Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-06-04

of column or cord thereon. But the
actual strength of the ponderous piece
Of steel was in the last analysis known
on paper only. and the statement was
repeatedly made that had there been
in existence such machine as that
| the government is now having con-
structed the weakness of the Quebec
bridge would have been known before
1t was too late.
The nearest approach to the proposed
government machine is the celebrated
WATERFOWL arsenal machine, Water
town. Pa. designed by A. ii. Emery
of Stamford, Conn. The enormous cost
/ Of such machine as the government
the obstacle between the private
plants and its construction, and even
when the Philadelphia firm was first
engaged to construct this machine it
was not designed to have it larger than
necessary to test the large blocks of
stone being used in government and
other buildings throughout the United
States.
But the supervising architect OF the
|
pacity of the machine be extended so
as to test whole columns of brick,
stone, concrete and even of steel, and
accordingly the original clearance be-
tween "the heads was increased from
twenty-five to sixty-five feet. Now,
since the purpose Of the government
has become known, the department is
being flooded with letters urging its
early completion that it may be used
not only in the cases of bridges already
under construction, but to test built up
structures as well.
The machine In simplest form is
nothing more than huge hydraulic
press with one adjustable head and
weighing system for recording the
pressure developed In it by means of
triple plunger pump. Between the base
of the machine and the adjustable
head when removed to the fartheSt
point is a distance of siXty-tive feet;
consequently the machine Is capable
of testing the supporting strength of q
column more than sixty feet in length.
Some idea of the size of the machine
may be obtained from a statement of
the weight of its principal parts. The
castings for the base and the top head
weigh approximately $4,000 pounds
each. Each main screw will weigh
over 10000 pounds. the lower platform
about $4,000 pounds and the main cyl
inder 10000 pounds. The top of the
machine will be about seventy feet
above the floor. and the concrete foun-
1 Il tnl, ttnn rngtS
will be about eight feet below the floor
line.
| So many letters were sent to mem
bers of congress and to the department
of geological survey congratulating the
government on taking the initiative i'll
the construction of such i machine
: that Senator Teller has introduced 4
bill providing for another machine
: more than twice as large as the Phila
: delphia firms apparatus, having H..
600 tons capacity in compression and
: $500 tons in tension, taking columns
or cords 100 feet long.
{ Mr.. Emery, designer of the Water
town machine, is named in the bin a.
designer and builder, and the price
f including the machine and two eighty
f ton cranes, is fixed at $1,15O,OO0. II
, addition, 100000 is to be appropriated
for building to house the machine.
Il According to the specifications. thi:
machine will be able to give and weigl
loads of tension up to IL 100000 pounds
and loads of compression up to $1,000,
. 600 pounds. The machine is to be pro
vided also with tension holders to ties
round, square and rectangular bars III
to 100000 pounds, with lengths III
to 100 feet.
, The bill explicitly states that If tn
compression cords of the Quebe
bridge had been tested. by such a ma
chine their weakness would have beel
discovered in time to save the struc
5 ture-New York Times.