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Bridge engineering substructure design 1st Edition W.F.
Chen Digital Instant Download
Author(s): W.F. Chen, Lian Duan
ISBN(s): 9780849316814, 0849316812
Edition: 1
File Details: PDF, 8.42 MB
Year: 2003
Language: english
 BRIDGE
ENGINEERING
Substructure Design

EDITED BY
Wai-Fah Chen
Lian Duan

CRC PR E S S
Boca Raton London New York Washington, D.C.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_frame_FM Page iv Tuesday, January 21, 2003 2:04 PM

The material in this book was first published in The Bridge Engineering Handbook, CRC Press, 2000.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Bridge engineering : substructure design / edited by Wai-Fah Chen and Lian Duan.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8493-1681-2 (alk. paper)
1. Bridges—Foundations and piers—Design and construction. I. Chen, Wai-Fah, 1936-
II. Duan, Lian.

TG320 .B73 2003

624'.284—dc21 2002041117

This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reprinted material is quoted with
permission, and sources are indicated. A wide variety of references are listed. Reasonable efforts have been made to publish
reliable data and information, but the authors and the publisher cannot assume responsibility for the validity of all materials
or for the consequences of their use.

Neither this book nor any part may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without prior
permission in writing from the publisher.

All rights reserved. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use, or the personal or internal use of specific
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The consent of CRC Press LLC does not extend to copying for general distribution, for promotion, for creating new works,
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Direct all inquiries to CRC Press LLC, 2000 N.W. Corporate Blvd., Boca Raton, Florida 33431.

Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for
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Visit the CRC Press Web site at www.crcpress.com

© 2003 by CRC Press LLC

No claim to original U.S. Government works

International Standard Book Number 0-8493-1681-2
Library of Congress Card Number 2002041117
Printed in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
Printed on acid-free paper

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_frame_FM Page v Tuesday, January 21, 2003 8:49 AM

Foreword

Among all engineering subjects, bridge engineering is probably the most difficult on which to compose
a handbook because it encompasses various fields of arts and sciences. It not only requires knowledge
and experience in bridge design and construction, but often involves social, economic, and political
activities. Hence, I wish to congratulate the editors and authors for having conceived this thick volume
and devoted the time and energy to complete it in such short order. Not only is it the first handbook of
bridge engineering as far as I know, but it contains a wealth of information not previously available to
bridge engineers. It embraces almost all facets of bridge engineering except the rudimentary analyses and
actual field construction of bridge structures, members, and foundations. Of course, bridge engineering
is such an immense subject that engineers will always have to go beyond a handbook for additional
information and guidance.
I may be somewhat biased in commenting on the background of the two editors, who both came from
China, a country rich in the pioneering and design of ancient bridges and just beginning to catch up
with the modern world in the science and technology of bridge engineering. It is particularly to the
editors’ credit to have convinced and gathered so many internationally recognized bridge engineers to
contribute chapters. At the same time, younger engineers have introduced new design and construction
techniques into the treatise.
This Handbook is divided into four volumes, namely:
Superstructure Design
Substructure Design
Seismic Design
Construction and Maintenance
There are 67 chapters, beginning with bridge concepts and aesthestics, two areas only recently emphasized
by bridge engineers. Some unusual features, such as rehabilitation, retrofit, and maintenance of bridges,
are presented in great detail. The section devoted to seismic design includes soil-foundation-structure
interaction. Another section describes and compares bridge engineering practices around the world. I am
sure that these special areas will be brought up to date as the future of bridge engineering develops.
May I advise each bridge engineer to have a desk copy of this volume with which to survey and examine
both the breadth and depth of bridge engineering.
T.Y. Lin
Professor Emeritus, University of California at Berkeley
Chairman, Lin Tung-Yen China, Inc.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_frame_FM Page vii Monday, January 20, 2003 12:14 PM

Preface

The Bridge Engineering Handbook is a unique, comprehensive, and the state-of-the-art reference work
and resource book covering the major areas of bridge engineering with the theme “bridge to the 21st
century.” It has been written with practicing bridge and structural engineers in mind. The ideal readers
will be M.S.-level structural and bridge engineers with a need for a single reference source to keep abreast
of new developments and the state-of-the-practice, as well as to review standard practices.
The areas of bridge engineering include planning, analysis and design, construction, maintenance, and
rehabilitation. To provide engineers a well-organized and user-friendly, easy to follow resource, the
Handbook is divided into four volumes: I, Superstructure Design II, Substructure Design III, Seismic
Design, and IV, Construction and Maintenance.
Volume II: Substructure Design addresses the various substructure components: bearings, piers and
columns, towers, abutments and retaining structures, geotechnical considerations, footing and founda-
tions, vessel collisions, and bridge hydraulics.
The Handbook stresses professional applications and practical solutions. Emphasis has been placed
on ready-to-use materials. It contains many formulas and tables that give immediate answers to questions
arising from practical work. It describes the basic concepts and assumptions omitting the derivations of
formulas and theories. It covers traditional and new, innovative practices. An overview of the structure,
organization, and content of the book can be seen by examining the table of contents presented at the
beginning of the book while an in-depth view of a particular subject can be seen by examining the
individual table of contents preceding each chapter. References at the end of each chapter can be consulted
for more detailed studies.
The chapters have been written by many internationally known authors from different countries
covering bridge engineering practices and research and development in North America, Europe, and the
Pacific Rim. This Handbook may provide a glimpse of a rapid global economy trend in recent years
toward international outsourcing of practice and competition in all dimensions of engineering. In general,
the Handbook is aimed toward the needs of practicing engineers, but materials may be reorganized to
accommodate undergraduate and graduate level bridge courses. The book may also be used as a survey
of the practice of bridge engineering around the world.
The authors acknowledge with thanks the comments, suggestions, and recommendations during the
development of the Handbook, by Fritz Leonhardt, Professor Emeritus, Stuttgart University, Germany;
Shouji Toma, Professor, Horrai-Gakuen University, Japan; Gerard F. Fox, Consulting Engineer; Jackson
L. Kurkee, Consulting Engineer; Michael J. Abrahams, Senior Vice President; Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade
& Douglas, Inc.; Ben C. Gerwick Jr., Professor Emeritus, University of California at Berkeley; Gregory F.
Fenves, Professor, University of California at Berkeley; John M. Kulicki, President and Chief Engineer,
Modjeski and Masters; James Chai, Supervising Transportation Engineer, California Department of
Transportation; Jinron Wang, Senior Bridge Engineer, California Department of Transportation; and
David W. Liu, Principal, Imbsen & Associates, Inc.
Wai-Fah Chen
Lian Duan

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_frame_FM Page ix Monday, January 20, 2003 12:14 PM

Editors

Wai-Fah Chen is presently Dean of the College of Engineering at

the University of Hawaii. He was a George E. Goodwin Distin-
guished Professor of Civil Engineering and Head of the Department
of Structural Engineering at Purdue University from 1976 to 1999.
He received his B.S. in civil engineering from the National
Cheng-Kung University, Taiwan in 1959; M.S. in structural engi-
neering from Lehigh University, Pennsylvania in 1963; and Ph.D.
in solid mechanics from Brown University, Rhode Island in 1966.
He received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the National
Cheng-Kung University in 1988 and the Distinguished Engineering
Alumnus Medal from Brown University in 1999.
Dr. Chen’s research interests cover several areas, including con-
stitutive modeling of engineering materials, soil and concrete plas-
ticity, structural connections, and structural stability. He is the
recipient of several national engineering awards, including the Ray-
mond Reese Research Prize and the Shortridge Hardesty Award, both from the American Society of Civil
Engineers, and the T. R. Higgins Lectureship Award from the American Institute of Steel Construction.
In 1995, he was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering. In 1997, he was awarded Honorary
Membership by the American Society of Civil Engineers. In 1998, he was elected to the Academia Sinica
(National Academy of Science) in Taiwan.
A widely respected author, Dr. Chen authored and coauthored more than 20 engineering books and
500 technical papers. His books include several classical works such as Limit Analysis and Soil Plasticity
(Elsevier, 1975), the two-volume Theory of Beam-Columns (McGraw-Hill, 1976–77), Plasticity in Rein-
forced Concrete (McGraw-Hill, 1982), and the two-volume Constitutive Equations for Engineering Materials
(Elsevier, 1994). He currently serves on the editorial boards of more than 10 technical journals. He has
been listed in more than 20 Who’s Who publications.
Dr. Chen is the editor-in-chief for the popular 1995 Civil Engineering Handbook (CRC Press), the 1997
Handbook of Structural Engineering (CRC Press), and the 2000 Bridge Engineering Handbook (CRC Press).
He currently serves as the consulting editor for McGraw-Hill’s Encyclopedia of Science and Technology.
He has been a longtime member of the Executive Committee of the Structural Stability Research
Council and the Specification Committee of the American Institute of Steel Construction. He has been
a consultant for Exxon Production Research on offshore structures; for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in
Chicago on tall steel buildings; and for the World Bank on the Chinese University Development Projects,
among many others.
Dr. Chen has taught at Lehigh University, Purdue University, and the University of Hawaii.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_frame_FM Page x Monday, January 20, 2003 12:14 PM

Lian Duan is a Senior Bridge Engineer with the California Depart-

ment of Transportation (Caltrans) and Professor of Structural
Engineering at Taiyuan University of Technology, China.
He received his B.S. in civil engineering in 1975 and his M.S. in
structural engineering in 1981 from Taiyuan University of Tech-
nology. He received his Ph.D. in structural engineering from Pur-
due University, West Lafayette, Indiana in 1990. Dr. Duan worked
at the Northeastern China Power Design Institute from 1975 to
1978.
His research interests include inelastic behavior of reinforced
concrete and steel structures, structural stability, and seismic bridge
analysis and design. Dr. Duan has authored or coauthored more
than 60 papers, chapters, ad reports; his research focuses on the
development of unified interaction equations for steel beam columns, flexural stiffness of reinforced
concrete members, effective length factors of compression members, and design of bridge structures.
Dr. Duan is an esteemed practicing engineer and is registered as a P.E. in California. He has designed
numerous building and bridge structures. He was lead engineer for the development of the seismic retrofit
design criteria for the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge west spans and made significant contributions
to this project. He is coeditor of the Structural Engineering Handbook CRCnetBase 2000 (CRC Press,
2000) and The Bridge Engineering Handbook (CRC Press, 2000), winner of Choice magazine’s Outstanding
Academic Title Award for 2000. Dr. Duan received the ASCE 2001 Arthur M. Wellington Prize for his
paper “Section Properties for Latticed Members of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.” He currently
serves as Caltrans Structural Steel Committee Chairman and is a member of the Transportation Research
Board A2CO2 Steel Bridge Committee.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_frame_FM Page xi Monday, January 20, 2003 12:14 PM

Contributors

James Chai Johnny Feng Charles Seim

California Department of J. Muller International, Inc. T. Y. Lin International
Transportation Sacramento, California San Francisco, California
Sacramento, California
Chao Gong Jim Springer
Hong Chen ICF Kaiser Engineers California Department of
J. Muller International, Inc. Oakland, California Transportation
San Diego, California Sacramento, California
Michael Knott
Wai-Fah Chen Moffatt & Nichol Engineers Jinrong Wang
University of Hawaii at Manoa Richmond, Virginia California Department of
Honolulu, Hawaii Transportation
Youzhi Ma Sacramento, California
Nan Deng Geomatrix Consultants, Inc.
Bechtel Corporation Oakland, California Linan Wang
San Francisco, California California Department of
Thomas W. McNeilan Transportation
Lian Duan Fugro West, Inc. Sacramento, California
California Department of Ventura, California
Transportation Ke Zhou
Sacramento, California Zolan Prucz California Department of
Modjeski and Masters, Inc. Transportation
New Orleans, Louisiana Sacramento, California

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_frame_FM Page xiii Monday, January 20, 2003 12:14 PM

Contents

1 Bearings Johnny Feng and Hong Chen

1.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................1-1
1.2 Types of Bearings .....................................................................................................................1-1
1.3 Selection of Bearings ................................................................................................................1-5
1.4 Design of Elastomeric Bearings...............................................................................................1-7

2 Piers and Columns Jinrong Wang

2.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................2-1
2.2 Structural Types .......................................................................................................................2-1
2.3 Design Loads ............................................................................................................................2-4
2.4 Design Criteria .........................................................................................................................2-7

3 Towers Charles Seim

3.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................3-1
3.2 Functions ..................................................................................................................................3-2
3.3 Aesthetics ..................................................................................................................................3-2
3.4 Conceptual Design ...................................................................................................................3-4
3.5 Final Design............................................................................................................................3-11
3.6 Construction ..........................................................................................................................3-14
3.7 Summary ................................................................................................................................3-15

4 Abutments and Retaining Structures Linan Wang and Chao Gong

4.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................4-1
4.2 Abutments ................................................................................................................................4-1
4.3 Retaining Structures...............................................................................................................4-22

5 Geotechnical Considerations Thomas W. McNeilan and James Chai

5.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................5-1
5.2 Field Exploration Techniques .................................................................................................5-2
5.3 Defining Site Investigation Requirements............................................................................5-15
5.4 Development of Laboratory Testing Program .....................................................................5-17
5.5 Data Presentation and Site Characterization........................................................................5-19

6 Shallow Foundations James Chai

6.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................6-1
6.2 Design Requirements...............................................................................................................6-2

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

 6.3 Failure Modes of Shallow Foundations ..................................................................................6-3
6.4 Bearing Capacity for Shallow Foundations ............................................................................6-3
6.5 Stress Distribution Due to Footing Pressures.......................................................................6-14
6.6 Settlement of Shallow Foundations ......................................................................................6-17
6.7 Shallow Foundations on Rock...............................................................................................6-28
6.8 Structural Design of Spread Footings ...................................................................................6-30

7 Deep Foundations Youzhi Ma and Nan Deng

7.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................7-1
7.2 Classification and Selection .....................................................................................................7-2
7.3 Design Considerations...........................................................................................................7-10
7.4 Axial Capacity and Settlement — Individual Foundation..................................................7-14
7.5 Lateral Capacity and Deflection — Individual Foundation ................................................7-25
7.6 Grouped Foundations............................................................................................................7-34
7.7 Seismic Design........................................................................................................................7-38

8 Effective Length of Compression Members Lian Duan and Wai-Fah Chen

8.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................8-1
8.2 Isolated Columns .....................................................................................................................8-2
8.3 Framed Columns — Alignment Chart Method.....................................................................8-3
8.4 Modifications to Alignment Charts ........................................................................................8-8
8.5 Framed Columns — Alternative Methods ...........................................................................8-13
8.6 Crossing Bracing Systems ......................................................................................................8-16
8.7 Latticed and Built-Up Members ...........................................................................................8-17
8.8 Tapered Columns...................................................................................................................8-20
8.9 Summary ................................................................................................................................8-20

9 Vessel Collision Design of Bridges Michael Knott and Zolan Prucz

9.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................................9-2
9.2 Initial Planning.........................................................................................................................9-4
9.3 Waterway Characteristics ........................................................................................................9-6
9.4 Vessel Traffic Characteristics...................................................................................................9-6
9.5 Collision Risk Analysis.............................................................................................................9-8
9.6 Vessel Impact Loads...............................................................................................................9-10
9.7 Bridge Analysis and Design ...................................................................................................9-14
9.8 Bridge Protection Measures...................................................................................................9-15
9.9 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................9-16

10 Bridge Hydraulics Jim Springer and Ke Zhou

10.1 Introduction ...........................................................................................................................10-1
10.2 Bridge Hydrology and Hydraulics.........................................................................................10-1
10.3 Bridge Scour .........................................................................................................................10-11

xiv

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_MASTER.book Page 1 Sunday, January 12, 2003 12:36 PM

1
Bearings

1.1 Introduction .................................................................1-1

1.2 Types of Bearings .........................................................1-1
Sliding Bearings • Rocker and Pin Bearings • Roller
Bearings • Elastomeric Bearings • Curved
Bearings • Pot Bearings • Disk Bearings
1.3 Selection of Bearings....................................................1-5
Johnny Feng Determination of Functional Requirements •
J. Muller International, Inc. Evaluation of Bearings • Preliminary Bearing Design
Hong Chen 1.4 Design of Elastomeric Bearings ..................................1-7
J. Muller International, Inc. Design Procedure • Design Example

1.1 Introduction
Bearings are structural devices positioned between the bridge superstructure and the substructure.
Their principal functions are as follows:
1. To transmit loads from the superstructure to the substructure, and
2. To accommodate relative movements between the superstructure and the substructure.
The forces applied to a bridge bearing mainly include superstructure self-weight, traffic loads, wind
loads, and earthquake loads.
Movements in bearings include translations and rotations. Creep, shrinkage, and temperature
effects are the most common causes of the translational movements, which can occur in both
transverse and longitudinal directions. Traffic loading, construction tolerances, and uneven settle-
ment of the foundation are the common causes of the rotations.
Usually a bearing is connected to the superstructure through the use of a steel sole plate and rests
on the substructure through a steel masonry plate. The sole plate distributes the concentrated
bearing reactions to the superstructure. The masonry plate distributes the reactions to the substruc-
ture. The connections between the sole plate and the superstructure, for steel girders, are by bolting
or welding. For concrete girders, the sole plate is embedded into the concrete with anchor studs.
The masonry plate is typically connected to the substructure with anchor bolts.

