The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-12-18
WIN DIGGING PRIZE
Lively Contest for Sewer Exca-
walton Honors Completed.
Leonard Strauss Proved Him.
self the Champion.
STRUGGLE WAS FIERCE
Forty Men We're Engaged in
Test Of Strength.
By an Expenditure of $40 Con-
tractors Made $500.

For the past five days a remarkable
contest has been in progress out on
West street near Washburn college
Forty sewer diggers have been work
ing with might and main to win the $40
in prizes hung up by the contractors,
Wall & Hanley, for the man who would
first complete, to a depth of 20 feet, his
part of the ditch for the new sewer
Yesterday the contest ended and the
winner is Leonard Strauss. German,
who consumed exactly 412d avs or SO
hours in the work. c. Carney was sec
ond, his hole being only five inches from
completion when Strauss was done.
To win a prize, it was necessary to
throw out 81 cubic yards of dirt and 56
cubic yards of rock, equivalent to about
so wagon loads of material
The struggle between the ditch dig
gers has been fierce in the extreme. Men,
came early to work. fought for posses
sion of the first tools to be given out,
burrowed, and blasted and shoveled like
mad till noon, snatched a hasty lunch.
and jumped back into their hole and
worked madly till supper time. It was
necessary to establish a strict patrol to
prevent some of the men from coming
back and working all night. Every
minute was precious, and back of the
bitter rivalry was race pride which
spurred the men to their utmost The
white men and negroes are about equal
ly divided on the job, and it was 4
match between the races as we'll as be-
tween the individual diggers, AS it
turned out, a white man won. but SO
close behind him was the next man. a
colored fellow, that the margin of the
victory was only a few precious min
utes.
And it was a mighty good thing for
the contra ctors, too. The heaviest work
on the whole sewer job was rushed
through at a rate which surprised every
body 1t required about five days to do
d piece of work which under ordinary
weeks. The saving to the contractors il
wages is believed to have been over $500.
1t was a shrewd stroke of business.
The scene of the contest on West
street was the two blocks between Hun
toon and Percy. It was the deepest
ditch to be dug on the whole job, being
| rs feet deep in the deepest place. The
ditch has to be three feet wide. Each
man was allotted to section of the
ditch IA feet long. Between each sec
ton is left 10 feet of earth, which has
to be tunneled after the excavation is
complete.
The character OF the ground was very
uniform throughout the whole length of
the West street ditch. There is eight
feet of dirt on top, and then a soft
sandstone which has to be blasted out
the rest of the Way..s4Under the rules
of the contest, the men all started work
at once, each man in his own section of
the ditch, and the first man to complete
the work to a depth of 20 feet should re-
was $3.50. the third $3.50 and the fourth
and fifth 81 each.
F'urman Baker, the inspector en-
ployed by the city on the sewer job, was
selected for umpire of the contest. The
ditch was staked out and the contest
| commenced at sharp o'clock Friday
morning. Forty men went to work in
as many different holes.
Every man was required to do his own
drilling for the charges of dynamite
after the rock was reached, but all the
shooting was done by Robinson, the ex-
pert dynamitiSt employed for that bust
ness. The contractors also furnished a
helper to shovel the dirt away from the
ditch, and keep things clear for the con-
testants.
One of the colored men, named King,
is very pious and sincere Seventh Day
Adventist. He never works on Satur-
day. He was very much distressed be-
cause he would have to loose a day
right in the midst of the struggle.
Don't you suppose he said to UNI
pire Furman Baker. that it would be
all right if I should come out here and
work on Sunday? 1 would not make
any racket, and you ought to let me
| do it,
Mr. Baker fixed things up so that the
workman would get a fair chance in the
contest He was allowed to do extra
work.
AS a general thing, however. the men
were expected to confine themselves
strictly to the regular eight hour day
! ney were not expected TO Work curing
noon hour but in spite of all that could
be done, some of the leading contestants
would sneak away as soon as they fin
ished their LUNCH and the umpire would
find them digging away for life and death
down at the bottom Other burrows.
1t is to this fact that Carney, the sec
ond prize winner attributed his defeat.
Dem fellers hawged me- he said yes
terday in explaining his defeat. IF dey
had toted fair and not slipped in extra
time, I'd of beat 'em, Shore
Strauss, the winner, is a tall muscular
man, and has had plenty of experience
in sewer digging. He worked on the Pot
win sewer and had been employed on the
Washburn sewer ever since it was
started
Jas. Hanley one of the contractors.
says: Three or four of our best diggers
were working on some of the laterals.
and could not get in on this contest. They
feel sort of sore about it. and want a
chance to show that they can dig sewers
all around Mr.. Strauss. So we are going
to have another prize contest for the
men in a few days. The contest will be
for only Is feet depth. and will be on
the continuation of this main west from
West street.
Presidents Hunting Companion Dead