The American Architect and Building News,
VOL. XXXIII.
Copyright, 1891, by Ticknor & Company, Boston, Mass.
No. 815.
Entered at the Post-Office at Boston as second-class matter.
AUGUST 8, 1891.
Summary:—
Iron and Concrete Construction in Bridge-building. — Counterfeiting the Government Stamp on German Iron. — The Proposed Mosaic Pavement for Cologne Cathedral.— Drink
ing-water Wells in Cities. — A Large Microscope......................77 Architect, Owner & Builder Before the Law.—Y. ... 79 German Architecture. — 1.......................................................................................81 The Dolphin in Ornamentation. — V..............................................................82 The New York Cancer Hospital......................................................................86 The Colorado Automatic Refrigerator System at Denver,
Col..............................................................................................................................88 Slow-burning Construction...................................................................................89 Reclaimed Land at Puget Sound.....................................................................90 Illustrations : —
Grace Church, New York, N. Y. — House at Pittsburgh, Pa.— Pulpit in the Church of Notre Dame, Bruges, Belgium. — Design for Church, Chapel, Parochial Residence and School, San Antonio, Tex. — Masonic Building, Dover, N. H. — House at Willimantic, Conn.— Drawing-room at No. 2 Prince’s Gate, London, Eng.
Additional: The Pringslieim Palace, Berlin, Prussia. — House at Roscoff (Finistere), France.— Gateway and Fireplace in the Same House. — Design for Facade of the Church of the Holy Trinity, Cork, Ireland. — Ivinmel Park, Abergele, Wales.— Entrance Front of the Same. — Garden Front of
the Same. — East End of the Same. — Fountain’s Hall. . . 90
Communication : —
The Cost of New York County Court-house. .......................91
Notes and Clippings...................................................... 91
A NEW application of a combined construction of concrete and iron has been made in Germany, where a considerable number of bridges have been built, consisting of arches of concrete, in which a network of iron wires or rods has been imbedded, near each surface. The theory of arches shows that such structures generally fail by the opening of the joints, either at the extrados or the intrados, according to the form of arch and the manner of loading. It is found that the use of a good cement in the joints aids powerfully in preventing the rupture of the arch, and it is a natural inference that the reinforcement of the resistance at the inner and outer surface by the tensile strength of iron would still further increase the security of the whole. Experiment has shown that this theory is correct; and an arch of concrete, formed as nearly as possible to include the line of pressure in the middle third of itf thickness, and containing, near the intrados and the extrados, a network of strong wire, is found to have a surprising resistance. The most important bridge of the sort, as we learn from Le Genie Civil, seems to be a foot-bridge over a river at Bremen ; but the Southern Railway of Austria has recently constructed, with permission of the Government, several highway bridges in the same manner. As nothing in the way of materials is needed but the centering, the wire, and sufficient Portland cement, sand and gravel, the construction is easy and cheap. In the German examples, cross bars were combined with longitudinal wires, to form a sort of gridiron, hut, in practice, it seems as if a wire netting could bo made, which would be cheaper, more easily put in place, and equally good. Obviously, the same construction might be adapted to making floor arches, or vaulting spaces of any sort; and architects will do well to keep it in mind.
TH
E Revue Industrielle makes some serious charges against certain iron and steel manufacturers in Germany, which, with all due allowance for political prejudice, appear to he well founded; and, as the quality of manufactured iron and steel is a matter which concerns the whole civilized world, a public duty is imposed upon the technical press to call attention to the necessity of taking nothing for granted as to the properties of structural metal purchased in open market. Twent} years ago, Professor Reuleaux, of Berlin, made a severe criticism of German methods of iron manufacture. Cheap and had (“ billig und schlecht ”) he declared to be the character of German work; and it does not appear to have been much improved since his time. The Revue Industrielle
gives a novel theory of the system by which the German iron manufacturers have succeeded in “ poisoning,” as it says, all the markets of the world with their products, which we will let political economists comment upon as they feel disposed. Germany, as is well known, protects its industries, the manufacture of iron included, by a tariff, and the French editor thinks that the iron workers, who are sure of being able to sell most of their product at home, at a good price, send their surplus stock abroad, and are quite content if they can get for it about what it costs them to make. Naturally, the stock to be sent away as surplus includes the refuse of the manufacture, and it appears to be bad enough; hut this is not the only complaint which the Revue Industrielle has to make against the manufacturers. It seems that an action for libel was recently brought against a Westphalian journalist, who accused certain manufacturers of evading taxes. The journalist defended himself, in the trial, by endeavoring to establish the truth of his assertions, and, incidentally, of others, of a still more serious character, which he then made for the first time. Among other things, he accused a personage of great importance, the head of an immense foundry and rolling-mill, of having practised, with the complicity of his subordinates, a systematic course of fraud. Under the law, steel in Westphalia must pass an official inspection, and each piece found satisfactory to the inspector is stamped with the Government mark. The director of the works, as the story goes, had counterfeit punches made, with which lie had such pieces as he saw fit stamped with a counterfeit of the Government mark; and a vast amount of inferior steel material, which would not have passed the official inspection, was sold at a low rate, with what purported to be the Government guaranty of its excellent quality. The inspector’s stamp was frequently changed, probably to avoid just this sort of fraud, but the enterprising director changed the imitations also, until he had formed, in sixteen years, a collection of fiftyseven fraudulent stamps, the impressions of which are to be found, we are told, on a vast number of steel rails both in and out of Germany. The disclosures of the journalist and his witnesses have produced a considerable sensation, which is not lessened, so far as the Opposition press is concerned, by the fact that the enterprising director holds various official honors ; and it is reported that he has not been the first person in the business to counterfeit the Government stamp. However that may be, there is considerable reason in the demand made by some of the radical journals, that, when a railway accident occurs, through the breaking of a had rail, or the failure of an unsound axle, and the imperfect pieces shall be found to have the counterfeit stamp, the persons at whose instance the false guaranty was put on them should be held criminally responsible for the consequences of their selfish dishonesty.
