Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1893-09-08
WORK OF THE DREDGE
PROOF OF THE PUDDING is IN
THE EATING.

NOn N VI LIE lJhEIjNL
PROOF OF THE PUDDING is IN
THE EATING.
The Wonderful Work Performed
by the Bowers Drcdger-IIow u
Sucks the Mud Where IL Is Not
Wanted and Squirts Il where IL
Will DO the Most Good.
The job OF dredging a channel from
deep water to the Fourth street bridge
the center Of the city-is about an
accomplished fact. y few days more
work of tie wonderful little giant
winch is now roofing its nose in the
mud at the north end of Percivals
dock, and the prayers OF our people
will be answered so far as the demands
of present traffic is concerned, which
is confined to the service OF light draft
steamers. Most OF our people have
seen the dredger at work, which gave
them probably Il better idea than any
description that might be written, hut
there are some of our readers who have
not been afforded that opportunity, to
whom the knowledge will doubtless
prove intere sting.
The dredger Is the invention OF A.
b. Bowers, who now resides in Wash
ington City, and his rights are pro-
tected by several patents, issued dur
ing the past fifteen years. The Ana
conda, the one III use here, was built
in San Diego, Cal, in 1888, by A.
Pierce. She is one of seven of similar
build owned by the Bowers Dredger
Co. The cost of these machines aver
ages about $4,000, the one in use
here being Of the medium capacity.
She is 135 feet long, 30 feet beam and
81 feet draft. She consists essentially
OF cutter to dig up the mud, rotary
pump to gather up the disentegrated
soil and pipe to carry it off to the place
of deposit. Nothing could be simpler,
still it has required an immense ex-
penditure of time and money to bring
this result about, and it has eliminated
in the production of machine that
excels all others in rapidity OF work
and ease OF operation.
Beginning at the bow OF the boat,
we find the cutter, weighing several
thousand pounds attached to a rotat-
ing shaft, which is dropped for opera
ton in recess about five ieet wide
which extends from the bow to a
point in line with the elevated cabin
resembling a pilot-house, whence all
the movements of the dredge are con-
trolled. A stout derrick protrudes
from the bow from which are operated
a system OF powerful iron pulIeys,
which raise or lower, the cutter and
pump cylinder. This pulley is ope-
rated by 30-horse pair of engines
under the operators cabin. The cut
ter is heavy cast-iron cylinder, a
feet in diameter and 4 feet in length,
the periphery of which is a series of
thirteen steel knives, extending the
whole length, at the lower end of the
cutter are other knives Of semi-circular
shape, which dig into the earth about
the same as the bit OF an auger.
There are several styles of cutter; one
that has Tugs around its lower part,
which extend several inches beyond
the knives, is to loosen up hard-pan
or cement. The pump cylinder, "a
inches in diameter, starts from the
center of the cutter, enclosing the
shaft wh;oh l-oapS The outtar -, r.,o
luton, and terminates in a flexible
joint of "a inch hose as it enters the
pump. This is to admit OF the con.
slant change of elevation OF the cut
ter and feed pipe as it traverses the
bottom to be cut. The dredge begins q
cut by an elevation Of the cutter at a
depth to take off the first cutting, with
her bow swung to the left. The pump
is started and the cutter slowly rotates
against the body of mud, under the
motion impaired by pair of % horse
power engines, held there by a. steady
pull on the wire hawser which slowly
swings the dredge to the right. A
radius of $50 feet can thus readily be
covered in the dredger's swing. She
is then swung back by her hawser on
the other side to her former position,
and another cut is made, and this is
continued until it is at proper
depth. She is then moved forward
from three to four feet for another cut.
The wire cables which swing the hull
and keep the cutter up to its work act
automatically by windlass attached
to double-acting engines of 20 horse.
power under direction of the operator
and by simply moving a lever. The
! pump which occupies the center oil
the hull, is about 8 feet in diameter
consisting of a rotary series of fans
or buckets of sufficient capacity to
handle the mud and water of the "a.
inch pipe that supplies it. To this
little giant is attached the 1S-inch
lead pipe, which may be extended to
any distance within a mile and do
effective work. The output may be
deposited much further, but it would
be, of course, at the cost OF diminished
results. The pump is operated by q
beautiful pair OF Westinghouse con.
densing engines, which move without
the slightest jar. At the stern o: the
dredger are pair OF engines, attached
to an intricate set of machinery, which
are capable of performing half-a.do
different things. They raise and
lower the "sputs," by which the
dredger is held, as on a pivot, at the
stern, while swinging the cutter and
pump at the bow. They are posts IS
feet in length and about foot square,
held upright, by slides. at the lower
ends. They are two in number, the
forward one being the real anchor,
while the other is dropped TO hold,
while the engines, by an admirable de-
vice, push by it the dredger forward
for new cut. The lead pipe projects
from port on either side at the stern,
and is held by pontoons to the place
of discharge. The discharge pipe is
made of heavy sheet iron, in 20 and
, 80 feet lengths, each resembling very
much the smoke-stack of steam
, er. They are attached by fexi-
BILE rubber hose, Is inches in
diameter, to allow for adjustment
of the pipe to the swing of the
. dredger, which would not admit
of solid joint. The proportion
of soil to liquid that passes through
the pump and pipes is about one to