, 1890-11-20
W THE SHOPS.
Legislators Spend an Afternoon in
Sight Seeing.
They Visit the Big Union Pacific
Shop Plant
And Are Delighted With the Build
ings and Machinery.

A profitable afternoon was spent by
the members of the first state legislative as
sembly yesterday visiting the new shops
of the Union Pacific company at this
place.
The legislators and other visitors
making a party of fifty were escorted by
Superintendent of Motive Power Harvey
Middleton and Superintendent OF Shops
NJ. K. Barnum, both of whom made full
explanations of the various portions OF the
work and explained the uses Of the
machinery to the visitors.
The scene of the new work upon the
shops at first glance seems to be one OF
great confusion. There are immense
piles of railway ties and rails; hears of
sand; lumber OF every size, length, and
description everywhere; tiers of barrels OF
cement, tar. oil and plastering material;
huge blocks OF stone, cut and uncut; car
penters, bricklayers, machinists and la
borers rush from one point to another.
To the casual observer all is chaos.
There are however, four or five direct
ing minds to whom the work presents no
elements Of confusion. They have
mapped GU plans in which the materials
ana men are factors used to accomplish
results which will be models of order and
completeness.
These are Superintendent Middleton,
who has general control of the work.
Superintendent Barnum. r. G. Butler,
construction engineer, Contractor East
and his foreman, j. A. Johnston. All of
these men are thoroughly equipped for
conducting the vast operations conided to
their charge.
The visitors first took a look into the
big machine shop. With about Il hun
dred big machines and little ones running
and several hundred men at work the
scene was an animated one. The
operations of the electric crane were
witnessed with considerable interest. This
monster lifts a locomotive entire. While
the visitors were watching, engine No.
1885 was lifted from the track while a new
pair of drivers were run into place.
The boiler shops were next visited.
Here sixty men were working on new
work and repairs. One of the noticeable
textures of the shop is an immense cutting
and punching machine which slices mp
boiler plates and punches holes 10 them
with a rapidity which is bewildering.
Passing through the boiler house and
engine room of the machine shop to reach
the blacksmith shop some new improve
ments are noticed. One Of these is an
immense IavatorY for the use ofthe work.
men. 1t is filed up with stationary
wash stands at which a hundred men can
perform their oblutions. The floor is
cement, the room heated by steam and
the water Of any desired temprature. In
the boiler room coal bins have been con-
structed into which the coal can be loaded
from cars on the outside of the build.
ing. They are built tight so that the
interior of the building will be free from
dust. Five all compressors stand in the
boiler room. They are calculated to
supply compressed air to run some of the
larger machinery of the shop.
Near the blacksmith shop Superintend-
ent Barnum pointed out the remains of
several locomotives which figured in re-
cent wrecks ION the western end OF the
line. Big frames of steel were seen
twisted into Varied shapes, driver axles
four and SIX inches IN diameter bent badly,
a piston rod was almost doubled and bolts
looked like snakes so twisted were they
by the ordeal of the wreck.
The blacksmith shop is no less interest
ing than other parts of the plant. Work
men were running the big steam hammers
that strike a twenty pound or a twenty
ton blow at the will of a men or boy who
controls 1t with a single lever. A bolt ma
chine was working which makes 200 bolts
an hour. A giant cutter was IN operation
which cuts inch and a half by six inch cold
iron easier than a grocer cuts cheese. A
bull dozer'' was pointed out which wres-
ties with a bent axle and never quits it
until it is straight as a die.
The first new shop inspected was the
paint shop which has a floor space of 49,
900 square feet. 1t will have capacity
for eighteen passenger coaches; will be
well lighted and ventilated. ioored with
cement and will be without exception the
finest and most complete paint shop in
the country.
East OF the paint shop workmen are
putting in the foundation for a tranter
table similar to the one now in operation