l
aid out hr
new building-3. The mud was t h ~ n removed from t e
loch, but nothing
further
done
until
A:ugust, 1765, w ~ e n
Mr William Milne
brother to
the
architect
of Blackfr1ars
B r i ~ g e
London
gave
de
signs, and
contracted to
com
plete
the
work 'before
Martinmas,
1769, f ~ r
the sum
of
10,140l. The undertak ing was s c a . finlSbed when an
accident occurred,
by
which several h ves ~ e r e lost. Th
.e
hill
against
which the south end of the br1dge
abutted.
IS
very
steep and
consisted
in
a
great
part of
earth,
whiCh
had
been
dug
from
the
fou
ndation
of houses,.
and
t h r o w ~
down
the de
c
livity
towards
the
loch. Of
th i
s
the
archi
tect was
not
aware, and had neglected to go ~ e e p ~ g h
for a sound footing. He
had
also failed
to b ~ I l d
the
piers
to a sufficient height, and was, therefore, obhg:ed
to
place
an
immense mass of earth
upon the
arches, m
order to
raise the bridge to its
requisite
level.
The
resu
lt
wn..s
that
the side walls and abutments at the south end burst, and
some of the vaults gave way ;
other
parts w ~ r e pulled
down
and
rebuilt
with
chain bars ; the
suvenn
cumbe
nt
earth
was removed,
and
its place su
pplied by
sma
ll
arches con
structed
between the
larger
ones ;
an arch of
relief was
thrown
over that
to the
south, which
had been
shattered· and the whole was r e n g t h ~ n e d by buttresses
and n t ~ r p
a r t s
at an a d ~ i t i
o n a l
expense
of. 8000
t.
"The
bridge is 1125 ft. m length , from
High-street to
Princes-stre
et· in breadth between
the
parapets, 40 h . ;
and
at each
end 50 h. I t
consists of
three large
arches,
and several small ones concealed from sight; having also
arched passages through the l.ateral abutme
nt
s. The
spa
n
of each of tlie large arches
1s
72ft. ; the sma
ll
er onos,
20
ft.
each; the
thi ckness of
the
piers,
13 ~ t .
; total
length
of
piers
and arches, 3
10ft.
;
and the height
from
the
base of
the piers
to
the top
of
the parapet,
68
ft."
I would also
add
that
excellent views of
the
old
North
Bridge from various points
ma
y be found
in
the following
of Mr.
Shepherd's
plates:
"Part of
the
Old Town, from
Princes-street," "The
Jail Governor's House,
Edinburgh," ' 'North
Bridge,
Calton
Hill,
&c., from
the Bank
of
Scotland," V
ege·
table and Fish Ma.rkethfrom the 'Rainbow' Gallery."
I have t e honour
to
be, Sir,
Your
obedient
se
rvant,
ALDOBRAND
0L1 >ENBUC
K.
Fairport,
December
9,
1
890
.
GAs
AT BRIGG.-The Brigg
(
Li n
colnshire)
Urban
District
Council has
acquired the undertaking
of
the
Brigg
Gas
Company for 24,300l.
Th
e company demanded
30
OOOl., and
the council offered 19,
OOOl
The council
will have, howeve
r,
to
pay
the costs of the
arbitration
and
to co
mpensa
te
the
officials of
the
co
mpany.
HAWAir.-A
railw
ay
has
been
projected
through
the
efforts of
Mr. Herbert B.
Gehr, of Chicago, on
the
island
of Hawaii. Of the
eight
islands forming the Hawaiian
group,
only Oahu has
a railway, which is 35 miles long,
and runs from Honolulu. The P.rojec
ted line
is to
be
130
miles long, is
to extend
from
Hilo to
Kohala, and is
to
be
worked by
elect
ric power.
I t
will
be
built
by
the Koha.la
and
Hilo
Railway Company, having a capital stock of
600,000l., the greater part of which
ha-s
been subscribed
by
New
York and Boston capitalists, The line will pass
through
hills near
the
volcano of Mauna. Loa.. A
line
of
exp
ress b0ats will possibly be
run in
connection
with the
line from
Hilo to San
Francisco.
E x t ~ n s i v e
coffee
and
sugar interests on the is
land
of Hawaii will be benefitted
by
the proposed
transportation
facilities. .
FREN
HRAIL
WAYS
.
ren
ch politicians
are beginning to
cast their
eyes forward,
and to anticipate the
position of
the French Tr easury when the railways now conceded
to six
great
concessionary companies become the property
of
the State. The
prese
nt
concessions will run
out
be
tween 1950 and 1960. The concessionary companies
will have
to be
cv mpe
nsat
ed for the rolling stock
and
stores
taken
over, and
it
is expected
that
80,000,000l.
will have to be paid
under this
head. On the other hand,
the trans
fer of the conceded lines to
the
State
between
1950 and
1960 will
place
a
total net revenue
of 24,000,000l.
per annum at
the disposal of
the French Treasury.
The
weak
point
about these calculations is the uncertainty
attending
the general French
futur
e
during
the next fifty
or sixty
years.
BLAST-FURNACES IN
THE
UNITED STATES.
-
The
number
of furnaces
in blast in the United States at the
commence
mencement of October, 1899,
wa
s 265,
as compared with
205 at the commencement of April; 192 at the commence
ment of October, 1898 ; 194
at
the commencement
of
April, 1
898; and
171
at the
commencoment of October,
1
89
7.
The
weekly
productive capacity
of the
furnaces in
blast Wf\8 as
follows
at the
dates
named
: October, 1899,
278,650 tons ; April, 1899, 245,746
tons
; October, 1898,
215,635
tons; April,
1898, 3 ~ 3 3 9
to n
s ; and October,
1897, 200,128
ton
s.
t
will
be
seen that
production
has
increased
during the last
two
years to
the
extent
of 78,522
tons per week. While producti on e x 1 2 ~ r i e n c e d this
important
expansion, stocks of
pig
in the U ni ted States
are
now sma
ll
er than they
ha
ve been
for
some
time
past.
At the co
mmencement
of October
they amount
ed
to
120,
541 to
ns,
as compared with
137,821
tons at the
com
mencement
of
September,
150,268
tons
at
the
commence
ment of August, 169,325 tons
at
the commenceme
nt
of
,July,
233
,235
tons
at
the
comm
encement
of June,
and
284,127
tons at
the
commencement
of M.ay.
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 27/37
METAL PRICES.
IN the accompanying diagrams each vertical line
represents a market day, and each horizontal line
represents l s. in the case of hematite, Scotch,
and Cleveland iron, and l l . in all other cases. The
price of quicksilver is per bottle, the contents of
which vary
in
weight from 70 lb. to 80 lb. The
m
eta
l prices are
pe
r ton. Reavy
~ t e e
rails
ar
e to
Middlesbrough quotations.
LAUNCHES AND TRIAL
TRIP
S.
THE Ailsa Shipbuilding Company, Troon, launched, on
Dece
mber
16th, the steel screw s.s. F leswick,
bu
ilt to the
order of
Mr. Robert
Simpson, of Whitehaven,
and in
tended
for coasting purposes. The vessel is
179ft.
between
perpendi
culars, by
Zl
ft. 10 in.
by
13 ft.
10
in. moulded,
and will carry
760
tons deadweight.
The
machinery is
placed aft
in the
vessel, a
nd
consists of a set of M
cK
ie
and Baxter's
sta
nd
ar
d high-ratio compound engines for
coasting service, cylinders 21 in. and 47 in.
in
diameter,
by
33
in. stroke. the boiler being
14ft.
9 in. in diameter,
by 10 ft. 6 in. long, a
nd
designed for 130 lb. working
pressure.
On December 21
Me
ssrs. Harland a
nd
Wolff launched
the Saxon, a twin-scr
ew
steamer of 12,970 tons gross,
which
they
have
built
for the mail service of
the
U
ni
on
Company. When completed
the
vessel will be the largest
not only in
the Cape
service, but in any British Colonial
serv ice, and in pomt of accommoda
ti
on and equipment,
she will be
at
least the equal of the finest liners
in
the
mercantile marine. Broadly speaking, she is an improve
ment on the Bri ton, which was launched from Queen's
Island in
Ju
ne, 1
897, and ha
s proved a ve
ry
popula r vessel
on
the C
ape
route. The Saxon is the twelfth steamer
built
for
the
fleet by
Mr. Pirrie
's firm, but nine of
th
ese
were
intermediate
boats,
and
the line of
he
r development
is
rather
through the Norman
and
the Briton, the first of
which,
it may be recalled, was
7537
tons.
Th
e new boat
is
585
ft. 6 in. long,
64
ft.
br
oad, and 42ft. 9 in. deep. The
first-class dining saloon, a. finely decorated and furnished
apartme
nt
, is on the upper deck, and thelibrary, drawing
room, and smoking-
room-all
elegant ly furnished rooms
on the promenade deck. The entrance to the second-class
saloon will be furnished for use as a deck sitting-room for
ladies, and all through
thi
s part of the
ship
the high
s
tanda
rd of the
Unio
n service is, if
anythi
ng, more th an
maintained. The engines are of
the
quadruple expansion
type, balanced to minimise vibration. There is provision
for
the
carriage of a la
rg
e cargo, which m
ay
without any
great in
co
nvenience-as experience of oth er vessels
ha.s
just
pr
oved-be
transformed into quarters f
or
troops.
The s.s.
Gres
ham,
built
by Messr
s.
Taylor and Mitchell
for Mr. John Wh1te, of London, recent ly
went
on the
Skelmorlie mile for
her
steam trials.
The
vessel was
light, only half of the propeller b e i n ~ immersed; but
even
un
der these u
nf
avourable cond1tions
the
m
ea
n
speed obtained on four
run
s was a shade in excess of
10 knots. The vessel is 185 ft. long by 29 f t. broad
by
14 ft . deep moulded,
and carri
es about 900 tons on
Ll
oyd's freeboard. The propelling machinery was sup
plied by Messrs. McKie and Baxter, Copland Works,
Govan, and consists of three standard triple-expansion en
gines having cylinders 15 in., 25 in. , and 40 in. in diameter,
and
27 in. stroke, with steel boiler 13 ft. 6 in. in diameter,
a
nd
10 ft. I o n ~ designed for 160 lb. wor king pressure.
The
Irvin
e Shipbuilding
and Engi
neering Company,
Limited, launched
on the
22nd in
st.
a steel-screw cargo
steame
r of about 850 tons deadweight for London owners.
Her dimensions
are
185 ft.
by
29 ft.
by
14 ft. moulded.
Trip e-e
xpansion machinery is being supplied by Messrs.
McKie and Baxter, Govan, Glasgow. The vessel was
named Kharki.
THE NAVAL GuNs
AT
THE FRONT. n engineering
correspo
ndent
in
~ o u t h
Africa tsives some interesting
particula r@ s to the naval guns
and
mounts
at
the front.
The 4.7-in. guns were mounted on large baJks of timber,
stronrly tied together
by
iron bands, bolts,
and
plating,
a
nd
the whole framing was fitted so that it could be
a.ncLo red in the grou
nd by
digging holes and depositing
heavy
12
·in. shell
s-obtained
fr
om
the Simons Town
Arsenal for the purpose. These shells had chains passed
around them and around the framework of the 4.7-in.
guns. There were also se
nt to
Ladyamith four 12-
pounder guns taken from the Powerful. These guns were
also mounted on
wo
oden c a . r r i a ~ e s constructed of
balks of timber,
wit
h a lo
ng
tai l
p1
ece, th e whole being
tied
by
bolts
and
stra-ps,
and
mounted on wheels to make
them
portable a?d available for land Four
Maxims
went
w1th
the
same naval co
ntmgent
to
the
city now beleaguered.
The
idea. of m o u n t ~ n g th;e. naval
4.7-in.
and
12-pou
nd
er guns
~ o ~
land serv1ee
o n g m a ~ d
in
the Terrible, and was the
JOmt
work of her captam,
gunnery, and engine_er o
ffi
cers and carpenters
.
The
Powerful copied the 1dea, and fixed the carnage
s,
&c. on the sho
rt
sea run between 81mons Town and
D u ~ b a . n havi
ng
them ready by the time the
ship
rea
ched'
the
po
rt,
so
that the
engineers
and
carpe
nter
s'
staff were concerned with the gun mou
nting
as well as the
captai
ns. Several
4.
- i ~ . guns have since been mou_nted
in the dockyard at S1mons Town on wheel carnages
made
by
the ngineering and gun·" Dount_ing staff
and are
now
in
service with
the Nava
l Bngade m
the
Ktmberley
R elief F orce.
E N G I N E E R I N G.
DIAGRAMS OF THREE MONTHS' FLUCTUATIONS IN PRICES OF METALS.
'
(Specially compiled jr
01r
Official R ep 1·ts of
London
Metal and S cotch Pig-I ron W
arrant
Ma1 ·kets.)
148
/4-4
14
2
0
4
138
d6
134
I
32
/.
0
I
28
/.
26
I 24
I
22
'20
.
I
18
16
1
14
112
110
I
08
If
OcTOBER, 1899.
. . . . . . ~
'
........
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D ECEMBER, 1899.
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7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 28/37
jAN. 5,
1900.]
E N G I N E E R I N G. :
•
A
UTOJ\1ATIC
TAPP ING
MACHINE
F O R
P I PE
F ITT ING :
O N H T R U T BY MR. f >Al\IUEL PLATT, EN aNEER, YEDNE
f BURY.
•
THE machine
which
we
illustrate
on this
page has
been specially designed for screwing different sizes of gas
and steam fittings,
with
a minimum of
labour
and th
e
lea
st
possible
waste
?f
time. . It is . specially
in
tended
for screwing from 3 m
.. o
6
m.
~ t t m
a n ~
ba
s
three
different speeds, accordrng to stzes of
fittmgs
to be
screwed.
The
fitting is g
ripped by
the
top and bottom
grips on the turret saddle, the
tap being held
by
tho
bead
or
chuck
with the
squar
e hole
in it. Th
e
turret
saddle is moved
up to th
e tap
by ra
ck
and pini
on,
and
the
ma
chine is
then
s
tarted by
t he lever.
Th
e
automatic
arrangement is pr
evious
ly
s
et
so
as
t o r
e-
verse
and stop
the machin e when
th
e fitting is screwed,
and when the tap has
run ba
ck clear of th e fitting,
the
catch in the t
ur r
et is
ra i
sed
and
the t u
rret
brou
ght
round a
quarter
of a circle, just
bringin
g the
next
hole
in the
fitting opposite
to
the
tap. The
machine is
again started, and the operation
repeated
until
the
fitting is
screwed in
a
ll its
boles,
when
the
top grip is raised by the ha.ndwh
ee
l and screw,
and
the
fitting lifted out of the machine. As the
turret
saddle moves
exactly
a
quart
er of a circle from one
catch hole to
another, the
fittin
gs
are, of course,
screwed
at right
angles,
this
being
a special req
uisite
in
large fittings.
The
maker
of
th
e
ma
c
hine
is
Mr.
Sa
muel
Platt,
of
King's Hill
Foundry,
Wedn
esb
ury.
INDUSTRIAL NOTES.
THE terminal
week of the
year
is seldom
notable
for
any labour movement,
not
even
during the contiauance
of a
strike
or lock-out,
should such
begin
in one
ye
ar
and
end in the next. Last week
was no
exception
to
the
rule. I t was,
ind
eed, an
unu
sually quiet
week
in
the
la
bour world, the holida
ys
being a welcome
break
after
a
period of incessant work, for the
most part at
high rates of wages.
The working
classes
are quick
in th
rowing off
the
worries of life
when
holidays
set
in, especially
if
the
week's earnings
enable
them to
enjoy
the
rest.
Begone
dull
care
is
a
sentiment
of
unive
rs
al
appli
c
ation, but it
becomes
all
the
more
intense in cases
where dull care
is mostly present.
Perhaps
there has
never
been a
Christmas when the
masses as a whole
were better prepar
ed for it than
tho
one t hat has
just
passed.
There have been
aching
hear
ts
in
all classes of society
by
rea
s
on
of
events
in
South
Africa,
but thi
s is of
the industria
l
arena.
The
reports
in the newspapers
indica
te that
on
the
whole
it
was a sober
Christmas
, a condi
tion of
thing
s to be commended. In th is
respect
we
are
really better off than
we were when
wages
were lower
in years
gone by.
Educatio
n
brings
self
respect,
and
self-respect self-restraint,
though,
of
course,
it
will
take
a long
time
to
permeate
the
whol
e
of
the
masses
with
those
qualities.
Still it is
encourag
ing
to
find
that
there
is
a
growth and
advancement
in
this
respect.
f the
principle of
thrift
were
more
general,
it
would
be better,
but that
al
so
is
extending
in all directions.
The
most
sig
nificant of these is
found
in the
friendlysociety movement,
in
co-operative
development,
and in
the higher scale of benefits pro
vided
in the better
class of
the trade
unions. Self-h
elp
is,
after
all,
the
best
of help,
for
self-reliance
is
the basis
of
tr
ue manhood. Skill,
sobriety,
and industry
will
enable
our
wo
rkpeop
le
to
hold
their
own in
the markets
of
the
world, especially
if
the
skill
is
wisely
dire
c
ted
and
production is
not
hampe
red by
harassing conditions.
