, 1860-01-28
in that kind Of an egg. they are entitled to it

istencc. minus two months. If they have talled
to get dividends out Of it. the reason whY. they
failed was not that they paid interest on the
bonded debt, not that they kept tho road
aud rolling stock in repair, not tnat they
disbursed large sums among their operatives
for they did mono Of these things. At all
events the bondholders are responsible for
none. Q: .theit failures. If Mat.cson got the
upper hand Of them, as seems 10 be generally
concod.d, it was not the fault Of AessFT
Congdon and Robb. Moreover, the bondho'ders
furnished all but au inconsiderable portion Of |
the money which built the road in the llrst ill.,
stance. We do not know Whit 1ega! claim I
any third parties could set ur against the
holders Of the first mortgage on the road. 1t is
sufficiently clear that the bondhodefs in assunl-
ng mountain ofdebt for which they were not
responsible, did so in spirit Of Gratulty, or
compromise, prefcrring to shoulder the load
rather than engage in further litigation, at the
end Of which there might he nothing left oi
tue road, but the right Of way. At the same
time, having assumed it, they arc bound to pay,
aud wc arc confident they will pay, exactly as
it is nominated in the bond. And il they fail at
auy time there is legal remedy for any per-
son who may be made 10 suffer by reason Of
such failure, They have had possession some
six or eight weeks we believe. No reasonable
lcing, having the slightest acquaintance with
the condition in which they found the pro-
perty, could expect order to be brought out Of
tut chaos in that time,
IRON IN BUILDINGS.
Whether the falling Of the Pemberion Mills
at Lawrence was owing entirely to the giving
way Of the iron columns belonging to that
structure, or whether the calamity was caused
10 part or altogether by insufficient masonry,
or by ol.er faults Of construction. are questions
which will probably ncvor le satisfactorily
determined But while the investigation be-
fore~:t Coroner's Jury failed to settle the
point definitely, the fact was very clearly
brought to light that some Of the iron columns
employed in the Pemberton Mills were deitc-
tive, and that, as Il general thing: either
through carelessncss or design, iron columns
intended Tor buildings are apt to be Of faulty
structure. The extensive use now made Of
iron in building gives to these facts high
degree Of importance, and warrants us in i'm
pressing upon the public in general, and upon
architects and builders in particular, the neces-
sity Of more rigid inspection and greater
caution in the use Of that material than has
heretofore been exercised.
The testimony in tue case Of the pemberton
Mills showed that the iron columns used in
that structure were Of the dimensions requis-
ite to sustain tenfold the pressure to Which
they were suljected-that they were received
from the foundry and placed in the building
without the application Of any test and that
after the calamity it was found, on trial, that a
blow from nail-hammer would sink through
the material Of some Of these columns to the
core. Some Of them were shown to possess great
eccentricity Of fcore-slat is the material was Of
unequal thickness, being unnecessarily thick
On one side, and reduced to q mere shell on
the other. Where such eccentricity Of core
exists, one side becomes cool while the other
is still at high temperature. The effect Is
undue contraction aud tension, greatly lncreas-
ing the liability to givc way under pressure.
These and other defects caused by careless
manipulation it is impossible to detect BY the
| ye-nothing but an actual test will bring
them to light The interest Of ioundrymen
also leads to the manufacture Of defective col
i,mns. 4 writer in the New York Tribune
who has had large experience in tic matter Q
which ho writes, says On this point:
Collusion between architects and founders ha
sued for The iron-work Of q building; dishon
est founder is enabled to furnish the work a
/ what would otherwise be q runons price, be
CAUSE be hns brihed the architect to allow hit
to pructice what is in trade klang termed "sEin
ming" by which process column directed +
be cast one inch in thickness is..made thus a
either end and gradually reduced ut the centc
as thin as q scared conscience will admit, whic
will sometimes reach Que quarter Of thc require
| thickness. hare known Of u detection Of TIL
iniquity by the accidental lpcrlaps should sa
Providential) breaking Of d column, in bein
| dumDt4 from CAFt &4E AAAIt A4E 1Ss[AlCo
thickness Of one-eighih OF an inch
There is but one way to guard against th'
kind Of dishonesty and carclessness Of manirr
latiou, and that is by institutiug rigid ties
! upon every piece OF iron that goes in1o you
buildings. 1t was stated in the Law
rncc investigation, that while I'll
strokes Of tho hammer may expos
the existence Of defects, still this mod
Of testing is not to be relied on. A sure
lest is the drill. If it b, too hard to drill cas-
w. il is unsafe, and should he rejected; an
should it be uuobjectionabic i'll this respect.
.ho thickness is not what it ought 10 H.: tha
fact will DO exposed also by the drill Th
writer above referred to asserts that Skin
ning' is not applied to columns alcne, hut tlss
othcr parts Of building work are subjected t
the. same dishonest process: it follows thu
! the rigid inspection we have recommends
should be extended to all the other parts (
iron buildings
This subject possesses strong local intel
,st. Some Of our most imposing bushes
i,losks have iron fronts, and in many others
large number Of iron columns arc employee
It might save us from calamity, similar
some respects to that at Lawrence, were e,
periments at once instituted to ascertain II 4
these are perfectly secure. Such exaninatio
would not lie attended with muc. cost au
faulty columns or plates could bc replaced I
a small outlay. We merely make the sugge
ton. Whether it he followed or not, we tru:
no further use Of iron in buildings will be mat
id tlis city without suhecting every piece use
! | to most rigid test.
: New Jersey in Line.
, The cali for National Convention ut Chic
20 has been promptly responded to By the 20
position Party" Of New Jersy. 4 State Co
vention has been called to elect delegates to Il
Chicago Convention, and with entire upanin,i
among the Opposition who swept the State Ia
e.N Tl.A Es--sl. AsssAs-%+t sux;$