The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-07-13
OVER The new BRIDGES SPAN
4 1IO>E tIEW OF rHE GIANT
S,BIIS USr sPtN
tnsrmess Proportions sf >r~ Williams
burz tsrtdk- Not Appreciated When
seen iron, itsiaw -Outio.k IRON the
Tswsr-..reat lash cut n Manhattan

a. they werc ga Now Works. new SUSPENSION
bridge over a.. last River
Seven mouths agu the rrst strand II wiz"
usm was stLI uudIsWu To-day TIE
sur mighty cables ARE finished and the
work OF hanging tho %-usTrndcr cables
from them Is well under say
Those four cables contain I,'s wires,
each 5000 feet long. making At>9 miles n
wire And the work was done exactly
,hrcc times a. fas, as any similar work
has ever been accomplished
Through all those seven months men
saw the work grow apparently 30 slowly
that their SENSES became blunted, aud
they did no, r~raIis. what was being per-
formed bcfor their eyes. Every Gay
they paw tiny black sTecks ploddine TO anu
fro in a tanglo Of wire roFes that looked
like fairy threads from below
No serious accidents, not a single inter
ruption OF the traHic Of the East River, not
n sound that could be heard, marked the
work. Yet tho-c black sIecks. looking
more like iuseCts than men from below
throw $50 ,ons Of cable through the AIR ia
that time.
So high In air hang tho>e great ropes
No airy and light in outline arc tho~- towers
that no man gazing upward from river or
shore can realize the dimensions OF every
thing connected with that giant swing
II Is only when one - Ugh on tie ~'ru"i-
IRE its..: and can look downward from
IN. towers that the true proportions of the
grcn, roadway h-soruc apparent
Assistant Chief Engineer H~ilderbrandt
took tho writer over ~" entire s'ruc'ure
ms, before the fo~u'bridges that had is-n
SWING for the work 81 cable 'ev ng were
torn away We t~gan our clint AZ the
BROOKLYN anchorage just A. the last wire
was being brought across by the busy
wheel hat has carried all tho-r miles OF
., wi,hou, an error 90 a break
The work Of carving the wires over was
.inp,ici,v its.,f. a. indeed - almost every
thirr conn,St"d with the building of tn"
bridge on each shore 81 ih" uver was a
reel Of vlrr THIS wa hItchcd into - groove
m the wheel, ~ a be-; : put around a Nv
~he.l
Then N. wheel va, pulled over 10 III"
,,her side with "A wire cable, revolving all
he way and paving out The wiz" strand
that % carried NJ the ether side another
VINO wa haruc--oi 20 y, and u wa -ut
hack
- IL travelled "a and fro dav after dav,
inv M. The wir.- PRECISELY where th"N were
wanted A. intervals - "a Few var'' men
with longs and pliers stood r"adv fo -".za
ne wiz. a. j, wa delivered. ldy % In place
and tie II To- the re-; With stout ~tee' bands
The a~n,horagc. a pie e granite, looks
nor. like a busy shipvard than an "ii:ce
OF the land Diving into suhterranean
caverus beneath the tons ot stone A."
great ~Nftr-n-ioot ErDs-inS ho,t'd y" Ink
Nth bolts ~ thick a. a man. arm
This lmmru~, cham 81 tempered steel,
held IN place by thr .gIcr,ncum.~ut mas
nf rock, a y.utablc anchor. only one Of
cnormous size. holds the cables proper,
which themselves C'a-s -pme distGnc"
away from tho anchor Their connection
with tho chain = mad bv simply pa--'ng
he cnd."~s strands. # wire around The outer
inks
Tho individual wlro- In N" cable AZ" not
~ th.ck a. a cad pourii Bu' out - o. N
nave hgen ~pun cables 'uat AZ" nlu"'esu
inches IA diameter
Although the anchorage Itself ri-es high
lver surrounding buildings, IN" -'u~'s
r-fu-. % rs,-ivr the impression of height,
for Just aroad there -prins, the vast tower
over which the canlo, az" hung
In. uu. rl~ug 90 - top With a swing %
abrupt and great that On" feels a. II they
were actually climbing y~lhly. 80 the p ur
great cables To caWu un ia" tlnv foot
bridge. slippery WITH "a" months ~ oil drip
JIngs Nog every wlre thar went across IN"
prid,c pa>se-i through an pl hi'h before
Q started. SEEMED quite Impossihl" ~
achievement
Halfway up 30" Ascent 20 the 'ovcr-top
tho climb hsrdm" a -cramrl" M.la>~'>-
IKE MACS 90 ui made Ice i""t Sip and
one dos NJ ENJOY slipping when i' rear'-t
lace 20 land be- - i.a' t".ow Gurlsug
Ne OILY rlv ruf" .U" 'f.'v means ~ support
ST. clm.-d u.I ,I'r'..l. With he threaten.
NJ mas g fu, Gauge hanging JI-' over
our heads
A. at We emerged and stood on a i,rv
.andi7g p.lr' 'nf 90 'he owe \ c.inN
1rulIgt 1p .p'u.rS IA o"w"t - head
-~,rri..i .u-p 'ur -nv and a." hld gained
,.r 900 = the Br'nklvu tower 30! f.. .
, hiyt water sn'r hv 'v"0'v.t FOUR
i,r than 'h" r%lg1r'i" - Pau r'''0c
ana ~-mirgIy - hl-u A. f, -uo" -"1pu"d
mountain fp u- t- va" stood on the IN'orC''i.
ingiardci summit. with Ill N'N l''S,
Long Island. the - '0d. ~" myers and the
nav Al our facf 'E. a neat man
The .rE,r.'r o. SWING that 'h" 'o'1i
weight of the Nriir Vh"n completed viii
a. "a IN tons. VIII 30" live load hat . -
Ies,y-.d 70 carry IT, tr -9v- tat vii
b. pav o. the .thls Or ,h"r t.ta!
60 l- p'u.' tote
Hundreds OF wtr" ropes ha'c c,crr.
vhar foutbrIdr"-. pl,rNs, rpr~' ,ai-
,lorS. 'Acki" mar" a tango around us
hit A. vel might Of" c-r'0' 10" ~" to
nov. "a Nv when .onkir : a. Niagara a. 20
80 any, lug Ven" except 'hr@" rot'" suan-,
banging -rng" aud leaUlifHl, llgh 'vrr
10. ci'v'- smoky atmosphere
Advancing 80 the edge Il tho tower,
where u drops sheer ut" the deep water
49, far away that no wRvss look hk" -ipple-,
Se see q war-hip just having the Brook
lyn navy yard thai it"- 'ust f~'ov Other
varships. ono uf them a mighty hattie
hip. lie IA bcrths Their"
While We ar looking, IN" engineer raise :
nj. hand 20 warn VS. Of a dangerous spot
IN the path And ln-tantan"ouslv all
the picture IL gon" So high are We that
mis- hand ~sufices to hiot ont a navy yard
and all it, ships
A f~erryhoat passes under Va. beauti-
fully distinct like the i'nag" IN the amer
-.