RESPONSE OF THE PRESIDENT, PROF. DAVIS.

Your honor, I suppose it falls on the president to thank you for your kind words of welcome. As I am only a sort of a president, but his representative, it falls upon me, I suppose, to say thank you, sir.

We men who live in bricks, and mud and mortar, you know are not usually talkers. That isn't a part of our business. Our business is to work. We came to Grand Rapids with the confident assurance, which needs no confirmation, of the same kind of a reception that we have met with, knowing that everything will be done for us that can be, and I spare words in that direction, to express some wishes I have.

I hope to see the day when the ships of the lakes shall make their wharves at Grand Rapids. I see no reason from what I have already learned, why that should not be done. I see no reason why you should not presently have a ten foot channel up to the city front.

It happens that acquaintances of mine and men that have formerly been in my employ, have been engaged in making a survey this summer for this purpose. I hope to see it accomplished. I have looked over the maps and plans some, and I see no reason why it may not be accomplished, and while I do not know the amount of water power you have here, I see no reason why seven or eight feet more may not be added to your present head, and perhaps that water power doubled, if you are prepared to utilize it.

As I came here the other day I saw what I suppose is your first ten story building. I see no reason why there should not be more. I see no reason why your city should not profit by every modern improvement. We who live in the State, take a pride in the city of Grand Rapids. It is, as you have truly said, the center of the furniture trade for this whole country, whole nation, and we look upon Grand Rapids as one of the features of Michigan-just as we count its other features-its wonderful, and simply matchless, system of inland navigation, yet to be improved as time passes, as we all know, and I take pleasure in referring to one particular item of that improvement which has fallen under my eye dur

ing the past summer, which we will all take pleasure in hearing about, I think. The improvement of the St. Mary's river and the building of the new locks at the "Soo."

The opening of the St. Mary's channel will easily double the Lake Superior commerce, and that commerce now exceeds that of the Suez canal, as we all perhaps know. The St. Mary's river at the present time can be passed only in the day time. When the new channel is done, it can be passed continuously, day and night. The locks are already operated day and night by means of the electric light, so when that channel is done '93 is the date set-in the fall-we may expect to double the capacity of that channel. It will be a 20-foot channel-indeed it is being made 21 feet. I know of no place where one can spend a few hours and receive more bona fide instruction than to sit on the canal docks of the Soo, and see the great vessels passing through there. Now a portion of that commerce must come up here. This city is entitled to it. It is only seven or eight miles to within grasp of that thing. All the fall of Grand River is in the first seven or eight miles and that can readily be overcome. While Grand Rapids extends to us, gentlemen, a most hearty welcome, I, in behalf of the Michigan Engineering society, wish to extend to the city of Grand Rapids, congratulations upon the prospect of being a sea-port in the literal and proper sense of the word. It cannot all be done at once. We know how these things are done. But I repeat, I see no reason why this city, with its wealth and possibilities, should not have a channel.

We shall take great pleasure, Mr. Mayor, in looking around your city. We come here to learn. I don't know whether I had better tell a story or not, but when I say we come here to learn, that word learn impresses me. Conceit, of all other things, is out of place it seems to me, amongst our class. I was once in the city of Philadelphia and called upon the Secretary of the National Society of Civil Engineers; he was good enough to mention my school work. He said, "I should remember your college. I have had some of your boys at work for me." I felt obliged to ask how they got along, even if I felt I was getting into a corner. He says, "There is one thing you do for your boys, you get the

conceit out of them." I said, "If you had studied to pay the school a compliment that I would appreciate, you could not have selected one that I would have thought more of." We as a profession, sir, will continue to learn as long as we are able. We come here to learn, to look around and see what you are doing, and whenever any of us have any municipal work on hand (I know I do and I understand that others do), we look to see, and ask what Grand Rapids has done in like cases, and we shall learn a great deal, and we shall use your welcome and I am sure we shall profit by it.

MAYOR UHL: Permit me to say one word in reply, and that is on the subject to which you have referred, viz.: the early improvement of the navigation of Grand river. It is a subject upon which the people of this city feel more deeply perhaps than any other. It is a railroad center, and our railroad facilities are extraordinary for a city of this size, and yet we feel, for the proper development of the city and its further growth, that this highway by water to the great lakes, should be and must be made.