•
••
••
•
With
the
dawn
of a
new year le
t
us
hope that
we
shall settle
do
wn to
a
wid
er freedom
in
enterprise,
to
a wiser a
dju
stment
of l
abour
d i E ~ p u t e s
and to
a closer association b
et
ween
capita
l
and
l
abour
for
mutual advantag
e. We
are
all
inte
rde
pendent.
As
in
th e
human
body,
if
one o
rgan gets
out of order, all
th
e rest
su
ffer mo
re or
le ss
in sympathy.
At the last meeting
of
the Roya
l
Statist
i
ca
l S
ociety
on December 19, 1899, a
paper
was read
on Some
Statisti
cs
Relating
to
Working
Class
Progre
ss since
1860, by
Mr.
George H.
Wood,
of Bristol, one of the
youngest
of the members of that society.
The paper
was an
exce
llent
one
in many
respects, dealing
as
i t
did with variations in
wages,
unemployment,
and
t,
he
comparative
consumption of commodities. In a
ll su
ch
discussions one bas
to
be
ca
reful
in
selecting a
ba
sis
of com
pari
son,
and
the
figures
mu
st
not
be
culled
to
suit
any
pr econceived notion whatsoever.
They ought
also to be
amp
le f
or
the
purpo
se.
Thi
s, however, in
some cases
is
difficult,
as
they a
re not
always avail
able.
The table in variation
s
in
money
wages
is
that
of Mr. Bowley. F
rom
that
table
it would
seem
that
the l
owest rates in
1860, 1861,
and
1862,
were
repre
se
nted
by
the
figures 72,
rising to
73
in
1863,
and to
74 in 1864.
After
that wages fluctuated between 77
in
1865,
and
84
in
1871, then advancing to 94
in
1872,
to
103
in
1873, falling to 99
in
1874, and
thence
down
ward
to 89
in
1879
and
1880.
From
1881 the varia
tions have been fr
om 90
to
95
in
1889.
From
1890
to
the
end
of 1896 the v
ariations
h
ave been fr
om 100
to
102, t he
highest
in 1893.
The
misfortune
is that
the
figures
stop at
1896, for
in the
l
ast three
years,
1897, 1898,
and
especially
in
1899, wages ha
ve
re
ached
a
higher maximum
than
ever
before. In thirty
years
prior
to 1890, the maximum of 100
wa
s
only reached
once, in 1873,
when it was
103 for that
year
only,
fa
ll
ing
t o 99 in 1874.
But in
the seven
last
years
of the
ta ble the
wage rate
never
fell below 100.
The author
of
the paper
seeks
to
show what
the
average rate wou ld
be when
tested by want
of
emp
loy
m
ent,
not merely by aYeraging the
maxima
and
minima,
but
by dedu
c
ting
lo
ss of
time
from
the tota
ls.
This
is the first
statistical
effort
in
this direction,
and
Mr. Wood has
co
llected
a
ll
the
available
figures
he
could as
a basis f
or computation
.
He
commences
with
six
trade
unions
in
1860-2,
and
goes
on until
he
bas
31
in
1880,
varying
from that date to
26
in
one
ye ar, the
lowest.
The
best
test in this
case is
the
relati
ve
proportions
in given
unions, as,
for
example, the Engineers,
Ironfounder
s, Boilermakers,
and
Iron Shipbuilders,
the Carpenters
and
Joiners,
c. The
averages of
all
the
groups
of trades differ
from the
average
over
a
number
of
years
of
any one
of
the
unions,
and
the
year
s
in which the
average
of
unemployed is
highest,
d iffer also.
The highest
ave
r
age wa.s attained in
1878
and
1879, especially
in the
latter year. Yet,
singul
ar ly
enough, some
trade
s
were
not much
depre
ssed in these years. Engineers, boiler
makers,
and
ironfounders
were
especially so, the build
ing
trades not
so much.
The average number
of
unemployed in
fifteen
unions
with an
aggregate
of 118,217 m
embers,
in 1879,
was
12.5
per
ce
nt .
,
or nearly two-thirds more
than the
proportions
in ten ye ars previously, and
more
than
double
the
average
of
the
llubseq
uent twelve
years.
The
conc
lu
s
ion
from
the
figures is
that the pe r
centage
•
/
of
unemplo
y
ed wa
s lo
_wer in
the
decade
1870-9
t ~ a n
in the
de
c
ade
pr e
c
edmg
,
and the
de
c
ade s u c c ~ e d m g
that
mentioned.
But then the
early
y
ears
1n
the
seventies
were years
of
prosperity.
But the conclu
sion would
not
bea.c
another test,
namely, of
paymen
t s
in donation
benefit. In the five
years
1875·9 the
num
ber
of
unemployed in
some of
th
ese
years
was
not only
very larg
e,
but they
were
a
lm
ost perman
ently on the
funds.
In other
years
they are
off
and
on, the
propor
tio
n paid
not being
less
than the
number
of
members
on the f u ~ d s would seem to
indica
te the rec
ipient
s
as
out of work. The
time
on the
funds
would, therefore,
have
to
be taken into
acc
ount.
For ex
ample, if
100
men
we
re on donation
benefit
in the month at
lOs.
each per week,
the total
would
amount to
200l. per
month;
but this
is
not
the case.
In
proportion
to
the
intensity
of
depres
sion
in trade, the
number
out
of
work, and the
am
o
unt paid
would approximate,
but
it wou
ld be
safe to say that the
two never
agree.
Then,
again,
Mr. Wood did not note that
in m.any
unions
all
out of
work,
from
whatever cause,
s
tnkes
and
lo
ck-o
uts in
cl
uded
,
are returned as unemployed
;
the
Ironfounders
differentiate, but
the
others do not
us
u
ally
do so.
The
conclusion
in
the
paper is that
there is a
t e
ndency
towards
a
greater
perc
entage
of
un
employ
ed
than formerly.
This
conclusion must be
re
garded as
questionable. But the author of t
he
paper deserves credit
for the c
are
with
whi
ch
his
figures
have been prepar
ed
and presented. If the
years1898 and
1899 co
uld have been added, it
is
most
probable that the jroportion
of
unemployed
in
the
de
c
ade
1890-9 wo
ul be
lower
than in
1860-9,
or
1870-9,
or
1880-9.
I t is
imp
ortant from
every
point
of view
to
ascertain
the
relative proportions
of unemployed over
a series of
years,
but
as
yet
no
definite conclusions are
possible.
With
respect to the consum
ption
of com
modities,
that
is
a
question
apart
from
the
industria
l
aspects
of
emp
l
oyment or
non-employment,
and
need
not
be
here di
scussed.
I t
has
an
economic
al
v
alue
of
it
s own.
The great
question
for
us
he
re
is
whether
lack
of
employment increase
s
as
the years
roll
on.
Facts and figures
do
not
at
present
sanction that
view,
and we ca
n but
hope
that
they will
not in
the future.
The
first
pra
ct ic
al
step
towards the solution
of the
problem
of old
age pensions
in
the British Empire has
been
taken
in
New
Ze
aland, and it is oue wh i
ch
will
not
satisfy
the mo
re
ardent of
its
advocates
in Great
Britain.
Nevertheless,
well-m
ea
ning
philanthropists
a
nd
social economists
in this country
wi
ll find in the
New Zealand
Act mu
ch
wh ich
will appeal
to their
sense of justice and fitness in
its provi
sions and
thei
r
application. The New Zealanders
bru
sh aside the
notions
of pensions
for
all,
ir respective
of pos
ition
and
in
come.
The principal conditionsare:
(1}The
claimants
must
be sixty-five
years or upwards
:
(2} They
must
have li
Yed
in
the co
lony
for not
less
than
twenty-five
years; (3} The
maximum
pension is
fixed
at
1
8Z
. a
year, or, rough
l
y,
7s.
per week. Then
comes
the limit
of income and property
as
follows :
Applicants for
pen
sions in
receipt
of 34l. a
ye
ar or
more
are to
have their
pensions
reduced
by
ll
for
every ll
of
annual income
above
34l. a
year, and by the
sa
me
a
mount for ever
y
15l. of
the
net
c
apital value
of
all
acc
umulative pro
pert
y.
f
the
person, ma
le
or
female, has
an income
of
52l
a
year, or
possesses
propert
y of the
value of
270l.,
he or she is disentit
l
ed
to
a pension.
Thus the
•
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r i g ~ t
to
a . tate pension i
stri
ctly limited as
to
age,
res1dence m the co
lony,
and
as
to
the
applican t's
annual income,
and as
to the possession of
property.
are
important st i
pu lations as to character;
the hfe s rec::>rd must be a
fairly
c
leanly
one.
For
fiye
years previou
s
ly
to the date of application, not
earlier
th a
n
the
age of sixty-five, the claimant of
the
pen
sion must sa tisfy the authorities: (1) That
he ha
s
been leading a. sober and reputable life; (2) That he
has
not
su.ffer
ed
impri
sonment
within a given period ;
(3) Th
at,
1f a hu
sba
nd, he has not
deserted
his wife
or failed to pro,·ide for his chi ldren; or (4) f a. wife,
that
she
has
not
deserted her husband and
children.
These
qualifications
and limitatio
ns t e
nds
to
render
it
a good-c
ondu
ct pens ion
within the pre
scrib ed
limits as
to age, resi
den
ce in the colony,
po
ssession of an in come
or property, because if all those conditions are fulfilled,
good chara.cter remains as the one condition of g
rant
ing the
pen sion to t he
applicant. There
is little
to
complain of in those ~ c o n d i t i o n Merit is rewarded,
while
bad conduct is recognised
a.s
a. disqualifica.tion.
Some such rules apply in British
trade
unions, though
not
precisely the
same
.
The provisions
laid
do
wn
for ascerta.ining the quali
fica
ti
ons or disqualifications
are
specific a.nd minute.
The applicant for a. pension is
given
a. Peusion Claim
form,
iu which
is set
forth all
the
requirement
s of the
Act
; th is form he must fill
in,
a.nd ma.ke a statutory
de
c
laration
that
all
the pa rtic
ulars
filled
in
by
him
a
re
correc
t.
This de claration may be made before a
magistrate, depu ty
re
gis trar,
po
st
ma
ste r,
or
qualified
solicitor.
The
deputy
re
g
istrar, wh
o. together with
the chief regist
ra r
, will superintend t h ~
Pensi
ous
Department , will be ap pointed by
th
e
Government
to
carr y
out the
Act, must then file the claim and record
it
in
a book provided f
or the
p u r p o ~ e
which
book any
one may examine
:1
payment of a fee of l s. The
part
icula
rs of the claim are then to be
forwarded
to
the stipendiary
magi
st rate, wh
o will
investigate
the
same in open court. This mode of procedure, we
are assured, is not so formid able as it appears, for if
the magis
trate
is satisfied from the documentary
evidence that the claim is a. valid one, or that the
claimant
is ph
ys
i
ca
lly un able to attend the cou
rt, he
can
grant the
pension without more ado.
Th
e powers
of
th
e
ma
gistrate
are,
however, considerable; he is
allowed to follow his own discretion without being
bound
by
the strict ru les of eYidence in t es
ting
the
claims.
In
disposing of
material
points aga.iust the
claimant,
the stiipendiary magis
trate
shall distinguish
between
what he finds disproved and what he finds
simply unproved or insufficie
ntly
proved.
In
respect
of what is fo
und
to be
di
sproved, the magistrate 's
decision shall be final and concluE-ive for all purposes.
In
respect of what is found to be
simply
unproved
or
in
sufficient ly proved, the c
laimant ma
y
at
a
ny time
thereafter adduce fresh evidence. So far th is is
fa
vourab
le to the
applic
ant
for
the
pension.
The claim being g
rant
ed a pension certificate is
iss
ued
for the
year,
the certificate st anding good in
another registration district
up
on removal of
the
pensioner upon not ice being given. Each year the
pensio
ner mu
st furnish partic
ul
a
rs
of
in
come, &c.,
when the same process of investigation has to be gone
th r
ough. The pension is to be paid
monthly at
the
local post office upon product ion of th e certificate, the
paym
ents being endor':ied
thereon,
a
receipt
being
given by
the
pensioner. The pension may be wholly
or partially forfeited
by
misconduct, but o t h ~ r w i s it
is
inali
enable.
As an
expe
rim
e
nt
the Act is a m
ost
interesting one.
The last report for 1899
by the
Associated Iron
mo
ulder
s of
1
cotland
bring
s down the figures
to
the
l
atest
date, two re
port
s being issued in December.
I t congratu
la tes the members upon continued pro
sperity in
trade. The to t
al
numb
er of
working
mem
ber
s - that is, th ose in
employment-in
creased by 83,
whi
ch is
an
exce
ptional
state of
things
for the
time
of
year; the report says that usually at this season of
th e year, with short dark days, there is a
marked
falling off in the number employed. But
not
so
this year. This is
not
only with one branch of the
iron
trade,
but applies to
all tho
se engaged in the
iron and steel industries. The an ticipations are
that the
new year will
be one of prosperity all
through. But there are two shadows across
the
path :
The high
rate of in terest for mon
ey
,
and
the
high pric
e of ra.w
material
and fuel.
The report
states that the cond
ition
of trade is
equa
lly good in
England
and also in
th
e United
States
.
Never
before tbe report says, had the Amer ican nation such
a prosperou s year of trade,
and
such bright pro spects
for
the
future. Of course, these remark s are
to
some
extent predict ions, and
proph
ecies are of
te
n delusi .e.
The
members are reminded
that
while
there
is now a
flow of trade, there may be, there will
ine
vitably be,
an ebb
tid
e and
therefo
re they
are
ent r
eated
to pre
pa r
e for
it';
by sobriety, greater reg.ulari ty at work,
and
thrift in the use of prese
nt
earmngs. The mem
bership
of
th
e union
ha
s h e d
t h ~
highest
level ever
known
in its records, bes
1d
es whtch th ere are 366
Apprentice mem
be
rs. These will be the journeymen
E N G I N E E R I N G.
of the
future,
disciplined in the u
sa
ges of t he society,
I t is especially urgent that the young should be
thus
brought in,
as new
machinery is in force adapted for
working
by
ju
Yenile
labour
,
that
is
to
say,
by
such
as
are in
the appr
e
nt i
cE ship age. Th e funds s
how
a
further increase of 1517l. 1Os. 2d. in the four we
eks
of
the
re
port,
the total balan ce being 61, 129l. 12s. 8d.,
this being the highest amount ever recorded. Mem
ber
s are
urged
to clear up all
arrears
so that th ey
may
not be
out
of benefit if a reverse should
co
me up on
them. The quesLion of an
advance
in wages in t he
Ay rs
hire
d
is t
ricts
wa
s before a Conference towardq
the
close of
the
year, but
the matte
r was adjourned
until February 14, 1900. Pr
obably
the matters in
di
s
pute will
be
settled without any
t i o n
of work.
The report shows that there is an
increa
se on super
annuation
bene
fit;
the list grows, but t
he
members
ha
ve won the right to the allowance.
The
la
st report of
the
Nat ional Union of Boot and
hoe Operatives brings the inf
or
mation
down
to nea rly
the eve of Christmas,
at
which da te
there
w
as
a
quietening down in some ce
nt r
es, noteLbly at Northamp
ton, taffor
d,
and a few other
pla
ces. One fact is noted
of some in terest, nam ely ,
that
there is not
th
e same
dema
nd as
formerly for hea
vy
winter goods.
Thi
s is
account
ed for in
two
ways - the mildness of the
wint
er
s e a ~ o and th e greater faciliti es for travelling by
rail
, tram, ' bus, and bicycle,
whi
ch enab les
tr
avellen
to wear lighter
arti
cles
than
when much of t he journey
ing was on foot . The clHnges alluded
to hav
e l
ed to
th
e dema
nd
not o
nly
for lighter ar t icles, but for a
better class of goods, so mething more pleasing to the
eye, th an
wa
s the case when
wa
lking was indulged in
t o a greater extent than it is now.
Of
course, thi s
refers
mor
e
to urb
an
than to rural popul
at
ions,
but
t he
latt er
are
less
num
erous t han the former. The con
tention is t ha t men have to be
mor
e killed to suit t he
taste of the age,
and
therefore the w
or
ker
ca
nnot gi .e
an equal quanti ty whe'l greater skill is required.
Employers , it i stated, complain of a dearth of
good clickers.
Th
e uni on officials deny th is, but
int imate that the pay is ins
uffi
cient
to
attract the best
men to the fa
cto
ries whence the complaints emana.to.
The society has been f ree from labour disputes, except
such
as
t he local officers of the union were
abl
e
to
se
ttle
. On e difficult y seems to be looming in the
fu tur e,
but
th is doubtless will be arranged mutually
by
t he Concil
iation Board
;
it ha
s reference to t he a ge
limit for full wages, the award of 1892 fixing it at 20
y
ears
of age , whereas some employers Feek
to
raise it
to 25 years of age. Members are reminded t hat
a
ward
was a n
at
ional one,
and app
lies t o
all
di
st
ri
cts
;
it is not therefore to be violated in any case.
Th
e
content ion is that t he present
di
Yision of labour,
conse
quent up
on t he use of mechanical contrivances,
enables a youth of 20 to become as expert
at
his
bran
ch a he
eYe
r will be, or c
an
be.
Th
e rep
ort
con
ta
ins an excellent t ribute to the late general
secreta
ry,
Will
iam In skip,
J. P .,
in the sh
ape
of an elaborate
card, reproduced from
the
American Machinists
onthly J mt:rnal, at Washin
gto
n.
