CHAPTER XIII
SOME STEAMSHIP PROBLEMS
I have left till the end of the story the consideration of some of those points which, though of the highest interest to many who are anxious to know something of the intimate character of the steamship, may seem to some readers to possess a special rather than a general concern. However, now that I have shown the manifold manner in which the steamship has advanced from a thing of scorn to a vessel of admiration, and have indicated as far as possible within the limitations at my disposal the ways and means that have brought this about, we may pertinently stop to consider for a few moments some of the problems which still have to be encountered even to-day, when naval architecture and marine engineering have attained to such heights of perfection. I shall endeavour, as, indeed, has been my aim throughout the course of this volume, to make myself perfectly clear without the employment of more technicalities than may be necessary. To the reader who may happen to form one of that large class who regard the ship, whether propelled by sails or by steam, with an admiration that verges on affection, I need offer no apology; for no one can possibly reverence the ship and, at the same time, be content to remain in ignorance about her complex nature.
Perhaps there is no feature of the steamship which is less suspected of being misunderstood than the propeller. To the average mind, its character is apparently so self-evident as barely to require any unusual consideration. But its introduction as a means of ship-propulsion has been the cause of a good deal of miscomprehension, and has set to work the keen brains of some of the most able mathematicians in order to determine the exact relation which it bears towards the ship and the manner in which it is capable of being used for the greatest good, and with the utmost economy. Here and there in the course of the narrative I have hinted at some of these problems, but in order not to break up the continuity of the story, I deemed it best to defer until now the fuller presentation of the subject. It is not necessary to remark that the propeller’s function is, by means of its revolutions, to drive the ship ahead, and to overcome the resistance which encounters the hull. Besides the skin friction, the eddy-making, and the wave-making, there is also the resistance of the air. Now let us suppose for a moment that instead of propelling itself ahead by its own engines and screws, a liner were to be taken in tow by a powerful tug-boat. It would follow then that the pull required to cause the liner to go through the water would be equal to those total entities of resistance which we have just enumerated. But let the tug be cast off, and allow the liner to start her engines and proceed by means of her propellers. The above resistance now becomes augmented by the resistance of the propellers. The reason is that the propeller causes a suction which tends to pull the ship back.
It is a striking fact that about one quarter of the propeller’s work is wasted in friction, and slip. (By “slip” is meant the loss caused through the yielding of the water at the propeller, and the screw not progressing to the full extent of its pitch.) In designing the screw for a steamship, due regard must be paid to the amount of horse-power which the engines are to generate and the speed at which the vessel is to travel, but whether the inward- or outward-turning propeller is the more efficient has not yet been satisfactorily determined by experts, though the probability would seem to be with the outward-turning screws. An instance of this was recently afforded by one of the leading firms of ship-builders in this kingdom who had been commissioned to construct a vessel 300 feet long, with a speed of between 18 and 19 knots. The owner, who was a scientist, particularly stipulated that the ship’s propellers should be inward-turning, and was very positive of the advantages which would thus accrue. The builders, however, arranged the engines in such a manner that they could be driven either way with equal ease. After they had tried turning inwards, they tried outward-turning, and reversed the propellers with a decidedly satisfactory result. The same conclusion has also been arrived at by Professor W. S. Abell, who asserts that all his experience goes to prove that greater hull efficiency is obtained by outward-turning propellers. In this connection I might quote the case of the steam yacht _Niagara II._, which was built some years ago in the United States. She was about 250 feet long, with a displacement of 2,000 tons, and her deadwood aft was not cut off. Information was obtained through two six-hour trials under similar conditions, except that her screws were interchanged from side to side, so that they were inward-turning on the first trial, and outward-turning on her second. Notwithstanding that greater horse-power was used when the inward-turning propellers were employed, yet the latter did not give the ship the same amount of speed as when they were made to turn outwards. Indeed, the speed of the inward was found to average 12·8 knots, whereas the outward-turning screws gave an average of 14·12 knots. It is in the department of the propeller that fuller information is awaited with an enthusiasm that belongs to no other branch of naval architecture.
