The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1910-09-27
BITULITRIC PLANT
IS ON THE WAY
Pavement Promoters win Be
Ready 10 start as Soon as
the MOderns Move.

on or about October 80 the extensive
Warren bitulithic plant, ordered from
Boston by J. A. Gilman. viii arrive on
an AmericaulIawa freighter, via
Tehuantepec, San Francisco and Seat.
tie. and win be set mp on a lot acquired
by the local people which is just ma.
kai Of the Commercial Pacific Cable
Company's cable tank lot near the rail.
road wharf, on the road leading to the
Iwilei limekiln.
The lot is being put in shape now
for the foundations and the latter will
be in readiness when the big plant ar.
rives next month.
Mr.. lHommedieu, who has spent the
past three months in Portland study
ing bitulithic pavement laying and the
operation of the plant which turns out
the cooked material, has returned to
Honolulu and has his quarters in j. A.
Gilman's office.
The plant is not small affair,
either in dimensions or in price. The
plant represents a big outlay of CAPT
and is designed to turn out material
so that road building can be accom-
plished in short time and with the
least possible obstruction to traffic.
With this plant on hand Fort street
from Queen TO Beretania avenue will
be closed in thirty days. This means
that the street will be torn up, useless
material carted away, new foundation
macadam brought up, laid down, rolled,
and bitulithic pavement laid on and
rolled and the street opened from top
to bottom inside a month.
The plant consists of several sepa'
rate, vet connected, parts. One consists
of machine provided with endless
belts and cups, into which material,
consisting of various sized stone and
crushed rock, and sand, will be dumped
This will be screened and passed on to
an inclined belt and cup system which
carries it into another separator fitted
with six divisions, where it is again
screened and passed on down, until it
mixes with the bitulithc material or
bitumen. The latter has been heated
and reduced to a viscous mass in an
other machine and when thoroughly
mixed is passed out of the machine
by vents into tank wagons which con-
vey the material to the streets where
it has to be laid. The material retains
the heat. and the stuff can be carried
eight miles before II becomes hard.
The material is laid on the substra-
tum of macadam to which it takes hold
and is then rolled until it becomes hard.
In most rock crushing and mixing
machines dust is extremely offensive.
The bitulithic machine takes care OF
dust in a manner to smoke consumers
and eighty per cent. of dust is carried
into a system of blowers and got rid
of, while the residue is carried up
through tall stack and very little dust
is permitted to scatter.
Thus far the local bitulithie people
have not been assured that a contract
will be given them for paving Fort
street. The board of supervisors has
held up the proposition and some mem
bers of the board have played politics
with the proposition. The fact remains,
hOweve that Fort street needs a per-
manent pavement 1t is one of the
civic disgraces today and visitors are
surprised that the municipality, which
is taking pride in its thoroughfares, has
permitted the principal business street
TO remain in so wretched a condition.
As soon as the company has a con-
tract in hand. an expert will be sum
moned from Portland to take charge of
the work and put it through in thor
ougk manner.
Mr.. Gilman is of she opinion that if
Fort street is paved with bitulithic, its
permanency viii cause an agitation for
additional pavements in the business
section, as well as a boulevard thor
oughfare on King from Fort out to
Kspiolani Park along Kalakaua avenue.