Show arrom from the manchester guardian Gua ralan dec nee de 10 io THE CLIFTON ENG N SION BRIDGE afi the e magnificent suspension sus ous pension bridge across the avon at clifton by which the counties of gloucester and somer bomer set sot shire are joined was opened on thursday last with great ceremony more moro than one hundred years ago mr alderman vick bequeathed in trust to the merchant XI 1000 to accumulate at interest for tle the purpose of building a bridge over the avon at Clifton the bequest havin having in 1830 18 swollen to it was determined to take steps to commence the construction of the bridge eight thousand pounds was ot of course inadequate for the tiie construction of a brid bridge bride e and jk it was therefore necessary to provide for the remainder by means of toll on choso passing over it the worthy alderman in making his bequest however contemplated tem plated a free bridge and jile one of stone ston e experience havin having g show hat bat an un iron s suspension spen slon sion bridge aou woula 1 bo be preferable in such a locality locati ty application was made to parliament and the tha necessary powers obtained in in may ay 1830 to build a toll iron bridge I 1 I 1 numerous designs were supplied for or the bridge and that of brunel was accepted his object being to make the tha cliffs carry the bridge and he estimated the cost of his scheme at in 1831 the undertaking was commenced by the excavation of the tile first stone then came the bristol riots which impeded this as every other undertaking in and about bristol in 1833 another and also unsuccessful effort was made to proceed and in 1836 the meeting of the tho british association was held at bristol and the president the marquis of northampton laid ti the ic foundation of the Somerset shire or south pier a week previously an iron rod on which a cradle was drawn to and fro having been erected vrho tho contractors then carried on the work for a time with spirit but circumstances rendered it necessary for the trustees in 1837 to take it in their own hands and in I 1 n 1840 the somerset pier was completed in 1843 want of funds put a stop to the work it being found that hatz haft would be required to complete it in 1858 the limit fixed by the act of parliament for its completion the works were abandoned and the prospect 0 of f the construction of the bridge seemed as far coffas off as ever in 1860 mr bir J hawkins and mr W II 11 barlow expressed an lopinson ep op inson that as hungerford bridge was about to be pulled down its materials might be used in the construction of clifton clitton bridge the opportunity seemed so favorable that a new company was organized with a capital of the chains and materials of hungerford bridge apart from froni the pier were purchased for in 1861 1801 the new company obtained its act and took tile the piers and land one of the arrangements of the company is to in the course of time render tile tiie bridge free the bridge is su from the three high chains on each side passing over tho the piers the ends being anchored in a chamber seventy feet below the level of the bridge in the solid rock from tho the anchorage to the tile pier on the clifton side the distance is if two hundred and twenty feet across the chasm seven hundred and three feet and from the pier on the leigh side the chains correspond ond with w ith those on the clifton side the we weight lit of iron used in the bridge is no less tean than one thousand five hundred tons the chains alone weighing one thousand one hundred tons and the perpendicular suspension rods twenty tons the links to the tha chain are beven seven inches broad and twenty four feet long iong and each link is composed 0 of f a series of bars bolted together at the ends four hundred bolts of nearly two inches in diameter are used for this purpose having screw ends by which they are fixed with a large iron nut the bridge is painted a kind of dark red rod now be coming very generally used for such works and the best possible taste has been shown slown shown in not decorating it the nuts and ends of the bolts boits connecting the links of the chain are alone gilt and form a uniform and neat relief to the whole structure from the chain the bridge is suspended by one hundred and li sixty at y t two we wrought iron rods varying in in n 1 length e n ath from sixty five feet leet to three feet and being only one inch and a half diameter in give the structure a very light and pretty character there are two hundred tons of chains and three hundred tons of girders employed poye d above the quantity used for hun nun hungerford ga rford bridge the roadway of the bri bridge de d e is formed of sleepers of baltic timber with transverse planks laid upon them there can be no doubt of the stability of the bridge mr alrey having carried over ibby it by means of a tramway five hundred tons of stone ia i speaking of cotton t the e london shipping gazette says england this year ha lias ilas received from all sources about bales more cotton than in 1863 the consumption has increased about bales and there is a total stock on hand equal to bales the man who think it respectable to brin bring up his children to work has just heard heard from his three sons one of thern them was wasa a dr driver iveron on a canal canni another had been up as a vagrant and the third has gone to the penitentiary to learn ledra the shoe business |