For convenience in receiving materials to be used in construction, and
to facilitate the disposal of excavated materials, one pier was leased
on the east side of the Hudson River, two on the west side of the East
River and three on the east side. Excavated materials from the station,
the cross-town tunnels, and the river tunnels, were placed on barges
furnished by Mr. Henry Steers under several contracts embracing also
the disposal of the materials. In the earlier part of the work, they
were used as fill in the freight terminal of the Pennsylvania Railroad
at Greenville on the west side of the Upper Bay; when the fill at this
place was completed, the materials were sent to the tunnel company's
yard on the Passaic, at Harrison, N. J., and a small part to the
embankment in the Meadows Division. On account of the occasional closing
of the Passaic by ice, this involved the possibility of, and to some
extent resulted in, interruptions to the work of excavation. The
contract for the cross-town tunnels carried an option in favor of the
company to require the contractor for those tunnels to dispose of
materials at a stated price, and in the latter part of 1907, when the
excavation in these tunnels was being pushed rapidly, the railroad
company, unwilling to incur the responsibility for delays during the
winter, availed itself of this option. The disposal of materials was an
important part of the work, and will be dealt with more fully by the
Resident Engineers.

[Illustration: PLATE XIV.--Map and Profile, Cross-Town Tunnels]

At the time the contract was made with S. Pearson and Son, Incorporated,
it had not been determined whether mechanical ventilation would be
provided for the tunnels, and therefore the contract with that firm did
not include the final concrete lining at the shafts, above the inverts
of the tunnels. After the adoption of plans for mechanical ventilation,