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

on those below, 15 miles per hour. The service

Traction Expen3cs, 1893.
hours are from eighteen to twenty per day ; the
THE ~IARSEILLES AND ST. LOUIS
working hours for each driver and guard are ten to
P er Car Kilo
ELEOTRIC ROAD RAILWAY.
A'erage
metre.
BY c. S. D u RWHE PRELLER, M.A., Ph.D., twelve per day, with an off-day every twenty day~ .
The wages of a driver are 150 fr., or 6l., and those of
A.M.I.C.E., M.I.E E.
I
a guard 120fr., or4l. 16s. per month, or 4s. and 3.2s.
Per Oar Per Oar
May. Kilometre Mile.
Ap r il.
(Concluded from p age 56t)
per day respectively. On days of extra traffic, the
1
Oost of Cunstr11ction Cftnd EqHiprnent .- This works extra men required are taken from the maintenance
I ('.
d.
o.
o.
2.08
out as follows :
13.46
and repair staff. In the ordinary service, twelve Generat.ing station, power .. 12. 64 14 29

ce of generating
t o fourteen cars perform on an average 1800 to Maintenan
0.26
1. 70
2.34 '
1. 06
station
Permanent way, 6 kib

(1.14
2100 kilometres or 1130 t o 1310 miles per day, Main tenance of wire system l.l 8
0.90
0.72
!),600
240,000
metres, double line
...
oars
and
equal to an average of 150 kilometres or 94 miles
4,800
120,000
Paving
.. .
..

0.77
5. 02
"
5. 22
motors

4.83
I
per car per day (ma~imum. 175 kilom~tres = 110 Drivers' wages
Machine house, sheds, of0.78
5.07
6.22
4.93

2,000
50,000
fices and repair shop .
miles per day), which 1s constderable, havmg regard
4.02
26.15
Chim~ey, ref!ervoir, r efri27. 40
2 ~ . 93
to
the
steep
rising
and
falling
grades,
and
to
the
1,000
25,000
gerator . . .
.

frequently unfavourable adhesion of the line. The
3,000
75,000
Three boilers and masonry
The average expenditure for traction per day is
number of passengers, which, in June, 1892, the
Three stea.m engines, tbr~e
first month's working, averaged 6000 per day, had as follows :
dynamos, and transmts
5,000
125,000
in April, 1893, risen to over 10,000 per day, and
StOn

.
1
Electric conductors, mres,
I
Per0ar j PH
in
the
busiest,
viz.,
the
summer
and
autumn
7,200
180,000
poles, and insulators ...
Kilo Carmonths,
t
o
over
12,000,
or
more
than
double
the
mttre. MHe.
Eighteen motor cars and
1
oriainal number.
The maximum fare on the
14,800
370,000
one cleansing trolley ...
d.
a
fr.

tr.
M:rseilles tramways authorised by t he concession
Administration, engineerstation :
4,600
115,000
ing, and SUJ?erintendence
is 7 centimes per kilometre, or a penny a mile ; on Generating
9. 25
1. 41
6.96
173.70
24 50
7
tons
of
coal
at
.
Interest durtng construc0.21
0.04
4.20
0 17
the
St.
L
ouis
electric
line
they
are
only
at
the
rate
watt:r
.
.
O.tO
55
50,000
2,000
tion one year, 4 per <:ent.
0.25
1.65
1.14
28.b0
Oil and" waste

of 5 centimes per kilometre. or 0.77d. per mile,

0. 38
2.45
1.E6
4 ~.50
Wages

with a minimum fare of 10 centimes. The average

Total
. ..
1, 350,000
54,000
2.08
13.46
10.12
258.00
gross
receipts
of
the
first
year's
working
were
equal to 225,000 fr. per kilometre, or 14,400t. per mile
Maintenance :
70,000
fr.
per
kilometre,
or
4480t.
per
mile
(86l.
0.26
1 .70
1.28
of doubleline.
32.00
Generating station ..

.F/g.23

HP Am~

240

eto

320

J/
'"

280

180

240

/5(}

200

IZO
90

80

so

40

tu.

Z40

so

120

60

80

30

40

~w~

r,

~~~

I.

tM/

I'll.

Jij

zo'

M~
~

1lf

/, }'"'' l/V

I Ml~lf

240

"iiO

2/0

'l.dn

180

ISO

160

120

~o

80
.!i 0

IJI fh

J.

W4

~
0

~I
I\/

J
7fll

~'

. . . ' 6 'rt Minule.s

The electrical plant and the motors were supplied

by the Oerlikon \Vorks, and the installation was
carried out under the direction of Mons. Th. Dubs,
of Oerlikon, as resident electrician, he having
already acted in a similar capacity on the Sissach
and Murren electric lines in Switzerland.
W01king.-Tbe railway was at first worked with
twelve ca.rs, of which eight were on the line and
four in reserve. From the first day of the line being
opened the traffic exceeded, however, all expectations, and the public, which at Marseilles is not
very amenable to discipline, so crowded the cars,
that instead of only fifty passengers they frequently
had to carry, as they do now, as many as 75, or 50
per cent. over load. Under these circumstances
the central station, as well as the motors, proved
quite unequal to the strain, the more so as both
the generating plant and the motors were subjected
to constant variations, exceeding at times by more
than 50 per cent. their ordinary maximum power.
Hence, both had to be remodelled, as already described, while the number of cars was increased to
eighteen, of which twelve to sixteen were on the
line, and the remainder at the dep8t, except on
days of maximum traffic, when all the available
cars, up to eighteen, are runnin g. Indeed, it
may be said that virtually the traffic on the line
is only limited by the greater or less difficulty of
circulation in the crowded streets, and hence the
maximum traffic can be carried on Sundays and
feast days, when the vehicular traffic is small. The
?rdinary service is a five-minute one, and a single
Journey takes 30 minutes, which is equal to an
average speed of 12 kilometres or 8 miles per
hou~, including stoppages, the normal speed on
sechons above 25 per cent. grade being 6 miles, and

I ?RD

ltl.

VUI-

h'U-

.oil

210
180

200

160

1- 160

120

120

so

'

l'
.;10

!I

IJl

20

"I .,

I~

10

{h
dJ/1

IJ

. .1

'60

0. 68

0.90

0.14

95.00

3.80

5. 02

0.77

95 00

3.80

5.07

0. 78

492.00

19.68

26.15

4. 03

60

40

17.00

F or t he ordinary service of twelve to fourteen

cars, the two 300 h orsepower engines and dynam')s are run alternately, one being always in
reserve; the smaller 150 horse-power engine and
dynamo are run during the hours of lightest traffic,
or toaether with the larger plant when sixteen
to eighteen cars are running. The other items
of working expenditure form part of those of the
company's whole system ; but computing them
pro 'r cftta, the total working expenses of the electric
line are as follows :

90
60
30

120

4'0

Total

Amptr't$ H.P
.'tM 240

/GO

I'

240

120

-If

iJJ

Fig.24.

Szo.- / ///

200

Q!>n

40
/0

160

.d

IN' 1

'

I
~

JM'IAI

ZIO
180

(1111~

H.P

/20

60

JrJ

"' Ill)
M-11

16()

'I

Wire system

Motor cars : cars 25
Regulators, trol
leys, circuits, and
43
rheostats

23
Motors

Sundries
3

Drivers' wages ..

H.P.

Ampere:;

30

(;() Mtnults

per mile per week), equal to ~0 centimes per car

kilometre, or 13. 77d. per car mile. The cost of
traction, viz., motive power and maintenance of
electric plant and rolling stock, and wages of
drivers, which during the first experimental months,
and owing to the unfavourable circumstances already
mentioned , was as n1uch as 48 centimes per car kilometre, or 7. 34d. per car mile, has now been reduced
to less than the guaranteed figure of 28 centimes,
viz., to 26 centimes or 4d. per car kilometre and
mile r espectively. Owing to the guarantee contract, the output of electrical energy, the consumption of feed water and fuel, and the residue of the
latter are strictly controlled, the electrical energy
being registered by a Thomson meter, the feed
water by a Frager meter, while the fuel, which is
carried from the coal shed by a Decauville tramway, &c., passing over a weighbridge, is weighed on
entering the boiler-room, and the residue on leaving
it. Only Cardiff coal of good quality is used, the
present cost at the central station being 24.50 fr ,
or practicalJy 20s. per ton. Taking, as a typical
example, the working tables of two average months
(April and May, 1893) of the ordinary spring service, the mean number of car kilometres per day
being 1880 in 18.5 service hours, with 13 cars, the
cost of traction is as shown by the annexed Tables.
The consumption of fuel of 7 tons per day of
18.5 hours is equal to 2. 5 kilogrammes (5. 5 lb.) per
horse-p0wer per hour, the mean effective power
being 150 horse-power, und the maximum 300
horse-power. When the new steam and electrical
plant is in efficient working order, and the consumption of fuel reduced accordingly, the cost of
traction will presumably not exceed 22 centimes or
3.4 p(>nce rer car kilometre and mile respectively.

Per. Cn.r Per Car

I<tto~n
1
metre.
e.

Trac tion

Maintenance of per
manent way ..

Traffic ..

Administration

General charges

lper centl

o.

d.

60

26.15

4.02

6
18
8
8

2 62
7.85
3.49
3 49

0. 40
1.20
0 53
0.53

l OO

43.60

6.68

Total.

fr.

179,580

7,188

17,960
53,880
23,940
23,940

719
2,156
957
957

;299,300 11,972

The gross r eceipts amount to 500,000 fr. or

20,000~. per annum, and the line iA, therefore,
worked at about 60 per cent. Adding to t he working expensee 10 per cent. depreciation and sinking
fund of the generating plant, wire system, and
motor cars, viz., 3000l., the total expenditure
amounts to about 15, OOOl., so that the net receipts
of 4000t. represent a return of about 8 per cent. on
the capital of construction and equipment.
Efficiency.-As already mentioned, the efficiency
of the new dynamos in reapct of the steam engines
under full load is 93.6 per cent. ; in other terms,
the dynamos give 736 x 0. 93 = 684 watts per
horse-power, whereas the old dynamos only gave
86 per cent. efficiency, or 630 watts per horsepower.
As regards the resistance of the conductors and
return circuit, it has been found to be 40,000
ohms, so that at the usual tension of 550 volts, the
leakage or loes to earth is only 4 ~~~ 0 = 0. 00137
ampere, showing the ine ulation to be practically
perfect. In order to determine the loss of poten
tial due to the resistance along the line, a selfregistering voltmeter was placed at the St. L ouis
terminus, and the curve was compared with that
registered by the voltmeter at the central station
(distance 3.8 kilometres) in the same space of time.
It was found that with eight cars running, the
maximum loss, viz., the difference of tension at St.
Louis, was 14.8 per cent., the central station registering 575 volts at the time. The aYerage loss,
however, was found to be only 4.2 per cent. At
the Cannebiere (Mars(>ill(>s) terminus, on the C~thet

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

THE BOYD BRICK PRESS AT THE

CONSTRUCTED DY 1\lESSRH.

WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.

CHISHOLnJ, BOYD, AND \VHITE,

CHICAGO.

(For Description, see Page 634.)

F ig. 2.

Fig. 1.

hand (distance from central station, 2.2 kilometres), the maximum loss was 11. 8, and the mean
only 0.8 per cent. , so that t h e total mean loss of
E:>tential along the line does n ot exceed 4. 2 + 0. 8
= 5 per cent. As is seen from the longitudinal
s ection of the line (Fig 2, page 499 antP ), the
work performed by the motors, and consequently
the energy derived from the generating dynamos,
and h ence the load factor of the steam engines,
vary exceedingly, according to the different grades,
to the varying car loads, the number of stoppages
and starts, and the degree of adhesion of the
rails.
The extraordinary variations to which
an electric system such as t hat of the Marseilles
line is subject, are strikingly shown in the illustrations of two typical load curves (Fig8. 23 and
24, page 627) r egistered by the ce~tral station
ampere-meter in the space of ?O nunute~ each,
with fourteen cars on the lme.
It IS seen
that the load , as indicated by the current
and the corresponding h0rse-power , frequently
varies from a minimum of 40 amperes (30
horse-power) to a maximum of 320 amperes
(240 horse-power) within. the space of a minute,
while the mean current IS only 180 amperes (135
horse-power). And this is the more n oteworthy as
t hese c urves were registered on a fine day, when
t he rails were dry, and the conditions of adhesion
were therefore favourable. Various tests made on
the line h.\l.ve shown that under ordinary conditions
()f adhesion the coefficient of traction is t.he usual
<>tle for a good permanent way with grooved ra.i~s
-viz., 10 kilogra~m.es (22 lb.) pe~ ton. The additional power required for startmg Is, on an average,
only 30 per cent. of the running power, this percentage, which at first sight .app~ars. remarkably
small being obtained by speCial wiudmg and conseq u~nt high inductive power of field magn~t
bobbins. The starting power of these motors I S
shown by the fact that on the 4 to G per cent.

Flg.3 .

.' .,

' ',, '

'

'

-,
--- - ---

....

)
/

........

~~~~~---..;-- _, ..

...

,. ;
I

__

--

~=~~ --;-':-'-~-'""1!1 -

.,. .. .. ... .. ' '

._

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

..........
... .. .: . -..
-....

...

...

"'

..

I
I
I

:" 7 I

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

AT PIU RA, PERU .

ROAD BRIDGE

F RO M THE DE S I G N O F :MR. C. F.

F IN DLAY, 11. I NS T. C.E. , LONDON.

(For Description, see Page 635.)

Fig.1.

,f.4'- '

------------------------------.!
_______ . ___________ _JJ!!I:.~.D:. ________ ____ _______~

?~- .Q ---J
- -- - - - - - - - --- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ---- - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - -- - -- - - - - - - - - - - JtC
~
--- - - ---- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - .- -

l------- - - ----- - -------LM:.._o~---- ---------------

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

_JL4 '

o ------ _ ------- ~'a

'1

'

---

lt80 .4

fut

200

I
I(

Fig.:l

7"X

C/. ~

'7/6

)I

-1~

.x:
c-)

--

.. 1

I f , -... -

.....

I
I

I
I
I

Ei.g 3.

.0')f:
'

'

.,I

'

11

--

' I

(-.J

'

.Fig.4.

C :l

Cl()

Bolt.!{ Full Silt

Co!fu

0)

Fig.6.

- I

'

---

'

'

,f. "" * " .

o:

'
aQ

.
I

o:

==-

.o:

1 '<::::!

' l ~
l e::)

01
01I'

' 'I

("J

__

... I

l t>j
:

....

--

. " .

IV W

Cf)fJitTERFOR T

- ..

-iJ" ".

. . . ---- -- - 161,i.: ----------- --

..... .

hl -- :--
~
p,._
r

(..

Fig.5.

.... y

~ " ....

~--1 ____ G:.s:______ ,:, __________________ u)6~. ________ ________.,.___ ___ 4:.-.3 - -- -- ~

-D-o

.......,.

;;;

~
4,

1880 tJ

CL A r

Ins IZ

!J

6 .J

~~
m
~o1~~~n~====~~==~
~
~~====~==:=~

r-eet

18$0 c

:..

...

, / '\

~----~~r---- ~~:~ ~---~~~

Fig. 7.

I <
I

'I
I

I ~

..::;-..:. .,.-;

,, /

/"....

,'/

', '

, , .....
/'-.

.-'

'

H ORIZO N TAL

SC ALE - t2~o

I
I
I

-,
I

I
I

'--

FfJ SIZE

Whole

Br~dge loaded

All loads removed

Car
Load
Tone.

12

12

.I
I
I
I

I
I

..

CO N CR1

'-"'-~

1480

grades an overloaded car of 12 tons starts with an

extra current of only 12 per cent. (80, as against
70 amperes when running), this maximum effect
being, of course, only of short duration and for
slow speed. On the flat grades, on the other hand,
where the speed is greater, the extra. power in
st arting is 50 per cent. (30, aR against 20 amperes
when running), the average being therefore about
30 per cent. The power developed by the motors
when running at 14 or 7 miles per hour, or staTting
on the minimum (1 per cent.) and maximum (6 per
cent. ) grades with full and overloaded cars, is
shown by the following Table :

TH

levels befor e l.ot1dtn8

_ _ ._ _
f,r:.f Arch only loadeil
__ _ . _ .. _
AI! observa/tons made at 7 a m

'

_.;

,/

/ .'

...

YERTICAL S CALE

--- -----

'

