1S44.] 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



19 



be macli better, as it bas something of the tone required. Siicb a col- 

 lection, besides furnishing useful objects of study for the young archi- 

 tects, aye, and for the old ones too, would add to the interest of the 

 annual exhibition of drawings, and tend with them to direct public 

 taste into a proper channel. 



By such means, and the aid of this independent Journal, whose end 

 is, to hold as 'twere the mirror up to art, to sherv beauty her own feature, 

 deformity her own image, and the very age and body of the time his form 

 ajj(i;;nsswr(r, something may be done. The advantage of iiaving an 

 inde|)endent Journal as the reciprocal means of communication between 

 the profession and the public is great, and I trust that the profession, 

 so far from thinking themselves injured by contact with the public, 

 may see that by having Iheir own acquirements and the wants of the 

 public reflected in such a mirror, they shall derive most benefit in pro- 

 portion to the extent which the public may advance to in learning to 

 form a correct judgment on the merits or demerits of an architectural 

 design. 



THOMSON'S TILTING APPARATUS FOR RAILWAY 

 WAGONS. 



For emptying Wagons at the termini of Railways, Shipping-places, 

 iic., as used at tlie Magheramorne Lime-works, Ireland. By James 

 Thomson, Esq., F.R.S.E., M.R.LA., F.R.S.S.A., Civil Enginser, 

 Glasgow. (Read before the Royal Scottisli Society of Arts, the 

 Honorary Silver Medal awarded, and reported in their Transactions.) 



The apparatus may be generally described as consisting of three 

 parts, viz. : — 1st, The cast-iron brackets or quadrants for supporting 

 the machine, a a a. 2d, The tilting-frame upon which the wagon is 

 placed, b b. And, 3d, The malleable iron-swings for supporting the 

 frame to the brackets, c c. 



Fis. 3. 



The supporting brackets a a a, are bolted to the wooden frame d d, 

 of a moveable shipping platform, by means of which the apparatus is 

 advanced at pfeasure, and made to project beyond the wharf so as to 

 discharge tlie wagon immediately over the hold of a vessel. The 

 tilting-frame is formed of two cast-iron cheeks or sides, as shown in 

 fig. 4, having in each two 



\:^ 



slots or grooves for attach- 

 ing to the swings, and for 

 adjustment of the appara- 

 ratus. These sides of the 

 frame are connected together by two flat malleable iron-stays e e, as 

 represented in fig. 3, with two bolts in each end, and a light round iron- 

 stay/, at the curved ends. The swings are attached to the frame by 

 means of snubs g g, which are bolted vertically to the lower ends of 

 the swings, and horizontally to the sides of the l^rame, the bolts passing 

 through the grooves or slots already mentioned, in which they are 

 moveable — the upper ends of the swings work upon malleable iron 

 journals fastened in the top of the cast-iron brackets. When the ap- 

 paratus is properly adjusted (which is done by moving the tilting- 

 frame forward or backward upon the swings by means of the adjusting 

 slots), the wagon, on taking its position, should be so placed that its 

 centre of gravity may be slightly in adrance of the point of suspension. 



The rails to the tilting-frame" are laid with a gentle declivity, so that 

 the wagon may be brought upon it with a slight impetus just suffi- 

 cient to set the frame in motion— the wagon will then immediately 

 fall into a position ready to discharge, as shown in fig. 2, when by a 

 simple contrivance, which may be eftected in various ways, the door 

 of the wagon is opened from behind by a handle and connecting-rod 

 communicating with the door latch, and the load discharged. While 

 loaded, the position of the wagon will of itself remain the same, being 

 in equilibrio ; but immediately after it is discharged, and consequently 

 the centre of gravity thrown behind the point of suspension, the tendency 

 of the wagon is then to resume the horizontal position, which, how- 

 ever, it is prevented from doing, by means of the spur h, until com- 

 pletely emptied— the spur is then disengaged, and the wagon resumes 

 its level position ready to be removed. 



The whole operation of discharging a wagon (of whatever weight) 

 is eftected with perfect safety and facility in a few seconds, and one 

 very important desideratum is supplied by this apparatus, viz. :— the 

 practicability of discharging wagons of different dimensions and dif- 

 ferent sized wheels upon the same tilting-frame. 



The advantages of the apparatus have been fully tested at the Mag- 

 heramorne lime-works in Ireland, where they were first applied, and 

 have since been in constant operation for the last three years, dis- 

 charging wagons of three tons with 24-inch wheels, and wagons of 

 only 2U cwt. and 20-inch wheels, with perfect facility and expedition 

 —the cost of each apparatus not exceediog from 10/. to 1 U. complete. 



Fig. 2. 



The Mersey and Irwell NA\nGATioN.— Late on Thursday, the 28th ult, 

 or early on Friday morninR, the lock on the river Irwell, at Barton, a little 

 on Ihis side of the place where the aqueduct on the Bridgewater canal is car- 

 ried over the river, fell in. The lock is from 65 to 7U feet in length and a 

 great part of oneside-«aU near the top gate lell in, while about hall the 

 wall on the other side gave way. The top gate was entirely destroyed. The 

 lock is an ol.l one, and lor the last two or three months has exhibited symp- 

 toms of giving way. The cause is said to be an unsafe foundation- The 

 consequence of this accident, which fortunately was not attended with per- 

 sonal injury to any one. no vessel being in or near the lock at the time, will 

 be the stoppage of the traffic on the navigation for a week or a fortnight. It 

 is rather a curious circumstance that this should occur within three days of 

 the time fixed for the transfer of the property in the entire navigation to 

 Lord Francis Egerton, who, as we have already stated, is to take possession 

 of the Mersey and Irwell Navigation on Monday the 1st of nuary.— 

 Mancliester Guardian. 



