Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1908-06-04

steel caisson which is sunk down into
the tranquil areas of ocean depths,
far below the comparatively limited
portion of wave-disturbed water near
the surface. These steel caissons
have at their base a wide fiange, ex-
tending all around and heavily weight
ed. Upon these flanges the water
above rests, pressing down with enor-
nous weight, eXerting at 80 feet be-
low the surface a pressure of 2,160
pounds per square foot, or at a CO.
foot depth pressure of more than
two tons per square foot. The inert
weight of the structure itself and the
weight of the water upon it more than
counterbalances the action of the
waves above. Imagine an ordinary tin
basin turned upside down and sub
merged, and you get an idea of the
Murray foundation. Upon this steady
floating foundation, then, any desired
superstructure may be built-light-
house, fortress or living or storage
room of any kind.
The whole structure, then, in It's
steadiness and immobility, might be
likened to floating iceberg. To any
one who has ever gone to sea in the
winter time one of the wonders of the
deep must ever be a sight of great
iceberg floating steadily with the cur
rent, no matter how violently the
great waves beat against its sides.
Every schoolboy knows that this
steadiness of the floating mass of ice
is owing to the fact thGt two-thirds
of its bulk is below the level of the
sea. And it is partly this principle and
partly the additional one of adding to
the depth below water the widely pro-
jecting fiange of steel that makes Muir
rays invention so valuable and i'm
portant in the eyes of all marine en-
gineers. The downward thrust on this
flange of the immense weight of stable
water is the great secret of the prac-
ticability of this invention.
Only Surface of Sea Agtated.
Countless experiments by marine
engineers all over the world have
demonstrated the fact that the depth
to which the wave disturbance of the
surface of the sea extends averages Is
feet. A homely proof of this is to be
found in the way in which diver can
work on the bed of the ocean without
feeling the slightest effect from any
| motion of the waves over his head.
And in many of the longtime sub
mersion tests of submarine craft the
crews have sunk below the level in a
calm and risen to the surface in a
storm without feeling any indications
| of the above-surface disturbance.
! Not only is the Murray principle ap-
| plicable to lighthouses and lightships
and floating fortresses, but to every
class of stationary marine structures
such, for instance, as breakwaters
and piers; bridges across arms of the
| sea or detached areas of water; sub
| merged torpedo stations whose steadi-
ness will give hidden gunners deadly
aim; floating coaling stations, pro
vision and oil storage depots and even
| hospitals and temporary hotels.
Applied commercially, the Murray
| invention may revolutionize breakwa-
| ter construction. Millions of dollars
| have been spent in the building of
| breakwaters in the creating of good
| harbOr or the construction of a large
railroad and shipping terminal, and
| in a number of cases these breakwa-
| ters, after much time, money and eff
| fort had been expended, have been de-
! clared insufficient and unsatisfactory
! These breakwaters have been built up
| from the bottom of harbors by the
| dumping in of enormous quantities of
| rock at huge cost. The Murray sys-
| TEN, it is declared, will do away with
| this expensive construction entirely
| The Murray breakwater is built in sec
tions, each section resembling an in
verted vessel, the upturned keel doing
the work of breaking the force of the
inrolling waves and the great project
ing bulk underneath held steadily by
the pressure of the water.
OF Value for Lightships.
One of Mr.. Murray's chief claims of
the value of his invention, however,
lies in its application to another, and
more picturesque, marine structure
! the lightship. AS lightships now are
constructed, it is impossible for them
to carry light at greater height
than 20 feet above their decks. In ad-
dition, they must always be anchored
close to the reef or shoal over which
! they stand guard, since it is not pos