OCR Text |
Show I InL MAINl ml HThe Acetylene-Oxygen H Torches Cutting Away m Steel of the Wreck I - v I j Washington, Sept. 19. The army a .engineer officers, working on the I wreck of the Maine In Havana harbor, liavo abandoned the Idea of construct- ing a small cofferdam within the large dam which now surrounds the v vessel for the purpose of enclosing 'j the forward part of tho wreck and giving access to the very bottom or tho structure. Instead, a system of i bracing Is now being placed that will J so strengthen tho walls of tho ex- Ct iating dam as to make it capable or i resisting the enormous strain that S will he Imposed when the workmen ,f undertake to remove the mud at "the 5, U-f bottom to a depth sufficient to expose - the keel plates. As this work of bracing goes on, : t exports plying tho queer little acety-i acety-i f lene-oxygen torches are steadily cut-5 cut-5 jl ting up tho great mass of tangled J steel beams and plates with a rapidity Hi far greater than could bo realized by the use of the old fashioned chisel and sledge hammer and it is expected that, by the time the mud diggers have uncovered un-covered the bottom plates of tho for-ward for-ward hull, most of the steel abovo 5 , will have been cut away and removed. ,f oo |