3as* 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



[November, 



borne had the load been placed in the middle, and four limes as much as 

 it could hare borne had it been fastened at one end only. 



"A considerable advantage is frequently secured by using hollow cylin- 

 ders instead of solid ones, which, with an equal expemliture of materials, 

 have far greater strength, provided only that the solid part of the cylinder 

 be of a sufficient thickness, and that the workmanship be good, especially 

 that in cast-metal beams the thickness be uniform, and the metal free from 

 flaws. According to Eytelwein, such hollow cylinders are to solid ones of 

 equal weight of metal as 1 212 : 1, when the inner semi-diameter is to the 

 outer as 1 : 2 ; according to Tredgold as 17 : 10, when the two semi- 

 diameters are to each other as 15 : 25, and as 2 : 1, when they are to 

 each other as 7 : 10. 



" An extraordinary meihod of increasing the suspensive power of timber 

 supported at both ends, a meihod, however, which has been confirmed by 

 repeated experiments, is, to saw down from J to I of iis depth, and forcibly 

 drive in a wedge of metal or hard wood, untd the timber is slightly raised 

 at the middle out of the horizontal line. By experiment it whs found that 

 the suspensive power of a beam thus cut 1 of its depth was increased ^'jth, 

 when cut J it was increased ^'gth, and when cut ji^hs through it was in- 

 creased jSf'h. 



Resistance to pressure is taken into account chiefly when a body, as, ex. 

 ?r., a column of stone or wood, has to withstand the pressure of a weight 

 acting in the direction of its longer axis. The consi'queuces of this com- 

 pression are various as the body is long or short ; if the former, the mate- 

 rial when overweighted will bend and break ; if the latter, the body be- 

 comes shorter and thicker, its parts at length separate, the upper pressing 

 through the lower, and by mutual friction reducing the subslauce to powder. 



** The force required to crush a body increases as the section of the body 

 increases ; and this quantity being constant, the resistance of the body 

 diminishes as the height increases. 



"According to Eytclwein's experiments, the strengih of the columns or 

 limbers of rectangular form in resisting compression is, as 



" 1. The cube of their thickness (the lesser dimension of their section). 

 2. As the hreadlh (the greater din.'ension of their section). 3. Inversely 

 as the square of their length. 



Of the Weights required to Crush some of the most Important Materials. 

 (Eytelwein's Haudbucti der Statik fester Korper 2r. Bd.) 

 1. Mefals. 



C.i8t-iron .. .. .. .. ll.'^Sl.i—irr'/'Oih. on tlie square inctl. 



Tin, molten .. .. .. l.-i4'i8 



Lead, mollen .. .. .. 7728 



Woods. 

 Oak .. .. .. .. 3g(!0— 5147 



1!)28 

 1(506 

 1284 



Stones. 

 Gneiss 



Saadstone. Rothenbnrg 

 Brick, well baked .. 



4!I7I) 

 2.1 li 

 1092 



We wish before closing our review to notice a ratlier serious error 

 at page 24, wliich, tliougli prob.ibly accidental, is very likely to mis- 

 lead the student. The author is giving illustrations of the method of 

 measuring moving power by the product of the m iss and velocity, and 

 he says, "A porter carrying a loud of 100 lb. with a velocity of 2 feet 

 miisl apply a force of 2 X 100 = 200 lb. A h( rse walking at the rate 

 of 4 feet per second and bearing a load of 250 lb. puts forth a force of 

 4 X 250= 1000 lb." If the reader were to conclude hence that the 

 muscular strength exerted throughout the first experiment was 2001b. 

 measured statically, and throughout the second experiment 10001b. 

 measured statically, he would certainly have a wrong notion. The 

 conclusion ought we think to be this — that the (fficiuicy or work done 

 is in the first case not 200 lb. but 200 units of icork, and in the second 

 1000 units of work, where the unit of work is defined to be one pound 

 moved through one foot per minute. 



PROPOSED NEW LAW COUHTS. 



EVIDENCE BEFORE THE COMMITTEE OF THE HOCSE OP COMMONS. 



Evidence of Mr. Barry.— lo conducting the building of the New Houses 

 of Parliament, I have had occasion to pay much attention to the present 

 courts of law at Westminster. Speaking the opinion of the public in ge- 

 neral, as far as it is interested in the matter, and my own, the present 

 courts of law, are not convenient. In respect of want of space ; of want of 

 proper rooms attached lo each court for the judges and their clerks ; of 

 barristers' rooms, robing rooms, solicitors' rooms, witnesses' rooms, and 

 rooms attached to the law courts for juries to consider their verdicts. This 

 kind of accommodation should, in my opinion, be attached to each of the 

 common law courts, and a considerable portion of it to the equity courts, 

 which is not the case in the present conns. 



Is it not possible, in your opinion, to reconstruct the present courts of 

 law so as to provitle the required accommodation on the same sile? — The 

 space in itself 13 inadequate to the purpose, and there are dilKculties as to 



the contiguity of the courts with Westminster Hall, and the interference 

 with the light of the Hall, which makes it utterly impossible to reconstruct 

 the courts at M'estminster upon a good practical plan. 