THE Cathedral at Cologne, according to the Wiener Bauindustrie-zeitung, is to have a complete pavement of Mett
lacii mosaic, a portion of which has already been laid. This portion is in the south choir aisle, and consists of five sections, separated from each other by borders of colored marble. Within these borders are groups of coats-of-arms, with names and inscriptions, commemorating the twenty-eight archbishops and spiritual princes of Cologne. The main part of the choir is to be occupied by representations of human life and labor, the orders of Church and State, the Christian community, and so on; while in other parts of the building are to be shown the signs of the Zodiac, the four quarters of the heavens, the tribes of animals, the four temperaments, the four elements, and the four winds, all from the designs of Professor Essenwein. Although these subjects may be very Gothic, and therefore archseologicaliy correct, it seems a pity that the noble church cannot be decorated with something better than archaeology. Even the history of the mediaeval archbishops of Cologne, filled as it is with tales of cruelty and ambition, is better worth recalling than tlie fables which suggested to our ancestors holy thoughts, but which awake in the moderns only contempt and ridicule. We know that until within a very few years it has been considered highly reprehensible in an architect to say that what purported to be reproductions of the figures in mediaeval stained-glass and other decorations were not the most correct and religious adornments for ecclesiastical edifices of the present day; but we hope and believe that the time will soon come
VOL. XXXIII.
Copyright, 1891, by Ticknor & Company, Boston, Mass.
No. 815.
Entered at the Post-Office at Boston as second-class matter.
AUGUST 8, 1891.
Summary:—
Iron and Concrete Construction in Bridge-building. — Counterfeiting the Government Stamp on German Iron. — The Proposed Mosaic Pavement for Cologne Cathedral.— Drink
ing-water Wells in Cities. — A Large Microscope......................77 Architect, Owner & Builder Before the Law.—Y. ... 79 German Architecture. — 1.......................................................................................81 The Dolphin in Ornamentation. — V..............................................................82 The New York Cancer Hospital......................................................................86 The Colorado Automatic Refrigerator System at Denver,
Col..............................................................................................................................88 Slow-burning Construction...................................................................................89 Reclaimed Land at Puget Sound.....................................................................90 Illustrations : —
Grace Church, New York, N. Y. — House at Pittsburgh, Pa.— Pulpit in the Church of Notre Dame, Bruges, Belgium. — Design for Church, Chapel, Parochial Residence and School, San Antonio, Tex. — Masonic Building, Dover, N. H. — House at Willimantic, Conn.— Drawing-room at No. 2 Prince’s Gate, London, Eng.
Additional: The Pringslieim Palace, Berlin, Prussia. — House at Roscoff (Finistere), France.— Gateway and Fireplace in the Same House. — Design for Facade of the Church of the Holy Trinity, Cork, Ireland. — Ivinmel Park, Abergele, Wales.— Entrance Front of the Same. — Garden Front of
the Same. — East End of the Same. — Fountain’s Hall. . . 90
Communication : —
The Cost of New York County Court-house. .......................91
Notes and Clippings...................................................... 91
A NEW application of a combined construction of concrete and iron has been made in Germany, where a considerable number of bridges have been built, consisting of arches of concrete, in which a network of iron wires or rods has been imbedded, near each surface. The theory of arches shows that such structures generally fail by the opening of the joints, either at the extrados or the intrados, according to the form of arch and the manner of loading. It is found that the use of a good cement in the joints aids powerfully in preventing the rupture of the arch, and it is a natural inference that the reinforcement of the resistance at the inner and outer surface by the tensile strength of iron would still further increase the security of the whole. Experiment has shown that this theory is correct; and an arch of concrete, formed as nearly as possible to include the line of pressure in the middle third of itf thickness, and containing, near the intrados and the extrados, a network of strong wire, is found to have a surprising resistance. The most important bridge of the sort, as we learn from Le Genie Civil, seems to be a foot-bridge over a river at Bremen ; but the Southern Railway of Austria has recently constructed, with permission of the Government, several highway bridges in the same manner. As nothing in the way of materials is needed but the centering, the wire, and sufficient Portland cement, sand and gravel, the construction is easy and cheap. In the German examples, cross bars were combined with longitudinal wires, to form a sort of gridiron, hut, in practice, it seems as if a wire netting could bo made, which would be cheaper, more easily put in place, and equally good. Obviously, the same construction might be adapted to making floor arches, or vaulting spaces of any sort; and architects will do well to keep it in mind.
