Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1874-07-30
The Longest Pile Yet.

On the line of the Baltimore Pitts
burgh X Chicago Railroad courses IL
diminutive stream of water, sometimes
called "A " river" This curling little cur
rent crossesthc right of way of the road
in Indiana, near the Ohio State line, and
has been about as troublesome To civil
engineers rs il could well be 1t was of
a character 10 forbid embankment, vet too
narrow and shallow to Justify the con
struction of Il substantial and expensive
permanent bridge; therefore the only
practicable and feasible method of ef-
tcCting a crossing seemed to he by means
of piled trestle. SO, therefore, the
contractor was instructed to bring his
pie-drivers, and under the direction of
an engineer employed on the work OPP
erations were begun. Nothing SO
very wonderful occurred until IL short
time ago when il was found that nm
ordinary pile was not of sufficient length
10 form foundation of requisite FIRM
ness, so, of course, the engineer recon-
mended splicing And therefore
splicing was adopted. Pile No pene-
trated nothing but boggy crust; Nos. 2
and met no different strata, and not
until No, had been driven almost its
entire length was bottom reached.
But one or two blows from the ponder
Gus cube apparently forced this timber
through the crust which was about
seventy-tive feet below the surface, so
additional splicings were consummated,
the crudite engineer meanwhile assuring
the contractor that "a solid bottom could
soon be reached But alas what unccr-
tainties attend the calculations OF the
most infallible pile-dryer The operation
was continued till eight splicings had
been made, each twenty feet or so in
length, and still the engineer said
"whack 'em in" As the contractor
is paid by the foot, he did "whack
em in and was undoubtedly glad
TO do it, Then twelve splicngs were
effected and the depth reached was re-
corded at 240 feet and over Then came
10, 10, II and ~, but there was no bot
tom in that direction The distance
driven was now $50 feet, and all won
dered why :" this was thus" Then num-
bers 10, 20, u, % and % were driven, and
a small boy was dispatched to the other
side of the globe to see if the point OBJ
truded. When the unprecedented depth
of j75 feet had been reached the fact
was transmitted along The entire line till
it reached the ears Of Assistant WEIGH,
who Immediately remarked that strata
Of rock had been met, and, the splicings
being defective, had failed to hold But
nevertheless numbers "a and % were driv-
en-, making the total distance penetrated
the extraordinary one Of SIR httHdred and
Twenty-Five feet. The engineer in charge
still advised continuance, even if it
took all summer and several forests of
piles, and operations would have pro-
ceeded had not telegram been received
from Chief Engineer Randolph, dated at
Baltimore, advising a cessation Of labor.
He had heard Of the big feat away oil in
Baltimore. and, being sensible, prac-
teal engineer. had formed the same con
cluson Mr.. WEIGH had A bore vas
transported 10 the scene Of operations,
and on drilling il was ascertaned that at
the depth of seycniytiye feet bed of
solid rock had been reached, through
which no passage-way could be forced.
The explanation Of The 62j feet is ap-
parent enough On striking the strata
Of stone the piles had broken, and IA 600
could have been driven in the same way.
-Lhtrogo itmss.