The Washington herald., 1908-03-22

10 interest inventors enough for them 10
make any great departures from what
was known 10 be the existing pOssibili-
ties of the force But it's application 10
diving bells. which is a favOrite system
where bridge construction is 10 be cOnsid-
cred. opened up a field which to-day is
Of tremendous advantage 10 the engineer
and the builder occupied with spannlng
great streams and the placing OF founda-
tons IN the water for such a purpose
The automobile may be said to find in
compressed air one Of its chief reasons
for present popularity, The pneumatic
tire Is resultant Of the compressed air
force. while the pump is the medium
through which it is supplied. The bicycle.
in its own day. had reason to feel CRATE
ful TO pneumatics that gave the necessary
elasticity TO the wheel How comforting.
besides. is ride in a rubber-tired vehicle
in contrast TO the carriage not thus equip
ped. Within the carriage, perhaps. pneu-
matte cushions lend further comfort TO
the occupant out for an afternoons en-
joyment
In the construction Of the Hoosac tun-
mel in 1866 the first air compressor was
used on an extensive scale Proving an
unqualified success. it's perfect operation
being largely due 10 Chief Engineer
transferred TO the marble quarries at
sutherland Falls, Vt The celebrated Yer
mont marble was brought from its hiding
place through the power of the rock drills
and the channeling machines back OF
which stood the pneumatic compressor.
Used by ShipbuiIders.
Probably few industries employ the COM
pressed-air power more extensively than
do the great shipbuilding plants in this
country. Hammers. drills, riveters. the
various tools that are used in the con-
struction Of a vessel. find compressed air
wonderful help on which reliance can
always be placed in safety. When il
comes to painting the hulks the men at
work find their labor facilitated greatly
through the pneumatic brushes that yir
tually spray the sides Of the ship with
the fluid coloring- Large surfaces every
where when needing a coat of paint are
covered much more quickly in this man
ner than where the hand and brush are
charged with the undertaking. The dent
ist has long ago become convinced that
his hand is given an additional degree OF
cunning when utilizing the drill back Of
which Is the compressed air TO give It's
motion.
The sand blasts at the Mare Island
navy yards have for some time demon
strated that compressed air yields mucn
better results than any other method for
the similar purpose. The machinery in
this service Is quite interesting and the
blast at work reminds one considerably
of fire engine playing a stream OF
water
In the larger field of transportation
pneumatics may yet prove a wonderful
achievement, say the experts who con-
Germ themselves with the possibilities of
compressed air To send a car through n
tunnel with the identical ease as mall
carrier is shot through a tube may not De
far off. In day to come the delivery
system. that now has its thousands Of
wagons speeding over the busy city
streets. will probably be relegated in or
der 10 make way for the new condition
a pneumatic tube service for packages to
every point within the city's limits. and
beyond perhaps.
Famous Experiment.
The experiments in this country by AL
fred E. Beach. who some forty years ago
exhibited his circular wooden tube at the
American Institute fair at New York.
held considerable promise. The distance
covered then was $50 feet. The diameter