The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1904-11-12
NEW Y0RK'S GREAT
UNDERGROUND WORK
MOST UNIQUE ENGINEERING
FEAT EVER UNDERTAK-
EN- BY MAN.

New York's great underground rail-
road, the latest step in the movement
toward rapid transit from the old city,
was formally declared open and ready
for business today. The ceremonies
connected with the opening of the tun-
mel were very simple
The subway is the consummation of
years of study of the transportation
problem on Manhattan island and
marks the completion of the first stage
of what will be the most comprehen-
siye system of rapid transit in the
world. Considering the peculiar diff
culties faced by its builders, the SUD
way stands unique as feat of en-
cheering and construction. In the
shape OF an irregular Y. with the stem
resting al the city hall. the tunnel runs
north to Forty-seco street, where it
bends sharply west of Broadway and
out that thoroughfare to One Hundred
and Third street This portion of the
tunnel is a four-track system, two track
for local and two for express train
service. At One Hundred and Third
street two tracks diverge in a generally
northeastern direction, cross under a
corner of Central park and on to the
Harlem river. under which it passes by
engineering skill called into play to
complete it. After passing under the
river it continues to Third avenue and
One Hundred and Forty-fifth street,
where the tunnel ends and the line is
continued upon a Yiaduct to Bronx
park The West Side branch of two
tracks continues north from One Hun
dred and Third street to Hillside ave
hue and Eleventh avenue, where 1t
energies from tunnel and is continued
upon viaduct to its terminus st Spuy-
ten Duyvil
Nine miles of this total CT about four
teen were ready for traffic today, but 1t
is expected that the East Side vision
and the remainder OF the West Side
line will be ready in about three
months. The recently authorized line
from the city hall under the East river
to Prospect park, Brooklyn. will not
be completed for about three years.
With that and other lines under con-
struction and authorized, Greater New
York will have twenty-three miles OF
subway and allied lines.
Takes Four Years.
Ground was broken for the tunnel
March %, 1900 after years of agitation
and legislationAout of which the pres
ent project grew. 1t had been decided
by a municipal ballot that the city
should own the system, but that it
should be constructed under private
contract on money loaned by the city,
to be repaid by the contractor with in
terest. 1t required six months to lay
out the route and plan the size and
character of the tunnel and the via
ducts. the work being under the su-
pervision of commission of which
Alexander Z. Orr was president and
William Barclay Parsons chief en-
gineer. This accomplished, bids for the
gigantic work were issued.
There were but two responses, that
of John b Mcdonald. a New York
contractor, being the lowest, at $35,-
600, 1000 In spite of the. splendid fran
chise involved, the enormous difficult
ties of driving a great tunnel under
the crowded city, the blasting and in
evitable suits for damages for injured
property and the possibility of great
catastrophe with its attendant liability.
deferred all others than Mcdonald and
Andrew Anderdonk, whose bid was
100000 in excess of the successful
bidder.
The contract under which Mcdonald
undertook the work provided that he
should construct the subway road in
four years at a cost of $35,0o0,0 600; that
he should have the right to operate 1t
for fifty years, with 2 right of renewal
for twenty-five years; that the city
council would furnish him with S350O0,-
GOO by an issue of bonds bearing 3ia per
cent interest, and that in fifty years he
should repay the $35,000,000 and inter
est by annual installments. The entire
property would belong to the city, and
at the end of the lease the city could
release the system OH its own terms to
whom it pleased. The contractor was
to make his profit out of the construc-
ton and operation of the road.
The Tube.
The construction of the tube has in
volved difficulties of a character prob
ably never before faced in such a work.
Portions of it pass under skyscrapers,
involving costly and specially desig-
mated supporting systems, and practi-
cally it's whole length lies under a
crowded city requiring the solution of
such problems as those involved in the
of hundreds of sewers,
many of them great main trunk con-
duits, masses of intricate and inter-
laced electric wires, gas. water and
steam pipes, and all without seriously
the services of these es-
sentials to the life of great city. Old
were encountered in unex-
pected places and quicksands, strongly
flowing springs and long forgotten
streams frequently called into play
every device of modern engineering
genius to meet perilous emergencies.
About 100000 cubic yards of exca-
walton were made for the tunnel, one
third of which was stone. AS this re-
quired blasting, another serious obsta-
Gle was encountered in devising means
for the safe use of explosives, particu-
larly in those portions of the WORK
which were in the form of open eXcava-
ton or bitches.
In preserving the grade, the depth of
the tunnel underground varies largely,
along Upper Broadway, where
it was driven under the middle of the
street. Here the roof of the subway
is but a few feet under the pavement.
The detailed work of constructing the
tunnel was done by means of sub-con-
tracts. the route being divided into sec
tons which were advertised by the
chief contractor. AS extensive borings
had been made along the entire route,
the contractors were enabled to judge
very accurately the character of exca-
vation to be made but in some of the
unexpected obstacles and
conditions were found.
Has Cost 100 Lives.
The tragedy of the entire work, which
up to date has cost about 40 lives, lies
in the division on Park ave-
nue. in the sos and 40s. A series of
and accidents befell this
section, causing a number of deaths,
many damage suits and finan-
cially running the sub-contractor who
to crown the one dark chapter on the
subway story, finally lost his life in
a blasting accident.
This history of the subway is one of
nInnl. skill and enersv Even with