The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1882-03-24

OSCILLATION Is excessive. There would b
: nothing to prevent the adoption even 1
| these localities Of the high bridges withou
. draws, but the higth required would be 3
: great, the length Of the approaches SO mucl
} increased, that II Is altogether probable
! that bridge builders would preie
to build under the present law.
INcREAsED COST OF FIVE HUNDRED FEE
SPANS.
Thus far this report has considered onl,
the necessities OF navigation. Justice re-
quires that the great land transportation
routes Tor whose use the bridges an, buil
should not be forced into irreyocable and
excessive expenditures, and the proposed
increase in the channel waterway should
therefore be examined from their stand
point.
In what precedes this have chiefly dis
cnssed the question for alternative meihol,
oil construction which need no. be adopted
unless bridge companies find II 10 their In
terest to do so. l have also advocated q
change in the present law aud in the pro
posed amendatory law SO that all future
bridges over the Ohio shall have channel
spans giving clear water way q 500 feet
My reasons for the proposed Increase have
been stated, and 1t only remains 10 ex,
anime into the question Of the effect Of
such an increase upon the cost OF bridges
No question Of practicabiiity is involved
One OF the later bridges over the Ohio.
that at Cincinnati, built by the Cincinnati
Southern Railway in 1877, has slch a
channel span, aud the bridge Just anthoriE.
ed ut Henderson is also to have 500 foot
span, this concession having been vol.
unfairly made at the request OF coal
shippers.
As the only truss bridge thus far built in
the United States with five hundred foot
water way 900 foot span) is the one nj This
GIty Just mentioned, ! applied to the
Chief Engineer Of the railroad for an esti.
mate OF the additional cost Of that span.
taking into consideration the correspond.
ing reduction in the length Of the adjacent
spans. The calculation Is necessarily only
approximate to the sum oil the cost Of The
bridge Us originally designed with 400
loot span, and could be determined only
by estimate, aud he concludes that The
extra cost was Si0,S9l. As the price Of
bridge work has, however, increased since
the building OF this bridge from seven
cents TO nine cents per pound, the present
cost OF like change would be Sjl $50
In round numbers, we may assume that
bridges over the Ohio, with their mn.
proaches, vary in cost from 100000 TO 81.
$4,000 depending upon locality and pp0n
the prevailing prices OF labor and mater
rHl at the time OF the construction. and
the additional cost OF u 5OO.loot water wny
is therefore from three TO six per cent II
the cost Of the bridge, which is certainly
very small IN view OF the great increase Of
safety to navigation which will result, and
1t Is therefore evident that a law in
creasing channel openings to 800 feet could
not be considered ms oppressive.
In the bill introduced by Mr.. Town.
Shend, Il is provided that at OF the spans
Of the high bridge shall have four hundred
teet clear width OF water way. In my iudy.
ment four hundred feet is not enough
for the channel span and is unnecessary In
the side span. One well located clan.
mel span OF five hundred feet water
way will amply provide for NIL descending
navigation while the necessities Of econo.
nical construction will make all the side
spans wide enough for an ascending nayi.
CATION without the interference OF law.
pEFEcTs IN TIE PRESENT nRlnGE LAW.
II any additional legislation is to be had
on Ohio river bridges advantage should be
taken Of the opportunity to remove what.
ever defects have been discovered in the
present law during the ten wears Of its ex.
existence. Under this law have been bgil,
the railroad bridges at Beaver, Pa, and al
Cincinnati, Ohio, Cincinnati Sonthernl,
and the bridges ut Pt. Pleasant, W. Va, al
New Albany, Ind, and at Henderson, XIV,
have been authorized. And these bridges
have been reported up1n by Gaards OF en-.
gineers, and in every case / lave been a
member OF such boards. The following
defects have been discovered:
FIEST--ALL SPANS SHOULD DErnRoudlt STAINS.
The present law requires only the chan.
mel span to be n Through" span, Ii all
the spans were through" spans, ascend.
ing steamboats, aud tows could pass under
any span and thus save delay and danger
OF collision in ease descending boats we're
approaching the channel span. All of the
spans Of the Cincinnati Southern Bridge
were Voluntarily made Through spans,
much to the advantage OF navigation, and
there is no reason why other bridges should
not be similarly constructed. The differ.
ence IN cost is very little, while the differ.
ence in adnptedness TO navigation is very
great.
stCoSD-HEIGltT SHOULD He MEASURED To
TIE LOWEST PART OF TIE span,
The present law requires the measure.
ments to be made to the bottom chord OF
the bridge. As most bridges are now built.
with their roadway bearers suspended he.
l2w their bottom chord, the wording should
be changed as indicated in the order 20 that
the tHll height contemplated by the Law
may be preserved.
REST PIEEs FOR DRAWS wuEN OPEN.
Bridges with draws should be required
to have protection or rest piers above the
pivot piers, and the space between these
two should be TILED with crib work, or
with q float, so the boats may enter the
draw with safety. This arrangement has
been made ut every bridge over the upper
Mississippi, and was prescribed for the
Cincinnati Southern railroad bridge bv the
Board OF Engineers who reported upon Il,
The Secretary OF War, however, did not in
sist upon this protection pier, US he was
evidently uncertain as to his right to do SO,
although he Yarned the trustees that ii
they omitted it the courts OF law might
enforce its construction. This pier was
omitted, and in consequence the passage OF
this draw is considered by all boatmen rs
extra,haz2ar'!ous and is generally avoided
According to general engineering, protec.
! ton with piers are essential and necessary
parts OF every draw bridge, and so us their
existence Is necessary othe safe passage OF
the draw their construction shall be en-.
forced by law.
PouHrEf-GSoEsrucTED ACCESS TO THE DRAW.
1t is also essential that the approaches to
the draw span should not be obstructed
by boats or fleets mOorethto the banks in
the near vicinity, either above or below,
| The pasSape Of The draw ANN ~ ,L. T;,,o;,,