SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLI. No. 1065 



extensive system of state canals, known as the 

 barge canal, now nearing completion by the state 

 of New York. These new canals will provide a 

 modern waterway, not less than 12 feet in depth, 

 between the seaport of New York and the Great 

 Lakes, with a spur running northward along the 

 Hudson Valley to Lake Champlain. The work is 

 practically a reconstruction of the existing sys- 

 tem of canals, which have a depth of only 6 feet, 

 but which, nevertheless, constitute an influential 

 factor upon the freight rates of a considerable 

 portion of the United States. 



The works which will form the outlet at Troy 

 of this great system will consist of a lock with 

 two tandem chambers, which together will have an 

 effective horizontal area of more than twelve times 

 the area of the present single locks, and the dam 

 will have a length of nearly a quarter of a mile. 

 In addition to these works, between 20 and 30 

 miles of river channel have to be deepened an 

 average of 3 to 4 feet, so as to provide the 

 channel depth of 12 feet. 

 The American Bridge Company School Work at 



Ambridge: J. E. Banks. 

 Some Features of the Engineering Plant for the 

 New Agricultural School near Farmingdale, New 

 York: Ralph C. Taggaet. 

 The Human Nature Element of Engineering Con- 

 struction with Particular Application to Trop- 

 ical Situations: T. Howard Barnes. 

 The Dome of the Columbia University Library: 



O. W. NOECROSS. 



The Inspection Department in Its Belation to the 



Management of Manufacturing Organisations: 



Fred. B. Corey. 



In this paper the author calls attention to the 

 disadvantages inherent in the usual plan of fac- 

 tory organization, in which the inspection depart- 

 ment is under control of the works superintendent, 

 and to the great advantages to be gained by 

 placing this department under authority of an 

 executive reporting directly to the general man- 

 ager, or other officer in control of the factory out- 

 put. 



The executive head of the inspection depart- 

 ment should be thoroughly familiar with general 

 engineering practise and standards. He should 

 be well informed in all shop methods, including 

 foundry and machine-shop practise, and be thor- 

 oughly versed in the use of testing machines and 

 gages. He should, if possible, be conversant with 

 chemical laboratory methods and apparatus, so as 



to be able intelligently to direct that part of his 

 organization. Moreover, he should be familiar 

 with the uses of the factory products and the con- 

 ditions under which it is to operate after it has 

 passed beyond control of the factory. He must 

 have absolute control of every inspector in the 

 plant and be held responsible for the quality of 

 material and workmanship of all that the plant 

 produces. 



The relations that should exist between the in- 

 spection department and the sales and engineer- 

 ing departments are quite fully outlined. The in- 

 spection department, if rightly conducted, acts 

 for the mutual protection of the manufacturer 

 and the customer and can be of great assistance 

 to the sales department in various ways. At the 

 same time it should maintain the closest possible 

 relations to the engineering department and plans 

 are outlined by which practical cooperation may 

 be secured. 



Detail methods of inspection must be suited to 

 the special conditions of each case. It is ob- 

 viously absurd to try to apply big-shop methods 

 to a small shop, and the converse application, while 

 far more usual, is no more logical. Such matters 

 must, therefore, be subjects of careful investiga- 

 tion and study in each individual plant. 

 The Application of Science to Telephone Engi- 



7ieering: George S. Macomber. 

 Ueinforced Concrete as an Emergency Bepair for 



Iron Chimneys: A. L. Pierce. 

 Mining Engi'ixeering Prohlems Incident to the De- 

 velopment of the South African Diamond Mines : 



Gardner F. Williams. 

 Shaft Swiking in Excessively Bard Bock: Wil- 

 liam Young Westervelt. 

 The Befrigerating Plant at the Washington 



Market, New York City: Charles H. Higgins. 

 Bemoval of Senderson Point at the Portsmouth 



Navy Yard: 0. W. Norceoss. 

 New Machine for Ginning and Cleaning Cotton: 



Geoege T. Bueton. 

 Spiral Wrappings with Special Beference to Flat 



Spiral Springs and Stresses in Steel: B. 



Spencer Greenfield. 



At the conclusion of the session an inspection of 

 the new engineering laboratories of the Univer- 

 sity of Pennsylvania was made under the direc- 

 tion of Professors Edgar Marburg, William Easby, 

 Jr. and H. C. Berry. 



Arthur H. Blanchard, 



Secretary 