. -... . '
'.. '
, -.. ..,.,. . -~--~-~~,~~~~/~
~~~~~,~~
/~~--- ~. ~,...'"",\ ' \
,~,/
.,
- - - - ._....-,,
,

~
--

_.c;.&;._ ...-.. ..;::-- --

ll ~~~==
0
I
"
3
4'
S
6
7
8
"
I() f f
/...,,. 'c~,
~~i==~J==~'IF=~
+ ==*~~l==
I==~i~

I --~

(o

1880 D

X
X
X
X

Grade
j per CeLt.
(10
(10
(60
(60

+
+
+
+

10)
10)
10)
10)

Speed in
Metre.Metres per
KiloSecond. grammes.
X
X
X
X

6
6
3
3

1(180
14 10
1890
2520

' HorsePower

Plus 30 per
Cent. in
when
Run ning . Starting.

15

20

20

27
34
46

25

31

This gives a mean of 29 horse-power or 40 am.

peres at 550 volts per car when running or starting
on rising grades ; or, at 68 per cent. mean efficiency
of the new generating plant (as against only 46 to
50 per cent. of the old one), 45 horse-power to be
supplied by t he steam engines. Of the twelve cars
which are simultaneously on the line, only five are
on an average, taking current at the time, the other~
stopp~n g ~t terminal~ or desce~ding the 1 to 6 per
cent. 1nchnes by the1r own we1ght, and enly taking
current in starting after intermediate stoppages.
Hence the average power for the twelve-car service

E N G I N E E RI N G.

is 225 horse-power, while with fourteen cars it rises

to 240, and with sixteen cars to 300 horse-power
and more, according to the loads and degree of adhesion of the line, which latter n ot infrequently
drops from -,?0 th as low as 115 th and } 0 th. In that
ca.se the motors absorb up to 50 per cent. more
than the normal energy ; e.g., when the rails are
greasy or slippery, a 12-ton car requires, when
running on the 6 per cent. grade, a tractive force
of 12 x (60 + 20) = 960 kilogrammes, or at the
rate of 3 metres per second, 38 horse-power, while
the starting power required is one-third more-viz., 50 horse power, or 25 horse-power per motor.
A 9-ton car requires, under the same conditions,
34 horse-power, or 1'7 horse-power per motor.
With the old worm-geared motors, of n ormally
12 horse-power each, originally coupled in parallel,
this power was attained at a pinch by putting them
in series, and increasing the voltage from 550 to
600, but at a sacrifice of 50 per cent. of the speed.
Owing to the frequently greasy and slippery state
of the rails, this was, h owever, open to a serious objection-viz., when the wheels of one axle began to
skid, the counter electromotive force of the motor
on that axle was liable to prevent access of the
supply current, thus paralysing both motors. For
that reason, the new motors are always put in
parallel, and not in series. The efficiency of the
old motors was at first only 65 per cent. , although
it rose somewhat as the friction surfaces of the
worm gearing (1 in 14) became smooth ; the new
spur-geared (1 in 5) motors have, according to the
load, an efficiency of 70 to 90 per cent., including
loss by gearing and manipulation of r egulator. The
mean total loss of energy between the steam
engines and the axles of the motor cars is, therefore, as follows :
Per Cent.
...
7
5

system depend3 essentially on local conditions. In

crowded thor0ughfares, Auch as those of Marseilles,
the slot, or Buda-Pesth system, n1ay be said to be
out of the question, apart from its heavy cost, no t
only of construction, but of efficient maintenance.
The trench and slot system, moreover, requiree
and presupposes very perfect drainage, and this is
an important and costly factor -which is too often
lost sight of when that system is recommended.
Under these circumstances the Compagnie Genera.le wisely chose the overhead wire system as the
less objectionable and more economical system of
the two ; and the success of the line from a commercial, and, since t he r emodelled installation, also
from an electro-mechanical point of view, has
encouraged it not only to extend it to other lines
in Marseilles with steep grades up to 9 per cent.,
for which electric!\! traction is pre-eminently
adapted, but also to apply it on a large scale to its
extensive tramway system of Havre. Nor can
there be much doubt that the overhead wire and
trolley pole system will continue to hold the field,
unless and until accumulator cars can be made so
light, efficient, and economical as ultimately to
solve the problem of electrical traction in t owns
and crowded suburbs.
The writer has to express his obligations to
M. Dubs, acting at Marseilles on behalf of the contractors, Messrs. Sautter, Harle, and Co., and the
Oerlikon Works, for the working tables and other
information kindly placed at his service.

THE ENGINEERING CONGRESS AT

OHIOAGO.
(BY ouR NEw YORK CoRRESPONDENT.)
( Concl!uded from page 602.)

THE last paper having now been pre~ented to the

...
Marine Congress, the proceedings were closed by
... 20
remarks from those present. Among the speakers
was:
32
Colonel Edwin A. Stevens, of Hoboken, who progiving a total mean efficiency of the system of 68 posed a vote of thanks to Commodore Melville for
per cent.
the able and courteous manner in which he had preOonclusion.-Irrespective of the interest attach- sided over and carried on the work of the Congress.
ing to the constructive features of the Marseilles He thought the Navy Department deserved great
line, more especially the p erfect insulation, the credit for the work they had done in recent years
efficient protection against lightning, and the in advancing naval engineering construction, and
reduction to a minimum of the extra energy in for the fine ships and machinery they are now prostarting, its working experience teaches some very ducing. This was seconded by Dr. Francis Elgar,
useful lessons. Chief among these are: (1) That who said on behalf of the foreign visitors that they
high-speed vertical engines, especially when non- had highly appreciated the friendly and cordial
condensing, are very uneconomical and quite un- manner in which they had been received by Cornsuitable for such enormously varying loads as those mod ore Mel ville and his colleagues at the Congress.
of an electric line, with rising and fal1ing grades He indorsed Colonel Stevens' remarks as to the
and varying degrees of adhesion ; (2) that worm high quality of the work now being done by the
aearing, involving as it does a reduction of 1 in 14, Navy Department, which. he said, is well thought
~nd corresponding loss of power by friction, is of and is carefully watched in Great Britain, and
not suitable for motor cars having to run at 15 other foreign countries. He also paid a tribute to
miles per hour, and that spur gearing with single the excellence of the technical reports upon naval
reduction is in all re3pects preferable ; (3) that to progress all over the world which are published by
insure elasticity and smoothness of motion, the the Naval Intelligence Department at Washington.
body of the mo.tor car should alwa~s rest on ample Dr. Elgar called attention to the great amount of
spring suspenswns of the frame 1nstead of bemg labour that the proceedings of the Congress put upon
rigidly fixed to the same; (4) that where sharp the president and the secretary, Mr. W. M.
curves necessitate a short wheel-base, large motor McFarland, U.S.N . and predicted that the volume
cars carrying from 50 to 70 passengers should be in which these would be published would form one of
run on two bogie trucks instead of only four the mo3t varied and instructive collections of papers
wheels; (5) that provision should be made at the on naval engineering ever got together. C0lonel N.
outset for ample spare plant and powerful motor.d, Soliani, Engineer-in-Chief of the Italian Navy,
seeing that on electric railways and tramways the supported Dr. Elgar's remarks, and the vot.e of
traffic increases rapidly, and generally exceeds the thanks to Commodore Mel ville, the president, was
original estimate.
carried by acclamation.
In comparing t he cost of t~action. of the MarThen following this came a vote of thanks to t.he
seilles line with that of other hnes w1th overhead foreign visitors for their attendance and attention,
wires such as that of L 9eds and those in the to which they responded with liberal compliments
Unit~d StateR, we find that in the last-named cases to their friend s in the U nited States. The followthe cost is 5. 5d. to 6d., as against only 4d. per car ing extract from the Marine R eme1o, of Cleveland,
mile at Marseilles. where the cost of good fuel is, Ohio, may be of interest to those who havo r ead
moreover much higher. As compared with horse this account :
traction ~hich at Marseilles costs 6.12d. p er car
"There can be no doubt that the public volum~
mile th~ electric line of Marseilles shows a saving of the proceedings, including the papers and the
of 2.i2d. per car mile, or. 33J?er cent., while as eo~- discussions, will be one of the most valuable collecpared with horse tractwn 111 other large towns 1n tions of information in regard to marine engineerFrance such as Lyons, Bordeaux, and Toulouse. ing and naval architecture which has ever appeared.
electric~! traction at Marseilles costs 25, 20, and 10 Arrangements have been made with Messrs. J ohn
per cent. less respective!~. Still fu.rther south, how- Wiley and Sons, of No. 53, East Tenth-street, New
ever, viz., in Genoa, Mtlan, Turin, and Florence, York City, for publishing these proceedings in
horse traction is so cheap (from 4d. to 3. 8d. per car bo'Jk form, and subscriptions may be sent to
mile) that electricity can only beat it by.its own in- these gentlemen. It is the desire of Commotrinsic superiority. As regards the qu_estwn of over- dore Melville to have these proceedings circu
head wires vers'l tS underground condu1ts, the case of lated as widely as possible, so that any one who
Marseilles strikingly confirms what ha<J also been wishes to purchase them can do so by addressing
shown elsewhere, that the application of either . the Messrs. Wiley, and remi tting the price of subBetween stea~ engines and dynamos
,
dynamos and motor cars
Motors, gearing, and manipulation

scription. The proceedings will comprise some

1500 large octavo pages, including about 200 plates.
" ~Vith such young men around him as Passed
Assistant Engineer McFarland, it is no wonder
t hat Commodore Melville is credited with having
accomplished a great deal more than any of his
predecessors in the navy. Although giving e,e1y
evidence of the greatest respect and loyalty to his
chief, Mr. McFarland's manner of carrying out the
duties of the office of secretary of the Congress was
such as to cause most favourable comment from
nearly every body in attendance. He is certainJy
regarded among the brightest young men in the
Navy, and is destined for a position of more than
ordinary i --uportance. It is unfortunate, in view of
his valuable service in Washington, that he is soon
to go to sea."
The writer, being personally acquainted with
Ml'. McFarland, can most heartily indorse every
word of the above well-deserved compliment. A
general meeting of the various engineering branches
of the Congress was held, and reports were presented by the heads of the various divisions. The
following report of this is taken from the .A me1ican

M achinist:
''Mr. WilliamMetcalf, speaking for the civil engineers, said : ' Sixty-three papers in all were presented. Of these papers, which treated on a great
variety of subjects, Germany furnished 20, Mexico
6, Portugal 5, England 3, Holland, France, South
America, and Canada 2 each, Italy, Nova Scotia,
and Australia 1 each, and the United States 18.
The interest shown in the papers is evidenced by
the fact that 318 engineers registered, while the
average attendance at each session was about 125.
The discussions t ook a wide range. It is impossible to speak in detail of the large number of valuable contributions to our literature that were made,
but it may be asserted generally that the results of
our Congress will be far-reaching and productive of
great benefit to the profession of engineering all the
world over.'
"President Eckley B. Coxe, speaking for the
mechanical engineers, alluded to the great interest
that had been taken in the proceedings, and the unusually large attendance, considering the attractions
outside. The papers presented and the discuEsion
upon them had impressed him with the fact that
engineering tended more and more to exact statements of definitely ascertained facts, by men competent to ascertain and properly interpret them.
Continuing, he said: 'Engineering papers in these
days are n ot simply suggestions of men with bright
ideas and no experience. They are the results of
experience, given in exact terms, showing the
pounds of water evaporated per pound of coa], or
the horse-power developed by a pound of steam, as
the case may be. It seems to me that the construction of machines by actual guess has about passed
away, and that no designer or constructor of machinery who hopes to place his machine in competition
in any market can any longer neglect a thorough
professional consideration of every question and
every detail that comes into play in the use of such
machinery. One of the most important reports we
received in our Congress was that of our committee
on standard tests, and I believe that this Congress
will ever remain a notable gathering in the history
of the profession for the reason that we are
inaugurating a system of international testing, so
that work done in one country will not be repeated
in another. This is an important subj ect, and the
engineering world should give it close attention. '
'' Commodore Mel ville was the last to report for
the division of Naval and Marine Engineering.
He said that there had been an average attendance
of about seventy in that division, and that the
papers read and discussed would, he thought, prove
to be very valuable to the profession and to shipping interests generally. He was glad to know
that his own opinion r egarding this had been sustained by one of the most eminent engineers in
that line, who had declared that the published
proceedings would constitute the most valuable and
useful volume ever published on the subj ects of
which it will treat. He fel t it to be his duty to
publicly acknowledge the help rendered the division by t he publishing firm of John Wiley and Sons.
of New York, who had taken up the matter entirely
free of cost to the new organisation, dependina for
their reimbursement upon the sales of the volu~es.
"Following Commodore Melville's address were
those of the foreign d elegates, many of whom addressed the meeting to express their great appreciation of what had been done for their entertainment

6JI

ENGINEERING.
and instruction, and their very high opinion of
American achievements in mechanics and engineering. Among the speakers were Professor U n win,
of En"land
and Profe3sor Reuleaux. of P~ris,
0
names kno~n the world over in engineering circles,
and both of whom spoke in the highest terms of
appreciation of what they had seen here. Professor
Reuleaux especially seemed astonished at what he
had found here, and declared that in many things
we were pre-eminent, especially in the matter . of
precise measurements and the means for mak1ng
them. American engineers would, he declared,
be henceforth recognised as the masters of the
world. Several of the representatives expressed
themselves as much interested in the study of what
they called the 'American syst.em of manufa.c~ure,,
by which large numbers of p1eces, the duplicates
of each other, were pro:iuced by special machinery and gauges. Responses were ml.de for Germany, Sweden, Italy,. Austria-Hungary, Russia,
Switzerland, and Belgtum, all the representatives trying t~ outdo each other in praise of
what they had seen and heard while here, after
which the Congres3 was declared adjourned, " and
it may be stated that they parted reluctantly, but
in the full hope of another similar gathering in
Europe. .
.
.
Since thts art1cle was prepared 1t has come to
the knowledge of the writer that the man who
really started the idea of an Engineering Congress waCJ, a-s is t?o oftel!- the ca~e, not the on e ~ho
received the credtt of th1s magn1ficent undertakmg.
It seems that t he one who should be honoured is
Mr. Elmer L. Corthell, an engineer well known
and justly honoured in the U nited States and in
Europe. In connection with his work at the
Mississippi jetties he came into great prominence.
This oon~ress was projected by Mr. Corthell two
and a half years ago, and in 1891 he went to Europe
and commenced work on it. When it can be
sta.ted that he corresponded with twenty-seven
countries in its interests, the reader may judge of
what work he has been carrying forward. His
health became broken down, and he was unable to
even see the fruit of his labours, but the writer is
glad to pay this tribute to him and t o his work,
and to assure him that no one can forget this great
triumph of his painstaking and self-sacrificing
work. That he would have been more suocessful
in carrying out the details than those into whose
hands the work fell, is highly p~obable, although
they certainly deserve all praise for what they
did do.
It only remains for us to place on record the fact
that the high compliment was paid to Mr. J ames
Dredge, by Mr. 0. Chanute and Mr. Corthell, of
appointing him Honorary President of the Engineering Congress at the World's Columbian Exposition.

LITERA'l'URE.
Our Ocean Railu:ays; 01, The R ise, P rogress, and Developnunt of Ocetm Steann Navigation. By A. FRASERMAcDoNALD. (With Ma.ps and Illustrations.) London :
Chapma.n a.nd Hall, Lim1ted. 1893. rPrice 6s.J

THE title of this book may almost be taken as an

evidence of the large number of works dealing with
the subject, as it indicates an effort at originality;
but some of the pioneers of ocean steam navigation
would scarcely have regarded it as satisfactory, since their contention was that steamships
could be run with the same regularity as trains,
without railways; "only the land with its excreseences and roughnesses required rails." But t.he
present volume will be welcomed, for it has at least
the merit of having been written, not by an armchair historian, but by one who has had a long connection with shipping, having spent many years of
his life on board ship. It must not be inferred that
this indicates a re~son for preference ; but in the
multitude of records it is well to have one by a
sailor. His personal recollections carry back to
1833, when he saw the steamship Royal \Villiam
preparing for her trip from Canada to London,
and the book is specially rich in information
of early steamships. We cannot, indeed, have
too much detail regarding the early days of
steam navigation, provided the work of research is carried out with care.
Additional
value would be rendered if in all cases the authorities were given. This is too often omitted, and
thus it is difficult to differentiate between the relative value of the varying statements of different

aut hors. The first chapter de:1.ls with early voyages

of discovery, and the second with first efforts at
steam navigation. The author probably does not
intend the record to be complete; but so few were
the vessels that some attempt at a complete l ist
might have been desirable. The first steamer to
run on the Thames, we are told, was the Marjory
of 1815, but the author leaves the reader to
infer that she may have been built on the Thames.
The Marjory, we may state, was built at Dumbarton in 1814, at Archibald MacLachlan's yard, where
the first William Denny was manager. She was of
38 tons, and was the tanth steamer built on the
Clyde. Her aide lever engines were by J ames Cook,
Tradeston. Robert N a pier made his first marine engine in 1824. It was for a Dumbarton-built boat,
the L Gven. At that time Dumbarton was, as it is
still, one of the principal shipbuilding districts.
Th~ Marj ory came to the Thames by the F orth
and Clyde Canal and the east coast, and was
eight days on the voyage. She waC3 sold to France
in 18 LG, and was probably, therefore, the first
steamer in French waters.
To her clearly
belongs the credit in Britain of proving the possibility of steamers braving the weather of the
Channel, and not, as the author claims, to the
Thames or Thames Yacht of 1815, although he
may be quite correct in the statement that
this was the first steamer to sail to London around Land's End. This WclS in 1815,
but Mr. MacDona.ld gives no details, although he
indicates sister ships.
In the next paragraph
he states that Napier built the Rob R oy. This
ve~sel was built by William Denny in 1818. and
was the first steamer to run from the Clyde to
Belfast. She was re-named the Due d' Orleans,
and, as such, first conducted the Dover and C11lais
service. This was the twenty-ninth Clyde steamer,
R.nd was of 87 tons. The Robert Bruce, of 150
tons, was the first vessel to go from Glasgow to Liverpool (1819), while in 1822 the Tartar was placed on
the Dublin and Holyhead route, carrying the mail.
Coming to early over-sea voyages, dealt with in
the t hird chapter, Mr. MacDonald has allowed a good
opportunity t o pass of doing justice to a. scientist,
the centenary of whose birth falls this year. Every
history of steam shipping dilates on the remarks of
Dr. Lardner as to a voyage on the ocean with a
steamer being chimerical. Now, as Mr. Inglis
pointed out in his presidential address at the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland,
although Dr. Lardner is reported in a public print
of 1835 to have made some such remarks, he denied
at the British Association meetings in 1836 that
such a statement had been made by him, but
affirmed that long sea. voyages could not, in the
then state of the art of steamship building, be
maintained successfully without a subsidy, and
immediately succeeding events proved that he was
right. Moreover, has not Lord Brassey, even in
this age of advanced knowledge, contended for
subsidies if we are to maintain our prestige against
foreign competitors 7* In a lecture published in
1828, Dr. Lardner, indeed, said that" in 1812 steam
vessels were first produced on the Clyde, and since
that period steam navigation has rapidly extended, so
that at present (1828) there is scarcely a part of the
civilised globe to which it has not found its way. The
Atlantic and Pacific Oceans have been traversed by
its power, and if the prolific res ults of human invention should suggest means of diminishing the consumption of fuel, or obtaining a supply of heat from
materials sufficiently small and light, it would be
hard to assign limits to the powers of those most
wonderful agents."
Copious extracts are given from the official record
of the Savannah's first voyage and subsequent
career, and incidentally some contribution to the
general information regarding old-time sailin~ ships.
The Royal Willia.m, built at Quebec, and fitted
with engines constructed at Boulton and Watt's,
Soho, Birmingham, is given as the second vessel to
cross the Atlantic by the use of steam, in August,
1833. She was 176 ft. long over all, 43 ft. 10 in.
beam across paddle-boxes, 27 ft. inside paddles ;
the loaded draught being 13ft. In April of the
same year, 1833, H. M . S. Rhadaman thus, a steamer
of 800 tons burden, was taken under steam from
Britain to Jamaica, t where she did good service in
connection with the suppression of slavery. To
this voyage no reference is made, and if any information can be given it would be interesting, as this
*See ENGINURING, vol. xxxv., pages 354 and 450.
t Ibid., vol. xxi ., page 376.

was clearly the second voyage antecedent to

that of the Royal William.
Although Mr.
MacDona1d makes no r eference to it, the firbt
steamer in the Navy was, according to one
authority, H. M.S. Comet of 1819, and it seemP,
therefore, very probable that by 1833 a steam
warahip crossed the Atlantic.
About this
time efforts were made in various directions for the
construction of Atlantic steamers, with the result
that the Sirius, Great Western, British Queen,
President, Liverpool, and other veesels were soon
on the station, and steam propulsion successful1y
adopted on the Atlantic. The narrative is told i~ an
interesting way, although, perhaps, more technwal
detail might have been acceptable to some readers.
The salient feat ures in the evolution of the
screw propeller and the modern type of marin e
engines are entered upon, the successive efforts of
Smith, Ericsson, and Woodcroft being referred to,
and the Archimedes and Francis B. Ogden
described ; while in a later chapter (xvi.) the narrative is brought up to date. As the book is
intended for the general reader rather than the
engineer, detail is eliminated. The early designs
of Woolf's engine patented in 1804 are desc-ribed
and illustrated, but the successful application of
the principle to marine engines is of later date.
Many experiments were made.
About 1848
the Rhine steamer Kronprin z von Preussen was
fitted with compound paddle engines of the intermediate receiver type,* but the experiment was
not repeated. Ten years before this, even, a
similar type was fitted to the Dutch steamer Admiral van Kingsbergen, plying between Amsterdam
and Kampen, in the Zuyder Zee. Probably, however, the efficiency of the compound marine engine
was established by John Elder. His patent was
taken out in January, 1853. Normand, for whom
was claimed the honour, did not take out his
patent until 1866. Mr. MacDonald states that
the first steamers fitted with the compound engine
were the Valparaiso and Inca. This is not correct,
for in 1864 the s.s. Brandon, built for the L ondon
and limerick Steamship Company, was fitted with
Elder's compound engine-an important point, as
this was two years prior to N ormand's patent.
The Brandon's engines reduced the coal consumption from 4! lb. to 3! lb. per indicated hors8power per hour.
In designing the engines
for the Valparaiso and Inca, tne experience in the
working of the Brandon's engines was utilised.
The Admiralty adopted the engine in the Constance
in 1863, and careful tests as to efficiency were made,
with satisfactory results (see ENGINEERING, vol.
xlvi., page 97). The story of recent progress is
interestingly told, although there are three or four
very remarkable slips.
An illustration appears
on page 218, entitled ''Tandem Engines," in the
midst of a description of tandem engines, whereas
the illustration represents not a tandem engine, but
the ordinary three-cylinder three-crank compound
engine, with two low-pressure cylinders on either
side of the high-pressure cylinder. Again, on
page 197, '' the head of the engineering department" at Fairfield is named Mr. C. Lane (page 197).
The name of Mr. An drew L~ing, who has designed
the engines of so many Atlantic liners, including
tho~e of the Campania and Lucania, should surely be
better known to the author of a work on Atlantic
liners. It is a mistake also to refer to the Paris
and New York as the first twin-sc1ew Atlantic
steamers (page 150). The '' Hill" steamers long
ago adopted the two propeller~.
The progress of steam shipping to the East forms
the subject of two interesting chaptets, the history
of the P. and 0. and the Orient Company being
briefly traced. There has been some satisfactory
progress in this direct ion in recent years, India
being a week nearer Britain than it was twenty
years ago, while the time taken on the voyage to
Australia is about a fortnight less. The principal
companies are briefly referred to, but the City Line
is omitted, while the North German Lloyd is left
out of the foreign companies trading to the East.
Both lines do an extensive carrying trade from
this country. In referring to the competition of
the Messageries Maritimes with the P. and 0., no
reference is made to the assistance got by the
foreign company as mileage subsidy ; and in the
brief record of the rise and marvellous progress of
the British India Steam Navigation Company, the
most pronounced feature, that they have prospered
practically without any mail or other subsidy, is

* See ENGI~iERING, vol. x., page 183.

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63 3

EIGHT-WHEELED C01fPOUND LOCOMOTIVE: WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.

CONSTRUCTED AT THE RHODE ISLAND LOCOMOTIVE WORKS,

PROVIDENCE,

R.I. ,

U.S.A.

(For Description, see P age 635.)

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631f

forgotten. These, however, are small matters ;

and the reference to their omission may almost be
accepted as some indication of our estimate of the
value of the work generally.
Chapters IX. to X I V. deal with the recent
progress on the At lantic, wit h the inception of
the Cunard Line, authentically told in H odder's
Life of Sir George Burns, Bart., the competition
between t he Cunard and the Collins Line, and
the rise and progress of the various lines, but
it is not necessary here to enter into a consideration of t his part of t he work, more
particularly as in a r ecent volume we t raced t~e
history of modern progress at some length. * As 1t
is very necessary that complete accuracy should be
maintained in connection with t hese records, we
must point out t hat on page 144 t he a uthor r efers to
an Inman steamer, City of R ome {440ft. long), built
in 1873, and states t hat her owners were not satisfied
with her performance. N o such City of Rome was
then built. That year the In man added to their fleet
the City of Chester and City of Richmond- both
very successful vessels ; the one still d oing service
for the American Line, and t he other for t ourist
yachting excursions to Norway. Mr. M acD onald
later (page 146) refers to a second In man Liner City
of Rome, 542 ft. long, " much larger than t h e
former discarded ves~el. ,, There was only one
City of Rome, this 542 ft. vessel ; and though
discarded by the Inman Line, she h as, since
having her machinery altered, turned out quite a
successful vessel. Again, the engines of the City
of New York and City of Paris are represented as
differing by 2000 indicated horse-power. This is
not so. Very complete d escriptions are given of
the two American liners, Paris and New York, of
the White Star vessels, Teutonic and Majestic, and
of the Cunard steamers, Campania and Lucania; and
no doubt we should be flattered by the preference
shown by the aut hor for details and diagrams given
in our columns, some of which only are acknowledged . In dealing with t he latter vessels, b y the
way, t he author quotes a. letter to the Times by
Sir Edward Ha.rland, in which he suggests that in
the Oampania several ideas carried out in the
Teutonic wer e imitated. I t would have only been
fair to quote the reply by Mr. John Inglis, an
independent party, and which appeared in the
Times t wo or three days later, wherein it was pointed
out t hat t he ideas carried out wer e of very old
date, that t hey had Leen first introduced by other
firms, and t hat therefore Sir E dward Harland

could scarcely claim the pleasure of t hat sincerest

form of flattery shown by imitation. The t wo
letters will be found in E NGINEERING, vol. liv.,
page 394.
The book, as a. whole, is most interesting, and
contains a large amount of information. We have
almost confined ourselves to references to on e or
t wo points which suggested t hemselves in the
perusal of t he work; there are one or two other
misprints which are almost self-evid ent. We might
say many complimentary t hings about the volume.
As we have already hinted, the general m erit is
really responsible fo r suggesting t hat t he inaccuracies should be p ointed out . The wonderful story
of the evolution of the modern steamship is t old in
an entertaining manner, the technical d etails being
r elieved by personal r eminiscences racily told, and
the student of history will find many suggestions
for the exercise of his love of r esearch.
There are
quite a number of illustrations, while maps are
included, showing t he g reat steamship routes around
the world, as well as charts of the basin of the North
Atlantic, wit h a vertical section between M exico
and Africa. The t hree last chapters in the book,
indeed, are given up to a consideration of the
oceanography of t he Atlantic and P acific, and the
other great waters over which our steamships sail.

---

BOOKS RECEIVED.
The Depreciation of Factories, M ines, and I ndustrial
Un dertaking$, and thei?' Valuation.
By EwiNG

Inst. C. E. Second Edition. London:

E. :\nd F . N. Spon; N~wYork: SponandChamberla.in.
MATBESON, M.

Weather Lore : A CoUection of P1overbs, Sayings, and

Rules concerni-ng the Weather. Compiled and arranged

by RICHARD I NWARDs, F.R.A.S.

Stock.

London :

Elliot

T idal Rivers ; Their (1) H ydraulics, (2) Improvement, (3)

Navigation. By \V.. H. WREELRR, M. Inst. C.E.
London : Longmam;,, Green, and Co. [Price 16s.]

AMERICAN UNIVERSITIES AT THE

COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.

VII.-THE M ASSACHUSETTS I NSTITUTE OF

T:h:CHNOLOGY.
THIS Institute has a distinctly practical and industrial character. It has no Arts faculty ; and,
as it is empower ed by the State to oonfer the usual
degrees in science, it stands prominently out as an
institution sui gene?'is, a veritable Technical U niversity.
It was found ed in 1861 in Boston, t hat hive of
intellectual activity. From t he outset it d evoted
*See ENGINEERING, voJ. li., pp. 420, 483, !117, 545, and 724 . itself with energy to the teaching of science, espe-

cially as a.ppli6d to the various engineering professions. At present it offers its r egular alumni
twelve complete and independent courses, each
extending over a period of four years. These are
civil engineering, mechanical engineering, mining
engineering, arehitecture, chemistry, electrical
engineering, physics, biology, general studies,
chemical engineering, sanitary engineering, and
geology.
On t he successful completion of any one of these
courses, the student takes his B.Sc. degree; a fifth
year of hard work and corresponding proficiency
makes him an M.Sc.; whilst it req uires a sixth
year of advanced r esearch work to l ead him to the
highest rung of the academic ladder, and make him
a D.Sc.
This Institute appears to be one of the few
colleges that do not measure their success by t he
number of graduates t hey annually turn ou t . It ia
obvious that the system of straining after numbers
is vicious ; it does not encourage the hard-working
student, while it fails to stimulate t h e easy-going,
society-loving reader. To be esteem ed, University
degrees must be the reward of scholarship as tested
by examinations.. There should be a weeding out.
A good percentage of r ejections is wholesome and
tonic. It is because of t he severity of its examinations that the degrees of t he L ondon U niversit y are
so much appreciated a.t home and abroad ; w bile, on
the other hand, it is because of the facility with
which these honours are distributed that t he
degrees of our Durhams are of such inferior academical or professional value.
The great clamour for a t eaching University for
L ondon that has lately disturbed our academical
atmosphere is, in gr eat measure, due to the irritation of certain professors on account of the hiah
standard required at Burlington House. and the
con~equent paucity of t he students frequenting
the~ c.lasses. ~f the Government finally yield to
their 1mportun1ty and concede degr ee-conferrina
powers on the clamorou! colleges, it is to be hoped
tha~ the existing. U niversity. will n.ot enter upon a
pohcy of concessiOn, b ut will continue to maintain
its standard at its usual commendably high l evel.
The Institute of T echnology, while rewardina the
deserving work of its a~umni, ~ffers every fa.~ility
for study and research, urespect1vc of the consideration of. certificates or de~r~es. . It acknowledges the
necessit:y of ea.r.ly speCial~sa.twn ; a~d accordingly
affords, 1n due hme, a ch01ce of subJects according
t o the wants, ability, or aspirations of the student.
The Institute goes even further in its efforts
to spread t he advantages to be derived from its

E N G I N E E R I N G.
courses and laboratories. Persons of mature years
who are engaged in technical pursuits are admitted
to the lecture-rooms and l aboratory work without
being subjected to the regular preliminary examinations. Teacher3 are also invited to avail themselves
of the instruction given in order to qualify for a
higher degree of advancement in their profession.
Even those who may only have a few hours on
half-holidays at their disposal are pres3ed to come
and extend their know ledge in such departments as
physics, chemistry, drawing, and mathematics.
The privileges of the Institute are not restricted
to young men, ladies being admitted on equal
terms. Forty-one availed themselves of these advantages during the session 1892-93.
There is little doubt that such an institution
greatly promotes the welfare of students and
teachers who would otherwise never be able to increase their attainments beyond the elementary
stage.
In 1892-93 the Institute had 1060 students. Of
these, 314 were doing first year work ; 175, second
year work ; 144, third year work ; 138, fourth year
work ; and 286 were engaged in special studies of
their own election. The staff consisted of 16 professors, 11 associate professors, 41 instructors, 30
assistants, and 16 lecturers.
The library contains 26,000 volumes and several
thousand pamphlets. It is divided into a library
of general reference, and nine special libraries, containing text-books, treatises, monographs, and a
selection of periodicals germane to the department.
Volumes.
General Library ...
...
...
...
2619
Engineering Library
.. .
...
...
3783
Mining Library

1165
Architectural Library

950
5061
Chemical Library

...

3~04
Physical Library . . .
...
...
...
. 1ogtca
1 L'b
1259
B10
l ra.ry . ..
.. .
.. .
. ..
.. .
5151
Political Science Library ...
Geological Library...
...
. ..
1300
1496
English Library ...
...
...
...

Power of Incandescent Lamps to the Current, Voltage, and Energy Consumed ; '' "Tests of the
Calorimetric Method of Determining the Efficiency of Alternate-Current Transformers ; " ''The
Electrolytic Formation of Potassium Chlorate;"
"Experiments on Explosive Mixtures ; , " A
Design for a H otel de Ville ; , ''The Educational
Influence of International Expooitions, " &c.
Many of the text-books used in the Institute are
t he work of the professors. Among them we noticed
"Dynamical Geology and Petrography, , by W. 0.
Crosby; "Examples in Differential Equations, , by
George A. Osborne ; :'Plane and Spherical Trigonometry," by Webster Wells; "Notes on Electric
Motors, " by J. P. Fiske; and "Thermodynamics
of the Steam Engine, " by Cecil H. Peabody.
The exhibit of the Technological Institute is
attractive and extensive, including some 300 large
photographs of buildings, laboratories, groups of
instruments, albums of engineering drawings ; sets
of pieces in carpentry, forging, and pattern-making;
folios of statistics and curricula, a tri-phase motor
made in connection with a thesis, and a collection
of chemical products prepared by the students in
the laboratory of industrial chemistry.
'' Institute men " seem to be very loyal to their
almu mater; and it must be admitted that the display she makes in the educational gallery, a.s well
as h er valuable contributions to the development
of the industries of New England, justifies this feeling of appreciation and loyalty.

THE BOYD BRICK PRESS AT THE

WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.
\VITHIN the last few years great advances have been
made in the methods of brickmaking in the United
States. The most venerable of all methods, that of
hand-moulding, has been generally replaced by machinery. First came the "soft mud machines."d dInba few
h
years these were in a great measure superse e y t e
"stiff mud machines." These, with the addition of
artificial dryers, improved kilns and re-presses, greatly
improved the quality of the brick. The demand, howB esides the library, freely accessible to all ever, for a fin er grade of brick finally led to the intrastudents, considerable additional help is given by duction of the dry-press system, in which clay in a
carefully prepared notes wh ich are either '' gra.phed" nearly dry condition is automatically pressed into
or printed. It was found necessary to have recourse brick form at one operation. The bricks as they are
to these supplementary means on account of the delivered at the front of the machine are n.s smooth as
rapid development and industrial applications of the blocks of polished granite, and can be set directly into
experimental sciences. A few years suffice nowadays the kiln for burning, obviating all the intermediate
to render incomplete, if not antiquated, a manual on processes of re-pressing, artificial drying, and reelectrotechnics, so that a teacher to be abreast of handling.
fi
0 f h
A four-mould press for this process, constructed by
f
h
d
the times must make up or t e e Clencies
lS Messrs. Chisholm, Boyd, and \Vhite, of Chicago, was
text- books by fresh material from current scientific exhibited at the Columbian Exposition, and is amipapers and the Proceedings of learned a~d technical liarly known throughout the United States a.s the Boyd
societies.
It is found necessary to re12sue these brick press. Fig. 1, page 628, shows a general view
note3 every three years in order to facilitate of the machine ; Fig. 2 the pressing mechanism, and
work and keep pace with the progress of re- Fig. 3 a cross section of the press. The machine is
search. Many of those in the Exhibition contain entirely automatic in its operation, the dry clay being
extenstve interlineation, and often many additional fed to it from above through canvas spouts, and the
paaes. The number of such pamphlets prepared fin ished brick delivered ready for removal to the kilns.
fo;' the Institute is 40, with an aggregate of 3760 When run at its normal speed, makiug fine front brick,
ages, 480 plates, and 1200 lithographed or helio- it has a capacity of from 20,000 to 25,000 every ten
P
hours. The press is both compact and powerful, the
typed illustrations.
h b
19 500 lb Tl
fl
d
weg t erng
'

le oor space reqmre lS

As a f urther means of imparting the fullest know- about
7 ft. by 9 ft .. and the machine is 8 ft. high.
ledge to its students, the Institute invites specialists
The framing of the machine is of a massive and heavy
to give annual courses of lectures. In 189~-93 the construction. The two side frames bolt together withfollowina subjects were treated : "ConstructiOn and out the intervention of a. bed plate, the mould tables