1.2 Types of Bearings

Bearings may be classified as fixed bearings and expansion bearings. Fixed bearings allow rotations
but restrict translational movements. Expansion bearings allow both rotational and translational
movements. There are numerous types of bearings available. The following are the principal types
of bearings currently in use.

0-8493-1681-2/03/$0.00+$1.50
© 2003 by CRC Press LLC 1-1

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_MASTER.book Page 2 Sunday, January 12, 2003 12:36 PM

1-2 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

1.2.1 Sliding Bearings

A sliding bearing utilizes one plane metal plate sliding against another to accommodate translations.
The sliding bearing surface produces a frictional force that is applied to the superstructure, the
substructure, and the bearing itself. To reduce this friction force, PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) is
often used as a sliding lubricating material. PTFE is sometimes referred to as Teflon, named after
a widely used brand of PTFE, or TFE as appeared in AASHTO [1] and other design standards. In
its common application, one steel plate coated with PTFE slides against another plate, which is
usually of stainless steel.
Sliding bearings can be used alone or more often used as a component in other types of bearings.
Pure sliding bearings can only be used when the rotations caused by the deflection at the supports
are negligible. They are therefore limited to a span length of 15 m or less by ASHTTO [1].
A guiding system may be added to a sliding bearing to control the direction of the movement.
It may also be fixed by passing anchor bolts through the plates.

1.2.2 Rocker and Pin Bearings

A rocker bearing is a type of expansion bearing that comes in a great variety. It typically consists
of a pin at the top that facilitates rotations, and a curved surface at the bottom that accommodates
the translational movements (Figure 1.1a). The pin at the top is composed of upper and lower
semicircularly recessed surfaces with a solid circular pin placed between. Usually, there are caps at
both ends of the pin to keep the pin from sliding off the seats and to resist uplift loads if required.
The upper plate is connected to the sole plate by either bolting or welding. The lower curved plate
sits on the masonry plate. To prevent the rocker from walking, keys are used to keep the rocker in
place. A key can be a pintal which is a small trapezoidal steel bar tightly fitted into the masonry
plate on one end and loosely inserted into the recessed rocker bottom plate on the other end. Or
it can be an anchor bolt passing through a slotted hole in the bottom rocker plate.
A pin bearing is a type of fixed bearings that accommodates rotations through the use of a steel
pin. The typical configuration of the bearing is virtually the same as the rocker described above
except that the bottom curved rocker plate is now flat and directly anchored to the concrete pier
(Figure 1.1b).
Rocker and pin bearings are primarily used in steel bridges. They are only suitable for the
applications where the direction of the displacement is well defined since they can only accommo-
date translations and/or rotations in one direction. They can be designed to support relatively large
loads but a high vertical clearance is usually required when the load or displacement is large. The
practical limits of the load and displacement are about 1800 kN and ±100 mm, respectively, and
rotations of several degrees are achievable [3].
Normally, the moment and lateral forces induced from the movement of these bearings are very
small and negligible. However, metal bearings are susceptible to corrosion and deterioration. A
corroded joint may induce much larger forces. Regular inspection and maintenance are, therefore,
required.

1.2.3 Roller Bearings

Roller bearings are composed of one or more rollers between two parallel steel plates. Single roller
bearings can facilitate both rotations and translations in the longitudinal direction, while a group
of rollers would only accommodate longitudinal translations. In the latter case, the rotations are
provided by combining rollers with a pin bearing (Figure 1.1c).
Roller bearings have been used in both steel and concrete bridges. Single roller bearings are
relatively cheap to manufacture, but they only have a very limited vertical load capacity. Multiple
roller bearings, on the other hand, may be able to support very large loads, but they are much more
expensive.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_MASTER.book Page 3 Sunday, January 12, 2003 12:36 PM

Bearings 1-3

FIGURE 1.1 Typical rocker (a), pin (b), and roller bearings (c).

FIGURE 1.2 Elastomeric bearings. (a) Steel-reinforced elastomeric pad; (b) elastomeric pad with PTFE slider.

Like rocker and pin bearings, roller bearings are also susceptible to corrosion and deterioration.
Regular inspection and maintenance are essential.

1.2.4 Elastomeric Bearings

An elastomeric bearing is made of elastomer (either natural or synthetic rubber). It accommodates
both translational and rotational movements through the deformation of the elastomer.
Elastomer is flexible in shear but very stiff against volumetric change. Under compressive load,
the elastomer expands laterally. To sustain large load without excessive deflection, reinforcement is
used to restrain lateral bulging of the elastomer. This leads to the development of several types of
elastomeric bearing pads — plain, fiberglass-reinforced, cotton duck-reinforced, and steel-rein-
forced elastomeric pads. Figure 1.2a shows a steel-reinforced elastomeric pad.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

1681_MASTER.book Page 4 Sunday, January 12, 2003 12:36 PM

1-4 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

Plain elastomeric pads are the weakest and most flexible because they are only restrained from
bulging by friction forces alone. They are typically used in short- to medium-span bridges, where
bearing stress is low. Fiberglass-reinforced elastomeric pads consist of alternate layers of elastomer
and fiberglass reinforcement. Fiberglass inhibits the lateral deformation of the pads under compres-
sive loads so that larger load capacity can be achieved. Cotton-reinforced pads are elastomeric pads
reinforced with closely spaced layers of cotton duck. They display high compressive stiffness and
strength but have very limited rotational capacities. The thin layers also lead to high shear stiffness,
which results in large forces in the bridge. So sometimes they are combined with a PTFE slider on
top of the pad to accommodate translations (Figure 1.2b). Steel-reinforced elastomeric pads are
constructed by vulcanizing elastomer to thin steel plates. They have the highest load capacity among
the different types of elastomeric pads, which is only limited by the manufacturer’s ability to
vulcanize a large volume of elastomer uniformly.
All above-mentioned pads except steel-reinforced pads can be produced in a large sheet and cut
to size for any particular application. Steel-reinforced pads, however, have to be custom-made for
each application due to the edge cover requirement for the protection of the steel from corrosion.
The steel-reinforced pads are the most expensive while the cost of the plain elastomeric pads is the
lowest.
Elastomeric bearings are generally considered the preferred type of bearings because they are low
cost and almost maintenance free. In addition, elastomeric bearings are extremely forgiving of loads
and movements exceeding the design values.

1.2.4 Curved Bearings

A curved bearing consists of two matching curved plates with one sliding against the other to
accommodate rotations. The curved surface can be either cylindrical which allows the rotation
about only one axis or spherical which allows the bearing to rotate about any axis.
Lateral movements are restrained in a pure curved bearing and a limited lateral resistance may
be developed through a combination of the curved geometry and the gravity loads. To accommodate
lateral movements, a PTFE slider must be attached to the bearings. Keeper plates are often used to
keep the superstructure moving in one direction. Large load and rotational capacities can be
designed for curved bearings. The vertical capacity is only limited by its size, which depends largely
on machining capabilities. Similarly, rotational capacities are only limited by the clearances between
the components.
Figure 1.3a shows a typical expansion curved bearing. The lower convex steel plate that has a
stainless steel mating surface is recessed in the masonry plate. The upper concave plate with a
matching PTFE sliding surface sits on top of the lower convex plate for rotations. Between the sole
plate and the upper concave plate there is a flat PTFE sliding surface that will accommodate lateral
movements.

1.2.5 Pot Bearings

A pot bearing comprises a plain elastomeric disk that is confined in a shallow steel ring, or pot
(Figure 1.3b). Vertical loads are transmitted through a steel piston that fits closely to the steel ring
(pot wall). Flat sealing rings are used to contain the elastomer inside the pot. The elastomer behaves
like a viscous fluid within the pot as the bearing rotates. Because the elastomeric pad is confined,
much larger load can be carried this way than through conventional elastomeric pads.
Translational movements are restrained in a pure pot bearing, and the lateral loads are transmitted
through the steel piston moving against the pot wall. To accommodate translational movement, a
PTFE sliding surface must be used. Keeper plates are often used to keep the superstructure moving
in one direction.

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Bearings 1-5

FIGURE 1.3 Typical spherical (a), pot (b), and disk (c) bearings

1.2.6 Disk Bearings

A disk bearing, as illustrated in Figure 1.3c, utilizes a hard elastomeric (polyether urethane) disk to
support the vertical loads and a metal key in the center of the bearing to resist horizontal loads.
The rotational movements are accommodated through the deformation of the elastomer. To accom-
modate translational movements, however, a PTFE slider is required. In this kind of bearings, the
polyether urethane disk must be hard enough to resist large vertical load without excessive defor-
mation and yet flexible enough to accommodate rotations easily.

1.3 Selection of Bearings

Generally the objective of bearing selection is to choose a bearing system that suits the needs with
a minimum overall cost. The following procedures may be used for the selection of the bearings.

1.3.1 Determination of Functional Requirements

First, the vertical and horizontal loads, the rotational and translational movements from all sources
including dead and live loads, wind loads, earthquake loads, creep and shrinkage, prestress, thermal
and construction tolerances need to be calculated. Table 1.1 may be used to tabulate these requirements.

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1-6 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

TABLE 1.1 Typical Bridge Bearing Schedule

Bridge Name of Reference
Bearing Identification mark
Number of bearings required
Seating Material Upper Surface
Lower Surface
Allowable average Upper Surface Serviceability
contact pressure Strength
(PSI)
Lower Surface Serviceability
Strength
Design Load Service limit state Vertical max.
effects (KIP) perm
min.
Transverse
Longitudinal
Strength Vertical
limit state Transverse
Longitudinal
Translation Service Irreversible Transverse
limit state Longitudinal
Reversible Transverse
Longitudinal
Strength Irreversible Transverse
limit state Longitudinal
Reversible Transverse
Longitudinal
Rotation (RAD) Service Irreversible Transverse
limit state Longitudinal
Reversible Transverse
Longitudinal
Strength Irreversible Transverse
limit state Longitudinal
Reversible Transverse
Longitudinal
Maximum Upper surface Transverse
bearing Longitudinal
dimensions (IN)
Lower surface Transverse
Longitudinal
Overall height
Tolerable movement of bearing Vertical
under transient loads (IN) Transverse
Longitudinal
Allowable resistance to translation Transverse
under service limit state (KIP) Longitudinal
Allowable resistance to rotation Transverse
under service limit state (K/FT) Longitudinal
Type of attachment to structure and substructure Transverse
Longitudinal
Source: AASHTO, LRFD Bridge Design Scecifications, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials,
Washington, D.C.

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Bearings 1-7

TABLE 1.2 Summary of Bearing Capacities [3,5]

Load Translation
Rotation
Min. Max. Min. Max. Max. Costs
Bearing Type (KN) (KN) (mm) (mm) (rad) Initial Maintenance
Elastomeric pads
Plain 0 450 0 15 0.01 Low Low
Cotton duck reinforced 0 1,400 0 5 0.003 Low Low
Fiberglass reinforced 0 600 0 25 0.015 Low Low
Steel reinforced 225 3,500 0 100 0.04 Low Low
Flat PTFE slider 0 >10,000 25 >10 0 Low Moderate
0
Disk bearing 1,200 10,000 0 0 0.02 Moderate Moderate
Pot bearing 1,200 10,000 0 0 0.02 Moderate High
Pin bearing 1,200 4,500 0 0 >0.04 Moderate High
Rocker bearing 0 1,800 0 100 >0.04 Moderate High
Single roller 0 450 25 >10 >0.04 Moderate High
0
Curved PTFE bearing 1,200 7,000 0 0 >0.04 High Moderate
Multiple rollers 500 10,000 100 >10 >0.04 High High
0

1.3.2 Evaluation of Bearings

The second step is to determine the suitable bearing types based on the above bridge functional
requirements, and other factors including available clearance, environment, maintenance, cost,
availability, and client’s preferences. Table 1.2 summarizes the load, movement capacities, and rel-
ative costs for each bearing type and may be used for the selection of the bearings.
It should be noted that the capacity values in Table 1.2 are approximate. They are the practical
limits of the most economical application for each bearing type. The costs are also relative, since
the true price can only be determined by the market. At the end of this step, several qualified bearing
systems with close cost ratings may be selected [5].

1.3 Preliminary Bearing Design

For the various qualified bearing alternatives, preliminary designs are performed to determine the
approximate geometry and material properties in accordance with design specifications. It is likely
that one or more of the previously acceptable alternatives will be eliminated in this step because of
an undesirable attribute such as excessive height, oversize footprint, resistance at low temperature,
sensitivity to installation tolerances, etc. [3].
At the end of this step, one or more bearing types may still be feasible and they will be included
in the bid package as the final choices of the bearing types.

1.4 Design of Elastomeric Bearings

1.4.1 Design Procedure

The design procedure is according to AASHTO-LRFD [1] and is as follows:
1. Determine girder temperature movement (Art. 5.4.2.2).
2. Determine girder shortenings due to post-tensioning, concrete shrinkage, etc.
3. Select a bearing thickness based on the bearing total movement requirements (Art. 14.7.5.3.4).
4. Compute the bearing size based on bearing compressive stress (Art. 14.7.5.3.2).
5. Compute instantaneous compressive deflection (Art. 14.7.5.3.3).
6. Combine bearing maximum rotation.
7. Check bearing compression and rotation (Art. 14.7.5.3.5).
8. Check bearing stability (Art. 14.7.5.3.6).
9. Check bearing steel reinforcement (Art. 14.7.5.3.7).

