The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1851-05-28

dunil'tcu vi NV Hucoti'hi thot 'hO A''"S
ara gulf was made expressly to he bridg-
ed, but hoo that ought to be done was
subject on which my friends fell into
runcorous dispute.
Il would like to swing Remington
Bridge across TO that point, said String,
as he walked on the American side down
to the whirlpool.
Remington Bridge = said Slick, "a
perfect imposiure. It's a likely story
that those stringers. no thicker than pipe
stems
But it was proved. They tried it
fairly in Georgia. They put on thirty
thousand pounds at the first trial, aud it
stood like an arch.'
who says sol
'Well--the newspapers
'Oh the newspapers. What engi>
neer ever tested that bridge The news
papers would tell you that they made a
ginger bread bridge and put Mount Tom
Oh ii. A coniounded likely story TO tell
an engineer that those stringers, no big
ger than pipe-siems-'
But you have no right TO pronounce
it an imposiure if the stringers were no
bigger than kniliing-needles.
But have, have. Improbable things
sometimes prove true, but generally they
don't. Consequently, when an improb-
able thing is told to me, I've a right TO
presume 1t humbug.'
IF you had been told about the tele>
graph
Now don't | know all that. 1t
would have been wrong for me to pre-
sumo Morse's telegraph anything but a
humbug till the contrary was proved.
Don't talk about your Remington Bridges
to any engineer. Pretty things, those
stringers.'
'But it was prorcd. They put thirty
thousand pounds
And so on The dispute waxed hot>
ter and hotter, String pressing alleged
facts and Stick warding them off with
theory. l heard nothing but the laws OF
dynamlcs and the strength of materials
for an hour. Not knowing which of the
young gentlemen was in truth the pro-
founder engineer, was in great guam
Diary about what platform to choose, and
tried to pursue middle course without
committing myself. l suggested, as a
compromise, a Tubular Bridge, (Which
supposed was something like stove
pipe, and would have got off in safety if
had not indiscreetly added,by way ofmak-
ing my defence doubly sure, The dy>
namcal pressure of the atmosphere will
of course require the cosines to be made
pretty stiff at which they looked as il
they suspected that | didn't know what
| was talking about. 1t was impossible
to look at the whirlpool or the fine rapids
above il with any comfort, for my COM
panons were projecting some kind Of lr'
rigating engine and an ice-breaker and
we're quite ready, in five minutes afiel
descending the precplce, TO give sealed
proposals TO the government for making
huge tunnel under the whirlpool, fol
what purpose man cannot say.
The Remington Bridge controversy
revived as soon as the ce.breaker wal
satisfactorily adjusted. Happily, on ou
returns to the Falls, we happened upor
railroad which connects the Falls vii
. lage to Lewiston. My scientific friend
no sooner saw it than they burst into in
ordinate laughter. Well, it vas really
: poor little railroad but it wasn't to blam
/ for that. 1t couldn't help itself, and
thought it rather unleeling IN my friend
to jeer it so mercilessly. There il was
poor lillle thing, running along almos
! anyhow, covered with flat rall, and turn
ing out for lillle knobs which the enor
nous Erie Road would have shouted vi
2 in two minutes. Why, don't belev
there was six feet cutting in the Who'll
j line, but the poor little railroad couldn'
), help il. have no doubt that it did a
> well as it could, for when it ran throug
u a bank where The earth had been scratch
4 ed out yard deep or so, it really did il
: self a good deal of credit, aud by ha
0 shutting your eyes and feeling friendly
d you would suppose that there was quit
# a chasm. As for the snake heads an
: the shabby wooden culverts, twas sure
n indelicale in my friends to allude I
!. them 1t wasn't to be expected that tn
), little railroad, with a large aud interest
=, ing family Of stockholders to supper
J. could maintain the style Of the Hudso
e river affair, which is an imperlineut an
II high-heeled upstart, and would undoub
e edly cut its poor relation in the mo
lordly manner. 1t Itlooked as respectabl
d as it could, but under the circumstance
q a little seediness was really unavoidable
$. Pretty soon we heard something screecl