Opera.ti~n of Telephone Lines, " by Mr. Hammond locking into the frames, and making a solid structure
Hayes of the American Bell Telephone Company; of the whole. The frame on which the gearing and
'' Methods of Wiring for the Distribution of Elec- pulley shafts are mounted is cast separate and securely
tricity, " by Mr. A. C. White, of the Western Edison bolted to the main frame, this being done for conveniElectric Light Company; "Electro-Motors," by M~. ence in shipping. This cast-iron framing forms the
H
t
El t
guides for the pressing parts, and carries the bearings
Th
h
f
J. P. Fiske, o t e
omson- ous on . ec ;le for the different shafts, this being its entire function,
Company; " Electric Lighting in connectwn Wlth as the whole of the strains due to the pressure on the
F1re Risks," by Mr. C. H. Wood bury, of the Manu- bricks are taken up in the pressing parts themselves.
facturers' Mutual Insurance Company, &c.
The bottom of the press is planed, for convenience in
To enable these occasional lecturers, as well as setting, and no foundation bolts are required.
the regular members. of the .staff,, to do their work
Three journals take the direct strain of pressing the
efficiently, the electriCal engmeermg laboratory has brick. First, the upper journal of the toggle, with a
dynamos of various patterns ~xclusively ~evoted. to bearing 32 in. in length, pivoted on 5~-in. steel pins,
purposes of instruction. Bes1des these, 1t c.ontams secured at each end in the side bars. Second, the
a 150-light dynamo, presented by Mr. Ed1son ; a. middle joint of ~he toggles, ~~ich is also p~ovided :with
9600 _watt constant_ potential dynamo, by the a 5i-in steel pm. In add1t10n to the pm bearrngs,
Thomson-Houston Electric Company ; and a 500- secondary bearings are provided by making each
alternating current machine.. The. engineering toggle fit the opposite .one, to relieve the piD: from
11.S?.ht
...,
wear. Third, the bearmg of the lower toggle rn the
laboratory is lit up by a. 500-hght direct-current upper crosshead, 20 in. long and 8 in. in. diam~t.er,
compound dynamo, also ava.ilab~e f?r instruction .
covering the whole of the upper crosshead, m a.dd1t1on
On completing their course, 1t lS ';lsual for the to the bearing on the 4!-in. steel crosshe.ad pin. It
students to write a thesis on some questwn connected will be seen that these three toggle beannga are of
with their special work. The members of the great area. and durability, and are all located abo~e
graduating class of 1892 h~ve sent 132 theses, the c:lay and ~oulds , a very necessary featu~e m
entirely their own work. unrev1s~d by the professors. machrn~s of th~s class. They are bored and fimshed
These cover a wide range of subJect~, as may be seen by. spec1al machmery, and are of excellent workmanfrom the few following titles : '' Raho of the Candle- . sh1p.

[Nov. 24, I 893

The upper toggle-pin is connected to a heavy lower
crosshead under the moulds by two forged steel side
bars, 3 in. thick by 8 in. wide at their smallest section.
These take the strain caused by straightening the
toggles and pressing the clay into the moulds. The
side bars are locked securely to the lower crossbead.
They are accurately finished to work up and down in
slides provided for them in the maiu frames, the slides
being all situated above the mould table.
These parts, the toggles, side bars, and crossheads,
form the press proper. They are capable of exerting a
pressure between the plungers of 600 tons, or 150 tons
on each of the four bricks. As before stated, none of
this pressure comes on the frames, they only forming a
guide for these parts.
Connected with the middle joint of the toggles is a
forged steel connecting-rod, operated by a forged
crankshaft 6 in. in diameter, which, by its rotation,
altP-rnately straightens and opens the toggles. The
crankshaft is operated by heavy compound spur gearing, the main gear being 2 in. pitch by 6 in. face, and
the intermediate gear 1! in. pitch by 5 in. face. The
train of gearing is driven by a. friction clutch pulley
30 in. in diameter and 11 in. face, running at 211 revolutions per minute, for a speed of 8! strokes of
the press, or 20,000 bricks per day of ten hours. An
ingenious arrangement of the starting lever operates
to disengage t he friction clutch, and, at the same
time, applies a powerful brake to the gearing, so that
the operator by one moti0n of the handle stops the
press instantly at any part of the stroke, or, by a
reverse motion, releases the brake and starts the press.
This feature is a great convenience to the operator,
and enables him to avoid accidents by stopping
instantly.
The pressing parts, plungers and crossheads, have
a vertical motion in the frames caused by the action of
two heavy forged steel lifting levers, pivoted in removable bearings in the frames. These levers connect
with the side bars at their forward ends, and are
operated at the back end by a roller 15 in. in diameter,
having a working face 12 in. wide. This roller is
operated directly by the main crankshaft in a most
ingenious manner, the throws or cheeks of the cranks
being utilised as a pair of cams to operate it, so as to
raise and lower the plungers while the brick is being
pressed, to lift the finished brick out of the moulds
and depress the lower plungers afterwards, so that the
moulds can be again refi lled. The motion is smooth
and noiseless, there being neither shock nor jar, consequently buffers, springs, and air cushions are not required. The action of the machine is positive. There
are no hooks or latches or troublesome mechanisms to
get out of order, as is too often the case in thi3 class of
machinery.
The feed-box or cha.rger is provided with a safety
front, and the hopper is free to rise from its seat in
case nails, sticks, or roots should get mixed with the
clay. The feed-box is instantly removable by loosening two nuts on the feed-rod s. It has a long flat
bearing, without the t roublesome guideways generally
used.
The top of the mould t able, as well as the whole of
the feed-box or charger, is highly polished, to prevent
any clay adhering to its surface. The feed-box has a
long stroke, and fills t.he poles perfectly evenly. The
spouts and hoppers are so arranged that if the clay has
any coarse particles in it, they will be distribu ted
throughout the brick, instead of being all collected at
one end or at the top. The question of this arrangement is a.n important one, and the fact of this not
being appreciated has led to the failure of a nu mher of
these machines previously brought out.
The position of the lower plungers, when the moulds
are being filled with clay, is adjusted independently
of the lower crosshead. As will be seen from Fig. 3,
the lower plungers are mounted on stems or rods, the
lower end of the stems being connected to a lever. A
fork ed rod hanging from the lower crosshead pushes
down the lever, and with it the lower plungers, to
such a position as will be determined by the vertical
position of the front end of this lever . An adjusting
screw connects the lever with hand wheels, in such a
way t hat it may be raised and lowered, thereby adjusting the plungers in the moulds. The plungers are
sustained above the crosshead by spiral springs surrounding the stems. These springs yield to the pressure in the moulds, permitting the lower plungers to
seat directly on the crosshea.d while the bricks are
being made. With this a.djusting device it will be
seen that the lower crosshead and its connecting parts
may have a positive vertical motion, thus permitting
the lifting rollers t o be in contact with the crank at
all times. Another important advantage is that after
the lower plungers are seated upon the lower crosshead, the relative motions of the upper and lower
plungers will remain the same. The adjusting wheels
are placed conveniently on either side of the front
apron, within easy reach of the operator. They are
easily turned, as the only strain that the adjusting
device can have placed upon it, is that necessary to
compress the spiral springs.
The mould liners are quickly removable, and can be

E N G I N E E R I N G.
~cpla.ced by a new set in a few minut~s.

Ornamental
shapes can be put into any. mould, or m t o a l.l of them
n half an hour. The thickness of the bnck can be
~hanged, and ~ny length of brick up to 14 in. made
on this machme. The u.pper and lower plung~rs are
both steam-h eated by an unproved h eater. Th1s pre vents any clay sticking to them. The plunger plates
ca.n be removed or replaced without interfering w ith
the heating device.
The question of lubrica.tio~ has been :vell con sidered. A ll journals, bea.rmgs, and shd es h~ve
large adjustable sight-feed lubr icators. All workmg
journals such as the toggle bearings, connecting- rod,
and cra~ksha.ft bearings, are made practically dustproof.

ROAD BRIDGE AT PIURA, PERU.

THE braced arch is no t a common form of construction among English engineers, a.l~houg~, as c~mp~r ed
with the arched rib, it has mer1ts whtch ent1tle 1t t o
more consideration than it has received. It may be
useful, therefore, to describe a bridg~ of this character,
recently constr ucted from t h e destgns of ~I r. C. F.
Findla.y, M . Inst. C.E., of 13, Victoria-street, vVestminster.
T his bridge replaces a girder bridge dest!oyed by a.
flood in the spring of 1891. A ll that remame~ of ~he
old bridge was the brick a butments a nd a so~1d bnck
pier, the latter dividing t he wid th of the nver unequally into spans of about 150 ft. and 210 f t. The
other supports of the old ,bridge ha~ been .~itchell
screw piles. Mr. Findlay s first d estg n ~t1hsed the
existing pier and prov1ded p arallel tria ngulated
Pirders of the spans above mentioned, with overhead
bracing, the girders of the unequal spans being uf the
same depth.
This would have b een the mo~t rapid method of
establishing comm unication across the river securely,
and also the cheap est, but the Government engineers
rejected it on the ground that u nequal spa ns would be
unsightly. The present d esign was, therefore, produced in order to satisfy the demand f or a. somewhat
bett er outline tha n para llel girders can afford, and at
t he same time not t o exceed the narrow limits of the
available funds. The drawback to th e design adopted
is the necessity it entailed of r a ising the road way
above the crown of the arch , and also, therefore,
making raised approaches on b oth sides.
The bridge is in three sp an s of 114 ft. each between
centres of springings. The a rch is hinged at the
springings ; it is 11 ft. deep at the et;ld~, and. 4 ft.
deep at the crow n, b etween centres! g tvmg. a. n se of
7 ft. The piers are strongly braced m the hne of the
bridge, S() t hat each pier ~o~l~ resist the thru st of a
loaded span even if the adJommg span were r emoved.
T he legs of the piers are bolted to concrete foundat ions carried down some 12ft. to solid clay. The load
provided for is 500 kilos. per square m etre (102:\- lb.
per square foot). Further, a. 2 ft. 6 in. gauge steam
tramway crosses the bridge, and a load of 10 tons on
the rails is prodded for, the present engines weighin g
about 7 tons. There is no other wh eeled traffic except
that on the rails, carts being unknown in the country.
The material used is steel of 27 to 31 t ons tenacity per
square inch. The climat e is p a rticula rly favourable
to the preservation.of ironwork, .bein~ almo~t rainless.
Fig. 1 (page 629) 1s a cross-sect10n ot the nver, showing by centre lines .the main member~ of the s truct'!re.
Figs. 2, 3, 4, and 5lllustra.te the details of constructiOn.
F ig. 6 shows th~ fastening used for all the main c~n
nections made m the field (except where large pms
were used). The holes in bars and plates were drilled
in the ordinary way and broached out in place when
the work was erect ed iu England to a taper of~ in. to
a foot, the bolts being turned to the same taper. This
makes a joint as tight as a riveted joint and more
secure, while it can be made by unskilled labour and
very quickly. The bridge is floored w ith joists of
12-in. Oregon pine a nd 3-in. pla n king. A hove the
piers on both sides semicircular balconies are carried
out on brackets, and seats are placed in them.
The stresses were calculated for five conditions of
loading, the deflection of the pier under unequ al
thrusts from adjoining arch es being, of course, a n
essential element in the calculations. A variation of
temperature of 32 deg. Cent. in either direction was
also allowed for.
With th e sections pro vided, the
stress is alway~ well below 5 tons per square inch in
the worst conditions. The only member subject to a
reversal of strain is the middle p art of the lower boom,
which, when one span is fully loaded and the adjoining spans unloaded, b ecomes subject to tension .
The bridge was tested by the Government inspector
by being loaded t hroughout with sand up to the sp ecified load above mentioned, and it was also tested with
the rolling st ock of the steam tra mway. Fig. 7 is a
diagram of the deflections in the centre of each span
when test ed by the dead load. It shows a satisfactory
degree of stiffness, and the rigidity of the bridge, or its
freedom from vibration under a. travelling load, is
equally satisfactory.
The weight of the two pier s is 23! tons, and that of

the three spans, including cast-iron skewbacks, handrailings, and all metal work, 133! t ons. _Steel structures independent of the piers were reqUired by .the
Government engineers t o b e erected to protect the piers
against floating trees. T hese weigh 12 t ons, makmg a
total of 169 ton s in a ll.
The contract price for the bridge, including t he concret e found a tions, raising the abutmen ts, ear~hwork
in approaches, &c., was 60,000 silver soles, wh1ch, a t
the rate of excha nge of the t ime, represented about
8500l. The counterfort s to the abutments were not
included in this price. The erection was facilita t ed by
the fact that the river bed is dry fo r som e months of
the year.
T he bridge was manufactured by the
Butterley Company, and erected by Messrs. Viiias and
E lmore, of Lima, under the superin tendence of Mr.
A. P. Rathbone, with Senor Emeterio Perez as Governmen t insp ector. It was opened for traffic in May
of this year.

RHODE ISLAND LOCOMOTIVE AT THE

WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.
THE l ocomoti \'e illustrated on pages 632 and 633 represents a. compound engine con~truc ted at the ~h.ode
Island Locomotive vVorks, Prov1dence, and exlub1ted
by them at the World's Columbian Exposition. As will
be seen, it has two pairs of coupled 'Yh~els and 8: fourwheeled rigid centre truck. The prmC1pal details are
as follows:
Diamet er of cylinders
...
... 21 in . and 31 in.
Stroke of piston
.. .
..
...
26 in.
Driving wheels
. ..
.. .
.. . 78 in. in dia..
Gauge . . .
.. .
. ..
...
. ..
4 ft. 8~ in.
Driving wheel base . ..
...
. ..
8 ft. 6 in.
Rigid
,
,
. ..
...
. ..
19 ft. 8 in.
Total
,~
,. . . .
. ..
...
22 f b. 9 in.
, length of engine and t ender .. .
47 ft. 6! in.
, weight in working order . . .
125,000 lb.
W eight on drivers ...
...
...
84,000 lb.
,
, truck
...
...
...
41,000 1b.
,
of t ender
. ..
...
...
75,000 lb.
. ..
..
. ..
4000 gallons
T ank capacity
The boiler is of steel, a nd h as b een construct ed to
stand the t est of 260 l b. to the squar e inch, and to
ca.rry ~00 lb. of steam. The tubes are of solid drawn
charcoal iron, 250 in n umber, 2 in. in diameter, and
10 f t . 9 in. long, fitted with copper ferrules at t he firebox end . The firebox is of steel , a n d is 6 ft. long by
3 ft. 5i in. "'ide. The plates, w hich were thoroughly
annealed after b eing flanged, are ain. thick, with t he
exception of th e flue sh eet, which is ~ in. thick. The
water s pace is 3~ in. at the side and back, and from
3~ in. to 4~ in. wid e at the front. The stay bolts are
~ in. and 1 in. in diameter, screwed and r iveted at n ot
more than 4! in. centres. The crown bars are sup ported by r adia l stays; the grate is of water tubes with
pull-out bars, and with the smoke stack is arranged
for the use of anthracite coal.
The cylinders, as already indicated, are 21 in. a nd
3 1 in. in diameter by 26 in. stroke. Each cylinder is
cast in one piece, and is r eversible and interchangeable. The piston h eads and followers are of cast iron,
fitted with cas t-iron spring ring packing. The piston
rodsa.re of steel, a nd the guides of" cast-iron gun-metal."
The crosshead is of cast steel with bronze g ibs, the
connecting and p arallel rods being of steel forged solid,
with steel crankpins. The vahe motion is of the
usual link t ype, all the parts b eing of wrought iron,
case-hardened . The driving wheels, four in number,
are 78 in. in diameter. The centres, of cast iron, were
coned and turned to 71 in. in diameter, to receive the
tyres, which are of Krupp crucible st eel 3~ in. thick,
the tyres b eing 5! in. wide. The axles are of
wrought iron, the journals being 8 in. in diameter by
11! in. long . The eng ine truck h as a centre swivelling
bearing, the wheels, four in number, being 33 in. in
diameter, with wrought-iron inside journals 5~ in. in
diameter and 8 in. long. The main framing of the
engine is of wrought iron forged solid.
The tend er is constructed of !-in. plates, braced
with angle irons, with /.r- in. rivets at 1 ~ in. pitch. The
framework is of white oak. The tender is carried on
two centre bearing truck s, made with wrought-iron
sidebars and cross-beams of wood, with additional
bearing at the sides of the back truck. The s prings,
as in the case of the en gine truck, are of cast steel.
The wheels, which are steel-tyred, are 36 in. in
dia meter, the axles, of wrought iron, h av ing outside
journals 4! in. in diameter and 8 in. long.
As will be seen from the illustrations, the locomotive
has all the charact eristics of the American type, and
we may add that the gen eral features of construction
and equipment are in a ccordance with the bes t practice,

NOTES FROM SOUTH YORKSHIRE.

SHEFFIELD, W ednesday.
Iron, Steel, and Coal.-Th e very greatest satisfaction is
exhibited by manufacturers, and those engaged in the
heavy trad~s, at the termination of the coal ijtrike.
Business circles are more cheerful, and there are evidences
that, though th e cost of production will for a. few months
be high, the demand will be heavy, and prices comparatively stiff. It is understood that all the blast furnaces in

the district will be at full work within a month, an~ there

is ever y reason to believe th e whole of the output w1l1 fi nd
a ready market, for three mont? s at le~s.t. M akers of
best qualitiea of manufactured .uon antlClp~te a. he~vy
trade as they h ave good orders 1n, and pressmg reqm rement~ from their customers. At the st eel works futu~e
prosp ects are regarded a s very ho peful. Not only IS
there a. stock of unfulfilled orders on the books, but there
n,re pressi ng inquiries already t <? ha~d for all claste.s of
marine material and heavy engmeerm g wor~. C~lh~ry
r equirements are also sure to be large, and rapid deh ven es
will be insisted on. All the large ~st~bhshments a.~e
standing as yet for coal and coke, b~t 1t 1s kn<? wn that m
the course of a week th e fami ne w1ll have dtsappeared,
and operat ions will be in full swin.g. Coal has dropped
Gs. per ton in the local market, mak10g houae co.al at the
wharves 21s. for best, and 12s. to 14s. for engme slack.
The prices of hard furnace co~l h ave 11:ot yet been adjusted. The miners are stead1ly returnmg t o work, but
there is a little friction in some places.
Sheepb1idge Coal and Iron Company, Limited:. A Warni-ng.-At the annual meeting of the Sheepbr1dge Coal
and Iron Company, held in S~effield yeste~da.y, Mr. H.
D. Pochin presided. H e sa.1d that du!m~ t~e l~st
coal strike the company would have pa1d 10 Its Ji>lts
50,000l. in wages alone. By not wor~mg, the colhers
had lost 5 000 OOOl. or G, OOO,OOOl. , bes1des the accumulated fund~ of' th eir societie~, and who was the bet.t er
for it ? The colliery owners were n ot, the workmg
men were not and the men who had been turned out
of thei r employment where large quantities of co~l were
used were not indeed, it was a. senseless thmg all
thro~gh, and the ~erminati~n w.a.s also senseless. He
was deeply dissat1 sfied w1th 1b. But the matter
The prices of coal we~e
would not end there.
likely to be maintained for so_me w~eks, but he d1d
not think they could expect htgh pr1ces to last much
longer than the beginning of February next ;, th~n would
com e the struggle again. He doubt.ed arbitratiOn, and
said the coalowners had the opportumty- he hoped they
would be wise enough t o make u se of it-to form a. .sort
of insurance fund, so as t o insure the coal th ey got a given
amount of profit, eay l s. a t on . . W?at it would cost
owner~ on this occasion t o geb their ptts ready for work
he did not know. A dividend of 5 per cent. was declared.
R oundwood Collie>"!/ Company.- Th e report of this company on the year's working to Sep~embe~ 30 l~st shows a.
loss of 1599l. The directors a scr1be this ch1efly to ~he
great fall in prices consequent upon home and fore1gn
competition, which thAy have been unable to meet by a.
commensurate reduction in the cost of working. 'rhe
nominal capital of the company is 75,000l. , in 7500 shares
of lOt. each. Ther e is a. reserve fund of 6000l.
Engineering Branches.-In every departm ent ther e has
been slack trade for three months past, but some of the
larger esta.blishmente~ state they expect to be very busy
for some months, both on home and export work. It is
yet t oo early to state defi~i~ely the directions from which
improvement may be antiCipated.
N ew Central Station Vn. Shfffifld.-Sta.tutory notices are
being given of the intention of a. company to erect a.
central station in Sheffield, with a. sp ecial view to the
accommodation of the East and West Coast Ra.ilwa.y
and the passenger traffic on t~e ne.w Dore an~ Chin~ey
line. The Sheffield CorporatiOn view the prOJect with
approval, but until plans are deposit ed they cannot t~ke
any formal action in support of the scheme. If carried
out, the work will be of a very costly character.
Trn.-The production of tin last year is estimated at
61,480 tons.
In 1891 the corresponding outpub was
57,551 t ons ; and in 1890, 53,434 tons .
0~'

M ANCHESTER SRl P CANAL. On lf rida.y, the 17th inst., Mrs. John Jackson, the
wife of the contractor for the last eight miles of
the canal, now practically
completed,
between
Runcorn and Latchford, turned on the water at
Latchford dam, and it is expected that within a week
from this date the canal will be full throughout its
entire length from Ea.stham to Manchester, and that
in the course of a. few weeks this great undertaking will be complet ed, upon which for its t otal
length some ten millions of money have been spent on
works alone since its commencem ent six years ago. Early
lastyea.ra.contra.ctforthe compl6tion of the first three miles
of th A length from Runcorn to La.tchford wa.s leb to
Mr. John Jackson, of W estminster, an old Tynesider, the
time for completion being fixed at fifteen months, hub
lVIr. Jack son was fortunate in completing in ten months,
or two-thirds the contract time, a.nd in this cutting no
less than 16,000 to 18,000 tons of rock and other materials
were a.t one time excavat ed per day. Lat er on the length
from Randles sluice to Latchford was also placed with
Mr. J ackson, but progress was delayed by the opposition
of the rail way companies to giving possession of their
lands where the canal crosses under their railways, until
last July, when arrangements were made with Mr. Jackson t o work night and day, and an engagement entered
into to complete before D ecember 15, hub such pro
gress has been made that the excavations were out in
about three and a. half m onths instead of five months.
On this section some 5000 men have been employed, and
no less than 70 locomotives, running over some 52 miles
of temporary railways. As is well known, the chief
engineer for the whole of the ship canal works is
Mr. L eader Willia.ms, who has been represented on the
Runcorn t o Randles sluice section by Mr. Ha.rold Abernethy, and on the length to L a.tchford by Mr. William
Burch, the contractors' chief representati ve being
Mr. George H. S cott.
COMPLETION

THE

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

CAR

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WORLD'S

COLUlVIBIAN

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CONSTRUCTED BY THE THACHER CAR AND CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, NEW YORK.

(For Description, see opposite Page.)

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with less cars, k eeping the me.n ~usy all the tim~.
The cars are working sa.tisfactonly 1n severa~ P.laces In
th e United States and Canada, and are g tvmg the
very best of satisfaction. The trucks of these cars are
CONSTRUCTED BY THE THACHER CAR AND CONSTRUCTION COl\IPANY, NE'V YORK. of special design, and are strong, so as to stand the
hard work of construction. They are not easy to
derail in case the track is in bad shape, which is often
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cars having a capacity of from 60,_000 lb. to 80,000 lb.,
and which will dump on both stdes of the track, so
that the cars can be used in general railroad traffic.
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DUl\IPING CAR: WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.

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NOTES FROM THE UNITED STATES.

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mecha nic finds in the States much ampler scope

for his abilities than he does here, because be is not
met a t every turn with labour so cheap and abundant
that it often renders it undesirable to lay out large
sums for machinery to r eplace handwork. Here contractors are careful how they purchase specialised
plant, unless the work is on so large a sce.le that the
entire cost of the machinery can be charged against it.
For instance, it would be an almost impossible task to
find a market for self-acting dumping cars of the kind
illustrated on pages 636, 637, and 640. These are
manipulated from the engine, and the train requires
no more men than if it carried ordinary goods. By
turning a. valve the driver can simultaneously tip every
wagon in the train, and when their contents are discharged he can restore the wagons, and steam off for
a. fresh load. 'Ve believe that nothing of the kind
has ever been attempted in this country, although now
that it has been shown how simple is the mechanism,
possibly something like it may be done.
The Tbacher compressed-air dumping car which we
illustrate was patented in 1889, and used in Colorado
in the mines. It handled the material so cheaply that
in 1892 a comf.any was formed to build the cars for
ha.ndling grave, broken stone, ores, coal, &c., and, for
the short time that the company has beon formed,
they have met with success. The first cars built were
small and used on narrow-gauge roads, but all the
late cars are standard gauge and hold 9 cubic yards,
or 40,000 lb. The working parts are simple and cheap,
and easily kept iu repair. In the building of the
car.s, the makers have adopted the standards of the
R9.llway Master Car Builders' Association.
It wil~ be seen that the car body is pivoted on its
cen.tre ~ne,_ so that .a small effort will tip it. Two
lim. atr ptpes runmng the entire lengLh of the train
enable the energy from a reservoir of compressed air
?n the engine to be applied on each car for dumping
1t, and re~ur~ing it to the normal position. \Vhen
the b?d~ 1s 10 the horizontal position, carrying its
load, 1t 1s locked there by a. latch bar a (Figs. 1, 5,
and 6, page 636), the catch being held on by a. weighted
THE

PHILADELPHIA, November 13, 1893.

THE sudden drop in steel rail prices, 5 dols. per ton,
by the Carnegie i1~.te~ests a.~ Pittsbu~gh, has upset all
calculations. It IS unposs1ble to gtve quotatiOns to
day. Rumours ghe prices at a.ll the way from 21 dols .
to 25 dols. Propositions have been made to a number
of railroad corporations to furnish rails in lots of from
1000 to 10 000 tons, between now and March 1, at
prices ranging from 21 dols. to 24.50 dols., ac?ordin~
t o current rumours. This cut has been made m anticipation of a sharp reduction in duties by ~he Ways
and Means Committee of Congress. Steel b1Jlets s~ld
this week in Pittsburgh at 16 dols.-thelowest pnce
on record. In some quarters it is believed that steel
rails will drop to 20_ dols. at ~ill.
est~rn Pennsylvania. will monopolise the busmess m ratls for t h e
present. Two or three eastern mills h~ve refused to
make quotations up to to-day, and still refuse, not
knowing what private offers have been made ~y
western mills. No improvement has taken place 1n
crude iron, although production is increasing, and .is
now a little over 80,000 tons per week. RMlroad companies are buying very lit~le material.
9ar
and locomotive builders have very little work. Pnces
are still tending downward in all lines. . The iron
trade a waits, with great anxiety, the acbon of the
\Yays and Means Committee.
The volume of general
business is still from 20 to 25 per cent. below corresponding weeks of last year. The sweeping Repub~i
ca.n victories throughout the country mean that tar1ff
revision will be conducted with extraordinary caution .
Hard times have aroused the people to political
action, and the outcome will be that M'Kinley will be
the next President.

!!f"4. --- -- -- __...'

'

lever (Fig. 6). This catch is pulled off, when tipping

is to be effected, by the driver admitting air to one
train pipe, and through the connection C (Figs. 3 and 5)
to the latch cylinder (Figs. 3, 5, and 6). This connection
delivers through a port close to the front cover of the
cylinder, forcing back the piston and raising the latch
(Fig. 6). As the piston moves, it uncovers the port
(Fig. 3) leading to the pipe B (Fig. 5), which communicates with the bottom of the lifting cylinder. The piston
of this cylinder (Fig. 4} is thue forced up by compressed air passing t hrough the latch cylinder, and
the car is dumped (Fig. 1). In this position it can be
retained a.s long as desired.
'Vhen it is to be returned to the normal position, the air is allowed to
escape from the train pipe connected to C, whereupon
the counterweight (Fig. 6) pulls back the piston of the
valve cylinder. The pipe His thus connected to the
atmosphere through the hole E in the latch
cylinder. If air be now admitted to the other train
pipe, it enters the opposite end of the latch cylinder
at D, completes the stroke of the piston, if this has not
already got to the end of its stroke, and finds access
through the pipe A to the upper side of the lifting
piston (Fig. 4). The car body then comes back to its
usual position, and the supply of compressed air is cut
off by the driver. The car body automatically latches
itself when it gets into the correct position ; buffer
stops are provided to stop its descent without shock.
When the car has to tip on both sides, the arrangement shown in Figs. 7 to 10 is adopted. In this case
an oscillated cylinder (Figs. 8 and 15) is used, the
normal position of the piston being in the centre, so
that it can travel either way, according as the tipping
is to be to right or left. There are two semicircular
latch bars, the two latches being operated together by
a single latch cylinder (Figs. 8, 19, and 20). Figs. 11
to 14 show a threeway driver's \alve, by which air is
directed into either air pipe, and also evacuated to the
atmosphere.
One great advantage of these cars is that they can
be dumped while the train is in motion, thereby
saving time. They will also handle more material

THE STABILITY OF ARMOUR-CLADS.

To THE E DITOR OF ENOINEJ.;RING.
Srn,-Permit me to snggest to" \V. A .," whose letter
appears on page 616 of your last issue, the desira.bil~ty of
perusing Mr. White's paper on the value of the mner
bottom in reference to the former accident to the
Victoria. This will show him that the presence of this
necessary inner skin is due to more considerations than
the one of possible danger in th~ event of coll~si?n, assuming suob danger as he asserts extsts. Had tb1s mner s~ell
not existed, probably he would have been the first to pomt
to the folly of its absence.
Again, be is anxious to dispense entire!~ wi_tb watertight doors, but, unfortuna.t~ly, does n?t md1Cate. how
this is to be done. I feel satisfied tbatltf the Admtralty
could see any other way to obtain access to compartments
witboub entrances they would be delighted.
He might be good enough, after duly appreciating the
conditions surrounding the designing of armour-clads,
to embody his ideas in a. design dispensing with these
terrible watertight doors and undesirable inner bottoms.
It would be interesting to see how, weights of each
factor being given, he can manipulate them so a-s to
produce a ship wj.th ~~eater ini~ial stability ~n t?e
dimensions and d1spos1t10n of we1ghts of the Vtctona.
The whole cry against this subdivision and fitting is
unnecessar1 and uncalled for.
Again, ' W. A ." fancies the Admiralty omit making
the necessary calculations as to the stability when the
vessel is damaged. This is too absurd. The scientifio
skill of the Admiralty may be equalled, but cannot be
surpassed by any similar institution in the world.
The nnsinka.bility of ships depends on the possible
extent of damage, and in the case of the Victoria. the
initial stability, had the doors been closed, as they could
and should have been, would still be as great as many
Atlantic liners in their best possible condition. These
veesels are constructed without the limits ~urrounding
armour-clads, but even then the battleship holds the
field. One of these liners, running for some years across
the Atlantic at top speed, has the bulkheads arranged so
that, in the evenb of two compartments being open to the
sea, she is unsinkable. This assumes that only 40 per
cenb. of the volume of the damaged compartment can be
filled, and takes no account of the effect of the blow which
would produce this state of a.~ai~s. In other. ~ords, _the
calculations assume the veesel 1s tn that cond1t10n, without considering the dynamical effort that caused the
change.
The Victoria, before the admission of water into the
batteries, had sustained a loss of 30 per cent. of her displacement, reducing the metacentric height from 5 ft. to
1~ ft., and would not have foundered. The liner, with a
corresponding weight of water equal to only 20 per cent.
of her displacement, operating in relatively the same
place, would bring her to the same rela.ti ve trim, seeing

E N G I N E E R I N G.
that the freeboard and immers ion are alike in both
vessels. The position of transverse metacentre dep ends
on two factors-the area. of water plane and the displacement. The latter being constant, any loss to the former
means reduction of metacentric hei~ht. The ratio of loss
of water-plane area to displacement ts equal in both oases,
so this cond ition results :
S tarting with a metacentric height of only 2 ft. (as
against 5 ft. in the armour-clad), the reduction will probably have the same ratio, and it will therefore be easily
seen that the condition of the liner would be more hopeless than the battleship, and this notwithstanding the
absence of watertight doors and subdivision.
'' W. A .,, however, says that armour-clads have insufficient initial stability, yet be will be unable to produce
a single vessel outside the British service, on similar displacement, where the initial stability anywhere approaches the Victoria. There is n ot a single vessel of her
size, with machinery, protection, weighb of armour, calibre
of guns, coal supply on n ormal draught, that has as great
initial stability as this much wrongfully abused vessel.
An attempt was made to accomplish surprising results in
the case of the corresponding Indiana class in the American N a.vy, and this obtains:
Coal endurance was sacrificed to weight of armour, and
for th e sake of the 8-in. guns, which are higher up than
the 6-in. guns of the Victoria and easily disab led, ther~
was produced a vessel having 15 per cent. less weight of
armament, 10 per cent. less extent of armoured side, 55
per cent. less weight of coal on designed draught, 2i per
cent. less weight of equipment, no increase of freeboard
forward and 9 ft . less aft, but with 25 per cent. less initial
~tability. I invite "W. A." to r earrange matters. An
armour-clad is a compromise, and that vessel i~ the most
successful that embod ies the maximum of the factors l aid
down. Both Victoria and Indiana do this.
Y ours, &o. ,
J. J. O'NEILL.
Sunderland, November 22) 1893.

THE Loss OF H .M.s.

VICTORIA."

To THE EDITOll 01' :ENGINEERING.

SrRJ- I am obliged by Mr. O'Neill'~ reply to my note.
I have carefully read his letters, the Admiralty reports,
the admirable articles in ENGINEERING, the further cor respondence therein, and all that has been published in
connecti on with the subject by your own and oth er
esteemed contemporary technical journals.
I do n ot presume to critici~e Mr. O'Neill's conscientious
opinions, but I cannot h elp holding my own. We must
design warships in all cases for war conditions, not those
of peace ; and as ramming and torpedo practice will be
doubtless u ed (by preference) to place ships (especially
heavy ones) out of action in future wart~, I maintain that
we want speedy, handily and directly manipulat ed, easily
manreuvred craft with effective ramming powers, and
n ei ther too long nor too large.
Admitting that the then Board of Admiralty and the
designer who worked under its direction actad according
to the lights and rules of t he t ime when the Victoria was
desig ned, yet I would ask Mr. O'Neill if he would now
design a. ship exactly like the Victoria if al10wed
carte blanche (which I presume n o Chief Constructor
is allowed in reality), and if h e were but limited to the
purpose and the money to be ex pended upon it (i.e.,
structurally).
I sh ould also be obliged by his opinion on the following
suggestion, which I made some long time ago when calling
attenti on to the power of the ram. England has the
largest mercantile fleet in the world, and many of the
ships are quite capable of some self-protection if tted
with (say) angular n ose SJ"mour, twin-screws, means for
direct m anipulation thereof, quick-firing guns and torpedoes, and an efficient ram (say) supported by a. surr ounding "bilge keel" (strong and cellular), whi ch
would n ot (I think ) be d etrimental to sea speeds. The
country might grant a. subsidy for each, and it would pay
it to do so. Such would help to place us in a preponderant position wh en completed in conjunction with
other matters that must be attended to at once.
Does not Mr. O'Neill th ink that one or two of theseunder British tars-migh t give a good account of even
a so-called "commerce-destroyer," by meeting her end on
with rams or torpedoes? One of the con voy might be
sunk but the others could possibly eave the crew (i n that
event), and also that of the "destroyer."
We possess the number; add what I suggest to suitable craft, and also give to th~ comma~der of e~ch the
means by which to directly. ma~~upulate h~s own ship. .
As for any possible combmation of foreign fle\ts agamst
us, let us by all means more tha? keep :pace with t~em by
building improvements on the1r p_ar.tlCular fan~tes, . no
m atter what the size. But when th1s 1s d one, I st1ll thmk
that further moneys (of limited amount) bad better be
spent on (say) two Centurions, with practicable rams, than
on one Victoria. T orpedo-boats and catch ers do nob cost
much compared to the damage one effecti \'e torpedo is
likely to do the enemy. L et us have plenty of both. .
Provide some independent rams, a nd plenty of swift
cruisers. What would Englanq be without her .cornmerce? And we have a very Wide field to protect tf we
wish to retain the empire of the seas.
But this somewhat large order ha~ yet to be execute~,
and the sooner we begin to set a.b,out tb th~ better. I~ ts
to be hoped t hat Italy will long.' speak wtth an E ngltsh
accent ;, but in any event-Wit~ all respect to ~ran?e
and Russia.-we must be able to mdepend ently matnta.m
our position in the Mediterranean and the East genera.~ly.
If Great Britain does n ot want-sooner or later-to smk
into a th ird-rate P ower, and to lose the command of '?omxnerce and the seas (which represent the life of the nat10n ),

all these matters will have to be attended to ; and, in my

opinion, there is not a. moment to be lost in commencing
operations on an adequate scale.
I must apologise for expressing my poor opinions :l.t
such length, but trust that you, Mr. O'NeilJ, and your
read ers will agre1 with me.
I have the honour to be your obedient ser vant,
Selhurst, S. E.
R oBERT M cGLAS::50N.

--To THE EDITOR 01!' ENGINEERING.

SrR,-In your recent comments upon the Minutes
issued by the Admiralty in review of the proceedings of
the court-martial upon thP loss of the Victoria, you
endeavoured to direct the att~ntion of your readers to
those considerations with which the great bulk of the
Minutes are occupied, and which arise from the arrangement and construction of that unfortunate ship in particular, and of warships in general.
But there are one or two other considerations arising
out of the d eplorable catastrophe which, although some
what beyond your ordinary scope, are still matters of
such grave practical importance and deep public concern
a<l to warrant me in referring to them. 'l"bey relate to
the personnel rather than to the mattfriel of the fleet, and
affect its management and general control rather than its
architecture. I sh all, however, refer to these matters
very briefly, and only so far as they contributed, in my
judgment, t o the condition of things which brought
about the collision, and eo far as they failed to effect a
prompb avoidance of the collision after it had become
imminent.
Firot, then, the fleet, operating in calm and open wators
with the sole object of exercise and the acquisition of
skill in manreuvring, is suddenly made to attempt a difficult and intricate movement for the first time-a movement with which nobody is familiar, and of its nature, or