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1-8 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

FIGURE 1.4 Bridge layout

1.4.2 Design Example (Figure 1.4)

Given
L = expandable span length = 40 m
RDL = DL reaction/girder = 690 kN
RLL = LL reaction (without impact)/girder = 220 kN
qs = bearing design rotation at service limit state = 0.025 rad
DT = maximum temperature change = 21°C
DPT = girder shortening due to post tensioning = 21 mm
DSH = girder shortening due to concrete shrinkage = 2 mm
G = shear modulus of elastomer = 0.9 ~ 1.38 MPa
g = load factor for uniform temperature, etc. = 1.2
D FTH = constant amplitude fatigue threshold for Category A = 165 MPa

Using 60 durometer reinforced bearing:

Fy = yield strength of steel reinforcement = 350 MPa

Sliding bearing used:

1. Temperature Movement
From Art. 5.4.2.2, for normal density concrete, the thermal coefficient a is

a = 10.8 ¥ 10 –6/˚C

D TEMP = (a)(DT)(L ) = (10.8 ¥ 10 –6/˚C)(21°C)(40,000 mm) = 9 mm

2. Girder Shortenings

D PT = 21 mm and D SH = 2 mm

3. Bearing Thickness
h rt = total elastomer thickness
h ri = thickness of ith elastomeric layer
n = number of interior layers of elastomeric layer
D S = bearing maximum longitudinal movement = g · ( D TEMP + D PT + D SH)
D S = 1.2 ¥ (9 mm + 21 mm + 2 mm) = 38.4 mm
h rt = bearing thickness ≥ 2D S (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.4-1)
h rt = 2 ¥ (38.4 mm) = 76.8
Try hrt = 120 mm, hri = 20 mm and n = 5

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Bearings 1-9

FIGURE 1.5 Stress–strain curves. (From AASHTO, Figure C14.7.5.3.3.1.)

4. Bearing Size
L = length of bearing
W = width of bearing
LW
S i = shape factor of thickness layer of the bearing =
2hri ( L + W )
For a bearing subject to shear deformation, the compressive stresses should satisfy:

sS = average compressive stress due to the total load £ 1.66GS £ 11 (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.2-1)
sL = average compressive stress due to the live load £ 0.66 GS (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.2-1)

R 1.66GLW
s s = --------- = -----------------------------
LW 2h ri ( L + W )

Assuming sS is critical, solve for L and W by error and trial.

L = 300 mm and W = 460 mm

S=
LW
=
(300 mm) (460 mm) = 4.54
2hri ( L + W ) 2(20 mm) (300 mm + 460 mm)
RL ( 200,000 N ) - = 1.6 MPa
s L = --------
- = -------------------------------------------------
LW ( 300 mm ) ( 460 mm ) OK
£ 0.66 GS = 0.66 ( 1.0 MPa ) ( 4.54 ) = 3.0 MPa

5. Instantaneous Compressive Deflection

For sS = 6.59 MPa and S = 4.54, one can determine the value of ei from Figure 1.5:

e i = 0.062

d =
Âe h i ri (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.3-1)

= 6 ( 0.062 ) ( 20 mm ) = 7.44 mm

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1-10 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

6. Bearing Maximum Rotation

The bearing rotational capacity can be calculated as

q capacity = 2d ( 7.44 mm )
------ = 2----------------------------- = 0.05 rad < q design = 0.025 rad OK
L 300 mm

7. Combined Bearing Compression and Rotation

a. Uplift requirement (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.5-1):

2
Ê q designˆ Ê L ˆ
s s,uplift = 1.0GS Á ------------
-˜ Á -----˜
Ë n ¯ Ë h ri¯ OK
0.025 300 2
= 1.0 ( 1.2 ) ( 4.54 ) Ê -------------ˆ Ê ---------ˆ = 6.13 MPa < s s = 6.59 MPa
Ë 5 ¯ Ë 20 ¯

b. Shear deformation requirement (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.5-2):

2
Ê Ê q designˆ Ê L ˆ ˆ˜
s s,shear Á
= 1.875GS 1 – 0.20 Á -------------˜ Á -----˜
Á Ë n ¯ Ë h ri¯ ˜¯
Ë
OK
2
Ê Ê 0.025ˆ Ê 300ˆ ˆ
= 1.875 ( 1.0 ) ( 4.54 ) Á 1 – 0.20 Á -------------˜ Á ---------˜ ˜ = 6.60 MPa > s = 6.59 MPa
s
Á Ë 5 ¯ Ë 20 ¯ ˜
Ë ¯

8. Bearing Stability
Bearings shall be designed to prevent instability at the service limit state load combinations.
The average compressive stress on the bearing is limited to half the predicted buckling stress.
For this example, the bridge deck, if free to translate horizontally, the average compressive
stress due to dead and live load, ss, must satisfy:

G
ss £ (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.6-1)
2 A- B

where

h
1.92 -----rt-
L
A = ------------------------------ (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.6-3)
2.0 L
S 1 + ------------ -
W
( 120 mm )
1.92 -------------------------
( 300 mm )
= -------------------------------------------------------------- = 0.11
2.0 ( 300 mm )
( 4.54 ) 1 + --------------------------------
( 460 mm )

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Bearings 1-11

2.67
B=
L
S( S + 2.0) 1 +
4.0W
(AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.6-4)
2.67
= = 0.08
(4.54) (4.54 + 2.0) 1 +
(300 mm)
4.0 ( 460 mm)

G ( 1.0 MPa )
- = 6.87 > s s
----------------- = --------------------------------------- OK
2A – B 2 ( 0.11 ) – ( 0.08 )

9. Bearing Steel Reinforcement

The bearing steel reinforcement must be designed to sustain the tensile stresses induced by
compression of the bearing. The thickness of steel reinforcement, hs, should satisfy:
a. At the service limit state:

3h max s s
h s ≥ -----------------
- (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.7-1)
Fy

3 (20 mm) (6.59 MPa )

= = 1.13 mm (governs)
(350 MPa)

b. At the fatigue limit state:

2h max s L
h s ≥ ------------------
- (AASHTO Eq. 14.7.5.3.7-2)
ÄF y

2 (20 mm)(1.6 MPa )

= = 0.39 mm
(165MPa)

where hmax = thickness of thickest elastomeric layer in elastomeric bearing = hri.

Elastomeric Bearings Details

Five interior lays with 20 mm thickness each layer
Two exterior lays with 10 mm thickness each layer
Six steel reinforcements with 1.2 mm each
Total thickness of bearing is 127.2 mm
Bearing size: 300 mm (longitudinal) ¥ 460 mm (transverse)

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1-12 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

References
1. AASHTO, LRFD Br idge Design Specifications, American Association of State Highway and Trans-
portation Officials, Washington, D.C., 1994.
2. AASHTO, Standar d Specifications for the Design of Highway Bridges, 16th ed. American Association
of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington, D.C., 1996.
3. Stanton, J. F., Roeder, C. W., and Campbell, T. I., High Load Multi-Rotational Bridge Bearings,
NCHRP Report 10-20A, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, Washington,
D.C., 1993.
4. Caltrans, Memo to Designers, California Department of Transportation, Sacramento, 1994.
5. AISI, Steel bridge bearing selection and design guide, Highway Structures Design Handbook, Vol.
II, American Iron and Steel Institute, Washington, D.C., 1996, chap. 4.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

 2
Piers and Columns

2.1 Introduction .................................................................2-1

2.2 Structural Types ...........................................................2-1
General • Selection Criteria
2.3 Design Loads ................................................................2-4
Live Loads • Thermal Forces
2.4 Design Criteria .............................................................2-7
Jinrong Wang Overview • Slenderness and Second-Order Effect •
California Department of Concrete Piers and Columns • Steel and Composite
Transportation Columns

2.1 Introduction
Piers provide vertical supports for spans at intermediate points and perform two main functions:
transferring superstructure vertical loads to the foundations and resisting horizontal forces acting
on the bridge. Although piers are traditionally designed to resist vertical loads, it is becoming more
and more common to design piers to resist high lateral loads caused by seismic events. Even in
some low seismic areas, designers are paying more attention to the ductility aspect of the design.
Piers are predominantly constructed using reinforced concrete. Steel, to a lesser degree, is also used
for piers. Steel tubes filled with concrete (composite) columns have gained more attention recently.
This chapter deals only with piers or columns for conventional bridges, such as grade separations,
overcrossings, overheads, underpasses, and simple river crossings. Reinforced concrete columns will
be discussed in detail while steel and composite columns will be briefly discussed. Substructures
for arch, suspension, segmental, cable-stayed, and movable bridges are excluded from this chapter.
Chapter 3 discusses the substructures for some of these special types of bridges.

2.2 Structural Types

2.2.1 General
Pier is usually used as a general term for any type of substructure located between horizontal spans and
foundations. However, from time to time, it is also used particularly for a solid wall in order to
distinguish it from columns or bents. From a structural point of view, a column is a member that resists
the lateral force mainly by flexure action whereas a pier is a member that resists the lateral force mainly
by a shear mechanism. A pier that consists of multiple columns is often called a bent.
There are several ways of defining pier types. One is by its structural connectivity to the super-
structure: monolithic or cantilevered. Another is by its sectional shape: solid or hollow; round,
octagonal, hexagonal, or rectangular. It can also be distinguished by its framing configuration: single
or multiple column bent; hammerhead or pier wall.

0-8493-1681-2/03/$0.00+$1.50
© 2003 by CRC Press LLC 2-1

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2-2 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

FIGURE 2.1 Typical cross-section shapes of piers for overcrossings or viaducts on land.

FIGURE 2.2 Typical cross-section shapes of piers for river and waterway crossings.

2.2.2 Selection Criteria

Selection of the type of piers for a bridge should be based on functional, structural, and geometric
requirements. Aesthetics is also a very important factor of selection since modern highway bridges
are part of a city’s landscape. Figure 2.1 shows a collection of typical cross section shapes for
overcrossings and viaducts on land and Figure 2.2 shows some typical cross section shapes for piers
of river and waterway crossings. Often, pier types are mandated by government agencies or owners.
Many state departments of transportation in the United States have their own standard column
shapes.
Solid wall piers, as shown in Figures 2.3a and 2.4, are often used at water crossings since they
can be constructed to proportions that are both slender and streamlined. These features lend
themselves well for providing minimal resistance to flood flows.

FIGURE 2.3 Typical pier types for steel bridges.

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Piers and Columns 2-3

FIGURE 2.4 Typical pier types and configurations for river and waterway crossings.

Hammerhead piers, as shown in Figure 2.3b, are often found in urban areas where space limitation
is a concern. They are used to support steel girder or precast prestressed concrete superstructures.
They are aesthetically appealing. They generally occupy less space, thereby providing more room
for the traffic underneath. Standards for the use of hammerhead piers are often maintained by
individual transportation departments.
A column bent pier consists of a cap beam and supporting columns forming a frame. Column
bent piers, as shown in Figure 2.3c and Figure 2.5, can either be used to support a steel girder
superstructure or be used as an integral pier where the cast-in-place construction technique is used.
The columns can be either circular or rectangular in cross section. They are by far the most popular
forms of piers in the modern highway system.
A pile extension pier consists of a drilled shaft as the foundation and the circular column extended
from the shaft to form the substructure. An obvious advantage of this type of pier is that it occupies
a minimal amount of space. Widening an existing bridge in some instances may require pile
extensions because limited space precludes the use of other types of foundations.

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2-4 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

FIGURE 2.5 Typical pier types for concrete bridges.

Selections of proper pier type depend upon many factors. First of all, it depends upon the type
of superstructure. For example, steel girder superstructures are normally supported by cantilevered
piers, whereas the cast-in-place concrete superstructures are normally supported by monolithic
bents. Second, it depends upon whether the bridges are over a waterway or not. Pier walls are
preferred on river crossings, where debris is a concern and hydraulics dictates it. Multiple pile
extension bents are commonly used on slab bridges. Last, the height of piers also dictates the type
selection of piers. The taller piers often require hollow cross sections in order to reduce the weight
of the substructure. This then reduces the load demands on the costly foundations. Table 2.1
summarizes the general type selection guidelines for different types of bridges.

2.3 Design Loads

Piers are commonly subjected to forces and loads transmitted from the superstructure, and forces
acting directly on the substructure. Some of the loads and forces to be resisted by the substructure
include:
• Dead loads
• Live loads and impact from the superstructure
• Wind loads on the structure and the live loads
• Centrifugal force from the superstructure
• Longitudinal force from live loads
• Drag forces due to the friction at bearings
• Earth pressure
• Stream flow pressure
• Ice pressure
• Earthquake forces
• Thermal and shrinkage forces
• Ship impact forces
• Force due to prestressing of the superstructure
• Forces due to settlement of foundations

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Piers and Columns 2-5

TABLE 2.1 General Guidelines for Selecting Pier Types

Applicable Pier Types

Steel Superstructure
Over water Tall piers Pier walls or hammerheads (T-piers) (Figures 2.3a and b); hollow cross sections for most cases;
cantilevered; could use combined hammerheads with pier wall base and step tapered shaft
Short piers Pier walls or hammerheads (T-piers) (Figures 2.3a and b); solid cross sections; cantilevered
On land Tall piers Hammerheads (T-piers) and possibly rigid frames (multiple column bents)(Figures 2.3b and c);
hollow cross sections for single shaft and solid cross sections for rigid frames; cantilevered
Short piers Hammerheads and rigid frames (Figures 2.3b and c); solid cross sections; cantilevered

Precast Prestressed Concrete Superstructure

Over water Tall piers Pier walls or hammerheads (Figure 2.4); hollow cross sections for most cases; cantilevered;
could use combined hammerheads with pier wall base and step-tapered shaft
Short piers Pier walls or hammerheads; solid cross sections; cantilevered
On land Tall piers Hammerheads and possibly rigid frames (multiple column bents); hollow cross sections for
single shafts and solid cross sections for rigid frames; cantilevered
Short piers Hammerheads and rigid frames (multiple column bents) (Figure 2.5a); solid cross sections;
cantilevered

Cast-in-Place Concrete Superstructure

Over water Tall piers Single shaft pier (Figure 2.4); superstructure will likely cast by traveled forms with balanced
cantilevered construction method; hollow cross sections; monolithic; fixed at bottom
Short piers Pier walls (Figure 2.4); solid cross sections; monolithic; fixed at bottom
On land Tall piers Single or multiple column bents; solid cross sections for most cases, monolithic; fixed at bottom
Short piers Single or multiple column bents (Figure 2.5b); solid cross sections; monolithic; pinned at
bottom

The effect of temperature changes and shrinkage of the superstructure needs to be considered
when the superstructure is rigidly connected with the supports. Where expansion bearings are used,
forces caused by temperature changes are limited to the frictional resistance of bearings.
In the following, two load cases, live loads and thermal forces, will be discussed in detail because
they are two of the most common loads on the piers, but are often applied incorrectly.

