New-York tribune., 1906-12-23
RAPID TUNNEL DIGGING.
RECORDS GO TO SMASH.
McAdoo Company's Progress Under
Hudson-Project's Big Figures.


street there Is going on an exciting aithoush mo-
Gen contest between the sand hogs driving TWO
borss OF the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad COM
panyss tubes from Jersey City 20 lower Mai'-
haitian In their race to beat the others me sai.u
hoes have broken al records for tunnel consuuc-
.son ana would break more II the tunnel bosses
would let them take greater risks IN driving INC
shields through the rock.
lust az present the tunnel work is not progressing
AT more than the usual rate in ''the twins as the
men cali the tubes hut while the men were Dur
,ovinr through the river silt, their speed was ''e
greatest known for the kind of work
The men in the north tunnel reachea tne -,
ont in the middle OF the river first but the so'lh
,unnel sand hogs got the record for fast WORK III
seven days they drove the shield forWaro 30 iee,
and On August IS they ate up = teet OF salo anu
snt the fastest tunnel work ever done. The gangs
now average about three feet day thIouSh
the rock and are continually asking 10 he per
rnitted push ahead faster. hut as this wouio IN
crease the danger materially and as the tunnels
VIII be ~ no use until the twin terminal buildihgs
at Cortland ana Fulton streets are completed -
J. Crowley the works manager at Pier {, IN
charge OF Hhe tunnel construction. VIII not aHo"
the men 10 take any unnecessary chances'
The work thus far accomplished in linking tne
southern end Of Manhattan with the Jersey sbore
was inspected yesterday by one OF the HUDSON
Tunnel Companies officials who guided a party
of uezyspaper men through the rock excavations
The Hudson Tunnel Companies are now building
four tunnels under the Hudson. The two southern
tunn.ls run from Cortlandt and from Fulton strest
20 Montgomery street. in Jersey city where they
branch out into four tubes fifth tunnel being also
built in the middle OF this group for use as
suftchback Where Washington street crosses
zsorsgoroarv street .here is a transverse tunnel
20 a point north Of the Delaware. Isackawanna d
Western station and ferry house. where TX crosses
j. IN. river This crosses benesth the tracks OF the
PENNSYLVANIA, Erie and Delaware Lackawanna q
Western. with entrances 10 each OF the 1erlnlA4
stations-
The north tunnels run from 18th street Jersey
CITY 70 Morton street From there the tubp VIII
run through Morton. Greenwich Rnd Christopher
streets 10 Sixth The main line VIII ne
continued north undes Sixth avenue 10 S2d street,
with stations thtousf, the ONCE buildings and
stores ~ the point the stations OF me
sixth avenue elevated From 9Th street there viii
be a branch line 10 Astor Place. where there win
De connection with the subway. The main line,
probably. ultirrs.tesg Wiz connect with the Penn
sylvsnia tunnel at S4th street The station at SSa
street VIII - the site where the Manhattan
Theatre stands
HOUSES NOT DISTURBED.
Pew persons realize - far the work this
part OF the system has gone in fact few
persons along Christopher street knew that A
tunnel was being blasted there until they read thae
& had long since passed under the stores ana
houses The tunnel hores through and the
tunnel completed from the waters edge IN 10Th
street and Sixth avenue
The officials and engineer Of the company
''pOint with pride 10 ne work already accom-
]
rirely beneath the ground Five tunnels and
transverse 6rft been eEcavate5 without in the
least disturbing traffic property. The rock un-
Ger the big Pennsylvania STATEN has been hol-
lowed out and more has been taken away directly
from under the tracks. with all their heavy trafhc,
without accident and without the passenger know
ing what going The tunnels run for near
ly a mile under the Pennsylvania tracks before
emerging into the outer air
Each OF the five tunnels has been driven back
inshore 10 q point about under Washington street.
and rather more than half the transverse tunnel
IS completed There no crossings at grade.
for where the Newark tunnels cross those turning
north 10 18th street the Hoboken trains which viii
run IN the two outside tubes. dip under the Newark
tracks they north.
In addition TO connecting with the subway, the
Brooklyn tunnel, the 34th street tunnel. the West
Side elevated lines, and probably the Grand Cen
tral Station, the system probably-as told eXclu-
Eively IN The Tribune Of Friday-will connect di-
Tectlv with the proposed Fourth avenue subway in
" BROOKLYN. which VIII extend TO Fort Hamilton. This
connection viii be made by the subway which John
c. Sheehan and his friends plan 10 build from q
point near Fulton street Manhattan. the Bor-
ough Hall, in Brooklyn. under the East River.
STATION AN ENGINEERING TRIUMPH
Proud as they are OF the work done and TO be
done on the tunnels the officials Of the McAdOo
company nearly proud OF the twin terminal
station they building downtown The erection
of the building itself Is engineering triumph
Nearly half the buiding-1or although Dey street
cuts II IN aDONe Er01Lo, Il really build
sng-wil be built on The silt that surrounds the
ledge which forms the backbone OF Manhattan
Because OF this the substructUre is big Golfer
dam of cement the largest in existence. The
Broad Exchange Building the largest IN the city
contains 100000 cubic feet but ths twin terminals
z1ll contain 100000 cubic feet, or nearly three
tinaes much.
The terminal VIII constitute when cornpleted the
largest office structure in the worla There viii
be space on the twenty-five floors for four thou
sand Offices. and probably it VIII house more varied
Interests than any other Office building on earth
among Lnem being five different restauranIs Some
VIII occupy its Offices. II is estimated tha. = tho:-
ssLd persons a minute viii pass through itR cor
slooTss or at least six lundrci thousand persons
u the course OF day Aside from this fOating
population OF Al least ten thousand persons. This
great population viii be handled by fhiTfv-rine ne
elevators twenty-five OF them express cars These
elevators are expected 10 handle least twenty
thousand persons a day.
The structure Will he a fine example OF Italian
Renaissance. Up 20 the fourth story 81 viii he
buit or polished gTanite and Indiana limestone
Above that il VIII be built Of brick and terra Gotta
Decorated, and the building win be finished in
tn-dSOOd throughout.
FIGURES THAT STARTIE
The amount OF material necessary 20 construct II
ss enorInous Sixteen million three hundred thou
csrd bricks VIII be required TO build the walls
above the curb. There VIII be 10000 square feet
q TIE partitions. $50 Of architectural terra
Gotta $500 doors IN the building and 5000 windows
TIE area Of the glass in the windows will be l2o O0