New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-11-28

other subterranean work, and that, while inc
work Of compiling the figures may be more Ia
borious and take more time, the process Is
Identical with smaller undertakings AMONG
the works built by the Sooysmith concern are
the piers or foundations for the bridges over
the Mississippi River at Fort Madison iowa.
and Kethsburg. H.; over the missouri River ~
Kansas City. Sibley. Mo; Plattsnouth' Neo''
Glasgow Mo; Sioux City Iowa. ana East
Omaha Neb: over the Susquehanna River AT
Havre de Grace, the Ohio AT Cincinnati the
Schuylkill at Philadelphia, the Arkansas al van
Buren, Ark; the Savannah near savannah ana
the Harlem at New-York. The Manhattan Lie
Insurance Company's building and those oil 'he
American Surety Company and the Standard OH
COMPANY are also specimens OF the worK zone
by Sooysmith & Co.
In all these works an exact and careful record
has been kept of labor and material. The figures
were obtained by a system which is in use in
many well-rcgulatcd manufacturing concerns
and in railroad corporations. The cost per unit
of each item is arrived at by keeping the rccoius'
This includes every item that may possibly
enter into the cost. from the salaries OF officers
and superintendents to the smallest bit OF ma
teral
Then there are accounts in which the contract
work is tabulated and strict record kept OF the
various operations. These heads are subdiVlded'
and when a piece of work has been completed Il
few minutes work at the books VIII sho" now
much any part of it has cost. how many hours
labor 1t required and how much the Individual
operators earned. Inasmuch as all jobs are In
some respects like others which have preceded
them estimates based on the previous WORKS.
Asa whole. the underground railroad work has
M parallel. but there is no part OF 1t that Is not
similar TO completed work and no elements enter
into the great work that do not occur III the coi-
s,ruction Of large modern basement En-
cavatine. building trenches and snD"ayS' lay
ingconcrete floors, etc, are among the opeia'io"S
the cost If which may be determined by exam
thing the records kept Ivy Mr.. Sooysnith. ihey
show how much II costs to eXcaVate bclo" ana
above the water level. how much CUBIC yaru
OF cement costs under various CIRCUMSTANCES
the price Of brckwork, waiei1rooHhs' anu III
Coo. .verv item. including fires FOR the men in
winter or icewater and oatneaI IN warm
weather In the subdivisions 1t may be seen
how the cost Of a cubic yard OF Drlch"orh ~
made mn and how much each item. Ike brick
sand cement and labor costs the contractor.
Among the items which go to make the cost
of excavating a foundation for a large Duiid-
,no, in proasyav are the following: Excavating
IN water level removal Of material eXcaVated'
metal in structure, excavatng below water
level removal Of debris, brickwork' concrete
maintaining air pressure, sinking caissons
Charles Sooysmith. who has done much tow
ard perfecting this system, ana VINO was the
first to systematic the calculation on the cost
NJ underground work, was born in 1896 and was
graduated from the Rensselaer, Polytechnic In
stitute in 1876 He then went to Europe, where
he spent two years in study, and on returning to
the United States became assistant chief en-
etneer Of the bridge over the Missouri River for