The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1886-11-04
THE BIG BRIDGE.
The Great Structure Between New York
and Brooklyn Carefully Ex-
anime d Every Week.

anime d Every Week.
The elevated railroad structures seem
to have been, and doubtless were, built
in as solid and durable a manner as
was possible under their system, says
the New York Sun. 1t is, however, OBJ
servable that the repairs upon them. ne
cessltated by the severe wear and tear
to which they are subjected, appear to
be unceasing, and it is by no means a
violent supposition that short relaxa-
ton Of the vigilant watch and promptly
applied care enforced by the manage
ment of the roads might render them
very perilous highways of travel. Con-
sideration of this posi- ibility-an extreme
ly remote one, it is to be hoped-sug-
gests the idea that it may be rather a
vital question how far like watchful-
ness prevails for the protection of the
great East river bridge. Supt Martin,
in recent conversation on the subject
said
"a constant and most careful super
vision is maintained over every part of
the bridge, though, apart from the rail
the structure, no signs of wear are ap-
bal lOAiSt dAu we 1OpC ludb houc Will Uc
for hundred years to come. Every
Monday morning two expert mechanics
60 over the railroad track from end to
end, oiling the sheaves on which the
trading cable runs and examining the
bolts and fastenings of the railroad. II
anything should get out of order durin g
the week it would be noticed by the con-
ductors on the cars, who are all the
time on the lookout, and would be i'm
mediately reported by them at the sta.
ton when they came in, whereupon a
man would be sent out at once to rec
tify anything that was out of order.
Every day the machinery which drives
the cable is thoroughly inspected in
every part, and should anything in the
meantime accidentally get out of order
it would be reported promptly to Chief
Engineer Hart, who would take instant
measures for making all perfect and Sc
cure again.
Every week there is a careful exam
ination made of everything pertaining
to the structure below the line of the
tops of the cars, and once month the
four saddles on the top of each tower,
supporting the bridge cables, are scrut-
inlzed. There is never anything wrong
with them, or anything to do to them
except to keep them painted well, and
ii is not likely that anything will come
to them for century to come. There
can be no movement of the saddles un-
less on occasion of extraordinarily great
irregularity in the loading of the bridge.
When those occur they shift position SO
as to distribute the strain equally over
the structure, and when the strain is re-
moved they go back into place. On the
occasion of the De Long funeral there
was IN enormous pressure on the New
York span, and the saddles moved three
eighths of an inch, but the moment that
the weight on the bridge was shifted
over to this end, where the conditions
of support are different from those OF
the New York span, they moved back
into place
'.In addition to those established oc-
casions of inspection, and the careful
provision made for covering possibili-
ties meantime by means of the employees
at work in the several departments, who
are all made to feel a sense of respon-
sibility and exercise a constant watch
fulness, every person in any way con-
nected with the bridge, whenever cross
ing it or upon it, is expected to be al.
ways on the lookout for anything thai
may be wrong, or that may even seem
to him to be irregular or questionable
about the condition of the structure, in
even the most minute particular What.
ever may be discovered is instantly re-
ported to me, and Immediately attend
to 1t in any way the occasion demands
Nothing gets loose anywhere, excepting g
about the railroad, where, of course,
there is constant strain and friction.
The nuts on the ends of the pins that &C
through the trusses were at first occa-
sionally found loose-just started lit
tie from their proper condition of abso,
Lutte tightness-but nothing of that sori
has occurred for some time.