The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-07-15
VICTORIES OF AMERICAN ENTER
 pRJSE


 If we except the monuments of engi- neering skill such as the Conway and Menai bridges, of the earlier period, and the Forth Bridge of later times, no piece of bridge construction has attracted so much public interest and special attention as the very modest structure now in course of completion across the Atbara river to form a con- meeting link of the railway, the con- struction of which formed no small part of Lord Kitchener's great achieve ments during his last two campaigns. And what is of higher interest to our own engineers and bridge constructors it was to the United States that the Sudan government was forced to resort, because no one in this country was able to compete, either as regards price or time of delivery, with the American firm that secured the contract.
 And since this surprise of the Atbara "a surprise as great as that of the Khalifa's hosts when British and Egyptian troops scattered then-an- other object-lesson has been taught. On one of the government railways now being built in Burmah a large steel via
 
 hitherto built. The government invited tenders from four British and two American firms. Three of the former declined to tender, and one firm that had not been asked, requested and re- ceived permission to do so Thus two British and two American firms ten- dered; the lowest offer of the former was G115,000 and three years for comple- tion; the best of the latter was G65. 900 and one year for completion. No amount of patriotism could cOndOne a loss of $50,000 and two years delay, so the order has gone to Philadelphia, to the shops that built the Atbara bridge
 The causes alleged for these defeats of British industry are: CD Extreme pressure in our own construction works; CD Inferior construction and material in American work; (3) Willingness on the part of American firms to do work at a loss in order to secure business; (4) Undue favoritism to American makers by the British and Indian gov ernment agents; (5) The willingness of the latter to accept bridge-spans made for another contract, and which hap pened to be in stock. The answers to which excuses are: 1) That the Amer ican works are driven fully as much as those at home during these busy times; but American makers can always find means to take and complete another contract. Thus, at the present time, be- sides their current work, the Pencoyd Company has in hand the 5000 tons of steel viaduct for the Burmah Railway, twelve large steel bridges on Russian account for the Siberian railway, and 0,000 tons of steel work for the framing of Wanamaker's new store in Philadel- phia. CD That neither construction nor material is inferior in the Atbara bridge; it was made under close official | inspection, while the steel analyses tell | their own story. (3) There was fair business profit on the Atbara bridge l contract and in this connection we may | mention that MT Roberts, the President | of Pencoyd told us a year ago that he | had rendered for large German | bridge and though he l1ad allowed q | wide margin for contingencies, duties, | profits, etc, his tender Eas lower by | z 900 than the best German tender. 1 (4 and D These allegations of favorit- | ism winch have been seriously made arc 100 foolish for consideration, though it