Th
e br anch r
eports
gener
ally
regard
the
out look for 1900 as
very
f
M-
our
abl
e from most poin ts of view.
The position of the engineering trades
throughout
Lancas
hire at
the close of the
year
was regarded
generally
as very
sa t
isfa ctory. The New Ye ar opened
with plenty
of work in n
early
,
if not quite
all, branches.
Machine tool makers
are
well supplied with work for
a. considerable
time
ahead. Boilermakers also are full
of work. Locomotive builders not only ha ve a con
siderable
weight
of
work
in
hand,
but
report numerous
inquiries coming forward from railway companies, and
for rolling stock generally there is a
large
amount of
work just now giving out. Heavy
station
a
ry
engine
builders, though not quite so pre ssed with work
as
they have been, are fully engs.ged
with
work in
band,
with fair prospects of
an
increa se at no distant da t
e.
In
the
branches of general engineering
and
construc
tive
work
the re are
fairly
la r
ge inquiries
under
con
sideration. E
lectri
c
al
and hydraulic engineers
co
n
tinue
to be
ex
ceedingly busy
in
most cases. A l t o g e ~ h e r
the
position is good, and
the
prospects
are
encouragmg.
But the sc
ar
city and high
pr i
ce of fuel, and of
raw
mat erial generally, tend to hamper operations, espe
cially in some dis
tricts. The
iron market was stronger
in tone, the recovery
in warrants
putting a check upon
the rather excessively low selling whi ch had been
going on recently. A fair number of inquiries for
pig
ir
on were reported for early delivery,
as
consider
ab
le
requirements will
have
to be covered shortly.
Makers are firm at recent rates, but in more cases
sellers offer below the qu
oted
rates. The position of
the finished iron
tr a
de is
as
firm as ever. Bar makers
decline to book new business exce
pt at
a subs
ta
ntial
a
dvan
ce on list ra tes.
The
steel trade
ie
also
Nut and bolt makers have signified an advance of 20s.
per
ton
on the list rates.
Th
e coalminers of
Lan
cashire
app
F-a
r
to
be disposed
to
oppose t he
prop
osal of the Coal
Trade
Concil1ation
Board as regards
the
advance in wages recently con-
•
[JAN. 5 I900.
sidered and
pro
visionally acc
ep
t ed. The opposition is
led by two of t he Lancashire Federation agents, :Mr.
Sam '\Voods'
propo
sals being negat ived at two large
meetings.
The
men almost unanimously decided to
reject
the
proposals
laid
before t hem. The opposition
seems to be
dire
c
ted
chiefly against the proposal
to
bind the Federation
to the
decision of the Boa
rd
f
or
four years.
I t
is not i b l e for
all
to see alike on
questions such as th ose; but
when
the
agitati
on ag
ai
nst
the Conciliation Board is led by the men 's own recog
Dised agents,
whil
e the officials take the opiJosite view,
t
here
is a
danger
of a split and of some friction
in
the
working of
the
union.
However, Lancashire
is
but
one section of the Nationa.l
Federation.
In the
Wolverhampton
and
Birmingham
districts
there
was not
any large amount
of business done
at
the Jast week' s
markets;
but t he p'>sition gene
rally
in
the
iron and
st et-1 t
rad
es remain
ed
abo
ut
t he same.
The furnaces, mills, and forges wer e, as far as possible,
restarted on
Wednesday
or Thursday,
as
there is a
grea
t
deal
of
work
to be c
leared off. There
was, in
some cases, much difficulty in obtaining coal, so that
some
works were
not
able
to recommence oper
at
ions.
I t is also rep ort ed
that
th e Cannock Chase coalowners
have decided to increase the wagon hire by 3d. per
ton
for all distances,
by rea
son of the dearness of iron
and steel in the construc
tion
of wagons, and also
because of the b ~ o c k s on th e
railw
ays , which
hav
e b
ad
the effect of curtailing
the
work to be got
out
of the
wa.gons.
As reg
a
rds
pr ices, the
anticipation
s are
th at
t here will be a
further
rise
in the
pri ce of coal. Some
good inquiries a
re
reported for
iron
and steel for
War
Office
requir
e
ments
in South Afri ca. and merchantR
out there are said to be ordering in anticipation of
the
cessation of hos
tilitie
s. lVIarked
bar
s
ha
ve been
firm
at full rates, and a
further
ri se of
lO
s. per ton
ie
expected. Unmarkerl bar ma
ker
s refuse to accept
orders for less than 10/.
per
ton. A brisk business
is reported in ga lvanised ~ h e e t s both on home and
foreign accoun t. teel is scarce
and
dear, t here being
large demands for engineering
purp
oses. Mak ers are
not able to insure
early
deliveries. Generally, t he
posi tion is good, -nd the
outl
ook is encouraging in
all
branches.
Th
e co
ttish
Miners'
Fe
deration
ha
ve lodged a
demand
for a further ad Yance in wages of 9d.
per
day
ou and after
February
1
f
the demand is
granted, this wi11 rai se the men 's wages t o the max
i
mum,
as
in the case of the Miners' Fe der
at
ion in the
English districts. The decision of
the
coalowners has
not ye t been
re
ceived by the federation officials.
The employes at Mes rs.
Penn
a
nd
Sons' engineering
w
or
ks
at
Deptford and Greenwich, now ta ken
oYe
r
by
t he Thames Iron vV
or
ks
Co
mpany, Limited, started
wor k on
the
eigh
t·
ho
urs
system
wi t
h
th
e
comm
ence
ment of the New Year. The eight h
ours
have been in
operation
at
the Millwa.ll for some t ime,
with
,
in the
co
mpany's opinion, great success.
The OfJer
ati
ve Bricklayers' ociety have decided by
a ballot of t he members
to
disco
ntinu
e Mr . R.
H.
Taylor's weekly payment a member of the London
County
Co
uncil, the reason being that he, as referee in
a dis
pu
t e
bet
ween t h
at
society
and
the Tile
rs
' Union,
decid
ed
against his own union in a line of demarcation
of wo
rk.
All honour to the
man who
too k such a
co
urse wh
en his own
uni
on was in the wrong. But
what of the society ? f an employer had done t his
he would have been denounced for intimidation, or
something worse.
The st rik e of miners in t he coal di st rict s of
Fran
ce
has led to the disrha.rge of some 4000
hand
s in the
va r
ious factories in the
t. Etienne di
st rict. All
effort s so far have been ineffectual to end the strikE\
and
it is an tic
ipat
ed
th
at
furth
er wo
rk
s will be closed
unless th e disp
ute
can be ended.
The Shop Assistants ' eats Act came into operation
on
th
e 1st inst.
througho
ut the co
un
try. Wherever
females are employed seats must be pro, ided in the
proporti
on of one seat to every three female assista
nt
s;
failing
to
comply with this
pr
ovision the employer is
liable to a fine not exceeding
5l
nor less th an
l l
Th
e
di
spu te be
tw
een the
Blind Bru
shma
ke r
s
and
the Associati on for the General vVelfare of the Blind,
after last ing 20 weeks, has been referre d to
th
e Lo
nd
on
Labour
Co
nciliation and Arbitra tion Board in con
nection with the London
Cha
mber of Commerce.
Both partie
s have to be hear
d, wh
ereupon the Bo
ard
will make its award in due
co
urse.
Trade-union secret ar ies are
co
mbining
fo
r th e pro
tection of their ioterests.
\Y
ell,
they ha
ve need of
some such union, for the unions as a rule are n
ot
too
l
ibera
l
to th
e
ir
officials.
But
complic
at
ions may arise.
f the officials st rike , what then ? The members will
do well
to
wa tch th is new departu
re
.
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 30/37
•
J AN.
5
I
900.]
E N G I N E E R I N G.
SHIPBU
ILDING AND MARINE
ENGINEERING l N
1
899
.
article shows the production in the various di
st r
icts ,
and needs no explanation.
I N our last issue of t he year we gave an article
dealin" wi t,h the main points of the shipbuilding of
1899, ~ n d ,
as promised then, we
re turn to
t he su
_b
ject now to consider the work of the several dls
tricts and firm s, who supplied the data wh
ic
h
enabled us
to arri
ve
at
a summation of the
year
's
operations.
vVe
take first the district em braced in
the term " North·
East
Coast, st retching from Blyth
in the nor th
to
vVbitby on the Yorkshi re coast,
including t he important centres of the Tyne, Tees.
Wear and Hartlepool. The six ports produced
296
v e s s e l ~
wh
ose
tonnage aggregates
888,762
tons, whic
h,
it
is
dca
rcely necessa
ry to
say, is
the
highest
yet
attained and compares with
332
vessels of
846,027
tons in
i 898.
The best
total
previous
to
th is was in
1892
and even t hen
it
was
256,000 ton
s less t han the
~ 1 t of
th
e past t welve months.. This is. a very
st riking evidence of the great expans10n of t he mdustry
Rather less th an usual
of
the north-east coast ton
nage w
as
for foreign ow
ner
s, the total being 2 2 6 , 4 ~ 9
tons, equal to 2 5 ~ per cent. of the output, whereas m
th o previous year
th
e proportion was 27 per cent., in
189
7, 3
1
per cent., and in
1896
it was
35
per cent.
Indeed
thi s year it is about 4 per cent. below the average of
several years, if we oxcept years of depression when
the Clyde compet ition was a potent
fact
or in
red
ucing
it to
14
or
16
per cent. The highest percentage of
foreign
to
to
tal
tonnage on
th
e Clyde is 33 per cent.,
but for the past y e e ~ . r
it
was only 20 per cent. The
Tyne and Wear produced less of the foreign tonnage
th
an usual,
but the
Tees
a.nd
Hartlepool ha.ve in
creased
the
ir
quota
.
There
we
re
no
sa
iling ships
built: the north-east ports never took a very acti ve
part in building such cr
aft,
and th e
1118
tons, which
cannot
be classed
as
steam, is made
up
of
r ~ e s
and such like craft. There were thus
887,644
tons requiring machine
ry
. The engines for one
or
YEAR 18&0 Cl 2 GJ G4 CS 6G (;7 OS 70
71
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38891900 Y EAR.
on
th
e north-east coast . The ton nage laun ched in t he
two district s over a period of years m
ay
be here
two Elswick ships were constructed in London
a.
dec
rea
s
ing q u a n t i t
by
the
way and against
t his is set the fact that the of
several amaH craft was made in
the
w
est
of
Scotla
nd;
while Messrs. Hawtho
rn,
Leslie, and Co
.,
Limited, mad e engines for tw o battleships and one
destro
yer,
not bu
ilt
on
the
Tyne. Wa rships machi
nery
make up
co
llectively
115,500
indic
ated
horse
power, and against this we have only
30,559
tons
t he comparative figures f
or 1898
being
100,850 indi
cated
horse-po
wer
and
35,397
tons.
I f
we take only
mercant ile tonnage and merchant machinery power we
have a ra
tio
of only horse-power per t on gross,
rather less than
it
was in
1898.
This indicates
that
here, as in other dist ricts, t he
great
maj ority of
t he vessels w
ere
of
the
useful a
nd
profitable,
if
un
interest ing, cargo type to carry immense loads at low
cos
t. It
is an i
nte
r
esti
ng fact also th
at
only seven of
the ma
ny
firm s on the north-Past coast
build
engines
as well as ships ; the great majority of the rna·
chine
ry
is constru
cte
d
by estab
lishm
ents
sole
ly
devoted
to the work . We thus give separately a list of th e
engine builders.
•
g1ven:
1899. 1898. 1897. 1896. 1895. 1894.
Tons. Tons. Tons. Tons. Tons. Tons.
Nort b · east
por ts
..
888,762 846,027 666,890 667,638 616,224 615,078
Clyde
..
493,793 473,714 341,817 422,304 359,626 339
1
640
Ratio
of
north -east
to Clyde
tota
l . . 1.8 to 1 1.78 1.63 1.57 1
.43
1
.44
I t will thus be seen that t he north-E'n.st co
ast
mo\·es
ahead
at
a g r
eater r ~ t t i o
than
the
Clyde
; the
tonnage
is now in t he
Eng
lish dist rict practically double
wha
t
it
was in
1893,
the total then being only
435.349
ton s,
whereas in the case of the great Scotch rivor t he output
now is only
57
per cent. greater, th e total then bemg
279,916 tons.
I t
is true that 1893 was a year of great
depression, and t hat in
1889,
when trade was
at
t he
hei
ght
of a boom,, the north-east coast produced 2 to
each 1 ton launched on the Clyde, which would seem
to indic
ate
that during periods of
great ac t
iYity the
north-east ports compete more successfully with the
Clyde ; but th e increasing r
at
io of the output
to the Clyde total in
recent
years of act ivity, from
l. 57
in
1896
to l.
8
in
1899,
shows that. they more t han
hold
their
own.
The qua
lity of
their work
is also im
proving, for
ma
ny of the ships rank
hig
h a fact
due in some measure
to
the goodly number of Clyde
t rained marine constructors
at
the
head
of
works in
ihs
< ; t .
The diagra.m which accompanies t hie
The Wallsend Slipway a
nd Engineering
Company,
Limited,
not
only
top
the list for the district,
but
for
the
Un
ited Kingdom,
and,
indeed, we
might t?ay
for
t he world a act upon whi ch Mr . Andrew Laing, the
engineering manager, may be congratulated, espe
cially
as
it
follows upon a
sati
sfa
ct
or
y
year
.
Th
e
ir
return, too, includes several important vessels, a
29
Prod
1
- ction of Marine Engines on the N orth-East Coast.
I
18
98. I 1
89
7.
-'-
1896.
1899.
- -
No. I .H.· P.
I.II
.-P. I .H. -P. I. H.
·P
.
- [ 1 -
Ty
ne.
Wallsend Slipway Oom·
pany, Limited. . . .
Hawthorn, Leslie, and
Co., Limited . . . .
Nor th-Easte rn .Mari
ne
19 I 67
1
600
9 561300
Engineer ing Company ,
Limited, Walleend . . 29 65,800
Pa
lme rs' Company Ltd.,
9 4
3,300
Wigham Richardson a
nd
Co.
1
Limited .. .. 8 15,900
J. Readhead and
So
ns
. .
8 13,700
R.
Stephenso
n and Co.,
Lim
ited . . . . . .
4 6,000
J.
P.
Rennoldson
and
Son,
South
Shie
l
ds
. ·1 1
Q. T. Gr
ay,
South Shields 17
7,834
6,420
Bai rd an?. Ba rnsley,
North
Shie
i
ds
. . . . 6 1,620
Hepple and Oo.
1
Limi ted,
South
Shields
. . . .
4 1,350
Il edley and Boyd, Nor th
Shields .. .. ..
2 I
535
e8,no
84,145
40,375
49,000
20,605
12,700
3,705
3,405
-
~ 0 0
221675
49,660
351750
481635
151200
11
1700
2,o59
-
-
-
13,460
2
0,EOO
40,150
46,30'J
30,250
12,750
21472
-
-
-
-
- - - - - - - - - -
i76,369
262,845 1 8 6 , 1 6 1661182
Tees.
Blair
and
Oo., Limited,
Stockton . . . . 36
52,700
46,200
Fu
rn
ess, We
stga
rth, and
Co., Limited, Middles·
brough
..
.. ..
19
I 26,850* 29,672
79,550
75,872
Wear.
Geor
ge
Clark,
Limited
. .
24
I
42
1
810 51,216
No
rth - Eastern Marine
1
En
gi neerin
l{
Compa
ny
20
21
,576
t
1 14,820
Wm
. Dox
ford
and Sons,
Limited
. . . . . .
7 20,870
1::S,
750
J.
Dickinson
an
d Sons,
Limited
. . . . . . 16
Wm. Allan a.nd Co., Ltd. 8
MacColl and Pollock . . 11
H atrtlepool.
Centr
al
Marine En ginee r-
ing Works . . . . 28
12,900
5,960
37,934
18,550
8,140
1331119 144,410
44,650 47,300
36,300
27,600
7,825
27,7(0
21,750
11,000
2,8 0
60,070
11,550
61,620
37,2
00
14,390
14,1
00
26,260
10, 2es
98 ,675 101,575
27,350 2
4,9 50
* This is ex
clusive
of 6650 indicated horse-power of land engi nes,
making the to ta l 32,500.
t This is
exclusive
of 6000 indicated horse-power of p u m p i n ~
mac hin ery, and of ma rine
bo
ilers = 2750 indicated horse-power
fo r other purposes.
warship b
uilt
at Elswick-
and
the immense steamer
I vern
ia.
for
the
Cunard Company. Meesrs . Hawthorn,
Leslie, and Co., include the machinery of H .M.S.
Bulw
ar k
, launched from the Devonport Dockyard, a
small foreign battleship, th ree
destroyer
s,
the
hull
of one of which only they constr ucted. The North
Eastern Marine Engineering Company, who <.:orne
n
ext,
supplied engines to ve sEels built
in almost
all
the
po
rt
s
in th
e
Northum
be
rland and Durham coast
.
So
al
so wi
th Bl
a
ir
and Co., Limi
ted, who
come
next
on
the
list for the whole
district.
Seven of the
vessels for which engines were constructed were built
in
S
und
erland, one
at Willington
Quay
on the Tyne,
two
at Blyth, two at Whitby, twenty-two
at
Stock
ton, one at Bristol, and the twenty-sixth at Arendal,
in Norway.