2.3.1 Live Loads

Bridge live loads are the loads specified or approved by the contracting agencies and owners. They
are usually specified in the design codes such as AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications [1].
There are other special loading conditions peculiar to the type or location of the bridge structure
which should be specified in the contracting documents.
Live-load reactions obtained from the design of individual members of the superstructure should
not be used directly for substructure design. These reactions are based upon maximum conditions
for one beam and make no allowance for distribution of live loads across the roadway. Use of these
maximum loadings would result in a pier design with an unrealistically severe loading condition
and uneconomical sections.
For substructure design, a maximum design traffic lane reaction using either the standard truck
load or standard lane load should be used. Design traffic lanes are determined according to AASHTO
LRFD [1] Section 3.6. For the calculation of the actual beam reactions on the piers, the maximum
lane reaction can be applied within the design traffic lanes as wheel loads, and then distributed to
the beams assuming the slab between beams to be simply supported (Figure 2.6). Wheel loads can
be positioned anywhere within the design traffic lane with a minimum distance between lane
boundary and wheel load of 0.61 m (2 ft).

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2-6 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

FIGURE 2.6 Wheel load arrangement to produce maximum positive moment.

The design traffic lanes and the live load within the lanes should be arranged to produce beam
reactions that result in maximum loads on the piers. AASHTO LRFD Section 3.6.1.1.2 provides
load reduction factors due to multiple loaded lanes.
Live-load reactions will be increased due to impact effect. AASHTO LRFD [1] refers to this as
the dynamic load allowance, IM. and is listed here as in Table 2.2.

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Piers and Columns 2-7

TABLE 2.2 Dynamic Load Allowance, IM

Component IM

Deck joints — all limit states 75%

All other components
• Fatigue and fracture limit state 15%
• All other limit states 33%

2.3.2 Thermal Forces

Forces on piers due to thermal movements, shrinkage, and prestressing can become large on short,
stiff bents of prestressed concrete bridges with integral bents. Piers should be checked against these
forces. Design codes or specifications normally specify the design temperature range. Some codes
even specify temperature distribution along the depth of the superstructure member.
The first step in determining the thermal forces on the substructures for a bridge with integral
bents is to determine the point of no movement. After this point is determined, the relative
displacement of any point along the superstructure to this point is simply equal to the distance to
this point times the temperature range and times the coefficient of expansion. With known dis-
placement at the top and known boundary conditions at the top and bottom, the forces on the pier
due to the temperature change can be calculated by using the displacement times the stiffness of
the pier.
The determination of the point of no movement is best demonstrated by the following example,
which is adopted from Memo to Designers issued by California Department of Transportation [2]:

Example 2.1
A 225.55-m (740-foot)-long and 23.77-m (78-foot) wide concrete box-girder superstructure is
supported by five two-column bents. The size of the column is 1.52 m (5 ft) in diameter and the
heights vary between 10.67 m (35 ft) and 12.80 m (42 ft). Other assumptions are listed in the
calculations. The calculation is done through a table. Please refer Figure 2.7 for the calculation for
determining the point of no movement.

2.4 Design Criteria

2.4.1 Overview
Like the design of any structural component, the design of a pier or column is performed to fulfill
strength and serviceability requirements. A pier should be designed to withstand the overturning,
sliding forces applied from superstructure as well as the forces applied to substructures. It also needs
to be designed so that during an extreme event it will prevent the collapse of the structure but may
sustain some damage.
A pier as a structure component is subjected to combined forces of axial, bending, and shear.
For a pier, the bending strength is dependent upon the axial force. In the plastic hinge zone of a
pier, the shear strength is also influenced by bending. To complicate the behavior even more, the
bending moment will be magnified by the axial force due to the P-Δ effect.
In current design practice, the bridge designers are becoming increasingly aware of the adverse
effects of earthquake. Therefore, ductility consideration has become a very important factor for
bridge design. Failure due to scouring is also a common cause of failure of bridges. In order to
prevent this type of failure, the bridge designers need to work closely with the hydraulic engineers
to determine adequate depths for the piers and provide proper protection measures.

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 FIGURE 2.7 Calculation of points of no movement.

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Piers and Columns 2-9

2.4.2 Slenderness and Second-Order Effect

The design of compression members must be based on forces and moments determined from an
analysis of the structure. Small deflection theory is usually adequate for the analysis of beam-type
members. For compression members, however, the second-order effect must be considered. Accord-
ing to AASHTO LRFD [1], the second-order effect is defined as follows:
The presence of compressive axial forces amplify both out-of-straightness of a component and
the deformation due to non-tangential loads acting thereon, therefore increasing the eccentricity
of the axial force with respect to the centerline of the component. The synergistic effect of this
interaction is the apparent softening of the component, i.e., a loss of stiffness.
To assess this effect accurately, a properly formulated large deflection nonlinear analysis can be
performed. Discussions on this subject can be found in References [3,4]. However, it is impractical
to expect practicing engineers to perform this type of sophisticated analysis on a regular basis. The
moment magnification procedure given in AASHTO LRFD [1] is an approximate process which
was selected as a compromise between accuracy and ease of use. Therefore, the AASHTO LRFD
moment magnification procedure is outlined in the following.
When the cross section dimensions of a compression member are small in comparison to its
length, the member is said to be slender. Whether or not a member can be considered slender is
dependent on the magnitude of the slenderness ratio of the member. The slenderness ratio of a
compression member is defined as, KLu/r, where K is the effective length factor for compression
members; Lu is the unsupported length of compression member; r is the radius of gyration = I A ;
I is the moment of inertia; and A is the cross-sectional area.
When a compression member is braced against side sway, the effective length factor, K = 1.0 can
be used. However, a lower value of K can be used if further analysis demonstrates that a lower value
is applicable. Lu is defined as the clear distance between slabs, girders, or other members which is
capable of providing lateral support for the compression member. If haunches are present, then,
the unsupported length is taken from the lower extremity of the haunch in the plane considered
(AASHTO LRFD 5.7.4.3). For a detailed discussion of the K-factor, please refer to Chapter 8.
For a compression member braced against side sway, the effects of slenderness can be ignored as
long as the following condition is met (AASHTO LRFD 5.7.4.3):

KLu ⎛ 12 M1b ⎞
< 34 − ⎜ ⎟ (2.1)
r ⎝ M2 b ⎠

where
M1b = smaller end moment on compression member — positive if member is bent in single cur-
vature, negative if member is bent in double curvature
M2b = larger end moment on compression member — always positive
For an unbraced compression member, the effects of slenderness can be ignored as long as the
following condition is met (AASHTO LRFD 5.7.4.3):

KLu
< 22 (2.2)
r

If the slenderness ratio exceeds the above-specified limits, the effects can be approximated through
the use of the moment magnification method. If the slenderness ratio KLu/r exceeds 100, however,
a more-detailed second-order nonlinear analysis will be required. Any detailed analysis should
consider the influence of axial loads and variable moment of inertia on member stiffness and forces,
and the effects of the duration of the loads.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

2-10 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

The factored moments may be increased to reflect effects of deformations as follows:

Mc = δ b M2 b + δ s M 2 s (2.3)

where
M2b = moment on compression member due to factored gravity loads that result in no appreciable
side sway calculated by conventional first-order elastic frame analysis, always positive
M2s = moment on compression member due to lateral or gravity loads that result in side sway, Δ,
greater than Lu/1500, calculated by conventional first-order elastic frame analysis, always
positive
The moment magnification factors are defined as follows:

Cm
δb = ≥ 1.0 (2.4)
P
1− u
φPc

1
δs = ≥ 1.0 (2.5)
∑ Pu
1−
φ ∑ Pc

where
Pu = factored axial load
Pc = Euler buckling load, which is determined as follows:

π 2 EI
Pc = (2.6)
( KLu )
2

Cm, a factor which relates the actual moment diagram to an equivalent uniform moment diagram,
is typically taken as 1.0. However, in the case where the member is braced against side sway and
without transverse loads between supports, it may be taken by the following expression:

⎛M ⎞
Cm = 0.60 + 0.40 ⎜ 1b ⎟ (2.7)
⎝ M2 b ⎠

The value resulting from Eq. (2.7), however, is not to be less than 0.40.
To compute the flexural rigidity EI for concrete columns, AASHTO offers two possible solutions,
with the first being:

Ec Ig
+ Es Is
EI = 5 (2.8)
1 + βd

and the second, more-conservative solution being:

Ec Ig
EI = 2.5 (2.9)
1 + βd

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Piers and Columns 2-11

where Ec is the elastic modulus of concrete, Ig is the gross moment inertia, Es is the elastic modules
of reinforcement, Is is the moment inertia of reinforcement about centroidal axis, and β is the
ratio of maximum dead-load moment to maximum total-load moment and is always positive. It
is an approximation of the effects of creep, so that when larger moments are induced by loads
sustained over a long period of time, the creep deformation and associated curvature will also
be increased.

2.4.3 Concrete Piers and Columns

2.4.3.1 Combined Axial and Flexural Strength
A critical aspect of the design of bridge piers is the design of compression members. We will use
AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications [1] as the reference source. The following discussion
provides an overview of some of the major criteria governing the design of compression members.
Under the Strength Limit State Design, the factored resistance is determined with the product of
nominal resistance, Pn, and the resistance factor, φ. Two different values of φ are used for the nominal
resistance Pn. Thus, the factored axial load resistance φPn is obtained using φ = 0.75 for columns
with spiral and tie confinement reinforcement. The specifications also allows for the value φ to be
linearly increased from the value stipulated for compression members to the value specified for
flexure which is equal to 0.9 as the design axial load φPn decreases from 0.10 fc′Ag to zero.
Interaction Diagrams
Flexural resistance of a concrete member is dependent upon the axial force acting on the member.
Interaction diagrams are usually used as aids for the design of the compression members. Interaction
diagrams for columns are usually created assuming a series of strain distributions, and computing
the corresponding values of P and M. Once enough points have been computed, the results are
plotted to produce an interaction diagram.
Figure 2.8 shows a series of strain distributions and the resulting points on the interaction
diagram. In an actual design, however, a few points on the diagrams can be easily obtained and can
define the diagram rather closely.

• Pure Compression:
The factored axial resistance for pure compression, φPn, may be computed by:
For members with spiral reinforcement:

[ ( )
Pr = φPn = φ0.85Po = φ0.85 0.85 fc′ Ag − Ast + Ast fy ] (2.10)

For members with tie reinforcement:

[ ( )
Pr = φPn = φ0.80 Po = φ0.80 0.85 fc′ Ag − Ast + Ast fy ] (2.11)

For design, pure compression strength is a hypothetical condition since almost always there will be
moments present due to various reasons. For this reason, AASHTO LRFD 5.7.4.4 limits the nominal
axial load resistance of compression members to 85 and 80% of the axial resistance at zero eccen-
tricity, Po, for spiral and tied columns, respectively.

• Pure Flexure:
The section in this case is only subjected to bending moment and without any axial force. The
factored flexural resistance, Mr, may be computed by

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

2-12 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

FIGURE 2.8 Strain distributions corresponding to points on interaction diagram.

⎡ ⎛ f ⎞⎤
Mr = φMn = φ ⎢ As fy d ⎜1 − 0.6ρ y ⎟ ⎥
⎢⎣ ⎝ fc′⎠ ⎥⎦
(2.12)
⎡ a ⎤
= φ ⎢ As fy ⎛ d − ⎞ ⎥
⎣ ⎝ 2⎠⎦

where

As fy
a=
0.85 fc′b

• Balanced Strain Conditions:

Balanced strain conditions correspond to the strain distribution where the extreme concrete strain
reaches 0.003 and the strain in reinforcement reaches yield at the same time. At this condition, the
section has the highest moment capacity. For a rectangular section with reinforcement in one face,
or located in two faces at approximately the same distance from the axis of bending, the balanced
factored axial resistance, Pr, and balanced factored flexural resistance, Mr, may be computed by

[
Pr = φPb = φ 0.85 fc′bab + As′ fs′− As fy ] (2.13)

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Piers and Columns 2-13

and

[
Mr = φMb = φ 0.85 fc′bab (d − d ′′ − ab 2) + As′ fs′ ( d − d ′ − d ′′) + As fy d ′′ ] (2.14)

where

⎛ 600 ⎞
ab = ⎜ ⎟ β1d
⎝ 600 + fy ⎠

and

⎡ ⎛ d′ ⎞ ⎛ fy ⎞ ⎤
fs′ = 600 ⎢1 − ⎜ 600 + ⎟⎥ ≤ f
⎣ ⎝d⎠ ⎝ 600 ⎠ ⎦ y

where fy is in MPa.
Biaxial Bending
AASHTO LRFD 5.7.4.5 stipulates that the design strength of noncircular members subjected to
biaxial bending may be computed, in lieu of a general section analysis based on stress and strain
compatibility, by one of the following approximate expressions:

1 1 1 1
= + − (2.15)
Prxy Prx Pry Po

when the factored axial load, Pu 0.10 φ fc′Ag

Mux Muy
+ ≤1 (2.16)
Mrx Mry

when the factored axial load, Pu < 0.10 φ fc′Ag

where
Prxy = factored axial resistance in biaxial flexure
Prx, Pry = factored axial resistance corresponding to Mrx, Mry
Mux, Muy = factored applied moment about the x-axis, y-axis
Mrx, Mry = uniaxial factored flexural resistance of a section about the x-axis and y-axis corresponding
to the eccentricity produced by the applied factored axial load and moment, and
Po = 0.85 fc′ (Ag − As ) + As f y

2.4.3.2 Shear Strength

Under the normal load conditions, the shear seldom governs the design of the column for conven-
tional bridges since the lateral loads are usually small compared with the vertical loads. However,
in a seismic design, the shear is very important. In recent years, the research effort on shear strength
evaluation for columns has been increased remarkably. AASHTO LRFD provides a general shear
equation that applies for both beams and columns. The concrete shear capacity component and
the angle of inclination of diagonal compressive stresses are functions of the shear stress on the
concrete and the strain in the reinforcement on the flexural tension side of the member. It is rather
involved and hard to use.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

2-14 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

Alternatively, the equations recommended by ATC-32 [5] can be used with acceptable accuracy.
The recommendations are listed as follows.
Except for the end regions of ductile columns, the nominal shear strength provided by concrete,
Vc, for members subjected to flexure and axial compression should be computed by

⎛ N ⎞
( )
Vc = 0.165 ⎜1 + (3.45) 10 −6 u ⎟ fc′Ae (MPa ) (2.17)
⎝ Ag ⎠

If the axial force is in tension, the Vc should be computed by

⎛ N ⎞
( )
Vc = 0.165 ⎜1 + (1.38) 10 −5 u ⎟ fc′Ae (MPa ) (2.18)
⎝ Ag ⎠

(note that Nu is negative for tension),

where
Ag = gross section area of the column (mm2)
Ae = effective section area, can be taken as 0.8Ag (mm2)
Nu = axial force applied to the column (N)
f c′ = compressive strength of concrete (MPa)
For end regions where the flexural ductility is normally high, the shear capacity should be reduced.
ATC-32 [5] offers the following equations to address this interaction.
With the end region of columns extending a distance from the critical section or sections not
less than 1.5D for circular columns or 1.5h for rectangular columns, the nominal shear strength
provided by concrete subjected to flexure and axial compression should be computed by

⎛ N ⎞
( )
Vc = 0.165 ⎜ 0.5 + (6.9) 10 −6 u ⎟ fc′Ae (MPa ) (2.19)
⎝ Ag ⎠

When axial load is tension, Vc can be calculated as

⎛ N ⎞
( )
Vc = 0.165 ⎜1 + (1.38) 10 −5 u ⎟ fc′Ae (MPa ) (2.18)
⎝ Ag ⎠

Again, Nu should be negative in this case.