how it is to be successfull y carried ou t, only one intelligence in the whole fleet, that of the Commander-in-Chief,
has or even pretends to have any definite knowledge.
Then the second in command, with almost touching reliance upon a. judgment and capacity which he believes
is clearer and stronger than his own, is contenb to
proceed with this admittedly dangerous manreuvre without even asking for word or sign by which to establish
some mutual understanding as to how the danger is to be
avoided.
In the ordinary case where the movements of vessels
passing each other are decided und er the rules of the
road, each vessel knows exactly what the other ship is
likely to do; and it is this safeguard ing knowledge which
gives to such rules their chief value.
It will undoubtedly be generally admitted that it was
the absen ce of such common und erstanding between the
Camperdown and the Victoria which led to the awful
disaster under consideration. The question, therefore,
which the public are so immediately interested in asking
is, H ow is this cond ition of things to be a\oided in future
peace manreuvres of the fleet? I s there not to be some
regulation making it necessary that captains of ships
should know clearly and precisely what the movements of
their ships ara to be before taking part in them ?
Then as to the avoidance of the collision. The RearA dmiral, ndinp: the signal indicated a dangerous movement of the ships towards each other, essays to ask if he
is to understand that the ships are to turn as indicated.
Could any form of query possibly have been more inept ?
The Rear-Admiral seems to have been so overborne ab the
prospect of having to hesi tate in carrying out a. Cornmandar-in -Chief's order, so afraid of being suspected of
exercising his own individual judgment, as to prevent
bim f-tat ing the n ature of his difficulty. Or am I to take
the R ear-Admiral's question as a. typical example of the
only approved method permissible by which a. second in
command may delicately suggest a wanb of clearness in
important orders? Had the Rignal really reached the unfortunate Commander-in Chief, what reply other than reEea.tin g the signal is likely to have been given ? What the
Rear-Admiral really required to know was, whether he was
to pass the Victoria. to port or to starboard. A question
to thid effect would have at once made the nature of the
difficulty apparent.
The Commander-in-Chief, observing some delay in
acknowled~ing the signal, asks, "What are you waiting
for ?" This would a.ppE'ar to have offered just the opening r equired by the Rear-Admiral for obtaining the
requisite instruction. But from t he evidence ab the
conrt- martial this mild inquiry seems to have been
generally accepted by the fleeb as a peremptory instruction to proceed.
Here agai n I would ask, taking this as an example of
naval etiquette, I s this to maintain in the future ? Was
time so precious to the fleet on that calm summer afternoon that a. simple practical reply to the Ad miral's 3ignal
was impossible?
From the instant the fateful signal was hauled down
and the ships began to turn, until the collision
occurred, a n interval of three minutes must, from
the circamstances of the case, have elapsed. T he RearAdmiral, on his own admission, believed t hat the entire
practicability of the manreuvre depended upon the Vietoria. passing outside the Camperdown. This view does
not appear to be generally approved. H owever, according to that view, the whole safety of tha manreuvre and
the avoidance of a collision depended upon the Victor ia
turning in a large circle and avoid ing a small one. E' ery
ship being provided with automatic helm sign als of a
very conspicuous kind, and assuming that the Victoria's
helm was .Pub hard over in .from 15 to 20 .seconds, the
R~ar- Admua.l had, by obs~rvmg the helm s1gnal, an unmtsta.kable means ~f kn?wmg 20 seconds .after he be~an
t o turn. that t he V10torta. ~~s endeayour~ng to turn m a
. small c1rcle, and that a colhston was tmmment. Yet not

until the Camperdown had turned eight points, and at

least two minutes had elapsed, does he make any attempt
at avoiding the Victoria.
The Admiralty Minutes are clear as to the want of
promptitude and decision in the action of the Camperdawn's captain, but is there nothing to remark of that
nature in the conduct of the R ear-Admiral ?
Then it appears from th e evidence of the court-martial
that the Rear-Admiral was wrongly inclined to rely upon
the "rule of the road" while the fleet was operating
under signal, and indeed was disposed to rely upon the
rule rather to avoid appearing personally in the wrong
than with a. view to a voidance of the collision. It also
further appears that with the emergency full and swifb
upon him he bad to inquire what the necessary rule really
was.
In the finding of the court the judgment is expressed
that ib would be contrary t o the be~t interests of the
service to blame the R ear-Admiral for obeying the Commander-in-Chief's signal, although it regrets that he did
not disregard it. 'l'he evident conflict b&tween principle
and exp ediency, betw een discipline and duty, here
involved, is, I make bold to say, much to be regretted ;
and that the Admiralty Minute is not concerned with so
serious a point is still more regrettable.
The maintenance of discipline is undoubtedly a necessity of the highest order. But its object and groundwork is the safe-conduct and preservation of the ships of
the fleet, not th~ir m utual destruction. 'fh e wisest and
soundest enforcement of discipline cannot include bli nd
and unreasoning self<.lestruction, nor the resol ving of a
R ear-Admiral, a second in command, into a. mere automaton
by depri ving him of the exercise of every trace of discretion and individual judgment. Blind obedience may be
magnificent, but it is not business. The highest realisation of thE:' naval commander, L ord Nelson himself,
boldly admitted exceptions, and could use his blind eye;
aud every sound naval commander will surely insist that
his actions ~hall be guided by the ci rcumstances and con d itions of each particular instance, controlled al ways and
wisely by the spirit of discipline, but still tempered by
his personal judgment of the exigencies of the situation,
for approval of which he must be prepared fearlessly to
face the verdict of his peers, knowing that they will be
s wayed by a practical and wise moderation uther than an
unreasoaing military fanaticism.
In contemplating the verdicts of naval courts-martial,
it is difficult to avoid th e reflection tha.b every member of
such courts judges a case in whi\}h he may be the next to
stand. Naval commanders, while they assume heavy
and onerous responsibilities, are accorded large and
liberal recognition and consideration. They will, I am
p ersu~ded, be content to be judged only by the highest
and mosb exacting standards of criticism.
The matters I have ventured to refer to are, to this
maritime nation, of the greatest and most seriou s import
a.nce, _and dewa.nd the closest and most persist ent public
scrutmy.
Yours truly,
L . L.

OUR BATTLESHIPS.

To TBJo~ EDITOR OI<' ENGINEERING.

SIR,- The descriptions a nd illustrations of recent
battleships, as afloat, sh ow a most magnificent and powE'rf~l. structure,_ a. tower of stre~gth and seeming in vulnera.bihty. But m the construct10n of the bull we n otice an
almost ~ntire barrenne~s and absence in the interior of any
protect10n fr~m shot or from sinking ; the plain sides are
~n~ble to res 1st penetration, and the w&.ter flowing in and
filhng the holds, and consequent upon the flooding of the
holds, t he sinking or foundering of the vessel.
. 'l'he Victoria might still be afioab had she possessed a.n
mternal reserve of buoyancy or flotation after in jury,
hub, consequent upon water entering the holds, there
was .n? buoyant power to uphold, or prevent her from
capSlZID g.
'fh e penetration at the midship portion of the vessel is
a thing to _be co~siderd. ~ut with the penetration of the
ends prov mg dlSastrous, 1t behoves us to consider whab
may happen in the event of ramming or penetration at
any less vulnerable part, for it is evident that if the
ramming or penetrat~on of th~ bow is sufficient to bring
a~out ~state. of capstze, rammmg or pen etration a.t the
m1dship P? rtJ on would be. considera bly more so.
The pomts to be considered are-first, the d istance,
effect, or power of the bows of the ramming vessel to
enter the vessel rammed, say, ab the midship portion of
the ~essel; secondly, the am_ount of buoyancy lost to the
po!t10n of t he vessel Bed w1t~ water a fter the raruming ;
thtrdly, the amount of stabihty or shoulder lost due to
the portion injured, and the stability remaining to the
vess~l to resist overturning. T~e first may be slight or
constdera.ble, but the water en tenng the holds will be the
same ; the second will be the measure of the volume of
buoyancy destroyed equal to the amount of water admitted to the vessel ; and the third the amount of
shoulder or stability destroyed consequent upon this destruction of parts and th e water entering the holds (ab
the same time taking into consideration the power of the
upsetting buoyancy of double bottom); and t hen to provide
as well as able-first, strength in the structure of the
h~ll t o resist. penetration by ramming; secondly, to provJde for an mternal buoyancy to be maintained after
inj ury, and with water in the holds; thirdly, confining
the water as well as able to the por tion of the bull injured, and preventing tba water entering the holds; the
firstibeing obtained by a judicious arrangement of stringers
and vertical webs, t he second by an arrangement of longitudinal vertical sides or casings to give buoyancy and
stability with the holds filled with water; the third, by
confi ning t he water to the portion injured. These
measures would provide a positive protection, and re-

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

serve of buoyancy and stability, . a nd pr~~ention from

sinking from the effect of rammmg, colhs10n , shot, or
other injury.
.
I am, S ir, your very obedtentl servan~,_
.N. A.
London, S.E., November, 189~.

TH E N AT I 0 N A L D AN G E R.
To THE EDITOR 0~' ENGINEERING.
tiiR,-The article in your.issue of yesterday's da~e upon
cc The National Danger " IS one of very great m terest
and importance, and, appearing in a journal noted for
the exactness and value of its n aval intelligen ce, and also
for its freedom from political bias or mot ive, forms a.n
item for the serious consideration of those who have the
interest of our country a t heart .
In my view it is the more valua.bl~ because, as .I . vet?-
ture to suggest, too fa vourable a new of the posit ion l S
pourtrayed.
.
Y ou say that noth ing is ?lore de~us1v~ or ~a.nger<;ms
t han to include in a supen or class1 ficatton sh1ps which
do not come up t o tbab standard, and in this I ent irely
agree.

.
d

h
Of course exceeding difficulty IS foun IJ?- gaugmg t .e
fighting powers of modern ships of war, seem g t~e mu~tl
t ude of points which have to be tak en mto considera tion
in each instance, many of which must, for the prel:lent, be
ma.tters of opinion rather than of fact.. A glance a t the
various issues of the " Naval A nnual" wtll show tha t those
responsible . for tha:t inv~l':lable publ~cation ~ave experienced ~tfficulty 10 de~1dmg from tliD:e to time as t o
the respective value of ships of wa r, a nd In the comparative statement of the various ships of E ngland and F ra nce
the estima te of the value and classification of sbi ps t herein
mentioned has n ot remained unchanged. In fact, even
this publicat ion, compiled with great ca.re and exactness,
does not always preserve apparently the sam e vie w ~f the
merits and values of t ypes of ships of war or of partiCular
ships.
According t o your article, E ngland poss~ses 19 b.attle
ships of earlier types, F rance 17, and Russta 2; whilst of
modern t ypes actually built E ngland is stated to possess
23 F rance 5, R ussia. 7 ; buildi ng-E ngland 3, Fran ce 12,
R~ssia 8. But on referring t o the list of the vessels, one
finds t ha t there has been included in the list of F rench
and Russian ships of earlier t y pes vessels which, I ven ture to assert, a re, in facb, ships of modern type, and which
would form worthy and dangerous antagonists t o many of
the E nglish ships placed under the heading of ships of
moaern type.
In the fi rst place, the FrE:lnch sister &hips Amiral Baud in
and Formidable are, I venture to su bmit, without ques
t ion ships of moder':l type; of considerable epee?, g reat
offensive and defensive powers, they a re surely 10 every
essential first-class battleships of mod~rn type. There
certainly has never been an y quest ion in t he mind . of th e
compilers of t he " Naval A nnual , t h at th ese ships are
fi rst-class battleships. Both are built of iron and stee1.
They have a. belt of armour, ext end in~ from end t o end, of
an extreme t hickness amidshi ps of 22 in., diminishing a t
the bow and st ern to 14 in. The armour of the Amira.l
Baudin is st eel, and of the F ormidable compound. B oth
carry t hree 75-ton breechloading rifled guns of modern
type, each gun having a. separate p osi tion, prot ected by
16 in. of armour. They are mounted on lofty platforms,
a.nd can fire on either beam and train t hrough a large arc.
The auxiliary armament is very p owerful. It compriees
four 16-centimetre guns and eight 14-centimetre quickfiring guns, and in addition there is a. large number of
smaller quick-firing and machine guns. S t eaming 15 knots,
largely subdi vided, and possessed of large t orpedo equipment, these vessels are powerful machines of war, and, I
submit, worthy to be included in a. li~t of sh ips of modern
type. It may be objected t hat they are deficient in bow
fire, t hat their auxiliary battery is unprotected, and that
difficulty is experienced in working the guns forming the
auxiliary arma ment whilst the hea vy guns are firing; but
if one werel t o seek out t h e d em eri ts of many ships
included in the English list of ships of m odern types,
one might have as many, if not more, objections to
them as perfect figh ting mach inas t han to the vessels in

review.
Of a more con troversial charact er is th e t yl?e of the four
French ships of the Caiman class. These sh1ps (Caima.n,
Requin, Indomptable, and T errible) a re classified in the
"Naval Annual " of 1888-89 and 1890 aa firstclass battle
ships. They each carry t wo 75-t on guns in separa te positions, protected by 17 in. of armour, a nd have four
l Ocent1metre quick-firing guns and numerous machine
guns in their auxiliary bat tery. T hey are p rot ected by a
cont inuous bE-lt of compound armour varying in th ickn ess
from 20 in. to 13 in., are well divided internally, a re construct ed of iron and st eel, and have a speed of 14! knot s.
Their value has been much debat ed. They have n ot a.
good reputation as s~aboats, but t here is no doubt that
they are ships of great power, and would unquestion ably
form, in any naval opera tions in E uropean wat ers in whi ch
France engaged, a great factor in her mari time power.
Probably many naval men would t ake cha nces in them as
against ships of the H ero t ype. T hey are, in fact, I
submit, ships of modern type, a nd should be inc1 uded in
the list as such.
W ith regard t o the A miral Duperre, although she
dates from 1879, she has al ways been classified in the
" Naval Annual " as a fi rst -class battlesh ip, a nd properly
so, as I again venture t o submib. S he is more of the t y pe
of the Amiral Ba.udin, but h as four heavy guns inst ead of
three. She is a fine ship, with high freeboard ; her hea vy
guns, like those of the Amiral Ba.udin and Formidable,
nave. not only large arcs of tire, but are also placed at a.
considerable height above the water, giving great corn
mand. Some critics have not a h igh estimate of h er

seaworthiness but she is undoubtedly a splendid machine

of war, and should be placed in the list of ships of modern
type.
'fwo other sh ips, the D evastat ion a~d Courbet, I sh ould
consider as fit to be classified as sbtps of modern tyl?e .
They are of the type of our A lexandra., but have heavier
guns-four 48t on, f?ur 28- ton, and six 3-t on guns, as
against four 22ton, eight 18-ton Jobsolete ~uzzle loaders),
a nd six 22-cwt. guns. The ] ranch sh1ps also ca.rr.y
thick er armour and have a. thick er armoured deck . It IS
true that their upper battery is unarmoured, and that
there is n o subdivision in the main battery, but ~bey are
powerful ships and hMe also always been admttted by
the " Nava-l A~nual " as first-claes ba ttleships. H ad the
above view been t aken in your art icle, the r esult wo~ld
have been the addition t o the list of F rench and Russian
ships of modern type of no less than nine ves~els, making
a t otal under tha t bead of twenty-one, as aga.mst twent y
three on the E nglish side, and would show, as I w ntend
is the fact, t h a t it is only in ships of th e old type that the
English N a vy h as the advantage. Some of t~ese o~d
vessels a re fi ne old shiJ?S in their ~ay, but t <;> ptt a. ship
like the Invincible ag~mst th~ Amual Bau~m would be
t o court disaster. It IS for this reason that m your .v ery
able article you have, i f anything, under.stat ed t~e sen~us
n ess qf the position. A glance at the l~st of ~hips building is simply apJ:>alling ; a nd here, agam, whllst many of
th e French and Russian ships are in an ad vanced stage
of completion, the English sh ips are in quite a. preliminary
stage. lb would appear t o be absol~tely n:ecessary and
incumbent to commence th e construct iOn of sixteen battle
ships of the first class immediat~ly, and urge .on their
construction with all speed possible. F or whilst your
article leaves it t o politicians t o divine the aim of ?J'.r~nce
and Russia, I think that person s who are not pohtlctans
are able sometimes t o m ake a good guess. I trusb th.a.t
these r emarks, which are P.r ompted by the ex tre~e sat~s
faction I feel that your JOurnal should ha ve raised .I ts
note of warning, may not be found too lengthy for msertion.
Yours obediently,
T ao . 0 BLEIN, J uN.
Mansion House Chambers, 11, Queen Vict oria-street,
London, E. C., N ovember 18, 1893.

tion pro~edings to be in~tituted . . The. practice of keep

ing applications confid ential, I beh ave, 1s.a.. good .one, and
offers the best protection to a. poor but d1hgent m ventor,
who cannot afford and should n ot b~ put to the. ex p ens
of a. preliminary fight ~ith a.ny .b1g corpora~10n that
might d esire t o delay or hmd er the. 1ssuance of h~s patent.
If th e opposition b e limited to calhng the ~tte~t10n of the
commissioner t o prior patents or pubhcat10ns, there
would, p erhaps, be no objection t o it ~ere, a.s that .wou!d
simply give tbe public a chance t o aid. th~ exammer 1n
his search. But even this would be O~J ectlOnab.le unless
our presen t 'interference' laws be mo.di~ed cons1d~ra~ly,
for under our present system the preh m ma.ry p~bhca.t10n
would enable interested and unscrupul o':ls part1es t o file
interfering applications and delay the Iseuance of the
meritorious patent several years. I have known of ma~y
instances where meritorious patentees have been ~ept m
the Patent Office several years by dila.t?ry pr?ceediJ?gs.
"I hope your article will have the wtdeRt CirculatiOn.
''Very truly yours,
(S igned)
"C. D. D Avis."

BALL BEARINGS FOR THRUST BLOCKS.

T o THE E DI'l'OR OF' ENGINEERING.

SIR,- If I may alter a very j ud icial ~umming- up of
your correspondent Mr. A. G . R amage ahghtly, the ver
diet will read as follows : "Ball bearings for thrust
blocks will bt\ n ot only p ossible, but superior, provided
true balls of good ma terial, of sufficient hardness, an:d
proportionate in diameter and n,~m bers, be \)la?ed m
suitably formed paths." As to
whether th is m the
present state of manufacture may amount ~o condem!l&
tion," it is, of course, as Mr. 9 arter pract iCally &dt?J~ts,
a quest ion of where the floatmg and ~netan~ly r1smg
limit of experience may rest a t the hme bemg. F or
when for instance, I, in my little way, by making deduc
tions ' from experien ce gained with one man-power, can
sq_ccessfully deal with 40 horse-power at a first attempt,
others should be able t o cope with 400 horse-power. In
engineering as well a.s in other scien ces, th e "impo3sibl~"
of y esterday should be the " everyday " of to- morr<;>w,
and it should nob be forgotten that where ba.ll-bearmg
thrust blocks are applied the diameter of the shaf t may be
reduced to a consideraulc extent.
P ersonally I a m delighted with the interest sh own by
the valuable correspondence in your columns, and hope
THE PATENT LAW.
it is far from being closed.
T o THE EDITOR OF E NGINEERING.
May I beg those gentlem en who h a ve done me the
SIR,-Tbe following comm unication, addressed to me honour t o write m e on this subj ect t c my private address
by ]\-!r. C. D. D avis, of W ash ington, will, I think. interest to excuse me from answering them till I have returned
English in ven tors, and I therefore ask you t o publish it.
from a busines~ journey ?
Yours truly,
Yours faithfully,
w. LLOYD W ISE.
P. L. R ENOUF.
46, L incoln's Inn-fields, W. C.
First-avenue H ot el, High H olborn, L ondon, W . C.,
November 19, 1893.
"Washington, D . C., Oct ober 31, 1893.
H D ear :1\Ir.
Wise,- ! h ave read the review of your
article on the pat ent syst em as contained in ENGINEERING of
October 13, 1893, and I confess myself much pleased with
PUL80METER PUMPS.
most of your su~gestiono for the betterment of the patent
To THE EDITOR OF E NGINEERING.
la w. I believe Ib combines the best features of the two
SIR -We see in your issue of the lOth inst. a r aport of
best syst ems in the world- the U nited States and the the discussion on Mr. Borodin's paper on "The W orking
British- and with sl ight exceptions I believe it would of Steam P umps on the Russian S outh 'Vestern R ail ways,"
meet the a pproval of the m ajority of solicitors in this which took place at the m eeting of the Institution of
country. I especially a pprove your suggestion that the Mechanical Engineers on October 26.

official examiners should not be permitted to pass upon

With respect t o the m erits of pulsomet er pumps, ib
the question of utility and pa tentable novelty from docu may interest your readers that even better results th an
menta alone, but that their duty should be limited t o those stated in the discussion have been obtained with
requiring the insertion of a disclaimer in the patentee's this class of pumps.
specification whenever the examiners disco ver anything of
On June 9, 1892, an official test was made with one of
an anticipa t ory nature. I believe this would protect the our latest type of pulsator of the con struction covered by
gullible public better than the present systsm, as th ere is our Patent No. 15,092 of 1891, with the following results :
not one pat entee in fifty, and not one layman in fifty
H eight of suction
...
...
...
11.27 ft.
thousand, who understands the construction of patent
T otal h eight of deli very
. ..
.. . 102.6 ,
claims as laid down by the courts in patent cases. It is a
Horizontal length of d elivery pipe... 118
,
frequ ent occurrence with United S tates solicitors to painQuantity delivered per hour ...
... 24,188 gallons
fully surprise patentees with th o informatic,n that their
W eight of st eam used per h our and
pat ents are limited to the precise combinat ion claimed ;
per pump horse-power
. ..
. ..
92.76 lb.
and it is also a frequent occurrence to inform them that
Work done per p ound of steam
... 21,345 ft.-lb.
the Government does n ot guarantee its patents. It is
these things tha t have disgust ed a. great many American
The t ests were made by the K oniglicbe Eisenbahn
in ventors with patents.
Direction, Hanover, in Hanover.
" And besides the above objection s to our present
Yours truly,
syst em of examinations and rejections, there is another
K oRTING B RoTHER .
objection st ill more serious. I refer t o t he practice of 86, Queen-street, Cheap~ide, London, E. C.,
requiring the a pplicant to rAstrict his ' claims' in view of
November 20, 1893.
the state of the art. You are well acquainted with the
trouble and injustice of this practice, and the long d elay
CATA LOGUES.-Messr a. 0. B erend and Co., of 61, Forethat frequently ela pses before claims satisfactory t o the
examiner can be drawn up without restrictins: the appli- street, London, E C., have sent us a catalogue containing
can t unduly. You a re a wa re of the great skill req uired illustrated d escriptions of a very l ar ge variety of lubrit o dra w up claims t hat will avoid t he prior de vices and cators, oil cans, a nd oil filters, The articles are fu1ly
at the same time fully cover th e invention. I b elieve priced in every instance. - The catalogu e j ust issued by
tha t fully two- thirds of the U nited S tat es patents, if M essrs. James M enzies and Co. , of the Pbrenix Tube
tested in t he courts, would prove to be either t oo narrow Work~, Glasgow1 is of very hand y size, and gi ves a. full
or t oo broad in scope, and, for th at:reason, wholly or and complete pr1ced description of th e Yarious types of
partially inopera tive. I know of no piece of prose writ metal tubing and fittings manufac tured by the firm .
mg of equal length tha t requires more oare and skill than
the wording of a pa t ent claim in this country, and I am
H .M. GuNBOAT "ANTELOPE."-The A ntelope, t or ped o
con vinced that lack of care and skill in no other leg,(l,l gunboat (one of the improved S harpshoot er class of
document causes m ore loss than in patent claims. N o vessels}, which was built a.t D evon por t D ockyard a nd
length of p ract ice can h arden a. m an of conscience to the engined by M essrs. Y arrow and Co., of Poplar, wen t
delicat e res ponsibility of dra wing up claims for a valuable into the Channel on W ednesday from Pl ymouth for eight
generic invention, and nothing harasses him m ore than hours' trial o f machinery. B efore the vessel had been
the wholesale reject ion of his carefully-dra wn claims by a. long out it was seen that h er boilers, which are of the
bigoted examiner who is usually totally unacquainted locomotive type, were priming t o a disagreeable extent,
with the practical side of in ventions.
and after fi ve hours' running the trial had to be
"The citat ion of the alleged anticipatory m atter in the abandoned owing t o the splitting of the stuffing-box of
specification would relieve the applicant of the sometimes the low-pressure cylinder covers. The repairs will b e
awful n ecessity of drawing up claims that h e will have to taken in hand at once by the contractors' local staff. A s
stand or fall by in the courts. I can see no good- n ot at the repairs will occupy some weeks, the programme
present a t tained by our present system-in th e prelimi- of further trials which had been arranged has b een
n ary publication of the pa t ent papers t o permit opposi- adandoned .

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

[Nov. 24, I 893

DUMPING CAR AT THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.

CONSTRUCTED BY THE THACHER OAR AND CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, NE\V YORK.

(For Description, see Page 637.)

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E N G I N E E RI N G.
AGENTS FOR "ENGINEERING."
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CONTENTS.
PAGE
PAGE
The Marseilles and St. Louis
Pulsometer Pumps . . . . . . . . 639
Eleo~rio Road Railway (IlThe La.te Coal Trade Dispute 641
lmtrattd} ........ . .. ... 627 The Distr ibution of Power
1 from Niagara ....... ... .. 642
The Engineering Congress
at Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 630 cc Useful Knowledge". . . . . . 643
Literature ................ 631 Hydraulic Machinery ..... . 644
Books Received ............ 633 Notes ........ . ........... 644
American Universities at
Impounding Reservoirs in
tbe Columbian Exposition 633
India and Masonry Dams 645
The Boyd Brick Press at the
Notes from the N ort.h . . . . . . 646
World's Columbian Ex
Notes from Cleveland and
position liUmtrated) .. . . 634
the Northern Counties .. 646
Road Bridge at Piura, Peru
Notes from the South-West 647
(lllmtrated) ..... .. ... .. 635 Miscellanea. ................ 6t7
Rhode Island Locomotive at
3000 Horse-Power Quadthe World's Columbian
ruple Expansion Engines
Exposition (Illust1ated) .. 635
at the World's Columbian
Notes from South Yorkshire 635
Exposition (Illustrated) .. 648
Dumping Cars at the
Gabriel's Adjustable Arm
World's Oolumbian Expo
Rest (Illustrated) ...... 648
sition (l U'I.Utrated) .. .... 637 13-ln. Artesian Bored Tube
Notes from the United Statee 637
Well (Illustrated) ........ 649
The Stability of ArmourTesting an Elevator (I llusClads .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. . 637
trated) .. .. .. .. .. . .. . .. . 649
The Loss of H .M.S. cc VieIndustrial Notes . ..... .... 650
t orta
. " . ... ..... . .. . . .. .. 638 Flash Lights in Lighth ouses
0 ur Bat~lesbips . . . . . . . . . . . . 63S
( I llustrated) . . . . . . . . . . . . 650
Tbe Nattooal Danger ... ... 639 Launches and Trial Trips . . 652
The Patent Law .......... 639 u Engineering" Patent ReB~~ Bearings for Thrusb
1 cord (I llustrated) . . . . . . . . 653
ocka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 639
With a Two-Page Engraving of 3000 HORSE. POWER
QU.4DRUPLE EXPANSION ENGINES:
WORLD'S
COLUMBI.d.N EXPOSITION.

day, and the hour. The public_hoped against_hope,

and few dared to predict a satisfactory solutwn of
the difficulty . Still, expectation buoyed up the
more hopeful during the preliminary negotiations.
The delegates assembled at the Foreign Office on
Friday morning, the 17th instant, at eleven o'clock,
prompt. Fourteen delegates on either aide were
selected, and the Labour Department of the Board
of Trade had its representative in the person
of the secretary to the conference. The conference
sat with closed doors, but there was a well-grounded
an xiety on all hands to gather up scraps of information relative t o the progress of the negotiations, as
the sittings continued hour after hour. In point of
fact, the longer the conference lasted the less
became public confidence in the result. The break
for luncheon was extended, probably to enable
the coalowners' delegates to consult with some of
their constituents, from 1. 30 to 3 o'clock. The
crowd in the quadrangle of the F oreign Office
awaited t he result with anxiety, and meanwhile
discussed the situation and the probabilities of a
settlement until about half-past five, when it became
As the
known that the conference was over.
delegates left the building t he word went round that
a settlemen t had been effected. The conference is
hist oric, and the terms of the settlement in full are
of interest for reference. The official report was as
follows :

NOTICE.

The New Cunarders ,. CAMPANIA" and ,. LUCANIA ;" and the WORLD'S COLUMBIAN
EXPOSITION OF 1893.
The Publlsher begs to announce that a Reprint ls
now ready of the Descriptive Matter and Illustrations contained ID the issue of ENGINEERING of
Aprll 21st, comprisiDg over 130 pages, with ntne
two -page and four single. page Plates, printed
throughout on speclal Plate paper, bound in cloth.
gUt lettered. Price 6& Post free, 6a. 6d. The ord1
nary edition of the issue of Aprll 21st ls out of print.

N 0 TIC E.
The attention of Readers and Advertisers is
drawn to the alteration In the name of the
Publisher.
Owing to the retirement of Mr. Charles Gilbert,
communications for the Publishing Department
should now be addressed to Mr. C. R. JOBNSON,
Publisher and Manager.
NOTICES OF MEETINGS.
TUE I ~STI't'UTION Of' Ct\'JL ENOINEERB.-Ordina.ry meeting:
Tuesday, November 28, at 8 p. m. Discussion upon the papers on:
" Impounding-Reser voirs in I ndia, and t he Design of Masonry
Dams,'' by Mr. Clerke, Mr. Sadasewjee, Colonel Jacob, and Profe~or Kr euter.-Students' meeting, F riday, December 1, at
7.30 p.m. Paper to be read: " Forms of Tensile Test-Pieces,"
by :\Ir. Leonard H. Appleby, Stud. I nst. C.E. P rofessor Alex.
B. W. Kennedy , F.R.S., Member of Council, in the chair.
N ORTD-EABT CoAsT INSTITuTJON OF ENGINEERS AND ::>mPBUJLDERB.
- Saturday, November 25, at 6 p.m., in the Athenmum, Church
street, West Hartlepool. The ballot for n ew members will be
ta.ken. Discussion on Mr. W. Hok's paper " On a Method of
Comparing Steamship Performances and of Estimating Powers
and Speeds of Ships." Paper "On the Danger ous Working Heat
ot Mild Steel and the Effect of Annealing and Air-Cooling," by Mr.
Joseph Nodder. Discussion.
SOCIRTY OF ARTS. -J ohnstreet , Adelphi, London, w.c. Monday, November 27, at 8 p.m. Cantor Lectures: " The Art of
Book and Newspaper Illustration," by Mr. Henry Blackburn.
Wednesday, November 29, at 8 p.m. T hird ordinary meeting.
" The Regulation of Street Advertiling, " by Mr. Richardson
E vans. Sir George Birdwood, K.C. I.E., C.S. I., will preside.
TUESUR.YEYORS' b STITl'TION.-On Monday , December 4, a paper
will be read by Mr. R. Godfrey (Fellow) on u The Local GoYernment Bill, U 93" (gener ally known as u The Parish Councils Bill").
The chair to be taken at eight e'clock.

'' T erms of Settlement of the Coal .Dispute, agreed upon

ENGINEERING.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER

~4,

1893.

THE LATE COAL TRADE DI SPUTE.

THERE were two events of great importance in
connection with the coal dispute, and generally as
regards labour, during the past week : one was
eminently successful, the other a failure and a
fiasco. As the successful event was, and is, the
more important of the two, it must have the place
of h onour. On Monday night, the 13th instant, at
the conclusion of public business in t he House of
Commons, Mr. Gladstone took occasion, on the
motion for adjournmen t , to announce to the House
that "the attention of H er Majesty's Government
had been seriously called to the widespread and
disastrous effects of the coal strike, and they had
felt it to be their duty to bring about a resumption
of negotiations between t he employers and the
employed under conditions which they h oped might
lead to a satisfactory result. It appeared to t hem
t hat advantage might accrue from a further discussion between the parties of the position of matters,
under the chairmanship of a member of the Government, who, it was hoped, would not be unacceptable
to either side. Lord Rosebery had consented to
undertake the important duty which such a position
involved. " The announcement was received with
loud cheers from all par ts of the H ouse. To all
appearance t he outlook at that moment was anything but encouraging. Both parties seemed to have
anticipated a continuance of the struggle, and
neither side appeared to have had any idea of giving
way. Nevertheless, it was felt that if negotiations
could be resumed, under a chairman so genial,
good-tempered, and conciliatory as Lord Rosebery,
some ?nod-,s vivendi would be found, if any was at
all possible. The result has shown that t he most
favourable anticipations have been r ealised. The
very announcement in t he morning papers appears
to have almost predisposed the parties to the dispute, as well as the general public, favourably to
the project. Communications were at once opened
with the officials of the two great contending
bodies, both of whorn expressed their willingness
to meet, and this was ratified by the associations
respectively concerned. The number of delegates
was arranged, and also the place of meeting, the

between Representatives of Federated Coalowners and of

the Miners' Federation of Great B'r itain, at a Conference
held at the Foreign O.tJice, on Friday, N ovember 17, 1893,
L fYrd R osebery, K.G., in the Chair.
"1. That a Board of Con ciliation be con stituted forth h t 1 t f
t 1 .,
t'
f
1
w1t , o as or one year a easu, con s1s mg o an equa

number of coa1own ers' and miners' r epreaentati ves, fourteen of each.

They shall, at their :first meeting.
endeavour to el ect a chairman from outside, and, s hould
they fail, will a s k the Speaker of the House of Common s
to n omin ate o n e, the chairman to have a casting vote.
Th
h b
d
h
t 't t d
h 11 h
t
ab t e oar ' w en con s 1 u e ' 8 a
ave p ower o
d etermine from time to time the rate of wages on and
from February 1, 1894. The first meeting to be h eld
on ' Ved n esday, December 13, 1893, at the Westminster
Palace Hotel.
"2. That the men resume work a t once at the old rate
of wages until February 1, 1894. It is agreed thab all
CGlllienes, so f ar as practicable, be opened for work f orthwith, and that, so far as practicable, no impediment
be placed in the w a y o f t he return o f the m en to
work .
'' We, the undersigned, chairmen a nd secretaries of
the F ed erated Coa1own ers, and of the Miner s' Federation
of G reat Britain, on behalf of those r epr esented at this
Conferen ce, agr ee t o t h e above terms of settlement of the
present coal dispute.
"Signed o n behalf of the coalown ers,
"A. ~I. CHAJ)IBEi\S, Chairman,
"Tao~r.as RATCLU'.lt'E ELLIS, Secr etary.
" On behalf of the ~liners' Fed eration ,
"BmNJ.AMIN PICKARD, Chairman ,
"THOMAS A s HTON, Secretary,
'' RosEBERY, C hairman of the Confer en ce,
"H. L LEWELLYN s~nTH, Secretary o f the Conference.,

The great charm of the above settlement is the

admirable simplicity and clearness of t he terms,
and of the matters really within its purview.
Although the appointment and constitution of the
Board of Conciliation forms the first part of the
agreement, t he second part stands first in point
of time and of pressing importance. Work was
to be resumed forthwith, and n o impediment was to
be placed in the way of a return to work. The
Board of Conciliation will settle all the rest. But
in order that there shall be no going back upon
the agreement, dates are fixed for meetings of the
board, and the period for which the old rates shall
rule under the agreement.
The result was everywhere received with demonstrations of satisfaction. The H ouse of Commons
indulged in one of its rare displays-namely, all
parties vociferously cheering the announcement
made by the President of the Board of Trade at the
conclusion of Friday's sitting. In the L obby, in
the streets, in t he workshops, in the shops of tradesmen, everywhere the news of the settlement was
hailed as a declaration of peace, at the close of a disastrous war. In the great mining centres\ and especially in th ose where the pits were still idle, the
demonstrations of joy were such that men and
women in want of food forgot their privation, and
danced and sang in the streets in ecstasy. I t is
difficult, indeed, to say whether the gen eral public
or the miners evinced the greater satisfaction at the
termination of a struggle fraught with so much
gravity and attended with so much misery. The
outward show of delight was more manifest by the
miners' delegates than by those of the coalowners,

E N G t N E E R I N G.
but perhaps the latter are not so demonstrative in
their feelings. Nevertheless, it must have been a
great relief to the coalowners who had been continuing the struggle while so many had reopened
their pits, thereby r eaping the harvest of scarcity
by the higher prices obtained. The merchants are
n ot th~ less to be satisfied. If they get less per t on
they will sell m or e tons, so that the profits in the
aggregate will secure a pretty good a vera.ge up to
the end of the present year.
The other event alluded to was " the Jerusalem
~hamber Conference,, h eld on Tuesday, t he 15th
Inst. Never before was such a gathering held in that
old historic chamber. The occasion was new, the
miscellaneous character of the audience was new,
and the proceedings were also rat her new . It
would appear that after granting the w~e of the
chamher doubts h ad arisen as to t he propriety of
the action about t o be taken, and timidity
eventuated in fear, which ended in a panic . The
object of the gathering was to discuss a "living
wage, " and a layman, Mr. George W . E . Russell,
M .P . , was to have taken the chair. But t h e Dean
of \Vestminster subsequently thought t hat it was
his duty to take t he chair in such a place. The
change as regards chairman was followed as r egards
the mover and the seconder of the r esolution, and
some of the other speakers. The r esolution to be
m oved h ad been agreed upon previously, and was
to t he following effect : ' ' That in the opinion of
this conference t he principle of the maintenance of
a standard of decent living should be recognised as
an essential condition of the settlement of labour
disputes. " There is really nothing in that r esolution to disturb the episcopal conscience, or cause a
panic, either in the Jerusalem Chamber or elsewhere. It is a sound economic doctrine, inculcated
by Adam Smith, indorsed even by Ricardo, and
preached by most, if not all, of the modern
economists. Lord Brassey, though scarcely deemed
a political economist, has shown t hroughout his
works that a high standard of living is conducive
to excellence in workmanship and cheapness of
production . His lordship h as shown by numerous
ex~mples that for quality and quantity the best paid
workmen are the cheapest and t he best. Why, then,
this panic among the clericals 7 This : They r eally
know very little of business or of r eal life. Their
eyes are fixed on a far dist ant land in all that concerns their ministrations and teachings. Sometimes
they awake from their slumber and take sides in
the controversies of real life. When they do, they
usually blunder, nearly always in matters of labour.
At one time they hint the horsepond as a baptism
for J oseph Arch ; t hen they caress labour as a
pet. Generally they are in one extreme or the
other. E ven so astute a t hinker as John Stuart
Mill floundered in some of his closet speculations.
On one point the clericals could use their influence
beneficially, namely, in favour of arbitration and
con ciliation for settling labour disputes. Here is a
wide field for them to work in- will they help in
this directi on ~
The coal dispute being over, many are busy
coun ting its cost. That it has been costly none
will dispute. The losses to employers and employed en<raged in that dispute have been enormous.
In t he fir;l place, all the funds of all t he miners'