The engines of t he Ce
ntral Marine En
gineeri
ng
Company were for the vessels built by Sir
W Gray and Co. , exce
pting
one large set of
ma
chmery f
or
the s.s.
Kumar a
, for
the Shaw
, Savill,
and Albion Company 's New Zealand ref
rige
rating
trade. The total for
28
vessels is
44,650
indicated
hor se-power, co
mpared with
29 vessels
of 47,300
indi
cated horse -power in
1S98,
22 vessels of 27,350 indi
c
ated
horse-power for 1897, and 18 vessels of 24,950
i
nd
icated horse-power for
1896. In
t he boiler depart
ment, besides the
63
boilers for the 28 vessels en
gined, 13 of various classes have been built, making
altogether 75 ma
rine
boilers turned out during t he
year. The works
ha
ve continued in full empl oyment
d ~ r i n g the
whole
year, and, it
is gra t if
ying
to report,
w1th
out
any
labo ur
tr
oubles
what
ever .
For the
coming
year a large amount of work is in han d, includ ing
three sets of
Mudd
's
patent fi
ve-cra
nk
engines, and. a
powerful set of twin-
screw
engines for an Atlantic
liner.
TnE TY
NE
.
The
builder
s on
the
Tyne launched
11 8
vessels
where
as
in t he t wo previous
years
th e numher s
w e r ~
143
and
142,
but anwe re of greater size, and
thus
th e
total t onn
age - 307,568
tons, is about 96
000 tons
more t han in
1897.
In
1898
th Ere
e r ~
only 12
veEsels over 6000 tons, t
hi
s year t h ~ r were 17,
aud seven we
re
b
etween 4000
and
5000 tons,
26
between
3000
and
4000
tons, one between 2000 and
3000
tons,
11 betw
een
1000 and 2000 tons
eight
between
500
and
1000,
and
48
were
le
ss
t h ~ n this
measurement. Thus the
re
were 50 of t he vessels
over
3000
tons, and
51
in th e
previ
ous year. The tot-al
is double that of
1893,
when bottom was to uched
in t he last d
ep
ression, while t he general t rend is
clearly sho
wn in the
diagram.
I t
may be not
ed
t h
at
l
ast
ou tput is ~ 0 7 , 0 0 0 tons over th e average for
th e s1x
yea
rs
precedwg 1898. No Fla
iling ships
w e r ~
•
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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30
buil
t, although barge
s
and
the
lik
e ac
count
for 794
tons, and th e s team tonnage calls for little comment.
Th ree British des
troy
ers and five foreign warships
were launched, while mac
hinery
was
provided
for
four more- th e Tyne alone being responsible for
30,119 tons and 109,500 indica ted horse - power
of war ship work.
To these
we s
hall refer in
detail when dealing
with
the
returns
from th e
builders. With the 28,950 tons of foreign warships
from the Elswick Vorks,
th
e total to
nnage
for
abroad
comes to 92,223 ton s, or 29.1
per
cent. of the aggre
gate, whereas in 1898 it was
11
9,184 tons, or 38.85 per
cent. This compares
with
41.28 per c
ent.
and 47.2
per
cent. respectively in 1897 and 1896. Only one
small
s
teamer
of 148
tons wa
s
sent to
th
e Clyd e,
and
a l
arge
vess
el
to
Abe
rdeen and to Dundee,
while the
Cly
de
sent a vessel of 3695
tons
to Newcastle.
The
horse-power of machinery constructed makes
up
275,359
indi
cated
hor
se-power, but it does not follow
that this
was all for
Tyne-built
vessels.
The
total is
22,500 higher than in 1898, and has steadily increased
since 1895, as shown
in
our Table
of the
production
of
marine
engines on
th
e
north-ea
st coa
st
.
Coming now to th e returns by shipbuilders, it will
be seen that Messrs. Sir W. G. Armstrong, Whitworth,
and
Uo.,
Limited,
top
the list, with
a t onnage of 57,543,
which is 3564 tons better
than
in the previous year,
and double
the
output of the year of
the
engineering
dispute. Of
the twelve
vessels included, five are
fighting ships-the Japanese battleship Ha tsuse, of
15,000 tons, with engines of 14,500 indicated horse
power ; the Japanese armoured cruiser Idsumo, of
9800 ton s and 14,500 indicated horse-power; the
United States
pr
otec
ted
cruiser Albany,
of
3450
ton s and 7500 indicated horse-power, and two de
stroyers
for
Ru
ssia, one
with
engines
by
the
Wall
s
end Company, and
th
e other with
Parson
s
turbines
.
In this latter vessel, of 360 tons displaceme
nt, th
e
power t o be developed is 10,000 indicated horse
power,
the
same as in the
Viper,
built
by
Messrs.
Hawthorn, Leslie, and Co. The seven merchan t
steam
ers have been built
at the
company's Low Walker
y
ard.
The
most notable
of these is
the
Strombus,
the sixth oil-carrier built for the Shell Transport
Company,
and the
largest of the class yet floated.
Sh
e
carrie
s 8500 tons of oil,
and
is so
arranged th
at
general cargo can be stowed on the outward voyage.
Oil
fu
el, too , is
burn
ed, the Wallsend
Engin
e Com
pany management having made many experiments
to
arrive at the best resul ts. Three of the other ships
we
re of 3760 tons.
Nearly
all
th
e company's
berths
are
occupi ed.
Palmers' Company return seven vessels of 42,683
tons, which is a distinct improvement on
the returns
of several preceding years, although still far behind
the 64,669 tons which marked th e company's high
water mark t en years ago. First mention should be
made of the t wo destroyers for Her Majesty's Navy,
compl
eting
50 fighting ships;
with thes
e destroyers
the company have been specially successful. Two of
th e merc
hant
steamer
the British Princess and
British
Princ
e-were
of 9591 tons
and
4400 indicat
ed
horse-power, for a Liverpool line, and two were for
the Manchester Line, of 7673 tons and 3500 indicated
horse-power.
The
se
are
typical steamers of t
he
year.
The engine
output
includes new machinery for the
gunboats
Skipjack and
Speedwell, each of 6000 tons.
P r oduction of T yne F irms.
1899. 1898- 1897.
Na
me
of
Firm
.
No. Ton
s.
I.H.P.
Tons. LH .P_ Tons.
E N G I N E E R I N G.
are
unmistakeably
German.
Th
e
ir tota
l is 1400 tons
better
than in
1898 ;
and
their engine total includes
machinery for a vessel not built by them.
Messrs.
R. and
W. Hawthorn, Leslie, and Co.,
have
a most
satisfa
ctory return,
although their
engine
power is less
than
the
r
ecord of 18
98.
They
floated four 7000-ton cargo carriers for Brit ish ownera,
as well as
H.M.
S. Viper, which is exc
itin
g so much
interest because she has Pa rsons s team turbines dri v
ing the propellers.
In
addi t ion they
fi
t ted engines
to
H.M.S. Bulwark,
H .M.S.
Havo
ck , and
two of the
Elswick warships. During the year the company's
dry dock department has been well employed, amongst
the
various jobs dealt with being
the insulated steam
ship Buteshire, which was seriously damaged by fire
a
nd
scuttling in the Colonies, and afterwards placed
in
the compan
y s
hands for rec
onstru
ction.
The
forge department has been exceptionally busy through
out the year. Messrs. J . Readhe
a.d
and Sons, South
Shields, with eight steamers of 27133
ton
s, main
tain their former high average, all of the vessels being
over 3000 ton s, and all were engined by the firm, who
have now every berth occupied.
The
y have done a
large amount of repair work. The Nor thumberland
Company only commenced operations at Howden
at
the
end of 1898, and
yet
have a splendid re
turn
of seven
vesRels, of 20,330 ton s, the first being built for
one of the direct
or
s of
the
company, Mr. J o
hn
Co
ry,
of Cardiff. Four
are
over 3000 tons and one is over
4000 tons. The return of the Tyne Iron Shipbuilding
Company,
Willington
Quay, shows a decrease of two
steamers, and 1257 tons, as comparedwith the previous
year. One of the vessels was for Danish owners and
one each for Dundee, Newcastle,
and
No
rth
Shields.
Messrs.
Willia
m Dobson
and
Co., Low
Wa
lker, have
laun
ched seven steel
steamer
s, of 13,262 tons gross re
gister. Thi s return shows a decrease on last
year
of
one vessel and 3575 tons. Four of th e vessels built
this year were for London owners, and one each for
Copenhagen, Belfas
t, and
Aberdeen.
The
firm have
several vessels on the stocks in co
ur
se of construction.
Messrs. Rober t Stephenson and Son, Hebbur n Quay,
launched four steel steamers, of 12,601 tons gross, a
reduction of three vessels and 6924 tons. The firm
ha
ve
in
hand
two steamers for Messrs. Furness, Withy,
and Co., a pontoon for the Spanish Government,
and
two dock gat es for the N
or t
h-Eastern Railway Dock
extension at Middlesbrough. I t is expected that t he
excavations for
th
e new doc
ks
will be
shortl
y
started,
:Me ssrs. Wood, Skinuer, and Co., Limited, Bill Quay,
built
eight
steel steamers, of 11,293 tons gross, an in
crease of 1551 tons, as compared with 189
8.
Two of the
vessels built in 1898 w
ere
for Grim1by owners to be
employed
in the fi
shing t rade, five were for Nor
wegian owners, and the largest of the eight was the
Crewe, 3139 tons gross register, owned in Newcastle.
Smith
's Dock
Co
mpany, Limited, North Shields, which
has been amalgamated during the year with ?viessrs.
Edwards
Brothers, have built a fleet of 23 deep-sea
fi
shing vessels of 4432 tons. Messrs. J. P. Rennold
son and on s, South Shields, launched ten vessels, in
cluding
the
powerful steamer
Titan,
built for service
in the Suez Canal. The return of :Messrs. J . T.
Eltringham and Co. , Stone Quay, South hields,
shows an
in
crease of one vessel and 59 tons. Six of
the vessels
ar
e for North Shields owners, to be en
gaged in
the
fishing trade, two are for Sunderland,
and one each for Glasgow and Hull. Cleland s Grav
ing Dock a
nd
Slipway Company, at Willington Quay,
have
launched t hree steel s
team fi
shing vessels.
T E W EAR
[JAN.
5
I900.
tons; Germany, 13,430
tons,
a
gainst
only one 3000·
ton s
teamer;
Holland, 7577 t ons, as compared with
9845 tons; Spain, 8004 tons; France, 4060 tons; and
Austria, 2663 tons.
Each firm's to tals for three years
are
given in
the
ap
pended Table, and the diagram on the
pr
eceding page
shows
the
fluctuat ions
in th
e total for the
district.
For the
third
successive year, Messrs. J. L. Thompson
and Sons top t he list with an aggregate of 36,013
tons
, and i t is significa
nt
of sa tisfactory
work that
th
e I sel Holme, of 4092 tons, makes the seventeenth
boat constructed by the firm for her owners; whilst
the
John
H.
Ba
rry,
of 3396 tons, is
the twelfth
order
from ano
ther
company. Recent
ly the
firm extended
their
yard.
Sir
J amea Laing
and
Sons occ
upy
second
place, with about
the
same tonnage as in 1898.
In
a
ddition
to the huge vessel al ready mentioned, the
firm launched one or two large oil steamers. Most of
t he
ste
amers we
re
for English companies,
and
one was
to
the order
of
th
e
Nept
une Steam Navigation Com
pany, of Sunderland, to whom the firm has now sup
plied al
togeth
er seventeen vessels. Messrs. Shor t
Brothers, Pallion, are represented by eight vessels,
of 30,060 tons- not quite so large as last y
ear
.
Two of
the
yessels we
re
for local owners. Messrs.
Doxford and Sons bu
ilt
six turret steamers,
Production of We
ar
F
i TTt3
.
1899. 1898. 1897. 1896.
Name
.
No. Tons. Tons. Tons.
Tons.
-
-
-
J. L. Thompson and
Sons, Limited
• •
9
36,013 41 ,056 33,176 37,323
Sir
J . Laing
and
Sl)ns,
34,38 l 34,280 15,937 22,600
imi ted . . . .
7
Short Brothers
• •
8
30,060 31,161 30,660 32,321
W. Doxfo
rd and
Sons,
Limit
ed
--
.
7 29,543
29,
S}7
7
30,6
74
39,533
Sunderland Company,
Limited
• •
••
6 26,163 15,191 4, 660 11, 839
J ohn Pr i
estman and
Co.
• •
•• .
20,240 18,6
60
12,660 17,7
07
J _ Blum er
and
Co.
• •
6
18,006 19,447 10,868 14,304
Rober t Thompson and
7
17,651 19,655 15,436
7,
360
ons
••
-
.
--
W. Pickersgill and Sons 6
17,187 14,990 6,954 5,763
Bart ram and Sons . _
4
, 14,529
17,151 10,628 14,113
S. P. Aust in
and
Son,
Limi ted
•• • •
6
11,368
10
,029
7,075
10,602
O
sb
ourne, Graham, and
Oo.
• • • •
• •
3
9,489 5,047 2,185 4,7 54
St
rand
Slipw
ay
Com-
pa
ny ..
• •
•
•
3
3,876
2,
649 1,484
159
-
-
making 54 of
the
class now afloat. The Clan Line have
nine
turrets,
while Messrs. Runciman
and
Co., of
Newcastle, added another t o their fleet. The tor
pedo des
tro
yer Lee, makes th e seventh vessel con
stru
cted. The Skandia, of 7500 tons carrying capacity,
bas been fitted
with
t
en
masts,
to
which
are atta
ched
18 derricks,
in
order to fac
ilitate rapid
loading
and
discharging of ore cargoes. The output of the Sunder
land hipbuilding Company is the largest fo r seve
ral
years- 26,163 tons.
The
Norfolk
and
Suffolk are of
6764 tons. Messrs. John Priestman and Co. had a fire
in the spring, yet launched 1590 ton s more than in the
pre ceding twelve months. Messrs. Osbourne, Graham,
and Co. have increas
ed
their ou tput by 4442 tons ;
Messrs. R.
h o m ~ and
Sono
by
2005 tons ;
]\lfe
ssrs.
Pickersgill and Sons by 12
77 tons;
Messrs. S. P.
Austin
and Sons, who do a
gre
a t deal of repairing
work,
by
1339 tons;
and the
S
trand
Slipway Company
by 1227 tons.
T o be cont inued . )
Sir W. G. r m s t r o n
Wbi tworLh, and Co.,
Limited
_.
. . . _
Palmers
Co
mp
any , Ltd .
0 . S. Swan and Hunter,
The
inc
rea
se in the Wear total is about the
sa
me as
on the
Tyn
e 9
22
5 tons,
but
it represe
nt
s a smaller
perce
nt
ag
e.
Moreover, a comparison of
th
e figures for ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION S ON
BATTLE-
12
57
,
543
70
,
03
0
53
,
979 29
,
242 54
,
157
some years
indi
cates that the underland builders a
re
SHIPS.*
Limited . . . .
W ~ ~ m
h a r d a n ~
R.
and W.
Hawthorn
,
Leslie,
and
Co., Ltd
..
J ohn
Readhea
d
and
Sons
Northumberland Com-
pan y, Limited
.. ..
Tyne Company, Limited
w_
Dobson
and
Co. . .
Ro
b
ert
Stephenson and
Oo ., Limit ed . . . .
Wood, Skinner,
and
Oo.,
Limit ed_ - . . . .
Smith s Dock Company,
Limited .. . . . -
J . P . Rennoldson
and
Sons . . . . . .
J . T. Eltringham and Co.
7 42,683 43,300 41
,82
4 40,319 36,185
not quite making the same pace as on the T yne. The
output is 49 ,000 t ons less than on the Tyne, whereas
7 42,522 23,100 68,696 4
8,6
70 39,608
in
th
e preceding years
the
difference was only 30,000
tons less. But in any case th e t otal is not only a record
b
ut
a mo st satisfacto ry one. In all there were launched
75 vessels, to
ta
lling 268,508 tons, all steamers, a
nd
only one is of less tonnage than 1000. Between 1000
7
28,751
5 28,574
8 27,133
15,900 127,320 18, 2
17 ,2
4
,2
57
56,300 18,807 6,449 26,008
13,700 26,7
08
23,659 22,541
6 20,330 10,080
I
and 2000 tons t here a re 11, between 2000 and 3000 t
on
s
4 14,545 7 ,7CO 1 8 ~ 2 10, between 3000 and 4000 t ons 32, between 4000 and
7 13,262 7,83
4
l6 ,
37 10
•
86
2 13
•
246
5000 t ons 12, between 5000
and
6000 tons
tw
o, a
nd
4
8
23
10
10
12,601
11
,2
9
:
4,482
2,474
1,425
6,000 19,525 - 1 ,329 over this seven, t
he
largest being a vessel for th e
frozen meat trade, 7332 tons gross, built by Sir James
7,500 9,742 7,126 5,550 Laing. Again we have to record a sa
ti
sfactory con-
8,306 5,175 6,147
4
,563 signment for G
la
sgow- four large
turr
et steamers for
the Clan line, totalling 17 ,154 to
ns
- all by Doxford ,
7,834 930 1,371 1,085 as compared wit h
three
of 11,316
to
ns in th e
pr
evious
3,130
1
,366
1
·068
6
8
2
year. Fewer vessels, however , were for local owners,
_________ _:__.:...________
_ ,_____ London
and
Live
rp
ool sending
mo
st orders.
