The Philipsburg mail. [volume] (Philipsburg, Mont.) 1887-current, 1889-11-28
UNDER ST. CLAIR RIVER.
A TUNNEL TO CONNECT CANADA
AND THE y. s.
The Work said to Cost $4,000, 900
The MissOurians Revoke the Char
Trusts-A Project on Foot to Re-
lieve JEFF Davis.

the greatest tunnels In the United
States is in process of construction under
the St. Clair river at this point. The
tunnel will be 5000 feet long and will be
built twenty feet under the river. The
company doing the work is known as
the St. Clair Tunnel company, but in
reality are English capitalists, many of
whom are stockholders in the Grand
Trunk railway. The estimated cost of
the undertaking is 81, 900, 900, but know
ing ones think it will cost $4,000, 900
more.
Progress of the Work.
Preliminary work was commenced
over year ago. but not until recently
did the work on the tunnel proper begin.
At present nearly 800 men are employed,
$50 on the American and $50 on the Can
adian side of the river. On the American
side the tunnel is completed nearly 700
feet, and on the Canadian side only about
500 feet. Only about 12 or Is feet of the
tunnel are bored daily, and it is expected
to take eighteen months before Uncle
Sam and a representative of the Cana
dian government can shake hands under
the center of St. Clair river.
The Process Of Construction.
There will be gradual incline on the
American side until the work is COM
pleted to the center of the river, when it
will gradually rise until the terminus on
the Canadian side is reached. The tunnel
will be twenty-four feet in diameter. A
huge shield, weighing eighty tons, is
driven into the earth with twenty-four
hydraulic rams of 500 tons pressure On
the head of the shield are knives which
cut the earth into cakes which can be
easily handled. As the shield FORCES
ahead iron tubing is placed in position
as the tunnel is completed as the work
progresses. The tubing is so arranged
that it takes thirteen pieces to make a
complete circle of twenty-four feet.
These sections are eighteen inches wide
and when bolted together the entire cir
Gle of eighteen inches weighs six and
One-half tons.
Hydraulic Pressure Employed.
Each joint is packed with tarred paper
and each of the iron sections has hole
in the center Of one inch in diameter for
the purpose of forcing fine quality of
cement all around the outside of the
tube, which makes it perfectly tight.
The weight of the immense shield which
is forced into the earth is over / 900 tons.
The rams are worked with steam, and it
takes an extraordinary pressure to force
the shield through the earth. The hy-
draulic rams are SO placed as to bring
an equal force all around the shield to
keep it true and at the proper angle, as it
must meet the work on the other side
exactly for the purpose of boiling both
ends together.
The Supply of Fresh Air.
A steady stream of air is pumped into
the tunnel, and up to the present time
the men have experienced no difficulty.
The ground through which the tunnel
passes is sticky blue clay, soft and plia-
BILE. No gas pockets or other hindrances
have been met with. Deep shafts have
been sunk on the bank of the river on
each side, and as the work progrpsses
the clay is hoisted by derricks, wind
lasses, etc.
The Railroads Interested.
Railroads which have experienced
much difficulty in the past in crossing
the river are headed this way. The
Grand Trunk, Chicago and Grand Trunk,
and Great Western railways will un-
doubtedly have the preference over
other roads, as it is understood that men
owning and controlling these lines are
putting the money into the venture.
The Flint and Pere Marquette railroad
he's just built its main line into the city,
passing directly by the mouth of the tun-
mel. It is said the Michigan Central
Railway company has a gang of men
surveying route toward Port Huron,
and that the Canadian Southern and
Canadian Pacific are looking tunnelward.