unions have disappeared, including those of South
Wales, all except Durham and Northumberland.
Even these have been drawn upon to some extent.
But the loss in wa<res has far exceeded t he loss in
any great strike previously. The dispute lasted
about four months ; during a part of the time those
idle numbered hundreds of thousands of. wageearners, the total earni ngs o~ whom durmg . the
p eriod ir. which they were Idle. ar~ gone, Ir~e
trievably lost. The savings of a h fcttme have dtsappeared also. Added to all th~ was the pri_vation
endured, alleviated only, or mainly, by I?ubhc subscriptions or by grants from t rade unwn funds,
suppleme~ted at a later stage by the levies of those
who had r esumed work. Then the losses to the
coalowners must have been immense> particularly
to some of t hem. Others, o? the c~ntrary, have
r egained a p ortion by the h1gher pr1ee of coals.
Idl e pits d evour money, a fact too often overlooked .
But perhaps these losses will be recouped to. some
extent. But the losses to trade generally will not
be so r ecouped ; and these have been e.normous.
R ailway companies, shipowners, the u on and
steel industries, manufacturers, sho~keepers, poor
people all have suffered by this stupendous
struggie.
What are th~ . gains 7 Wel.l, t~ere
will be differences of opiniOn upon thts point.

But labour has gained by the issue of this contest.

A great federation has fought a battle and won t he
main principle con tended for - no reduction in
wages. This has been done in spite of a falling
market, of trade depression, of a wealthy combination such as was seldom seen before. Pluck and
endurance, backed by public sympathy, have advanced the labour question another stage. Labour
cannot afford another such struggle for years to
come; but prudence, foresight, and conciliation
may consolidate what has been won. The living
wage, a higher standard of living for t he wageearners, are questions of moment, and the public
ar e sympathetic for their r ealisation. There is,
however, danger in victory as well as in d efeat.
Let t he leaders ponder the lesson. On the whole,
t he battle has been fought with good temper on
both sides. The two parties have met and discussed, differed and separated; the few instances
of violent exhibition of feeling will be forgotten
in the welcome of peace.

THE DISTRIBUTION OF POWER

FROM NIAGARA.
F oR years past we have been persistently told
t hat we are being beaten in mechanical progr ess by
America.
The globe - trotter, fresh from his
travels, r elates that t he fastest locomotives are to
be found across the Atl~ntic, that the outp ut of
pig iron in t he States is greater than h ere, that t he
blast furnaces get through double the work of t he
best Middlesbr ough practice, t hat every village has
its electric lighting station, and that the length of
electric t ramway is to be measured by t housands of
miles. These, and many other unpleasant comparisons, he showers broadcast, because no answer can
be given to them which his understanding is capable
of grasping. It is useless to point out to him t hat
progress in America follows t he direction of the
needs of the country, and that in a country
governed by different conditions, and having other
needs, t he same phenomena might indicate the
reverse of progress. Such considerations are not
capable of being set forth in the concise form necessary for his prompt extinguishment, and his habit of
superficial observation prevents him giving sufficient
attention to understand a lengthened explanation.
It was, therefore, with feelings of gratification t hat.
some two years ago, Englishmen learned that the body
of New York financiers, who had detf\rmined to utilise
some part of t he energy of the Falls of N iagara,
had come to Europe to be advised as t o the best
methods of carrying out their enterprise. This, at
least, furnish ed direct proof that we were not altogether behind our cousins in engineering science, and
furnished a telling answer to unpatriotic detractors.
Later on, when Professor George Forbes was appointed consulting electrical engineer to the Cataract
Construction Company, t he whole of his colleagues
in London felt t hat a high compliment was paid to
the English branch of the profession, and one that
could scarcely have been expected, since both t he
continent of Europe and t he States furnish better
grounds for gathering experience in the transmission of power by electricity t han any t o be found
here. Had t he post been offer ed to a Swiss or
Germau engineer , t he choice would have appeared
only befitting, and would have been accepted here as
quite natural.
The announcement t hat Professor Forbes would
read a paper on the 9th inst . before the Institution
of Electrical Engineers drew a large audience, eager
to learn how far the rumours current as to the
designs adopted, were correct. The distribution
of 100,000 horse-power is such an immense stride
in advance of anyt hing hitherto attempted, that
the responsibility of deciding on the system to be
adopted is not one to be lightly undertaken . Of
course it was known that the alternate current
would be adopted- it has long ceased to be a matter
of speculation as to whether it or the direct current
is best suited for the purpose. But speculation
ranged over single-phase, double-phase, and multiphase currents ; over high- tension gen erators
verstts step-up and step-down transformers; over
synchronous and non-synchronous motors; over
overhead lines and conduits, and many other
points. In a general way, Professor Forbes satisfied the curiosity of his auditmce, although he left
them in the dark as to many mat ters of detail.
His plan~ may be briefly described .as a series of
compromises between what h e would hke and what
he can get. The most noticeable feature is the
adoption of low frequency of current. After many

'

experiments, he settled on 165 alternations per

second as the most advantageous number, as compared with he 42 of Ganz, 76 of Siemens, 100 of
Brush, and 133 of W estinghouse. But he found
that machines built to fulfil t hia condition would
be too heavy to be placed at the end of the shafts of
the 5000 horse-power t urbines that are being constructed, so he altered the figure to 25 alternations.
As r egards voltage, t he conveniences of keeping the
generator to a moderate figure, and transforming
up on to t he line, were evident. But it was found
that transformers to step up from 2000 volts to
20,000 volts and down again, would be as expensive
as the generator, and t hus double its cost. The
desirability of producing current of the final pressure was thus made evident, and 20,000 volts were
adopted as the standard. This was nfJt an extravagant figure, and did uot r epresent any great
advance upon what had been done before. At
Deptford, where one pole of each generator is put
to earth, the voltage is 10,000, t hat is, the greatest
difference of potential between the line and earth
is t he same as in an insulated system working at
20,000 volts. This is so well und erstood that
several European cont ractors would r eadily undertak e to supply dynamos to work at t his pressure.
But in America the case is different; experience
there stops at 2000 volts, and manufacturers could
not be found to under take machines t o withstand
more t han 5000 volts. The engineer had, theref0re,
the choice of advising that the machines should bo
imported, or of reducing his pressure. He chose
the lat ter; the import duties would have been
exceedingly heavy on foreign machines, while the
national feeling would possibly have been wounded
at their introduction. Consequently t he original plan
was set aside, and 2000 volts adopted as the standard
for the fir st three machines. These machines are
to give a two-phase current, that is, ther e will be
two separate circuits in them, so disposed that the
current in one will be 90 deg. in advance of the
other. These currents can afterwards be utilised
in any way t hat is most con venient. They can be
used separately to drive synchronising motors, or
together in T esla motors ; they can be more easily
rectified than a single-phase current for use in
street railways, electro-metallurgy, &c. The prospective output of t he N iagara works is so large
t hat provision must be made to fulfil all important
demands, however different t hey may be.
It is intended to run the mains, which are
eventually to extend to Buffalo, some twenty
miles distant, in a culvert of such dimensions as
to allow a man t o walk through. Provision is
made for a large number of conductors. This
conduit is already in course of construction for a
length of 2500 ft., to carry the conductors to the
Pittsburg Reduction Company's works, who will be
one of the first customers.
Such are the main features of the scheme which
Professor F orbes expounded to his audience at
great length. He disclaimed any great originality
for th ~m, and took his audience very fully into his
confidence as to t he reasons which influenced him
in his decisions. He set out with the determination that he would produce one kind of current
only, and that his machines should be both in tarchangeable and capable of working in parallel. He
would n ot have one kind of machine for arc light ing, another for incandescence lighting, another for
electro-meta.llurgical work, and so on. Such an
arrangement would have doubled the outlay for
plant, for no machine would ever have been
working at its full capacity. Now in America
parallel working is practically unknown, and
manufacturers are naturally cautious as to how
t hey enter into guarantees for its accomplishment.
"It is a mattP.r of common knowledge," said Professor Forbes, '' that parallel
working is assisted by lowering t he frequency. n
This, t hen, was one of his reasons for choosing a
low figure. Another was the desire to render it
possible to use ordinary continuous-current dynamos as sychronising motors, by t he addition of
rings attached to the commutator bars in such a
way as to communicate with each alternately.
Such motors work well with alternate currents
of low frequency, particularly if the fields and
armature be carefully laminated. Professor Authony
reports that small motors of this kind ''run very
nicely where t he alternations do not exceed 25 per
second, n and that '' at 8 per second large motors
could be ruu with perfect success., No doubt it
will be a convenience for people in the neighbourh ood to use this type of motor for small work, but

E N G I N E E R l N G.
the amount of power they will req uire is not likely
to be so large as to render it worth while to modify
Professor
the plant for their accommodation.
Forbes devoted considerable time to this point, but
he had other reasons to urge in defence of low frequencies. He r ecalled t he fact that it had been
thor oughly established that the performance of
synchronising moto.rs is very much improved by
using low frequenCies. Also that those that have
used the motors with rotating field of the two-phase
or three-phase type, have all been obliged to reduce
the frequency of ~he current to get t~e best resu~ts.
It is found that In every self-starting alternating
motor, whether multi-phase or otherwise, the
effort at starting is increased by lowering the frequency. He added :
"I wish to repeat that, from what I have seen in the
workshop3 of all advanced electricians in the last year or
two, I am confident that in the nea~ future single-pha.se
alternatin~ current motors, self-star tmg on full load, wtll
be largely used ; and there is not the slightest doubt that
all of these work far better with low frequencies. In fact,
as Mr. Brush once said to me when I was discussing this
matter with him, 'Really, your best plan would be to
lower the frequency so much that you get a direct current. '
" Whilst speaking of low frequency in relation to
motors, I must say that I have much greater hopes of
obtaining a good commutating device with a low frequenoy than with a high one; and I will also state that I
liave great hopes of important advantages coming to us
from the in vention of such a commutating appliance
which will enable us to furnish street rail way companies,
electro-metallurgical works, and other consumers with
the direct current without the use of any heavy revol ving
machinery at the transforming station. "

The advantages of low frequencies are n ot con

fined to the motors ; they also pertain to the conductors. An alternating cu r ~ent of high frequency
tends to confine itself to the outside of the conductors, thus increasing the t~tal r esistance ; the impedance of the line is also increased by the magnetic
field formed between the go and r eturn wires.
Again, there is greater t endency t o discharge from
an electrified conductor into the air, and the difficulty of insulation is increased. On the other
hand, with low frequency, the capacity of the
cables is less troublesome, and there is less loss of
static charge by heating of the insulation. Abnormal
rises of electric pressure in the mains above the
pressure generated by the dynamos, due to the
resonant etl'ect produced by the capacity of the
cable and the self-induction of the circuit, may be
reduced by lowering the frequency.
While Professor F orbes dwelt at very considerable length on the advantages of low frequency, he
did not pass over its disadvantages. The first is
that low frequency is not suitable for electric lighting directly. We should imagine that the Niagara.
Falls Power Company will not be anxious to undertake too much lighting, except at very much higher
prices than they are charging for power. vVhat
they require are customera that will take current
all day long, and, if pos,ible, all night too, and
not those that only want it two or three hours
out of the twenty-four. If lighting commenced
when the factories closed, that source of demand would be very convenient, but unfortu nately, in the busy season, it begins early in the
afternoon. The town of Buffalo, h owever, is going
to be lighted from Niagara; at present steam
engines, to the amount of 3000 h orse-power, are
at work driving the arc lights there, and it will be
a simple matter to replace these by alternate current motors. In this case the frequency is of no
account. Experiments made by Professor Forbes
show that a 16 candle-power 50-volt incandescent
lamp shows a flickering almost up to 25 periods
per second, and up to 28 periods if it be overincandesced. A lOO-volt lamp shows a perceptible flicker up to 28 periods. With arc lamps there
is very bad flickering at 37! periods per second;
at 40 periods it is still bad ; at 45 periods it is
just possible to notice it on a printed page held
close to the lamp, but it is not visible when reading
at a distance of 10 ft. At 50 periods the only
means of detecting anything of the sort is by looking directly at th e arc ; nothing is seen when reading a. hook, either with the opal shade on or off.
In the lamp tried the current was 14.2 amperes,
the pressure 26 volts, and the carbons Siem ens and
Halske's best cored variety.
The efficiency of transformers in relation to the
size and cost also falls off as the frequency is
lowered, but n ot so much as is sometimes suppo3ed ; the increased cost is not in proportion to
the lowering in frequency , because a higher induc-

tion can be used. Mr. Steinmetz has shown that

the loss due to hysteresis varies as th e induction
raised to the power 1. 6, and it is this loss must be
kept constant when th e frequency is varied. Professor Forbes deduces from this law the fact that in
any transform er, if t~e hysteresis ~os~ is kept c?nstant, its power of do1ng work vanes In proportiOn
to the frequency raised to the power 0.4 (but it is
probably unwise to increase the induction so much
as to satura.te the iron). I t follows by doubling the
frequency there is got out of the s~me transfor~er
l 32 units of work instead of 100. By quadruplmg
the frequency, 174 units are got. If the frequenc.y
be reduced on e-half, the cost of a transformer IS
increased 50 per cent. Professor Forbes continued :
"The lowest price which has been quoted for large
transformers is 3. 52 dols. per horse-power, at a frequency
of 42 periods per second. In hal ving the frequency the
extra cost would, therefore, only be 1. 76 dols. per horsepower. It becomes, then, a matter of inquiry whether
the benefits to be d erived by lowering the frequency in
such a proportion would compensate for the extra expenditure as indicated. I am thoroughly convinced that the
gain is far in excess of this amount. I shall have occasion to discuss the superior efficiency of motors at low frequency; and in most types of motors I think it safe to
say that in passing from 42 periods to 21 periods, or varying the frequency in th at proportion, we have a gain of at
least 3 per cent. in the efficiency of the motors. Neglect ing altogether the increased value of the motors from this
cause, there is 3 p er cent. more power at our disposal,
which, at only 10 dols. per horse power per annum, would
amount to 30 cents per annum, or, capitalised at 5 per
cent., represents an increased value of 6 dols. per horsepower of the plant, against which we have the increased
cost of transformers-only 1. 76 dols. It appears, then,
pretty certain that, from a purely economical consideration of the question, a lower frequency than any which
has hitherto been adopted is advantageous."

Professor Forbes gave a general description of

the machinery that is being constructed. * The
tu rbines are each of 5000 horse-power. They are
placed at the bottom of a large pit, and their
shafts are carried vertically to the surface, where
they are connected to the generators. These have
the armatures fixed, and inside the machines, while
the fields revolve outside them, the fields being
formed of a ring of iron with the poles projecting
radially inwards. The armature coils are wound
independently, and can be removed and changed.
They are fixed in slots in the fixed armature. The
field magnet is of forged steel, supported by a
spider with eight arms ; the pole pieces are
bolted to the steel rim. The field coils are of
copper strip. The hub of the spider is fixed to
the upper end of the shaft, which is suppor ted
by two bearings, each of which has four r adial arms.
Space is left between t hese arms, and also between
the arms of the spider, for portions of the turbine
shaft to be lifted through, if necessary for r epairs.
The evening of the 9th inst . was entirely occupied by the reading of the paper, and the discussion
was deferred for a fortnight. At the time of
writing it has not commenced, although before
this reaches the hands of our readers the first
night's debate will be concluded. It is certain
that a very hot controver.sy will be raised, for
not only are many of Professor Forbes's decisions
debatable, but by giving his reasons at such length
he has made many openings along which he can be
attacked. It is on the question of frequency of
alternations that the chief battle will rage. The
engineers who have adopted higher standards will
come forward to defend them as applicable to all
purposes, even to power distribution at Niagara ;
they will certainly assert that their machines will
work perfectly in parallel with their present
frequency, and that n o improvement would be
found by adopting a lower figure. It will be a very
interesting debate, and is likely to extend over
several nights.
=======

''USEFUL KNOvV.LEDGE."
WE seldom use the old tern1 "Useful Knowledge" nowadays ; perhaps it would be well to
revive it for contradistinction to that kind of knowledge which is more characttJristically ornamental.
The latter is an excellent thing, but it is a luxury ;
and those proposing to invest largely this way
would do well to ask themselves whether they can
afford it. Last week we commented upon the
Director of Naval Construction's address on " Technical Education, " which is the "Useful Knowledge" of our fathers glorified and developed.
This week we have before us another address
delivered on the other branch of knowledge, by the

* See ENGINEERING, vol. liv., page 782.

head-master of H arrow. The occasion was the

annual meeting of the L ondon Society for the
E xtension of l Tniversity Teaching. Dr. Welldon
tells us that the peculiar function of "extensionising" is " to create in the minds of a great
number of persons the first conception of intellectual study as a thing wor th having in i~self. " T~is
is a very beautiful sentiment, as unassa1labl.e as fihal
affection, or any other form of mundane piety, and
yet, in this imperfect world, it may be pushed too far.
That itisdailypushed too far in this island stronghold
of convent ion is our quarr el with the ornamental
knowledge party. "There is so much dispositi.on
ordinarily to associate knowledge wit~ some ulteri.or
consideration, with some commerc1al or social
object,, complains Dr. vVelldon later on ; and
perhaps we should more admire this fine con~empt
of materialism were n ot the "ulterior considerations" of the head-master of Harrow so completely
secured to him by the result of his own learning.
Doubtless his attachment was pure and uncontamin ated; he wooed a virtuous beggar-maid, and she
t urned a princess at the altar. But we cannot all
win head-masterships of famous public schools,
and it is time some movement were made for
the r elief of the ever-suffering humanity of the
school-r oom, and a word of reminder be said to
parents. When the big public sch ools turned out
little more than country gentlem en and members
of the learned or military profession s, t o learn
for love of knowledge alone was well enough.
The "ulterior considerations " were in natural
sequence. Now, in addition to the classes named,
engineers, merchants, and manufacturers of all
kinds send their sons to t he public schools (to
prepare for the same walks in life they t hemselves have followed) too often without duly
considering the cost.
Of course we have chiefly the teaching of the
two dead languages in mind- Latin and Greek,
which occupy so much of the schoolboy energy
and so many schoolday hours. If we could bu t
put gentility on one side, and look the matte r
squarely in the face, what should we find 1
Out of each hundred men who have devoted six,
eight, or ten years of their young life to classical
study, how many could, at the age of forty, construe a page of their tear-stained Cresar, supposing
it t o emerge from some forgotten lumber-room 1
We venture t o say not more than two or three,
taking the country through, and putting aside the
learned professions. How many, like Mr. Gladstone or the late L ord Derby, can read Homer in
the original 't N ot one in four or five thousand.
It is advanced as an apology for classical teaching
that it is so p otent a means of developing the intellectual faculties ; but are there no other studies
that would prove almost as effectual, and yet leave
a residuum of "Useful Knowledge ?" Would German verbs be so vastly inferior to Latin de
clensions as intellect fertilisers 1 Would n ot a
broad knowledge of the harmonious structure of
our own frames be superior to both 1 The
treadmill is doubtless an excellent means for
developing the muscular system, but coal-whipping
is as efficacious, and is, moreover, profitable.
Fifty years ago Latin and Greek were taught t o
the sons of gentlemen because a classical education was the hall-mark of gentility ; the sons of
tradesmen were instructed more simply because their
fathers possessed simple common sense.
The
"democratic spirit of the age " has obliterated the
old social divisions ; we are all gentlemen and
ladies n ow, so that the plain designations "man "
and '' woman" are generally outside the b ounds of
politeness. The sons of the butcher, the baker,
and the candlestick- maker must laboriously get
their smattering of ''the classics, " just as every
petty farmer's daughter must play the piano, th ough
she would scorn to milk the cow.
If technical education iB doing no more for us it
is at least directing the education of our sons ~nd
daughters suitably for that state of life into
whic~ it sh~ll please God to call them. The engin eer Is find1ng that, to meet the fierce competition
of the future, his son should not devote his fresh est
energies and best hours of life to studies which
exceptionally and at best, can afford but a fringe and
orn a.ment to his social hours. Hundreds of hardworkin~ engi~eers th:oughout. this country are
~trugghng agamst the1r own 1gnorance-groping
blindly by obscure methods along the thorny paths
of empiricism; whereas, had the time spent on
forgotten classical studies been devoted to more
useful knowledge, their easy way would be along a

E N G I N E E R I N G.
broad and easy road illuminated by the certain
light of scientific induction.
Education is a term little understood; it mostly
means simply the doing of lessons. The schoolnH~ster looks on the tasks he sets as ends in themselves, not means to ends. Viewed in this light,
the rulea in the Eton Latin Grammar, expressed in
the original, are as useful a test of diligence when
learnt by heart as the problems of Euclid acquired
in the same manner . '' Training of the youthful
intelligence, " ''The love of learning for its own
sake,'' are catch phrases that are used for the excuse
of this sort of thing. Dr. Welldon is too enlightened to hold such views, as the concluding
paragraphs of his address bore testimony, but his
words may be twisted to support the ignorant
methods of indolent and self-interested instructors.
But perhaps the greatest danger is that his eloquence
and enthusiasm may lead parents to insist on a
course of education for their children of which the
children will not be able to reap the advantage.
This is a workaday world to most of us, to all
but an ever-dwindling minority. L ow interest
makes money in itself less and less valuable yearly,
excepting as a tool for work. The man of independent income must now have larger means than
ever. Money and education-the right sort of
working education-are as potent as ever in combination, but money must be used ; it is becoming
more and more difficult t.o put it out to interest.
There is every prospect that that difficulty will
grow in a rapidly-increasing ratio in the future.
Unless we get ''Useful Knowledge," '~Made in Germany " will be writ larger and larger on our
national life. In chemical industry we have fallen
behind, and in engineering production we are
being hard pushed. Knowledge without " ulterior
considerations, " without some'' cominercial object, "
will not help us in this struggle for exiatence.

HYDRAULIC MACHINERY.
FoR certain purposes and in certain conditions
there can he no question that hydraulic machinery has advantages over all competitors as a
means of distributing power. Its first cost, no
doubt, is high, and its efficiency in general is
comparatively small ; ne\ertheless, hydraulic plant
is now recognised as the proper equipment
for docks where the traffic is large enough
to justify the comparatively great prime cost.
One of the great advantages of the hydraulic
system is its compactness, which enables the exceedingly valuable quay space of~ dock to be more
fully utilised. This advantage 1n the case of a
busy dock is more than sufficient to pay for the
extra cost of an hydraulic plant as compared with
other systems. Steam cranes, though exceedingly
useful and valuable tools, are certainly noisy, and
usually dirty. No greater contrast in ~ools. for
doing the same kind of work can well be 1mag1ned
than that between an hydraulic crane and an ordinary steam crane. The for!ller does its work ~n
silence tha.t impresses one w1th a sense of power 1n
reserve which is singularly absent from its '' fussy "
rival. 'In general, h~draulic cranes ~re still constructed on the ingen1ous system devised _by L ord
Armstrong in t he earlr days of . hydraulic power
distribution and certainly nothing ca.n well be
neater tha~ his device of the inverted pulley
tackle in which the load is attached to the
fall or' the tackle, and is h oisted by applying hydraulic pressure to one of the blocks. F or many
years chain was exclusively used for this tac~le,
but latterly steel wire rope has been coming
into favour, though there haye been insta~ces . of
failure with it. Thus, at Ven~ce, on _substitutmg
steel wire rope for the chains prevwusly us~d,
failures were very frequent, and t he use o~ chains
has, therefore, been resumed. It would be mteres~
in(J' to have further particulars of the e~ac~ condlti;ns under which this experimental subshtutw.n was
made. On the face of it, it rather loo~s as If the
wire rope had been run over the s_ame stzed J?Ulleys
as were formerly used for the cha1ns. If t~us were
so, the failure was only to be expected, as wue r ?pes
should be worked over as large p_u lleys as possible,
though in a statical test they will prove about as
strong when tested on a small diameter ~~ll.ey as
on a large one. For larger loads the
dtrectacting " system seems to have great advantg,ges,
and is very generally adopted. Thus on the 160
ton crane recently erected at the Malta D~ckyard,
large loads are lifted by means of an Inver.~ed
hydraulic cylinder hung from the crane Jib.

The piston-rod passes through a stuffing-box at the of loads, but little power being employed in a
bottom of this cylinder, and is furnished with a manner involving rotary motion. Still it would
shackle at its lower end, to which the weights to be be interesting to see if suitable turbines could
lifted are attached. This plan, of course, requires not, in a number of instances, be economically
a great height of crane, which must be more than worked from hydraulic pressure mains.
double that of the total lift r equired. On the
For working riveters nothing can excel the
other hand, the friction of gearing or tackleR is hydraulic system in efficiency. This is due to the
entirely eliminated, and the efficiency of the crane fact that the final pressure on the rivet is considercorrespondingly increased, though there is a certain ably greater than the nominal pressure in the acculoss of head due to the elevation of the hydraulic mulator. The explanation of this was given some
cylinder. A crane of this power is, however, years back by Professor Unwin, who pointed out
seldom tequired, and in order to prevent a that during the early part of its stroke the riveter
costly tool like this being entirely unremunera- ram moves comparatively q uickly, and in consetive throughout the maj or portion of the year, it is quence the water in the supply pipes attains a
common to prolong the jib slightly, and to fit a considerable velocity and accumulates energy. At
chain purchase outside the hydraulic cylinder, by the end of the stroke, when the motion of the ram
means of which loads much below the maximum is arrested, this body of water has to be brought
to rest, giving rise to an hydraulic ram, materially
can be economically raised.
Another operation to which "direct-acting " plant increasing the pressure on the riveter head. In
has been successfully applied is the working of dock short, the whole arrangement constitutes a sort of
gates and heavy sluices. These gates often weigh hydraulic flywheel, which absorbs energy during the
over 100 tons apiece, and have very commonly earlier part of the stroke, to be given out later on.
been operated hydraulically, but in general some
form of gearing has been made use of. P erhaps
N
0
T
E
S.
the most recent dock installations are those of the
A NEw His TORICAL WoRK oN RAILWAYs.
ports of Genoa and Savona, Italy ; the Barry ComTHE
historical
exhibit
of
the
Baltimore
and
Ohio
pany, near Cardiff ; and the Preston D ock, made
Railroad at the Chicago Exhibition formed one of
by the Corporation of Preston, in Lancashire. In
the
most
interesting
features
of
the
Transportation
all these cases hydraulic apparatus has been apDepartment, and our readers will be glad to learn
plied, and in the deep lock now being made at
that it is intended to make this exhibit the foundaBarry, where very lar~e gates, sluices, &c., have to tion of a perm~nent museum of railway appliances.
be dealt with, hydraulic apparatus is being used.
As regards dock gates, these, in this country and In the meantime the forthcoming work of Mr. J.
C. Pangborn, of Baltimore, will form a magnificent
elsewhere, are opened either by chains with souvenir of the exhibit, as it will be a record of the
hydraulic cylinders, rams, and pulleys, or by chains
and hydraulic engines, with gearing and drum, or facts gathered on its organisation and collection.
The principal features of the early lines will be
by direct-acting cylinders with piston and rod made clear by carefully-drawn engravings) of which
attached to the gate by means of a crosshead.
E xamples of the first-mentioned plan can be seen 153 will be printed in colours, and the rise of the
steam locomotive will be traced from its earliest
at East and \Vest India D ock, London ; the Aber- known conception in the mind of Sir Isaac Newton
deen Docks, and elsewhere. The second-named
plan can be seen in Cardiff at the Bute Docks, in 1680, up to its enormous development at the pre
at Grimsby, and at Preston, and the third sent day. In short, the work is the result of extended
personal
study
and
resear
ch
in
both
Europe
plan of cylinder with direct-acting piston and
and
America.,
in
which
Mr.
Pangborn
was
assisted
r od is in successful operation at Barry.
We
by many of the remaining pioneers of railroad conbelieve the first application of the direct cylinder struction. The work will be printed on Japan paper,
with piston and rod was made at Grimsby, for the and will be obtainable by subscription only. This
turning of a bridge, by the late Mr. Benjamin subscription has been fixed at 25 dols. , and is payWalker, of Leeds, and this is referred to and fully
described in Minutes of Proceedings of the Insiitu- able to Mr. J. C. Pang born, the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad
Company,
Baltimore,
Maryland,
U.S.A.
tion of Civil Engineers, vol. lvii. In the n ew
sluices for the deep lock, Barry Dock, hydraulic
THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE.
cylinders with direct piston and r od are employed,
If any justification were required for t he existence
and nothing could possibly be simpler or more of the Imperial Institute, the Council, and the two
effective. It is in this simplicity, and the absence distinguished secretaries, Sir Frederick A bel and Sir
of chance of failure attendant on such simplicity, Somers Vine, in their programme for the s6ssion have
that the great merit of hydraulic appliances lies, provided it. Dr. W. E. H. Lecky, onMonday,delivered
this feature being especially valuable in the case of the inaugural address to an immense audience, predock work, where delays in the working of gates, sided over by t he Prince of Wales. The illustrious
&c., are especially undesirable.
historian from his great store of knowledge adduced
Outside of the docks, and omitting power supply many facts which proved, not only the advantages,
companies from consideration, the railway com- but the necessities of colonisation, and pronounced
panies are probably the largest users of high- in no uncertain language the belief generally enterpressure hydraulic plant, having found the hydraulic tained t hat the Small England party is a very
capstan a most convenient accessory to th eir goods insignificant minority. The point is not without
yards, where it is largely employed for shunting its importance, for there can be little doubt that
operations. The ~ain sourc~ of loss in ~ydraul_ic the attachment of the colonies is affected by
machinery, as apphed for rotative purposes, IS that In Britain's estimate of the importance of the connecgeneral these engines use the same quantity of water tion. The colonists can scarcely be expected to
whatever the power they are exerting. A steam consider all questions in their relation to the mother
engine under such conditions would be given to country if the latter despises t he connection. Not
running away, ?ut a valua~le feat~re of ~y~raulic only is Dr. Lecky's assurance therefore gratifying,
plant is that this tendency IS practiCally eliminated but the efforts put forward by the Council to
by fluid friction, the amount of energy abs~rbed strengthen the belief are even more satisfactory.
by which increases enormously as the velocity of The greater the interest t aken in the connection
flow becomes greater. This principle, we may between the parent country and its dependencies, the
note is made use of in the hydraulic buffers now so closer the bond, and while such sentimental reasons
com~on and in the steam and hydraulic reversing may not outweigh economic considerations, they
gears fitted to so many of t he . American line:s and would in very many cases provide the determining
other mail steamers. R eturning to the subJect of factor. In most points, t oo, it is the small conrotary hydraulic mot?rs, i~ may, h?wever, be noted sideration which operates. For these reasons all
that Mr. A. Rigg,s 1ngenwus engine has now been must welcome every opportunity tending to awaken
successfully worked for some years, a~d can b~ run interest in the colonies. Following Dr. Lecky's
at very high speeds, though at them Its effie1ency lecture there was an address on "Opium', on
Thursday, and on Monday next Mr. James
is, of course, r educed.
It is rather strange that up to the present but Dredge, one of the Royal Commissioners for the
little has been done in the matter of working tur- Columbian Exposition, will give the first illustrated
bines off the high-pressure mains of the various lecture, when he will deal with the British colonies
supply companies. In the case of London these at t hat great exhibition, and in view of the wide
mains already have an aggrega~e leng th of about character of the representation there, the whole
60 miles, and are constantly bemg extended. On field of industry and resource of Greater Britain
this long line of pipes there are, we understand, will be opened up for consideration. Meetings for
only about a couple of turbines at work. The the consideration of commercial subjects associated
main reason for this is no doubt due to the fact with the colonies are to be held on the afternoons
that most of the work to be done is direct lifting of Thursdays, and illustrated lectures delivered on

E N G I N E E R I N G.
Monday evenings. Amongst the lecturers are the
Earl of .Jersey, who will d eal with New Sout.h
Wales; Mr. Hume Black, on Queensland; S1r
J ulius Voael on New Zealand; Prof. 'Vallace, on
Canada Dr.' R. B owdler Sharpe, on "Th.e Lost
Contin~nt and its Bird Life,, and Mr. Juln~s ~
Price will describe a. new trade r oute across S1ber1a
by way of the Arctic Ocean to Pekin.
THE NEW BRITI H COl\I MERCE PROTECTOR.
The Admiralty have invited the leading shi~

building firms throughout the country to submit

tenders for the construction of ~ large cruiser,
primarily intended for the protectiOn of our floatina commerce. This cruiser is one of two (the
T:rrible and Powerful) originally included in the
Navy Estimates. of th~s year, but, ~wing to extraordinary expenditure, It w~s determ1ned. to proceed
only with one of them 1n the meantime. .The
Terrible will differ from the usual type of crwser,
speed being the first cons~deration, although, . at
the same time, the vessel will have great offen sive
powers. Two large guns will be mounted, the one
on the forecastle and the other on the poop, to act
as bow and stern chasers, and th~re will be a large
number of quick-firing and machine g uns to combat the attack of torpedo-boats and torpedo-boat
destroyers. The prote?tion . is to be by a minl!te
subdivision of the 1nterwr, by a protect1ve
deck of the ordinary turtle-back form running
fore and aft, and by armour cog.mings for t he
parts of the machinery projecting above t his
deck. The displacement of t he vessel is to be
14 200 tons the length about 500 ft., and the beam
65' ft. Spe~d, as we. have said,. is to be the . first
consideration, and wh1le the deta1ls of the mach1nery
have been left to the firms tendering, it is stipulated that they are to be of sufficient power to give
a speed of 20 knots under natural draught conditions and on a long run to sea. The forced-draught
speed guarantee sh~uld ~e, ?f course,. ~reater,
and will be ~\ consideratiOn In determ1nmg the
builders of the vessel. We understand, fur t her,
that the Admiralty have invited the firms tendering
to submit alternative designs of machinery with the
tubulous boiler adopted, instead of the ordinary
multit ubular boiler, and to specify the power t o be
generated with.the ~ame .or less weight.. Th~ addition of this b o1ler In th1s class of crmser, It may
be remembered, was suggested by some of the
members of the Committee which recently reported
on the question of Navy boilers, and doubtless
the satisfactory results of the trials of the Speedy,
fitted with the Thornycroft boiler, and the remarkable test to which the Yarrow b oiler for the
H ornet was subjected, as reported in last week's issue,
may influence the Admiralty to ~ive favourable
consideration to the proposal, prov1ded the excess
of power promised justifies the innovation in such
a cruiser. Considerable latitude has been given
builders in the matter of alternative ar.rangements,
the Admiralty desiring the co-operation of private
firms in arriving at a suitable design, not only for
a. fast cruiser, but for one which will be able to
carry sufficient coal to keep the sea for very much
longer periods than any existing vessel.

w.AGE.

IN L ONDON.

With the assistance of t he census returns, anu of

~he extensive data supplied at his request by many
employers in each trade through out the metropolis,
Mr. Charles Booth, one of the best authorities on
life and work in London, is n ow compiling a r ecord
of the remuneration of labour in all the ninety
trades whereby the working classes of the metropolis
make a living. In his presidential address t o the
Royal Statis~ical Society, delivered on Tuesday
evening, he gave the results in the case of two
industries, and these, as may be readily conceived,
are of much interest. From t he census returns he
found that 5836 persons were engaged in the
