is wrong in any or all of the foregoing points, it should
be easy to disprove his assertions. It would be better to do this than
to ridicule or ignore them, and it would even be better than to issue
reports, signed by authorities, which commend the practices herein
condemned.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote A: Presented at the meeting of March 16th, 1910.]

[Footnote B: "Stresses in Reinforced Concrete Beams," _Journal_, Am.
Soc. Mech. Engrs., Mid-October, 1909.]

[Footnote C: Page 14, column 8.]

[Footnote D: _Engineering News_, December 3d, 1908.]

DISCUSSION

JOSEPH WRIGHT, M. AM. SOC. C. E. (by letter).--If, as is expected, Mr.
Godfrey's paper serves to attract attention to the glaring
inconsistencies commonly practiced in reinforced concrete designs, and
particularly to the careless detailing of such structures, he will have
accomplished a valuable purpose, and will deserve the gratitude of the
Profession.

No engineer would expect a steel bridge to stand up if the detailing
were left to the judgment or convenience of the mechanics of the shop,
yet in many reinforced concrete designs but little more thought is given
to the connections and continuity of the steel than if it were an
unimportant element of the structure. Such examples, as illustrated by
the retaining wall in Fig. 2, are common, the reinforcing bars of the
counterfort being simply hooked by a 4-in. U-bend around those of the
floor and wall slabs, and penetrating the latter only from 8 to 12 in.
The writer can cite an example which is still worse--that of a T-wall,
16 ft. high, in which the vertical reinforcement of the wall slab
consisted of 3/4-in. bars, spaced 6 in. apart. The wall slab was 8 in.
thick at the top and only 10 in. at the bottom, yet the 3/4-in. vertical
bars penetrated the floor slab only 8 in., and were simply hooked around
its lower horizontal bars by 4-in. U-bends. Amazing as it may appear,
this structure was designed by an engineer who is well versed in the
theories of reinforced concrete design. These are only two examples from
a long list which might be cited to illustrate the carelessness often
exhibited by engineers in detailing reinforced concrete structures.

In reinforced concrete work the detailer has often felt the need of some
simple and efficient means of attaching one bar to another, but, in its
absence, it is inexcusable that he should resort to such makeshifts as
are commonly used. A simple U-hook on the