The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1884-04-25

four feet in height and 2H feet in diameter, the
ment resembles coffee mill but the grinding APP
paratus, instead of revolving, turns back and
FORTH, crushing the hardest niggerhead stones
as if they were chalk. 1t has capacity of a ton
minute. A revolving apron, with buckets, car
ries the crushed stone out of the way, The stone
completed in about 80 days The Hopes com
pany also have the contract for building abut-
ments for the bridges over the Big Gunpowder
and over the county road leading from Dieter 8
Mill to Magnolia. The Big Gunpowder bridge
will have span of 1866 feet between the abut-
emnts and will be Il feet high. 1t will be COM
menced next month.
DEEP CUT.
Two miles east of the Little Gunpowder the
railroad will pass through a cut AZ feet deep. h.
G. Huston Il Co., are working out this contract,
Mr.. VIM. Harris experimenting the work. The
varies in color from the best New Orleans sugar
to the purest and whtest granulated. Twenty
or thirty horse scoops IN endless procession,
carry the sand up the steep hill sides of the
cut, depositngi it on land bought by the railroad
company for the purpose. Millions of bushels
are already piled up and many more millions will
be added to them before the cut is finished. This
sand, it is believed, can be made a source of pro-
fit to the railroad company, by transporting it
to the cities for building purposes. The scoops
are about four feet long, made of iron, and re-
semble an oblong box. Two horses are attached
ground and when the box is full a lever raises it
from the ground and ton of sand or earth is
carried OF at load. Each team carries out of the
cut a load in five minutes.
This cut extends across the Magnolia and
Mountain road, over which the railroad company
is building good bridge of 14O feet span, with IL
condition in few days. AS soon as good weather
is assured Messrs. Huston g. Co. will largely in
crease their force, working day and night using
electric lights.
BIG FRESHMAN.
On the next contract, that of Ryan Mcdonald,
on the farm of Mr.. j. b. McComas, a steam shovel,
or big Irishman,' as the hands call it, may be
seen at work in a cut Is feet deep. Mr.. Henry
Wait manages the monster 1t is capable of ex-
cavating 40 feet in length 40 feet in width 10
feet in depth, or about 1000 cubic yards day,
tus resembles the dredges used in deepening
harbors. 1t is worked by steam engine, placed
on wheels which rest on a railroad track The
so-called shovel is attached to the end of mas
sive beam. 1t consists of a box about feet
square, open at the top and one side. From the
beam is tilted down until the teeth of the shovel
rest against the bottom of the bank The engine
putfs and snorts, the teeth enter the bank and
the shovel serapes upward, tearing out large
stumps, boulders and everything in its way
When full it sW ings gracefully around to the side
over a car placed there for the purpose, the bot
tom drops and the shovel full of earth is deposit
ed in the car Two shovels full load the car,
which is run out of the way, an empty car taking
Its place. Each car holds three cubic yards.
The shovel is perfectly under the command of
the brakeman and can be directed at will at any
point of the work within its radius. When an
excavation of four feet in length is made a track
a track is laid in front of the machine and it
moves forward for fresh attack. The work is
somewhat dangerous, accidents being not uncom-
mon.
When car Is full ring attached to a chain is
slipped over pin IN the SIDE OF the car and by
impetus which sends it down the track to Join the
rest Of the loaded train. Immediately an emp
ty car Is urged forward in similar manner from
siding, and the process is repeated indefinitely.
When ten or dozen cars are filed a little steam
engine conveys them three-quarters OF mile
about rs feet. The track is laid on trestle on
which the cars are run. Some of the cars are
dumped on one side. some on the the other and
from
tom.
If boulder or stump too large to enter the
shovel is encountered the shovel Is acted as
derrick and by means of heavy chain the boul-
der or stump is lifted into the car. The cost of
GLIDING drivers, &C.. are required to operate 1t.
Ryan & Mcdonald also have a steam shovel
at work on Rev. Geo. Morrson's farm, near
Chase,s Baltimore county, another on Mrs.
Sewells farm, below Abingdon, and two others
at other points. In a few days they expect to
have six at work. On Monday night they began
working with electric lights on Mrs seweiI's
farm. A large culvert is being built on this
farm, the stone for which are being hauled from
Hooker's Mill. Some difficulty has been encoun-
tered at fill Of 80 feet on this place. the treste
having sunk ~ feet in one night. The track was
blocked up and earth will be dumped in until 1t
ceases to settle. There is also cut of 40 to 80
feet on the same farm, which has just been
commenced. About $50 men are working on this
section.
Major Scales, the contractor on Mr.. j. A. Cum
ningham's place, adjoining, is working in the old
The new railroad runs between the p. w. and
3. and the old post road. The latter was in olden
times the great highway between Baltimore and
side of it has a legend Of Washington, Lafayette
or jackson having slept in it. These worthless
must have travelled great deal or were sleepy
headed set.
The railroad crosses the post road two miles
west of Aberdeen, on Wells g. Osborn's farm,
where land was purchased for depot.
The nearest point of approach of the two rail-
roads is at Swan Creek, where they are about $50
yards apart and in full view of. each other
nod will baa cod
on bridge of 80 feet span, supported by massive
granite abutments one of which is completed.
Nearly all the public roads in Hartford county
are crossed by bridges or tunnels.
THE BRIDGE OYER THE sUsoUEHANNA.
Se n az Mrs the aad
VIM, Osborn. Joseph Mitchell, Henry A. Osborn,
J. Henry Greepway, Capt 4, Gropner's heirs, Lewis
skirtinR along the hillside north of Havre de
Grace, to Cooleys Point. This is bold bluff,
containing valuable stone quarry; 1t belongs
way for the raj lroad was recently condemned
through il by q jury. This quarry will form, in
the Hartford side, although a small abutment
will be added. The bridge will be mile and a
quarter long. In the middle of the river. oppe-
site, Is Watson's Island, formerly Palmers, but
now named Garrett Island. which will form a
convenient resting place for two. piers of the
on the Hartford side of the island and two on the
Cecil side. The water VARIES in depth from ii
70 40 feet, and the mud from 30 to 60 feet. Below
deepest water is on the Cecil side.
The contract for these Ave immense piers has
been awarded to Gen. VIM. Sooy Smith & Son.
of Chicago, who are at work upon them To get
to the solid rock below the mud a process SINH
lar to that used in constructing the great New
York and Brooklyn bridge will be resorted to-
Caissons will be used, in which men work under
the water, In excavattng the mud. The largest
of these will be 70 by ~ feet Two of these Gals
sons are already completed and in the river one
on each side of Watson's Island, and the other
three are being built on the shore at Point Con-
cord, ut the lower end of Havre de Grace.
The caisson Is merely a wooden diving-belI
consisting Of an air chamber, 8K feet high, the
walls of which are two feet thick, made Of the
best yellow pine timber, IL inches square, strong
ly fastened together with iron spikes about tx
feet long and an inch square. Heavy timbers
also form the ceiling. The interior Is cauked
with oakum and pitch, like the hull of vessel in
order to make IL air and water-tght, In the
middle an iron funnel, 3 or feet In diameter is
placed, alongside of which are four iron pipes
three inches In diameter. The caisson is then
launched and towed to the exact SPOT where pier
is wanted. 1t is fastened in place and more heavy
square timbers are spiked on the top of the craft
layer after layer. until 81 feet of wood is piled
up. On top Of this crib-work of timber ia built
in which concrete or artificial stone is placed =
As the weight becomes heavier the caisson sinks
until the mud Is reached. Compressed air ia Their
forced into the air chamber, which expels the
weter, and the workmen descend through the