The Sunday tatler and Jersey City express. (Jersey City, N.J.) 1883-1886, 1885-05-24
ABOUT PIERSAND BRIDGES.
SOME INTERESTING FIGURES ABOUT
THEIR COST And YALUE.

SOME INTERFERING FIGURE ABOU1
THEIR COST and VALUE ee
II $50 Ftsssefs ~ li w qai9
Civil Engineer Harrison Continues His
Testimony tn the Great Railroad
/ Suits. Statistics about the Newark
In continuing his testimony before Ss.
preme Court Commissioner Cassidy, in the
appeal of the Central Railroad Of New Jer.
sey against the enforcement of the new
railroad tax laws, Civil Engineer Edlow w
Harrison further exemplifed the methods
that were followed in making the valua-
tons of railroad property. AS illustrating
the methods of dealing with ether classes
of property than real estate, his evidence
on the piers and wharves and bridges Of
the company in this county presents some
points of interest. To ascertain the value
of the piers, he counted the piles in each
and allowed $40 for each of one class and
| So for each of another class; then measured
the feet of timber in the flooring and
beams, and figured its worth in dollars
| The life of pier, he said, if it is not re-
paired, is about 20 years. But all compa-
MES patch their piers, so that at the end of
the 20 years it is, instead of being worn
out, as good as new He allowed for the
| cost of keeping the pier in repair, there
| fore, five per cent. After he had thus
fixed the yal1e of one of the piers at &c.,
| 900, he had his figures unexpectedly veri-
| fed by the accidental discovery that the
first cost of building it was SIS, 900. A
ferry rack and the platforms and foat--a
which the boats land-was estimated to be
worth about $4,000 9s.9 81 ~ saA
In estimating the value Of the bridges,
careful measurements of each structure
were made. and the value of every section,
at market prices of material and labor, fig
ured out. There are some bridges on the
line of the Central, he said--and particu-
larry upon the Newark q New York Railroad
that are of obsolete style, and would cost to
replace them more than frst-class bridge
of modern pattern. His valuations
of the Central's bridges in that County
were as follows The highway bridge at
Communipaw avenue, $l,977 highway
bridge at Chapel avenue, 81, 628 highway
bridge near the Greenyilie station, 81, 4S8 !;
highway bridge near the Morris Canal
crossing, S1.32S highway bridge south of
Pamrapo station, $1,659; highway bridge
first north OF the Bayonne station, So, 1876 !;
highway bridge south of the Bayonne sta
ton, S1,645 the highway bridge next
south of it in Bayonne, $1,000; highway
bridge at Avenue A, Bayonne, Sc, 861 !;
railroad bridge over Morris Canal, $685.
T04 railroad bridge over the Morris Canal
between Jersey City and Greenville, S16,-
504 railroad bridge over Avenue D, Bay
onne, $16,784 railroad bridge over Jersey
City and Bergen Railroad right of way at
Bayonne, 500; railroad bridge over
Avenue G, Bayonne, 1876.
Then he tackled the great bridge that
carries the railroad across Newark Bay
from Bergen Point to Elizabethport. From
the easterly shore to the draw the length
of the bridge is / ,444 feet, and the width
Al feet from the westerly end of the draw
to the shore at Elizabethport, the bridge is
$500 feet long. The draw, of iron, is car
ried on center pier stone, and has two
end piers of stone. The center pier is 35
feet In diameter, and contains 1854 yards
of stone masonry. The total value of the
three piers is S64, 1913. The draw has
span of 215 feet, and is worked by ma
chinery worth $24, 600. In the section
east of the draw are 1885 piles, LISTS, 066
feet, board measure, of timber, IA cribs
filled in with stone, and the section is
valued at $103, 325.14. The total value of
the bridge and its approaches, as fixed by
the witness, is 1886, 494. 1t cost originally
$371, 600. The total appraised value of all
the bridges on the main stem is 1896, 653.
The values he fixed on the passenger
depot buildings of the main line of the
Central were as follows: Passenger sta
ton at Communipaw, S12, 844; the Com
munipaw avenue depot, 81, 500; Greenville
depot, $4,000; Pamrapo depot, 50, 500;
Bayonne depot, $1,000; Centreville depot,
$500; Bergen Point depot, 81, 500, making
the total valuation of the main line depot
buildings in Hudson county $27, 044
He makes the total valuation of the two
main running tracks in this county with
the ballast S139, 759 So, and the sidings
bring the total valuation of the track of the
main stem of the main line up to $227,-
$40. ~. sat
From the main stem of the main line
Mr.. Harrison went to that part of the
Newark and New York line lying in this
county. He figures the vrlue of the bridge
that carries that road across the Hacken-
sack River at $90,583; the Passaic River
bridge as werth $50, 03348. The values
put upon the depot buildings on this
branch are Lafayette depot $500; jackson
avenue depot and approaches 81. 900; the
West Bergen at SIS. 5g 81 =
At his examination Friday Mr. Harrison
was showing the value of the Central's
property in Union County as ascertain ed
by the same methods as those pursued in
this county. Each county of the State
through which this road runs is to be taken
up in turn, on to Easton.
Ex-Judge Hoffman, who is conducting
the examination for the State, expects to
have the case ready for argument at a
special term of the Supreme Court to be
holden in October, for the hearing of the
Railroad cases. .a
z aHr a.