White’s Hill. The percentage of grade, however, remains unchanged. The engineer’s report says that the tunnel was driven chiefly through a quartzite strata. The approximate cost of the entire work was $175,000. The running time of trains has been reduced about 30 minutes to points north of the tunnel, and the distance between San Francisco and Cadazero has been cut from 87 miles to 85 miles.
We are indebted to B. H. Fisher, Chief Engineer, and to J. L. Frazier, General Manager, for the data furnished and the photographs shown.
Reinforced Concrete Floor for Deck Girders.
Several of the more important bridge designs used on the Eastern Illinois & St. Louis R. R., the connecting link by which the Frisco’s Chicago–St. Louis line was established, were described in these columns when the road was being built (Railroad Gazette, June 12, 1903). Since that time an interesting design of reinforced concrete
Reinforced Concrete Floor for Deck Girders.
Details of Bent Reinforcing Bars.
deck floor has been applied at Villa Grove, a drawing of which is shown herewith. The bridge consists of three 30-ft. and one 40-ft. span. When the design was prepared the intention was to build the floor in slabs 6 ft. wide at some convenient point and place them on the girders afterward but before beginning the work this plan was changed. Instead of a series of 6-ft. slabs side by side, each track floor was built in place on the girders, and made continuous, with expansion joints coinciding with those of the girders beneath.
For each track, the floor is 10 in. thick at the center and 7 in. thick at each side, with a straight bottom and crowned top, the side-drainage drop being therefore 3 in. A parapet 1 ft. 9 in. high and 1 ft. thick is formed at the outer edge with 2-in. iron pipe drains spaced 6-in. centers, at the inner corners. Between tracks a 1-in. space is left for drainage. Johnson corrugated bars are used for reinforcement, ¾-in. bars transversely and ½-in. bars longitudinally. The top transverse bars are 6 in. on centers, 1½ in. below the surface and parallel thereto. The bottom bars are 4½ in. on centers, with every other bar bent as shown in the detail sketch, to take care of the shearing stresses. The parapet has short vertical lengths of ½-in. bars close to the inner face and laid to 12 in. centers. The longitudinal bars are also spaced 12 in. Gravel concrete was used, the mixture being in the proportion of one barrel of cement to each cubic yard of concrete.
The bridge is designed for Cooper’s E-50 loading. The total dead load per lineal foot of track above the girders is 3,000 lbs., one-half of which is in the concrete deck. The estimated cost of this deck is $5.25 per lineal foot of single track. The bridge was designed by Mr. T. L. Condron, M. Am. Soc. C. E., Consulting Engineer, Chicago, under the direction of Mr. W. S. Dawley, Engineer Maintenance of Way of the Chicago & Eastern Illinois. The bridge is located at the end of a switching yard and in order to permit switchmen to pass across freely when cars are on the bridge, a sidewalk is being built on each side of it, supported by cantilever beams running over the parapet and bolted to the deck.
The Employment and Preparation of Firemen.[1]
Where a railroad system is very extensive, the Division Master Mechanics should be the final employing officers for firemen, and at least such shopmen as are to be considered prospective firemen, instead of leaving this duty entirely in the hands of the division foreman or traveling engineer.
Practically all locomotive engineers of this country received their early training as firemen; on the same railroad in most cases. Many firemen come from minor positions in the roundhouse or shops. Hence it is seen how important is the duty of employing firemen and shopmen, and their training after suitable men are employed. Although the obtaining and filing of applications can be entrusted to clerks or minor officers, I believe that the final employing officer of a railroad, no matter how large the system, should be an officer of as high rank as possible and in passing upon the applicant the latter should be present. The influence thereby imparted to a prospective employee is very great. The application blank should include all available information and attached thereto letters of reference obtained direct from former employers or business men whom the candidate has given as references of his education and character. The application blank should show name, home address, nationality, where born, age, height, weight, school advantages, if married or single and those dependent upon him for support; a list of those employers for whom he has worked, his occupation with them and dates; whether his general health has been good and if he is addicted to the use of intoxicating liquors. He should be questioned particularly on these last two matters as robust health is essential to his future success; he should be asked if he thinks that an employee in the engine or train service of to-day should drink at all, either on or off duty, and no effort made to conceal the employer’s view thereon. Do not employ all men of the same nationality; mix them judiciously.
There is not a railroad company in this country whose business fluctuates that does not prepare locomotives and cars for their expected busy season, yet how many are expected busy season, yet how many are there who as carefully prepare for the obtaining of suitable men for firemen with which to meet such increased business? Is it not quite often the case that, during the duller seasons of the year, a letter or personal applicant receives no reply or else the mere information is conveyed that “we are not hiring men now”? Why not take a lesson from the world powers and “in time of peace prepare for war”? Before the period of business increase, the employing officer should have on file a list of applications with as full particulars as possible. This work, being properly outlined, can be carried out by a clerk, the use of perhaps five or six letters of inquiry in each case, the thought being to always keep in touch with any change in the address of applicants and to advise them from time to time as to the probable date they may expect to be called for. Last fall, before hiring some 75 firemen, the writer had a list of over 100 applicants, many of them experienced men, and a large number of the remainder had taken up and completed some correspondence course on combustion and locomotive firing. In this way a rapid increase in business can be cared for without the delay to traffic due to shortage of men and without the demoralizing necessity of dropping all other urgent business at such time in order to obtain the men needed.
Have a series of blank forms, and number them so that you can briefly refer to them in that way. When you receive a letter from an applicant, send him form No. 100. When you want more applications than you have on file, send form No. 107 to the station agents and roadmasters along your line. Form 103 sends an employed man to some division foreman for a fireman and obtains in reply his record of starting work. Form No. 102 starts a man in roundhouse or shop work as a training for firing, etc., etc. These several forms are shown at the end of this paper merely as suggestions in the way of carrying out a policy with as little labor as possible.
There are perhaps five classes of young men from which we may obtain our future enginemen:
First, the farmer boy whose training usually results in producing an industrious man, but whose school advantages are generally limited to the “three Rs.”
Second, the country lad, who may or may not have spent much of his time on the farm, but who has lived in or near a small town and had school training up to or better than the eighth grade or entrance to high school. Either of these two classes may have followed threshing outfits and perhaps fired or run a portable boiler.
Third, the city chap who has more assurance than industry, more education than application; who needs more watching than the former classes, yet in exceptional cases makes a most competent and efficient employee.
Fourth, the sons of older railway employees who enter the service with greater aptitude on account of their general knowledge of its requirements and hardships, and whose parents, themselves often deficient in early school advantages, have seen to it that their sons are better prepared therein to enter their life work. This class of men are more likely to stick to their “jobs” and carry out their undertakings, as they are acquainted with the fact that the fireman on a modern locomotive has something else to do beside sit on the seat and flirt with the passing country girls.
Fifth, the technical school graduate, with whom I must confess to have had very limited experience. The few that I have had
- ↑ Presented to the January meeting of the Western Railway Club, by E. W. Pratt, Master Mechanic, Chicago & North Western Railway.
