The Sun.
London, England, 1862-11-27 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 27, 1862.

cenc-e ; it comprises no guarantee, it &fines n 4 boundaries,
it involves no intervention, it consists with perfect neutra-
lity by the international law of all American jurists—in
this case the best authorities. Its silent, peaceful, but irre-
sistible moral influence would soon be felt. Every Ame-
rican knows it to be a verdict that never was repealed or
pronounced in vain. At once the peace section of the
Democratic party would obtain a foothold on which to rally,
form, and erect itself. With the army going into winter
quarters, paper money depreciating, the tax-gatherer step-
ping out, and dissensions growing wider day by day, all
circumstances would concur to add to the effect. Within a
brief period from the date of recognition perseverance in
the war would become so plainly useless and hopeless that
the Conservative leaders, now in the ascendant, would ac-
cept the reality however reluctantly, submit to destiny, and
proceed to demand peace to save their own section of the
continent from the anarchy, dismemberment, and ruin now
pending over it.—Times.

THE TUNNEL THROUGH MOUIV7

CA'NIS.

RAILWAIS AND OTHER COMPANIES.

WIVENHOE AND BRIGHTLINGSEA.

MOUTH.

(From the Newcastle Daily Journal.)
Most of our readers know that a gigantic work in
engineering is in progress in the Alps, being no less than
the cutting of a tunnel eight miles in length through
Mount Cenis, for the route of the Franco-Italian:Railway.
Some idea of the extensive nature of the tunnel may be
gathered from the facts that it is to cost no less than
£2,400,000 sterling, and that the time allowed for its com-
pletion is twenty years. The progress already made in
the tunnel is not considerable. Two machines are at
work, but nothing authentic is known as to their capabili-
ties, or the rate at which they are -working, and there is
good reason to believe that the statements which have
appeared in the public journals respecting the work
done are exaggerated. The principle upon which they pro-
ceed does not, indeed, admit of their making rapid progress.
They bore a number of holes in the face of the rock, and into
these holes powder is inserted, and the rock is blasted.
Very often, however, when the rock is very hard, the ex-
plosion makes no impression upon it. The utmost speed
obtained is less than 3 feet in 12 hours; and this is effected
at a great expense of manual labour, no less than 50 or 60 men
being engaged about each machine, which is itself a very
costly construction. Upwards of £200,000 has already been
spent on the machinery and compressers. It is not surprising
that the promoters of the undertaking have become dissatis-
fied with the probable cost of the work as at present con-
ducted, and with the prospect of having to wait during the
long period of 20 years for its completion. We are able to
state, however, that there has been invented a new machine,
which will undoubtedly do wonders, both in reducting the
cost and in shortening the time for the completion of this
wonderful work—the tunnel through the Alps. It is the
invention of an English officer, Capt. Penrice, late of the
Royal Engineers; and a company under the title of the
Patent Steam Tunnelling and Mining Machine Company
(Limited) has been formed in London for bringing it into
general use, not only on Mount Cenis, but wherever tun-
nelling work is required. The invention owes its rise ori-
ginally to the necessities connected with the siege of Se-
bastopol. During that memorable siege the principle of the
invention was conceived by Capt. Penrice, who brought it
before the British and French Governments. The autho-
rities of the English War-office were of opinion that it
might be available for undermining Sebastopol, and accord-
ingly Sir Wm. Armstrong was engaged to construct two.
Messrs. Fox and Henderson at the same time constructed
two machines for the French Government ; but before they
were finished the war was ended, and the Governments did
not pursue the investigation into the merits of the invention.
However, a company has been formed for its development
as a commercial enterprise ; and the work of construct-
ing the machines has been placed in the hands of Messrs.
Hawks, Crawshay, and Co., of Gateshead. Messrs. Hawks
and Co. have been engaged for several months in perfecting
a machine on the principle of Capt. Penrice's patent, and
we were late'y favoured with an inspection of it, and are
therefore enabled to state, from actual observation, what it
is capable of doing. The machine is erected in the Clax-
ton Quarry, belonging to Mr. Cail, the railway contractor,
situate at the head of Gateshead, and has been the subject
of intense wonder and curiosity in the neighbourhood—a
wonder and curiosity which have not been decreased by the
reserve which has been maintained respecting the machine,
and the strictness with which prying eyes have been ex-
cluded from it and its achievements. We will now give a
general and popular description of the machine, and of
some of the difficulties which have been encountered in its
construction and adaptation to the purpose for which it is
designed. The question of ventilation has been solved in
the most satisfactory manner. In the open ground in the
quarry, which is of very great extent, there is erected an
engine used for supplying air to the tunnel by means of a
fan blast, which acts, however, by suction outwards, in-
stead of by the usual way of drawing air inwards. A tube
is carried along the top of the tunnel, at the head of which
a partial vacuum is formed, the vacuum being refilled by the
air which rushes into the tunnel. This tube is the chimney
of the boiler, and the exhaust steam of the engine being
driven into it, the ventilation is increased by this means also.
The ash-pan is closed, an air-pipe is carried forward from
