Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1896-05-23

0lneer OF the
Soon after the last election It was
generally believed that important
changes would I've made In the per.
sonnet Of the engineering corps In
charge Of the work Of constructing the
Drainage Canal. While none OF these
changes have yet been made It IL per.
sistently said that the matter has been
delayed only and may be taken up Mt
any moment. With equal persistence.
from the time these changes were first
mooted up to the present, II has been
asserted that the successor to the pres.
ent chief engineer would he Mr.. Ere.
mont Hill. Of the firm Of Hin and En-.
RIGHT. engineers in this city.
The Drainage Canal ranks among the
greatest ana most important engineer.
Ing works known TO modern civilixa.
ton. In addition to the material diff.
ficulties and problems to he met and
overcome others, due to the political,
financial ana local conditions under
which the work must be carried on,
make 1t a matter Of prime Importance
that the chief engineer should not only
be thoroughly competent from the tech.
meal point Of view, but should possess
great executive ability and perfect
comprehension Of tho peculiar factors
entering into the task he undertakes.
He should he intensely practical ana
Intent upon completing the canal ut the
earliest possible day at the minimum
expenditure Of money.
Those who IRE best acquainted with
Mr.. Hill say that he fulfills all Of these
and refer to his record In
support Of their contention.
Fremont Hill was born in Cincinnati,
Ohio, June 10, 1893, and Is therefore
I years Of age. His father. Alfred
Hill. was well known as the largest
In the State. His maternal
established the first great
academy west Of the Allegheny Noun.
fains. Up to the age Of 10 young Hill
attended the public schools, gradu-
lting with hOnOrs In 1881 from the
Hughes School. He had early resolved
To- take up the profession OF engineer.
ing and In the Interim between exam
nation ana commencement day eagerly
embraced an opportunity OF practically
entering upon his chosen work. He had
pursued n course Of practical engineer.
ing at school ana was offered a fiatter.
ing position on the Cincinnati Northern
ni1rOoI thnu ,,uIaw oxw,,ottc,, IT.,
was DESTROYS Of knowing his profession
thoroughly, however, and by his own
request was appointed an axeman un.
Ter Division Engineer George DOrr.
This piece Of work lasted until the fol.
owing February and while his late
school companions were enjoying the
iOnOrs and applause Of commencement
10 was making steady progress in the
ield. Since then the Hughes School
las forwarded him a special diploma.
He went through all the steps, becOm.
ng chairman, levelman and transit.
nan before ten months had passed.
Even In this short period he had
'iven such evidences Of ability that
he moment the work was completed
'e was appointed one Of the division
Engineers Of the New Orleans ana
Railroad. In this posi-.
lon he was engaged on the cOnstruc.
ION OF the great bridge across the
'Ontchartrain swamp, the longest piece
4 trestle construction In the world, be.
ng twenty-five and a half miles In
ength. The work was difficult in the
xtreme, ana when It was finished the
Dung engineer, not yet n years OF age,
vas broken down by the frightful
evers caught among the swamps.
He returned to Cincinnati for the
Winter. In the following spring he
1ent to the republic of Mexico to take
barge Of the mountain division of the
'ampicO branch Of the Mexican Cen.
ral Railroad. Yellow fever broke out
mOng the engineers and wOrkmen and |
Though Hill wished to reOrganize Il
'rce and continue the work the rail-
md people decided to abandon 1t ut
nat time. His next field of work was
Florida, where he laid out several
WINS. Soon after this he went to
having been appointed as
slant Inspector general Of surveys for
le southwestern district Of the United
tates. At the end of his term of SER
&c In this position Mr.. Hill purchased
sawmill property In Colorado. His
ventures ut this time We're many
I'd exciting. He is perhaps the only
an In the world who ever saw an
'alanche at close range, from Its birth
Its destructive end, and lived to
II the tale. l.
Leaving Colorado he went to CalifOr-
a, having been called to San Fran
SEQ to consider propositions to UNDER
Ike important work on the Panama
nal. Although fiattering offers We're
ade to him, he preferred to remain IN
0 United States and accepted the po-
Ion Of locating engineer on the Ches-