chemical manufactures, including the making of
dyes, paints, blacking, matches, and explosives.
Of this number 2285 are heads of families, each
working, on an average, for 4. 76 people. These
are mostly located in the east and south-east districts of the city, a goodly number being also in
the south-west. The returns from employers showed
that, of the total, 5 per cent. of the men workers
were earning less than 20a., but this, Mr. Booth
points out, is due, probably, to short hours ;
25 per cent. were earning 20s. to 25s., 20 per cent.
from 25s. to 30s., 25 per cent. from 30s. to 35s.,
15 per cent. from 35s. to 45s., and 10 per cent.
over 45s. Comparing the figures with Board of
Trade returns of 1886, the conclusion is that wages

are now so mew hat higher all round. The families

of men earning 20s. to 24s. live two, or up to three,
persons to each room occupied ; those earning from
25s. to 29s., and some at 30s., live one, or up to
two, persons per room. Foremen get 40s. to 50s. ,
and leading hands from 30s. upwards, or about 6d.
or 7d. per h our "for rather full time." Chemical
labourers are paid 5d. to 6d., or abou t 25s. a
week> but they make a good deal of overtime.
In this t rade work is fairly regular, overtime
balancing the short hours of periods of depression.
As to the wages of females employed, the great
majority make from 7~. ~o 9~. a w~ek.. Mr. B o?th
gives the results of a Similar Invest1gat10n regardmg
the kindred industry of soa.p, candle, and glue
making, in which 2130 are employed, prett~ m~ch
in the east, south-east, and south-west d1stncts
again. Of these, 1056 are heads of families, working
for 4946 people. Here also one finds a general
increase since 1886. Time and piece workers are
equally divided, and the greatest effect of slackness
in trade is to reduce the number of the former and
lessen the wages of the latter. U nskilled men
earn, while on time pay, under normal conditions,
20s. to 25s. ; first-class labourers, 25s. to 30s. ; and
skilled workmen, foremen, and leading hands, over
30s. At piecework slow workers earn 20s. to 30s. ;
medium workers, 30s. to 40s. ; and quicker workers,
40s. and upwards. The majority of women earn
from 10s. t o 15s., and boys rather less. In the social
status those earning 30s. and upwards belong to the
central class, with houses having less than one r oom
to each inhabitant.
DESIGN.
For many years bicycles have afforded striking
examples of good workmanship and bad engineering.
The early "Safety " builders were given to putting
in a curved tube wherever p ossible, regardless of the
fact that in such frames straight tubes were both
cheaper and stronger; but this tendency, judging
from the Stanley Show, now open at the Agricult ural Hall, Islington, seems to have at length died
out, and makers generally have adopted patterns
which they might have h ad years ago had they
only consulted competent engineers. The unstayed
cross and diamond frames are other monstrosities
which also seem to have disappeared, and the
ingenious, though too often ign orant, manufacturer
is now engaged in endeavouring to find a substitute
f or the pneumatic tyre.
Possibly some of our
readers may themselves be interested in this
question, and with a view to saving the waste of
time and money of those of them who have not
studied the q uestion of r olling friction, it may be
well t.o give here an explanation of the lessened resistance to motion observed with an inflated tyre, the
more particularly as we have not yet seen any such
explanation in print. L e t us consider the case of a
solid rubber tyre. As the machine m oves along ,
the material of the tyre is compressed in front of
the point of contact, and recovers its f orm behind
this point. To accomplish this compression of the
rubber, work must be done, but if the rubber expanded quickly enough, it would, as it recovered
its form behind the p oint of contact, tend to shove
the wheel forward, and thus restore again the work
done in compression. As a matter of fact, however, indiarubber recovers its form slowly, and
hence most of the work done in compression is lost,
as the compressed part of the tyre has moved out
of contact with the ground before it regains its
original form. In a similar manner the ground
on which the wheel rests is compressed in front of
the point of contact, and, if a firm material, also
recovers its previous form more or less perfectly
behind the wheel. On a firm road the compression
of the tyr~ is probably more important than that of
the ground, and this r elative importance is emphasised in the case of a pneumat ic tyre. In this
latter, however, the elasticity causing it to regain
its form after compression, is not the imperfect
elasticity of the rubber, but the practically perfect
elasticity of compressed air. This causes the tyre
to expand behind the point of contact very rapidly,
giving back again nearly all the work done in
deforming the tyre in front of the point of contact.
The greater the pressure within the tyre, the more
perfectly is the work done in compression restored,
which is in accordance with the well-kno wn fact that
highly inflatad tyres are more speedy than soft ones.
The lost work is then mainly due to the compression
of the imperfectly elastic ground on which the wheel
runs, and probably also, in part, to a sort of molecular
friction in the rubber body of the tyre. In conC YCLE

firmation

of the above statement as to ~he imper

feet elasticity of solid rubber tyres, causing l?ss of
work it is well known that workmen and rail way
porte~s find rubber-ty~ed trucks and barrows more
difficult to move than uon-tyred o~es. I~ may be
noted in passing that the small rolhng res1stance of
a steel-tyred wheel on a steel rail is partly due to
the very perfect elasticity of both. Steel, when
compressed, recovers its form at a rate of abo~t
16,000 ft. a second. F or all practical purposes this
is, of course, instantaneous.
IMPOUNDING RESERVOIRS IN INDIA
AND MASONRY DAMS.
AT the ordinary meeting of the Institut~on of. Ci~il
Engineers, held on Tuesday, ~ovemb~r 21, Str B~nJamm
Baker, K .C. M. G., Vice-Pres1d~nt, 1? the cbau, four
communications were read deahn~ w1th the subJect of
impounding reservoirs in India and the design of masonry
dams.
h
The first paper was on "The Tansa Works for t e
Water Sup~ly of Bombay," by Mr. W .. J . B. Cle~ke,
B.A., C. I .E., M. Inst. C.E. After referrmg to prev1ous
accounts of the Bombay water supply, the author gave a
general outline .of t.he pre~entJ exte~de? works, and proceeded to descr1be m detail the pr1nc1pal feature of the
scheme, namely, the masonry dam ab Tansa.. ~t a distance
of 57 miles from Bombay a storage re~erv~u bad ~een
constructed in the Ta.nsa Valley, capable of 1mpoundmg,
after all deductions, 1,801,000,000 cnbic fe~t, equal to
31,000,000 gallons daily for 365 d~ys and as the waste
weir ran for at least three months m the year, the actual
quantity available would be 41,000,000 gallons :per day
for a po~ulation of 821,764. Should that q~ant1ty ev~r
become msuflicient, the dam had been so destgned that 1t
could be raised to a height which would double the ca.pa.
city of the lake. The section of the dam had been .designed according to the methods advanced by Mr. Bouv1er,
of the French Service of Roads and Bridges, and while
fulfilling all requirements of stability, was economical as
regarded material. The geological formation of the
rock basin of the Tansa V alley was amygdaloid trap, but
at the site of the dam this was partly overlaid by a.
mass of crystalline basalt, intersected by veins of soft
material, which necessitated the foundations being carried
in some_places 30 ft. below the rock level to reach the
trap. This entailed a heavy outlay, but the result bad
been satisfactory, as the foundations were quite watertight. The dam was constructed of uncoursed rubble
masonry throughout. Anytbin~ approaching regular bori
zontal joints wa3 carefully avotded, and pains were taken
to preserve a good bond throughout the whole breadth of
the work. The greater l?art of the stones used did not
average more than~ cub1c foot in bulk. Every stone was
laid full in mortar, each one being selected so as to
roughly fit the place it was to be laid in; it was then
driven home in its bedding of mortar by blows from a
light mallet, and all spaces between it and the adjoining
stones were filled flush with mortar. Spalls or small
stones were then inserted in the mortar between the
joints. Occasionally, where convenient, large mas~es of
stone were placed in the body of the work, each mass
being bedded in mortar and built round with rubble
masonry ; bub this system was only used for an insigni
ficant portion of the work. Great care was taken by
close supervision to prevent, as far as possible, any
dry work or hollow spaces occurring in the masonry.
There was no ashlar in the faces, though the surface
stones ba.d to be roughly faced with the hammer to
preserve the outline of the profile. Kunkur lime
mixed with sand of disintE'grated trap rock obtained
from the beds of the rivers near the works was used for
the mortar. The total quantity of masonry in the dam
was 11,000,000 cubic feet. The aqueduct between the
reservoir and Bombay consisted partly of conduits of
rubble masonry, partly of tunnelling, and partly of castiron pipes. The syphons used in crossing valleys were
48 in. in diameter and 1i in. or 1f in. thick, according to
the maximum bead imposed upon them. The stop valves
were of the Glenfield Coml?any's pattern, w1th two
shutters. The whole of the p1pes for the work, amount
ing to 48,000 tons, were manufactured at Glasgow.
Each pipe was tested with oil in the manufactory
to a pressure of 200 lb. on the square inch. The cost was
5l. 15s. 8d. per ton, delivered at Ba.ssein Creek. The total
cost of the works was Rs.149,50,000.
The second paper was on ''The Baroda \Vater Works,"
by Mr. Jagannath Sadasewjee, Assoc. M. Inst. C.E. The
city of Baroda, containing a population of about 120,000,
was formerly dependent for its water su~ply upon tanks
and wells in the immediate vicinity. Shortly after the
accession of the present Ga.ikwar. the author proposed
t~at ~ate! sho_uld be obtain~d from the River Sury~ lying
w1thm h1s H1gbness's .terr1tory, .T he und.erta.kmg involved the construct1on of an 1mpoundmg-reservoir
12 miles northeast of Baroda, a 30-in. cast-iron main
settling tanks, and purification works ; also a. covered
service reservoir and distribution works. The scheme
was designed to supply 3,000,000 gallons daily. The catch.
ment area of Lake Sayaji (as the impounding reservoir bad
been named) w~ 36.2 square mil~s, the water spread ab
top-water level bemg 4. 72 square miles. The mean rainfall
for 17 y~ars was 39 in., and tha~ for three consecutive dry
years, 33 m. The loss by evaporat10n from the reservoir was
assumed to be 72 in. annually. The reservoir was formed
by an ea~then embankment. across. the S':uya River,
14,400 ft. m length, and 54ft. m maxunum betght storing
1,287,000,000 cubic feet of wat~r. The top breadth, which
was uniform throughout, was 15 ft. The outer slope of
the bank was built at an inclination of 2 to 1 ; the mner

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

[Nov. 24, I 893

---=====================================================================================
alo_pe,
faced with pitching of dry bricks 9 in. sure ab the faces of the wall should never exceed a certain 1d. per ton lower in price. Hematite iron was unwhic~ w~s

..

thlCk, was mohned 3 to 1. There was n o puddle-wall in

the embankmen t, the material employed being of ~ood
quality, but one was carried through the natural ground
beneath it along its entire course. Subsequently a second
puddle-wall was put in at a distance of 150 ft. from
the inner toe of the bank to prevent underground
percolation. The waste- water course bad a. clear
width of 800 ft., and was excavated through the
elevate~ ground forming the north boundary of the
r eser v01r. The draw-off and scour valves were contained
in a. tower connected with the lake by two plug-valves.
From the interior of the tower the water pa.saed into
a. 30-in. cast-iron main controlled by a. sluice-valve.
From the val ve-h ouse a.t the foot of the embankment a
cast-iron main, also 30 in. in diameter, was laid parallel
to the road from Ajiva. to Ba.roda.. The length of main
from the valve-tower to the Mandvi tower was 12~ miles.
I~ was provided with twelve stop-vah-es and twelve ball
a1r-val ves at regular distances of one mile; and six snourvalves were placed in convenient situations for supplying
water to cert ain villages in times of scarC'ity. The supply from the Surya River was n ot altogether satisfactory,
and it was intended to supplement th~se works by throwing an earthern dam across the Vishwamitri River, to form
a. lake at the village of Asoj, and to cut a canal about
4 miles in length to feed the 8a.yaji lake.
The third paper was on "The Water Supply of
J eypore, Raj putana," by Colon el S. . J acob, C. I. E.,
Assoc. Inst. C. E.
The author described the water
supply of the city previous to 1873, when, after an
exhaustive inquiry, it was decided to obtain a supply
from the Ama.ni Shah N ullah, the water of which
h ad been pronounced to be of excellent quality. A
weir was made across the bed of the nulla h on the site
of a formerly existing dam. Pumping machinery was
erected, and a supply of 36,000 gallons per hour wa..q
obtain ed. These works were completed in 1879, and
fulfilled their purpose until May or June. 1881, when the
water in the stream was only just sufficient to meet the
increased demand. The fact that during the rains a
large volume of water flowed away, suggested the storing
of this surplus water for use during the hot weath er ;
but in order to accomplish this it was necessary that
a d am s hould be complet~d in one season between
the rain.:~. A site was selected, 750 ft. above the
pumping station, where 148,000,000 cubic feet of water
could be imP.ounded from a drainage area. of about
13 square miles. The mean rainfall was 24 in., but,
owing to the nature of the soil, it was considered that
not more than 4 in., or about 120,000,000 cubic feet,
would flow off annually. A fter the embankment had
been made, it was found that only one-sixtieth part of the
rainfall flowed off the catchment area into the reservoir.
The embankment possessed some interest in that it had
n o puddle-wall, and was made of sand, resting upon sand
and mud, the n atural surface being merely dug up and
coarse grass roots removed. Work was begun on June
27, 1884. Sidings of light rails were laid down on each
bank with a slight incline. Two men were placed
in charge of each wagon, which, after being filled, was
pushed along, and soon acquired sufficient momentum to
run on to t he sit~ of the bank, carrying both the earth
and the men, who jumped on to the wagon after starting
it. As the embankment rose, the rails were also raised,
and the speed and economy with which the work wa-s
done were highly satisfactory. As many as 129 wagons
were at one time employed. bringing some 30,000 cubic
feet of sand daily from a distance of about 1000 ft. at
half the cost of m a.nual labour. Extra men were
~mployed to spread and ram the earth, and a few
Rai elephants. walked backwards and for~ards, ~orn
ing and evemng, over the work to consohdate 1t. A
temporary outlet, consisting of two 12-in. sluices, was
built 5 fb. above the ri ver bed at one side, and the nullah
was closed on October 26, with the object of impounding
as much water a3 possible for the ensuing hot season. In
the meantime the_permanent outlet well and culvert w~re
taken in hand. T he outlet well was of masonry. Wmg
~alls were provided on the water side with cross walls to
counteract any thrust. _In these cro~s walls t_here were
large openinga, over wh1ch movable non gratmgs were
fixed. The water passed through these gratings to two
12-in. outlet valves worked from cast-iron pillars on the
top of the well. The outlet culvert was of masonry 7 ft.
wide and 7~ ft. high. To prevent water creeping along
the cnlvert, sla bs of sandstone, 3 in. or 4 in. thick
and about 8 ft. long. were built in ~he mas<?nry of the
culvert, projecting 6 ft. all round 1t, formmg col~ars
at every 50 ft. along the length of the cul vert, agamst
which the earth was well rammed. Special means were
taken to prevent leakage at the toe of the oute~ slope;
next the earth a layer of sharp sand about 10 ft. wtde and
5 fti. deep was placed outside this a. similar layer of small
broken stone and fin~lly a similar mass of large rubble.
The work w~s completed in September, 1885, at a. cost of
Rs 9 97 609. The greatest flood occurred on August 1,
18S5 , when the water rose 5 ft. 10 in. in twenty-four
hou;s. The highest level yet attained by the water was
3HThe
ft. Ja.st paper read was ' ' On t h e D estgn
. of M a.sonry
Dams'' by Professor Franz Kreuter, of Munich. The
autho~ propose~ .to show how, by di~iding t~e proble~
into several d1stmct p~rts, and by mtro~ucmg c~rtam
limitations and supposttlOns, ~ mathe~attcal solutJOD; as
exact as desired mtght be ar~t ved at wtthc;mt employmg
the system of trials and tedtous calculatiOns generally
thought necessary. According to De Sazilly, Graeff ~nd
Delocre, Krantz, Rankine, and others-t~ whose labours
was due the idea of giving to the cross-sectiOns of masonr_y
dams a shape of uniform stability and strength-the bas1s
.
of a sound theory of these struc~ures wa_s :
1. That at any horizontal sect10n the mtenstty of pres-

value fixed upon as the safe crushing load of the mate a.l
of the da.m.
2. That at no horizontal layer of the masonry shou
th ere be any danger of sliding.
3. That at those parts of the profile where the wall had
a batter. the intensity of pres~ure at the faces should be
diminished below the limits answering to vertical faces.
4. That there ought to be no practically appreciable
tension in any part of the masonry. whether at the outer
face when the reservoir was empty, or at the inner face
when it was full. The lines of resistance. therefore,
should not deviate from the middle of the thickness of
the wall to an extent exceeding one-sixth of the thickness.
Adhering to these principles, th e author made the foll owing assumptions : a. The water level wa.s supposed to
reach to the top of the wall. b. The vertical component
of the water pressure upon the battered part of the inner
face of the wall was provisionally neglected. c. The
shearing stresses acting parallel to the layers of the wall
were not allowed for. 1'he effect of these limitations was
explained, and the author proceeded to consider the
pr1mary shape of the cross-section. The simplest form
was a right-angled triangle with a vertical inner face.
This form of cross-section, however, could not be realised
in practic~, owing to the necessity of giving a certain
width to the top of the walJ, which often had to be
sufficient to form a. road. The upper part of the wall was
frequently a rectangular block of masonry, and where it
was n ot so it might be represented for the purposes of the
design by such a block equi valent to the actual structure.
But if such a superstructure were placed upon the triangular dam, the lines of resistance would be displaced
throughout the whole body of the dam. It was therefore
necessary t o depart from the trian gular cross-section, and
among the elements determining the cross-section to be
sought for would be the mass and form of t he superstructure. This necessity was met by dividing the wall into
three parts, to which different methods were appliednamely, the rectangular superstructure, the body of the
wall with vertical inner face and curved outer face, and
the lowest portion or base of the wall with both faces
curvE>d. The author maintained that this division of the
subject, due to D elocre, was incomplete, because if the
same conditions of stability were made to apply throughout, there would be a. discontinuity at the plane of junction of the portions 1 and 2; he consequE>ntly introduced
between portions 1 and 2 another portion to which the
condition of No. 1 would apply at its upper limit, and
those of No. 2 at its lower limit. His investigation W'\.S
therefore divided into four parts, treating respecti velr of
the four portions of the wall to which different conditiOns
had to be applied. These portions were considered
analytically, and to exemplify the method described a
resultant cross-section was developed, applicable, according to the author's theory, to the condit10ns of the wellknown masonry dam of Furens.

NOTES FROM THE NORTH.

GLASGOW, Wednesday.
Glasgow Pig-Iron Markct.-There was a. strong tone in
the pig-iron warrant market last T hurRday, and values
experienced a marked advance, the market closing a.t the
best. Scotch warrants rose ~d. per ton in the forenoon,
and 1~d. in the afternoon. Cleveland iron advanced in
price 1;d. per ton. No business was done in hematite
iron, but buyers came up ! d. per ton towards sellers. At
the close the settlement pr1ces were Scotch iron, 42s. 7~d.
per ton; Cleveland, 34~. 7~d. ; Cumberland and Middlesbrough hemati te iron, resp~cti vely, 44s. 6d. and 43s. 3d.
per ton. A large amount of business was done on Friday
at higher prices, but tbe early gain on the day was nearly
all lost at the close on a.n announcement that the conference between the English coa.lmasters and the miners'
representati ves was likely to lead to a. settlement of the
dispute and to the immediate resumption of work.
Scotch pig iron, which had been run up l~d. per ton
further, lost that gain, and dosed as on the preceding
day.
Cleveland iron closed 1d. per ton better, and
hematite iron was just steady and without any change
in price.
The closing setlilement prices wereScotch iron, 42s. 7!d. per ton; Cleveland, 34s. 7~d. ;
Cumberland and
Middlesbrough hematite iron,
44s. 6d. and 43s. 3d. per ton respectively. Business
was quiet on Monday forenoon. Only 3000 or
4000 tons of Scotch iron were sold, including one lot at
42s. 5d. one month fixed, with a "plant." One lot of
Cleveland was sold at 34s. 7d. per ton cash. The market
was steady in the afternoon, but only some 2000 tons of
Scotch were done. The cash price at the close showed no
change from the morning. The settlement prices at the
close of the market were-Scotch iron, 42~. 6d. per ton ;
Cleveland, 34s. 6d. ; Cumberland and Middlesbrough
hemati te n on, respectively, 44s. 6d. and 43s. 3d. per ton.
There was more business done in the warrant market on
Tuesday forenoon. From 7000 to 8000 tons of Scotch
changed bands, and the tone was firm at 42t~. 6d. and
42s. 7~d. per ton cash, the last price being the hest. Cleveland made a n advance of 1~d. per ton. The market continued very firm in the afternoon. Sellers were rather
scarce, presuruably over a threatened strike of the Scotch
miners for a n advance of wages, and up to 42s. Sd. per
ton cash was paid for Scotch iron, with buyers over at
that at the close. or 1d. per ton dearer than the forenoon
price. Ex-official business was also done in Scotch iron
at 42s. 7~d. per ton one month, with a "plant." The
closing settlement prices ware- Scotch iron, 42s. 7~d . per
ton; Cleveland, 34s. 7~d.; Cumberland and Mtddlesbrough hematite iron, respectively, 44s. 6d. and 43s. 3d.
The market was very strong this forenoon, business in
Scotch warrants being done up to 42s. 9~d. per ton
cash. Cleveland warrants, on the other nand, were

changed.
Scotch warrants were again still firmer
in the afternoon, the price touchinS' 42s. lOd. per
ton, with a moderate business domg.
Cleveland
iron was ~d. per ton higher. The following are a
few of the current prices for No. 1 brands of makers'
iron : Ga.rtsherrie and Summerlee, 49a. per ton; Ca.lder,
50a. ; Coltness, 553. 6d. ; Langloan, 56s.-the foregoing all
shipped at Glasgow; Glengarnock (shipped at A rdrossao),
49s.; Shotts (shipped at L eith), 51s.; Carron (shipped at
Grangemouth), 53s. 6d. per ton. L ast week's shipments
of pig iron from all Scotch vorts amounted to 5606 tons,
against 5482 tons in the corresponding week of last year.
They included 265 tons for Australia., 1940 tons for Italy,
790 tons for Germany, 160 tons for Russia, 385 tons for
Holland, 380 tons for Belgium, 100 tons for China and
J a.pan. smaller quantities for other coun t ries, and 1165
tons coastwise. There are now 54 blast furnaces in
actual operation in Scotland, as compared with 78 at this
time last year. It is thought that the termination of the
dispute in England will help to bring about an increase
to the number of furnaces in blast. The stock of pig iron
in Messrs. Connal and Co.'s public warrant stores stood
at 326,220 tons yesterday afternoon, against 328,032 tons
yesterday week, thus showing an increase for t he past
week amounting to 1812 t ons.
Advance in the P rice of Ma lleable I 1on.- It was current
in Glasgow iron trade circles in the latter part of last
week that at a meeting of a n umber of malleable iron
makers a proposal to advance prices 5s. per ton was
agreed to. This advance, it is sta.ted, will scarcely cover
the e>..tra. cost of production, owing to the severe advance
in the price of coal, against which makers have had to
struggle for the last two months.
Glasgow Copper Markt.- Little or no business has
been reported during the past week in respect of the
Glasgow copper market. The cash price has generally
ranged at from 42l. 2s. 6d. to 42l. 5s. per ton cash.
Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland.The second meeting of the new session of this Institution
was held last n ight, :r.Cr. J ohn Inglis, president, in the
chair. Some further discussion took place on the paper
read at the opening meeting by Mr. J. Macewan Roes,
describing his new caulking tool, and at th e close
the author was awarded the thanks of the sooiety.
Professor J. Harvard Biles, of the "Elder " Chair of
N aval A rchitecture in the U ni versity of Glasgow, read a
paper on " The Strength of Large Ships. " After dealing
in a technical manner with the subject, he said that the
consideration of tho matter of the strength of large ships
might be considered by some to be at the best premature,
because the probability of making very large ships pay
was remote. The business of commercial management
of steamships was usually, and should always be, carried
on by skilled shipowners, who would not commence any
commercial venture without some reasonable hope of
making it a. success. If many of the la.rge shipping companies a.t present were not making money, and their fleets
were made up in t he aggregate of high speed, medium
speed, and lower speed vessels, it required more than a
superficial investigation to say that the want of profit wa.s
due to excessi ve speed . At any rate, there were compani es possessing hi gh-speed ships which were adding
high-speed shipa to theu fleets, and there were fleets
in which high-speed ships made money, while low-speed
ships did not ; so that there might still be a future
in which it would be prudent to build a fast ship
rather than a slow one, and in which a full understand
ing of the question of the strength of large ships
might be an important item in the matter, not only of
speed, but of commercial efficiency. Professor Biles based
most of his calculations and remarks on four typical
steamers of 500 ft., 550 ft ., 600 ft., and 700 ft. in length.
Tho discussion on the paper was postponed till next meeting, so as to give members an opportunity of studying the
paper in print. Captain John Bain, marine surveyor.
subsequently read a paper on "The Effect of Reversin~
~he Scr~w Propelle~ of a Steamship upon the Steering, '
m the course of whtch he gave the results of some of his
own experiences as a captain of a steamer at sea. The
discussion on this paper was also held over till nextJ
meeting.
North Bridge, Edinbu1gh. - Last Friday afternoon Sir
Willia.m Arrol was in consultation with the L ord Provost
of E_dinl?urgh and some of his colleagues and corporation
offiCials m r egard to the proposed reconstruction of the
~o~th Bri~ge. The r~sult ?f his visit t<;> Edinburgh and
hts mspect10n of the br1dge 1s that a Parhamentary notice
for the proposed work has been or is being prepared. Ib
has been said that the bridge cannot bn reconstructed at
a less cost than 150,000l. Of course the North British
Railway Company will have to bear a large portion of the
expense.

NOTES FROM CLEVELAND AND THE

NORTHERN COUNTIES.
M IDDLESBROUGH, Wednesday.
T he Cleveland I ron T rade.- Yesterday there was a fair
attendance on 'Change, the tone of the market was pretty
c.:heet ful, and there was more disposi tion to do business
than has recentl~ been the case. (.luotations were a shade
stronger all round, and producers did not take such ~
gJoomy view of the outlook as they have recently done.
Early in the day 34s. 6d. was paid for prompt f.o.b. delivery of_No. 3 g:m.b. Cle~elan~ pig iron, hub later on,
when fatrly sattsfactory mtelhgence from other ironproducing districts arrived, many sellers put up their price
of ~o. ~to 34s. _7~d. Buyers generally, however, were
not mchned to g1 ve more than t~e former quotation, and
they report~~ that they could easily buy at that price. The
lower quaht1es of pig were steady. It was difficult to

E N G I N E E R I N G.
buy No. 4 foundry under 33a. 6d., and rather m ore was
asked in som& oases. Grey forge was firm at 32s. 9d., and
S3s. was quoted by some sellerR. Middlesbrough wa:rran~
were 34s. 7d. c:1sh buyera. T_he demand for ~ema.ttte ptg
iron is ex pected to increage wtth the resumptt?n of oper~
tions at Sheffield works, but few of the esta.bltshment3 m
that district have as yet recommenced, so that yesterday
there was little alteration in hematite. Mixed nu~bers
of local brands could be bought ab 43s. for early dehvery.
Spanish ore was unchanged, rubio being about 12s. 3d.
ex-ship T ees. T o-day the market was steady, but there
was not much businees transacted. Prices were the same
as yesterday.
Manufactured I ron and Steel.-Not much new can _be
said of these two import ant branches of the staple m dustry. A little more activity is noticeable at some
works and one or two producers give a. rather better
accou~t of the state of affai rs, but competition for new
orrlers is exceedingly keen, and quotations continue very
low. Common iron bars are put at 4l. 17s. 6d .; best bars,
6l. 7s. 6d. ; iron ship-plates, 4l . 15a. ; iron ship-angles,
4l. 12~. Gd.; steel ship-plate~, 5l. to 5l. 2s. 6d.; and st~el
ship-angles, 4l. 15s.-a.ll less the usual 2~ per cent. dtscount for cash. Steel rails are unaltered , heavy sections
being about 3l. 12s. Gd. net at works. It is said th at
contracts have been accept ed at a trifle below the fore~win~ anota.tions, but some firms ask slightly higher
figures than the above-mention ed.
E fl.qineering and Shipbuilding.-Engineers, generally
speaking, are not badly employ_ed, thoug? some establishments are doing next to nothmg. A n tmprovement
has fortunately taken place in shipbuilding, several local
firms having secured orders for n ew vessels, and one or
two yards, which were expected t o be closed durin g the
winter, will now be kept fairly well employed.
The F uel Trade.- A good business is still bein ~ doJ?e
in fuel but in spite of the attempt by sellers t o ma mtam
prices 'which have ruled during the strike, a. downwar_d
t endency is apparent. On Newcastle Exchange _there IS
more desire to book forward orders, and there 1s much
negotiation a.~ to the range of prices that a_re t o rule for
winter supplies of coal. L ow forward pnces for best
Northumbnan steam are nam ed, but little business is
done exCeJ?ting for early supply, for which about
13s. f.o.b. IS the figure. Some collieries, however, have
obtained a higher price. A good deal of locom?t i ve coal
has been t hrown on the market, as south ern railways are
now fi nding thei r local suppli es available. Gas coal is in
good request. Coke keeps dear. Yesterd ay 15s. was
paid for a parcel of blast-furnace coke dPli vered here.

NOTES FROM THE SOUTH-WEST.

Card(U: - Business in steam coal has continued brisk;
the settlement of the great lock -out in the Midlands ana
the North will probably later on affect the market, but
some large orders have been secured for deli very during
December. The demand for household coal has continued
good; No. ~ Rhondda. large has made 14s. per ton. Iron
ore has shown little change. Foundry coke has brought
20::;. 6d. to 2ls., and furnace ditto 18a. to 19s. per ton.
The finished iron and steel tra.d r,s have bxhibited little
improvement, steel rails continuing fla t; heavy sections
have made Sl. 15s., and light sections 4l. lOa. to 4l. 12s. 6d.
per t on.
Rhyrrvney Rai lway. -A new rou te to the Monmouthshire
valleys, vid H ergoed Junction, has just been opened. The
Rhymney Railway Company some time since constructed
a. branch from Y strad to H erg__oed, thus connecting its
line with the Great W estern Railway, runn ing powers
over which ha ve been granted t o a point which will enable
the Rhymney to run trai ns inte the S irhowy Valley without follo wing the more circuitous route round Rh ymney
Junction.
The "Gothic" (s).-This steamer, the latest addition t o
the White Star L ine, will take m bunkers ab Cardiff
preparatory to mak i n ~ her first Atlantic trip. The
Gothic is to be supphed with 3500 tons of Cyfa.rthfa
steam coal.
Great Western Railway.-This company will apply to
P a.rlia.mAnt next session for a revival of powers for the
onstruction of the East Usk Railway, and for the purchase of certain land required in connection with it.
Powers will also be applied for for an amalg&.mation with
the G reat vVestern of the Ti verton and North Devon
Railway and the Oldbury Railway.
The "Hermione."-An order has been received at
Devonport from the L ords of the Admiralty directing
that the Hermione is to be fitted as an ordina ry cruisPr,
and not as a flagship. Messrs J. a nd D. Thomson, of
Glasgow, the contractors for the engines, have now a.
large staff of men at work upon the vessel.
T he "Renown. "-The R enown, lineofbattle ship, now
building at P embroke, is to be completed at Devonport.
K eyha.m Engineering College.-The engineering students
at K ey ham College are t o receive a short course of instruction in revolver and sword drill, and in rifle and squad
exercise, on board the gnnnery ship towards the close of
their educational career, if suitable arrangements can be
made and time can be spared from their other etudies.
The L ords of the Admiralty have now decided that as the
exigencies of the service will for some years necessitate the
whole of the students' time at the college being devot ed to
professional work and st udy, gunnery instruction during
the _college training is to be discontinued for the present.
The1r lordships, however, direct that the instruction is t o
be carried out as soon as practicable after the students
hav~ passed into the reserves as probationary assistant
engmeers.

The Electric Light at Oheltenhwm.-On W ednesday an

inquiry was h eld at Cheltenham by Col.o nel Hasted . R. ~.,
Local Government Board inspector, mto a n a.pphcat10n
ma.de by the Cheltenham Town Council for leave to
borrow 16,000l. for the pur pose of electric lightln~ in the
borough. :M r. Brydges. t own clerk, called Mr. Norman,
who described th e various st eps taken in the matter by
the Electric Lighting Committee. of which he had been
cha irman up till November 1. The borough surveyor,
~Ir . J . Hall, C.E., after wards gave estimates, and explained the sch eme of l ighting, which is to be the alter nate curren t system, as recommended by Professors
Ayrton a nd Preece. Two or three ra tepayers were h eard
in opposition, and the inquiry closed.
Dock E xtensions at Swansea.- The executive committee
of the Swansea. Harbour Trust at a meeting on Thursday fur ther considered the question of dock ext ension .
It was decided that ~Ir. Abernethy should be employed
to get oub the plans only, the trust engineer supervising
the works.
The B ute Docks.-The Bute D ock s Company contemplates the cons truction of a d ock on land reclaimed ~Y
the formation of embankments. The prop osed dock wtll
commence opposite the south-west ern corner of th e
Roath dock, and will extend in a south-westerly direction
for a. distance of 857 yards. An entrance lock 850 ft. in
length is contemplated.

t::=======

MISCELLANEA.
T RR lighting of the Royal Exchange by electricity was
inaugurated yesterday by the L ord Mayor. The whole
of the work was carried out by Messrs. .J. G. Statter and
Co. , of 68, V ictoria-street, L ondon, S. W.
At a. meeting of the Yorkshire College Engineering
Society held on Monday, November 13, a. paper on" The
Production of Steel " was read by Mr. E. P . Barber.
A discussion followed the reading of the paper.
W e learn that, after trying plates by other makers for
a twel vemonth, the whole of the plates of the batteries of
the Birmingham Central Tramway Company are to be
rene wed by th e E lectrical Power Storage Company,
Limited, of 4, Great Winchester-street.
At a recent meeting of the Engineer s' Club, P hiladelphia, Mr. J . C. Trautwi ne, Jun., described a stone
bridge of 213-ft. span which is now b eing constructed
over the P ruth, in Galicia. The arch is segmenta], with
a rise of 60 ft., and varies in thickness from 7 ft. t o 10 ft.
Some careful experiments recently made at Minneapolis
on the use of oil as a fuel for generating st eam in boilere,
showed an e va.pora t i veefficiency of 20. 63 lb. of water from
and ab 212 deg. Fa.hr. p er pound of oil. Coal used in th e
~ame boiler evaporated only 7i lb. of water per pound.
The oil used was ordinary L ima oil, havi ng a specific
gravi ty of . 62.
A new type of dynamo brush, wh ich has for some time
past been ex tensively used on the Con tinent, is now
bei ng introduced into this country by the Boudreaux
Dynamo Brush Com pany, Limited, of ::>t. Martin's
H ouse, L ondon, E . C. The new brushes are made out of
soft leaves of anti-friction metal (a copper alloy), and do
not, it is claimed, wear away the commutator.
The traffi c receipts for the week ending November 12
on thirty-three of the principal lines of the U nited Kingdom amounted to 1,351,310l. , which was earned on 18,388
miles. For the corresponding week in 1892 the r eceipts
of the same lines amounted to 1,433,092Z., with 18,199
miles open. There was thus a d ecrease of 81, 782l. in
the receipts, and an increase of 189 in the mileage. The
aggregate receipts for n inet een weeks t o date amounted
on the same thirty-three lines t o 28,395,851l., in com parison with 30,507, 727l. for the corresponding p eriod
last year ; d ecrease, 2, 111,87Gl.
The D epartment of Science and Art has received,
through the Foreign Office, a despatch from H er Majesty'e
minist er in Chili, calling attention t o an exhibi tion
which it is proposed to hold next year at Santiago,
dealing with the subjects of mining and m etallurgy. The
exhi bition will be opened in the second fortnight of
April, 1894, but the exact date is n ot yet k nown. The
eight sections of the exhibition will comprise electricity,
mining machinery, mecha nical preparation of minerals,
metallurgy, chemical industries, statistics and plans, and
mining a nd metallurgical products respect ively. Appl ications for space may be made t o the Chilian L egation in
L ondon.
The question as to the proper direction in which work
should be fed to a milling cutter is now being discussed
in the columns of the A merican Machinist. The usual
practice is, of course, to feed the work against the cutter,
but it is asserted that experim ent shows that the cutters
keep sharper and last longer if the work is fed in the same
direction as the m otion of the cutting edges, thus r eversing the old practice. As a n explanation of this it
has been suggested that, in the usual method of feeding,
the cutting ed ~e first slides over the work t o a certain
extent before Ib commences to cut, thus gi ving rise to a
grinding action which is absent when the feed is in the
other direction.
The D epartmen b of Science and Art has recei ved,
through the Foreign Office, a despatch from the AustroHunga.rian A mbassador. calling attention to an exhibition
to be held n ex t year at V ienna, d ealing with the subjects
of cheap food for the p eople, the sustenance and equip
ment of the army, &c. , joined t o a special Sport Exhibition, and requesting that the municipalities of the most
important t owns in this country which are interGSt ed in
these questions may be invited t o take part in the exhi-

bition. The exhibition is a pri ~ate undertaking, but

supported by the Austro-Hungan an Government, who
ha ve placed the R otunda at the di ~p_osa.l of the manage
ment the Imperial and Royal Mtmst er of Commerce
has ac~eptt:d the honorary presidency.
At th e meeting of the Owens College Engineering
Society held on Tuesday evening last, a paper . by M~ssrs.
H. N10holson a nd \V. Patte on was read, m wh1ch a
description was given of the Tbirlmere wa.ter supP.ly. At
the present time it appears that the lake IS 2! m1les long
and f mile broad, having an area of 328 acres. When,
however th e level is raised t o the full height of 60ft., as
intended the length will be increased to 3f mil es, the
breadth to about f mil e, and th e area to 793 acres. ':l'he
total capaci ty will t hen be. 8, 130,687, 0~ gallons, wh1ch,
after deducting compensa.t10n water, will afford a supply
of 50,000,000 gallons per day for a period of 150 days.
T he rainfall in the watershed drawn on ranges from 52 t o
137 inches per annum. The length of main from the
lake t o the P re twich reser voir is 95 miles 14i3 yards, of
which 45 miles is piping, the rest being in. tunnel 9r ~ut
and cover. W e may add than an ex ha ustiv e descr1pt19~
of th ese works will be found in ENOINF:ERING, vols. lu.
and liii.
It is interesting to not e that Professor D ewar has suo
cessfully conveyed a. considerable quantity of liquid air
from L ondon to Cambridge. The liquid air ~as ca rried
in one of the double gla!ts flasks used by h1m on previous occasions, the space between the inner and outer
flasks containing nothing but e~trem~ly . attenuated m ercurial vapour, together w1th a httle hquid mercury. On
pouring liquid air _into the inn~r fl ask, its outer su~face is
