Rocky Ford enterprise., 1894-09-27
MOVING HEAVY LOADS:
INVENTION THAT PERFORMS
PRODIOIEs IN HAULING.
Iron Truck ON which Great Boilers.
Massive Girders, and Monstrous Blocks
Of Stone Are Drawn Through the
Streets BY Powerful Horsesi

Streets BY Powerful Horses'
For thousands of years pas,
thoughtful travellers. whether step
ping with reverential awe amid the
colossal columns OF the ruined temple
OF Kurnak at Thebes, or scaling the
steep sides of the lofty pyramid OF
Cheops, or gazing in wondering awe
ut the imperturbable Sphinx, the
Ipre-historic work OF man, have been
lost in u maze Of increasing perplex-
ity while they in vain tried to solve
the riddle OF the past. But yester-
day we asked ourselves how it were
possible that massive granite blocks
weighing thirty tons could be
raised into their place in the great
pyramids and adjusted with mathe.
matical exactitude. To day the rid
die OF the ages is solved, and little
iron derricks conveying steel ropes
wound around revolving cylinders
controlled by little putting. kissing
steam engines are capable OF lifting
and swinging aloft in midair. ten
times the weight Of the mighty
granite cubes forming the pyramids.
and it is done with as much ease as
u maiden lifts q rose from q bouquet
and places It in her hair. What the
Pharaohs accomplished by the brute
force of multitudes, we of to day
arc doing by skill. These under
talsings have become SO common an d
modern methods Of moving enormous
masses of metal or stone are SO well
understood that they attract but lit
tie public notice, except as they in
volve progress through some un-
wonted channel or as they perchance
occasionally encounter some unto
ward mishap.
To Philadelphia belongs the honor
OF having produced an inventor who
devised y truck, Composed entirely
of iron and steel. and capable of
hauling eighty tons, or 100. 900
pounds at one time. This truck,
which has since its construction.
thirty years ago, done work IN almost
every large city IN the United States,
is us good as new. The truck itself
Weighs l6,OOJ pounds and cost over
IS, 900 to build. Since then five
smaller trucks OF somewhat similar
construction have been built. the
combined capacity of which exceeds
$50. 900 pounds The owners OF these
giant trucks, says tho Philadelphia
Times are delphians and con-
trol.the heavy hauling business OF the
entire American continent Where
ever q heavy boiler, sugar roll, sub
marine or street cable is to be moved
in any city Of the United States one
xxf 90 k,,, IT.,
are shipped to that point.
| Although when the giant truck
was built it was designed to carry
but eighty tons. it is believed that
more than twice that weight might
with perfect safety be loaded on it.
BY extending the pole and placing
the other trucks in line, 1t has
been estimated that the longest
monolith ever quarried. the one
broken from its bed at the Houghten
quarry, Ashland. Wisconsin, Novem-
ber ls. 1892. and which is forty-six
feet longer than Cleopatra's Needle.
erected by Vanderbilt in Central
park. New York, could be easily and
safely transported any distance on
good roads. Thus the question OF
hauling huge weights is no longer
problematical. Trucks capable Of
sustaining the heaviest movable
bodies are already in existence, and
the only real difficulty TO be en-.
countered is the condition OF the
road bed.
Some description OF this largest oi
all trucks cannot but be of interest
to those who have been accustomed
to seeing only wooden wheeled
wagons and timber carts. The
wheels are three TO nine inches in
diameter, made of iron and have u
steel tire two inches thick and
twelve inches wide. They revolve
on steel axles six inches in diameter
and stand nine feet two inches apart
from track to track. From the top
OF the truck to the ground vhe dis
tnnre is but four feet The fifth
wuuel, or turning arrangement,
p.ned on the front or forward axle,
il complete double circle six feet
il diameter und revolves on small
spherical steel balls in such manner
that NO matter how short turn il
made the load can have no chance tc
tip or cant to one 81 G.
Tho first hauling ever done by
THIS wagon was soon after the out
break of the war of the rebellion,
when forty eight ton boiler for the
double -turreteu monitor Dictator was
to be hauled from Fifth and Wash.
ington avenue. where it was made, to
the monitor, lying at the foot ol
Federal street. The boiler was
loaded on the giant truck and pulled
by sixty horses in the presence o
10 70 persons started sufely on its
journey. and would have reached it,
destination without mi5hap had the
pavement teen equal to the strair
imposed upon it. When on Fedora
street. between Third and Fourth
strcets. bit OF inferior pavement
gave way under the enormous weigh
and the massive iron wheels settled
to the hub. pushing the cob
bles away as easily al
though they had been lait
in mud. The horses were found t.
be inadequate to pull the wagor
over such pavement. and the jour
ney was continued by placing ships
anchors in the street The anchors
after being buried. were connected
with the wagon with blocks ant
ropes. to which the horses were at
tachcd, and the wagon was made t.