The
The l
ec
tr i
c P la
nt
s of
th
e Battlesh
ips
Kar searge
and
K entucky.
By Naval Construc tor J. J . W ooDWARD, U .S.N.
TH E battleships Kearsarge and Kentucky are the first
vessels of the Uni ted
St
ates Navy on which the use of
electric
ity
as
a
motive power has been adopted for the
general service of
th
e auxiliary machinery, such as d
ec
k
winches, boat cranes, ammunition hoists, and turret
turning machinery.
The elec tric plants of these ships can therefore, only
be regarded as an intermediate step between the com-
plete steam drive for auxiliary mac
hm
ery and the prac-
tically complete elec tric drive for all auxil iary machi
nery of every kind whatsoeve
r
whose adoption appears
to be a possibility of the near future.
F or, more than in any other branch
of
engineering
work, it is important that power appliances placed on
bo
ard ship, and esp
ec
ially on
me
n-of-war, shall
be
capable
not only of working satisfactorily when installed,
but
that their maintenance in an effic ient condition can be
readily accomplished by the sh ip's fo
rc
e available for the
purpose.
While a more e
xt
ended use bas been made
of
elec tri
cally drivenauxiliaries on the Kearsarge and the Kectucky
than on any o
th
er vessels of the Navy up to the present
Messrs. C. S.
Sw
an and Hunter, Limited,
hav
e th e
pr
oport ion of
th
e tonnage for foreigners was also
distinction of launching th e biggest steamer of the lower- 18.6 per cent. , as compared with 23. 63 and
year on the
north-east
coas t -
the
Cunard interme- 25. 96 per cent. for the t wo preceding years ; but the
diate
liner Ivernia,
of 15512 tons
and
12,000 horse- average before that was abo
ut
10 per cent. Again,
power. Another of their vessels is 7229 tons, and th e we have t o specially note the promptitude and com
total of sev
en
vessels is 42,522 tons, which although less pleteness
with
w
hi
ch
th
e returns have been sent , and
than in the
immediat e
ly
pr
eceding
year
is ve
ry sati
s- we are able
to
alloc
at
e acc
ura
t ely the foreign
to
nnage.
factory . Messrs Vigham Richardson and Co . only As in the previous year, Norway and weden took
*
Abstrn.cb of paper read before the Society of Naval
se
nd
the names of the
ir
ships ; but
three
of
them
mos
t,
14 ,368 tons, as
co
mpared
with
17,071
and
5532 Architects and Marine
En
gineers, New York meetini.
•
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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J AN. 5, I 900.]
E N G I N E E R I N G.
ELECTRICAL
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time,
attention should be called to the fact that the
various types of electrically
driven auxiliar
y
ma
c
hinery
uaed on these vessels are
the
logical developments of
enerally similar types previously installed by the Bureau
f Construction and Repair on other vessels of
the
Navy.
hus, for examplei
the turret-t
urning ma.chinery may be
onsidered
a.
de
ve opment of that wh1ch worked in so
satisfactory a
manner on
the
Br
oo
klyn
s 8-in.
gun turrets and
whi
ch
to-da
y
are
giving
emi
ne
ntly
satisfactory
re
during
the
la te war with Spain; the chain ammunition l sults, both
fr
om the poi
nt
of view of thorough 'e
ntilation
hoists are
the
same in general pnnciple as those used
on
of th ese vessels and ease of maintenance of the ventilation
the
Puritan
and
many other vessel
s;
and the extensive plant in an efficient cond ition.
systems of blowers
and
exhausters used in the ship's Scope of Wo1·k Performcd. Briefiy stated, the electric
ventila.tion are similar in character to those placed
on
plants of
the
Ke arsarge and the Kentucky perform the
the
gunboa.ts Nashville and Wilmington two years ago, following duties.
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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1
The s
hip
is
i ~ h t e d
under peace
and battle
conditions.
2. Four searchhghts
are
operated.
3. The.Ardois signal
set
is
ope
rated for nie-ht sig nallins-;
also, var1ous means of interior commumcation withm
the shi p, ~ u c h as battle and r a n ~ e order indicators,
electric propelling and
steering-e
ng me telegraphs,
re
vo
lution and
helm
-a
ng l
e indicators, &c.
4.
The
truck
lights
and
ship's running
lights
are
operated, also portable diving lanterns.
5. The
two turrets containing the
8-in. and 13-in.
are rotated,,
th
e 13-in.
~ u n s
elevated, ammunition hoisted
for both 8
m. and
13-m. g u n ~ rammers of 13-in.
guns
operated, and special ventilation provided to blow g-ases
ou
t of bore of 8-in. and 13-in. guns.
.6.
Ten endless
c h a i ~ ammunition
hoists
are
operated,
etght of them supplymg the 5-in. broa
dside
guns, and
two
su p
plying
. 6-pounder and .1-pounder
guns on
upper
Tw
o. 'Ymch
type
of ho1sts a ce
ope ra
ted, ~ u p p l y
mg
.
ammumt10n to
the 6·pounder guns
in the
after
cabms.
. 7. Six deck
w i n c h ~
are. operated ; four winches of a
s u J ~ t p l e - g e a . r e d
type w1th fr1ct
10
n drum
suitable
f
or
q uick
h<?lSts of moderate loads
as
in coa
ling
shi p, and two
wm
cbes of a compound-geared
type permitting eithe
r
the quick hoisting of light loads or he avy pulls at low
speeds. Th
e si
mple-geared winches are especially
de
Signed for use
as ammunition
hoists to
th
e military
to p
s .
8. Four boat
cranes
are
operated,
the
boats
boing
hoisted and lowered, and cranes
rotated
by power.
9 . The ship is v e n t i l
~ e d
throughout, in cluding the
e n ~ n e - r o o m s but exc ludm
g
the
fire-rooms,
bv
13 venti
latmg fans, of which ten supply and three exhaust air
for the
various watertight
co
mpartment
s.
10.
Th
e centring device on
the
hydraulic telemoter
used t o
control
th e stea.m distribution valve of the
steering
engine M automatically operated.
DeiScription of the System of Distribution of Cu1·rent.
'l'he
m
ethod
of
distributing
electric
e
nergy
upon
th
e
Kearsarge and the Kentucky is known as the Edison
th ree-w
ir
e
system
.
The
object of
th i
s system is
to allow
the use of
tw
o pressures-SO volts and 160 volts, the cur
rent r
equi
red to
deliver
the same
power
being one-half
a'3
mu
ch on the l
atte
r
as
on the former voltage. Th is
permits a material reduction in weight of wiring,
switches,
&c.
I t
also
allows mu
ch
greater
speed regula
tion of the motors the half voltage giving
at
once a
speed
of one
-half
the full speed. Th
e
wires
used for dis
tributing on
the
three-wire
system
can
be
so connected
a.s to operate a.ny
mo t
or
upon
the
ordinary
two-wire
system,
but
at a r
ed
uction of one-half of its capacity.
Th ree Wire Systcm. At l
east
two dy namos are neces
sary
for o p e r a t i n ~
the
three-wire
syste
m, these
machines
being run in senes, the positive ( +) terminal of o
ne
generator
conn ec t
ing to the
same
bus-bar on
the
sw
it
ch
board
as
the nega.ti ve ( - ) terminal of
th
e other, and the
free positive and
negativ
e terminals connecting to
in.
dependent
bus-bars.
This
gives the pressure of one
generator
between the common or neutral
±)
bar
and
either
of
th
e other two. One of these
latter
will be
positive and the other negative with relation to this
neutral.
As
these generators
will
run
at
80 volts each,
the
potential
of
one
bar, called
the
positive (
+
, is 80
volts above the neutral, and of the other,
ca
lled the
negative
-
), 80 volts below, the difference between
the
positive and negative bars being 160 volts. The three
wi r
es
ca r
ryi
ng
the
current are
led from positive,
negative,
and n
eu t
ral bars. The motors and lights are so distributed
and
co
nn
ected
between
the three
wir
es, tha.t the two sides
of
the
system will
be
very nearly balanced when every
thing is running, and will not be excessively disturbed
by any
co
nditi
on
which
may arise when only
a part
of
the
system is in operation.
T1uo
Wire
System.-
Wh
en it is nec
essary to run more
than o
ne
dynamo the three-wire system should
be
used;
but if the load be such that one
dynam0 ca
n
do
the work,
th
en by the
proper
manipulation of switches on the main
generator board the system can be run in the ordinary
two-wire
manner. ThiS is done by conn
ec t
ing together
what were previously the positive and negative l>us-bars
on
the
switchboard, thus allowing all
the
current to flow
in
one
direction on what was
the
common or n
eu t
ral wire
of the th ree-wire system, and
in
the opposite direction on
the
others.
Th i
s will
allow any lamp
or motor
to be
operated. The lamps will have the rated pressure of
80 volts,
with
full
candle-power;
the
motors
will
only
run at half the full rated speed,
but
the torque is un
changed. This means that, for example, in the case of a
boat
crane,
the pull on the book is
the
same,
but
made at
half
the full speed.
General Pl an of Arra.ngement . Al l the
dynamos ar
e
cont rolled by a
main
switchboard located in the dy namo
room.
Permanently
attached
to the bus-bars
of this
board are three sets of feeders which supply three distribu
tion
boards. Each of
these
distributiOn boards supplies
both light and power
e c ~ ,
and two of them feed auxi
liary di
st
ribution
boards which control only power.
Methodof I nstallifn,g Circwits.- Th e method of in
st a
lling
electric light and power cjrcui ts on. these ships consists of
a combin
atio
n of porcela.m, conduit,
and
wooden mould
ing work. the exact i n ~
e ~ p l o y e d
beii?g determined by
the
conditio
ns of
th
e md1vidua.l lo
ca.t10
n. In general,
conductors are
~ n p p o r t e 4
upon ~ r c e l a i n
e x ~ e p t w h ~ r e
special protection is desirable ; thlS form of m s t a l ~ a t i o n
being used in
th
e greater p ~ r t of
the feeders
and m a . n ~ s on
the ship, except in the e
ngme
and fire-rooms IJ?aga.zme.s,
and places exposed to
the e a t ~ e Condu1t lS used m
the engi ne and fire-rooms, m ~ a z m e s coal bunkers, masts,
and
beneath
the
bridges.
I t
S
also
employed
for
the
pro
tection of all wires running .vertically between decks
~ n d
in
certain
contracted or speCial places. Wooden. ~ u ~ d m g
is used f
or the greater part
of the branches to md1
Vl.dual
li ghts a.bove the protective deck. P o r c e l a . n ~ . w o r ~
IS
of
two kinds,
open and enolosed. Open work, m
which the
E
GIN E
ERIN G.
wires
are
unprotected, is used in a.lll?laces where
there
is
uo liability of mechani
ca
l injury or mterf6rence by irre
sponsib
le
p
erso
ns, e.g.,
the dynamo-rooms,
wing passages,
~ f f i c e r s
q u a r ~ e r s and offices, &c . Enclosed porcela.in work
IS
employed
m the crew's quarters and
berthi
ng s p a c e ~
s torerooms. ammunition passages, &c.
Th
e cover for
porcelain
work
consists of a U-shaped sheet-iron guard
attached to the
deck on each side of
the
wire. Ordinarily
it is
fastened to the deck above by screws, but in cases
where such screws would
project
through the d
ec
k plating,
and possibly allow water to leak below, screw s tud s arE'
employed
whi ch are
riveted on the
upper
side, and
thus
made watertight, the cover being held
by
hexagonal brass
nu t
s
Description of D
yn
anno -Room
. T h
e generating pl
ant
is
located between the inner wing bulkhea.ds, frame 3 8 ~ to
4 1 ~ occupying all the space below the
prote
ctive
de
ck
(F1gs. 1, 2, and 3, page 31 ). This spacebas a platform mid
way
of
its height, and the
lower half
is divided
into
two
compartments by the centre-line bulkhead a.nd the passage
between
the fire-rooms. Th e upper room
contains
three
generating sets and the switchboards, and each of the
lower rooms two sets. There are seven 6-pole 50-kilowatt
80
-volt
compound-wound
generators,
each driven
by
a
ta.ndem vert1ca.l compound engine running 310 revolutions
per minut
e
at
100 lb. steam
pre ss
ure.
Th
e sets
are
plac
ed
with the shafts fore and aft, and rot ate
against
the
s un," facing the commutators, which are
at
t h ~ after
end.
Each generator has supported from the
upper
frame a
connection headboard and circuit breaker, from which
all cables
and
field
and
pre
ss
ure
wires are
led. The
circuit breaker consists of two independent single-pole
switches, one for
each
pole. Between these is a single
pole SWitch, to be closed only when the g-enerator is
operating turret-turning
motor
s, for sho rt
-c
1rcui ting the
s&
ries field.
At
all other times it is open. Th e
re
are a.leo
on
th is board terminals for the field
c o n n e c t i o n ~
and
at
the top
a pilotla.ml?
protected by
fuses, whi ch is
not
c
ut
out when the circmt is opened. The main switchboard.
consi
st
ing of
eight
panels, is l
ocated
on
the splinter-deck
leve l, on the starboard side of the room, and ex tends
athwartship. The
outboard of
thes
e panels ca.rries the
in
struments
for common use with all
the
generators.
Ther e
maining seven panels are exact duplicates, each controlling
one generator. All
seve
n equaliser
switches are
on o
ne
board located at bulkhead 4 1 ~ in the centre of the
upper
room
(Fig.
3). E&ch dynamo is
connected
with the panel
or equa.liser switch of the corresponding number.
When
facing the
commutator
of any generator, the r i ~ h t h a n d
main cab
le
is
the
positive, the middle
the
equaliser, and
the left-hand the negative. 'fwo field wires are run from
each
6enerator
to the
panel,
wh
ere
they may be
connected
by means of fi eld switches, either for the self ·excita.tion
of
ordinary
use or separate
excitation
when
operating
turrets
.
Description
of
Distribution. Al l current for power
and
light
(exce
pt that
for the illumination of the
dynamo
rooms) is supplied through the three main distribution
boards on the splinter deck, No
. 1 fo
rward,
No. 2 a.mid
Ahips, and No . 3 aft.
Each
of these main distribution boards
is
sup
plied
by an
indep
end
ent
set
of feeders, which
run
directly to
the bus-bars
of the main switchboard.
Eac
h
of the feeders consists of five wires, one of which is the
neutr
al for both li
ght and
power,
two
of
the
others being
the positive and negative for the power and the remaining
two
positive and
nega.ti
ve
for
the
lights.
The turret-turning motors are fed through the board
amidships, No. 2,
by separate
feeders from the generator
board. The
light
s
are
fed from
th e
se boa
rd
s upon two
wire feeders and mains,
and
the switches controlling these
individual
circuit
s are dis
tr
ibuted
upon
each side of
the
neutral, so as to give as nearly a balanced load as possible.
The
power
is
supplied, ei ther directly to the motors, or
through auxiliary boards
located
in
the
turrets, and upon
the
main
and berth decks. The motors for turret turn
ing, exhaust fans, ra.mmers, and
elevators
are
run
on 80
volts only. All the others are operated
at
160 volts, but
a switch is pr
ovi
ded by which
either
160 or
80
volts
may
be
su ppl ied, with the corresponding difference in
speed .
Boards No.
1
and No. 3 feed
the
searchlights, and
the
turning
motors for both turrets are fed through board
No.
2. The
auxiliary
boards
are f
or power
o
nly. and
are
employed to give convenie
nt
centres of distribution, and
red uce
the
n
umbe
r of
wires which
would
be required
if
each motor were fed individua1ly from
the
distribution
boards.
Description of .Lighting Sy stcm.. Th e lights upon these
ships are di vided into two classes :
1.
Battle.
2. Lighting .
Battle lights are, in general, those which ca
nn
ot be
seen from the outside. They include all l
ights
below the
pr
otective deck,
and
such above
it
as are necessary for
the
operation of
the ship in
action.
All battle
lights
above the protective deck which
might
be seen from the
outside
are controlled by individu
al s witches and may
be
extinguished, or covered so as to be invisible. These in
clude
all running
and
lights
and battle lanterns.
The lamps upon the li
gh tmg
section are such as are re
quired for illumination,
under
ordinary service conditions,
in
~ d d i t i o n
to
the
battle lights.
Each
main is controlled
by a switch, either
at
the switchboard or
at
the feeding
ce
nt r
e,
by
which
it may
be entirely
cut
out. All circuits,
wi th the exception of
that
for the illumination of the
dynamo-room, are supplied
fr
om a
main
distribution
board. Each of
the
feeder£'
f\.)r the
se cir<'uits is con
trolled
by
a
switch
at
the
distribution
board,
and supplied
ordina
rily by one of the mains,
the
character of
the
feeder,
whether
battle or lighting, thus de termining the
oha
raoter of the
main.
Wherever possible
the mains
have been subdivided, so
that
only small
sect
ions sha.ll be
dependent upon one fuse, which will open the circuit
in
[
jAN. 5,
I900.
case of trouble
without
dis
turbing
the
other
lights
sup
plied by the
same
feeder.
