New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1875-06-10
THE CIVIL ENGINEERS.
CONVENTION OF TIE AMERICAN SOCIETY

DOLLY WARDEN AND TOM COLLINS.
THROW A STAFF CORRESPONDENT OF THE rnInuNE'l
Prrrsr,rtou. June Stalking into account the
stories of last Winters strike among the non WORK
err the subsequent and still existing trouble WIN
the coal miners and the general depression OF busi-
ness interests it would not have been matter OF
sprprise 70 have found the FORCES of this city dark
and silent and the hstessness OF hard times appar-
ont among her people. But exactly Che contrary is
the fac. Pittsburgh was never more busy in
"making IRON than at the present moments the
price OF the metal has advanced during the past
week aud orders to deliver il in the future at present
prices are scorned. Tho streets are lively with cont
merce and though dark cloud hangs over The Guy,
il is The product Of her furnaces and the evidence
of her wontcd activity. Only along the leyeo on the
Mononeahela side. where at least two score STERN
wheeers are tricct up with their heels against to
bank awaiting rise of the river which shall give
them opportunity to tow coal b"rgeS GOWN 10
Cmcinnati. ST. Louis and Orleans. il there any
evidence Of stagnston. During the suspension OF
work the ironmasters sold out their manufactured
st.ck and bought raw material at low prices. To-
lay every one of the iron works in and aronnd Ptts
lureh. except two that are hopoessly cntangied IN
bankrnptcy are vomiting black smoke from their
tall chiIancys busy with new orders.
SONY or THE CIVIL FNGINEFRs.
ynto ffs smoky city the railway trains last nght
md this morning projected 20 OF 80 fhouehtful
looking men, members of the American society Vi
Civil Engineers. Fully 100 had signiied Their IN
tention 10 he present. but many were prevented Dy
their en- gagements from coming. There arc many
young men in this assembage, but as Class they
have a studious appearance, and look as II they hau
scs their hearts ON mathematics All of these men
tlatip one way or another ara fmnous, cannot mere
be named. but among those whom it wonid he a
not tn Lpnxy we
Archibald. Chief Engineer of the Delaware and
Iackawanna Railroad; Morris s. Bclknar an en-
piueer Of the Louisville Bridge; Alfred +. Boiler
late of the Phpsville Bridge George A. Briggs'
Railroad Commissioner of Massachusetts; Thomas
e. Clarke of the Phenixvilie Iron Works Robert l..
Cooke, Engineer in the Now-York Department or
Public Parks and having much to do with the
sewerage in the new wards Of the city; Theodore
Cooper I'm cineer Of the st. Louis Bridge: George NJ
Copeland. connected with the steam boiler eApell-
mcnts in New-York barbor; Francis COllingwood,
Assistant Err gineer on the East River Bridge; JOS
r. Davis, City Engineer of Boston +. De Funiak,
Chief Tpgneer of the Louisville Southern Railway;
Gen. T. G. Ellis, Government Engineer Of Connecti-
cut River improvements Rudolph FINK
of the Louisville Bridge; Charles ii.
Fisher Chief Engineer New-York Central Railroad
David VI. Greene, Deputy State Engineer OF New
York, we'll known to inventors concerning steam
IN canals {" Clemens Herschel, q Boston engineer;
Al. Hoey, the noted Bessemer Steel Works engi-
nccr; Thomas d. Levitt the venerable busenergehc
manager whe shifted the entire gauge of the Ohio
and Mississippi Railroad in few hours: Gabriel
Leyerich the genial Secretary of this Society; VIM.
b!etcalf now prominent in experimenting the man
ufactura of great guns in this city; Charles Mac
donald, well known engineer of New-lork; +. L.
Prindle Of League Island Penn; w. Minor Roberts,
Chief Engineer of the Northern Pacific Railroad
r. T. Rotliwoll, editor of The Engineering and Mining
Journal: J. II. Shcdd Chief Engineer of the Proyl-
dence Water Works; VIM. p. Shinn of Pittsburgh,
who presided over the deliberations OF tins meeting;
T.. Slataper Chief Engineer of the Pennsy lvania
Railroad Company; j. button Steele of Pennsyl-
yania. whose counsel was called for in the con-
struct,on of the East River Bridge. But from even
This long list some notable are doubtless
omitted.
PirIsBURGus ENGINEERING HISTORY.
Mr. julius w. Adams. the President of the Society,
being unayoidably absent. his place filed by
Col Minor W. Roberts, the Vice-President, who, in
lieu of the usual official address, offered sketch of
Che history Of engineering in and around Pittsburgh
I'm which he had himself borne part. He referred to
the fact that than 100 years ago George Wash
iagton then young engineer, pointed out the juno
fon of the Allegheny and Mouongahea Rivers as a
fitting sits for q future city. A rapid though de-
tailed sketch gave the names of the principal cng
neers snd the works they effected i'll this vicinity,
especially a. to canals and railroads The enumera-
ton of these improvements rendered Interesting
by local and personal illusions, which covered the
whole history of Pittsburgh and the ncighboring
towns during period in which then pOpula-
ton grew from 10000 TO 100000. Among
these noble works Col. Roberts referred to
Che first suspension bridge built i'll this
conptry, in which the late John A. Roebling
assisted, and the bridge of tie same kind, which
still spans the Allegheny, which he constructed. The
speaker took the occasion To urge the adoption Of
the lock and dam system for improving the Ohio
River. Among the excellent things vi Pittsburgh
lie did not forget the work of Prof S. L. Langley,
the astronomer of Allegheny Observatory, which
has shed renown upon American science. The address
closed with the remark that the Society had met not
TO hear speeches, but to discuss; not to instruct,
but to be instructed
Mr. VIM p Shinn of Pittsburgh was then called
upon TO preside over the meeting He wei
coined the Society to this city, in few felicious
remarks; the Secretary, Mr. Gabriel Leverich
was REFLECTED unanimously, and the work Of
the day began. AT these meetings the Society
has papers on new topics presented. 1t con-
fines itself to discussion of those that have pre-
yiously been published Much of the discussion is
necessarily technical and would not be of interest
10 tho general reader OF this sort respect
ing tho construction of drawbridges. i'll the
of which Mr.. Herscbe mentioned that lifting
bridge had boon projected in Germany with 500
feet draw. In regard to the substitution of new
bridge for old without interfering with rail-
roads, Mr. Ellis mentioned remarkable instance of
q long iron bridge being built in Connecticut so as
10 take the place of wooden one, without delaying
the passage of a single train.