The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1885-08-14

one mechanical engineer. So expo
ditiously was the work forwarded
that on the first day of January,
1888, the railway was ready for
business.
The engines for the railway were
made at Geo. Forester & Co.'s
works, Liverpool, England, and all
the wrought iron work, chains, etc,
were made by Henry Wood q Co.,
Liverpool. Oregon forests provided
the wood, the native woods being
too heavy, as well as difficult to get
and work. The railway has a
capacity for vessels of fifteen hun
dred tons with ballast. 1t cost in
the ncighborhood of one hundred
thousand dollars to build.
Upon the completion of the rail-
way it was leased for fifteen years
from the Government by the Hon.
Mr.. Wilder. He operated it sue
cessfully until Feb. 2lst of the
present year, when, with the per-
mission of the Government, he made
transfer of the lease to Messrs.
Sorcnson 4 Lyle, the latter having
been superintendent of the works
from the start. Mr.. Sorenson is
the veteran master shipwright of
this port, having been engaged in
that business here for about 81
years. Many Il gallant craft has he
shove down. when that was the
only method in vogue here, and
transformed from the condition of a
more or less battered and foulcd
hulk to her original seaworthiness.
Mr.. Lyle, his partner, has spent his
whole life in shipyards and on dry
docks and marine railways. His
father was a leading ship-builder in
Nova Scotia, II country second to
none for the class Of wooden ships
it sends forth, whose sails speck
every sea with whiteness. Ship
building is therefore second nature
to both members of the firm now
operating the Honolulu Marine Rail
way. Ample stocks of material are
always at hand, and shipowners and
masters sending vessels away from
here for rehabilitation cannot posi-
bly, fare any better in obtaining the
required services elsewhere. Every
facility is here provided for ship and
boat building and repairing. AS no
slight guarantee to the safety of the
works and the assurance of prompt
service thereupon, the fact may be
stated that from the beginning of
operations to the present time there
has been no mishap of any kind on
the railway. A thorough ships
blacksmith, in the person of Mr..
Hugh Munro, is employed at the
works constantly, and his execution
of any kind of ships forging cannot
be excelled in workmanship. Then
the Honolulu Iron Works can always,
in an emergency, provide any ordi-
nary metallic fittings of q ship, SO
that on the whole this port is ex-
ceedingly well equipped for repair
ing ships.
For the benefit of readers who
may not know what marine railway
is, word of description will not be
out of place. 1t is an inclined rail.
way, descending from repairing
shipyard into deep water. A heavy
platform with high frames at the
sides, called the cradle, slides upon
series Of rollers running in grooves
in ironclad timber rails. 4 system
of chains connected with powerful
steam winches is employed to let the
cradle down into deep water anC
haul it up again. When the cradle
is run out into sufficient depth
the vessel to be hauled up is foatet
between the arms of the cradle
Then system of movable blocks
worked by cranks from the tops OF
the cradle frames, grasps the hull o
the vessel, and the cradle and it
burthen are drawn up high and dry