The mains
are
generally run in loops fed
at
one
point
through junction boxes, so
arranged that
each
end
of any
ma
in is
prot
ected
by fus e of sufficient
capacity
to carry
all
the
lights upon it. A double-pole swi tch is inserted
a.t a.bout
midway
between the fused ends, which, when
open, separates the main
into
two
ind
epe
ndent
parts,
each protected by a. se t of fus es. f trouble occurs
on
one
of these
and it
s fuses operate, no lights
on the
other
part
are ex tinguished. As soon as the cause of the
tr
ou ble has
been
remov
ed,
the
double-po
le
switch
may be
closed, thus
feeding the entire main through the uninjured fuses of
the other
section until th
e des
troy
ed
fu
ses can be
replaced.
An
exception t o
this
method of protection occurs in
the
circuits to the ma gaz ines forward and a ft, where unfused
feeder boxes are
used,
and ultimate
dependence placed
upon the main fuses
at
the distribution board.
S i n g h ~
lights
are
ordinarily protected
by
an inde
pendent set of fuses,
but
in
conduit
work o
ne
pair of
fuses
frequently
supplies two
lights
, a
lthough
care is
taken th
at a.
portable
and standing light shall not ordi
narily
be
depend
ent
upon
the same set, although two
portables
are
frequently
so
protected.
In the
case of
duplicate lights in th e same location, as, for instance, iu
the magazine
boxes, runn ing
ligh
ts, &c.,
where the
second
is
intend
ed for reserve in case the first fails, both are
never
placed upon one fuse,
although frequently ea{ h
may
be
up
on a. fuAe also supplying
another l i ~ h t
in a
different location, i.e , one st arboard and one port side
light
a
re
supplied through one set of fu ses,
and the
second starboard and p
ort
lights through another pa.ir of
fuses.
Wherever wires enter
th
e masts above the main deck,
flexible couplings, consisting of heavy
rubber
bose,
are
inse
rted
in the conduit in
or
der
to allow
the mast to
move
relative to the deck without injuring the protection for
the
wire.
General Description of Controlling Appliwnces. The
following
brief d ~ c r i p t i o n
is
intended
to
give
a
general
idea of the character of the ap pliances used for control
ling the electric current at the motor to whi ch it is
supplied, in
such a.
manner as to p r
oduce the
desired
mechanical results of torque
and number
of revolutions
per
minute
necessary f
or
the
mechanical
operation of the
auxiliary machinery d riven. Two general conditions
•
an
se:
1st.
Wh
ere the motor
must be
reversed and
its
speed
constantly varied
during
ope ration, a s in the case of a
boat
crane,
deck,
win
ch, &c.
In
this case
the arrange
ment used is called a controller.
2nd.
Where
the motor runs con
stantly
in
the
same
direction, and at a constant speed for long periods of
time. but
with
the possibility of varyi
ng
the speed when
so desired, as in the ca e of a ventilating fan.
In
this
case the ar rangeme
nt
used is called a cont rolling panel.
General Desc
ription
of Controllers . A co
nt r
oller is an
arrangement for making the proper electrical connections
between the main
lin
es
and
a
motor, so as to control the
direction and speed of rotat ion .
Th
ose used on these
s
hi p
s consist, essentially, of
the
foll
owing
parts:
The frame with cove
r ;
cylinder or
cylinders;
contact
fingers; blow-out magnet; arc deflector; star-wheel, cap
plate, and handle.
Th e fra.me is made of cast iron and provided with a
removable
cover, in
most
cases made of sheet-iron,
but in
o
ne
case being made of brass.
The cyl inder is supported
in
be
aring
s
in
the frame,
and
is operated by means of a suitable
handle.
On this
cylinder are carried contacts suitably in ula.ted from the
sha
ft and
from
each other, arra
nged to make the neces
sary
combinations for the control of the motor. '£be
out
si
de surface of these contacts is cylindrical a
nd
ex
tends through only a. portion of the circumference.
In
th e cent re of this cylind
er
is a sha ft which serves the
purpose
of
supp
ortin g and operating the cylinder,
and
also serves as a
part
of the magnetic circuit afterwards
desc
ribed. Up o
n this steel sh
aft
is s
upported, either
a
wooden cylinder or a eylind er of specially
made
composi
tion. On the outside of this are held castings
made
of
br
ass, which, in the case of
the
wooden cylinder,
are
fe.stened by means of screws,
and
in the case of the com
position cylind er, they consist of hollow
cylinders
entirely
su
rr
ounding the special insulating composition, which,
by
the ap p
lication of
heat,
has been made to
firmly
fill
the
interior of the hollow cylinder and secnre
it
to the
cylinder.
In
most cases, all those contacts whi ch a.re to
be
electrically connected are made in one casting,
there
being, consequently, a less number of castings on the
cylinder
than
there are contacts.
The projection
s on
this casting, after being turned to a tr ue cy indrica.l
surfa ce, are supplied with copper contact rings, ~ e n e r a l 1 y
about 1 in. in Width and ;l in. in thi ckness, whiCh have
been sha ped to a true cylindrical form, and are fastened
to
the projections
by means of
two
or
more
scr
ews
.
These
contact
rings are thus made removable, so that in
case of burning, or of any injury to thera, they
may
be
replaced by new ones.
To
be
contin1ted.)
E R S E Y DocKs A ~ D H.aRBoun Bo..ano. - In a Bill
depo
sited
by the
~ J e r Docks a.nd
Harb
our Board for
conside
ra t
ion in the next session of Parliament, powers
are sought, among other matters, to construct new docks
and river walls
at
Tranmore, and to enlarge the
powers
of the barbour
and
dock
mast
ers in connection with the
removal of vessels fr
om
one part
of
tbe docks
to another
.
A clause has been introduced for the purpose of giving
the Board
greater powers
over
vessels
which now
use the
dvcks when unemploy£d or laid up for
the
winter, with
a. view to their being so
ld
or otherwise dea
lt
with.
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 34/37
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 35/37
34
menced work on the patterns. The drawings had already
been
practically
completed.
After
the_pattern for the housing was well advanced,
Mr. E. Y. Town
send,
the
Vice-President, came
out to
the
works,
and
I info
rmed
him of what I was doing, and
again talked the situation
over
with him.
He
said
nothing,
but thought
it
proper
to
let
the company
know
what
was being done, to which I assented. In
about
a
week, as I remember, he came
to
the works again. This
time
he
was
armed
with a legal document opposing the
spending of the money in the way it was e i n ~ done.
He
handed me
the document
to
read, whic h I d1d. I then
handed it back to him and said nothing. He then
asked
me what I thought about it and the best course
to
pursue.
In
answer, I said: "You
know
the r o u b l ~ s we
have had, and
it
is useless to go over them again, and you
know my
opinion, which
is
irrevocable."
After
some
friendly
talk
on the condition and
the importance
of the
change
proposed, he said : "Go ahead and build the mill
as you
want it."
I asked:
"Do
you
say
tha• officially?"
to which
he
replied: I will make
it
official." And he
did
so.
When
I look back to that eventful interview, which
took place on a Sunday morning long years ago, and
recall to
mind
Mr. Townsend
and
myself, with evidences
of failure on all sides, and surrounded by the gloom of
future uncertainties, I cannot but feel it
was
the
most
critical period,
not
only
in
my own career, bub
als'> in
that of the Cambria Iron Company.
And here I wish to
say
that to
Mr.
E. Y. Townsend
belongs the credit not only of the introduction of the
three-hig h rolls, but also for a large share
of the
subse
quent marvellous
pr
osperity of the
Cambria Iron
Com
pany, which followed the
introduction
of the three-high
mill and its many accompanying improvements.
The opposition
to
the three-high mill now came in from
all
quarters. The heaters
on
the rail
mill were unani
mous
in
their condemnation, and waited on the company
to
tell
them
wh
at
a
direful failure
it
would be. Next I
had to
me
et
the
combined
prejudice
of
the ir
o
nm
asters,
who were
a.
power a.t that time. Some of them would
tell
the
managers that the whole thing
was
certain
to
be
a failure.
Next
came
my
friends,
in the
trade and out
of it, begging me
to abandon
what would
surely prove
a
failure and blast my re
putation
for life.
One
of my
dearest friends, with whom I had been employed for a
number of yeal'S, came te see me and, if l>ossible,
to
get
me
to change
my
plans. To
th
em all I sa.1d
''
No, I can
make it work, and it is the only plan that can be adopted
that
will
save
the company."
After
all these years there
is
no
per
son
other
than my
self who can fully
appreciate
the trying posi tion the
managers were in. On
the
one hand, I was
to build
a
mill
on an
untried
plan,
and absolutely refusing to build
t\le mill they asked for, knowing full well that only in a
small degree would
it
remedy
the
trouble, and
that
the
money spent on such a
plant
would be thrown away. On
the other
hand,
there
was
a
strong
party of stockholders
prote
s
ting in the
most positive
manner against
going on
with my plans, and notifying the managers that they would
hold them personally liable for all
the
loss and damage
that might grow out of their unwise action, as they con
sidered
this
action
to
be,
in
adopting
a
new
and
untried
method that was against
all
pr actice in this a.nd
the
old
country, for at that time we were expected to be followers
instead of leaders. N otwithstanding
all
the opposition
and
trouble we had to encounter, the work
on
the mill
was being pushed along as fast as
it
was
po
ssible. But
there were many difficulties in the way. The most
serious was
the
want of
proper
tools
and
faciliti es for
doing the work. Many makeshifts had to be impro
vised, which
all
required time
and
labour. During
all
this
time there
was much ta
lk
and speculation going on
in
regard to the final result, to all of which I gave laut little
attention.
At
length
the mill was completed, and
on the third
day
of July, 1857, the old mill was shut down for the last
time. On
the
fifth we commenced tearing
the
old mill
out, as the new
one
had to be put
in
the sawe place. The
work
was pushed as fast a-s possi?le day and ~ g h t but,
as
it was before the days of
electnc hght
s, the
mght
work
could nob be done with the same expedition as to-day.
At
the
same
time everything in the rail department was
remodelled
and
the floor
line
of the mill was raised 2 ft.
On the 29th of the same month everything was com
pleted and
the mill
ready
to
start. The st arting of
the
mill was
the
crucial period.
In giving an account of the starting of the mill, I can
probably
do
no
better than quote from a paper written for
a former occasion :
There were no
invitations sent
out. As the heaters to
a
man
were opposed to the new
kind
of mill, we
did
n
ot
want them about at the sta rt. We, however, secured one
of the most
re
asonable of them
to
beat
the
piles for a
trial. We bad k ~ p t t h ~ furnace
hot
for several
d ~ y s
a
blind. Everythmg bemg ready, we chars.ed stx piles.
About
ten o'clock
in
the morning
the
first p1le was drawn
out of the furnace and went through the rolls without a
making a
perfect
rail. You may imagine what mr.
feelings were as
l
looked upon
that
first
and
perfect rail
ever made on a three-high train.
And
you may know in part how
grateful
I felt toward
the few faithful
men
who were
about
me, and who had
stood by me during all my
trials
and difficulties. Among
these
were Alexander
Hamilton, the
superintendent of
the mill and Thomas
La p
sley, who had charge of the
rail e p ~ r t m e n t William Canam, and my
brother
George,
all of whom ha;e gone to
their
reward.
\Ve now proceeded to roll the other five piles. .When
two more
perfect
rails
had
been
rolled we w
ere
~ h g e d
to
stop the
engine for the reason t;hat
we
were so mtently
wa tching the rolls that the . engme had been neglected,
and,
being new,
the
ecccntrlC
strap
got hot and bent the
E N G I N E E R I N G.
eccentric rod so much that the engine could no loos-er be
worked. As
it
would have
taken
some time
to
stra1ghten
the rod and reset the valves, the remaining piles were
hauled
out from the furnace on to the
mill
floor. About this
time the
heaters, hearins. and seeing the exhaust of
the
engine,
came
into the mill
in
a body from the opposite
end
of the mill to where
the
rails were. Seeing the un
rolled piles lying on the floor, tht'y took ib for gran ed
that the
new tram was a failure ; and their remarks
about it
were far from being complimentary.
Mr.
Hamil
ton, coming up and hearing
what
they were saying about
th
e mill,
turned
around,
and
us
ing
language more pointed
than
polite,
told
them if they would go to the other
end
of
the
mill they would see three handsomer rails than had
ever
been made
in
their country, Wales.
After
getting
the engine in shape, the day being- Friday, we ran all
day,
and
at
night
put the
regular
mghb
turn
on.
Everything worked well
up
to noon on Saturday, it
being our custom to stop rolling
at
that time. About six
o'clock
in the
evening
Mr.
Hamilton and myself
left
the
mill, and on our way home congratul ated ourselves on the
fact
that our
long
line
of troubles a
nd
disappointme
nts
was now over. About a.n hour later I
heard
the fire
alarm
whistle
blow, and rushing back
to
the mill, found
it
one mass of flames from
end
to end.
In
less than one
hour's time the whole building was burned to the ground,
and a story was started that
the new
mill was a failure,
and that we had
burned
the mill to hide our blundering
mistakes. The
situation
of affairs on that Saturday night
wa-s such
a-s
might
appal
the
stoutest heart.
The pro
duct of our labours and anxieties lay there, a mass of
black and smoking ruins, and
th
e money that was so hard
to get
with
which to build the mill was gone. The pro
s ~ c t was indeed gloomy, but there was one gleam of
hght amid all
the
darkness;
and
that,
the
pile of perfect
and new rails, which, as Mr . Hamilton had said, bad
never
been beaten
in Wales, from which
country
the
greater
part of
the
rails used at
that time ca
me. Above
all, the mill had been tried and found to work magnifi
cently,
and
it
was
these
two facts
that
gave us all fresh
courage, and enabled us to rebuild the mill.
The next day being Sunday,
it
was devoted to rest and
to
thinking over
the
matter. On Monday
m o r n i n ~
we
commenced to clear up the wreck, all the wo
rkmen
gtving
a full day towards it, and began the work of rebuilding.
In
four weeks
fr
om
that time the
mill was running, and
made 30,000 tons of rails without a
hitch
or
break
of any
kind, thus making- the
Cambria
Iron
Company
a great
financial success,
m
giving them a rai l plant far
in
advance
of any other plant
in
the world. This position they held,
unquestioned, both for quality and
quantity,
until the
revolutionary invention of
Sir
Henry Bessemer came into
general use.
In
the
construction of
the
three-high mill there were
many
changes and improvements on the old tw
o-
high
mill: Up
to
this time the leading
p i ~ d l e s
had a groove
cut m them
to
weaken them, so that If
any extra
strain
shou
ld
come on the rolls, they would
bre
ak instead of the
roll; and the couplings were made light so as
to
act as a
kind
of a safety valve.
Then
there was a breaking box
placed between the screw and the roll. I f there was not
one of these
safety
devices breaking each day, the pattern
was made lighter. The
result
was
that
some of them
were breaking several times daily, furnishing a constant
source of a.nnoytl.nce. In building the new mill
they
were
all made so
strong
that
they
were n
ot
calculated to break.
The breaking box on top of the roll was made solid, as
they
were apt, when they gave way, to break
the
co llars
on the rolls, which should, if
po
ssible, be avoided.
All
these changes were stoutly opposed by the foremen
and
workmen of
the
mill. A few days before the mill was
ready to starbt the s
uperintendent
of the mill discovered
that the breaking box was solid ; he then got the pattern
and
took it to
Mr.
Lewis,
the
pa.tternmaker,
and
told
him there was a mistake, that it was made solid. Mr.
Lewis
told
him
that
it
was made as the old man had
ordered
it,
to which the supe
rintendent
said,
"the
o
ld
ma.n haslone crazy." He looked me
up
and wanted to
know if had ordered the breaking box for the new
train
solid. I said, ' 'Yes ; " he replied
that
if
with
solid
spindles, heavy c o u p l i n ~ boxes, and solid breaking boxes
on top of
the
rolls a p1ece should enter a wrong 0'oove,
or a collar should form on the rolls, which wa-s sure to
take place, the mill would be broken to pieces; to which
I
replied:
I would rather have a
grand
old smash-up
once
in
a while than be continually b r e a k i n ~ something
and
keeping
the
mill
standing
half
the
trme a
nd the
metal wasting in the
furna
ce." He said : "
We
, you
will
get it, sure;
"
but
we
did
not, and, as before stated,
the mill
made
30,000 tons of rails
without
a. break of
any kind, which, at that time, on iron, was n
ea
rly a
year's work.
The heating furnaces were rebuilt, making them larger,
the
roofs much higher, a
nd
th e l
engt
h of
the
furnace
greatly increased, which
about
doubled the wo
rk that
had previously been done. There were also a number of
impr
ovements made on
the
train to facilitate the work
and make
it
much easier for the men. Among them was
the introduction of the dri ven feed-roller, out of which,
later on, came the blooming
t a b l ~
which
is
now indis
pensable
in
the rolling of steel ingots either on a three
high or reversing mill.
o be continued.
SLUDGE.
THE
stude
nts of the In
stitutio
n of Civil Engineers held
their second meeting for this session on Friday evening,
December 15.
The
chair was occupied by :Mr.
G. R.
Strachan, M.
I.C.E.
A
paper
on
"Sludge,
"
by Mr.
Bla.mey Stevens, Stud. Inst.
C.E.,
was read by Mr. A.
D.
Creer
Stud.
Inst. C.E.,
in
the absence of
Mr.
Stevens.
The ~ l l o w i n g is an abstract of the paper :
[JAN. 5, I900.
