Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1893-07-07
WIRE UNDERGROUND.
Illustrations Of How The System is
Operated in The Large Cities.
PHOTOGRAPHS AND BLUE PRINTS.
Councilman Rich Received a Number
Of Them from the East
by Mail To-day.

Councilman Hardy and Rich have
long advocated the underground wir.
Ing system Tor the principal business
streets Of the city. Both have intro.
ducCd resolutions into the Council
making II incumbent upon tho mum.
cipality % require telephone, tele.
graph ami electric light companies 10
put their wires under ground. Twice
lid the Council put itself on record
hvoring thu scheme ne matter Of
public policy, ami II was expected that
something would be- dono In tho
premises before paving the central
thoraughiarcs. Tho failure to carry
the resolution into effect, however,
4ocs not moan the abandonment OF tho
proposition.
Councilman Rich, while In the cnsl
recently, male study OF the matter,
aud today he received n large number
VI fine photographs aud blue urlnt
Illustrations, show NJ the ~ em In
cuurse Of stfucuUn and Iu actual
operation In New York, Chicago, Bjs-
ton, Portland Manuel Atlanta, Omaha
ana other cities.
the Illustrations are beautiful onos
and proves the system to DO anything
but the iutricats arrangement. ttat
mail came letter,of which the follow
ing 10 n coy:
NEW NoRK, July 3, 1893
Hon. H. Rich, Member City Council, Salt
Lake City, Utah;
Dear Slr--l,oplying 10 your inquiry
made In this office Tow days ago, We
/ enclose you circular letter which will
/ tell you the dincrout places whore our
conduit is in use. We also forward you
under another cover series u photo
| graphs which will show the method "
| laying. We regret we have no literature
on the subject ~ underground conduiis,
/ but II has always been our method 10
/ personally Interview companies contem-
] plating underground construction which
las always been moro satisfactory both
a. u- and 10 them, We would say In
relation To subways In salt Lake City
| that we built the complete system In
| Omaha, Nebraska las summer and rom
| the writOt's knowledge OF your city,
would say that the cost would be about
| the same Ia both places, that IN YOU
could estimate safely that the conduit
system complete including manholos,
| would cost about 30 cents por foot, pof
duct. This means tina. u We would lay
In one section ten pieces or ducts, tho
cost would bo $3.50 per running foot OF
subways.
We presume the telephone company in
your city Will probably build th0ir own
system ~ thoy have done in all the cities
oi.tho United States. Tlisse ms TO be tho
most satisfactory way ON account OF tho
telephone wire- being OF q very small
gauge and the electric current being very
delicate, they give better service when
thoy have n subway system OF their own.
IL Ii customary TO build sub-ways sya-
tens for low tension wires, tina i tolo-
phone and telegraph ON one side " tho
street and for nigh tension, that IN cleo
trio light aud power wiros ON the other
side of tho street. That Is the method
that is adopted In this city, also IN Bos-
ton, Philadelphia aud Chicago.
| II your city cOniemplatos building a
subway system the writer would DO
pleased 20 make q journey TO your cuun-
try, rs he thinks Il would be both adj
vhntagoous to this company AS well as 10
! yourself
4 We would be- pleased 10 hear from YOU
ON this subject nt your convenience,
Worry truly yours,
TINS NArtoNAL CONDUIT M'F'u Co
JAS. T.. MCQuAiDs, soc'y.