Proposed Site in Bridge Street inapplicable. 

 Supposing that the south side of Bridge-street was removed, and that 

 New Palace Yard was converted into a quadrangle, by extending the pre- 

 sent clock-tower of the Houses of Parliament along the present site of the 

 south side of Bridge-street, might not accommodation be there found for 

 the courts of law, in connection with the present courts, by extending the 

 buildings already stand ing along the west side of New Palace Yard, so as 

 to form a complete quadrangle of the whole? — Additional accomniodatioo 

 undoubtedly might be obtained bj that means, but not I fear upon any 

 good plan. In consequence of the quadrangular form of the addition that 

 it would be necessary to m^ke for enclosing New Palace Yard, it would 

 not lend itself to a convenient arrangement of the courts as a whole ; and 

 therefore I think such an addition to their accommodation would not be 

 advisable. In enclosing New Palace Yard, it is assumed that it would 

 be desirable to make the principal entrance to the new palace at the corner 

 of Bridge-street and St. Margaret-street, facing the north-west. This gate- 

 way would render the north side of the proposed quadrangle, enclosing 

 New Palace Yard, unavailable for the purposes of the law courts, inas- 

 much as it would be cut off by the gateway from all connection with the 

 courts and the proposed addition to them. The available addition, there- 

 fore, would be from the north side of the present stone building to the gale- 

 way, and as it would he necessary that that portion of the building should 

 not exceed the depth shown upon the plan, namely, 35 feet, such an addition 

 to the law courts would not lend iiselfto any convenient arrangement of 

 them as a whole ; and I question very much whether by such an addition 

 the increase of accommodation which is uecessary could even be obtained. 



Would not the space admit of the enlargement of the courts? Unques- 

 tionably it would, lo the extent I have mentioned, namely, to the gateway 

 at the norlh-west angle of the proposed quadrangle formed by enclosing 

 New Palace Yard. 



Would it not be possible to provide sufficient accommodalion on the 

 lower story f<>r the counsel, for the witnesses, and for the professional gen- 

 tlemen of different classes, reserving the upper story (by whalever name 

 you may call the lower one) for the exclusive purposes of the courts of 

 law, and would you not (the whole being nearly upon the same level now) 

 thereby gain more than double the space which you have already in the 

 exi>tiug buildings? — Such an arrangement could not be made without 

 blocking out the light from the windows of W estminster Hnll, and even 

 then, I do not consider that it would afford to any material extent the con- 

 venience and additional accommodalion required. 



Injury of present Courts to Westminster Hull. 



The present courts being nearly upon a level one with the other, and 

 with their respective adjuncts ? — The present courts are uot much above the 

 level of the ground, with the exception of the Rolls Court, which is in the 

 front of the stone building, on the one-pair floor; but as ihe courts could 

 not he raised to a higher level without blocking out the light from West- 

 minster Hall, any alteration of their level would be objectionable. 



In what way would they affect the light of Westmins er Hall, inasmuch 

 as no window exists at present in M'estminster Hall at less than about 25 

 feet from the ground .'—Several of the courts are now above the cills of 

 those windows, and if they were raised, the light to Ihe windows on that 

 side of the Hall would be entirely blocked out. The existing front is a 

 building that is very shallow in its depih ; that it encloses, as it were, a 

 large area, in which area are obtained all the courts upon a low level. If, 

 therefore, those new courts were to be raised to a level with the external 

 front of the stone building, it would effectually stop out the light from the 

 windows on one side of the Hall, and the story that would thereby be ob- 

 tained below the courts could not well be lighted. The cills of the windows 

 on the west side of the Hall were originally 21 feet above the ground in 

 New Palace Yard, and were raised to 2G feet above that level when the 

 present law courts were constructed. The Hoor of the courts is about two 

 feet six inches above the ground, and Ihe roofs of several of them are 

 already above the level of Ihe top of Ihe window cills, on the west side of 

 the Hall. The stone building, towards St. Margaret-street, is about 54 

 feet high. 



Conversion of present Courts into a Record Office. 



If the courts were removed from their present site, would you be very 

 much embarrafsed as to what purpose to apply the space lo ? — Certainly 

 not ; I conceive that there are many purposes to which it might he very 

 advantageously applied. 1 would mention amongst others a new Record 

 Office, for which, in my opinion, the site might be made available, and 

 would afford ample and very convenient accommodation. The remrtinder 

 of Ihe proposed quadrangular addition to the palace might be appropriated 

 either for some of those Government offices which it is not necessary should 

 be immediately connected with others, or for rooms for commissions and 

 ot>)er (jovernmentdl purposes, or for what is, in my opinion, very much 

 wanted in the new Houses of Parliament, rsfreshment and other rooms for 

 the convenience of the public. 



In your plan of converting the present sile of the courts of law into a 

 Record Ofhce, do you mean to place any space between that and West- 

 minster Hall? — I meant Intake means of completely isolating ihe building 

 which is to contain Ihe depositories for records from the Hall, 