And, sir, to hear you speak in terms so earnest and so thoughtful upon that subject which lies near the hearts of all the people of our city, is a matter of exceeding gratification, because we need aid in this enterprise-we need the aid of all the friends throughout the State, and perhaps in other states. As you, as president, have well remarked, this cannot be done at once, and we know that every enterprise of that kind has met with opposition, perhaps, and always obstacles, so it is a matter of great gratification to us that the people who come here and see the possible growth of this city, see its need of an outlet by way of the great lakes, and speak so earnestly and emphatically as you have done. I beg, sir, on behalf of this city, to thank you most cordially.

PROF. DAVIS: I cannot forbear one more word, if the mayor will pardon me for detaining him. But, putting the thing in a plain matter of fact way, here, we have said, is the great furniture center of the United States. Your timber line is further and further away. Your lumber has to be hauled in here by railroad to make this furniture. That timber line will recede year by year still further away, and it will be necessary

for you to seek timber in Wisconsin and on the shores of Lake Superior.

Now, shall we think of endangering a trade center of this character for the want of a ditch forty miles long, when we can dig dirt for seven cents a yard?

ADDRESS OF PRESIDENT DAVIS.

I believe it has been customary in times past for the convention to expect something from the president of these meetings, but that custom has been honored more, perhaps, in the breach than in the observance, certainly to the comfort and convenience of the members of the convention, and while I did not wish to detain Mayor Uhl to hear any remarks of mine, there are a few things that have been called to mind by his remarks, and my thoughts in connection, that I think will interest you, and if you will bear with me a few moments, I will refer to some of them.

These things I discovered while I was not a fishing. I spoke to you about the ship canal lock at the Soo and the St. Mary's river improvement. I have seen two or three things there, and heard of two or three more, of a good deal of interest to the profession. I was able to learn of a well boring device that some of you may be familiar with. This well boring device bored a four inch hole while exploring for the new lock 112 feet deep, for $3.50 per foot, in sandstone mostly, by means of a soft iron tube 24 inches long, with chilled iron shot, No. 12 to 14 under the edge of it, using a stream of water within the tube. The tube is turned on its axis, and these chilled. shot are used under the edge of the tube, to make a cutting, down through the sandstone, leaving a core, which core is taken out in sections and brought out and laid on the floor. Perhaps you are all familiar with that method of boring. I was not.

It brought out a 3 inch core. I saw this core and so inquired with regard to some of the practical facts connected with it. Too much shot stops the cutting. Too little shot wears away the iron tube and cuts but little. It requires some skill in using the right amount of shot. The inventor, L. D.

Connor, of Petoskey, Michigan, claims he can bore large holes this way.

That was one dodge. Another one that I saw there was what is called stock ramming. Some of you may be familiar with that. I was not. There was a timber crib, filled with earth, forming a dam between the present canal and the new lock pit. This leaked, so they drove an iron tube down into it, through which they forced clay to the bottom of the dam, to fill up any openings there. The principle of the hydraulic press is used; it is extremely powerful. Easy enough to burst that coffer dam, although it is 25 or 30 feet thick. In this particular dam, the depth of the filling was about 20 feet, but I have a note here saying this process burst a coffer dam, or forced the whole depth of the filling upwards, when the depth was 100 feet.

They drive down a 3 or 4-inch pipe to the required depth. They drop this pipe full of cylinders of clay, then force the clay out at the bottom of the tube with an iron rod, and a pile driver hammer. The tube is filled and emptied in each spot until enough clay is used. I saw at the Soo where they had spread the wood work to such an extent as to sink the washers in the wale pieces outside of the coffer dam. It puts the material where wanted.

There, they were driving these tubes, and putting down the material every three feet, right across the coffer dam. Then moving to another place, and so on. It stopped the leaks.

Now there is only one other wrinkle connected with that. That is, how they make these clay cylinders, and make them cheaply. They took a common square pointed shovel, doubled it up in a circle, and welded the two corners together, so that a man thrusting it against a bank of clay, would force back on the shovel a cylindrical piece about a foot long. These were put in barrows, wheeled to the place, and dropped into the tube.

There were some other little wrinkles I noticed in connection with that lock that might be of interest, that I can mention more briefly.

The patterns for all the stones were cut out of zinc. It makes a beautiful pattern. The sand for the mortar for that entire