The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-08-22
Ihe 8utland Daily 6lobs.
FRIDAY, AUGUST % 1873.
Especial correspondence OF the Globe.l
The Clearing out of Hell Gate.

New York, ArG. 10, 1873.
Editor Rutlond Globe We have lust
returned from a visit to the government
works at Hell Gate. This is the name by
which the narrow channel connecting Long
Island Sound with New York harbor is
known. Some, though modestly call it
Hurl Gate, because the former is a very
Ii I'd name /; but it is none too hard for the
place, for there is not more dangerous
passage on our whole coast, and a very
large quantity of commerce and steamboat
travel pass through this dangerous gate to
the sound. The hour of high tide varies
on either side of the gate, that is, in the
( sound one side and in New York harbor the
other, so as to cause a powerful current to
| pass through either one way or the other
more than half the time, thus making it
extremely difficult for vessels to escape be-
ing driven upon the dangerous rocks with
which the channel is filed. One immense
ledge, which if removed would afford a
safe and easy passage for shipping, extends
from the southeastern shore far out into the
narrowest part of the channel, just out of
sight below the surface of the water at low
tide. Upon this point of land the United
States Government have for several years
had force of engineers and miners at work
with view to remove this submarine ledge
of work. This gang of men are now at
work far out under the waters of the chan
the ledge down into little cars which carry
the broken rock upon an iron railway
out through the long submarine tunnels;
and here they will keep at work until the
great reef, which has been the dread of sal
Tors for so long, shall be completely honey
combed, with but shell of rock remaining
between the workmcn's heads and the dash
ing waters of the channel above.
! The works were commenced close to the
waters edge, upon the point of land re-
terrcd to, by cutting down into the solid
rock some % to 30 feet, forming n pit we
should say 80 to 60 feet in diameter This
is protected from the water at high tide by
a wall or dam, extending entirely around
the water side, some six to eight feet high.
From the bottom of this shaft the main tun-
nels extend out under the stream, and thus
undermine this troublesome ledge. There
are eleven openings from the main shaft,
as we will call the pit first spoken of, which
divide into still others as they extend out
under the sea. The wOrkmen have got
a1,,ft ,ft ii,
Of the country. The name of cacl, shaft
is painted on IA board and placed over the
entrance. Washington, Jackson, Grant,
Lincoln, Greeley, Mcclellan, Colfax, Shcr-
drcary caverns. do not remember seeing
Buffers name among them, and it is GER
tainly an oversight, for this is certainly the
biggest ''blowing' job the country affords
Perhaps they thought the subernational
bow-up he will get in Massachusetts next
fall will be enough tor him this year. If
they should not succ ed in raising nitro
gyccrinc gas enough next year to smash
these He'll Gate rocks, they can send for
Ben b.
The longest of these shafts have now reached
about three hundred feet from the main
shaft, and the ledgcs cut up by many cross
shafts, so that person can pass out under
the river in the shaft TO the west, and pass
around from one to another and return i'll
the one extending to the east. They pro-
nose to continue this kiId of cxcavating in
this very hard rock, until it is nearly all cut
away, making an immense submarine cata-
comb, which will then be well stocked with
| Nitro Glyccrinc, and the terrible upheaval
of water and rock which must result is OK
pected to forever rob the famous Hell Gate
! of its terrors. The fish ar. to be notified
to stand clear by telegraph cable, and who
knows but some enterprising yankee may
undermine with nitro-glycerine the gates
to that other place of parallel name, and
blow up, but we decidedly object to any
thing of the kind for the entrance there is
far too easy now.
But to our subject. This is certainly II
most critical and gigantic undertaking. The
rock is cut so thin over head in many places
that the W; ter drips through the crevces
of the rock and Il powerful steam pump is
kent constantly at work to keep the men
from being driven out by the water, and we
required an umbrella to save thorough
drcnching during our visit under the river.
Two long causeways cxteud more than a
thousand feet each out upon the beach
formed of the broken rock brought up from
the shaft. This immense mine is not cX-
pcctcd to be ready to explode before next
wear at least, for the process of cutting
away this very hard rock must necessarily
be very slow, and the work to be done is
immense.
Plans and drawings of this work were laid
before the royal commission at the Vienna
Exposition, and it was awarded the first
prize at the most difficult and daring price
of engineering skill in the world. Travel
crs have spent much paper and ink dilating
upon the wonders of rock-cut passages in
the alps, and the famous causcways OF
Ireland, but here isa similar work under
the waters of the raging and angry sea
which beat them all to pieces. And what
do we practical Americans propose to do
with it? Keep it to show curiosity-scckers
and guidc-book visitors? No; but to blow il
into thousand fragments, to open there
by highway for the commerce of the
world.
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