to the engineers being to _get there_ regardless of expense and
horse-flesh; if you killed a horse by hard driving, his harness would fit
another, and there was no scrutiny bestowed on vouchers when the work was
done; and I must pay the tribute to the company to say that everything
that money would buy was sent to make the engineers comfortable. It was
bad enough at best, and the Chief Engineer (J.C. James) rightly considered
that any expense bestowed on the engineering part of the work was a good
investment.

* * * * *




THE OSGOOD MAMMOTH EXCAVATOR.


In the accompanying illustration, we present to our readers a mammoth
excavator, built by the Osgood Dredge Company of Albany, N.Y., for the
Pacific Guano Company of California, for uncovering their phosphate
deposits on Chisholm Island, South Colombia.

[Illustration: THE OSGOOD MAMMOTH EXCAVATOR.]

In order to bring out more clearly the principal problem involved in the
construction of this machine, we shall state first the proposed method of
its operation. This is as follows, viz.: The excavator is to dig a trench
thirty feet wide, down to the phosphate rock, and the entire length of the
bed--about one quarter of a mile--dumping the earth of the first cut to
one side. The phosphate is taken out behind the excavator. On reaching the