1820.] Bonaparte's Fly Bridge at Antwerp. 271 



the middle of the river at a suitable distance up and down the 

 stream, from the intended track of the Fly Bridge across the 

 river, to admit of hawsers being stretched of sufficient length to 

 allow the bridge to pass from bank to bank to the floating piers. 

 To these anchors placed up and down the river, as shown in the 

 Plate, two decked boats are made fast with a piece of chain 

 cable. One end of the mooring hawser being made fast to one 

 of these boats, the other end, having what seamen term a spring 

 upon it for more readily shearing the Fly Bridge, is made fast to 

 one of the masts of the Fly Bridge, as will be seen in the section 

 of the range of boats and bridge delineated on the Plate. To 

 give a Fly Bridge a sufficient scope of cable to cross a ferry of 

 600 yards in width, her mooring hawser, including both up and 

 down the river, must be about 1200 yards in length, which, ia 

 situations like the Scheldt, would form such a curve or catena- 

 rian as would infallibly touch the bottom of the river, and prevent 

 the Fly Bridge from crossing. To guard against this, however, 

 the hawser is supported, and borne off the ground, upon three 

 decked boats intermediate between the Fly Bridge, and each of 

 the boats made fast to the anchors by chain cables, which prevent 

 this long hawser from sweeping or touching the ground in its 

 passage across the river, as will be better understood by examin- 

 ing the section of the range of boats before alluded to. The 

 Fly Bridge, with its connecting boats, are, therefore, made to 

 describe circles proportionate to their distance respectively from 

 the mooring anchors, the operation of the whole being similar, 

 if we may be allowed the comparison, to points fixed upon the 

 moveable bar of the mariner's quadrant, in which the position of 

 the mooring anchors may be supposed to occupy the joint of 

 the quadrant bar, while the Fly Bridge traverses the track of the 

 Nonius. When, therefore, this vessel, or Fly Bridge, is to cross 

 the river, the lashings are let go with which it is made fast to 

 the floating pier on either side, and the rudder is so set that the 

 current acts upon it, and the boat immediately performs her 

 passage, and stoings across the river to the floating pier on the 

 opposite side to which the length of the hawser is adjusted, and 

 a passage is thus effected within the course of a few minutes with 

 the greatest promptitude and precision, the rapidity of the pas- 

 sage being always in proportion to the strength of the current. 

 When the tide changes from flood to ebb, and vice versa, the 

 Fly Bridge rides or swings from the anchors in the direction of 

 the current so as to perform her passage during both the tides 

 of ebb and flood with equal facility, as will be seen by examin- 

 ing the Plate. 



it is said that Bonaparte established this Fly Bridge, or ferry 

 apparatus, for the more speedy and certain transportation of his 

 troops across the Scheldt when his army was in Flanders, and 

 its capacity and extensive accommodations were such that it 

 also answered the purpose of a barrack, or halting place having 



