614 



ERECTION OF THE GOKTEIK BRIDGE. 



necessary chisels, hammers, and other tools for bridge construction. 

 At the outset heavy rains interfered considerably with the progress 

 of the work, the violence of the .storms being so great that it was sel- 

 dom possible to do any work between noon and sundown. The tem- 

 perature ranged from below the freezing point at night to over 90° 

 in the shade in the forenoon. Another delay was caused by the refusal 

 of the native laborers, on account of their superstition, to use com- 

 pressed air in riveting, and nearly allot* this was done by hand, although 

 the plans called for 192,000 rivets in the field work alone. 



The usual plan followed in bridge construction of indicating the 



View of traveler showing opposite side of gorge in the distance. 



locations of different parts b}^ numbers and letters could not be fol- 

 lowed in this case owing to the ignorance of the natives; so a color 

 scheme was adopted, by which each column and girder was given a 

 distinctive color, and the joints between the columns painted with a 

 combination of stripes. All the erection outfit was painted black to 

 distinguish it from the bridge material proper. In this way the thou- 

 sands of pieces were handled and put in position without difficulty. 

 In beginning the construction of the viaduct the steel was hauled to 

 the end of the track and deposited in a temporary storage yard in such 

 a manner that it could he lifted by the traveler. Thus the first towers 

 were erected. As these were placed in position the superstructure was 