The nominal shear contribution from reinforcement is given by

Av fyh d
Vs = (MPa ) (2.20)
s

for tied rectangular sections, and by

π Ah fyh D′
Vs = (2.21)
2 s

for spirally reinforced circular sections. In these equations, Av is the total area of shear reinforcement
parallel to the applied shear force, Ah is the area of a single hoop, fyh is the yield stress of horizontal
reinforcement, D′ is the diameter of a circular hoop, and s is the spacing of horizontal reinforcement.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Piers and Columns 2-15

2.4.3.3 Ductility of Columns

The AASHTO LRFD [1] introduces the term ductility and requires that a structural system of bridge
be designed to ensure the development of significant and visible inelastic deformations prior to
failure.
The term ductility defines the ability of a structure and selected structural components to deform
beyond elastic limits without excessive strength or stiffness degradation. In mathematical terms, the
ductility µ is defined by the ratio of the total imposed displacement Δ at any instant to that at the
onset of yield Δy. This is a measure of the ability for a structure, or a component of a structure, to
absorb energy. The goal of seismic design is to limit the estimated maximum ductility demand to
the ductility capacity of the structure during a seismic event.
For concrete columns, the confinement of concrete must be provided to ensure a ductile column.
AASHTO LRFD [1] specifies the following minimum ratio of spiral reinforcement to total volume
of concrete core, measured out-to-out of spirals:

⎛A ⎞ f′
ρs = 0.45 ⎜ g − 1⎟ c (2.22)
⎝ c ⎠ fyh
A

The transverse reinforcement for confinement at the plastic hinges shall be determined as follows:

fc′ ⎛ 1.25Pu ⎞
ρs = 0.16 ⎜ 0.5 + (2.23)
fy ⎝ Ag fc′ ⎟⎠
for which
⎛ 1.25Pu ⎞
⎜ 0.5 + A f ′ ⎟ ≥ 1.0
⎝ g c ⎠

The total cross-sectional area (Ash) of rectangular hoop (stirrup) reinforcement for a rectangular
column shall be either

fc′ ⎛ Ag ⎞
Ash = 0.30 ahc −1 (2.24)
fyh ⎜⎝ Ac ⎟⎠
or,

fc′ ⎛ 1.25Pu ⎞
Ash = 0.12 ahc ⎜ 0.5 + (2.25)
fy ⎝ Ag fc′ ⎟⎠

whichever is greater,
where
a = vertical spacing of hoops (stirrups) with a maximum of 100 mm (mm)
Ac = area of column core measured to the outside of the transverse spiral reinforcement (mm2)
Ag = gross area of column (mm2)
Ash = total cross-sectional area of hoop (stirrup) reinforcement (mm2)
f c′ = specified compressive strength of concrete (Pa)
fyh = yield strength of hoop or spiral reinforcement (Pa)
hc = core dimension of tied column in the direction under consideration (mm)
ρs = ratio of volume of spiral reinforcement to total volume of concrete core (out-to-out of spiral)
Pu = factored axial load (MN)

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

2-16 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

FIGURE 2.9 Example 2.2 — typical section.

TABLE 2.3 Column Group Loads — Service

Live Load + Impact
Case 1 Case 2 Case 3
Dead Win Wind Long Centrifugal
Load Trans My-max Long Mx-max Axial N-max d on LL Force Force-My Temp.

My (k-ft) 220 75 15 32 532 153 208 127 180

Mx (k-ft) 148 67 599 131 192 86 295 2 0
P (k) 1108 173 131 280 44 17 12 23 0

TABLE 2.4 Unreduced Seismic Loads (ARS)

Case 1 Case 2
Max. Transverse Max. Longitudinal

My — Trans (k-ft) 4855 3286

Mx — Long (k-ft) 3126 3334
P — Axial (k) –282 –220

Example 2.2 Design of a Two-Column Bent

Design the columns of a two-span overcrossing. The typical section of the structure is shown in
Figure 2.9. The concrete box girder is supported by a two-column bent and is subjected to HS20
loading. The columns are pinned at the bottom of the columns. Therefore, only the loads at the
top of columns are given here. Table 2.3 lists all the forces due to live load plus impact. Table 2.4
lists the forces due to seismic loads. Note that a load reduction factor of 5.0 will be assumed for
the columns.
Material Data

f c′ = 4.0 ksi (27.6 MPa) E c = 3605 ksi (24855 MPa)

E s = 29000 ksi (199946 MPa) f y = 60 ksi (414 MPa)

Try a column size of 4 ft (1.22 m) in diameter. Provide 26-#9 (26-#30) longitudinal reinforcement.
The reinforcement ratio is 1.44%.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Piers and Columns 2-17

FIGURE 2.10 Example 2.2 — interaction diagram.

Section Properties

A g = 12.51 ft 2 (1.16 m 2) Ast = 26.0 in 2 (16774 mm 2)

Ixc = I yc = 12.46 ft4 (0.1075 m 4) Ixs = I ys = 0.2712 ft4 (0.0023 m 4)
The analysis follows the procedure discussed in Section 2.4.3.1. The moment and axial force inter-
action diagram is generated and is shown in Figure 2.10.
Following the procedure outlined in Section 2.4.2, the moment magnification factors for each
load group can be calculated and the results are shown in Table 2.5.

In which:

Ky = K x = 2.10

KyL/R = K x L/R = 2.1 × 27.0/(1.0) = 57

where R = radio of gyration = r/2 for a circular section.

22 < KL/R < 100 ∴ Second-order effect should be considered.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

2-18 Bridge Engineering: Substructure Design

TABLE 2.5 Moment Magnification and Buckling Calculations

Axial
Load P (k) Moment Magnification Cracked Transformed Section Critical Buckling Load
Group Case Trans. Magy Long Magx Comb. Mag E*Iy (k-ft2) E*Ix (k-ft2) Trans. Pcy (k) Long Pcx (k) P(k)

I 1 1.571 1.640 1.587 1,738,699 1,619,399 5338 4972 1455

I 2 1.661 1.367 1.384 1,488,966 2,205,948 4571 6772 1364
I 3 2.765 2.059 2.364 1,392,713 1,728,396 4276 5306 2047
II 1.337 1.385 1.344 1,962,171 1,776,045 6024 5452 1137
III 1 1.406 1.403 1.405 2,046,281 2,056,470 6282 6313 1360
III 2 1.396 1.344 1.361 1,999,624 2,212,829 6139 6793 1305
III 3 1.738 1.671 1.708 1,901,005 2,011,763 5836 6176 1859
IV 1 1.437 1.611 1.455 1,864,312 1,494,630 5723 4588 1306
IV 2 1.448 1.349 1.377 1,755,985 2,098,586 5391 6443 1251
IV 3 1.920 1.978 1.936 1,635,757 1,585,579 5022 4868 1805
V 1.303 1.365 1.310 2,042,411 1,776,045 6270 5452 1094
VI 1 1.370 1.382 1.373 2,101,830 2,056,470 6453 6313 1308
VI 2 1.358 1.327 1.340 2,068,404 2,212,829 6350 6793 1256
VI 3 1.645 1.629 1.640 1,980,146 2,011,763 6079 6176 1788
VII 1 1.243 1.245 1.244 2,048,312 2,036,805 6288 6253 826
VII 2 1.296 1.275 1.286 1,940,100 2,053,651 5956 6305 888

Note: Column assumed to be unbraced against side sway.

The calculations for Loading Group III and Case 2 will be demonstrated in the following:
Bending in the longitudinal direction: Mx

Factored load = 1.3[βDD + (L + I) + CF + 0.3W + WL + LF]

βD = 0.75 when checking columns for maximum moment or maximum eccentricities and associated
axial load. βd in Eq. (2.8) = max dead-load moment, MDL/max total moment, Mt.

MDL = 148 × 0.75 = 111 k-ft (151 kN·m)

Mt = 0.75 × 148 + 599 + 0.3 × 192 + 86 + 295 + 2 = 1151 k-ft (1561 kN·m)
βd = 111/1151 = 0.0964

Ec Ig 3605 × 144 × 12.46

+ Es Is + 29, 000 × 144 × 0.2712
EIx = 5 = 5 = 2, 212, 829 k-ft 2
1 + βd 1 + 0.0964

π 2 EIx π 2 × 2, 212, 829

Pcx = = = 6793 kips (30,229 kN )
( KLu ) (2.1 × 27)2
2

Cm = 1.0 for frame braced against side sway

1 1
δs = = = 1.344
∑ Pu 1305
1− 1−
φ ∑ Pc 0.75 × 6793

The magnified factored moment = 1.344 × 1.3 × 1151 = 2011 k-ft (2728 kN·m)

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Piers and Columns 2-19

TABLE 2.6 Comparison of Factored Loads to Factored Capacity of the Column

Applied Factored Forces (k-ft) Capacity (k-ft)
Group Case Trans. My Long Mx Comb. M Axial P (k) φMn φ Ratio Mu/M Status

I 1 852 475 975 1455 2924 0.75 3.00 OK

I 2 566 1972 2051 1364 2889 0.75 1.41 OK
I 3 1065 981 1448 2047 3029 0.75 2.09 OK
II 1211 546 1328 1137 2780 0.75 2.09 OK
III 1 1622 1125 1974 1360 2886 0.75 1.46 OK
III 2 1402 2011 2449 1305 2861 0.75 1.17 OK
III 3 1798 1558 2379 1859 3018 0.75 1.27 OK
IV 1 1022 373 1088 1306 2865 0.75 2.63 OK
IV 2 813 1245 1487 1251 2837 0.75 1.91 OK
IV 3 1136 717 1343 1805 3012 0.75 2.24 OK
V 1429 517 1519 1094 2754 0.75 1.81 OK
VI 1 1829 1065 2116 1308 2864 0.75 1.35 OK
VI 2 1617 1905 2499 1256 2842 0.75 1.14 OK
VI 3 2007 1461 2482 1788 3008 0.75 1.21 OK
VII 1 1481 963 1766 826 2372 0.67 1.34 OK
VII 2 1136 1039 1540 888 2364 0.65 1.54 OK

Notes:
1. Applied factored moments are magnified for slenderness in accordance with AASHTO LRFD.
2. The seismic forces are reduced by the load reduction factor R = 5.0.
L = 27.00 ft, f ′ = 4.00 ksi, Fy = 60.0 ksi, Ast = 26.00 in.2
c

The analysis results with the comparison of applied moments to capacities are summarized in
Table 2.6.
Column lateral reinforcement is calculated for two cases: (1) for applied shear and (2) for
confinement. Typically, the confinement requirement governs. Apply Eq. 2.22 or Eq. 2.23 to calculate
the confinement reinforcement. For seismic analysis, the unreduced seismic shear forces should be
compared with the shear forces due to plastic hinging of columns. The smaller should be used. The
plastic hinging analysis procedure is discussed elsewhere in this handbook and will not be repeated
here.
The lateral reinforcement for both columns are shown as follows.
For left column:
Vu = 148 kips (659 kN) (shear due to plastic hinging governs)
φVn = 167 kips (743 kN) ∴ No lateral reinforcement is required for shear.
Reinforcement for confinement = ρs = 0.0057 ∴ Provide #4 at 3 in. (#15 at 76 mm)
For right column:
Vu = 180 kips (801 kN) (shear due to plastic hinging governs)
φVn = 167 kips (734 kN)
φVs = 13 kips (58 kN) (does not govern)
Reinforcement for confinement =ρs = 0.00623 ∴ Provide #4 at 2.9 in. (#15 at 74 mm)
Summary of design:
4 ft (1.22 m) diameter of column with 26-#9 (26-#30) for main reinforcement and #4 at 2.9 in.
(#15 at 74 mm) for spiral confinement.

