Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1877-10-19
"Who strides the fence?
=, says THE PHdNi1 brave,
My bacon for To- save,
! stride the fence"

The tail obelisk. nearly ~ feet III length
which stood on Heliopols 800 years before
the commencement of the Christian era and
which has long lain half buried in the sand at
Alexandra. il now ou it, way Ia England Ii
WIS erected at HeiopoliA by an Egyptian mon
arch supposed 10y many to be identical with
the Scriptural Pharaoh. and was removed to
Alexandria-a distance Of about 500 miles
probably during the reign Of the Caesars at
Rome. 1t now comes to England 10y novel
method ~ trnsport-thAt u.s. it Is incosed il
m iron ,yliuder air-tight. wedge shaped at
both ends and tow behind n steamer The
cylinder draws from eight to ten feet Of water,
and has wings, OF rather inns. on each side. to
keep it from rolling over. The Needle il
90 feet long and : feet inches square at its
base, tapcriug in width to feet. . inches Ii
weighs about 22O tons. Their appears to be
but little doubt felt ~ to the safety OF the
means of transit to England. and the attention
of the Londoners is almost wholly engrossed
by the question whore the obelisk can be- set
up to the best advantage. With their pro
verbal caution about thcs- matters, they have
gone so far 10 put up temporary models in
one or two placer in order to judge Of the eff
feet Oh beholders Of the 300 year old relic
when it gets along,
The following description is given of tho
ingenious method by which the task Of float
ing this immense mass of stone was accom-
plished;
The iron cylinder which cncloscs It was
built up and riyeted together around the ODE
E.l- he ivpt, fIf,e uaaH .fUltf,fr 81 w.
The air spaces of the cylinder We're SO calcu-
lated as to be sufficient 10 float the whole.
Two months Were occupied in this part of the
work. which included digging away the sand
beneath the stone, pushing the stone with
hydraulic jacks till it was parallel with the
waters cGge. and constructing a sloping road
of broken rock down 10 the water The iron
cylinder il - feet long, and H. feet III dame
ter. Al around this iron box. wood plankinp
WAL strapped lH,t and then the whole contriv-
aucy Wa rolled sideways down to the water.
70 max, i ron. ropes were passed around 1t,
and wound upon vinches fixed on vessels in
the water Other ropes also passed around it,
| which uuwound slowly from winches on shore
behind the stone preventing It from rolling
too fast. When the strain was first put on "a
start it, the vessels moved instead. dragging
| their anchors; steam tugs We're substituted
| and when they put on fun steam to 90 ahead
| the great cylinder rolled. It's movement was
so slow as scarcely to be perceptiblc, and the
| greater part Of two days was occupied in reach
ing the water. Then a disappointment await
ed the toilers the cylinder filed with water
and powerful pump could not empty the ali
| spaces A stone had broken a hole into the
| cylinder, and the stone was wedgsd in the
| hole. So the cylinder had to be rolled bucl
| till the hole was uppermost; the hole wa
then patched, the cylinder pumped out, an
other downward roll was effected, and tn,
| strange craft WAS ahoat