Sludge may
be
considered as a special kind of mud,
made
up of water
and
more dense particles of all sizes
and shapes. I f the solid
matter
per unit of volume be
represented
by 1 - S), and the specific gravity by p
while P
represents
the kinetical coefficient of viscos1ty,
the st andard being in each case water
at
0 deg. Cent., it
is found that, in
any
series of sludges which differ only in
the amount of water they contain,
a
p-1 approximately,
when S 7 0
and the ordinary formulas for the flow of
viscous liquids
are
applicable.
When S tt . 0 the l u d ~ e is solid, and may be considered
as a compound mater1al composed of granular, very
elastic, mucous matter and water. The mucous matter
by itself
settles
down to an
angle
of slope
(tan-1
a) of about
20 deg. ; but the
gr
a
vity
of
the water
reduces the angle
of rep ose to }
=
ta.n
-1 P -
a
and
the
cohesion of the
p
water further affects this angle.
The methods of converting sludge from
a
liquid to
a
solid state, and 1-·i
ce
versa,
are
stated, and the parts played
by lime and
bacteria
in modifying
the
sludge are pointed
out.
In the construction of a
pipe
line one ha.s
to
beware of
getting
too
mu
ch resi
st
ance, or too little power, or
in
any
way ind ucing stoppage of the pipe.
Tanks should have a slope 8
=
an
1
-
p
-
1
a
or more,
p
but in
every case men have to get into the tanks to push
the s
ludge
out.
Sludge has generally to be pumped through a compara
tively small range of pressure only, and the piston or
plunger pumps,
ai r
-pressure ejectors, and c
hain
or
ladder
pump
s
may
be made of the
same
size as for water, but
the valves must in general
be
modified. Centrifugal
pumps must be constructed differently from similar
pumps for dealing
with
water;
there
are no very reliable
pumps of this class e x i s t i n ~ .
For
filter presses lime 1s
th
e only c
heap
substance
which
can be
used,
and
its
beneficial action is wholly due
to
the consequent increase of the speed of working the
press.
For
solid sludge the formul re (1-
4
= p (ap
proximately) is applicable, where p is the pressure
in
metres head of water, so
that
the high pressures employed
in presses only increase
th
e
~ p e e d
of working the press,
and if sufficient time is given sludge may be drained on
porous ground or rubbish to a very substanti al cake.
For solid sludge the requir
ed
inclination or equiva
lent fall of head
in
a channel or pipe is a maximum where
or
when
the motion is
started,
and is tan -1
P -
1
a
p
( 1 + w
here ,,.,
is the mean hydraulic depth, and ki
the depth below th e sludge surface
in
the watertight
tank in whirh
it has
dr ained.
Sludge may
ultimately be
disposed of by aeration. I t
is not yet proved
that
it
has no value for farming pur
poses, but the highly adulterated state of its
manurial
constituents reduces
it
s value to some extent.
In
burning
sludge the temperature 1100 deg. Cent. has
to
be exceeded ; hence we are able to co
nstru
ct
a.
he
at
equation, showing how
mu
ch
wate
r
any particular
sludge
may contain
to
burn without nuisance.
A
great
deal of sludge is now
taken
to sea
in
specially
constructed tank-boats, and other equally simple methods
are
gaining ground.
\Vhen
sludge is immersed in water
its
activity
is increased in the
ratio
1
; hence such
sludge is very difficult to deal with. b
annot
be
dr
awn
into a o z ~ l e by suction, becanse the water, being so
much more limpid, rushes p ast it,
and
it
has
consequently
to be . f i ~ t
dealt with
br
~ o m e
kinematical means.
Dredgmg
lS, however, not md1spensable, as directly the
contact between the sludge
and the
overlying water is
severed, the forwer
may
be easily dealt with. A simple
plan
in
some cases is to mix the sludge with the overlymg
water, when the
latter
is flowing to some more convenient
depositing ground.
In conclusion the
author
introduces so
me
economical
consi
derati
ons.
The chairman afterwards gave
an
account of some of
his experiences in deali
ng
with sludge.
A ~ C H E S T E R
AND
L n 'E
RPOOL ELEO'XRIC
R aiLWAY.-A
Bill promoted
by the
Manchester and Liverpool Electric
Express Railway Company hasbeen deposited ma.ccordance
with the tanding Orders of Parliament. The company
seek powers to construct a railway
34
miles 4 furlongs
2 chains in length, commencing on the west s
ide
of Deans
gate,
c h e s t e r
passing thence vi Salford, Pendleton,
Eccles, Widnes, Ha lewood, Garston, and
Toxteth
Park.
to
its
termination in Liverpool,
near
the entrance
gate
of the Bluecoat H ospital
in
School-lane.
The
capital
required for the construction of the contemplated railway
is 2,000,000l., which
will
be divided into 200,000 shares of
10l. each,
with the right
to raise a
further 660
,000l. for
equipment purposes
by
the issue of de
bentu
re stock. The
railway is
to
be worked by elect rical power from a gene
ra
ting stat
ion to be erected on a site
in
the parish of
Great Sankey, and the line will be constructed on the
mono·rail system. The time required within which to
construct
the
railway is five years from the passing of the
Act; and during this period 150,000l. may be expend ed
in the payment
of
interest out o{ capital. The maximum
passenger fares proposed to be charged
are
2d. per mile
first-class and 1d. per mile second-class, with a minimum
charge "as for three miles. " It is proposed to apply
to
merchandise traffic
the
schedule co
ntained
in the
Man
chester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire Railway, &c., Order,
1892.
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/engineering-vol-69-1900-01-05 36/37
J AN. 5 I
900
.]
"
ENGINEERING
" ILLUSTRATED PATENT
RECORD.
C
o:
uPILED BY \V. LLO
YD
\VISE .
SELECTED
.ABSTRACT
S OF RECENT PUBLISHED SPECIFICATIONS
UNDER THE
ACTS 1883- 1888.
The
1
wmher of views given
in
the Speci,Matiofl, D
rawi1l[ S
ix
~ t a t e ~
itl. each case
;
'lchere
M1te
are rttentwMd, the Specificat On us
not illtt8t,.ated.
•
;
W
hu
e inventions are c o t m n W ~ i c a t e . d f . ~ O r f l : abroad, the
\
ames,
{ c ,
of the Ccmvntmic<ttors are gwen tn t a l t ~
c o
iu
ol Specijicatioru rMY he obtai1led
at
the Patent
O.tlice Sa
le
l a n ~ h , JJ, Sotttluunpton, Buildings, Chcutcery-la,te, IV.C., at
the
11
nijonn price o 8d.
The
dctte
of the adverti.serMnt of the
cu;cep
tance of cr com]Jlete
SpeciMaJionu, itt
eac
h
case,
given af ter the ~ r a c . t U1tle8s the
Patent l
ta8 been sea
led, when the date
of
sealtnJ
t.S
gwett..AtlY pers
011
utay
at
et1ly time within two uumths .froul
< l a t ~ of
tiw advertiseuumt
of
the accept<utce
of
a cOIIlple te S p e c t . c a t t t ~ J t ,
give Mtice
at
the Patent O.tlice of oppos{ti(ut to the grcult oj a
Patent 011- anv of the g ounds tMJltU Jwd
M
the
.A ct
.
ELECTRICAL APPARATUS.
16.140. v. J .
Feeny, London (.A llgemeine Elektd cittits
Gesellschaft,
Berlirt.)
Electrical R e s i s t ~ c e s and
Beating
Bodies Composed
of Metalllc Oxides.
August s, 1
899.-0
ne or metall.ic oxidee, such as th.e
oxides of iron, copper, cbrommm,
uramum
, manganese,
tita
nium, zinc, tungsten, molybdenum , &c
.,
are
p u l v ~ m
and formed into a plastic
s u b a t a ~ c e
by
m e ~
of a bwd1ng
medium, such as
wate
r or gum. ': 'hta 1s then moulded
into small sticks or tubes, aud ra1sed
to
a n ~ e ~ c e n c e whe reby
it
con
tr acts or
draws
together, and
on
c o o h n ~ t
1.
1s
found
t? be
a
fairly good conductor. It is des irable to add to the
J?la8tlC ~ u b
sbnce, porcelain ear th
or
some
othe
r
substance
wb1cb sh rlJ?kS
considerably when rendered incandescent, e b y the d rawJDg
to ether is increased. The ends of t he atlCks or
tubes
ar
e fur·
ni:bed with platinum or ni
.c
kel
and
. they
Dl;a
y
then be
used as resistances,
or as g b ~ · e m 1 t t m g
.or
be a
tmg
o d 1 e ~ ,
are used to effect
the
prelimmary heat1ng of t
he
illumman
ts 1n
tbe " Nerns t lamps. When thus p p l i ~ however, th ey
be used in conjunction with an a d ~ e d re81Stance, as at an
temper
atu
res they
ha
ve a
ne
gat1ve
tempera
tu
re
coeffic1ent.
.Accepted N
overnbe
r
29, 1899.)
26,.214.
E
B. Phillips, Leicester, and
W.
B. Bray
,
~ r l s t o L Electric Furnaces. [
4
Figs.) December 12,
1
898.
A horizontal or
o p e n - b e ~ r t b
fu rnace for the
p r o d u t i ~ n
of
calcium carbide
is
furnished wtth a m ovable hearth
c o ~ ~ 1 a t m g
of
a sliding block which may be lowered by
a.
screw to fac1htate the
removal of the carbide. The electrodes are supported by brack.ets
carried on toothed pinions rotated
by band
wheels, and t r
avelhng
on racks mounted on
top
of the fu rnace. These brac
kets
are
PU;J
.Z
furnished with screw·clipa, to clamp
the
ele
ct
rodes, which may,
howeve r, be released and independently adjuste d with respect t o
them the electrodes being m
ea
nwhile supported
by
projections
on brackets which fit into grooves in thei r side s. It is
stated
t hat speedy ad justmen t is by these means secured,
and
wa
ste
of
the electrodes avoided, while
an
inc reased q
uantity
of ca rbide is
produced
at
a reduced cost of working. (.Accepted N ovem
ber
29,
1899.)
24,104. E. WUson,
Blackheath,
Kent, and
J . Me.
I.
Cater, Wimbledon,
Surrey. Storage Battery
System.
[3 Figs.] NoYember 15, 1598. - The
object
cf this
invention is to provide that a s
to
rage battery in conn ec
tion
with
a distributing system may be c
harged and
w
ithout
•
-
r
r
T
. l i ~
<, / \
'
•
I
'
I
I
'
...> 7
-
\
-
'
f
( U
,}Df)
varying the number of coila
in
c
ircuit
or the potential of the
mains. A motor d
vna.
mo which ac ta as a
booste
r "
a l t e r n ~ t e l
on tbe charge and disc
harge
circui ts is
us
ed. Var?oua diaposit one
and automatic and other methods of the va
no
us
co
nst
ituents of apparatus in the system are described and illus
trat
ed by diagrams.
(.Accepted :Sovember 29
, 1
899.
)
GAS
ENGINES
,
PRODUCERS
,
HOLDERS. &c.
281.
F.
w.
Lanchester
,
Birmingham. Gas
and
OU Engine
Igniter. t2 F1gs.]
Januar
y
6, 8 9 S I . - ~
.
in
vention relates to
an electnc
gener
ato
r for producm ; the Jgmtme
apark in gas and oil engines, and has fo r object to ootaio a den se
apuk , and to avoid the
use
of jerk motions to act uate the
armatur
e. The field
ma
g
net
consists of a pair
of
pa rallel
st
eel
bars
attached
like chorda acrose the rim of a flywheel, t he boss of
which does n
ot
lie in the plane of the r
im;
t hese
ba
rs a re bored
out to receive the am)
atu
re, and
are
magnet:sed with a north and
south
pole respectively at their cen t res, the
magnetic
circuit
completed by the rim of
the
wheel.
Th
e
armatu
re may
be ei ther
of
the
shuttle or ring type, the latter being preferable, as the
cranksh
aft
can pass
th
ro
ugh its
ce
nt
r
e;
t
he
clearance is in
either
case as small as possible, and overlap is provided so that the
magnetic
ci
r
cuit
is never broken. When a
rin
g ar
mature
is em
ployed, the winding is in two sections, the core p rojecting
between them, so that it resembles a sh
ut t
le arm
atu
re.
Th
e
armature is normally stationary, but it may
be
mounted
on
a
ENG I NEER I 1- G.
sleeve on the abaft and oscillate rt hy means of a rod from a
suitab
ly
timed ec<:
en't r
ic
to
start
the
en ine. t his is , however ,
stated
to be unn eceseary when the e
nJ; in
e is small enough to
allow the
fl
ywheel to
be
r
otate
d b.v band ; and in thi s case the
armatu re may be
fi
xed. The spark is ob
ta
ined in the usual war
0
0
by breakin1
wit
hin
the c o m b u s t i o ~
space
w ~ ~ n
is
sufficient
cur
r
ent m
t
he armatu
re.
It
the
tlme
of JgDltlOn
1s
to
be
al
te
red, as when
st a
r ting, t
he
position of th e a
rm
ature may be
changed by t he same mechanism as is employed to
dela
y the
action of the cont act bre
ake
r.
(.A
ccepted NovemiJer 29, 1899. )
408.
F. Estcourt,
Hampstead, London.
Star ter
for Explosion
Motors.
[2 F
igB.] Ja
nuary
7,
1899 .-
0n
t be
dri
ving
abaft
of a
moto
r adapted to drive
a
moto r ca r, is
fitted a sprocket-wheel, the teeth of which
are
formed like those
on a c
ir
c
ular
saw ; this wheel gea rs with a chain coiled roun d a
sp ring
drum,
the a
rrangement
being
suc
h th
at
as the chain is
un wound from t
he
drum it engages t he teeth on t
he
wheel,
and
causes it to r
otate.
In consequence, however , of tbe form of these
teeth, they disenga
ge
t
hem
selves on t he re tu rn of t he chain, and
•
@
,
..,,
for the same reason t
he
fur ther rotation of
t ~ e
o . c k ~ t
w h e e
does
not unwind t he chain from the barr el. Thts cham 1s conne cted
to
a.
handle
by a flexible over a.
and is pro vided
wit
h a roller-h
nk
nea r 1ts end, wh
en
the
spring acts to wind it on the drum, abuts
g a m ~ t
a fixed
sto
p,
and
prevents
it from being further w
ound
up . It lS
stated
that .a
rack mav be substituted for the chain , but th1s arrangement 18
no
t illustrated or described io detail. (.Accepted N ovember 29,
1899.)
27,043.
W.
J .
Crossley,
Manchester
, and
J . Atk
.
in·
son Marple
, Cheshire.
Exhaust Silencer. [2 F tgs.]
Dec;mbe
r 1898
The s
udden
issuing of exhaust gases from
inte
rnal combu
sti on n e a ca
uses considerable noise,
and any
check upon t he s
udden 1 s s u ~
of the
a m ~
f'
ause
s
back pre
ss
ure
; to
obv
iate
which, whil
st u r m ~ a.
cloakmg of the exit t he
haust
pipe, t
he said
pipe
e
nd
1s
caus
ed
to
pass
at
any
dea1red
d18·
tance fr
om
the engine
into
a ci.rcular casting
f?rmm
g t?e. base of
the " silencer." On this base 1s placed a sect10n cons1atmg of a
circular
a s t i o ~
t be lower
part
of which is pra.c
tica
lly closed in
by a more or leas pendan t
bottom,
having a bole
in
its cent re
about twice the area of the exhaust pipe. The pendant bottom
dip s slightl y be low the upper edge of a sa
uce
r-shaped casting,
large
r in diameter than the
hole
in th e pe
ndant
. The sa
ucer·
shaped
casting
may
be
suspended below t
he pendant botto
m,
and
held up to it by bolts. A
number
of
sect
ions
can
be
~ u p e r p o s e d
up
on one a
noth
er to give th e desired. amo
unt
of quietmg
t< >
th.e
exha ust· and , fin ally, a plain cover wt th an enlarged
outlet
p1pe 18
placed
the
top.
In
some
i n a t a ~ c e a
the top ma
y
be
specially formed to pr eve
nt wate
r
be
mg blown
out with
the ex
h
aust
.. Io a.ction the exhaust
pas
ses round
the
outer edge of the
saucer-shaped casting of
the
lowest section, then in wards and up
ward4 t h rough t he hole in its pendant b
ottom,
and so on u ~ h
all
th
e sections till
it
escapes
out
of
the
top.
I t
is
state
d t
ha
t
the
best r
esults ar
e obtained w
hen the
saucer-shaped castings are
kept
pa r tly filled with water, some of which
ma
y pass aw
ay
as
steam.
{A cce
pted Novembe
1· 29 ,
GUNS
AND EXPLOSIVES .
6701. J . Borresen, Christiania, and s. Sigbjornsen,
Gjovi.k, Norway. Flrearrns; Deadening their Re·
port and
Dimtntshing
their
RecoU.
[6
Fig
8.] March
28, 1899
The
applicants state
tha t
it
is well known
that attempts
have been
made to
deaden
the
rep ort
and
diminish
the
recoil of
fi
r
earms by
mea
ns of a
va
lve
ne a
r the
mu
zzle of
the
ba
rr
el, which
closes it after the paesage of t he project ile, thus forcing the ex
plosion gases
to
escape t
hr
o
ugh
s
uitable pas
sa
ges, in
a
lateral or
re arwa
rd di
rection.