rapidly covered w1th a mercur1al film of ex treme thmness,
forming a. reflecting surf?tce highly imper vious to radiant
heat. As soon as this i~ formed the whole apparatus is
packed in solid carbonic acid, whic? at once freez~s the
liquid mercury, arrests the deposit upon the mirror,
reduces the mercuri al vapour to an infinitesimal quantity,
forms an almost perfect vacuum, and su pplies an en velope
80 deg. below zero. 'l'hus protected, the liqu id air
reached Cambridge with only a. trifling loss of bulk, n otwithstanding the incessan.t jolting of the railway. T~ e
protective power of the hig~ vaou.ull_l and the m.ercu~1a.l
mirror will be better appreciated 1f It be borne m mmd
that the difference of temperature bet ween liquid air and
solid carbonic acid is the same as between ice and boiling
water.

A remarkable piece of work was recently accomplish ed

at M ott Haven, where the station of the New York Cen
tral and Hudson River Railway was raised from its foundations and moved back laterally a distance of 50 ft. The
building in q~es tion is a brick structure 185 ft. long and
35 ft. deep. Near the centre of its length is a tower 80 ft.
high ~y 19 ft. square. The t otal weight of .the buil_d ing
is estimated at 1700 t ons. The first operat1on conststed
in supporting the building on solid blocking of 14 in.
square Georgia pine, of which about 100,000 square feet
(B. M. ) were used. The lower courses of this b!ock were
prolonged t o form skids or ways, upon which the upper
courses carrying t.he building could slide. The rubbmg
surfaces were thoroughly lubricated, and the building
was then pushed along the ways by improvised screw
jacks. 'fh e!:Se latt er were fou rteen in number, and consist ed of long scre ws workin g in hollow timbers. The
heads of the screws rested against abutment logs chained
to the ways, whilst the ends of the hollow timbers
abutted against the sliding portion of t he blocking. E very
screw being brought to a. fair bearing, a man was placed
to each and simultaneously each screw was given a quarter
turn, this opera tion being repeat ed until the screws were
run out their full length. They were then run back into
place, and the abutment blocks moved up and chained
into a fresh position . The t ime required to traverse the
building the whole distance of 50 tt. was 4~ da ys, and
when finished there was scar cely a crack perceptible in
the structure.
SEWERS AT MELBOORNE.- A return prepared by ~fr
Thwaites, engineer -in -chief of the M elbourne Board of
Works, shows that the main outfa11 sewer is now almost
completed. Nearly 16 miles of the sewers have been
construct ed, consisting of 84,085 cubic yards of con cre te
and 14,624 cubic yards of brickwork. The concrete p or tion of the sewer is finished, and at a reC'ent date there
only remained 400 cubic yards of brickwork, 7119 cubic
yards of excavation, and 61~ ch ains of fencing, to com plete the contracts. The payments made to contractors
amount to 228, 789l. , leaving 9858l. due. The number of
men employed by the contractors is about 250.
THE E xAM lNATION 011~ PATENTS.-At a well-attendf:d
meeting nf the Chartered Institute of Patent Agents on
W ednesday evening, Mr. Lloyd Wise, president, in the
chair, Mr. Edward Ca.rpmael moved: "That should
any serious a ttempt be made t o introduce any syst em of
official examination into novelty into this country, it is
desirable that the Institute should use all its influence to
prevent any power O\?er the claims being given t o the
examiners. " Mr. John I m ray seconded the motion. ~lr.
E . Carpmael ha d read a paper on the subject last session,
and the discussion h ad been adjourned t o the present
meeting. Amongsb those who took p art were M essrs.
Abel (vice- president), Hardin~harn , A. V. N e wton. G.
Barker, Elhs, Brewst er, L orram, P. J ensen, Owen, F ell,
Justice, and 0 . I m ray; and a letter was read from Mr.
Cheetham. The resolution was adopted nem. con. It is
significant that some time back a meeting of the London
Chamber of Commerce also pronoun ced against the introduction of the U nited S tates examin ation system into this
country.

E N G I N E E R 1 N G.

Q 1J A D R U P L E - E X P A N S I 0 N

HORSE-POWER

3000

CONSTRUCfED BY THE E.

P.

ALLI1 COMPANY, MIL\VAUKEE,

'VIS.,

ENGINES.

U.S.A.

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OuR two-page plate illustrates the main engine in

bolt, which is carried down to the underframing of the

seat. Here is placed a helical spring which takes a
bearing against a. plate or bracket. By screwing up
the nut at the end of the bol t the pressure of the spring
ca.n be increased. The centrepin is placed i in. out of
centre to give the necessary leverage. The whole
arran gement is very neat and com pact. It is manufactured by Messrs. Gabriel and Co., of 4 and 5, AB Row,
Birmingham.

GABRIEL'S ADJUSTABLE ARM REST.

the power plant of th e Columbian Exposition. It is of
THE adjustable arm rest illustrated below is designed
3000 horse-power, and was built by the E. P. Allis Company, of Milwaukee, " . . isconsin. It is a horizontal for use in first-class rail way carriages, in which the arms
cross-tandem q uadru pie-expansion condensing engine, are arranged to fold upward against th e back to enable
with cylinders of the following sizes: High pressure, passengers to recline on the seat. The usual flat
26 in. in diameter ; first intermediate, 40 in. in diameter; second intermediate, 60 in. in diameter ; and
low-pressure cylinder, 70 in. in diameter.
It is
designed to work with steam of 180 lb. pressure, and
to run at 60 revolutions per minute. In a subsequent
NATURAL DRAGGHT TRIALS 0.1!~ H. :M. BATTLESHIP
issue we shall illustrate many of the details, and in the
"RoYAL OAK. "-The rstc1ass battleship Royal Oak,
meantime reserve the complete description.
built and engined by Messrs. Laird Brothers, Birkenhead,
and briefly described in a. recent issue (page 511 ante)
went out for natural d raught trials in the English Channel
INSTITUTION OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERS.- L ast W edon the 21st inst. Mr. Bevis represented the contractors'
n esday evening the members of the Institution of E lecfirm. The vessel was under way for ten hours, and for
trical Engineers dined together at the Freemasons'
eight hours wae run at full speed, the force of wind being
Tavern, the president, Mr. W. H . Preece, F.R.S., being
from 4 to 5, with a. smooth sea. The mean boiler presin the chair. The guests of the evening were Mr. Arnold
sure was 155 lb. to the square inch, the mean revolutions
Morley, Postmaster-General, and Mr. Mundella, Presibeing 96.3, the starboard engines having made 96.1, and
dent of the Board of Trade. The dinner was well
the port engines 96.5. The collective horse- power was
attended and many capital speeches were made, Mr.
9221 indicated horse-power, 221 over the contract. The
Mundell~ acknowledging, in very handsome terms, the
starboard en~ine develop~d 4477, and th e P<?rt engine
indebtedness of the Board of Trade to the Institution for
4744. The tnals were sattsfactory, the only shght hitch
advice and assistance in settling difficult questionB.
being a small leak in one of the high-pressure cylinder
cover joints, which developed after the third hour's trial.
But this did not interfere wi th the full power being
PoRTS ON SANDY CoASTS: ERRATUM.-In the paper
obtained.
under this title published in our last issue, the Table in
the first column on page 623 had several lines omitted.
It should have appeared as follows:
THE "LUCANIA " AND "CA:liP.ANIA. "-The Cunard
steamer Lucania arrived off Queenstown on the 18th inst.,

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after a protracted voyage, occupying G days 14 hours and
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40 minutes. She experienced terrific weather. Altogether

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surgeon. One of the steerage ventilators was washed

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away, and a quantity of water got into the compartment.
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the worst be has experienced in the Atlantic. Violent

cubic
easterly gales, with enormous head seas, buffeted the
ton-metres
met. met. metres metres I cubic metres
met.
huge steamer throughout the voyage, and retarded her
473 7r X 16,494
300
634
7.055
11.50
progress by 2G hours. The severe weather in the Atlantic
0.00 4.50
515
7r
X
14,412
300
683
7.048
11.25
4.25
was also experienced to the full bl the Cunard Company's
&c.
&c.
spring,
or
roller
and
springs,
on
the
knuckle
of
the
&c.
steamer
Campania,
crossing
to
New
York.
The
follow7r X 2,399
3()0
1333
225
7.008
9.25
2.25
joint is replaced by a helical spring placed beneath the ing is an extract from the Campania's log: "Passed
.
S,000,0001796417r X 82,639 = T seat, where it is easily accessible for adjustment or re- Daunt's Rock at 1.6 p.m., November 12, and Sandy
I
newal. The arrangement is very Qlearly shown in the Hook Lightshi~ 5 a. m., November 18. Passage 5 days,
engraving. The knuckle rests on the front of the 20 hours, 29 mmutes. Rune 501, 526, 523, 504, 381, 349;
Similarly when the sill is ab -2 we find r2 = 1r x 265,424, bracket, and is recessed out to receive an adjustable two last days Ettrong gales, hish seas."
and when the sill is at-4, r 3 =7r x 537,631.

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~ l'Hjll'1 ~.1!..~11'1U,

1'10VEMBER

:Z'J<,

l Ol:M.

3000 HORSE-P OWER QUADRUPLE-EXPANSION ENGINES: WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION.

CONSTRUCTED BY THE

E.

P.

ALLIS COMPANY, MILWAUK.I!:E, WISCONSIN, U.S.A.

(For Notice, see Page 648.)

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

13-IN. ARTESIAN BORED TUBE WELL AT BOURNE,

~1ESSRS.

C.

LINCOLNSHIRE.

J, 'LER AND CO. , ENGINEERS, LONDON.

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min ute, or 2,592,000 gallons p er day, was obtained, or

an increase in the yield of 30,000 gallons per hour
more than was obtained at lOO ft. , the pressure r emaining th e same, namely, 10 lb. to the square inch. 'Ve
believe th er e is no r ecord in Great Britain, or in any
pad of Europe, of a well yielding such results.
Messrs. I sler and Co. have also been boring at the
engineering works of Messrs. Holmes, Pearson, and
.YI:idgeley, Keighley . \Vater was met with in the
upper beds of the millstone grit formation, but t.be
borin g was to be continued to 250 ft. d epth. At
2t3 ft. strong overflowing springs were met, delivering 15,000 gallons per hour, and rising close on 40ft.
above the surface. The following Table gives th e
section :

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commence. The machinery has been constructed by

Messrs. Otis Brothers a nd Co., of New York, and has
been specially designed by ~I r. Thomas E. Brown,
Jun., who designed the two elevators fixed in the
Eiffel Tower in Paris, and also the very large elevators
used in connection with the North Hudson Rail way
Company, near N ew Y ork. The machinery has been

Section of W ell at Messr s. H olmes, P ea1son, and M idgeley's

W orks.

Ft. In.

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a recent issue (page 568 ante ) we published a

paragraph stating th at artesian springs yielding
1,872,000 gallons a day, at a pressure of 10 lb. to the
square inch, hacl been tapped in the oolitic beds at
Bourne, Lincolnshire, at a depth of 100 ft. from the
surface, by means of an artesian tube well, 13 in. in
diameter, fixed by Messrs. C. Isler and Co., of Bearlane, Southwark, London. The water is con ''eyed to
the town of paldiog, ten miles dist ant, by gravitation through a line of pipes. We now give an illustra tion of the mouth of the well, which is said to be
t he largest overfio,dng spring in existence.
We
also publish a. section, showing how the borehole was dealt with to insure sound work. In
that neighbourhood bored wells have, at times, become defective through the water escaping outside
the tubes. To prevent this, Messrs. Isler and Co. drive
each tier of pipe tightl y into the soil, and then fill the
annular space between the tubes with a. specially prepared cement.
Previous to tappin g the main springs, chalybeate
water was found at 65ft. 10 in. from the surface. This
was safely excluded by the driving of the 13-in. pipes,
which are the main supply pipes of the boring. The
main springs were tapped at 78 ft. 6 in. from th e surface, the point at which the oolitic limestone was
reached. As soon a.s the rock was tapped, the water
rose very slowly, and took 24 hours to overflow from
the depth named above, but as soon as the boring was
continued the volume of water rapidly increased, with
the result that at 100 ft. from the surface 1300 gallons
per minute, or 1,872,000 gallons per day, overflowed
with a. pressure of 10 lb. to the square inch at the surface. On reaching this depth it was decided to continue the boring , so as to ascertain what result could
be obtained by going deeper ; therefore, at a depth of
120ft. fron} the surface, an overflow of 1800 gallons per

Ft. In.

Pit . ..
...
.. .
. ..
4 0
Clay and large stone
.. .
43 0
47 0
Blue clay
,
...
9 0
56 0
Clay a.nd stones . . .
...
10 0
66 0
R ock . .
. ..
...
.. .
G 0
72 0
Sandstone ...
. ..
. ..
2 0
74 0
Sandstone shale ...
.. .
}I) 0
84 0
10 0
94 0
Sandstone ... .. . ...
R ock .. .
...
...
...
11 6
105 6
5 0
110 6
Blue rock ...
...
...
112 0
R ock . . .
...
.. .
. ..
2 0
Sandstone . . .
. ..
.. .
10 0
122 6
...
...
.. .
b~ 6
17H 0
R ock ...
Blue sba.le . ..
...
. ..
50 0
226 0
Blue rock . . .
..
.. .
17 0
24a 0
Lined with 60 ft. of G-in. tubes. top of which sta.nds
1 ft. below the surfa.ce ; 40 ft. of 5-in. tubes, top of which
stands 60ft. below surface (5-in. tube/3 are perforated).

TESTING AN ELEVATOR.
BETWEEX Finnieston and Govan two tunnels have
beeu laid under the Clyde, side by side, one for
vehicular traffic going north, and the other for that
going south. Above these two, and over the point of
junct ion, there is a third tunnel for foot passengers.
At either end of t hese tunnels, and close to the riverside, vertical shafts have been constructed, each 80 ft.
in diameter. In each of th ese shafts there are to be
six powerful lifts, designed to lower and lift the
largest vans, lorries, &c., with their horses, just as they
are. On being lowered to the bottom, they will go, as
on a road, through the tunnels, and be raised a t the
opposite end. The lifts will work at a good speed, and
will thus be enabled to handle a very large traffic.
The contract for the lifts was given to the Amer ican
Elevator Company, of Mansion House -buildings,
4, Queeu Vict oria-street, which has since become the
Otis Elevator ompany, Limited ; the contract is being
carried out by both companies conjointly.
The tunnels are practically completed , and the
shafts are nearly so ; the tixin g of the lifts will shortly

completed and the safety fi xtures tested ; the results

of the test are given in the following report by ~1r.
Brown:
"On 'eptember 21 we made a. test at Yonkers of
the safety devices for the Glasgow Harbour Tunnel.
For this purpose we used the testing frame got up for
similar tests of safeties for the 'Veehawken elevators
and Catskill Mountain incline. This frame is a heavily
timbered gallows frame about 20ft. high, in which
is suspended a. temporary cage, arranged to be
dropped by the pulling of a tri gger. This cage \-vas
loaded with 30,221 lb. of cast iron , and the cage, with
its attachments a.ncl safe ties, weighed 1630 lb., making
a total of 31,851 lb.
"Two light cords were attached, one to each sa.fety
dog, in a manner to represent the action of the
governor rope, and so that while possessing strength
enough to pull in the doga, they would immediately
afterwards break.
These cords were left slack
enough to allow the cage to drop freel y about 13 in.

E N G I N E E R I N G.
'V hen t ested, the cage dropped a total distance of

The general st ate of employment, as disclosed by trades are depressed. Men that are working are on
2 ft. 10 in., at which point it came to rest. The north returns of the Labour Department of the Board of short time, often with the view of saving fuel. Some
side of the cage fell freely 1 ft. 1i in. , and was stopped Trade, is a trifle reassuring. The percentage out of of the larger works ha.Ye been at a st andstill from the
in a further distance of 1 ft. 8! in.; the south side fell work has barely exceeded that of last year at the same same cause, scarcity and dearness of fuel. The tilver
freely 1 ft. 1i in., and was stopped in the further dis- date, while the upward t endency is much slower. and plated trades are busy, and the prospects fairly
tance of 1 ft . 81 in.; or making an average free drop Indeed, notwithstanding the coal strike, the percent- good.
of 1 ft. 1 ~ in., and an average stop of 1 ft. 8~ in.; total age out of work is less by just 6 than in May last.
In the vVolverhampton district trade continues fairly
run, 2ft. 10 in. From this it is evident that at the The actual number is now 7.3 per cent. , or the same
moment of the safety going into action t he cage was as reported last month. Thirty-two societies, with an good, few men being out of work among engineers,
travelling at the rate of about 8.4 ft. per second.
aggregate of 337,017 members, sent in returns ; of machinists, puddlers, mill rollers, steel workers, bridge
"The work done by the falling cage was 31,851 lb. these 24,771 were unemployed. Shipbuilding is de- and girder makers, boilermakers, tank and gas meter
multiplied by 2.833 ft., equal to 90,234 foot-pounds, scribed as depressed, but engineering and the metal makers. Makers of pig iron are also busy. The hardwhich, divided by the length of stop (1. 708ft.), ga.ve trades show signs of slight improvement in some dis- ware trades are not so well off for work. The nut, bolt,
a resistance for the pair of safeties of 52,830 pounds, trict3. The increase of unemployed in the building and chain makers are depressed, while the anchoror 26,415 pounds each.
trades is the largest, from 2.8 to 3.6 per cent.; but smiths and anvil makers are slack. The gun lock
" The safeties brought t he load to rest without the the season of the year will account for some of this makers at Darlaston are on strike against a reduction
slightest shock, the foreman in charge of t est being increase. On the whole, they are still well employed. in wages. Electrical workers are not so busy.
upon the gallows frame when the weight fell, and The furnishing trades are less busy, the proportion
out of work being 6.1 per cent. The textile trades
reporting th at he felt no jar or vibration. ,
are busy. Cotton spinners and weavers are well emFLASH LIGHTS IN LIGHTHOUSES.*
ployed ; woollen trades are busier than for some time
On Flash Lights amd the Physiolog1.'cal P erception OJ
INDUSTRIAL NOTES.
past, and the silk trades show some improvement.
I nstantaneous Flashes.
OF course the great industrial event of the past week The clothing, boot and shoe, and printing and paper
By M. ANDRE BtoNDEL, Ingenieur des Fonts et
was the welcome settlement of the great colliers' strike; trades are quiet. At some ports seamen and dockers
Cha.ussees.
but as we have dealt with this matter in another have been better employed, at others trade is dull and
THE apparatus called jeux- ecl'LVrS, t for producing
article in the present issue, it will not be necessary t o slack. In general, t he proportions reported are :
flash lights, conceived by M. Bourdelles, is well known,
refer to it further here.
Twenty-four bad, seven good, and one moderate, in and is described in detail in the memoir on lighting appaso far as the state of trade is given by the thirty-two ratus presented by the "Service Central des Pha.res de
The Employerd' Liability .Act passed the report societies r eporting. It is very difficult to gauge the France " to the Chicago Exhibition.
stage in the House of Commons without any serious situation exactly, but appearances rather indicate
Thie new type of lens enables us to-day to realise a.
change in its character. The Government gave way that with the termination of the coal dispute there luminous power hitherto unknown, without increasing the
upon one point-namely, fishermen in fishing-boats, will be a change for the better, though the time of intensity of the source of light or the expense of construcwho undertake to share in the adventure. The labour year is rather against it. '\Vitb the exception of the tion.
The attention of many engineers must have been almembers to a. man were against the "amendment," coal strike, the total number of disputes was small,
which they interpreted, and rightly, as at variance only 42, as compared with 54 in September, and 59 in ready drawn to the new methods adopted, particularly in
with the principle that there shall be no contracting August. Of the 42 there were 13 in the textile trades, regard to the system of rapid rotation over a mercury
bath, a.nd to the simple and original form of the lens,
out of the Act. But the amendment was carried by a but of no importance. But the total affected by the reduced
to four or two panels, or even to one only. I
majority of 72. The late Home Secretary, ~fr. entire number of disputes was 9511; of these 7808 shall not, therefore, repeat the description of this apMatthews, expressed the judicial feeling when he said were in connection with 17 disputes in mining paratus.
that be saw great difficulty either in supporting or (outside of the great strike), shipbuilding, and dock
But apart from ingenious peculiarities of construction,
opposing the amendment, because of the technical labour. Of the two latter, some are in the Clyde over this apparatus is, perhaps, still more interesting on
difficulty of co-partnership which was involved, iu the question of overtime, mainly with the joiners and account of the new principles which govern its design,
and which rest on certain little known physiological
which there should be eo-responsibility. This.was the ship carpenters, and others.
phenomena.
only serious amendment carried to the B ill, as it left
My object here is to explain these phenomena, and with
the Grand Con1mittee on Law. The Bill now stands
The general state of trade in London does not appear
for third r eading, after which it has to run the t o be so bad as some would have us believe. In the thE:Im the theory of the jeu.x-t!clairs, furnishing details nob
gauntlet of the House of Lords, where an effort is to engineering, metal, and shipbuilding trades the per- included in the memoir above referred to.
be made to rever~e the decision of the House of centage out of work is 8 per cent., as compared with
I. -PHYSIOLOGICAL LAWS OF PERCEPTION.
Commons on the non-contracting out clause. But 8. 3 per cent. last month. But in the building trades
Whenever a. steady light plays upon the eye the imeven before it reaches the House of Lords there will the unemployed have risen from 2.3 per cent. to 3.6 pression produced does not generally reach ita full value
b ~ another "full-dress debatP." upon the Bill. The per cent. In the furnishing trades 8. 6 per cent. are at once, but increases continuously from zero to its maxithird reading is to be challenged. Mr. Chamberlain, unemployed ; in the printing trades 6 per cent. as mum amount. It is easy to verify this by interrupting
who was the author of the existing Act, declares that compared with 6. 6 per cent. last month. The boot and the light after a. longer or shorter period.
For example, if a. series of flashes is produced, of which
the Bill is a bad one. He wi11 doubtless rally the shoe and cabinet trades are very dull, and so also are
whole of the forces who voted for Mr. ~IcLaren's the clothiug trades. At the docks and riverside, there the duration progressively diminishes, their apparent
amendment, so that the Bill is not wholly out of is a good deal of distress, though from some figures sup- intensity appears, starting from a. certain duration, to
diminish
progressively
until
the light completely disdanger, especially as the clause, as it stands, was only plied by the Millwall and Surrey Dor.ks, the average appears.
was only 144 more unemployed than in the same month
carried by a majority of 19.
Between certain limits the impression produced on the
last year. But the pauperism returns have gone up eye is, then, a function of the period of illumination;
--The report of the Boilermakers and Iron Ship by over 7300.
this function is not known to us, and it is improbable
Builders is rather depressing this month. The "terIn the Manchester district trade is slack with engi- that it can be exactly determined, but we already possess,
rible cloud of depression which has so long enveloped neersandmetal workers generally, though the proportion as will hereafter be shown, sufficient data. for the purpose
us '' still looms heavily overhead. The effects are seen out of work is about the same as last month. The steam of _practioal applications.
To produce the impression of light e. certain time is
more clearly where large masses are employed at a engine makers report trade as moderate, boilermakers
single industry like shipbuilding, than they are where as bad, and machine minders as bad ; the brassworkers necessary, called the "time of appearance/' which is so
the work is more scattered, and the number employed as moderate. But in a few districts b<Jth the iron- much aborter as the light is more intense; thus it is tba.t a.
powerful flash of lightning dazzles us, while a small spark
in each case is fewer. Savings in better times have founders and the fitters are brisk, and the building of
the sa.rue duration would remain invisible.
melted away, deLt stares the men in the face, furni- trades moderate. There can be little doubt that the
In comparing- the effects obtained with lights of diffeture and other belongings have gone to the pawnshop, coal dispute has had much to do with the depression rent intensity {care being taken that the eye is in similar
and hard fare is in the home. That this society has all over Lancashire.
conditions), we find that the time of appearance varies
done its utmost to mitigate the sufferings of its own
very nearly in an in verse ratio with the luminous intenOn the Tyne and the V\" ear trade is still bad, but in sity, so that the product of these two quantities is a conmembers is certain. During the six months ending
wit~ Sept ember the following amounts w~re disbursed: the latter district shipbuilding prospects are better. stant.:::
The condition necassa.ry to the production of a. percepFor the unemployed, 21,17ll. lOa. ; s1ck, ll,676l.; ~larine engineering establishments are dull and languid,
superannuation, 2763l. 7s. ; funerals, 2361l. !Os. : but electrical engineers are better employed. Moulders, tible impression by an instantaneous light is, then, the
expenditure of a. certain amount of luminous energy
benevolent grants, 2383l. 3s. 8d. ; total in six months, shipwrights, ship joiners, ship painters, o.nd labourers employed
in overcoming the inertia. of the visual appareport
trade
as
bad,
many
beingoutof
employment.
But
40 355l. lls. 2d. A mora magnificent testimony to the
ratus; a.s to the nature of this inertia., which is unknown
vaiue of a well-conducted trade union it would scarcely shipping and waterside men are better employed, by to us, it may be physical, chemical, or physiological.
be possible to show. Nevertheless, the funds in hand reason of the activity in the coal trade of the northern
This very simple law was first stated by M. Bloch, and
amount to 180,293l. 15s. 8d. The council refused to districts. The iron and steel works have been fairly also established later by M. Charpentier.ll I bad also
vote a levy for the miners, for the reason that the calls well employed, except that millmen have suffered verified it before knowing the resulta of their labours, by
on the funds are too heavy and pressing at the present through scarcity of water owing to the unusually dry expariments of a. different kind made at the Lighthouse
titne. The total number on the funds were, at date, season. Glass-workers a.re busy, and so are the build- Esta.blishment.11'
8486, of whom 1240 were sick, and 395 on superannua- ing trades for this time of the year. In other respects
* Paper read before the International Maritime Contion allowance. The total shows a. decrea~e, as com- trade is quiet.
gress, London meeting, July, 1893.
pared with last month, being 300 less signing the
t Literally, "Lightnin~ lights."
In the Cleveland district the prospects are not so
vacant book. The members are cautioned against
:::Designating by I the mtensity of the light, and by 8
making new and improper demands upon employe~s, good as they were. Shipbuilding on the Tees is in a the cerresponding ti.me of. appearance, we have then the
the report stat.ing that the latter a:re ready to recttfy languishing state, the outlook being rather gloomy. At relation I x 8 = q, m wh10h q represents the necessary
mistt\.kes in prtces when the matter lB properly brought Hartlepool, however, things look brighter. The engi- quantity ofluminous energy. Th1s may have, according
before them. The output of shipping on the Clyde was neering and general metal trades are not so bad ; t he to circumstances, very different values, but the law, which
abnormally large in October, but the new orders booked works in operation are fairly well employed, but orders is really only a. limiting law, remains sufficiently true,
fall below the output, so that the outlook is not so bright. of any considerable weight are few and far between. provided that the different impressions compared are
All agree that the coal strik.e has stoppe~ the work~ in At one of the large steel works the men have had to produced under similar conditions as regards the eye. lb
still be applied, therefore, to the case where we wish
various places, and has also mterfered \~tth the plac1ng submit to 1 per cent. reduction under the sliding sca.le. may
to produC'e the minimum p~rceptible impression usually
of
the
blast
furnaces
have
been
blown
out
for
Some
of new contracts. An unfortunate d1spute between
denoted by the symbol o.
the society and one of it~ members has ended i~ the repairing purposes; this reduces the output and de "Societe de Biologie," July 25, 1885.
member being sent to prtson for two months for hbel- mand for ironstone.
11 "Reohercbes sur la. Pereistance des Impressions Retiling Mr. R. Knight, the general secretary. Every
niennee," &c., pages 5 and 15.
In the Sheffield and Rotherham district trade is very
effort was made to meet the member by confere?ce,
~We traced on a black disc a. series of arcs of white
arbitration and entreaty, but the matter came mto bad, owing mainly, it is believed, to the coal strike. circles, having the same length, but with increasing radii.
court., and be has now time for lengthened reflection at Only such work has been going on as was most press- Making the disc revolve behind a screen pierced with
ing. But apart from this, some .of the local staple a. radial opening, the white arcs produced a series
the expense of his country.

'

E N G I N E E R I N G.
It is to be noted that it only applies to the case where
the impression largely exceeds the minimum perceptible.
Further the effect produced depending only, as is seen,
on the ~xpenditure of luminous energy, it need not be
supposed that the light employed is constant. The effect
produced by a. Bash of variable intensity, containing the
same amount of light, may, then, be equivalent to that
of a. uniform flash.
The time necessary for full perception is difficult to
determine precisely, for the impression, the more nearly
it approaches its maximum, continues to increase more
slowly; nevertheless expariE~nce shows very clearly that
the perception is arrived at more rapidly as the light is
more intense. This has been established, in particular,
by Plateau a nd M. Charpentier.
According to the latter,* the time of full perception
would vary proportionally to a power of the intensity
includt:ld between - ! and - ; . Further investigation
will probably decide the matter more precisely.
The minimum perceptible light, by definition, is not
seen unless it has time to produce its full impression.
The time of appearance of this light is then Identical
with its time of full perception. Agreeably to t he preceding law, it represents the maximum time necessary
for perception in all cases.
It is at present very badly det ermined, because a very
feeble light is perceived with excf*!sive variation, according to the state of the eye, even when the lighll is steady,
and, it j01"tiori, when it is of short period. It would seem
to be in the neighbourhood of -h second, and this figure
is confirmed by two experiments of M. Charpentier,
which have given him the values 0.08 second and 0.125
second . More complete experiments may det ermine it
more exactly for the conditions in which in practice the
observacion is made. We shall see, besides, that the
exact knowledge of its value is of no grdat importance
for our present purpose.
Limit of Addttion.-When we receive a single lum inous
impression, the eye cannot perceive its d uration when it is
less than n th of a second. When two flashes a re simultaneously produced from two sources side by eide, that is
t o say, under the best conditions for making a. comparison, we find that it is impossible to appreciate the
difference of their duration below certain limits. M.
Cbarpentier has found t hat under the conditions moRt
favourable t o the dissociation of the impression s, i.e. , when
t he two flashes do not commence at t he same time, one
can only obser ve the difference (and consequently the
duration ) when it is greater than 0.003 second. This
limit, which the eye is not adapted to subdivide further,
is interesting to know, because the impression produced
by a light of any intensity whatever, st eady or not, which
acts for a shorter period, no longer depends on the
quantity of light expended. The t ime limit plays, then,
the same part in the case of impressions as does the
maximum time in the case of th e minimum impressions
perceptible.
The whole of these phenomena may be represented very
clearl;r by a diagram, taking as absciss~:e the periods of
illumma.tion and as ordinates the apparent intensities,
and for each light representin~ the impression as the function of the period of illuminatiOn by a separate curve. t
The vertical drawn through the point 7', whose abscissa
represents the maximum time of perception, cu ts in
the points C1 C2, &c., the horizontal lines I 1 A1o I 2 A 2 ,
&c. , which represent t he real int ensities of the different
lights. The straight! lines obtained by joining these
points to t he origin have angular coefficients proportional
to the absolute intensities.
The second law shows that the points A of full perception are found more to the left of the points 0 as the
corresponding absolute in tensity I is greater; they lie
thus on a. parabolic cur ve of ~rea.ter or less degree.
The straight line F G, wh1ch represents the time limit
of addition, has an abs01ssa a.bout one-third of thatJ of the
straight line cl, 7', corresponding to the maximum time
of Rerception 7',
'Ihe form of each curve of impression between the
mi~imum perceptible m a:nd the point of .full perception
A Is unknown. That wh1ch agrees best w1th the various
laws which have been explained has been shown in a full
line in the figure.! ltJ is, besides, unnooessary t o make
any special hypothesis on this subject in order to arrive at
the conclusions which we proceed to develop.

of ~ashes, appearin g simultaneously, but illuminated

durmg unequal periods. Giving the disc a. suitable velocity, we saw the luminous points disappear one by one
from the edge towards the centre. Knowing the radii of
the arcs, we could then determine the duration of those
fl~hes j~st l?erceptible, and compare it with the intensity
of 11lummat10n of a lamp placed behind the observer.
* "Recberches sur la Persist a.nce dea Impressions Retioiennes, " &o., page 24.
t The apparent intensities are in reality only perceived
afte.r an. unknown inter val due to the delay caused by
the mert1a. of the organs of sensat ion. The diagram does
~ot, the~, represent t he progress of sensation as a func
t10n o.f t ime, but only the amount of the impression as a.
funct10n of the period of illumination.
:t T~e straight lines 0 Ch 0 C 2 do not represent, as has
~omettmes been asserted, t he progress of sensation from
1ts commencell!ent, since it only b~gins at t he points
m1~ m.~, &c: It 1s a matter of probability that the cur ves
of 1mpress10n commence as tangents to those lines. But
the apparent intensity cannot increase proportionally to
the t1me up to the moment of full perception as some
a~tho~s have SUJ?posed, for, if so, the points A w'ould coin~lde With the pomt~ C, and all lights would have the same
t1me of full perceptton, which contradicts our second law.
The curves ?an only coinci?e with their tangents to the
left of ~h~ hne F G:; the unpression is, in fact, within
these hm1ts proport10nal t o the time of action.

!!.- APPLICATION TO FLASH L IGHTS.

F lash lights, as is well known, may either be obtai ned

by m eans of a lens with a fixed light, around which revolves a cylindrical drmri with vertical prisms, or by t he
use of a simple lens with annular elements.
The latter may always be conceived to be replaced by
its equivalent double apparatus, of which the lens with a.
fixed light would produce the same concentrati ve effect
vertically, a nd the revolving drum the same concentra.tive
effect horizontally. In t he following arguments we may
for simplicity be supposed, therefore, t o refer always to
t he double apparatus.
If there were no revolving drum, the light would be
equally distributed in all directions, and would illuminate
continuously the eye of an observer placed at a gi ven
point of the h orizon. The constant quantity of light received during unity of time would be a.t every instant the
product of the surface of the pupil by the illumination.
'rhe latter is, as we know, proportionate to the intrinsic
brightness of t he luminous source employed, a nd t o the
coeffi.<~ient of vertical concentration of the apparatus. It
vari e3 in in verse ratio with the distance, according to a law
that depend s upon the atmospheric absor~tion.
Let us add now the revol ving d rum. This collects all
the light emitted from the fixed source, and concentrates
it horizontally in a number of pencils equal to t hat of the
panels. These pencils, when once the coefficient of
vertical concentration and intrinsic brightness of t he lamp
are k nown, no longer depend on the construction of the
lens, but only on the interval of the flashes. There would
be an advanta~e in making this as large as possible, but
we cannot fix tb absolutely. Numerous experiments a nd
the detailed investigation madt1 by the Nautical Commis\

c::l \

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absolutely t he same, for a. light of intensity 100 acting

during r6'rrrr sec. as for a light 1 acting du~ing .ftr sec,. W.e
shall not have, it is true, the full perception of -the lllumtn a.tion due to the pen cil, that is to lay, that t~ e apparent
intensity will b e weaker than that of a fixed hght of . t.he
same power; but this is of no importance, since we utthse
to the full the quantity of light contained in the fl~h,
under the given circumstances. Besides, other thmgs
bei ng equal- that is to say, keeping the same lamp, the
same coefficient of vertical concentration, and the same
inter val of flash es-no different combination could produce
a superior effect.
The jeux eclairs, which alone satisfy the preceding co~
dition, are, then, t he only lights which enable the maximum effect to be obtained . They may, therefore, be
defined as ligh ts producing flashes shorter than t~e
maximum time of perception (or, at most, equal t o th1s
time).
Their range m ay, in virtue of Bloch's law, be de~ermined
a priori as a. function of the el ements of construct iOn by an
equation exactly analogous to the equation of range of M.
Alla.rd, in which the true in ten sity of the p encil is replaced
by t he apparent intensity of the flash. Starting from the
results obtained with the feux-eclairs, we thus find that in
adopting the first order of lens with four pencils for elect ric lights (which have a diameter of 0.60 metre), that is
to say, in tripling their diameter, a nd con sequently their
coefficient of vertical concentration, we could obtain an
apl?arent power of 8,000,000 bees and a rang9 of 145 miles.
Thts could only be useful a.t the summit of a t ower of 300
metres in height, like the Eiffel T ower.
When we a pproach a lighthouse, the quantity of light
received by the eye of a n observer during a flash increases
according to the same law as thE' illumination, if the flash
is uniform, and the period is equal t o the maximum time;
if it becomes superior t o the time of full perception, a
part of the light is lost. There is then an advantage in
further reducing the period for the purpose of economy
at small distances. It even appears from the form of
the cur ves of the diagram that a given quantity of
light produces an impression so much more powerful as
its period is shorter, and that there may be an advantage
in concentrating it in a space of time less than that of
full perception. It would be useless, nevertheless, to
reduce it below the time limit of addition, since, in that
case, the apparent intensity would no longer depend on
the period of illumination, but only on the quantity of
light employed.
The way to obtain the great est utility ab short distances
is, then, to diminish the duration of the flash up to the
time-limit of addition, which, as ha.s been stated above,
would be in the neighbourhood of 0.003 sec.
The characteristic elements of a flash-light apparatus,
from the point of view with which we are now concerned,
are as follows:
1. The number of panels.
2. The horizontal divergence of the pencils.
3. The speed of rotation.
The angle of horizontal divergence is obtained by taking
the ratio of the diamet er (d) of the source of light to the
foca.llength (l} of the apparatus; the time of one r evolution of the apparatus bemg equal t o the product of the
