Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1900-12-21

| brought here during October. ISSaS. ant
| set in position in the south end of the
| big navy Aard u.5r one q the gun
| shops y track Ival~ from the gun>hop
| 10 Il forge and crosses The flooring II
the big scales about ten feet east Of
the rutrane To the latter building \
eonSt,i,,ra' Ia period OF time WIS re
quinsl FOR THE Manufacture aud er,,,,-
ten Of this monster machine Il was
| brought here II sections, and the great.
| est care WAS exercised in rvassc milling
the various sections of steel 80 that
the poi>e OF tie broad platform should
Ice exact
Hundreds Of visitors have trod across
this pla tform without knowing they
We're near one of the most interesting
mechanical contrivancts in the nation.
nj cap tai They are not mentioned in
the guidebcoks. and the men at tie
navy yard do not call attention 10 the
scales par excellence unless perhaps n
fiat car happens 10 be on the platform
being weighed. with its load of two or
three great guns All the large ord
nance manufactured for the navy is
weighed upon this machine. 1t was
built for that special purpose and has
given great satisfaction. two years of
usage having failed to dun its sensitive
nature
There is nothing attractive about the
scales. From the surface of the ground
they look like ordinary hay scales
Their delicate mechanism. like the vital
organs of the human body. is Invisible
TO the eye. The most intricate parts
In -
Close Investigation. however. and n
footrule would show that the platform
of the machine is ~ feet long and u
feet wide. Beneath the powerful ma
chinery is "A cement hase laid upon
long piles. The ground is somewhat
low. and II was necessary To utilize The
services of a pile driver To secure Il
stable foundation a solid base is one
of the prime requisites Of perfect
weighing machine
When the government sought bids
for tile erection of The machine. notices
were sent To all the leading scale man
ufactH"erS in the country and the low
est bidd received the contract Much
of its fine aud peculiarly sensitive ap
paratus WAS specially manufactured
for use In the big machiue. which d.f
fers in its parts from any other scales
in the country The completed struc-
ture is regarded as the finest Of its kind
in the world. Il model and marvel of
modern mechanism. as well ms "A splen-
did achievement for American ingenui-
ty.
In order to illustrate the accuracy of
the counferpoise Of the huge machine
to n reporter au officer in the bureau of
yards ana docks picked mp a half brick
which was living near 10y and tossed ii
upon the platform of the big scales.
He then consulted long brass lever in
the reading box along the edge of the
platform and found that the weight OF
the hrickhat was just one pound.
Turning to the reporter, he said the
machine is so sensitive that it viii give
the exact weight of anything from
pound of feathers to "A pair of i3 inch
guns and do il accurately. The On
pacity of the scales Is 100 tons or dou
bic the capacity of the old set. remoy, q
when the present apparatus was in
stalled y - inch gun weighs about
- tons Two Of These monster instru
ments Of war reclining on ~ foot
car truck. can be weighed on the ma
chine without taxing its capacity
Washington Post