Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1876-12-08
The ST. Gothard Tunnel.

The foreign correspondent OF the
Boston Herald, writing from Leipsic
says: While at Gcoschenen | had
an opportunity of seeing the St.
Gothard tunnel, which is now being
bored through the mountains from
Goeschenen towards Germany. The
approach to the tunnel on the Goes
chenen side is in the midst Of the Wild
est and most picturesque scenery
A number of workshops, sheds, can
tines, and various small buildings
cluster about the mouth, and give to
an otherwise wild spot the busy hum
and noise of enterprise, for the click
of machinery, whistlmg Of the en-
gine, and the hammering from the
blacksmithing is incessant, as the
work is continued day and night by
gangs of two thousand men, who,
under NJ. Favre's direction, prose-
cute the work. These men have
been at work in varying numbers,
however, just four years last month,
and it will take all their energies,
united to the work of those on the
Italian side, to finish the undertak-
ing by 1880. This of course, if the
money does not give out. and there
is good deal of trouble in securing
all that is needed. At present the
entire route is surveyed from Luz
erne and Zurich to Milan, and parts
of 1t cut. In the tunnel three and
three-quarters kilometers have been
completed on the German side. and
about four and il quarter on the Itali-
an. The tunnel will be ten miles
long. The workman employed are
almost all Italians, and work eight
hours out of twenty-four. Dynamite
is used for the purpose of blasting,
and all the drills are ordinary chilled
steel, the diamond drill being unem-
ployed. The usual machine for
driving the drills is.employed, and
works entirely by means of COM
pressed air, which is brought from
the reservoirs by means of large
iron pipe. These reservoirs are sup
piled by number of condenslng
engines, turned by water, for which
purpose a mountain stream is, some
way above the north of the tunnel,
diverted Into a sluiceway. Astrength
of ten to twelve atmospheres is al
ways maintained. Compressed air
is always used to work the engine
which carries its reservoirs behind,
like tender on an ordinary engine,
onl ly it is about sixty feet long, and
of a cylinder boiler shape. 1t runs
easily and smoothly, and, being
without any heat, is much pleasanter
to work. 1t is used mainly for haul
ing the stone from the interior to a
side track, after it is brought away
from the immediate vicinity to the
blast by means of horses. Although
this tunnel and route will take a long
time to complete, it will unquestion-
ably be of the gratest service when
time is considered, as the route is
from England to Cologne, along the
Rhine to Frankfort, then Basel,
Luzerne and St. Gothard, and you
are in Italy. The engineers In
charge prove sufficiently that the
high grade to which the road attains
before passing into the tunnel will in
no way impede the hauling of freight
and that with good speed. 1t will
unquestionably be part of the di-
rect route to India from England,
and decidedly the shortest to Italy.
A competitive route through the
Rhono Valley and by the Slmplon
Pass to Italy is projected in France
to keep this travel through France,
but is still IN embryo. 1t would have
the advantage Of having the railroad
finished rs far as Seisse and built as
far as the foot of the pass.