When we speak of a steamship as being of such a tonnage, we do not always thereby convey a correct idea as to her size, for there is a decided difference between one kind of tonnage and another. When we say a vessel displaces so much water, we know that her weight is exactly that amount of tons; but the tonnages which are given in a vessel’s certificate after being surveyed are of a totally different character. The Board of Trade recognises three measurements of tonnage. First of all, comes the under-deck tonnage. The “tonnage-deck” is the second deck from below when the ship has more decks than one, and the length for the purposes of tonnage-measurement is taken along this deck. This length is divided into a number of equal parts, and the transverse sectional areas are found, deductions being allowed for the thickness of the ceilings. The gross tonnage of a ship consists of the under-deck tonnage plus the tonnage of all the closed-in spaces above the tonnage-deck, excepting the spaces fitted with machinery, wheel-house, shelter for deck passengers, galleys and w.c’s. If the poops, bridges and forecastles are fitted with doors or some other means of closing them permanently, they have to be measured into the gross tonnage; but if they are not of a permanent character, they are exempt. Thus, the gross tonnage of a steamship might include the under-deck tonnage, the space between decks, the poop, the bridge, the forecastle, the captain’s and the officers’ quarters, the chart-room, the light and air space, and so on.
But the net register tonnage will be ascertained by making certain allowed deductions, which include the space taken up for propelling power, the quarters of the crew, and of the captain, as well as the chart-room, the boatswain’s store-room, and the water-ballast spaces. As instancing the curious results which are obtainable from the different measurements for reckoning tonnage, Mr. A. L. Ayre, in his “British Shipbuilding,” gives the interesting comparison of a
## particular steamship according to her varying tonnage. Thus the ship
in question has an under-deck tonnage of 550, whilst her gross tonnage worked out at 980, and her net register tonnage at 360. It is not generally known perhaps that the complicated system of arriving at the net register tonnage gives opportunity for strange and amusing effects. Owing to the difference between the actual engine-room in a steamer and the theoretical engine-room, it is not only possible to build a ship with a negative tonnage, but this has actually occurred in the case of a certain tug, and was referred to in the report of the Royal Commission on Tonnage, 1881. The present writer was recently aboard a new 20-ton yacht, in which the owner had been fortunate enough to persuade the authorities to get the measurements down so low that the net register tonnage came out at a ludicrously low figure. Internally, nothing was more conspicuous than her roominess, which was of a quite exceptional character. The vessel was a two-masted sailing craft, but supplied also with an auxiliary motor, which did not detract from the roominess of the ship, since it was placed out of the way underneath the companion ladder. However, by the time the deductions had been made for “engine-room” space, “chart-room” (which was really the comfortable and spacious main cabin), and sundry other items, the size of the yacht had theoretically shrunk from 20 tons to something almost insignificant, and the consequence was that this bold vessel was able to escape with harbour dues as low as yachts of one quarter of her own tonnage. Not long since a humorist saw fit to write an amusing yarn, in which he depicted a certain individual who, smarting under what he believed were excessive harbour dues, determined at length to get even with the authorities, and finally had built a steam vessel rather on the lines of the screw tug than the usual steam yacht. Roominess was not the owner’s objective; all he wanted was just as much space for himself as was comfortable. But he sub-divided the rest of the ship into a large space for her engines and boilers, as well as auxiliary engines to drive capstans, together with a roomy forecastle for the crew. His own cabin was clearly marked on the plan as “Captain’s Cabin.” Finally, after the vessel was launched, and the internal capacity of the hull, as well as the spaces occupied by the machinery and the crew, had been deducted so as to obtain the net register tonnage, it was found that instead of coming out at so much net register, the figures showed that she was _minus_ 7 tons! Consequently, the owner used to protest every time he was charged with harbour dues, that instead of being called upon to pay, it was really the harbour authorities who owed him. After this, it is not surprising to learn that the name of the vessel was the _Euome_. I do not suggest for a moment that this story is anything but mythical, but it is sufficiently illustrative of what may occur when the tonnage measurement rules are in a state of such confusion.
