IRON BRIDGE.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 7, Issue 379, 28 January 1864, Page 4

IRON BRIDGE.

The following account of a new bridge, opened last October, across the Foyle at Londonderry, is taken from the Londonderry Guardian : This mammoth path across the Foyle is divided into'two chambers or platforms, the upper and louger for the purposes of ordinary traffic, and the'lower and shorter for railway traffic alone. The entire length of the upper is somewhat over 1200 feet—or aoout a quarter of a mile. Of-this nearly 100 at each end, exclusive of the approaches,.are not actually over the water of the river, but over the beach at either side, and supported by .'pillars risiug from it instead of by the piers. Its breadth is thirty-five feet from out to out, and about thirty-two within the rails which protect , the passengers. Of the inner width five and a half feet .are devoted to pathways, twenty to the roadway, and one to iron grooves or gutters. The roadway is paved with square blocks of oak, six inches in depth, bound firmly together by some substance resembling bitumen, which has been poured around them in a.molten state, and which, when cooled, is as hard as rock itself. The centre of this is slightly raised, so as to shed the water into the grooves beforementioned, thus keeping it free from slop. The footpaths are of patent asphalt© flooring, and are similar in appearance and feel to a finely gravelled and well roiled avenue. Though not enclosed at the sides, yet to the visitor, looking from end to end, it appears as if it were. Owing to the mingling of the massive girding bars, as they become more remote from the point of sight, the range of vision is confined, as well as the view to the Liver, obstructed, thus giving it the appearance of a lighted tunnel, of say twenty feet in height and thirty in width. On the flooring,.which is of rough hewn wood, is laid the tramway. : When the new quays, now in course of construction, are completed, the tramway will' enter this chamber along them by a semicircular sweep from the termini of both the railways, which lie on opposite sides of. the river. The whole of this vast structure rests on sixteen cast metal cylinders eleven feet in diameter: placed in pairs thirty-five feet apart jin the dir-ec-tion of the stream, at intervals; of 119 feet across it, and sunk one hundred feet beneath its bed, or one hundred and forty feet beneath its surfaoe. These are filled with what is called concrete, a mixture of sand, gravel, and cement wrought into a mortar. The swing bridge through which the vessels pass up the river, is exactly in the centre, and is set upon a large cylinder, composed of seven smaller ones, each eight feet in. diameter, sunk

midway between the two ordinary piles adjacent on either side. Over these is a cast iron cap, round the margin of which travels the turning gear. This consists of a large spoke-wheel thirty-five , feet in diameter, with a broad rim pierced for twenty block wheels about two feet across and twenty inches in. thickness, upon which the swivel portion of the bridge rests when not in motion, and upon which it turns when swinging. The whole turning machinery is wrought by a cap* stan with sockets for four handspikes, to which .can be applied at least a dozen men if necessary: Close to tlie.capstauis the lock which secures the bridge when shut, and which in its working is as simple as it is efficient. - In front of. the swivel pier, on both sides, are two triangular pile structures, which are to protect it from ice or other floating obstructions, and to serve as rests for the ends of the swing part when open. The fronts of the pier between which the vessels are to go are also guarded by piles driven into the bed of the river a few feet from their face. The Messrs. Butl-er of Stanningley, near Leeds, were the contractors for this stupendous work; and they have fulfilled their contract most satisfactorily. Thestructure has been in progress since 1859 ; and the rumoured cost is upwards of £BO,OOO.

, The 68th, or Durham Regiment, the head-quarters- of which’ arrived at Auckland on the Ith inst., bears on. its colours, “ Salamanca,” “Vittoria,” “Pyrenees;” “Nivelle,” “ Orthes,” “ Peninsula,” “ Alma,” Inkerman,” “ Sevastpool.” It embarked for India in-Decem-ber, 1857, and has thus been six years*, stationed at Rangoon. Amongst the officers on board Australian, ninny have seen considerable service. Lieut.. Col. Morant went through the Eastern campaign to Bth November, 1854, and fought at the battles of the Alma and Inkerman, aud while engaged in the trenches before Sebastpool he sustained a fracture of the ann. He also served as aide-de-camp to General Shirley from 10th September, 1855, and has received a medal and three clasps. Captain Seymour saw service in the Crimea, and also obtained a medal and three clasps. Captain Oakley accompanied Havelock’s field force in the action .at Alumbagh, and at the relief, on which occasion he was severely wounded on the head ; he also served with Outrain’s force at Alumbagh, and at the capture of Lucknow and the relief of Azimghnr. He has also won a medal'and three clasps. Surgeon-major Best was engaged on the field at Orange River sovereignty during the years 1850 and 1851, and throughout the Kaffir war of 1852 and 1853. His services have likewise been rewarded with a medal.

The' GStli having completed its term of Indian service, when the telegram directing its transfer to New Zealand arrived, under orders for England. Several office) s who were on leave at home are ex* pected by the coming mail to,join the regiment. —Melbourne Herald. Slang. —ln the present day slang, is assimilated with lamentable facility. Ife. enters largely into the composition of parliamentary wit; it helps to point the style and enforce the arguments of writers in the press. People now are not courageous—they are “ plucky.” Nothing is ever long—it is “ lengthy.” .We form resolutions not immediately, but “ right away ; ” we enter into engagements “on our own hook.” The desire to write in a popular style is the cause of this,,and the public encourage it. Slanginess is considered smart, and indicative of a knovvledge of affairs and-society. It-is amusing to observe the complacency and quiet self-esteem with Which most men will utter a cant phrase of the day, as if they had themselves invented it on the spot, and it w r ere something superlatively brilliant and felicitous. “ Neither you, nor I, nor any other man,” has induced many a foolish fellow to think himself a born wit. “ How’s your > poor feet 1 ” a year ago cheated half the natives of Cockaigne into the belief that they were gifted with a special genius for repartee. The heaviest face kindled with unwonted delight, the dullest voice chuckled with conscious fun, as the words came forth. Ancl every one laughed, and was fully persuaded-that he had heard the sarcasm for the first time, and was delightfully surprised at its readiness, point, and aplicabiiity. This, however, is a habit of the uneducated, and has not yet infected the higher classes of our periodical literature, though it is unpleasautly conspicuous in the cheap comic journals.—Dickens “ All the Year Round."