, 1866-11-28
THE LAKE TUNNEL.
The Eighth Wonder OF tho World
Fcats of Engineering Skill-How
They Net Beneath the Harc.
LETTER FROm THE BOARD OF
FUBLlC WORKS.

LETTER FROM THE BOARD OF
PUBLlC WORKS.
Chicago was 1GBg time sluee voted the eighth
wonder Of the world, and none have disputed II
for year. past though there be some who have
tstiven 10 ridicule the claims put forth, not 70
much by the p.ople Of this city as By thnsc who
have conc here TO look and to wonder At our
1ruw1uR G. eainess. Chicago Is q conclomcsasc
wonder, bceausc she Is made up OF :vonders-fun
Of intensified vitality, which Is always moving.
and always moving ahead.
The Int wonder !. our wonderful tunnel, which
Is now 80 near completion thst only llttle wall
Of clay. te.ree more than foot In thickness, d.
been approaching csea other 30 long and with
SNch painful elowness that weso We not drm be-
levers in the certainty OF the accomplishment OF
issnf ss{s SoaSd e. Would me IT, ~s 81
ssRs; seSisved "a nc iSo @,s. .ad esysa feet 4
whose grandeur sNl only be cclfpsed in The fu-
ture by something else That Chic1go sha!I do, as
in r! sond59T. ~, %.reh she shows the peoples q
icetmutt fall, II they viii also 70 iorua.d d surely
and certainly in the progress towards The perfee
The work on the tunnel WAS comparatively
nothing It was lhe inception md lie daring
which determined 10 carry ont tho idea 10 suc-
The ron6dence in tie ability IL busrow two miles
ont under the lake. and Then come up 70 the sur
faee In deep water, vas q taat sublime kind
mountains. lhe work might have been difficult,
but il Vas not 20; II was Unexpectedly easy, md
Whs two er hrss ses ss
ted Tor Vas lonnd 70 be nnneedcd:
iesI There Was one difnculty IN the work-the
meeting. Just thtnk OF the difficulty Of starting
ont blfudfolded, to fuu a mile and = half In one
direction. and TO engage 10 meet full butt another
man who would staIt TWO mules ofr With the same
nesiiy as thst hey sa.i @eet IL MD al9 Il Even
these are easy compared with tho task sci for the
engineers q that gigantic Undertaking whose
donrt' Is the question which i, now being asked
BY hundrcdF. who have full faith In the old maxim
| Scarcely 20. We oplne ihat when this mode Of
procedure shall be eomprehcnded, the wonder
will salics increase than diminish aud the almost
snPe'hn%.n character Of the 1s>s be only then
'o1s " 'ss tsali 10. attempt scientific description or
TN To If es as' s he S.ssas ut S " es s
| unlrtoTmed or course compass could not b:
depended upon to give Other 1han a mere general
direction, a. even tt the points could ne read ~!
prob bly have d.rangrd It 70 an unu-able extent.
f et nena cnsn psss
pieree. M ~. |. vas vas tone BY simply fixing ths hing
i1s fi Was sSoYe ground 81
aishs,nc orer lie water from no.h ends, and hen
# The TSs e.
lions Of pInc feet vi tch stretched across the per.
nendtcn1ar shafS-thcy orly nine feet IN diameter.
Tho dificu'ty then resolved tttclf simply into
Length 10 = distance Of one md a ha,r m,les, the
tborter line having BEEN procured bY twlsttns
;,ct 10 % III The Iunccurac!cs due 10 lusutacicn,
iisht, SC. IN error 10 ihe direction Of lhc o!1s
l
nRpf pG o,a;tetnih psrt Of nm i,eh IN The dirsc
lion q tic lniial lI&c to etSry ssctts'
clear by the Other on A. Independent etalte 9! u
own towards the Aicalean % shnle. ing iaet iaS
ineht. shows that tho direction oF the radical Ia
use true to Within the one hundreath part Of a:
lion vas absolutely i1ne, though carried ont in H.
1nrlnsss.
Bnt il tht* accuracy hc wonderful, the elosen~a
Tie txo sections f1ayc met within nnr tneh of NJ,
n.ns;rn,.s measurement. The atiticaty 81 tJ1 Oh
.annE tas st ,s tas.is srs - i.Snn 'rnn; n
ssa !.;n: .H1fses is nerer s,,1, md that thert
as the ng,g h.,c%t az liz .borc ean ncyer b. rci,e
.ose. NY @ n H. ~ lts, ~ -, snr Ssnlnt ~ ahnre
OF rs giving @ the = IN 5 poans "a non II
en IN 1te y vron, ,e.c tn noin1, anst hay
been conducted van an aefSsaey Maaeto ,o,a. ~
kAoMn " our ely, VI ,., ~ 49,, s,an.
LOT W., oe ., III. ,s. @ snw.sds ho nv
~ she ta! q !Nn tcst pss M e .9"aas .c ri, 9iv
ena ~ ae ~ NY ienrth h.
1" a sn, th tpe eno bnndrcd u an isth naIt OF
Al inch. o. iere ihau ouc-thousandth part or
- inch 70 @ eseh p 1901 loo , ,.., r,oucD, +, n.,d,
hst y S ow % PIT .n ;srq , H. hest nseas ,1.3
Sn Eys t9 ths men "" nasS s So @ ~ st
i'd 81 lug l., ~ ,S,a ~ anTnsnrs az yyooI !,
other sy u t1e %"fn nns r.; ,9 10 b.ye e1
rh{fs ,rr msY assert vxifhont fenr of contradict
r" shot no other municipal hody has bccu able
an n ~ .on nsTe s's 10 oaS aempt H. rsasaion 'o'a