TH
E Revue Industrielle makes some serious charges against certain iron and steel manufacturers in Germany, which, with all due allowance for political prejudice, appear to he well founded; and, as the quality of manufactured iron and steel is a matter which concerns the whole civilized world, a public duty is imposed upon the technical press to call attention to the necessity of taking nothing for granted as to the properties of structural metal purchased in open market. Twent} years ago, Professor Reuleaux, of Berlin, made a severe criticism of German methods of iron manufacture. Cheap and had (“ billig und schlecht ”) he declared to be the character of German work; and it does not appear to have been much improved since his time. The Revue Industrielle
gives a novel theory of the system by which the German iron manufacturers have succeeded in “ poisoning,” as it says, all the markets of the world with their products, which we will let political economists comment upon as they feel disposed. Germany, as is well known, protects its industries, the manufacture of iron included, by a tariff, and the French editor thinks that the iron workers, who are sure of being able to sell most of their product at home, at a good price, send their surplus stock abroad, and are quite content if they can get for it about what it costs them to make. Naturally, the stock to be sent away as surplus includes the refuse of the manufacture, and it appears to be bad enough; hut this is not the only complaint which the Revue Industrielle has to make against the manufacturers. It seems that an action for libel was recently brought against a Westphalian journalist, who accused certain manufacturers of evading taxes. The journalist defended himself, in the trial, by endeavoring to establish the truth of his assertions, and, incidentally, of others, of a still more serious character, which he then made for the first time. Among other things, he accused a personage of great importance, the head of an immense foundry and rolling-mill, of having practised, with the complicity of his subordinates, a systematic course of fraud. Under the law, steel in Westphalia must pass an official inspection, and each piece found satisfactory to the inspector is stamped with the Government mark. The director of the works, as the story goes, had counterfeit punches made, with which lie had such pieces as he saw fit stamped with a counterfeit of the Government mark; and a vast amount of inferior steel material, which would not have passed the official inspection, was sold at a low rate, with what purported to be the Government guaranty of its excellent quality. The inspector’s stamp was frequently changed, probably to avoid just this sort of fraud, but the enterprising director changed the imitations also, until he had formed, in sixteen years, a collection of fiftyseven fraudulent stamps, the impressions of which are to be found, we are told, on a vast number of steel rails both in and out of Germany. The disclosures of the journalist and his witnesses have produced a considerable sensation, which is not lessened, so far as the Opposition press is concerned, by the fact that the enterprising director holds various official honors ; and it is reported that he has not been the first person in the business to counterfeit the Government stamp. However that may be, there is considerable reason in the demand made by some of the radical journals, that, when a railway accident occurs, through the breaking of a had rail, or the failure of an unsound axle, and the imperfect pieces shall be found to have the counterfeit stamp, the persons at whose instance the false guaranty was put on them should be held criminally responsible for the consequences of their selfish dishonesty.
THE Cathedral at Cologne, according to the Wiener Bauindustrie-zeitung, is to have a complete pavement of Mett
lacii mosaic, a portion of which has already been laid. This portion is in the south choir aisle, and consists of five sections, separated from each other by borders of colored marble. Within these borders are groups of coats-of-arms, with names and inscriptions, commemorating the twenty-eight archbishops and spiritual princes of Cologne. The main part of the choir is to be occupied by representations of human life and labor, the orders of Church and State, the Christian community, and so on; while in other parts of the building are to be shown the signs of the Zodiac, the four quarters of the heavens, the tribes of animals, the four temperaments, the four elements, and the four winds, all from the designs of Professor Essenwein. Although these subjects may be very Gothic, and therefore archseologicaliy correct, it seems a pity that the noble church cannot be decorated with something better than archaeology. Even the history of the mediaeval archbishops of Cologne, filled as it is with tales of cruelty and ambition, is better worth recalling than tlie fables which suggested to our ancestors holy thoughts, but which awake in the moderns only contempt and ridicule. We know that until within a very few years it has been considered highly reprehensible in an architect to say that what purported to be reproductions of the figures in mediaeval stained-glass and other decorations were not the most correct and religious adornments for ecclesiastical edifices of the present day; but we hope and believe that the time will soon come