it to the head of the bore, so that all the air drawn through
the furnace by the exhaust of the engine and suction fan is
taken direct from the inner end of the tunnel, where it is
replaced by fresh air from the exterior, and a very strong
draught is created. The heat from the boiler is confined by
means of water tanks, which cover the surface of the boiler,
and as there is a thick lining of felt between the boiler and
the water tanks, the constant supply does not at all inter-
fere with the generation of steam. By these means the ven-
tilation at the face of the rock is maintained ; and so far
from there being excessive heat, when we saw the machine
the thermometer at the face of the rock registered below 60
deg. Fahrenheit, although a large locomotive boiler was
within the tunnel, and working at a pressure of 1201 b. to
the inch, The mode in which the machine operates is this :
A number of large chisels are inserted in the radial arms of
a circular piece of metal, which is made to revolve, and at
the same time to strike the face of the rock very rapidly.
The advantage of the rotatory motion is, that the chisels are
always chipping against an edge as they revolve. These
blows are delivered at the rate of from 400 to 500 a minute,
by a mass exceeding nine tons in weight, so that the rock
catches it pretty well. 'The debris fall to the ground and is
carried off beneath the machine by means of rakes, attached
to an endless chain, very much in the same way that mud is
taken outof docks and harbours by means of dredgers. Three
engines are employed in furnishing motive power to the ma-
chine; one, a donkey-engine, feeds the principal boiler with
forlt
alsoassisting
keeps tdoo
water, and pumps water upon the face of the rock, while the
machine is in operation. The water is useful both for
preventing a vast quantity of dust being formed,"an.d also
ad
n o donkey-engine
is
syi
used-
drivinge n g
fnoercawnrrLtehheeadetbar
nisdtforetshheenmsouththe oaifr.theAtnuonntheelr.
sptuhrpeo pp
propelling
slide
gh
ofet ventilationthheem
machineain cy;
lf
ionar
dnwedar
r. theforward
t oT
htwheai
rr
add:
ot en-
ginehk
ee face of the rock, for turning the head containing the chisels,
of the main cylinder is of course very short, being only
about two to three inches,
in order to give the necessary ra-
pidity of hammer-like action to the chisels. Such beinglthe
nature of the machine, let us see what it can do. When we
saw it at work it had burrowed it way to a distance of 60
feet from the mouth of the tunnel, and had out the last 12
feet in 33 hours. -To give an idea of the immense power
which is concentrated by this machine on a small area, we
may mention that a new machine of only 5 feet 2in. in dia-
meter is being constructed for mining purposes by Messrs.
Hawks and Crawshay, and will work up to an indicated
power of 600 horses. In fact, it seems scarcely possible to
get more out of steam and steel than is done by Captain
Penrice's machine. Not only have the mechanical de-
tails been overcome, but the principle of the invention
has been proved by actual working to be sound, and of
the utmost practical value. So far has the invention been
carried into practical use, that it is no longer an
experiment but a reality ; and the gallant captain has felt
himself justified by the results in asking the Italian
Government, who are the most deeply interested in
the construction of the Mount Cenis Tunnel, to inspect the
machine for themselves. Accordingly, the Cabinet of Turin
despatched Signor Cabella to the Tyne,with instructions to
inspect the machine and report upon it to them. The Signor
arrived a few days ago; he saw the machine in operation;
and considered the results something wonderful. He con-
sidered it capable, even in its present state, of completing
the Mount Cenis tunnel in less than five years. And not
only will there be a great saving of time by Capt. Penrice's
machine, but the cost will also, as a matter of course, be
immensely reduced. The use of these machines will not be
confined to railway tunnelling, but they will be employed
in mining; and Mr. Matthias Dunn, the Government in-
spector of mines for this district, has seen Capt. Penrice's
high approval of it, as of the utmost value in coal mining.
The
ehrainae at
machine
eoirk ssiimnpAllr.
simple,
cConasili'dseqrinnagn.tyh, and has expressed
e varied and difficult
nature of the work it has to do ; it is, in fact, so simple that
a boy can manage it, and a fireman and two labourers, to
remove the debris, are all the staff it requires, the monster,
in reality, eating its own way through the rock.

ST. GEORGE'S RIFLES.—The annual concert of
this regiment will take place in St. James's-hall on the 14th
of January, 1863, on which occasion Mr. Sims Reeves will
appear, as well as M. Benedict and several other distin-
guished artists, who are members of the corps. The Hon,
Colonel Lindsay, who commands the regiment, will, at the
request of several of his members, perform upon the'cornet.
a -piston, for which he has been for many years distin-
guished as an amateur.
CRYSTAL PALACE.—One Shilling Day, Wednes-
day,PaYment, 286 ; do. by season
tioketNo,o6v7.o26;
" totalA d m
visitors,issi°n 13 nB°66.

Surveys are in progress with a view to the execution of
this long delayed project. The line is an extension of that
now in progress from Colchester to Wivenhoe, and hOpes
are entertained that communication will be established be•
tweon Colchester and Brightlingsea by December, 11363.

RINGWOOD, CHRISTCHURCH, AND BOURNE-

This railway was opened to the public on the 13th insi.
It forms a branch line from the London and South-Western
Railway, and has been completed by local subscriptions,
aided by the contractors, Messrs. Brassey and Co. The
total cost of the line, including all expenses up to the com-
pletion of the undertaking, has been £6,500 per mile.