The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-06-30

gate. whlch is used to close the mouth OF
the dock after a vessel Is inside. is IN
islssd and ready 20 he used at any time
Commandment ]. C. Morong who sue
sceeded Lieut.. Wyckoff in charge sf the
dry dock and naval station az Port Or
chards has had a series OF photographs
! taken OF The work as il Progressed. and
each month the bureau % wards and
docks AT Washington City has received
photograph taken from some poiDr
showing the aGgalce made Ia the work
in thirty days.
The Difficulty About Piling.
Construction vas commenced IN Decern-
Der. l&2- The a-ss work was excavating
the ground. pr spa "a rorg 10 driving piles
for the affairs and the foundation After
the excavation vas completed Il was
found that owing 20 the peculiar condi-
ton OF the soil il was impossible 70 drive
the perpendicular piles sixteen feet. as
the terms OF the contract required Piles
would be driven six CT seven feet and
then would simply fatten out under the
hammer. Steel bands were placed around
+ the tops OF the piles and this resulted In
the piling being crushed 70 a pulp just
below the nands- 1t was finally decided
by the contractors that the piles could
not be driven tr the depth required in the
contract. The s3Grsau Of yards-Snd docks
insisted that they be driven with water
JET. This was tried and IL was found that
the same purpose would be answered by
digging hole 70 drop them In Work
was then suspended until the visit OF
Secretary Herbert, in May. 1874. who care
fully booked over the situation and or
dersd that the water jet should be tried.
II failed and II was finally decided by
competent board OF engineers that il was
fTnrrscticable 10 attempt 10 drive the
piles depth OF sixteen feet, and that
nseven or. eight feet in such soil was worth
fully as mucn as twenty feet IN soils of
other formation.
After the piles were driven all along the
bottom Of. the dock three feet Of concrete
was iaid Eto the top of them, then they
were capped with timbers 1exl2 running
highways. On top of the caps great
tim bers s14x7s were laid stransversely.
These Itmbers were % feet in length and
consequently projected underneath the
altar pieces or walls distance OF several
feet on each side. These giant timbers
were laid the whole length of Nthe dock,
with space of four feet between. The
sides of the dock are formed by altar
brace timpers resting, on tnes transverse
<imbers below and supported on both sides
by sheet piling driven close together and
forming solid sloping wall and extend
lar altar timbers are then laid
lengthways with the dock. forming
the two walls in series of steps The
altar tirnbers are 1lxl2 and like all the
other timber used are of the best quality
of Douglas fir. The concrete used in the
floor and in the wing walls is L.ade.of enc
part Portland cement, two parts of sand
and four parts equally divided between
gravel and broken stone 1t forms COM
position which is as nearly water proof as
It is possible to get substance of that
kind. The object of laying the concrete
below the floor is TO keep out water from
below as much as possible and thus pre-
vent the floor from being lifted by hydro :
static pressure.
The Great Stone Gate Seats
The entrance to the dock is formed of
sandstone and granite The sandstone is
brought from Sucia island, near New
VIVA tcom, where 1t is quarried by the
contractors, Byron Barlow & Co. The
granite is brought in from British Column !,
bia, and both are of the best quality.
Sandstone is used principally in the ma
sonry, granite only being used in forming
what are known as the gate seats. These
are the places where the caisson rests
when In position. and consequently have
a tremendous pressure brought to bear
on them when the water recedes from the
inside and leaves a ship high and dry, 4
resting on the. keel blocks and bilge
blocks. The keel and bNge blocks are
In40e or soma oak pieces, with HedNy iIofi
bolts fastening them together. The Keel
blocks are laid In row down the center
and when ship Games into the dock. as
the water reaedes her keel settles down
on these blocks. and ths bilge blocks.
which are placed against the altar tim
bers, support her On both sides, thus
keeping her in an upright position.
The Giant Pumps and Their House. /
The boiler and pump house is brick
building with sandstone trimmings ana
has q chimney ninetyrsix feet high. The
building is 100 feet long and sixty feet
wide The floor sis of concrete
and the roof OF iron trusses.