| Show The Man Who Is Tunneling the Hudson River example of the working of the law of ot com corn compensation compensation Am Is le to lo bo extracted from the history of modern tunnel construction When the excavations y for tor tho mho London electric system s n of cf railways wore dug It was American capital cal und and enterprise that furthered the project When Whon the th n roadways were ready for equipment It II was discovered that them was no plant In III Great of ot capacity to construct the steel cars enra which hero n a feature of thu plan Nor could thu proper pr per vehicle be obtained on tho the con continent continent It H was WM a matter of ot necessity that the lire cars should coats from Ameri Amerl American can workshops and they did IUd That was wn Indeed an un Industrial triumph for Undo Uncle Ram Ham but Its offset followed H It was eves In hr fact tact already un unI I jrr cr rr way and hall hail been for tor years thirty yc years irs ego ago an nn attempt was made malic f to 0 tunnel tho the Hudson Jn in river Under the 1 direction of DeWitt Clinton the original projector of ot the tho scheme work was as begun In 1874 ISH Shafts wera sunk eunk at lit Fifteenth Jersey City CIly and at lit atthe tho the foot not of ot Morton street New York and nd from the bottoms ot tho u shafts twin tunnels run tun out under the river riven Tho The work was wae continued very promisingly until ono one day In July 1810 18 0 when the tho shallow layer of slit silt between the tunnel roof and tho river gave way W y under tho pneumatic pressure In tho the excavation and the tho water waler rushed In and drowned twenty workmen This Thie unlooked unlocked for tor catastrophe was as a serious damper to the project Work was wad continued In a n half halt hearted way wn for or two years longer and thon then It II was abandoned EIght night years afterward nn an English company look took up u tho the work worl and proceeding from the Jersey end nd car carried lied fled tho the tunnel forward to within feet of the old Now New York heading but bill for lor some 1 reason the tha digging was again aga In stopped Nothing morn more was us dono done un until til dl 1396 6 when tho New York and New Jersey cY company took charge of ot tho lie work ork and III In 1902 began tho the undertaking ing Int which has been carried out nut to KM its present successful Issue two tunnels under the North river are Bre practically completed and four tour others me ate under underway way w Ya ay And tho the chief glory clory of this oils achieve achievement ment Is I due to nn mu English EnlI h engineer Charles Chance M Jacobs upon broad and anil capable shoulders rests tho the Ilon of oC linking lie Pennsylvania railroad by tunnel with Manhattan Is 18 Island Island land and Brooklyn Ho lie U is tho the man mun whose WhOM brain conceived the tho matae of ot tarrying thin stupendous effort to It a outcome and whoso whose executive tive tIo ability organized organised and directed tho tim force required for tor Its development Notwithstanding the tho deeds that thol ho he hohu his has dono done Mr Jacobs has not yet el got gol Into the biographical dictionaries and SCENES IN A HUDSON RIVER TUNNEL t t i to t 2 21 y 1 jA r F 4 1 j 4 I L t j 4 Ile r rI I E cyclopedias Perhaps that Is another of at his cleverness Much leas has been b rn written of what whet he has done une but lut almost nothing about his own person personality allt Tide This fact Is due to Mr Ir Jacobs Jacobi mud and sot not to neglect lect on tho the part of those who win chronicle the tho dully dally doings of great real men with a II devotion to detail that Is so to gratifying to tho the public taste ta te Beyond ne ond the tho nets apparent to nil all that thaI ho Is a II atall atall tall well built buill Englishman of oC about yours years of oC age a e with a n fine fino head albeit rather bald fringed with closely clo ely cropped white hair very ery little II Is la known except that his face tact Is U very attractive and strong with Its high un unwrinkled wrinkled d forehead piercing 1111 dark eyes COS shadowed benrath beneath heavy and well arched eyebrows eyebrow Homan no nose o firer mouth resolute chin and long white while mustache It Is unmistakably o tho the face tuce of u II man of character and strength anti lii health are aro stamped tJ visibly on Its 1111 rosy ros skin I Concerning Mr Jacobs youthful ca Cl career career reer few details come to light s hr t iU I IA A y h l al COMPLETED i a Ho lit protests I laughingly y that he has hall neither time nor Inclination to dig up bO to remote a past It U Is fairly evident however that his early years yearn carH were net not wasted lie must have hav been pretty busy bu r In acquiring tho the foundation for lor or the tho splendid superstructure which Is li now no his and arid hi his clean physique and robust robustness robustness ness neS f are arc suggestive of ab at nonce youthful follies Collies H It Is evident that lt he ho hohal has hal earned his present success by b hard work tho mho Intelligent and ap application that leads to lofty lotI achieve achievement achievement ment meat Mr Jacobs Jacob was discovered by br the late lat e Austin Corbin who met him In England Englund d I and at al once formed a high estimate o of t r hb iii ability as tie an nn engineer er That was wa e In 1898 18 S und and Jacobs Jacob was hl years of age agu lie Ile had already dono done a tL good deal of ot very creditable work In London Wales Vales and India und mid had circled the globe globo In