The
applic
ants
find, howe
ve
r, t hat the
same
end s can
be attained
by
means
of a
perforate
d sleeve fitted
on
the
end of t
he
barr el, and having
within
it one
or more
defieoting
35
par titions eac h ha ving a
cent
ral hole enough to allfw
~ h e
free p a ~ g e of the projectile. The explos1on g
re
s, dn e a ~ ~ n ~
the
mu
zzle
ha
ve a
tendenc
y
to exP.:1nd late
r
al
Y,
an
a
re
u
ca.u bt by
'the
deflectors and d
js t
n
bu t
ed so
they
eacaP.e
t
hr
ffugb t
he pe
rforated aides of the sleeve i t h1s tendeney.
increased by the closing of the
cent
ral openwgs as t
1
e
P r O J ~
tile passes th rough them, thus to &ome. extent rep acmg ~ r :
vah
•e above refe
rred
to.
Th ree
a
lternative arrangements
illust
rate d ·
in
t
he
first and third of
these the
deftecfi<?rs
a ~ e
conical , and the gases escape
l a t e r a l ~ y
th rough Perfor
at
1
ond
1
d
t he sleeve ; in the la
tt e
r of t hese, the 1nner sleeve 18 su rr oun e
by an outer sleeve which CQnducta the
gases
~ e a r w a r d w h e n
t
he
y esca\'e t
hrough
boles whjch may be
p a r t u ~ l l y
c
losed
by a
r
otab
le d1ac to r
egulate
the re
co
il . In second
a n 5 e m
the sleeve
termin
ates
at
the muzzle, and 18
not
perforate · I t 1S
furnished with longitudinal r ibs p r o l o n beyond: the z l e ~ to
suppo
r t t he deflectors, which are aem1oncular m cross-sect1on,
t
he
r
ib
s
be
ing
attac
hed to the
q ~ a . d a n t s , and
t he gases
being c
onducted
pa rtly
in
a. late ral
dn e
ct1on and partly rearwa rd.
c c e p t e d
N
ove
mber
29, 1899.)
26,149.
Norddeutache
Munltionsfabrik, and Albert
Totte
Schonebeck, and Paul
Pondorf ,
Goeaanitz,
Germany. Regulating the
Position of
P r o j e c ~ U e s
and
Cartr idges. [2 F igs.] 10, 1898.- A
~ n 1 f ?
position or direction is a.utomat1cally 1 m p ~ r t e d proJ.eCt1lea,
ca
rt rid
ges
and t
he
like, so
as
to.
set them
1n p
oa
1t1on su1ted for
loading". It is
stated
tha t it
bas
hi ther to
been ne
cessary
to
effect
this adjnstment by band, which bas proved t roublesome and
pensive.
The
bodies operated upon are
~ u s e d
to. pa
ss
thei
r
descent
successively th rough h o r ~ n t a l
~ h d e a
actuated
by cams on a vertical
sha
f
t, and
spnJ?gB .
actmg agawat the
cams.
The apertu
re
in
t
he fi
rst or up per
ahde 18
normally closed
by
action
of the spring, and is ope n
ed
by
the cam
for a
pe n
od
..--...
I
)
suffic
ient
to allow one projectile only to
drop on
to
the se
co
nd
slide. On passing t
hr
ough this slide, the projec
tile
falls
on
t he
t hird slide, the ape rture of which, in consequence of the posit ion
of the ca.m, is then partially closed ; it is,
ho
wever, sufficient ly
open to a
ll
ow
th
e point of
the
projectile,
shouldauc
h
be
pr
esented,
to en
ter
t
he apertu
re, its base
th u
s clearin g the second slide, and
when t
he
slide is
dr
awn back by its cam, t he
pro
jec
tile
fall
P,
poin t downward . Should base of the projectile, however, be
presented to t he third slide, it
is
unable to
ente
r the
apertu
re
therein,
and
is suppor
ted
so t
hat
its p
oint
does
not
cl
ea
r
the
second slide, which is
timed
to
tilt
it over before the
third
slide is
dra.\'01 back ; it
then
passes t hrou&'h
an
elonga
te
d ape r tu re
in
the
thir
d slide, and is t hen delivered point downward through a bye·
pass into the same channel and in tbe same
direction
as the
former
proj
ec tile. ..A
ccepted N ovember 29
, 1
899.
)
364. A T.
Dawson.
G. T. Buckham,
and
C. A.
Larsson,
Westminster.
Machine Gun Mounting.
(6 Fig s.]
January
6, 1599
Thi
s
invention
relates to
an
all-round
fire
mountin
g for a machine
u n , and
is desig ned to
secu
re ligh t ·
ness and portability, and to
be
c
on
vertible from tiring to por
table
condition.
The
t ru nnions rest in bearings
in
a fork-head, t
he
se
being so a rranged t h
at
on withdrawing a spring -bolt the head and
nut of which constitute t he t runnions, these can be raised
out
of
the bea rings t
hrough
a forwardly
in
clined gap,
and the gun ca
n
be remo
v
ed
from
the mounting
.
The gu
n c
an be held
at
and
des
ired
elevation by a wedge
passing th
r
ough
the for k
·bead,
and
co
nn
ected to a lever handle
at the
re
ar of the
gun . The ammu
nition box is attached to
the
fork-head, and revolves with it upon
a
pi vot
on
an in
v
erted
fo
rk, the piv
ot be ar ing
ha
ving a clampin
JZ
·
sc
rew and
handle to
ho
ld
t he
gun
trained
in
any
directio
n. In
the limbs of
the in
ve
rt
ed fork are
pi
Yotted
two
pai
rs
of l e ~ s
the
ends
of
which
are
made fiat
and
fu rnished with
spikes
to pr event
slipping on
hard
ground ; t he socke ts to whi ch each pair is
secured
be
ing fu
rnished with
arrus by
means
of w
hi
oh t
he
l
egs are
c
lamped in
firing or
portable
po
sit
ion.
(.Accepted N ovember 29
,
1899.)
MACHINE AND
OTHER TOOLS, SHAI' ' 'ING, &c.
~ M S s.
Simpson, Exeter . Turret Lathes.
[8 F igs.) November 8, 1898.- l t is
s ~ a t e d that
although
tu rr et
lathes have bee n
pr
ovided with a turret-looking bo
lt, the
accu racy
ot the work p roduced b
as
been greatly interfered
with
by
t he
lateral
mo
vement
of the
tu rr
et ,
due
to
its fitting
loosely
on i ts
pi
vot, so as to
be
easily
turned
; and
that
although
hand
· lever f
and
screw-bolts
ha
ve
been applied
to
c
lamp
the tu rr
et, such
clamping devices are neither cer tain nor uniform
in their
ac t ion,
so
that
inaccure.cies
still result.
Acc
ording to this invention,
the
tu rr e
t,
when in
w
orking
position, is
automatically clamped upon
its
seat
by a lever operated
by
t.be
turr
et-slide ;
while the
same
lever, when the slide
is
drawn back, releases the
tu rr et, and
allows
7/17/2019 Engineering Vol 69 1900-01-05
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it
to t u r n ~ to
bring a n ~ t h e r tool working position. Al·
te rnatwe e v 1 c e s fo r ope.ratmg the
olamp1D§;t
lever are illust rated
and ~ e s o Accordmg: to one
ar
rangement, the clamping
e v ~ r 1s of the or
de
r ; 1ts
short
er
arm
effects the clamping,
whtle ~ h e end ot 1ts ~ o n g e r ar m
shdes
on an
adjustable
stnp on
the shde ·block, hav10g t hroughout the greater por tion of
its
•
Pi. g
1.
lene th a horizontal face, which
supports
t he lever in clamping
pos1tion ; but
at
its
rear end an inclined face, which, when the
slide
is
drawn baok, releases
the
lever and
une
lamps the tu r
re t
.
In
the alte
rnative arrangement
the
lever is of the second order,
and is ope rated to clamp and unclamp the tu rret by means ot a
cam
on 1ts end, which ts
actuated
by a groove
or
by catches on
the slide-block
or
saddle. (.Accept
ed N
overfllJer 29,
1899.
)
1222.
s.
Frank
F r
a
nkfo r t
-on-Main, Germany.
Screw-Thre
a
ds. [3
F igs.]
Januar
y 18, 18
99.-According to
this invention,
internal
or
external
screw-threads
are
formed on
tubes or
tubula
r articles by means of a die. When the screw
thread
is
to be
formed on the exterior of the tube, one end is
slightly reduced in
diameter
by means of a draw-plate, and is
then inser ted into a die baYing an internal screw-thread, and a
mandril
is
forced
into
the tube so as
to
compress the metal
into
the th
read of
the
die . When
au
internal
th
r ead is
to
be formed,
__
1 l2 t
•
the end is slightly enlarged
to admit
a
th
readed mandril,
and
the t ube is then drawn through an ex1iernal die, so
as
to press the
metal into the thread on the mandril. The
thread
being fo r
med,
the
tube
may be unscrewed from
the
mandril
or
die. An internal
screw-thread may also by
this
means be formed in a cap or lid, the
threaded
mandril being inserted
into the
cap, which,
together
with
the
mandril, is
then
forced through
the
die, when
the
cap
may be screwed off the mandril.
Accepted
N
ovember 29,
1899.)
421. E.
S. Biggins . London.
Cut t ing
Links of
Mort is ing Machine Chains. [7
Figs
. ) January 7, 1899.
The object of this invention is
to
make the
cutting
Jinks of
mortising machine chains of thin
metal. To accomplish this, a
centra
l distance-piece is
u<Jed,
supporting two thin metal cutters
turned
O\'er at right
n ~ l e s ,
these
th
ree pieces t o ~ e t h e forming
one inside link ; the next
cutting
link on either
s1de
is solid, and
•
.
-
•
•
•
o
I :
•
i
bas
its
c u t t i n ~ edge
on the
upper face. These solid
and
sheet
meta
l links are coupled by fence or
guard
links. It will be seen
that
hy removing or altering
the
thickness of
the
distance-piece
in the
shut
metal link, the
cutters
may be br
ought
together,
forming a narrower link
adapted
to
cut
a narrower mortise. It is
stated that
there
is ample clearance between the
cutting
faces and
t.he fence links.
(.A
cce
pted
N
ovember
29,
1S99.
HYDRAULIC MACHINERY.
27,896. J . Wel la rd , Grays.
E ss
e x .
Bal l and Floa t
Valves.
[1
Pig.) December 28, 1898.-This invention relates
to hall-cocks or valves,
and
has for its object to form the float so
that
no joint shall be exposed
to the act
ion of the liquid, thereby
obviating electrical corrosive action.
The
float is shaped as a
hollow vertical cylinder, having a hemispherical bottom; the
top
r
L-. '
V
r
J:J
. . ~ .
, I I
-
==
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
--
-
-
-
-
-
=..:..
E N G I N E E R I N G.
Li f 'TING AND BAULlNG APPLIANCES.
24,642 , W. T. Rouusivel l , London. Adjus table
B e ~ r i n Bracket . [6 Ji ig
s.
) November 22, 1898.-This in
ventiOn
~ l a t e s to
a1justable bearings,
and
provides
an ar
ran1e·
ment whtch comprises two b rackets, having teet which may be
fa3tened to joists, the vertical sides of which brackets have long
slots in t hem, at the bottom of which are lugs. Between these
FU]
. 1.
brackets is a bridge-piece, having a
slot
practically
th
roughout
its
length,
and
fastened between the brackets by means of two
bolts, one at each end, which bolts pass th rough the slots in the
brackets. Two
set
screws are
tapped
into the lugs fo r the purpose
ot
" raising the
br
idge-piece up
or
down." The
b e a r i n ~
is sup·
por
ted
by
and
fixed upon t he bridge-piece.
t.Accepted N() )ember
29, 1899.)
PUMPS .
17
1
171. B.S. Maxim. L ondon.
Mercur ia l
Air Pump.
[ 1
Ftg
1 August 9, 1898. This inventio n is especially applicable
to
" Geissler "
and
" Sprengel "
air
pumps. The head
of
the pump,
into. which the mercury flows, is provi ded with a float which auto·
ma t•ca_lly checks the mercury supply when its flow o u ~ u the
pump
r
eta
r
ded
or
stop
ped. The ~ o a t may be a cylinder of glass
filled wtth glass beads, and fitted wtth a pair of perforated co
rk
stoppers, the central portion of the upper stopper, which lies
immediately below the mercu ry
inlet
nozzle beine-, however, un·
perforated. When
the
operation of
the
pump
IS
arrested,
the
mercury rises in the head, and the inlet nozzle is closed by the
unperforated portion of the stopper. The mercury passes
th
rou
gh
•
I
= .
--
·-
the
float, and is thereby finely
i d e d
; air and impu
ri
ties a ~ e
thus
separ
ated, and
may be removed. The head of the
pump IS
ftt.ted with a hollow glass stopper, w.oich contains phosphor ic
anhydride or other hygroscopic substance ;
and the
inlet no
zz
le
and air-pump
outlet
pass through
the
stopper, and are fitted with
stop·cocks. The rim of the bead is axpanded, and mercury is
r.oured therein to seal the stopper. The upper ends of the
'fall tubes"
are enlarged
and
arranged
to
extend into the
vacuum chamber, so as to open at a point above that
at
which
the mercury enters, whereby the flow ot mercury in the fall tubes
is rendered intermittent, and takes
pla.
ce as a succession of drops
or pist
ons, which
act
to
withdraw
the
air from
the
vessels being
exhausted.
.Accepted
November 29, 1899.)
RAILWAYS AND TRAMWAYS.
27,415.
T.
Holmes and G. S. Holme s a nd J . B .
Barnes, L
iv
erpool. Operat in g Swi tch Poin t s .
[3 Pigs. ] December 30, 1
898.-Acco
rding to this
im
·ention,
switch points of tramways are operated by a lever attached to the
underside of
the
vehicle,
and
under
the
control of the driver,
either
by means of a pedal or hand-le,•er. The projecting
arm
of
the lever, when
put
into action, engages with a jointed pivoted
1.
[JAI\. 5· I
900.
STEAM ENGINES, BOILERS, EVAPORATORS , c.
27
,288.
F . Allderheggeu , JUD., Amste rdam. Bol
l and . Utn t s tng the Energy of Steam. [1 F ig.] De·
cember
27,
1
898.-'rhe
object of this havention is
the
utilisation
of
steam in a superheated
state, without
the c e . . ~ i t y ot resorting to
a
steam
superheater. To accomplish this, the piston draws in air
b e a t e ~ e ~ t l ~
b.f the
exhaust
of
the
engine or
by
steam from.
the
boiler), th1s au
1s then
compressed (as much
as
possible adia.·
batically) in such a manner that
at
the end of the st roke the en·
larged clearance space is converted into a compressor chamber.
•
and is filled with air
heat
ed
to
a high temperature and at the
pressure of
the steam
of admission. Then a quantity of steam is
admitted in the same manner as with ordinary steam engines,
and
the mixtu
re of steam and air is expanded. After expansion,
the
mixture is exhausted
and the
aspiration of heated air recom
menced. The object of
this
procedure is to obtain the thermo·
dynamical advantages of using steam superheated withou t the
necessity of providing a supe
rh
eater.
Accepted
Yot•
e
ntbcr
29,
1899.)
1 6 7 .
R.
R eay, B a l twhis t l
e,
N o r thum b er la nd .
Jo in t s
for
S te
am
P ip es. [2
Figs.)
November 4,
1898.
This in ,·ention relates to the making of
steam·tight
joints, and
for this o b j e ~ t the steam pipe is turned up at the ends to form
an
oute r edge, around
"hich
is placed a steel ring,
and
on each side
of which
are packing rings of asbestos, two loose flanges being
provided, having recesses
that
pass over the ends of the ' r ing
• •
and
enclose
the
packing. Bolts are arranged for gripping
the
steam
parts
tightly together. A modified form is suggested in
which, on one pipe, there is a solid f l a n ~ e ha ,·ing a projecting
rin g, enclosing a space i nto which a small flange on
the
end of
the
?t ler pipe can enter,
an.
asbestos. ring being used
to
co,•er
the
~ m t , a loose flange se nrmg to gnp the parts together. Accepted
ovember 29, 1899.)
UNITED STATES PATENTS
AND
PATENT
PRACTICE.
Descriptions wi th illu
st
rations of inventions patented in the
Cnited
t t e s
of Am eri
ca
from l::W7 to the present time, and
reports of trials of
patent
law case in
the
{jnitcd tates, may be
consulted, gratis, at the offices of EXGIXEERIXG, :3 J and
36,
Bedford
street, trand.
A:\IERICAN IRo.x
WoRK
S. - The leading American steel
ra il makers have now orders in hand to the aggregate
amount
of
1,500,000 tons to
be delivered
in the course of
1900. The
principal deliverie
s
are
to be made to
th
e
great trunk
railway systems of
the U
nited States.
FRENCH M ECHA.X ICAL I xousTRY. - T he profit rea lised
by the French Naval and
Railway
Blast
-F urnaces Forges
and Steel
Works
Company
in 1898-9 w
as 19
8,564l. After
placing
16,433l.
to the special reserve,
and
applyin g
113,662l. to the reduction
of
the cost
of
sundry new
works,
including
the ba l
ance
brought
forward fr
om 1897.8
the ~ o u n t
available for dividend
for 1898-9 was 204,
5 l ~
O.f amount 116,799t.
was
.devoted
to
the payment
of
d1 v1dends and sundry aUocat1ons made to
the
directors
and staff, 60,OOOl. was set
apart
for new
work
s to
be
executed
in the course
of
1899-1900, and
20
Z
was