St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-12-01
NOW THEY ARE IN IT.
Beginning Of Real Work by
the Pump Investigating
Committee.
Engineer Tweedie Says the
Worthingtons We're Never
Any Good.
Mayor Winston Speaks Out
His Mind on the Gamb-
ling Question,
Gossip About the Convention
News From the Dis
trict Court.

TEN that has opinions regarding those
pumps. and be is not afraid to speak
them. That witness was William
Tweedie. the assistant engineer at the
North side station. He gave it as his
opinion that the Worthington pump was
not the pump for direct water pressure
system, and he also said that the Worth
ington pumps that are owned and OPP
Grated by the city of Minneapolis are not
constructed of good material, and that
they were never right.
City Engineer Rinker was conspicuous
by his absence. He has become tired
of the investigation. The committee
will not let him ask all the questions he
wants to, and he has resolved to keep
away and let the committee get along
without him.
The first point that was brought out
in the evidence of Tweedie was in re
latiOn the cylinder No. being out of
line. He said it had been out of line
over year. Over year ago the brass
lining of the cylinder was pulled out.
At time Tweedie run line through
| the cylinder and found that it was out
of line five-thirtysecOndS of all inch. He
told Chief Engineer Bergstrom about
it at the time. A new lining was put in,
but that was all. The new lining did
not have the effect Of putting the cylin-
der into line.
What threw the cylinder out of line
asked Aid. Bradish.
Il think the foundation must have set
tled,'' said Tweedie Il cannot believe that
the engines were set up that way"
The pump house is built on sandstone
and on filled foundation that stands in
sand. Mcconnell put in that cylinder.
No cfo Ia INT
that would not prevent settling. in
Tweedie's opinion. The kind of sand
stone that is found uD there is soft and
crumbles when exposed to the air. More
than that, there is more or less water in
the soil up there. and that would have
the effect of impairing the foundation.
Tweedie said that the completion of the
big main would increase the efficiency
of the pumps. 1t would relieve them
probably ID or 20 per cent. He had no
ticed some effect from IL already.
Tweedie then returned to the cylin-
der and the fact of its being out of line.
He said that the effect was to cause the
piston rod to work, it not having been
fitted closely in the first place. He
thought the key that attached the piston
rod to the plunger had been driven in
| too tightly i'll the beginning. and that
that had fractured the piston rod. The
strain from the cylinder being out of line
had done the rest OF the work and had
broken the rod.
Mr.. TWeedy stated, in reply to ques-
tons put by Aid. Hunter, that he had
work ed for the city for twenty months,
that the pumps had been turned over to
the city before he assumed his position,
and that during the time of his service
they had broken down eight or ten times.
On being asked to describe the break
ages in detail, he said that the first was
the drawing out of a rod in the air
pump. This caused the pump to be
shut down for four or five days, and he
attributed it to defective workmanship.
In reply to question, he stated that
the fact that the pump was out of line
could have nothing to do with this acct
dent.
Then the valves of the air pump all
broke. one after another. and each break
caused some delay. The valves were
repaired by the engineers, and, after
being arranged III a manner different
from that used by the WorthingtOn peo-
| pie, had worked satisfactorily. The
| breakage of the valves he also attrib-
uted to defective workmanship.
At this juncture Aid. BradIsh inter
posed a question and was promptly sat
upon by Aid. Hunter, who, with an air
Bradish, you have had your chance to
question the witness, and now it is my
turn. When l have finished you may
take him again if you like, but for the
present | Will thank you not to inter-
fere." This caused a hearty laugh all
around and the examination then pro-
ceeded.
The three compromising cylinders
also broke one after another and in the
same manner. He had examined them
and found that they were made of good,
clean metal, but he thought they broke
because too small factor of safety had
| been observed in their construction for
| cylinders to be used on the end of a direct
system of waterworks. They were well
made but not strong enough for the
work required of them. Another break
| of which he spoke was the tearing of
the brass lining out of Pump No. 1.
This was due, he said. to the fact that
the pump was out of line. and also that
the bolts of the plunger hub broke. He
was then asked as to the breaking of
| the piston rod, portion of which lay
| on the table in front of him. This &C
cident he attributed partly to the fact
that the pumps were out of line, and
partly to the fact that the7rod was tract
1 ured. This latter condition he thought
was caused by the driving of the key,
and he expressed the opinion that the
rod had either been fractured at
the factory or in setting the en-
CINE up in this city. and that
the fracture existed when the engine
was turned over by the Worthington
company 10 the city. In response to a
question from Aid. Hunter he stated
that every one of the breaks could be
said to have been caused by defective
! WOrkm anShip.
On being questioned as to Supervisor
| McCOnnell's theory that the breaking of
| the piston rod had been caused by back
| pressure from the Jumbo pumps. he
| said that there was check valve in the
main delivery pipe which prevented the
water from returning to the pump after
it had been forced out, but explained
that the back pressure against this
check valve might make it so hard to
raise the valve as to necessitate an extra
pressure of ten or twelve pounds upon
the pumps.
He was asked his opinion of the
Worthington pumps, and said that as
| high duty pumps he considered them
failure and not the proper thing for
| direct pressure water system. He would
not select pump of that class for Min
neapOlis. He stated that he believed
| the pump capable of delivering 15,000,-
600 gallons of water daily.
At the conclusion of his testimony
Mr.. Tweedy was asked by Aid. Rollins
if he had been approached by any city
official or warned in any way as 10 the
| testimony he was to give, and replied
! that he had not.