© 2003 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
 VIII.
Euphemia’s interest did not relax. What strange perversity of fate was
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And he wagged his head as if he would fain take his oath on that,
the spirit of affirmation so possessed him. Moreover, Royce did not
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and one day he bethought himself of the resources of memory. The
young people were both down at the mill. Some domestic errand
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Euphemia pointed out these reflections in the water, and after
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sunshine fluctuated like some ethereal golden mesh. Once, the joy
of spring and the bliss of love and the buoyancy of life overcame the
fear in the redbird’s heart, and he sang out suddenly, as if he too
would have to do with the poetry of thought and the melody of
utterance, and the little brown bird in the nest listened in admiring
silence. All the time Royce was conscious of Euphemia’s amazed
eyes on his face; when he had finished he could scarce trust himself
to meet the mute rapture of her gaze. He looked down at his futile
line dragging on the water, and among the sounds of the sibilantly
lapsing currents and the leaves wafted by the wind he heard her
long-drawn sigh of the relaxing of the tension of delight, and he
turned and met her eyes with a laugh in his own in which there was
only a gentle mirth.
After this he had no peace. He was reminded of the importunacy of
juvenile consumers of stories, whose interest seems whetted by the
incapacity to read and thus purvey romance for their own
delectation. He found it conducive to his entertainment to relapse
into prose, and he rehearsed many a work of fiction from memory,
failing seldom of the details, but in such lapses as must needs come
boldly supplying the deficit by invention. It is true that in these
recitals Euphemia was debarred the graces of the style of the
authors, but then the juggler thought he had a very good style of his
own. All this involved long digressions, historical, geographical,
astronomical, political, to explain the status of the personnel or the
locus in quo; and while he talked her eyes never left his face. He
had a habit of looking straight at his interlocutor, whoever this might
be, and it was thus, perhaps, that he could with such distinctness
conjure the image of those eyes of hers upon the retina of his mind
at moments of darkness or absence or reverie, as he would. Much
that he said she could not at first comprehend, and again he was
reminded of the inquisitors of the nursery in the multitude and
unsparingness of her questions; only, so searching and keen and apt
were these that sometimes there was an experience of surprise and
pleasure on his part.
“I tell you, Phemie,” he said one day, “you are most awfully clever to
have seen that.”
The blood rushed to her cheeks in the joy, the triumph, of his
commendation. Pride, the love of preëminence, the possession of
worthy endowment,—these sentiments were her soul, the ethereal
essence of her life. She had no definite ambition; she had no definite
mental paths. She had groped in the primeval wildernesses of mind,
as if there had been no splendid line of pioneers who had blazed out
a road for all the centuries to come.
In the midst of his utter idleness, in the turmoil of his troublous
thoughts, this review of the literature that had been dear to him was
at first a resource and a distraction, and later it became a luxury. He
began to be only less eager than she to resume the discourse where
it had left off. Thus it was that he joined her in sundry domestic
duties, so that while mechanically busy they might be mentally free,
in Scotland, or Norway, or Russia, or on the wild, wild seas. He was
wont to go with her to drive up the cows; and surely never in such
company did the old fancies tread this New World soil,—knights in
armor and ladies fair and all the glittering hordes of chivalry
crowding the narrow aisles of the wilderness, and following hard the
fairies and demons of many an antique legend. Once on the summit
of a crag he looked out upon the world beyond the Cove, for the first
time since his arrival here. Fair, oh, very fair it was, in the yellow
haze of the declining springtide sunshine, and far it stretched in
promissory lengths, like all the vague possibilities of the future.
Parallel with the massive green heights near at hand ran others
growing amethystine of hue, showing many a gray cliff and many a
gleam of silver mountain streams winding amongst the divergent
spurs and ravines and coves. Beyond lay the levels of a great valley,
and here were brown stretches of ploughed fields, and here gleamed
the emerald of winter wheat, and here swept the splendid free
curves of the Tennessee River, flowing the color of burnished copper,
so did the sunlight idealize the hue of the spring floods, between the
keen high tints of the green foliage fringing its banks where the
rocks failed. To the north a thousand minor ridges continued the
parallelism which marks the great mountain system, and these were
azure of an indescribably exquisite and languorous shade, rising into
a silver haze that was itself like an illumination. And where it seemed
that the limits of vision must surely be reached, the abrupt steeps of
the eastern side of Walden’s Ridge, stretching diagonally across the
whole breadth of the State, shadowy purple, reflecting naught of the
sunset, rose against the west, and there the sun, all alive with
scarlet fire, was tending downward, with only one vermilion flake of
a cloud in all the blue and pearly-green and amber crystal sky. He
paused on the verge of the cliff and gazed at it all, while she stood
and looked expectantly at him. Perhaps with her woman’s intuition
she divined that this moment was in some sort a crisis in his mind.
She was inexplicably agitated, breathless. But as he gazed his heart
did not stir the faster. Here and there he marked a brilliant slant of
glitter where a steeple caught the sun, now to the north and again
to the southwest, beyond a space a hand might seem to cover, but
which he knew measured fifty or a hundred miles. These indicated
towns. There beat the full pulses of the life he had left; and still at
sight of them his heart did not plunge. He looked down at her with
an expression in his eyes all new to them and which she could not
interpret. Nevertheless it set her happy heart a-flutter. Nothing was
said of the view, and with one accord they sat down on the verge of
the cliff. His boots dangled over the sheer spaces a thousand feet
below, but he could not repress a shiver at her attitude as she
leaned over the brink of the precipice.
“I wish you would move farther back from the edge,” he said, with a
corrugated brow. “I am afraid you may slip over, you are so little,
and”—
“That would put an e-end to the readings mighty quick,” she said, as
she still leaned over to peer down at the tops of the trees in the
valley, and he turned sick and dizzy at her very gesture. He hardly
dared to speak lest an unconsidered word might flutter her nerves
and cause her to lose her hold. She had no intention of thus teasing
his vicarious fright, but drew back presently to a safe distance.
“Wouldn’t it?” she asked, recurring to her remark as she executed
this manœuvre.
“You mean if you should slip over into this dreadful abyss? I should
never, never have the heart to read another word as long as I should
live!” he protested.
He caught the look of exultant joy in her surprised and widely
opened eyes for one moment, and then she turned them discreetly
on the splendid vastness of that great landscape in its happiest
mood. He realized that she had no difficulty in comprehending the
obvious inference. Her experience as a rural beauty and belle
heretofore had doubtless served to acquaint her with the hyperbole
of a lover’s language. There were Haines and Ormsby within his own
knowledge, and he could not guess how many suitors hitherto,—
confound them all! he muttered as he thought of them. He had not
intended to win her heart. In view of her feeling for Owen Haines he
had not deemed it possible. With the suspicion, which he would fain
call realization, for it had all the importunacy of hope, he
experienced a rush of elation, of soft delight, which amazed him,
while it almost swept him off his feet. Had not he too fallen in love
during his “readings”?—for thus they both called his recitals. He
knew that he had only to look into her eyes to make his heart
flutter; but then it was a susceptible heart and easily stirred. She
had grown dear to him in many ways, and he had learned this even
when he did not dream of other result of their companionship than
the broadcast impression that he lingered here for her sake. He
began to strive to separate his ideal of womanhood from those
merely arbitrary values which fashion and artificial life bestow. Is it a
French man milliner only who establishes the criterion of beauty? He
had but to glance at the face and form beside him. She was
beautiful; she was good; she was of a singularly strong and
individual character; her natural mind was quick and retentive and
discerning, and of a remarkable aptness. She was so endowed with
a keen perception of real excellence that knowledge had but to open
its doors to her, for she possessed as a gift the capacity of worthy
choice. She loved with spontaneous affection those things which
other people are trained to love; she seized on the best of her own
devout accord, unaware of aught of significance save her own
preference. She could easily acquire all he could teach her. With her
quick grasp and greed of learning there would soon be little
disparity. He began to meditate on the arbitrary methods of
appraisement in the world. How sadly do we richly rate, not our own
preference, but that which is valued by others: hence the vyings, the
heart-burnings, the ignoble strife, the false pride, of many mundane
miseries. He knew her real identity. Her nature would befit any
station. Her beauty,—even the reference to the immutable standards
of his own world could avail no detraction here,—it was preëminent.
Having lived his life in one sphere, why should he, being dead to it
forever, let its rigid conventionalities follow him into his new world?
As to the coming years and the monotony of rounding out a long life
in this narrow circuit, let the coming years take thought for
themselves. For a moment the words pressed to his lips. Then he
realized that this was no ordinary self-committal. To pledge himself
to marry a woman of her degree in life—an ignorant mountain girl of
an inexpressible rusticity and lack of sophistication, as far removed
from a comprehension of the conventions in which he had been
reared and the cultivated ideals still dear to him as if she were a
denizen of a different planet—was a serious step indeed; he winced,
and was silent.
This day marked a change. When they reached home the sky was
red, and a white star was alight in the zenith. Spot stood lowing at
the bars, and Mrs. Sims’s dimples deeply indented her plumpness as
she addressed the young people in pretended reproof.
“I sent you-uns arter Spot. From now on I be a-goin’ ter sen’ Spot
arter you-uns.”
Summoned by the sound of her chuckle out came briskly Tubal Cain,
venomous with fault-finding and repining. “Hyar ye be, Euphemy
Sims,” he said, more harshly than he had ever before spoken to her,
“a-foolin’ away yer time huntin’ fur a cow what war standin’ at the
bars sence long ’fore sundown, ez sensible ez grown folks, an’ Pa’son
Tynes a-settin’ an’ a-settin’ hyar waitin’ ter see ye.”
Euphemia answered with an affronted coolness: “Pa’son Tynes? An’
what do I keer ter see Pa’son Tynes fur?”
“Pa’son Tynes keer ter see you-uns, Phemie: that’s what makes yer
dad hop roun’ like a pea on a hot shovel,” said Mrs. Sims.
Royce began to have an illuminating sense that “Daddy Sims” was
flattered to have so distinguished a guest as Pa’son Tynes, with his
widespread oratorical fame, awaiting by the hour Euphemia’s return,
and that he could hardly forgive his idol that these precious
moments had been wasted in the juggler’s society. Royce perceived
the farcical antithesis of the theory which he had been arguing all
the afternoon, and realized that there are arbitrary gradations in less
sophisticated society than that on which he had predicated the
proposition. He felt very small indeed, being thus called upon to look
up to Pa’son Tynes.
“I dunno what he be wantin’ ter see me fur,” said Euphemia, still
with the resentment of being esteemed dilatory, and evidently
apprehending a purpose in the call other than the enjoyment of her
conversation.
“Me nuther,” chuckled Mrs. Sims; “you-uns bein’ seen a outdacious
ugly gal ez all the menfolks be compelled ter shade thar eyes whenst
ye kem about.”
Mrs. Sims’s vicarious coquetry was unblushingly fickle. She did not
wait for Euphemia to be quit of the old love before she was on with
the new. Nay, in the very presence of the superseded swain she
prospectively and speculatively flirted with his problematic successor.
“A plague on all fat old women!” thought the juggler, ill at ease and
out of countenance.
“I hev got my religion,” said Euphemia stiffly, her pride revolting at
the idea that perchance Pa’son Tynes had presumed her to be still
unconverted, and that his call was pastoral. “I dunno what he kin be
a-comin’ pesterin’ round about me fur.”
“Waal,” said her mother, still chuckling, “he be a-comin’ agin ter-
morrer ter see you-uns. He axed me special ter keep ye home ter
view him—no, that wasn’t the way; he knows thar’s better things ter
be viewed in this world ’n a lantern-jawed, tallow-faced preacher-
man, though from thar own account thar’ll be a power o’ nangels
featured like that in heaven—he axed me special ter keep ye home
till he could view you-uns!” And Mrs. Sims’s chuckle of enjoyment
broke from its habitual bounds and into the jolliest of obese laughter.
It might have been termed infectious had any one present been
sufficiently in spirits to be susceptible to its influence. The juggler
was disconcerted and strangely cast down; Euphemia, doubtful,
antagonistic, prophetically affronted; and old Tubal Cain’s interest
still hinged on the topics of the conversation during the several
hours while he had borne the parson somewhat weary company.
“He hev hed great grace in the pertracted meet-in’,” her father
rattled on, still flustered by the occurrence. “He hev converted
fifteen sinners; some hardened cases, too. An’ he hev preached
wunst a day reg’lar, an’ sometimes twict.”
“Let him go preach some mo’, then,” retorted Euphemia, vaguely
resentful.
She was silent during the serving of supper, carrying her head high,
with her cheeks flushed and her eyes alight. Royce’s glance forbore
to follow her. He ate little, and with a downcast, thoughtful mien he
found his pipe after supper and took it out upon the rocky slope that
led to the river. The moon was up; long, glamourous slants of light
lay athwart the Cove; the shadows of the pines were dense along
the slope, but through their fringed branches the light filtered like a
shower of molten silver. The river was here touched with a
crystalline glitter, and here a lustrous darkness told of its shaded
depths. Looking across the levels of the Cove, one had a sense of
the dew in the glister and sparkle of the humid leaves. Above all
rose the encompassing mountains, imposing, dark, and stern. The
little log cabin with the swaying hopvines and the window flaringly
alight, and the glittering reflection so far in the swift current below,
had its idyllic suggestions in the moonlight, but he was not alive to
the interests of the picturesque in humble environment, and had no
fibre that responded to the enthusiasm of the genre painter. He
looked toward the house not to mark how the silver-gray hue of its
weathered logs was heightened by the smooth effect of the
moonbeams. He did not even feign to care that one of the clay-and-
stick chimneys leaning from the wall was so awry against the sky as
to give a positive value of individuality in composing; what it did in
regard to the proper emission of smoke was of no consequence,
since it so served the airy designs of the possible painter. He
approved of the cant of the roof no more than if he had been an
architectural precisian. He looked with all his eyes for what he
presently saw,—a shadowy figure stole out and sat down on the step
of the passage and gazed disconsolately, as he fancied, up at the
moon.
“Euphemia, come down here,” he called in a low voice.
She started, stared out into the mingled shadow and sheen with
dilated eyes; then, as he advanced she rose and went down toward
him.
As they stood there together, the girl looked out from the shadow of
the tree above them at the blended dew and glimmer, and he looked
imperiously down at her.
“See here, Phemie, why is that man coming to see you to-morrow?”
“I dunno,” she responded vaguely.
“Ah, but you guess;” he caught both her hands. “Tell me why you
think he is coming.”
She lifted her eyes to his, which had a constraining quality for her.
“He be kemin’ ter see me—’bout—’bout Owen Haines—him—him ez
prayed fur the power—I reckon. They be mighty close friends.”
He gave a short laugh of ridicule.
She could not join in his mirth. Only so short a time ago its cause
had been the tragedy of the world to her. She could hardly bring
herself to admit even to herself that now, scarcely three weeks later,
she cared as little for it as if it had never been. But her world had
changed. How it had developed! There were new countries; strange
peoples had been discovered; a marvelous scope of emotion had
been evolved. Romance had unfolded its wondrous page. She had
seen Poetry trim its pinions and wing its flight. She had lived a new
life; she was a changeling. Where was her old self? Her fancied love
for the young religionist, her wounded pride for his sake, her
scorching, fiery compassion for her own—all had fled. She
remembered herself in these emotions as if she were another being.
She could hardly pity Owen Haines. If he did not care for the fleer of
ridicule, why should she? For since—she had lived an enchanted life.
“What will he want of you?” demanded Royce gravely.
She faltered. She feared Tynes and his powers of argument. She
dreaded, not being convinced, but the rigors of the contest. And if
Owen Haines should, as a sacrifice to love, agree to relinquish his
“praying fur the power,” she dreaded the renewal of their old status
of “keepin’ comp’ny.”
“He will want me ter take Owen Haines back.”
“But you wouldn’t, Phemie, you wouldn’t?” urged Royce breathlessly.
“He mought gin up prayin’ fur the power. I turned him off fur that,”
she hesitated.
Royce’s scheme was complete. All the Cove and the mountain
regarded him as a dangler after Euphemia Sims. He could feign a
hopeless jealousy. He could hold aloof for a time, and the old status
would doubtless readjust itself with the ease and security imparted
