The Washington times., 1922-11-20
ELECTRIC FORCE
HOLDS BACK
RIVER
Compressed Air Checks Hud-
son Even as Moses Divided
the Red Sea.

Build me a castle and court!'
cried Aladdin. and the Genie built
him such magnificent mansion
and estate as Aladdin had not pic
tured In his most extravagant
dreams.
Build me a great market cries
Industry, and electricity rushes to
build great buildings, light them,
render service In their every fur
nishing.
Build me a great highway" cries
streaming traffic, with it's incessa mt
truck loads OF everything In the
world to buy or sell. and electricity
rushing through cabled channels be.
meath the earth, pushes on earth
and stone and drives a wonderful
thoroughfare through that rock.
ventilates and lights Il. and the
constant stream OF traffic, from
market to market, moves through II
in regular and unobstructed flow.
Recalls Bible Tale.
The tremendous force that divided
the waters OF the Red Sea. so that
the Children OF Israel could march
over dry-shod has its parallel today
In the force OF electricity that Is
driving a steel and concrete tube
beneath the Hudson river. connect
ing the city Of Jersey with Man
haitian. so that caravans Of trade
can move uninterrupted. This is
the tunnel to be devoted to the
use of vehicles.
For three years plans for the
building of this wonderful tunnel
have been under way and were 20
perfected even before the first blow
was struck for erecting the work
shops at either side OF the river
that the resultant business Of han.
ding the traffic inside and at both
mouths Of the tunnel begun with
the first days work to function in
absolute co-ordinated progress.
Airplane pictures Of surrounding
thoroughfares leading to the pros
pective tunnel terminals were taken.
and incoming and outgoing stations
at each end were selected, marked
and designated on the plans In
such convenient locations as would
not interfere with each other or
their traffic, moving in opposite
directions. Plans for traffic officers
for this vehicular tunnel and elec.
trio signals were in the hands of
the police department even before
the first current began to force the
great steel shield down into the
earth and across beneath the river.
Blown by electric energy through
the rock is the only way to de-
scribe the huge circle that Is slowly
but constantly. night and day. peck
ing away at the river silt and rock
and drawing out OF its own vitals Il
huge steel and concrete tunnel, built
foot by foot.
Creates Safety Chamber.
The tremendous strength of steel
braces support the structure as
built. The steadfast pressure of
compressed air creates chamber
of safety for the workmen, holding
back from the circle within which
they are building these steel braces
the waters which would otherwise
rush in and destroy both work and
workmen.
The men who move forward on
the six scaffolds or elevators OF the
great cutting circle and operate the
pressure switches. signals and tele.
phones of the machine, are allowed
o work under air pressure only
forty.five minutes. There are seven.
teen shifts of men. which comprise.
in the entire crew in both shops at
either side OF the river over a
thousand workmen. When the men
emerge from their work under
ground they are served with coffee.
ha H. n
massage. There is a physician con-
stantly at the little emergency hos.
pitfalls, erected with the offices at
either station.
These are the queerest little hos
pitfalls one can imagine. They are
big tubes, long enough to contain
four hospital wards in a line each.
with a telephone beside each sani-
.ary bed. II 'man is overcome
by the pressure of air in his work
underground, he IL placed in one of
these wards and an air pressure
equal to that amount he has been
working under turned upon him
electrically. This amount Is grad.
ually lessened until normal con.
litions return.
In the big power room where giant
switches line the metal walls. and
the great storage watts supplied con-
tinually with $500 volts Of electric.
ity by three feeder cables from the
Edison plants are connected with
miles of wiring to the transformer,
one Is amazed at the ease with which
the machinists and electr. .ians work
Michael J. Quinn and A. Hort, the
general superintendent and chief
electrician. move about touching the
big machines and switches, explain.
ing glibly, but their scientific expla.
nations need a transformer to tune
down to lay mind.
Strewn With Blueprints.
Up in the offices Major c. o.
Glenn, resident engineer, sits at big
table strewn with blueprints, records
geological diagrams of the river bed
and maps, and watches the recording
gauges on the walls before him that