NOTES ON OLD BELPER AND OLD HELPER BOOKS. 9 



Spesefycation of the maner the Masons work of Belper bridge is intended 

 to be executed. 



The Bridge to Consist of three Eliptical arches, the centre arch 45 ft wide, 

 13 ft. 6 in in hight from the springing & 17 feet from low water, the otlier 

 two 42 feet wide, 12 ft. 7 in. high from the springing, and 16 ft. I in. from 

 the low water ; 21 ft 6 in wide betwixt the plints of the battlements, 24 ft. 

 under the arches — the wing walls on the southwardly side shall extend in a line 

 with the bridge 50 ft., & those on the opposite or northwardly side 49 ft. in a 

 circular forme as described in the plan — that both the land & water peors 

 shall be sunk to the debth of 7 ft. 9 in. from low water, that they shall be 

 7 ft. 6 in. in width at the springing & shall increas 4 Inches in length & bredth 

 every foot in debih, that the masonry of the peors shall rest upon a grating of 

 two thicknesses of Fir planks the over 6 in. thick, the other three inches thick, 

 laid across and pined togeather with oak pins & laid at the above debth as 

 level & solid as posable upon and pined to the piles, Each pile of Fir or Elm 

 containing on an average 434 feet of timber and drove 8 ft into the bed of the 

 river if posable, or more if necessary and no of such piles at each peor — 

 that the peors shall be done externely with stoon exactly squared & filed & the 

 stones shall be from I ft 3 in. to 1 ft 6in. in hight & from 2 ft to 3 ft in bed, 

 that the binding coorses shall not be less than 2 ft 4 in in width & the same 

 thickness as the outer coorses, that the Masonry shall be as high as the 

 springing of the Arches & shall be solidly set in borrow lime properly pre- 

 paired, the spase in the middle shall be solidly filed up with squard stoon laid 

 in mortar and the Joints well run with fine gravil & Lime, that the Archsloons 

 shall be 22 in in height at the Crown of the arch & increase to 2 ft 2 in 

 towards the springing & none less than 2 ft. long, and no quoin to have a less 

 tye than i ft., that the wool of these stoons shall be squared throughout the 

 joints from front to back & wrought as true as posable from as many moulds 

 as there are different stoons drawn in the Arches in the plan, & shall be truly 

 & solidly set upon there own beds with an equal thickness of Mortar, & every 

 coorse well run with proper gravel — That the foundations of the Wing walls 

 shall be sunk as low as indicated in the plan or lower if necessary & laid with 

 strong & sufficient stoons, that the walls shall be 7 ft 6 in in thickness ajoining 

 to the abutments & diminish upwards to a proper thickness for suppoorting 

 the foot paths which shall rest upon the solid walls — That a counter Arch of 

 masonry shall be placed at the backs of the low peors & that it shall rise 8 ft. 

 above the springing of the Arches & shall be continued up to the height of 

 the Cornish with rubble walling — That the spandrils & wing walls shall be done 

 with Ashlor not less than 12 inches in w** & 12 inches in heiglit & in every coors 

 shall have binders from 3 to 4 feet long at every 8 fi. distance — That the whoale 

 of the spandrils as high as tlie top of the Arch & the wing walls as high as the 

 foot path shall be. solidly backed up with strong rubble stoons laid in good 