by habit. He had gone as far as he had ever planned. Now he could
leave the rest to chance.
But if the life here had afforded so arid a prospect heretofore, how
could he contemplate it without Euphemia? His very speech no other
creature could understand. He felt that he would be as isolated as if
he were on a desert island, and he had a fiery impatience of time,—
the years that were coming seemed such long years. He had never
been more in earnest in his life, as he looked down into her beautiful
illumined face.
“But you will not, Euphemia,” he said, slipping his arm around her
waist. “You don’t love him.”
Beyond a start, half surprise and half coyness, she had not moved.
“Tell me—you care nothing for him?”
“Not now,” she faltered. And she felt anew a pang for her lack of
constancy.
He revolted at the partial admission with all a lover’s insistence on
preëminence. “Never—never! You couldn’t care for such a fool. And
he doesn’t love you, or he would have given up that folly at once—or
anything you wished.”
Even now he hesitated. The breeze swayed the branches above
them, and all the draping pendent wild grapevines that clung about
the tree were suddenly astir. The circle of dark shadow in which they
stood was inlaid with silver glintings as the moonlight struck through
the foliage; the soft radiance fell full in her eyes.
“I would give up all the world for you,” he cried impulsively,
“because I love you!”
She drew back a trifle, and looked over her shoulder into the
glittering idealization of the familiar scenes of her life in the
glamours of the moonlight and of love. She heard the low dryadic
song of the leaves; she heard the beating of her own heart.
“Tell me that you love me, Euphemia,” he pleaded. “Tell me that.”
Amidst all the joy in her face there was a flash of triumph. She was
withdrawing her hands from his, and the realization how like she
was to women of a higher sphere, despite her limitations, came to
him with a certain surprise. No sooner did she feel her power than
she had the will to wield it. The humble little rustic was expressed
only in her outer guise. No finished coquette could have given him a
more bewildering broadside of beautiful eyes as she said, joyously
laughing, “What makes you ask such impossible questions?”
The phrase was borrowed of him, in his frequent despair of
elucidating the whole scheme of civilization to her ignorance, in their
readings. He could not laugh when it was so dexterously turned on
himself. “Tell me,” he persisted earnestly, “tell me, Phemie—or I’ll—
I’ll”—the assertion had little humility, but he divined its effectiveness
—“I’ll go away, and never come back again.”
She was still laughing, but he marked that she no longer drew back.
“Do you have to be told everything?” she quoted anew from his
remonstrances because of her catechistic insistence. “Can’t you see
through anything without having it point-blank?” with his own
impatient intonation.
He allowed himself to be decoyed into a hasty smile. “And you’ll
send that fellow to the right-about to-morrow?” he urged gravely.
“Oh, I’ll be glad enough ter git rid of him!” she cried, in the
extremity of her relief.
He realized with a momentary qualm that the new situation must be
avowed openly to justify the position which Euphemia would sustain
in case Owen Haines should offer to relinquish, as a sacrifice to love,
the pernicious practice of “prayin’ fur the power” in public. He
recognized this step as a certain riveting of his chains; yet had he
not been eager but a moment ago to assume them? And even now,
as he looked down into her face, radiant with that joyous sense of
supremacy in his heart, and seeming to him the most beautiful he
had ever seen, the most tender, as it responsively looked up to his,
he wondered that his untoward fate had so relented as to bestow
upon him, in his forlorn exile, this creature, so delicately endowed,
so choicely gifted, that even his alien estimate of values wrought no
discord in the simple happiness that had come to him.
And it was he who revealed to Jane Ann Sims the altered state of
things when the two went presently back to the little cabin on the
slope. There she sat in bulky oblivion of the things of this world, and
especially the dish-pan. Her spectacles were awry on her nodding
head. The dish-towel was limp in her nerveless hand. The tallow dip
was guttering in the centre of the table, and about it the moths
circled in fond delusions, regardless of the winged cinders that lay,
now still, and now with a quiver of departing life, on the cloth. She
made a spasmodic offer to resign the dish-towel to Euphemia,
waving it mechanically at her with a fat, dimpled hand and a gesture
of renunciation; but the girl, all unallured, passed without a word
into the shed-room beyond, and the juggler sat down on the
opposite side of the table with one elbow on it as he looked steadily
across at Mrs. Sims’s face, which was all lined with the creases of fat
that were usually dimples. She had roused into that half-dazed
condition characteristic of the sudden and unwelcome termination of
the sleep of fatigue, and the tallow dip swayed reduplicated before
her eyes like a chandelier. Mentally she seemed no clearer of
perception. Royce had realized her maternal fondness for him,
ungratefully requited, and he could not altogether reconcile this with
the agitated and alarmed mien with which she received his
disclosure.
“Marry Phemie!” she exclaimed in a sort of drowsy affright, as if her
mental capacities had not yet laid hold on something that had
roused her more alert apprehensions.
He was irritated for a moment. He knew in his secret soul that he
forswore much, overlooked much, bestowed much, in this mad
resolution, and this knowledge, quiescent under the immediate
influence of the girl’s beauty and charm and his loneliness, became
tumultuously assertive in the society of Mrs. Sims.
“Why not? I love her, and I want to marry her. Is there anything so
astonishing in that?”
“Laws-a-massy, no, honey!” Mrs. Sims sputtered, her eyelids
faltering before the myriad-flamed tallow dip. She apprehended his
rising wrath, and, somnambulistically waving her hand, seemed to
seek to appease it. “Mighty nigh every young fool ez ever seen her
sets up the same chune. ’Tain’t astonishin’—but—honey”—she
looked at him with sleepy admonition, still waving her hand—“don’t
talk ’bout sech so brazen an’ loud.” Then sinking her voice to a husky
whisper that could have been heard in South America, “Shet that
thar door ahint ye. Tubal Cain be asleep in thar.” Her gesture,
indicating the door, was accompanied by a premonitory jerk of her
body which usually preceded rising.
“Don’t disturb yourself, I beg,” said Royce, still nettled.
He leaned back in his chair, and catching the door by the latch
brought it to with a brisk bang. Mrs. Sims pursed up her mouth with
a warning hiss imposing silence to preserve the gentle slumbers of
old Tubal Cain, and neither noticed that the latch had failed to catch,
and that the door, although apparently closed, stood slightly ajar.
“Phemie says—at least she gives me to understand that my affection
is returned,” Royce went on, in better humor.
“I hope she ain’t tellin’ no lies ’bout’n it this time, ennyhow,” said
Mrs. Sims waggishly; and it seemed to Royce that he was capable of
singular temerity when he had risked the perils of seriously falling in
love by simulating the tender passion in any instance in which Mrs.
Sims was to be considered, however remotely. To be good-natured
in ridicule by no means implies good nature in being ridiculed.
“You have a right to say anything you like, I suppose, about your
own daughter,” he rejoined angrily. “She doesn’t look like a liar. For
my part, I believe her.”
“Shucks! Shucks!” Mrs. Sims shook a mildly admonitory head at him.
“I’m jes’ funnin’. An’ yit I kin ’member tellin’ Tubal Cain things
cornsider’ble short o’ the truth whenst I war a young gal like
Euphemy, an’ he war a-sparkin’ round.”
The young man looked uneasily out of the window. Could time really
work such metamorphoses as these? Had she ever been young and
lissome and soft-eyed and fair, and was Euphemia to grow old thus?
Perhaps it was well for the broken snatch of Love’s young dream
that there against the darkness he suddenly saw the bending
boughs of an elder bush all whitely abloom, and among them, the
fairest blossom of all, Euphemia’s face, half touched with the
moonlight, yet distinct in the radiance that came from the candle
within, smiling upon him as she played the eavesdropper, her
dimpled elbows on the window-sill and her fair hair blown back in
the wind.
“Nothing was said about it till this evening,” he went on, his
satisfaction restored in an instant, “and I thought it was only the fair
thing to let you and Mr. Sims know; you have both been so kind
since I have been here.”
Mrs. Sims’s preliminary apprehension, which she seemed to have
forgotten, was once more aghast upon her face. She raised a
warning forefinger, and she spoke in her husky penetrating whisper:
“Don’t you-uns say nare word ter Tubal Cain Sims. Leave him ter
me. I’ll settle him.”
“Why not?” asked the young man, alert to any menace, however
remote.
Mrs. Sims knitted her brows in embarrassment. “Waal,” she said,
composing herself to divulge the truth so far as she knew it, since no
polite subterfuge was handy, “he air cantankerous, an’ quar’lsome,
an’ hard-headed, an’ powerful perverse. An’ he ’pears ter be sot agin
ye, kase, I reckon, I like ye,—me an’ Phemie, though Phemie never
tuk no notice o’ ye in this worl’ till ’bout three weeks ago whenst ye
ondertook ter set up ter her so constant. Ye hev witched that gal; ye
jes’ made her fall in love with ye, whether or no.”
The juggler laughed at this, casting a bright glance at the dusky
aperture of the window where the white blossoms all stirred by the
wind seemed to be leaning on the sill and eavesdropping too. They
might not have all been so happily at ease had they known that,
close by the door, still slightly ajar, and awakened by the bang which
the juggler had dealt it, lay old Tubal Cain Sims, grimly listening to
this conversation.
“I can’t agree to that,” said Royce, after a moment’s reflection. He
was certainly nothing of a prig, but he had his own views of honor,
and they controlled him. “This is Mr. Sims’s house; and I was
received into it first as a guest, and it is as a privilege that I have
been allowed to remain. I can’t make love to any man’s daughter,
under these circumstances, on the sly.”
“But s’pose he won’t agree—an’ the critter is ez contrary ez—ez”—
Comparisons failed Mrs. Sims, and she could only shake her head
warningly.
“Oh well, everything having been aboveboard, I’d take the girl and
elope!” cried the juggler, his eyes alight at the mere prospective
fanning of the breeze of adventure. “Being an educated man, Mrs.
Sims, I could make a living for myself and my wife in a dozen
different ways, in any of these little towns about here. Why—what”—
Mrs. Sims, bulkily rising, had almost overturned the table and the
crockery upon him. Her fat face was pallid and flabby, and it shook
as she gazed, speechless and wild-eyed, at him. Her puffy hand
besought him in mute entreaty before she could find words to blurt
out, “Good Gawd A’mighty, John Leonard, don’t lay yer tongue ter
sech ez that! Don’t s’picion the word ez ye’d steal my darter away
from me. It would kill me—an’ I hev stood yer frien’ from the fust,
even whenst they all made out ez ye war in league with Satan an’
gin over ter witchments. It would kill me, bodaciously! Don’t ye steal
my one leetle lamb—thar’s plenty o’ gals in the worl’, ready an’
willin’—steal them—steal them! I want my darter ter live hyar with
me, married an’ single,—ter live hyar with me. We ain’t got but the
one lone, lorn leetle chile. Don’t—don’t”—The tears stood in all her
dimples and she was speechless.
“Well, upon my word!” exclaimed Royce indignantly, but pausing,
with that care which he bestowed upon all manner of possessions
representing property, however meagre, to right the table and
restore the imperiled crockery. “What sort of a frenzy is this, Mrs.
Sims? Am I going to run away with your daughter? Have I shown
any symptoms of decamping? Strikes me I have come to stay. I
make a point of telling you—because I know that I am not here
under your roof for any small profit to you, but as a matter of
kindness and courtesy—of telling you all about it within the hour that
I know it myself, and this is my reward!”
Poor Mrs. Sims, having sunk back in her chair, and the young man
still remaining standing, could only look up at him with piteous
contrition and anxious appeal.
“I hope Mr. Sims won’t give me any reason to contemplate
elopement. Wasn’t he willing for his daughter to marry Owen
Haines, they having been ‘keepin’ comp’ny,’ as I understand?”
She silently nodded.
“My Lord! what have I come to!” Royce cried, lifting his hands, then
letting them fall to his sides, as if calling on heaven and earth to
witness the absurdity of the situation. “I think I might be considered
at least as desirable a parti as that pious monkey praying for the
power!” He gave that short laugh of his which so expressed ridicule,
turned, secured the end of tallow candle placed for him on the shelf,
and, lighting it, ascended the rickety stairs to the roof-room.
The suggestion of an elopement was not altogether unacceptable to
him. If there should be any objection urged against him,—and he
could hardly restrain his mirth at the idea,—an elopement into some
other retired cove in these regions of nowhere would result not
infelicitously, affording still further disguise and an adequate reason
for both him and his wife to be strangers in a strange land. “A
runaway match would account for everything: so bring on your veto
and welcome!” he said to himself.
Next morning, however, he found his disclosure to Tubal Cain Sims
postponed. His host had left the house before dawn, and although
he did not return for any of the three meals Mrs. Sims felt no
uneasiness, it being a practice of Tubal Cain Sims’s, in order to
assert his independence of petticoat government, to deal much in
small mysteries about his affairs. All day—her equanimity restored by
the half-jocular, half-affectionate raillery of Royce, who had roused
himself to the realization that it was well to continue friends with her
—she canvassed her husband’s errand, and guessed at the time of
his probable return, and speculated upon his reasons for secrecy.
Night did not bring him, and Royce, who had been now laughing at
Mrs. Sims’s various theories, and now wearying of their futile
inconsistencies, began to share her curiosity.
It was the merest curiosity. He did not dream that he was the chief
factor in his host’s schemes and absence.
 IX.
Tubal Cain Sims still continued to harbor the theory that the juggler’s
unexplained and lingering stay in Etowah Cove betokened that he
sought immunity here from the consequences of crime, and that he
was a fugitive from justice. In no other way could he interpret those
strange words, “—But the one who lives—for his life!—his life!—his
life!” cried out from troubled dreams in the silence of the dark
midnight. Although this view had been shared by the lime-burners
when first he had sought to enlist their prejudice, for he would fain
rid his house of this ill-flavored association, of late their antagonism
had flagged. Only Peter Knowles seemed to abide by their earlier
impression, but Peter Knowles was now absorbed heart and soul in
burning lime, as the time for its use was drawing near. Sims began
to understand the luke-warmness of the others when he noted the
interest of the young man in his beautiful daughter: they deemed
him now merely a lover. This discovery had come but lately to Sims,
for he was of a slow and plodding intelligence, and hard upon it
followed the revelations he had overheard through the open door
the previous evening. It was evidently an occasion for haste. While
he loitered, this stranger, encouraged by the vicarious coquetry of
Jane Ann Sims, might marry Euphemia; and when the juggler should
be haled to the bar of justice for his crimes, the Cove would
probably perceive in the dispensation only a judgment upon her
parents for having made an idol of their own flesh and blood.
He realized, as many another man has done, that in extreme crises,
involving risk, quondam friendships are but as broken reeds, and he
was leaning stoutly only upon his own fealty to his own best
interests, as he jogged along on his old brown mare, with her frisky
colt at her heels, down the red clay roads of the cove, and through
rugged mountain passes into still other coves, on his way to Colbury,
the county town. His heart burned hot within him against Jane Ann
Sims when he recalled her advice to the man to say nothing to him,
the head of the house and the father of the girl! She’d settle him!
Would she, indeed? And he relished with a grim zest, as a sort of
reparation, the fright she had suffered at the bare possibility of an
elopement. Then this recollection, reacting on his own heart, set it
all a-plunging, as he toiled on wearily in the hot sun, lest this
disaster might chance during his absence, and he found himself
leaning appealingly, forlornly, on the honor of the very man whom
his mission was to ruin if he could. It was he who had refused to
dispense with the father’s consent could it be obtained, and the
perfidious Jane Ann Sims had counseled otherwise; he who had
taken note of hospitality and courtesy,—much of which, in truth, had
been mere seeming. More than once it almost gave Sims pause to
reflect to whom he was indebted for any show of consideration. He
had, however, but one daughter. This plea, he felt, might serve to
excuse unfounded suspicion, and make righteous a breach of
hospitality, and even justify cruelty. “One darter!” he often said to
himself as he went along, all unaware that if he had had six his
cares, his solicitude, his paternal affection, would have been meted
out six-fold, so elastic is the heart to the strain upon its resources.
For this cause, despite his softened judgment toward the juggler, he
did not flinch when he reached Colbury, and made his way across
the “Square,” where every eye seemed to his anxious consciousness
fixed upon him, as if attributing to him some nefarious designs on
the liberty of an innocent man. But in reality the town folks of
Colbury were far too sophisticated in their own esteem to accord the
slightest note to an old codger from the mountains,—a region as
remote to the majority, save now and then for a glimpse of an awe-
stricken visitor from the backwoods, as the mythical island of
Atlantis. For such explorations into the world at large as the
ambitious citizens of Colbury adventured led them not into the
scorned rural wilds comprehensively known to them as “’way up in
the Cove.”
Tubal Cain Sims had been here but twice before: once when there
was a political rally early after the war, and later as a witness for the
defense in a case of murder. The crowded, confused, jostling political
