OCR Text |
Show A TRIUMPH OF ENGINEERING. Williamsburg Bridge a Nobis Monument Monu-ment to American Skill. That tho Brooklyn bridge, after nearly a generation of use. haa endured en-dured as a hlghwater mark In the bridge line, at least In the greater city, la nn mean tribute to the skill and the daring of the engineers who planned It. That the new bridge now surpasses In all lnisirlnnt dimensions, dimen-sions, and, foot by foot, cable for cable, outclasses the old signally. Is perhaps the greatest single description descrip-tion that ran he given of Its magnitude magni-tude as the grnatesl suspension bridge in the world surpassed In length of span only by the Firth bridge. The Brooklyn bridge In length falls dinmeter. -The four cables contain 4i.!iXX wires, and the supporting strength of each of these cables Is tons, as contrasted with lS.Oou for the older bridge while the figures lor the weight of the two structures between towers are 7,771 and fi.ti:'0 tons, respectively. The WlllliimsburK hrldgn was begun be-gun In October, lH'jti, the first work being done on tho foundsllons of the New York towers. It was more than Itvo years later, on April 9. llinl. when, amid the salutes of tho craft on tho water front, the two cables wero hoisted from the river bed and the actual construction of the span began. On Nov. 11, 11)02, a tire destroyed de-stroyed the wooden staging, breaking out on the Manhattan tower, JjO feet from the Knst river, burned along the cables and furnished ono of tho most j siieclactilnr conflagrations In the his- 1 lory ot tho city. Utile serious dam-age dam-age was done teyhe main structure. I however, and the work was hurried I forward, although there were many I delays Incident lo tho tire. The cost of the new bridge will I roach about til.ooo.noo. At ..- -ent time only tho south luiivv H I completed. Wllhln a few 4 ,'Ji north roadway will he opened lu pedestrians, pe-destrians, and will serve for them until un-til ono of the fisilways Is completed. No arrstigement has yet been made for the letting of the car tracks on the new bridge and the elevated structure struc-ture ends with the brldgo at both ends. Delanrey street, at tho Manhattan Man-hattan terminus, Is to be widened, and the work Is to begin soon. This street will ho widened by rnzlng tenement tene-ment houses along the southerly side. Already hundreds of buildings have been destroyed further east along the course of tho bridge and Iho old region re-gion of Poverty Hollow Is entirely destroyed. |