Part 3 (1/1)

XI

WHAT CONStitUTES ENGINEERING SUCCESS

A graduate of Cornell, in the class of '05, after placing away his diploestiveness, accepted a position with a largeconcern in western Pennsylvania

He enty-three years old He went into the shop to get the practical side of certain theories i years of study in aother things stea demonstrated in school his particular aptitude for thermodynamics--the study of heat and its units in its application to engines, and the like--entered the erecting depart overalls, and with ordinary rule in his hip pocket--as against the slide-rule hich he had worked out his theoretical calculations during his college years--he went to work at whatever was assigned him as a task by his superiors--shop foreineer fros He helped to assemble turbine parts; carried word of petty alterations to the proper officials: assisted in the work oftests; made detailed reports on the machine's perforot very well acquainted with the steam-turbine as manufactured by this company He knew the funda of the details of this particular type of turbine therefore came easy to hied his overalls every Monday like a veteran Usually his overalls rease and grihout the day He liked the work and went to it like a dog to a bone He was applying in a practical hat he had learned in college of a theoretical nature, and finding the thing of aress In tiineer, and one day, when the president of the company, as also an inventor of national repute and responsible for the design of the turbine being anization, wanted to ineer sent for the young engineer whose work in college in thermodynamics had won for him certain honors, with the result that our hero found himself presently seated opposite the president at a table in the latter's office, engaged in working out calculations on his slide-rule--calculations beyond the powers of the president, because he was not a heavy theoretician This call was a big advance indeed, for it marked him as a man of promise--a ”comer”--in the concern The president liked the ease hich the young engineer ”got” hies, and quite before either realized it both were talking freely, exchanging ideas, in the field of turbine construction generally The younghoineer, one hile still lacking in broad experience, was nevertheless possessed of the proper attitude toward engineering as a whole to compel the interest and attention of his superior

The youngfaults in the design, and, reporting these faults to the home office, observed that not a feere rens Heup and operating steam-turbines, until there caineering staff in work covering design Laying aside his overalls, he eineer in a linen collar and nifty cravat--although not till later did he don a cream-colored waistcoat--and thereafter his hours were seven instead of nine With a desk and a stenographer he entered upon work of a sons of rival co and articles covering their respective designs appearing in the technical journals, and about this tiranted it, in the fore his particular branch of the profession He was stillan expert in the field of steaether with his experience on the road, both as an erecting ineer, had eminently fitted hiineer overseeing design His work in charge of design, where his knowledge of what had given service both good and bad in details of construction while he was in the field, was extre hione up apace with his progress; he had irl at a club dance in the suburban tohere he had taken modest quarters; he was rapidly headed toward success both as an engineer and a citizen He had been out of school probably six years, and was still a very young man, with all the world practically before hiineer of the concern to journey to New York, and read a paper before his engineering society at one of the regular annual s, on the subject of thermodynamics in its relation to the company's own product--the turbine He tipped over his chair in his eagerness to get out of the office and on the train He realized the importance of this opportunity He was to appear before his fellow-engineers--the best and most capable and prominent in the profession--and to appear as an authority on his subject! The thing was another step forward He prepared a paper, basing it on his six years'

experience in stea of value to tell his brother engineers Thefor the part, he stepped out upon the platforineers and delivered hianization

Not only that In the rebuttal, when engineers seated in the auditoriu rival turbine concerns--he proved himself quick at the bat and more than once confounded those ould confound hi his mark on the industrial times His paper was reviewed in the technical journals and alnized as an authority in his chosen branch He was sought out for other articles by technical editors, his associates in the hoenerously commended him for his work; his salary received another elevation; he called on the girl that night and had her set the date

Then he plugged for salvation--further knowledge as a turbinewon the full confidence of the officials of the coiven free voice in all n of their product, and shortly after his first little boy was born was proineer He served in this capacity for two years, and then, realizing that he had gone as far up in the organization as it was physically possible to go, owing to the fact that the chief engineer was the president's sister's husband--or so like that--he accepted an offer fro turbines and entered the organization as chief engineer at a salary too big tofriend had at last arrived

Yet his success was not quite complete, nor will it be complete, until he sets up, as he assuredly will soineer

