Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1899-10-17
VAST IMPROVEMENTS
To the Chesapeake and Ohio
Terminal System.
THE ELEVATOR FOUNDATION
Scenes of Dizzy Activity. Seven Pill.
Drivers ut Work. Character Of The
Operations. Concrete aud fiiing
Proceeding simultaneously.
THE ELEVATOR FOUNDATION

Tt is impossible for one unacquainted
with the details of engineering to form
much conception of the vast nature of
the operations of the Chcsa peake and
Chic in the matter of new terminal i'm
proVementS
Inc scene down near the Site of the
new million bushel elevator is one OF
the busiest 1aginable.
The foundation of the huge proposed
structure is being piled as rapidly as
possible, and the concrete work is
progressing simultaneously Two enor-
nous pie drivers are engaged in driv-
ing whole pine trees top downward in
to the earth. The tremendous BATTER
ing to which these trees are subjected
naturally batters the butts OF them all
to pieces Often it is necessary to Gu.
the frayed end away with an AK be-
fore the driver can be moved for the
next pile.
THESE ends are sawed off to the
same length. the work being done in
peculiarly crude fashion by mea armed
with ordinary cross-cut saws. These
men are bare-footed and are compelled
70 wade around in water UP to their
knees and find seats on the wet ends
Of piles already sawed. There are Two
men to pile and it takes them, in their
awkward positions. some times hours
to get one end sawed off. Looking; at
them. one wonders why it is that some
mechanical device has not been invent
ed to facilitate such work.
AS fast as the piles are sawn off the
tops of them are boxed in and covered
With Portland cement and crushed
rock. w. .H
Down at tie end Of the great e1e-
q he ,f 1Ilil Ia
piers goes rapidly forward. Thousands
Of immense rreosoted piles haze :,cen
driven. and muck OF the CROSS beam
work has Hecn done In ALL within 4
radius OF one hlnIyad yards. seven
pile drivers are going al The time.
Hundreds of workmen are busly en-
gagged. Some are saving, some are
hammcring. some are navigating
wheelbalrows, some are unloading, cars
of material, others are carrying tre
material to workmen. making the whole
scene one of dizzy activity
1T will only be 4 short time when The
new elevator and the new grain ana
coal piers Will be in use. Then the
already great terminal yards of the
company will have TO be extended fo,
quarter of mike down the river It
will he by far the largest terminal in
America, or in the world, for that mat
ter. IT,.
At No. 3 pier yesterday there were
four huge British steamers loading
graln-the Criel. Lord Lansdowne. Lord
Warwick and -AlDano. Just across Il
NO. i, the Cireenbrier is unloading a
cargo. Between piers and ! the
dredge is still at work deepening the
slip. Among the vessels taking on
coal cargoes are the barges Ocean
Belle, Wadena and Lone Star, thu
four-master Chas. G. Endicott and the
three-master Monarch.
AT the tug chute is the magnificent
ocean tug Taurus. of Boston. This
trim little craft has two sails She is
one Of the fastest and stoutest of her
class.
The Chesapeake & Ohio stea nsr;r
Greenbrier arrived in port yesterday
morning, making the passage from
London to Newport News in II days AMI
IL 1-2 hours. which is the fastest run
ever made across by a Chesapeake &
OHIO liner and probably the quickest
passage ever made from England to
Hampton Roads.
captain Martin. of the Greenbrier
says that he would have made the trip
in even better time had he not bean
delayed out side of the Capes by fog.
which made it necessary to slow down
and proceed at q snail-like speed,
sounding bell and fog horn.
IN the l. days and II 1-2 hours, which
as the time from harbor to harbor, the
Greenbrier averaged 297 miles a day.
1t is certain that none of the Chesa-
peake & Ohio fleet Of steamships has
ever equalled this time and if any other
ship coming into Hampton Roads frona
England has ever done as well 10 one
here knows it.