The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-08-19

farm and manufactured products of
Iowa and the great and enlightened
middle west to travel east with the
greatest ease, safety, and despatch.
Fifty years ago it was the dream Of
the builders of the old bridge that 1t
would be part of grand avenue
east and west connecting the Penn
sylvania railroad with the Union Pa
cific at Omaha and that the Pennsyl-
vania railroad would carry this plan
| through. The building of this wonder
full new bridge, the finest and strong
est between st. Louis and st. Paul,
means renewed hope and opportunity
that this dream Of generation ago
may yet come true, and that 1t shall
be used by through transcontinental
trains, whose tourists will thus be CIV
en- an opportunity to view in yonder
dam and power house one of the
greatest engineering feats OF CEN
| fury. Personally do not believe that
the calculating old Scotch owner Of
this bridge. Andrew Carnegie, philan-
thropic as he is, would invest another
half million dollars in its reconstruc-
| ton, were 1t not for his far-sighted
and abiding faith in the growth and
progress of Keokuk and Hamilton,
good reasons to believe that the in
creased railroad traffic at this point
would in the very near future warrant
this expenditure.
Will Promote SociabiIity.
| Greater than all of these benefits
however, to Keoku.. and Hamilton,
will be the advantages gained to each
community from an easier and more
frequent social and business inter,
course Of our people. We have made
great strides In recent years in be-
coming better acquainted and there
fore in coming to better understand
ing of one another. There was time,
am told, when the great life purpose
Eof some people, both in Keokuk and
Hamilton, was to make fun of each
other and of each city. And am told
they did bravely-at least that many
Keokuk Jokes about Hamilton were
founded on facts. OF course, We dc
mot claim that Hamilton ever was en-
tirely immune from an occasional
poor specimen of humanity. You may
find one here and there in Hamilton
now, just as you find bad people in a
Ichurch-and for the same reason
they come there to be better.
But times have now changed and
in place of all this former cheap and
petty pickering, we are substituting
that broader and truer spirit of friend
ship and cooperation. This is the
only true course for us to follow as
we have everything to gain by neigh
borly cooperation and friendship and
everything to lose by jealousy, knock.
ing or prejudice.
Therefore, let the dedication OF
this splendid steel structure here to
day, in addition to it's nlEey other ser
vices to mankind, mark the beginning
of a new era in the further develop
ment of that spirit Of friendly inter
course and cooperation between your
people and ours.
II thank you."
Following the exercises, the Com.
munity band marched to Keokuk and
played on Main street. A large mum
Der of the Hamilton people who were
present at the exercises, came on tc
Keokuk for the afternoon. The band
is to play on Main street again this
evening.
Will Soon be Finished.
| 1t will be another month before the
new structure is entirely completed
New ties and new rails have still tc
be lad on the lower deck and the
draw machinery has not been entirely
installed as yet.
/ Work on the bridge has been going
on for the last sixteen months. The
Strobel Steel CONSTRUCTION company
of Chicago has had the general con
tract for the bridge construction.
The company was represented here
by its superintendent, William Nc
Aley. Mr.. McAley was assisted by
/ Andy Anderson and John Inglesby
The bridge was designed by Ralph
iModjeski of Chicago. Mr.. Modjesk
Twas represented here by George c
IIinckley..
The new structure is strictly {
high bridge, as compared with low
bridge and is one hundred and fit!
percent stronger than the old bridge
It will carry the heaviest engine
made and is one of the strongest ant
finest structures on the entire river
$500 Tons Of Steel.
The steel in the new bridge weighs
Approximately $500 tons and there
are q million board feet OF lumber II
the structure. The upper deck i
fifty-six feet above the normal water
i line and sixty-two feet above the low
4 water mark and nearly seventy-fv'
y feet above the bottom OF the rive
channel, which has been blasted GU
u SEVEN fest deeper than At any othe