search of oC knowl knowledge knowledge edge and adventure that thal might In time Urn be bo Corbin took t lok a 11 fancy to the tho young engineer sod and persuaded him to come como to America At that thal line limo Mr Ir Corbin could think of little save his hl pet scheme of a a steamship line between the eastern end of Long Loni Island and Mil Milford font Haven In Wales This Thin hll project Involved Inv tho the bridging of ot tho the Rust Fallt river In order to connect the tho Long Iong Island Islan railroad of ot which Mr 1 Corbin was tho the president with N New w York city Jacobs became greatly Interested In this matter and crone came over ocr to America to satisfy him himself self a all as to Its l possibilities lly By the tho time he ho landed nt III New York Mr Corbin had become enamored ot or rapid transit und and he be employed ed Jacobs to make a a preliminary survey sune The young oung Englishman was enthusiastic over tho the scheme and submitted a n plan In detail which afterward formed time the th foundation of the tho ono one adopted by the tho rapid transit commission Mr Jacobs then went to lo work want to design des t a bridge bridgefor for the Kant East river rhe at Island but bul that was abandoned In favor of tho the l I t r e vr vrr r r r r rt t o u EtC E various tunnels tunnel now being excavated In 1692 the East I alt River mer Gas C u company the notion of oC supplying New NewYork NewYork NewYork York with gas BUS from Its It nr great at plant at nt long Island City CIt To o do 10 this It ft would require a 0 tunnel under the Eat East river for tor Its mains Emerson M II n tho the president nf of the gas pas com corn pony piny hart had met Mr 11 Jacobs and had formed formal a high opinion of ot his hl ability to take hold of an Rn unusual enterprise Ho Ito engaged him to make a survey and to toI report as ms to the th feasibility fen of ot digging ln the tunnel As A a J result r of ot hl his Investigations gallons Jacobs planned a 0 tunnel with I Its roof forty feet below helow the river bed boll It was to b be ten t n feet te t In III diameter mid and was waa to puns pass under Island hIMI It t was tits thi success of this thin tunnel that thal brought Mr r Jacobs Jacoba to time tile front The survey Nurvey Will was a 1 marvol of accuracy accuracy Tho The tunnel was wan over ocr 2600 GOO feet feel from shaft to shaft butt and us as boring wax was all carried carnet on nt nl both boll ends end an nu error nt lit the shafts would s have havo been multiplied many mt u ottI times nt lit the point of meeting tin Nn exact were IVere IVereth tim thu th engineers estimates that at lit tho the point of meeting It way was found that hat there thero was ivas Va only enly half halt on Inch nt of If error Tho Time digging of thin this serf nr t last Fast river ver tunnel bristled with and dill die discouragements The company that took the contract for mho tho excavation met with all mill sorts orts of obstacles ob some dome of oC them apparently Insurmountable One day when the workmen had hall been heen tunneling through h solid rock for some time a 1 soft spot was r reached ach d and I III the water began to trickle In Tho Thu foreman was wast frightened fright frightened ened out of at his and built n a bulk bulkhead bulkhead bulkhead head across neros the face and anil an filled the time hole hIo with timber her and hay Then hen ho and his hi himen men made tl ii hasty exit Mr Ir Jacobs went down clown to Investigate lie He Ic built safety gates for time the ton of the men arid and opened tho the bulk bulkhead bulkhead bulkhead head The Time water continued to ennui In mid the tha contractors rehired to proceed unless the thu excavation atlon should ha bt made lands I fifty tent deeper When fInally Dually the con contractor contractors tractors tractor retired from front the Job the gas company authorized authorised J Jacobs JacobI a coin to go on and finish the tho work The contractors sued the gas gait 1111 company compan contending cont that the excavation WON was Impossible Before a decision was wat reached Jacobs hud had completed the tunnel tun net and arid had walked through It Mr Ir Jacobs next great preat work was the tho North river tunnels for time the New York amid New Jersey J rc company Tho rho method of ot boring baring for the two t 00 completed tunnels tunnel l land and also alKo nl that being botn employed ed on the great tunnels for to I tho the railroad nm similar to tn that made use of ofIn ofIn ofIn In In the Kant East river gas tunnel It con consists sols In pushing forward by means of powerful hydraulic pressure a n 1 giant Iron and steel nUel shield with doors door through which the earth Is h drawn for removal In the North river tunnels this shield l was vas twenty feet feel In diameter and was pushed forward by b eighteen hydraulic jacks each capable o of ot a 0 pres pressure pressure pressure sure of ot pounds to the square Inch Of Ot the tunnels which have been bien un undertaken I by Mr Jacobs acoba during the tha past few years arl th the two belonging to lo lotha the tho Now law York and anI New Jersey Jer e com corn company Inn pany ar are finished the tha work on the tho two Pennsylvania railroad tunnels Is U isnow now progressing natively actively and anil tho the shafts have hae been sunk and the great shields Installed on the tho two tunnels of oC tho the Hud Hudson son Ion company compan These last are the mho sub aqueous roadways 1 which will unite unit Jersey City with the lower heart of ot N New w York JAMES JAStEs Ij L I |
