ELEVATOR.
The various processes by which the iron is prepared to be used in bridge-building are many of them as new as is the use of this material for this purpose, and it will not be amiss to spend a few moments in examining them before presenting to our readers illustrations of some of the most remarkable structures of this kind. Taking a train by the Reading Railroad from Philadelphia, we arrive, in about an hour, at Phoenixville, in the Schuylkill Valley, where the Phoenix Iron-and Bridge-works are situated. In this establishment we can follow the iron from its original condition of ore to a finished bridge, and it is the only establishment in this country, and most probably in the world, where this can be seen.
THE ENGINE-ROOM.
These works were established in 1790. In 1827 they came into the possession of the late David Reeves, who by his energy and enterprise increased their capacity to meet the growing demands of the time, until they reached their present extent, employing constantly over fifteen hundred hands.
