Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1883-06-01

The great East river bridge, which was
opened to public use last Thursday, had its
first definite conception in the brain of the
engineer John A. Roebling. The original
plans were made by him, and the preliminary
work began under his direction, but he did
not live to see the first stone laid. In the
summer Of 1869, while engaged in fixing the
location of the Brooklyn tower, ferry-boat
entering tho slip hit the timbers on which he
stood in such manner as to catch and crush
his foot. The injury resulted In lockiaw, and
in a few days the great engineer was dead. A
fit successor was found in his son, Col Wash
ington A. Roebling, who has personally su-
perintended every step in the great work up
to its completion although for years he has
not been outside of his own room. When the
cassons were being sunk for the great towers,
he was on hand watching and directing the
work day and night, and he then contracted
the mysterious cassions disease of the nerves,
which has made him an invalid for life. The
great bridge he has never seen except through
telescope from his window, but none the
less he has had in his grasp every detail in
the progress of the great structure, and it is
through the enthusiastic and efficient aid of
his wife that he has been able to do this To
the services of Mrs. Roebling, Mr.. Hewitt
made this delicate and eloquent allusion in
his speech on the opening day
Zone name, however, which will find no
place in the official records cannot be passed
over here in silence. In ancient times when
great works were constructed, a goddess was
chosen, to whose tender care they were dedi-
Gated. Thus the ruins of the Acropolis to-
day recall the name of Pallas Athene to an
admiring world. In the Middle Ages the
blessing of some saint was invoked to protect
from the rude attacks Of the barbarians and
the destructive hand of time the building
erected by mans devotion to the worship of
God So with this bridge will ever be coupled
the thought Of one through tho subtle alem-
bic of whose brain and by whose facile fingers
communication was maintained between the
directing power of its construction and the
obedient agencies of its execution. 1t is thus
nm everlasting monument to the self sacrificing
devotion of woman"
The great bridge has five parallel avenues
of an average breadth of 1G feet, separated by
half dozen vertical lines of trusting, which
project upward like so many steel fences. The
outside avenues, devoted to vehicles, are each
nearly 10 feet wide. The central avenue has
width of 15i feet, and is elevated - feet
above all the others, for footway, thus Civ
ing to the pedestrians crossing the bridge an
unobstructed view of the river The vertical
trusting forms outside parapets eight feet
above the common bridge floor, for the socu-
rity of vehicles, etc, while the inner lines of
the same walls form inner parapets to the car
and footways. The cars, which will not be
put on before July, will be propelled back
and forth by means of a stationary engine and
endless wire rope. The greatest strain which
has yet been placed on the bridge has caused
a detection in the centre of only six inches.
The cables will at once recover from defec-
ton of four feet and there may be defec-
tion of so feet before the danger point is
reached. The difference in DETECTION between
the hottest day in summer and the coolest
day in winter will be two feet. No limit of
speed is placed on vehicles crossing the bridge.
Col. Roebling says this is the only suspension
bridge yet made on which the trotting of
horse causes no oscillation. The sustaining
weight of each of the four great cables on
which the bridge rests is ~, 900 tons.
At - o'clock Friday night, when the bridge
was really opened to public use, 2OOO people
were in line, each of them anxious to be the
first to pay penny for the privilege of walk
ing across. On Friday it was estimated that
100000 persons crossed the bridge; $4,000
was received in pennies alone for foot passen-
gers On both Friday and Saturday, at GER
tain hours, the ferries seemed deserted by
comparison, SO great was the rush of travel
across the bridge. What the regular bridge
traffic will settle down to cannot be told until
the novelty is worn of and the railway goes
into operation.