Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1907-08-24
A Stroke In Mechan-
zeal EnSineeril,S.
q ccocoeocoeoee 9 Q 90 . .
[O-iginal.l

competence. BannOn was self made
man, manufacturer, and got rich.
Elrod's son Henry, as a boy, had
mechanical shop in his fathers cellar
and showed considerable aptitude for
mathematics and mechanics. When
his father died, leaving him nothing,
Henry persuaded Mr.. BannOn to give
him a subordinate position In his
works. Bannon, who considered both
the boy and his father impracticable,
took Henry into his service under pro-
test, remarking that the boy would
never get beyond the bottom round OF
the ladder Henry did we'll enough
till his employer caught him making
love to his daughter, Mary Bannon,
whereupon Mr.. Bannon discharged
him.
The morning Henry stepped out OF
the Office building at the factory 10
hunt another job he saw a group or
men, foremost among whom was Ban
non, looking up at the great smoke
stack. Joining them and inQuir1ng
what was the matter, he was Informed
that the stack was leaning to one side.
Indeed, an engineer had just deter
mined that at the top it was forty-tve
inches out of plumb.
Here was serious matter. From
all appearances a scaffolding must be
erected about the stack, the stack must
be taken down and another built in its
place. Indeed, it would be fortunate
If the chimney did not fall on the fac
tory buildings beneath 1t. destroying
them, with much valuable machinery.
Bannon was very much troubled. His
engineer told him there was no way
by which the stack could be straight
ened, and before leaving the spot he
gave orders for the erection of the.
scaffoiding and the subsequent taking
down of the chimney.
Elrod went away, trying to concen-
trate his mind upon getting another
position. But the chimney, or, rather,
some method of Strengthening it, had
got into his head, and he could not
get It out. He thought all day and
toward evening took pencil and pa
per and began TO figure. At midnight
he went to bed, but could not sleep, so,
getting up, he went over his figures
to see that they were correct
The next morning, after having slept
only a couple of hours, he went to the
Bannon works. Carpenters were just
| beginning to erect the scaffolding
| around the stack. Henry went into Mr..
Bannon's Office, Bannon, supposing
that he had come 30 protest against
his dismissal. frowned.
"Mr. Bannon," he said, It don't think
/ It necessary to take down the stack.
have a plan for Strengthening It."
Bannon looked at him as q general
would look at . corporal who was
| about to inform him how to save his
army.
IF you wish 1T, YOU are welcome to
it." Henry added.
| Sill there was no word from Ban
non. He was considering whether the
young man had lost mis- senses.
@'The base of the stack" continued
| Henry, who gathered confidence fhe
| moment he entered upon his plan, "te-
| ing square, simpIifies the problem. The
| stack leans to the east forty five inches.
/ would remove ten sand'sa half inches
laof briekwoTk at the base on. the other
s.three sides. would insert in ifhe
/ spaces left blocks of wood of equal
size, thus resting the three sides of the
4 structure ON the BLOCKS. Between the
4 blocks Z would build brick piers six
/ inches high, leaving space four and a
4 half inches between the tops of the
! piers and the bottem of the undermined
1 brickwcrk. Now, If / can reduce the
| height Of the blocks by four. and a half
| inches the gap wiE be reduced by this
i amount and the stack will sveer to the
| west forty-five inches at the are de-
1 scribed at the top where the radius (the
chimney is 122 feet" t
Bannon's eyes were fixed on the
/ speaker during this statement with
| growing interest. Lie had forgotten the
lesser in the more important matter.
He continued to stare for "a few mo-
ments after Henry had finished, then
/ asked: s5 ~
with the enormous weight (nearly
400 tons on the blocks, you can't cut
them down and get OUT theesnrplus."
II have thought of that" Henry re-
piled. II Will burn then2 OUT
| It seemed as If 400 tons had been
taken off BannOn'g mind.
"Where are your figures?' ne asked.
Henry produced them and waited
while BannOn went over them again
and again.
Come" said the latter when he was
satisfied; "you shall have charge of the
work
After the successful removal of the
bricks and the insertion of the blocks
Henry Elrod marked off the space to
be burned out, set the blocks on fire
and kept them burning evenly. If one
burned faster than the others it was
immediately checked till the others
caught up with it, Thus they were
kept burning uniformly while the stack
slowly righted. Small assures opened
on the opposite side near the base, but