experience still thronged unintelligibly the retina of his mind’s eye,
but order and quiet distinguished the glimpse vouchsafed him of the
workings of justice. He had evolved a great respect for judicial
methods, and he felt something like a glow of pride to see the court-
house still standing so spacious and stately, as it seemed to him,
within its inclosures, the surrounding grass green and new, and the
oak boughs clustering above the columns of the porch. He was not
aware how long he stood and gazed at it, his eyes alight, his cheek
flushed. If the question had been raised, he would have known, of
course, that the Juggernaut car of justice had held steadily on its
inexorable way through all the years that had since intervened, and
that his individual lack of a use for it had not banished it from the
earth; but Tubal Cain was not a man of speculation, and it smote
him with a sort of gratified surprise to see the court-house on its
stanch stone foundations as it was in the days when he and it
conserved so intimate a relation. There were two or three lawyers on
the steps or passing in at the gate, but he eyed these members of
the tribe askance. The value which he placed on counsel was such
confidence as he might repose in a shooting-iron with a muzzle at
both ends,—as liable to go off in one direction as in the other; and
thus it was that, with a hitch of the reins, he reminded himself anew
of his errand, and took his way down the declivity of a straggling
little street, where presently the houses grew few and small,
dwindling first to shabby tumble-down old cottages, then to sundry
dilapidated blacksmith shops, beyond which stretched a rocky
untenanted space, as if all habitation shrunk from neighboring the
little jail which stood alone between the outer confines of the town
and the creek.
Here also he came to a halt, looking at the surly building with
recognizing eyes. And to it too these years had not been vacant. All
the time of his absence, in the far-away liberties of the mountains,
with the unshackled wind and the free clouds and the spontaneous
growths of the earth out of its own untrammeled impulse, this grim
place had been making its record of constraints, and captives, and
limits, and locks, and longing bursting hearts, and baffled denied
eyes, and yearning covetings of freedom, the bitterness of which
perhaps no free creature can know. Surely, surely, these darkening
elements of the moral atmosphere had turned the bricks to their
dingy hue. The barred windows gave on vague black interiors. A
cloud was in the air above, with now and then a mutter of thunder,
and the sullen jail lay in a shadow, and the water ran black in the
green-fringed creek at the foot of the hill, while behind him at its
summit, where the street intersected the open square, the sunlight
fell in such golden suffusions that a clay-bank horse with his rider
motionless against the blue sky beyond might have seemed an
equestrian statue in bronze, commemorating the valiance of some
bold cavalry leader. Tubal Cain wondered to see the jail so still and
solitary; and where could be the man whom he had pictured sitting
in all the luxury of possession on the front doorsteps, smoking his
pipe?
This man of his imagination was the sheriff of the county, who did
not avail himself of his privilege to appoint a jailer, but turned the
keys himself and dwelt in his stronghold. He was of an over-exacting
cast of mind. He could never believe a prisoner secure unless with
his own hands he had drawn the bolts. On account of the great
vogue attained by various crimes at this period, and the consequent
overcrowding of the prisons throughout the State, a considerable
number of captured moonshiners had been billeted on the Kildeer
County jail while awaiting trial in the Federal Court, and by reason of
this addition to his charge his vigilance was redoubled. In all the
details of his office he carried the traits of a precisian, and was in
some sort a thorn in the side of the more easy-going county officers
with whom his official duties brought him into contact. Even the
judge in his high estate on the bench was now and again nettled by
the difficult questions of punctilio with which this servant of the
court could contrive to invest some trifling matter, and was known to
incline favorably to the salutary theory of rotation in office,—barring,
of course, the judicial office. But the sheriff had three minie balls in
him which he had collected on various battlefields in the South; and
although he had fought on a side not altogether popular in this
region, they counted for him at the polls in successive elections,
without the formalities of statutory qualifications and with a
wondrous power of reduplication in the number of resulting votes.
He was reputed of an extraordinary valor on those hard-contested
fields where he had found his bullets, but there were advanced
occasionally caviling criticisms of his record on the score that, being
incapable of originating a course of action, it never occurred to him
to run away when his command was ordered to advance, and that
his bravery was simply the fixed stolidity of adhering to another
man’s idea in default of any ideas of his own. In proof of this it was
cited that when he was among a guard detailed to hold a gin-house
full of cotton, and the enemy surprised the sentinel and captured the
building, he alone stood like a stock with his rifle still at a serene
“shoulder-arms,” where it was ordered to be, while his comrades
undertook a deploying evolution of their own invention at a mad
double-quick, without a word of command, showing the cleanest of
nimble heels across the country. But he was esteemed by these
depreciators a lucky fool, for since the war, having an affinity for the
office of sheriff, he had more than once been obliged to decline to
make the race, and lie off a term or two, because of the law which
will not permit the office to be held by the same person eight years
without an interval. His fad for being in the direct line of the enemy’s
fire had not resulted more disastrously than to give him some painful
hospital experience; the balls had come to stay, and apparently the
hard metal of his constitution served to assimilate them easily
enough, for he was hale and hearty, and bade fair to live to a green
old age, and they never made themselves heard of save at election
times, when in effect they stuffed the ballot-box.
Having voted for him so often, and with that immense estimate of
the value of a single ballot common to the backwoodsman little
conversant with the power of numbers, Tubal Cain Sims felt a
possessory claim on the sheriff as having made him such. He stood
in dismay and doubt for a moment, gazing at the stout closed door
that opened, when it opened at all, directly on the descending flight
of steps, without any ceremonial porch or other introduction to
entrance; then, after the manner of Etowah Cove, he lifted up his
voice in a stentorian halloo and hailed the grim and silent house.
The sound seemed a spell to waken it into life. The echo of his
shouts came back from the brick walls so promptly as to simulate
two imperative voices rather than acoustic mimicry. Sudden pale
faces showed at the bars, wearing the inquiring startled mien of
alarm and surprise. The rattle of a chain heralded the approach of a
great guard-dog dragging a block from around the corner. With his
big bull-like head lowered and his fangs showing between his elastic
lips, he stood fiercely surveying the stranger for a short time; then—
and Tubal Cain Sims could have more readily forgiven a frantic
assault, for he had his pistol in his hand—the sagacious brute sat
down abruptly, and continued to contemplate the visitor, but with a
certain air of non-committal curiosity, evidently realizing that his
vocation was not to deter people from getting into jail, but to
prevent them from getting out. The pallid faces at the windows were
laughing, despite the bars; and although nettled by the ridicule they
expressed, Tubal Sims made bold to lift up his voice again: “Hello,
Enott! Enott Blake! Lemme in! Lemme in, I say! Hello, Enott!”
The faces of the spectators were distended anew. At those windows
where there was more than one, they were turned toward each
other for the luxury of an exchange of winks and leers. When a face
was alone it grinned jocular satisfaction to itself, and one man, with
a large red and facetious countenance, now and again showed a
lifted hand smiting an unseen leg, in the extremity of solitary joy.
The dog, with his big head still lowered and his drooping lips a-
quiver, gave a surly growl of displeasure, when the colt, having
somewhat recovered from the fatigues of its long journey, began to
frisk nimbly, and to curvet and caracole; the mare turned her head
anxiously about as she watched these gyrations. Tubal Cain glared at
the men at the windows. They had little to laugh at, doubtless, but
why should they so gratuitously laugh at him? A tide of abashed
mortification carried the blood to his head. His stanch self-respect
had heretofore precluded the suspicion that he was ever the object
of ridicule, and now his pride revolted at his plight; but since he
could not get at his mockers and inflict condign punishment, naught
remained but to manfully persist in his course as if they were not.
He dismounted, threw the reins over a hitching-post, advanced
through the gate of the narrow yard, his pistol in his hand for fear of
the formidable dog, and ascended the steps with a resolute tread.
He dealt a resounding double-knock with the butt end of his
shooting-iron, crying as he did so upon Enott Blake as a “dad-burned
buzzard” to unlock the door or he would break it down. Suddenly it
opened, and by the force of his expectant blow he fell forward into
the hall; then it closed behind him with a bang that shook the
house.
“What does this mean?” exclaimed an irate voice. “Jeemes, take his
weepon.”
And albeit Tubal Sims stoutly held on to it, a scientific crack on the
knuckles administered by a dapper light-haired young man caused
the stiff old fingers to relax and yield the pistol to the custody of the
law.
Tubal Sims confronted a tall, spare, vigorous man about fifty-five
years of age, with iron-gray hair worn with a certain straight lank
effect and parted far on the side, a florid complexion, and a bright
yellowish-gray eye which delivered the kind of glance popularly held
to resemble an eagle’s. His look was very intent as he gazed in the
twilight of the grimy hall at Tubal Cain Sims, who began to feel a
quiver at the lack of recognition it expressed. To be sure, Tubal Sims
knew that he had no acquaintance with the man, but somehow he
had not counted on this total unresponsiveness to his claim upon the
officer.
“I hev voted fur you-uns fur sher’ff nine time out’n ten,” he said,
with the rancor of reproach for benefits conferred unworthily.
He stood with a very large majority of the enlightened citizens of the
county. Enott Blake had been but recently reëlected, but if his
canvass were to be made anew it is barely possible that he would
have fancied he might have weathered it without the support of this
ancient adherent. His office was of the sort which is not compatible
with any show of personal favor, and he resented the reminder of
political services as an imputation.
“Well, ye have got a sheriff that knows what attempted house-
breaking is,” he said severely. “And unless ye can show a good
reason for tryin’ to break into that door, ye’ll find ye have got a
sheriff that will take a power o’ pains ye don’t break out again soon.”
Tubal Cain’s face, all wind-blown and red with the sun, and rugged
with hard grooved wrinkles, and nervous with the untoward
complications of achieving an audience with the man he had ridden
so far to see, was shattered from the congruity of his gravity into a
sort of fragmentary laughter out of keeping with the light of anxiety
in his eyes.
“Did ye ever hear of a man tryin’ ter break inter a jail?” he
demanded.
“I caught you doin’ it to the best of your ability,” returned the literal-
minded sheriff.
Tubal Cain would have felt as if he were dreaming had it not been
for sundry recollections of stories of the matter-of-fact tendencies of
the officer which were far from reassuring. He felt that he could
hardly have faced the situation had not the dapper round-visaged
young deputy, whose blond hair curled like a baby’s in tendrils on his
red, freckled forehead, glanced up at him with a jocose wink as he
proceeded to draw the cartridges from the mountaineer’s shooting-
iron; the triumph of capture was still in his eye, while he lounged
carelessly over the banisters of the staircase to evade the
responsibility and labor of standing upright.
“Own up, daddy,” he cavalierly admonished the elder. “Tell what you
were aimin’ to do. To rescue prisoners”—his superior snorted at the
very word—“or rob us of our vally’bles?” The sheriff turned upon the
deputy with a stare of inquiry as if wondering what these might be;
then, vaguely apprehending the banter, said severely:—
“Cuttin’ jokes about your bizness, Jeemes, so constant, makes me
’feard it’s a leetle bit too confinin’ for such a gay bird as you. Bar-
keepin’ in a saloon would fit your build better’n the sort o’ bar-
keepin’ we do here, I’m thinkin’.”
Enott Blake might be laughed at on occasion, but he had a trick of
making other men as serious as himself when he sought to play
upon their foibles. The blond deputy’s countenance showed that it
had another and deeper tinge of red in its capacity; he came to the
perpendicular suddenly as, without lifting his eyes, he continued to
revolve the cylinder of the pistol and to draw the cartridges seriatim.
He was but newly appointed, and zealous of the favor of his
superior.
“I dunno how I could bear up, though,” he said, with apology in the
cadence of his voice, “if I didn’t crack a joke wunst in a while,
considering I’m just broke into harness.”
“That’s a fact,” admitted the martial elder, visibly and solemnly
placated. “Do you know what we were doin’ while you yelled, an’
capered, an’ cut up them monkey-shines in front of the jail?” he
demanded sternly, turning to Tubal Cain Sims. “We were cuttin’ a
man down that tried to hang himself.”
“Suicidin’,” put in the deputy, as if making a nice distinction between
this voluntary suspension and the legal execution.
“An’ we were bringin’ the man to himself agin.”
“He’s crazy, crazy as a loon,” interpolated the deputy in a mutter,
pulling the trigger and snapping the hammer of the empty weapon,
and sighting it unpleasantly down the hall, aiming alternately at the
sheriff and at Tubal Cain Sims, who could scarcely repress an
admonition, but for awe’s sake desisted.
“Or more likely, simulatin’ insanity,” said the sheriff; “it’s plumb
epidemic nowadays ’mongst the crim’nals.”
“Well, he come mighty nigh lightin’ out for a country where no vain
pretenses avail,” remarked the loquacious deputy, one eye closed,
and drawing a very fine line from the bridge of old Sims’s nose with
the empty pistol.
“This is a country where they don’t avail, either,” retorted the sheriff,
“not with any reasonable jury. And twelve men, though liable to be
fools, ain’t fools o’ the same pattern. That’s the main thing: impanel
a variety o’ fools, an’ the verdic’ is generally horse sense. Now, sir,”
turning on Tubal Cain Sims, who could feel his hat rising up on his
hair, “what do you want, anyhow?”
“Ter git out,—that’s all; ter git out o’ hyar!” exclaimed Tubal Sims,
sickened with a ghastly horror of the presentment of the scene they
had left, the walls that harbored it, the roof that sheltered it. Oh for
the free pure mountain air, the wild untrodden lengths of the
mountain wilderness, fresh with the sun and the dew, and the vigor
of natural growths, and the sweet scent of woodland ways! As he
cast up his eyes to the high window above the staircase he could
have cried out aloud to see the bars, and he gazed at the door in a
desperation that started the drops on his brow and brought the
blood to his face, as if the intensity of his emotion had been some
strong physical effort.
“What did you get in here for, then?” demanded the sheriff. “Most
folks have to be fetched.”
Tubal Cain Sim’s heart failed him. Could it be possible that he had
ever designed a fate like this for the man who had slept under his
roof; who had eaten his bread; who had refused to maintain secrecy
against him; who considered him and his claims, when his own, his
very own, passed them by? He could not realize it. He refused to
credit his cherished scheme; he felt that if once away from the
paralyzing sight of the place, invention would rouse itself anew.
Some other device would serve to rid the Cove of the man, and to
frustrate his elopement with Euphemia. Tubal Sims was sure he
could compass a new plan if once more he were free in the clear
and open air.
The eagle eye of the sheriff marked the alert turning of Sims’s head
toward the door. “What did you come here for, then?” he again
demanded.
With hot eyes glancing hither and thither like a wild thing’s in a trap,
Tubal Sims replied, with the inspiration of the moment, “I wanted ter
view the man I hev voted fur so often an’ so constant.”
Now, the sheriff, like many other great men in their several places,
had his vanity, and it is not hard to convince one who has been
before the public eye that he fills that orb to the exclusion of any
less worthy object. That Tubal Cain Sims should have journeyed fully
thirty-five miles from the mountains to contemplate the resplendent
dignity of the sheriff in his oft-resumed incumbency seemed possibly
no disproportionate tribute to Enott Blake’s estimate of his own
merits. But this view, however flattering, was hardly compatible with
the lordly manner in which the old mountaineer had beaten upon
the door of the jail, and the imperative tones with which he had
summoned forth the servant of the public who owed his high estate
to the suffrages of him aided by the likes of him.
A wonderful change is wrought in the moral atmosphere of a man by
the event of an election. The candidate’s estate is vested by the
announcement of the result. He owns his office for the time, and he
breathes a free man. It is interesting to see how the muscles of his
metaphorical knees straighten out, for the day of genuflection is
over. Independence is reasserted in his eye; he bears himself as one
who conquers by the prowess of his own bow and spear; and men
whom he would fain conciliate last week need to search his eye for
an expression they can recognize. They will be treated no more to
that mollifying demonstration, the candidate’s smile.
The defeated aspirant’s once bland countenance, however, has
assumed all the contours of the cynic’s. A bitter sort of nonchalance
with a frequent forced laugh goes better combined with peanuts, if
the place is not too high in the official scale and the candidate of no
great social pretensions, since the hulls can be cast off with a
flouting gesture which aids the general implication that the
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