The Red Cloud chief., 1884-11-28
AN ENGINEERING WONDEK.


the NIUDie Oh tuE ttitfst - Dsk
tiers broad and even meters high. and
framed in light gray granite. upon
which Is carved an Austrian imperial
eagle and the emperor name Tor the
first hundred meters the tunnel forms a
curve. but afterwards IL pursues il
course in one straight line as far az
Langen. II j. best 10 take n seat at
the right side of the railway car. and
then the window may be- opened and q
reflector lantern will show all the pecu-
/ liarities Of the interesting construction
We were at first startled by the Kissing
noise made BY the train in the narrow
vault. The smoke winds in dark vol
umcs along the roofs Of the cars, aud
| sinks behind the train suddenly shut
ting out the light which had hitherto
! shown the walls Of the tunnel. or had
been visible as a convex lentil-
The engine works with so much
! steam power that it emits large tl;ops
| of condensed steam and even ashes.
Large white figures mark the distance
at every twenty meters. AT a height of
two meters runs the alarm bell cable.
After fifty meters the walls begin to be
damp. At every one hundred meters
there is a niche for the guard-the niche
1T three hundred meters contains a sig
nal lantern which can be managed by
means of a cable reaching from the sta
tions at either end Of the tunnel. At
every kilometer, that is every one thou
sand meters distance, there is 4 niche
twice as deep as the signal-light inches,
containing a signal bell, of which the
whole tunnel contains eleven. There Is
also a marble slab concentrating the
emperor's first visit to the tunnel. Be
tween the fifteenth and sixteenth hun
dred meters the rain falling uninter-
ruptediy is louder than the noise of the
engine. The rain is caught in pipes
and conducted into a canal under the
tunnel. which has six fountains
of delicious water, whose cool waves re-
duce the temperature Of the tunnel to
l3 degrees Reaumur.
When the wind comes from the west
and the day is clear, it is possible to see
the light of day on the western side.
called the Star of Langen," immedi-
ateiy after the fourth kilometer. 1t is,
indeed, but a small star, viewed at the
distance of six thousand meters. The
highest point of the tunnel is now
reached, and the time for economizing
steam has come. Later. OF when the
descent is rapid, the steam is used to
prevent the engine from going too fast.
From the highes point the trains rap
idity increases in an alarming manner
| and were il not for the never-failing
II brake it would not be safe to
| continue at this rate. At five thousand
meters a slab commentaries the day
when the two halves of the tunnel met,
| and the thin partition which separated
| them was knocked through in the pres
ence of several members of the govern
ment.
Three kilometers before Langen the
walls are again damp and the water
| falling; from the roof of the vault is
sometimes so abundant that curiosity is
rewarded by a shOwer-bath. We now
BEGIN TO feel the magic influence of the
light of day. The wall and the ground
beneath us catch it in stripes and cir
cles and we are under the mistaken
impression that the snow surrounds lis
on all sides. At last W. clearly see the
round opening of the tunnel gate,
across which runs the dark blue of the
Atiienz bridge. A shrill sound of the
whistle, and we have finished our jour
ney through a tunnel measuring 1882
meters. which we should take two hours
TO walk through. and which the train
traversed in twenty-four minutes. We
all drew a breath and felt happy to be
on the surface of the earth once more.
As we view the bright scene ut Longer
station, we cannot help plying the
guards of the tunnel, doomed to live a
life in a place where no ray of the sun
ever pcnetrates, in gloom and heat and
bad air. Happily nature herself VENT.
lates the tunnel, so that nc artificial
ventilation is necessary.
The tunnel was commenced in No
Der, 1890. and completed exactly three
years afterwards, on the 18th of No
vember. 1888, when the thin partition
in the enter was knocked through.
and the brave hands that had tOiled at
so hard a task met i'm a hearty grasp.
The tunnel workers We're all dismissed
long ago, and only a very few privileg-
ed mes witnessed the opening of the
line of traffic which their combined Ia
Dor completed in such an aStOnishingly
short space of time. Even the dwell
ings which they inhabited and made
merry with their noisy southern fun,
are beginning to decay and fall asunder.
At the Inauguration banquet, however,
their labors were not forgotten, and
those who had lent their brains to the
work reminded their grateful guests of
the hands which had realized what
must to the traveller for many years to
come seem a dream.-COr. London
, NeUs.