, 1876-10-04

thc lh8t.hAmcd plan efet hoHcFeft wHlinB 70 uo
contemplate Offering to butd the whole structure
Themselves, provided they can have a right Of
why inse II, and, prtIvlded atao, that the board
OF Commissioners will agree 70 repay half tho
laif thu expense, but viii advance tho money
for the whulc.
Surprising this arrangement succcsaful, u
would bring tho line down to North avenue, and
isksshegrs 3 g ines i H spps4ent % isste.d Of takns
roundabout colrse with bridge, tho new
scllcsnc plunges boldly at the difficulty AMI pro-
poses grant idea which l. worthy Of the city.
1t Is nothing lass than
4 TUNNEL UrnRR TIE C1TT
and tho river to tho corner Of State and Ran
dolph streets. Tie intention Is to 20 AZ rapidly
"a possible down to tho bluo clay {sotnct!mcs
called the tunnel clay and somctitncs tho LON
The kind u soil required n found at depth IT
forty feet, and considerably lover tban that.
There are, however, several other. cons!dera-
ttonB TINT would influence tho dccis.on of how
tI,cac would he to get out Of tho way Of the
water tunnel, which comes ashore about forty
feet below tho surface. To clear that would
require nearly twenty feet, counting the height
roof, 70 bc left. Having, reached The proper
level, It would be expected to follow stateattcct
To North nvcnae, where II would emerge. State
street stops at schiller' ~hero TIC oll CATHOLIC
CeHlEtefY 0CElht} ana 0GLHccn chicago alu
Notth avenues the road must run at 4 steep
grade in ortlor to get to the surface. The large
vacant lot at tho southcast corner of state and
Randolph streets would nnswer admirably for q
depot, and cxt-the lot owned by the WGst Sldo
atreGt Railway Company.
Tho frat idea to be considered in connection
with the project would, Of rorlrse, be the
possIDlLiTr or ITS SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION.
The gentlemen who conceived the idea employed
A. a. engineer to ' lex tie EFound oyer snd giss
the entire possibility Of digging tho tunnel
uniform streak OF the tluo clay. II It
should be found that the clav was full of puck
difficulty, but by no means prevent the work.
Not content with this report, TRIBUNE re-
porter yesterday called On Mr.. Clark, Chief
Civil Engineer OF tile Illinois Central Road, and
tho plan. The answer WAS TINT such tunnel
could be made through uniform streak Of clay
such as was found whcn tho lake tunnel was
constructed.
course, the cost Of such tunnel AZ Is described.
There are, unfortunately, very few data from
which to estimate Tint item, fnasmucl as moth.
ing exactly like It was ever built. The nearest
approach to It was the tunnel under the lake to
proposed one that IL llnr.lly affords much Of
basis. The engineer employed by tho project.
ors gavo as his figures 81 000, 600 as the cost Of
the tunnel from North avenue 70 tho proposed
terminus. The only other estimate that Tns
TRIBUNE can tlis nlof1cnt turn to was made In
March, 1874, by Mr. Edwin Walker, one Of the
BUILDERS Of the lake tunnel, who figured on the
cost of . tunnel under tho south side Of the
city, and concluded that It. could be built for
nr1s affords no basis Ut comparison beeause Of
the entirely changed conditions, aud tho So
called underground railways Of London aud
New York are in no sense parallel to this one "a
The estimates Of tho tunnel bnsed on tho cost
OF tho watertunncl from tho lake to tho corner
Of Twonty-socond and Halstel atrcets would
scettl to Indicate that 81 100000 mile Vas ex-
eessive. The land tunnel was 10, 500 feet, or
was contracted for at s465, ,0, or about slu3, 900
per mile In round numbers. The proposed
tunnel would hardly need to be three tillca rs
large as the water tunnel, whtrt was scvcn feet
n diameter, a1l, adding literally for extras,
The gentlemen Iwho contemplate tho tunnel
idea arc by no means set upon 1t, and have at
present tfleir ouginccr looking over and COM
putting THO cost Of another plan-that OF ruiz
and then coming down-town On an
ELEvATED RAILWAY.
This, however, Will hardly be seriously enter'
tntned, when the vigorous opposition Of tho
allouid be selected, for nstanec; II would be d,
Council whom the fierce opposition OF tho resl.
dcnts un that street Was taken into account
An elevated railway may bo-and probably ID
on residence street. Thu elevated road would
also lofcat this ilcn cf rapid transit by l,nsng tc
submit to = bridge and the conscgucne waits.
The gentlemen It tho head OF the third com
pany have aleo instructed tfcir engineer to ro
port on line along " the sands," but It Is moi
probable TINT anything will come Of TINT.
TlIH PkOrLH WHO HAVE Ttfls NATTER IN MINE
nre principally residents Of Boston who havt
control OF capital amply sufficient to render tht
| schema success should they undertake. It
They have lind considerable experience In ar'
ranging nptd transit from the suburbs Of Bos
| ton Into Tint city. and haye found that It m.
pall. They do not, 1t Is understood. ask an,
gifts Of land from largo owners, whose propctrt,
| will lie immensely increased IN value by bcing
| brought into close proximity by quick mi
ehsy method OF gettllg Into the city, There Is nj
Doubt that were tlle projected road III running
order, 1t would add t!,reo a'A four timcs to tht
yaluo OF tnueh suburban property. 1t will there
| fore be tho part of wisdom for tho owners n
property liear the lakc-ahorc TO .pcrsuale th'
road near them by donation OF land euougt
TO bring II.
The il,nst admirable part Of the tunnel plan Il
the speed which It will enable tho trains to ,nnk
into tho very heart of thu city. With n down
grale Of two ieet to each 100 on entering tn
tunnel and for tho tlrst thrccfourtf1a of mile
It wilt be rAsy to maintain rntc Of speed a!
the way from Evanston fully equal to thae .
the Averages express-train. fliswuull cover tn
elcvon miles In about twenty minutes, and tn
passenger would have tho additional adyantng
any bridge 1t would, In fact, place Eynnsto
neaser thnn Twcnty-sccond street.
ADJUSTMENTS.
| a. r. ROWE IN DHAHS.B