When he at last does this, when he swings out his shi+ngle to the breeze, he will then have attained to the nized as being possessed of a fine discri moment, especially in therone up in channels early laid out for hie days His direction even then was clearly marked All he had to do, and all he did do, was to develop hi that would be iraduate Merely he hewed to the line--persisted in reaof phenoenius, revealed in what he did His way is open to all And it is a way both worthy and adh in his profession and iswith his position aineer's progress to success precisely what constitutes engineering success The details may differ, but the principles and the rewards will be the sa or electrical engineering Success in engineering constitutes certain satisfactory nition by one's associates and fellows Success in anything is that A man must work for them, however There never was and never will be a rainbow path to the heights Toil and an abiding faith in one's own capabilities--these make for success Success makes for happiness, and happiness, as everybody knows, is all there is to this life

I wish all men happiness

XII

THE PERSONAL SIDE

As to the personal side of engineering as a career, if it would be a source of gratification to you to know that you were helping to build up the civilized world, then you should enter the engineering profession

Because men differ in their ideas as to what constitutes a full life--so continuously diversified sources of pleasure, so better than a fine library or freedo only to surround the but an accu but for power of control over others--allYet the majority of men would, because the profession holds that which would appeal to a great many different ideas as to what a co as a profession is scientific, idealistic, constructive, profitable It is combative--in the sense that it shapes nature's forces--and it calls for a sense of artistry in its practitioners Added to these, it ee the possession of which is always a source of pride to the owner

Letas he is athat co or autohway The layman does not The lay itself, when looking at it--the general outline But the engineer, trained to note details in construction, observes detail at a glance, and does it al school, then assuredly later, after he has been practicing his profession for a ti a house for the first tiineer, he will note the character of the ork, the decorations, the ats, all with the sa for the first tis within his own province

Nor is this faculty confined to the concrete Engineers are of that deeply instinctive race of folk who perceive cause in effect with the lightning swiftness of a wild ani upon the profession, assuredly they beco about the practice of engineering breeds it--breeds this objective seeing and abstract reasoning--and to be possessed of it is to get more out of life than otherwise is possible Which possibly accounts for the fact that engineers as a group sees, one that is frankly acknowledged and drawn upon when needed by ineers are extremely practical-minded, and this makes for a certain outlook that will not per away from the coineers knohy things occur without having witnessed even the occurrence itself Their powers of reasoning are developed to degrees beyond the average--or they seeratification on the personal side to thespreads out as I conteineering training will seethe Grand Canon, say, than will any other professionally trained man Should the Canon collapse, he would know instantly why it collapsed He could give an opinion on the wonderful color effects that would interest the artist, and he would knoithout hesitation how best to descend to the bottom and wherein to seek the easiest trail All this, without his being a civil or a ineer, understand; merely a man trained in constructiveor the civil e of a locomotive accident and see in the debris, select fro-arms and axles a ready picture of the nature of the accident and how ain, the engineer sees in a tree, with its tapering trunk, the symbol of all tower construction, just as he sees in the shape of aa cast-iron lever for an autoineer; sees objectively; follows nature throughout

All this being true, the engineer has a rather interesting life of it

For not only does he see a little more clearly than otherould be possible to his with his hands that co undertaken theineer can do much around his own horeat satisfaction Engineers can swing doors, build fireplaces, landscape, erect fences, ree of neatness and skill that brings favorable comment from journeymen whose vocations this work is, and do the ithout training whatsoever in the work Wall-papering, painting, carpentering, laying up of brick, or the placing of a dry wall--plastering, glazing--the list is endless that as side-plays are possible to the s, ever; but if he wants ever to do them, he finds that he can do them and do a creditable job of each, and this without his ever having turned his hand to the work before

Which suineer is not a superior being Merely he is awhich peculiarly fits him for any practical work, and out of this work, for practical thinking of the kind known as constructive Being constructive with his hands, he cannot but in ti constructive as a thinker first, he cannot but becoes closely on the other, and having both, as the engineer ineer, he has as much of the world under his control as coree, ineer is both a thinker and a doer Ponder that--you Men are either one or the other--most men--and rarely are they both Either side of their brain has been developed at the expense of the other side Not so with the engineer The successful engineer is both thinker and doer-- has many beautiful attractions as a profession