number of panels (n) by the interval of the flashes (e) ;
the time r equired for the passage of one pencil, that is to
say, for the period of a. flash, is

F
t,
r,
r~ t'
81 tJ2 ind icat e the times of appearance of li~hts
I 1 I 2, &c.
T 1 T 2 indicate ths times of complete perception of
lights I I I 2 , &c.
r indicates the times of maximum perception.
a
d
F
. ,
tim e-limit of addition t o imprest=ne - =ne - - .
s\Ons.
~7T
27Tt
A indicates minimum inten sity perceptible.
T o produce jeuxecla1'rs this period should be inferior, or
m 1 m 2 indicat e points where impression begins.
a.t m?st equal, t o the maximum time of p erception (T),
A1 A 2
of full perception.
,
,
that 1s to say :
m1 Y1 A 1
,
curve of impression produced by I .
d
ql q2
,
points of limit of additions.
ne27Tl~T.

s ion formed in 1886 to examine the different questions

relative to electric light ing* have shown that we cannot
secure t}fe continuous attention of the navigator and easy
determination of bearings except on condition of producing flashes at least every five seconds. That, t hen , is the
figure which has been adopted by M. Bourdelles for his
j eux-eclairs. Tha quantity of light available is, then,
seen to be entirely fixed <l. priori, and it only remains to
det ermine the best way of utilising it. t
. ~ ~he a~solute i~tensity of t~e pencil continues to
d1mm1sh With the d1stance, the time of full perception
i!lc~eases up t<;> the ~imit o~ the range of vision at that
hm1t, the lummous 1mpress10n produced by the pencil is
rduced to the minimum perceptible value.
According to the law of Bloch, to produce that impression a oortain quantity of light suffices which is mdependent of the intensity and the form of the flash provided that it is concentrated in a. time of illuminatio~ less
than the maximum time. All the li~ht that may be expended beyond that time at the limitmg range of vision
does n ot then increase the impression produced, and
woul.d be ~ore usefully employed in in.c~ea.sing the absolute mtens1ty of the flash. The cond1t10n of maximum
effect-i.e. , that which permi ts a flash to reach t o the
greatest possible range with a. given amount of light-is
then, that the p eriod of illumination should be inferior'
or at most equal, t o the maximum time.
'
Acc~rding t o what has been said abo\'e, the eye cannot
apprema.te the dura tion of a fl~sh below that limit. The
effect produced and the amount of the range are, then ,

We have thus a relation between the number of panels

t~e interval of the flashes, th e diameter of the source of
hght, and the focal length. The maximum time and the
interval of the flashes being two constants determined
above (lll' second and 5 seconds) the relation follows,
d _ 27Tl

<

We see that the number of panels a.nd the

5 0
diameter of the source must b e so much smaller as the
fooa.llength is smaller.
If we propose only to obtain the maximum utility for
the c~ntra.l part of the pencil, w~ich, for oil lights, is the
most Important, we must determme the focal length with
relation to the elements of the lens farthest from the
centre. That is what ha.s been done for the calculation
of the Table drawn up in the memoir cited above, and
reproduced on the n ext page.
If we wish to utilise all the light contained in the flash
we ~hould h~ve to calculate. its period according to th~
max1mum dtvergence, that Is t o say, according to the
fooa.l length of the central portion of the dioptric drum
The dimensions of the permissible flames would then b~
smaller, as is shown by the Table on the next page drawn
up on this new hypothesis.
'
This last Tab~e shows the le~~ which shou~d be adoP.ted
for each lamp m order to ut1hse the maximum ut1lity
from the light that it furnishes, but not the maximum
?t!lity of the lens _itself; on the contrary, the first Table,
1f 1t doe.q not furmsh the complete utilisation of the light
enablE~s superior effects to be obtained with the same len~
in con.sequence of the intensifying of the flash. Strictly
* "Notice sur les Appareils d 'Ecla.ira.geexposes aChicago speak~ng, the b.es.t solution to adopt would be that of
pu le Service des I> hares," page 49.
reducmg to a mmimum the annual expense (interest and
t If we call L t he intensity of the lamp,
d~preciation of th~ capital in the apparatus, together
K the coefficient of vertical concentration, w1th the cost of 01l) necessary to obtain a determined
and e the interval of the flashes,
luminous intensity.
this quantity of light may be expressed
Assumin~ that we.cannot go b~yond a. diameter of lamp
by the equationof 13 centimetres m French hghthouses, there is no
Q = L K e.
reason to a.dopb the first or second order with one lens,
n

E N G I N E E R I N G.
and for final acceptance of the machinery by the Italian
Governmen t. The contractors were represented by M r.
TABLE I.-LENSES AND FLAMES ~'OR FEUX-ECLAIBS.
J ohn Sampson, one of their directors. The trials proved
of a highly satisfactory character. The contract stipulated
Theoretical and Practical Diameter s of Flame fo1 Feux-Eclai rs, Utilising completely
for the development of 15,200 horse-power natural draught
the Uniform Part of t he Pencil.
and 19,500 forced draught, but, as hereafter shown, the
Government decided to abandon the forced draught
trials. The run was made from S pezia to Genoa and
Fooe.l L ength of Lens.
2 Lens es.
1 Lens.
4 Lenses.
6 Lenses.
8 Lenses.
back, a distance of 120 knots, at an average speed of
-- 18.3 knots, the engines indicating a mean of about 17,000
horse-power with i in. of air pressure in th e stokeholds.
TheoTheo- PracticaL TheoTheo
TheoPractical.
Practical.
Practical.
Pradical.
retil::al.
r etioa.l.
re tioal
retioal.
The maximum power during the run was found t o be
1 r etioal.
19,000 horse-power, and the maximum speed 18l knots,
m etre 1 metre
met re
metre
metre
metre
metre
metre
m etre
met re
metre
which was obtained by only i in. of air pressure. The
Fi rat. order . . 0. 920 I 0.218
0.109
0.110
0.046
0.060
0.220
0.031
0.030
0.023
0. 030
machinery worked smoothlY. in every respect, no water
Second 01 d er . . 0. 700
0.172
0.037
0.040
0.025
0.090
0.030
0.180
0.086
0.018
0. 020
service being used. The b01lers gave a plentiful supply
Third
,
. . 0.500
0.027
0.062
0.070
0. 125
0.030
0.180
0.018
0. 020
0.014
0.020
of steam without priming or other difficulties. The results
F ourth ,
. . 0.250
0.030
0. 052
0.026
0.011
0. 020
0.060
Fifth
,
.. 0.1875
0.039
0.019
0.020
0.040
were considered so satisfactory from every point of view,
,
0.020
0.035
"
.. 0. 15()0
0.040
0.018
both as regards the speed of the vessel and the facility
with which the speed could be maintained (the trial being
made by the ordinary ship's crew and not by special
st okers), that the commission appointed recommended
TABLE II. -LENSES AND FLAMES !!'OR FEUX-EOLAIRS.
t he Marine Ministry to accept the machinery with
out further trials, as it appeared so obvious that
Theoretical a.nd Practical Diameter of Maximum Flames for which all t he Light is Employed,
the horse- power with forced draught would largely
Utilising the whole Pencil up to its EdgE:&.
exceed the contract power of 19,500 horses. The recommendation was, therefore, accepted by the Ministry
of Marine. This powerful ironclad is fitted with four
4 Lenses.
6 Lens es.
2 Lenses.
1 Lens.
8 Lenses.
F ocal Length of Lens.
34-oentimetre 67-ton Armstrong guns, eight 15-centimetre guns, sixteen 12-centimetre quick-fi ring guns, ten
I
5. 7-centimetre ditto, and seventeen 3. 7-centimetre ditto,
Theo'Db
eoTheoTheoTheoPrac
tical.
Practical
Practical. r etical. Practical. r etical.

and two machine guns. The dimensions of the ship are

retical.
retical. .Practical. retical.
as follow: L ength, 400 ft. ; beam, 76.9 ft., draught,
metre
metre
metre
m etre
metre
metre
metre
metre
metre
28.6 ft.
I

First order
Second,
Third ,
Fourth,
Fifth ,

"

..

..
..
..
..

0. 920
0. 700
0. 500
0.250
0.1875
0.1500

0. 115
0.088
0.063
0.051
0.012
0.003

0.05
0.04
0.03
0.03

0.052
0.044
0.033
0.025

0.12
0.09
0.06
0 05
0.02

Q)

Duration
ot Flash .

Cil

p..

Focal
L ength of
Leas.

.....
0

,..

First
order

.0

100
25
26
100 25 Amp. 100 Amp.
Amp. Amp.
Amp. Amp.

2
4

secs.

secs.
0.031
0.062
0.193
0.039
0.078
0. 117

..

0.056
0.112

2,400,000
1,2LO,OOO

4,600,000
2,300,000

0.920

0.700

2
4
6
2
4

0.015
0.039
0.045
0.019
0.038
0.057
0.027
0.0154

2
4

0. 003 0.062
0.06 0.125

Second >
order I
Third }
order
0.50

Fourth)
order
0. 30

Apparent
Powar in
Luminous Power in
Thousands of
Carcele.
Car eels.

Q)

~
z

..

2160
2160
2160
1680
1 1680
1680

8550
8550
8550
6650
6650

1200
1200

4750
4750

720
720

2850
2300

Although many figures in this Table have only hypothetical value,* inter esting conclusions may be drawn
from them; for the fourth order t~~ li~ht with two pa~els
will only permit the complete utlltsat10n of the arc hght
up to 100 amperes; for the higher orders four panels are
more than sufficient, and ~he period .of flas~ being ~mob
inferior to the maximum ttme, there ts nothmg to hmder
our increasing further the intensi ty of t~e current, the
quantity of additional light so produced bemg .coi?Jpletelr
utilised . There is then, at present no matenal ;.mposstbility in establishing electric feux-eclairs, giving not
merely 8,000,000 bees with 1_oq amperes, as. the Table
indicates, but even 30 to 40 milhons of bees wtth ourren~s
of 400 to 500 amperes, such as are often spoken of m
England. Such a light placed at a height of 300 metres
would have a range of more tha:n 300 kilometres. .
If the duration of the flash 1e equal to the max tmum
time the full perception is arrived at, and the appa~ent
inte~sity varies according t o the ord inary law-t~at I S to
say, in the inverse ratio o~ the squa:re of the dtstance,
neglecting the atmospheric a:hsorpt10n. On th_e 9th_er
hand if the period of the flash ts reduced b~lo w th1s lmut,
th e ~pparent intensity will appear t o mcrease more
rapidly than .!. when the observer is approaching the

zz'

light. Startwg from the moment wh_en the i.n tensit:y is

great enough to produce ~ull p erceptLOn, the 1mpr_ess10n
will again follow the ordmary law up to the pomt at

-----

0.03
0. 03
0.02

b ecause the intensity that they furnish in these conditions is inferior to what can be given by the third order.
For electric feux-eclairs we cannot think of rigorously
proportioning the diameter of the source of light to that
of the lens, for this would lead to very considerable sizes
These lights give flashes which are
for the ~carbons.
sensibly uniform, and it is consequently easy t o calculate
their apparent power by the aid of Blooh's law. We
thus obtain the following Table :
(I)

0.026
0 022
0.01 5

0. 013

0.02

which t he apparent diameter of the light becomes superior

to the limit of irradiation.
S uM MARY AND CoNCLUSIONS.
T o summarise, I may say that, having explained,
aeoording to the best authorities, the phy::.iological phenomena which accompany the vision of instantaneous flashes,
and having put forward a rational theory of these phenomena, I have established the following propositions:
1. E verr source of light employed in a lens is capable
of furnishmg at each flash a quantity of light that only
depends on its intensity, and the coefficient of vertical
concentration of the apparatus, and on the interval
between the flashes. This is fixed by considerations of a
practical nature at the value of 5 seconds. 2. The feuxt!clailrs enable us t o utilise this quantity of light with a
maximum of utility as regards range, because they con
oentrat e it in flashes of a period inferior t o the maximum
time of perception (about ~ second). 3. This condition
giving the maximum of utility, it is of no importance as
rega rds the utilisation of the lamp wheth er the full perception is rea-ched or not : there would even hA a gain in
further reducing the duration of the flash as far as the
time limit of addition (about 0.03 second); from the point
of view of utilising a given lens, there is, on the contrary,
an advantage in increasing the flash and the diameter of
the lamp. 4. One may calculate, cl. prio?i, according to
Bloch 's law, the range of a feux- eclair, even when it does
not give the full perception. 5. The f eux-eclairs using
oil allow us to obtain the m aximum range for lamps of a
diameter suitably chosen . The electric feux- eclairs could
even realise the maximum utility at any d istance.
6. The ranges obtainable by the aid of feu x-eclairs are
greater beyond comparison than those of the old apparatus. The range that may be reached wit h electricfeuxeclairs are now no longer limit ed bv the luminous inten sity, but by the height of the tower that we should have
to construct to render them available. I hope that these
considerations will ser ve to show how great is the interest
attaching to the absolutely new problem solved by the
jeux -t!clairs, and the enormous progress that they have
established in the utilisation of light-a progress which
appears to have reached almost the limit of finality.

LAUNCHES AND TRIAL TRIPS.

T HE screw steamer Emera.ld, lately purchased by
Messrs. Donald and Taylor, of Glasgow, has had her
compound engines altered for the use of st eam at high
pressure. A new high-pressure boiler of extra large
dimensions has been fitted, together wit h an entire set of
new mountings and connections. The engines, which
were previo~sly of the ?rdinary O?mpound t ype. with
cylinders 27 m. and 50 m. by 30 m. stroke, workmg at
65 lb. .Pressure, have been reconstructed, the alterations
to oyhnders maki_ng them now 17 in. and 47 in. by ~0 in.
stroke, with a botler prPssure of 160 lb. per 13quare mch.
The engine work has been effected by Mr. George T .
Grey, H~lborn E~gineering Works, South S~ie~ds, the
boiler bemg supphed from Messrs. J os. T . Eltrmgham
and Co. 's W orks, of South Shields, who also carried out
the alterations and repairs to the vessel's hull. The
owners state that on her first voyage, with a cargo of
1300 tons th e vessel averaged Si knots with 460 indicated
horse-po;er, and the consumption did not exceed 1l lb.
per indicated horse-power ver hour.

- * The figures relative t o the fourt~ ord er with four

panels are those which have been obta:m ed for _the l~ns of
the jeux-lclairs of La H e ve, and wh10h are gtven m the
memoir above quoted pages 63 to 73. W e may deduce
from them by analogy' other periods ?f flash, as also the
apparent power of the other orders. o!lmg_to the fact tha:t
for a ll of them the period of flash ts mfez:tor to the maxiThe R e U m her to, one of the largest of the new ironclads
mum time. Ib is only necessary to determme the appa~e~t
the Royal Italian Government, was taken out on t he
power, relative t o the lights of the fourth order . Tht~ ts of
what has been done by means of Bloch's law, supposmg 25th ult. by the manufacturers of the machinery,_Mes~rs.
Maudslay, Sons, and Field, L ondon, for the officld tr1al~
th e maximum time t o be -h second.

- --

A steel screw steamer named Colombia was launched

on the 11th inst. from the yard of the Bergens Mekaniske
Vrerksted, Bergen, Norway. The following are t he
dimensions : L ength over all, 216 ft. 6 in.; breadth,
moulded, 29 ft. ; depth, moulded, 14 ft. 4l in. S he is
built t o the highest class in the Norwegian V eritas for
the A merican fruit trade, and has a large number of
ventilators to th e holds, as well as heating apparatus for
use in winter. In a large deokhouse aft are fitted comfortable cabins for twelve passengers. H er engines are of
the t riple-compound type, with cylinders 16! in., 26! in.,
and 43 in. in d iameter, and 30 in. stroke. Tbe indicat ed
horse-power is about 700. An extra large steel boiler
supplies steam at a pressure of 175 lb. per square inch.
The speed when laden is to be 11! knots. The ship has
been built to the order of Mr. Adolph Halvarsen, of
B ergen.
The first-class armour -clad, the Three Saints, engined
by Messrs. Hurnphrys and T enna nt, has been launched at
Nikolaiev, and when she is completed and added to the
Blac.;k Sea F leet, Russia will then have no less than six firstclass battleships in the Black Sea, besides gunboats, t orpedo-cat chers, and torpedo-boats. At least one more
vessel of large size is to be laid down shortly in those
waters, and in est imating the balance of power in the
Mediterranean it is impossible t o leave altogethAr out of
consideration this very powerful .Beet, which, directly or
indirectly, may make its force felt when the great struggle
for supremacy comes.
SouTH AFRICAN GOLD.-The production of gold in the
Witwatersrandt district in September amounted t o
129,585 oz., showing a falling off of 6484 oz. as compared
with August. The decrease reported is attributable to a
short supply of labour. The production of January this
year was 108,874 oz.; of February, 93,252 oz. ; of March,
111,474 oz. ; of April, 112,055 oz. ; of May, 116,911 oz. ;
of June, 122,907 oz. ; of July, 126,169 oz. ; of August,
136,069 oz. ; and of September, 129,585 oz. ; making an
aggregate for the nine months of 1,056, 794 oz. The ou tput for the wholo of 1892 was 1,210)862 oz.; for the whole
of 1891, 728,613 oz. ; for the whole of 1890, 494,758 oz. ;
for the whole of 1gs9, 382,364 oz.; and for the whole of
1888, 230,640 oz.
INTERLOCKlNG ON THE SYDNEY T RAlllWAYs .-During the
past few months a novelty has been introduced into the
working of the Sydney street tramways, in the ~hape of
an ext ension, at the junction points of the N ewton, Glebe
Point1 and Forest L odge lines, of the system in vogue
on ra1lways of working points by locking levers concentrated under the charge of one man in a cabin
or sig nal box . A cabin containing three interlocking
levers has been erected on the Parramatta. road,
opposite to the Sydney Tramway and Omnibus Company's stables; and from it the facing points on th e down
journey, leading to Newton, Enmore, and Dulwich Hill!
Glebe Point and Forest L odge, and Balmain, are workea
in the same way as points on railways. The levers are of
the ord inary pattern, wi th a spring catch, as used on the
railways, but the mode of connecting them with the points
is somewhat novel, and had to be designed t o sui t th e circumstances, as of course rods could not be can ied over the
road way, as would be the case where there is no vehicular traffic. The difficulty has been met by a device for
carrying the rods under the roadway. At the points
special means of working have bad to be adopted, and an
arrangement has been designed for indicating to the
pointsman in the cabin tha\J the points are set correctly
and fit close to the stock rails. There is also a scheme of
electric bells, one being fixed at each junction, rung from
the cabi n, and interlocked with the point leYers, which
act as si~nala t o prevent two trams coming into collision
~t a fouling point.

E N G I N E E R I N G.
"ENGINEERING" ILLUSTRATED PATENT
RECORD.
COMPILED BY

w.

LLOYD WISE.

2
en~rine
proceeding
through
the
tube
al,
tl':e
passage
a
, an.d th.e
A spiral spring is also inter posed between 6 and 7. (A ccepted
outlet pipe a4. The interior of the t ube al 1s bored out cyhn~n
October 4, 1893).
cally, and has fitted within it the throttle valve c, ~hie~ cons1sts
21,587. J. Bathorn and J. Stuart, Pollokshaws, of a ring connected by a rms to t he cen.tr al pa~t, '~h1cb 1s fonned
Renfrews, N.B. Plural-Expansion Steam Engtnes. at c2 into the smaller portion of a dttferentlal ptston, the la rger
[6 Figs. ] November 26, 1892.- In this invention, in using e. three- part of whic h is connected to the ~mall~r part by a rod d and

sta~e

expansion engine for working at high speed, the thr ee

d,l. The s maller part c2 of the ptaton 18 made t? move steamSELECTED ABSTRACJI'S OF RECENT PUBL.ISHED SPECIFICATIONS cyhndera a re form ed in one casting disposed t rigonally and tnut
ight within bushes e, el fixed in the cover b (Flg..1). aD~ t}?.e
UNDER THE ACTS 1883-1888.
inverted, vertical in position . The three pi,ton- r ods a re larger part of the piston is fitted so as t o move steamt1ght w1thin

The ntt.mber of views give-n. in the Specification Drawings i8 stated

in each case ; where none a;re mentioned, the Specification is
not illmtrated.
Where In ventions are communicated from abroad, the Name8,
&c., of the Communicators are given in ital~.
Copies of Specifications may be obtained at the Patent Ojfice
Sale Branch, 38, Curaitor-street, Chancery-lmn.e, E. C. , at the
<t.tnYorrn price of 8d.
The date of the adverti8ement (lf the acceptance of a complete
svecijication i8, in each case, give:n after the a_bstract, unleas the
Patent has been sealed, when thl!. date of 11ealitng is given.
.4ny person m<11y at any time within two m onths from the date of
the adverti8ement of the acceptance of a complete specifteation,
give notice at the Paten t Office of oppol!ition to the grant of a
Patent on. any of the grounds mentioned in the .Act.

fixed to a. trigonal fume D connected by a pair of rods

E to a pair of cranks F on the shaft G. A siogle valve H
distributes steam to the three cylinders, and works in a. cylin drical valve chamber J placed centrally, and actuated from an
eccentric K placed bet\\een the two cranks. The valve chamber
has in the parts of its sides nearest each of the cylinders ports
leading to the cylinder ends r espectively, and a lso an inlet por t L
a.t about the middle of its length , by which the initial steam reaches

Fig.1.

1.
A

ELECTRICAL APPARA'I'OS.
21,811. c. E. L. Brown, Baden, Switzerland.
Alternating Current Motors. [9 F igs.] November 29,

1892. -Tbis invention relates to multi-phase alternating current

motors without separate excitation. The outer winding A, which
receives the primn.ry current, is stationary. The iron sheath Al
for the windmg consists of insulated and laminated sheet metal
pressed between two r ings A2 cast in one with the two hd.lves of
the framing , which a re connected together by bolts B, and cury
th~ feet on which t be motor r ests. T\\O end plates C are ~ro
vided with bearings Cl, and protec t the interior of the mach1ne.
The end plates a re each provid ed with a central openio~, and
with openings a.t the outer periphery for promoting a circulation

'i1J. ~

Fig . 2.

.Fig.8.

.Ptg.3.

back part of t he movable jaw A of the spanner is enlarged towards

the stationary one B, and t he latter is enlarged towards the
former. A g roove is formed in the enlarged part of tbe one, and
the other is r educed in thickness, forming a tongue sliding in

Or

w.

Paton, Richmond, Surrey. Governors

for Motive Power Engtne. [4 Figs. 1 October 4, 1892.-

MACHINE TOOLS, SBAFTING, &c.

20,845. L. Mills, Plymouth, Devonshire. Shifting
Spanner. (4 Figs.] November 17, 1892.- In this invention the

Lhc pos:ti~ n Fig. 1, where the valve c does not obstruct the &team ,
but allows it to pass out of the tube and through the passage a"',
but when steam from t he boiler is admitted to the cylinder rJ , and
on to the larger end of the piston, it exer ts its force upon a g reater
ar ea than that CJf the smaller end of the pil:ton, and thereby forces
the pibton down the cylinder u and moves the ring c attached to it
down the tube al. By exhausting the steam in the space above th e
piston , t he r everse a c tion tak es place. ~o admi.t s tea.m and ex haust
it from the c~ linder g the steam ch est IS supphed wat.b steam from
t he boile r thr ough the inlet pipe hl, and the outlet pipe Jt2 and
the cylincter g a re either put in communication with the steam
chest or the exhaust passage h 3 by movinJt the slide valve h4 upon
its por t face by means of a rocking shaft j made to engage with
the interior of the valve. The rocking abaft j turns in bearings
formed in the chest lt, through one side of which it passes through
a stuffing-box, and it is pro vided with a spanner for t he purp: ee
of turn ing it. (.dccepted Octolm 4, 1893).

17,636.

of air from the centre to the outside of the motor. Near the inner
periphery the iron sheath Al is provided with boles A:J of oval
shape, through which parts of the wires forming the outer windin~
A are pas3ed. Ooe half of these wires is bent bac k in a definite
di rection, but so that they are situated always at t he same distance
from the axle. The wires of the other half a re bent in an opposite
direction , the ends being soldered to~etb er to form a drum wind
ing. The rotary part of the winding is ce.n ied by a shE>ath D.
The sheet-metal plates forming this sheath are, near their outer
periphery formed with holes similar to those in the outer magnetic sheath A2, and contain a similar winding G. (Accepted
October 11, 1893.)

Ftg .2

the cylinder g, which is tlanged and fixed upo.n the cover b by

bolts. The cylinder g has its upper end for~e~ m to t.he stu!fiogbox ~hrough which t he rod d passes, and 1t lS proVlded .w1th a
small passage through which the lower part of the cylinder g
is put in communication ~vith t h.e cond.enser o r the atl!lospber e.
The cylinder g is also provided w1th a ptpe through whtch ste~m
from the boiler is supplied to, or exhausted from, the. upper s~de
of the piston. The spac~ in the cyli~de~ g ab~ve the p1s~on, be10g
ex hausted by being put m commumcat10n w1th the engme a condenser, the steam in the tubE' al presses upon the smalle r ~o~ of
the piston and moves the piston and the valve c attached to tt m to

Fig .1

the valve. The inlet por~ is between the ports of the fi rststsge
C}linder, and the steam is d :s tributed to them by a cavity in the
valve. When the Yalve is in position for supplying steam to one
port Nt, the opposite one N2 is in communication with another P:l
in the vah e, and through a cur,ed passage within the valve with
a cavity which is also form ed in it in a position to distribute
steam to the ports Q, Q2 of the second-stage cylinder . The steam
from the second-stage cylinder similarly passes through a port R2
and an internal passage in the vahe to a cavity, which distributes it to the ports of the t hird cylinder, the steam on leaving
the latter passing throu~h a port and passage in the valve t o a
space at the end of the valve chamber , a nd thence to the exhaust
passage which communicates with both ends of t he valve
chamber. ( ~ ccepted October 4, 1893).

L. Richard&, Workington, Cumberland.

Steam Engines. [1 Fig.} October 7, 1892.-In this inven17,887.

R:J .1

tion three or mor e cylinders a re employed, which use steam inde

pendently of each other, a nd are connected to separ ate cranks on
the crankshaft. Each cylinder has a Yalve A for t he admission

R ..

the groove, together forming a clasp with a d ouble abutment E

and F. Between this part and tbe poiuts of the jaws is a bolt 0
passing into both of the latter, and having right and left-handed
screws at alternate ends, and a milh d disc bead for turning it,
the jaws bein~ adjusted to t.he ri~ht distance apart by revolving
the right and left-handed screw. (A cceptect October 11, 1893).

STEAM ENGINES AND BOILERS.

21,768. T. Keene, Birkenhead, Chester. Packing
for Ptston-Rods. [4 Figa.J Novembe r 29, 1892. -This in vention relates to metallic packing for piston-rods, and consists
in locating it between two con centric t~pheri cal bearin~ surfaces.
A sleeve 3 supports an inner bush, and is provided w1tb a gland
adapted to set up the bush. A spring is interposed between thE>
of the steam, with laps to cut it off a ccording to the expansion
required. Valves are also provided with laps to give the neces
sary period of release and amount of compr ession independently
of the expansion. The vahea for admission a nd r elease are in
separate chestR, a nd actuated by separate eccentrics. (Accepted
Octobe1 11, 1893).

w. Paton, Richmond,

Surrey. Operating
Throttle, &c., Valves from a Distance. [2 Ftgs. ] Octo17,635.

sleeve and gland, one end of the sleeve and the opposite end of
the gland being supportEd by t.be two concentric spheric.a l
bearing surlaces. 1, 11 are the split inner bushes, arranged to
break joint. The qland is formed in parts 6, 7 ; 12 is an interposed ring under compreaeion between the gland 7 and sleeve 3.

This invention relates to goYernor s for preventing the speed of

motive power engines becoming injuriously accelerated, and the
principal object is to provide one without rotating parts. A
small pump cylinder is mounted u pon a baseplat(', and bas fitted
to it a piston having a piston-rod working through packed glands
fo rmed in the ends of the cylinder. 'Ihe piaton-tod is coupled to
the engine ~rossbead, and the cylinder has both its ends in communication with an other wise closed chamber, and the cylinder
and ch ~mber are filled with a liquid such as oil. The piston and
the passages connecting the ends of the cylinder with the
chamber are arranged so as to permit of the piston, when r eciprocated in either direction, forcing the liquid out of one end of
t he cylinder into the chamber, and from thence into the other
end of the cylinder. On one side of the chamber is fitted a small
cylinder containing a ftuid-tight piston, one end of which is in
contact with the h q uid in the chamber , and the other with the
atmosphere, and the piston is pressed into the chamber by an
adjustable spring. One of the pasttages by which the liquid

ber 4, 1892.- The object of t his invention is to provicte means

whereby mothe power engine throttle valves, &c. , whether oacil
latory or r eciprocatory, can be operated from a distance, ei tber by
hand or by an engine governor, without t he inter ven tion of ropes,
&c. The upper end of the tube a is closed by the cover b which is
bolted to the body, the lower part of which is faced at a3 to allow it
to be secured to the main steam pipe of t h e engine, and the interior
of the ~ube alto be put in communication with the boiler. The bod y
is also formed into a ftanged pipe to enable it to be secured to t h e
engine supply pip(', all steam in its passage from th e boiler to the

z.

leaves the chamber is murh smaller than the other, and its arfa
r equires the pump piston to exert pressure upon the liquid in
order t hat it may be fo rced thr ough it and out of the cba.mber.
This pressure so varies with every variation of the :~peed of t he
piston, and the liquid exe r ts a varying p ressure upon t he end of
the piston projecting into t he chamber, and when the pressure
exc eeds that of the spring the piston moves out of it, this motion
being made available for operating appliances for checking the
speed of the engine and preventing it becoming injuriously accelerated. The steam chest cont a ining the valve by which the
piston is caused to reciprocate is mounted upon the bedplate,
and its valve's spindle is so placed and arranged that projections
formed upon a sleeve carried by the pump's piston-rod give the
motions to t h e valve required for causing the piston's r eciprocations. Tbe sleeve is connected to the pump's pistonrod so as to
permit o~ its having a small angular motion upon the r od, but no
end motiOn, and the sleeve is connected to the piston projecting
into the chamber by levers arranged so as to allow of the piston
imparting to the sleeve the r equired angular motion when pressed
out of its oylinder by the liquid in the chamber. (.A ccepted
October 4, 1893).

21,579. B . J. B . King, Stroud, Glouceaters. Com

pound Engines. [7 Figs.} November 26, 1892.-This invention r elates to compound and multiple cylinder engines. The
high and low pressure piston-rods 1, 2 are coupled to the .L connecting-rod 3 thr ough t h e links 4, 6, t his rod being centred at 6 on
the rocking lever 7 which works the ver tical air pump 9. By
plaoing two sets of t hese engines on one crankshaft, t hey may be
worked as quadruple engines by paseing the steam in succeseion
through each of the four cylinders. Tbe val ve spindle 1 ie

E N G I N E E R I N G.
attached by nuts to the casting 2, in which Is fittPd the wedgeehaped t.runnion block 3 to insure the gab end 4 being always a
flt. To throw the eooentric which works the valve out of gear,
the handwheel 5 is turned round from its natural position, and
in tur ning lifts the gab 4 up and out of gear. The bandwheel is
then d r awn forward in tbe direction of the arrows. The "ah e

a segment and a. handle, and the cylinder is c ounterbalanced by a

spring coiled round flue operating shaft. ( .tcupted. October 11,
1803).

22,4.23. W. Sargenteon and J. Gilbert, Badfleld,

Derbys. Loom Shuttles. [10 Figs.) December _7, 1 9~.

Tbis in,ention r elates to shuttles for use in looms, and 1ts obJ et
is to p rovide means whereby they may be easily threaded." ben in
340. G. Llttlewood, Huddersfield, Yorks. Looms. uqe. A g roo\'e is formed in the body of the shuttle, extend lOll' from
[6 .Pi{}d ] January 7, 1893.- This in vention r elates to shuttle the open part towards the tip, a second g roove extending from the
checking motion, and has fo r its object to prevent breakages
arising from the ~ickers being drawu into the boxes when the
operation of" pickmg out " is being pe rformed. A b racket b is
affixed to 'be llrea.st beam a of a loom , atAd a catch leve r is
mounted on it, this le'fer, unde r certain conditions, e oga~ing
wltb a. sliding bracket k, to which the checking straps n , 1&.1 are
attached . A p rojecting finger/, provided on a.n attachment, when

Fig. 1.

Fig.u.
b

b
224 ... ) ,

Rg .4.
J40

in position engages with and depresses the outer end of the catch
lever, thus liberating and r eleasing the movable bracket, and
therefore the c hecking straps and pickers, whic h then r emain
inoperative until the loom 1 again set in motion . When this
takes place, the finge r atta ched to the settingon r od g is r emoved from the catch lever, t his le,er th en engaging with the
movable br acket when the l atter is brought into position by t he
mcwement of the lathe, and the shuttle checking motion is then
again brought into play. ( ~ ccepted Octouer 11, 1893.)

Fio.J
.
v

19,297. T. A. Adamson and R. B e ldam, London.

Valves for Pumps. [7 Figs.] October 27, 1892. - Tbis in-

first one, and passing obliquely O\'er the shuttle and terminating at
tbe del.ivery point. Within this slot is placed a wire wbiob is bent
and coiled to form two eyes, one of \Ybicb is at the junc tion of the
grooves, and t~e other at t~e delivery point. The threading is
effected hy l ayrn~ a thread m the first groo,e and pulling it sideways and down into the second slot, the thr ead being then passed
into the two eyes. (.d ccepted. October 11, 1893).

19,041.

&c. [7

.w. J. Brewer, London.

Lubricating Axles,

Ft.QS.] Oc oober 24, 1892.-Tbis in vention consists in

casting lhe jour nal in a mould having poi nted etude c fixed in it
~o a.s to lea,:e numerous hol~s in and through the body of the
~ournal beanng, and to !rO\'t~e !!leans of lubrica.tio~r the axle o r
JOU rn~J. . The p~rfo ra t~ c~tm~ 1s form ed with a g rease box, and
supphed 10 the mner sade w1th a plunger having lips the plunger
ha,og a rod fixed to it passing through the ;}~\er of the
g rease box. The rod is g r aduated, and indicates when the
lubricant is becoming exhausted, and affords means of corn
pressing the lubricating material by a weight or spr ing which can

vention has r eference to valves applicable for air , circ ulating, &c ,
\Fio.3.
pumps. The valve consist of a disc A of sheet metal, secu red at

oan then be moved in any direction by the band wheel 6, and t he ats centr e to a tubular boss B, and provided near the outer peri

gab i8 kept out of gear by the concentric part of the cam 6, which, pbery with a ring Al. The ring AI ser ves for st reogt.beoi n~ the

.'
through the movement of the wheel in the direction of the thin disc por tion of the valve and for loading lhe val'.'e to the
arrows, is brought under the gab end of the eccentric rod. requi red e xtent. The va lve is formed on its underside with a
number of ftutes C of g radually decreasing depth towards the
~ coepted. October 11, 1893.)
~
centre, w ber e they merge into the flat surface of the disc , and a re
c losed at t heir outer ends by the port ion A2 of metal fo r ming part
IIISCELLANEOlJS.
of the r ing Al, io whic h tht> outer ed~e of t he disc A is h eld. Each be remo,ed when necessary. This bearing can be st rengthened
19,043. J. Willey, Rotherham, Yorkshire. Haulage of the ftutes C has one of its edges (C1) arran~ed tangentially to a by being fitted into a jacket of metal, such as cast iron o r steel,
Clip. [6 l"igs.) October 24, 1892.-Tbis in vention consists of a c iNle, having the axis of the val ve as it s centre, so t hat the having holes communicating with those in ~be journal bea rin~s.
haulage clip comprising two books b bent to suit the diameter of
If the mould is internal, a round piece o r metal of the same d1a
the rope R, and jomed together with a c u r ved distance piece b2 with
meter as the axle or spindle fo r which the bearing is beiog cast,
projection b3 and slot boles to admit the stalk cl of the setting-up
is us ed. The mould surrounding this ha s the studs projecting
block C which is ~roove d to suit the rope, the stalk bavin~ a
from its inn e r surface, the leng th of these studs giviog the
slotted 'bole io it to suit the lever and cam pin . The block 0 is
desired thickness to th e bearings. If the m ould is external, it
actuated oo the r ope R by a lever and cam combin ed . The
will be in two pa r .s, with the studs projecting round its outer
c1m has a flat place on t he face, so arranged as to lock the le\'er
circumference, t he si ze of the bearing being re~ lated by the
body of the mould, co vers being provided to r etam th e metal in
the moulds until it has cooled r eady for remo\'al. ( J1 ccepted.
H
October 4, 1893).

..

f~l

Ho

fh'n 1

.... -:;?'

b'

c.

.
-Pin.3
-::7

23,825. H . Skewes, Camborne, Cornwall. Combined Moulding, Planlnjt, and Sawing Machines.

Fig . 2 .

ig . 4-.

Fig.Z.
/l0 4J

from going back when the block is at the point of c.ont~ct with
the rope. T he lever and cam are attached to the proJec~oton by a
pin. (.Accepted October 11, 1893).
20 868. J. Thompson, London. Couplings. [7 ~iqs.]
Nov~mber 17, 1892.-This imentico r elates to mean~ for umtmg
fl exible a rmoured hose to couplings. A sook~t A 1s employed,
with a contracted end into ~hi?h se~eotal P.eces B ~re ft~ted,
each piece having a double mchned r1b D on 1ts ex tenor , and a

(5 F i.JfJ. ] December 2.-, 1892. This invention refa.tes to a com

bioed moulding, planing , and sawing machine, and consists of a
Fig. 3.
framework F carrying a sa.w frame A, a planer bed C, a mould
HI
ing bed D, and a number of shafts ca rrying a num ber of pulleys
and wheels. In the sawing part of the maehi ne the ''er tical
guides g are a c tuated by hand by means of a key handle. The
19291
mechanism, consisting of a shaft c arrying pinions gearing with
ftutes, instead of being radial, ha\'e a slight inclination in one racks, is ope rated by the leve r so as to depress a pulley
dir ection, with the r esult that by tbe ac tion of fluid a mo,e
:ltg 1.
ment of par tial rotation is imparted to the valve at each
lift. The valve seat D is formed with deep tangentiallya rranged bars E inclined to the face of the ,al ve seat, so as to
for m upwardly -inclined opemngs, w hereby a circular motion is
imparted to the fluid pa.ssi ng through, eo a.s to assist in impar ting
an intermittent o r rotary motion to the valve. A g uard limits the
li ft of the vahe at each su ction stroke of the pump, and is made
with an annular groove Fl a t its unde rside to contain ftuid to assist
in cushioning the valve when opening. (A ccepted October 4, 1893).

22.020. W. Boaz, London. Lubricators.

[4 F i.tJB. ]

December 1, 1892. -This consists of a cylinder A provided with

a piston, to which is att a"hed at each end a hyd raulic cup
made of a material such as leather, held in posi t ion by screw
capa. The piston is operated hy a c rank, upon the pin of
which is a steel block whic h wor ks horizontally throuJrh a
circular slot in tbe centre of the piston. Tbe c rankshaft d 1 is

scr ew thread inner face to engage the a r mouri!lg t~ of ~be hose

G 80 that" ben the end of the armoured hose Is Inserted m to the
so~ket and tbe segments put in place, the screwing up of a fe rrule
d raws the segments and the hose into close contact, and makes a
firm joint. (.A.ccepted October 11, 1893).

21,971. J. s., R. D . and W . D. Cundal.!t Shlpley,

Yorka. Cylinder Printing llachtnes. [3 F t.qs.] D~cem

ber 1, 1892. -This in vention has r eference t~ Wharfedale cyl~oder

printing mac hines. The framewor k A carry mg the flyer cyho~er
B, together with the fl yers, is attached to, and borne by, vertacal

2.
0

Fl{l1

Fig.2.
to tighten t he wood on the

r ods D, the lower ends of which rest u pon io~line~ surfaces F,, ~o
that on the latter being operated In one dtrec tton, the ~ertJCal
rods together with the cylinder and th er, are raised bodily, and
rem~in in that ele\ ateci position until the inclined surfaces are
ope rated in the re\ er e direc tion. These sur f tN are operated by

t eed rollers.

The top of the saw

table B is provided with parallel guides, and the saw M turns in
it, this table being raised or lowered by a s crew dl actuated by
a h and le d. The logs are shifted under the knives, instead of
moving t he knives upon the log, by tbumb screws e and parallel
bars i . The planer bed 0 is rais ed or lower ed by the t wo handles,
bevel wheels. and screws. At the end of the planer spindle H,
the moulding apparatus D is provided with a screw to r eceive the
moulding blocks, which are tapped eo as to be tightened as
required . ( ~ ccepted. October 11, 1893).

ope rated by a wormwbee~ G and worD? H . Throug h the ceo~re

UNITED STATES PAT.ENTS AND PATENT PRAOTIOE.
of this worm passes a spmdle h 1 car11ed by a bracket, wbtch
Desc riptions '' itb illustrations of im entioos patented in the
forms a top CO \ er of the ('ylinder. Oo th i~ s pindle is fixed a ratchet
wheel J operated by a pawl jl ('arried by a lever K, which is sup United States of America from 1847 to the pre&ent time, and
ported at one end by the spindle hi and at the other by a rod from reports of t rials of patent law cases n the t:nited States, may bt
a m oving part of the en~r ioe, eo as to operate tbe ratch et-\\ heel consulted, g ratis, at the offices oi El\ GtNl':ERI.o, 35 and 36, Bedford
street, Strand.
at each stroke of the engine. (.4. cupted.Octo1Ju 11,1 9:3).