It will be readily understood that it is of the utmost importance that regard be paid to the stability of the steamship, and herein is presented another of those problems which have to be taken into account and solved as easily as may be. Now, a vessel loses a great deal of her stability when she carries loose in her hold oil in bulk, grain, rice, and such movable cargoes. A similar effect is produced, of course, by the amount of free water in her tanks. For unless these features of danger are guarded against, it follows that when the ship is inclined to one side or the other by wind or wave, the cargo will cause the ship to have a worse list, and there may be some chance of her not regaining her proper trim, and turning turtle altogether. It is not so very long since a well-known cross-channel steamer which had set out for this country disappeared during the course of her voyage, and never a man lived to say how the foundering occurred. But it was known that when she set forth a portion of her deck cargo consisted of a heavy furniture van, and this, indeed, was seen floating about at the time the disaster was thought to have occurred. The conclusion generally arrived at in the minds of the best critics was that this heavy deck cargo had caused the stability of the ship to decrease to such an extent that when the ship rolled excessively she was unable to avoid rolling right over.
We have already shown during the progress of our story how the use of tanks has gradually been employed in the ballasting of the steamship. Not merely is the double bottom used for this purpose, but, as we mentioned, tanks are placed between decks in the wings in certain ships. Although a steamship, when her double bottom tanks have been filled, becomes much stiffer and possesses a greater displacement, yet she will certainly roll more heavily, and so tend to cause heavy strains in bad weather. Many vessels possess also tanks both in the fore-peak and the after-peak, which are extremely useful for the purposes of modifying the trim of the ship. This is especially valuable when the ship is proceeding “light,” and has not the advantage of a weighty cargo on board to keep the propeller well immersed. At the same time, supposing that the after-peak tank were utilised for the purpose of immersing the stern to a greater extent, it would also follow that the bows would be raised fairly high above the water, and in the case of a beam wind, the ship would not be easy to handle, for her head would have a strong tendency to fall off in just the same way as the man in the Canadian canoe seated at the stern finds that considerable difficulty is met with in steering his little craft with her bows out of the water, and at the mercy of every puff of wind which may blow from either side. As in other respects the ship is a compromise, so in regard to stability. She has to be stiff, or else she will roll right over in a sea-way; yet she must not be too stiff, or she will roll badly, and perhaps do herself serious harm, quite apart from being extremely unpleasant to those who happen to be aboard. Therefore, the aim nowadays is to give the ship a reasonable amount of stability, and to cause her rolling in a sea-way to be of an easy character. This is brought about by additional ballast tanks, which not only give the ship greater immersion and displacement (so causing greater stability), but by raising the centre of gravity through placing additional ballast in those ’tween-deck wing tanks that we discussed when we were considering the cantilever ships, the tendency of the vessel to roll is minimised. In fact, the combination of the double-bottom tanks and the wing tanks takes away excessive stiffness and heavy rolling, and makes the ship to behave in an easy manner in bad weather, even without cargo on board.
Then, again, since salt water is more buoyant than fresh, it will follow that when a ship passes from the sea into fresh water, her draught will be increased, and, therefore, there will also be a decrease in the amount of freeboard above the water-line, and, consequently, the range of stability becomes less also.
Perhaps, like the propeller, the rudder also has been granted too scanty a consideration by most general readers, although its action is of the greatest interest. First of all, we must remember that the rudder is useless in the case of still water; that is to say, the ship must be going ahead or astern and not be stationary, and the speed of the vessel must be greater or less than that of the water. Thus, when a ship is riding to her anchor in a tide-way, the rudder is operative, and the vessel can be steered across the stream; but supposing she were to be steaming at the rate of 4 knots, and had with her a 4-knot tide, she would not answer her helm. We mentioned at an earlier stage that the ship when going ahead caused a column of water to follow after her. The screw itself drives a column of water astern, and it must be obvious that these masses of water must act on the rudder of the ship, and so on her steering. Thus, the column of following water causes a decrease in the pressure on the rudder, and so makes the rudder less operative. The column of water, however, which is driven astern by the propeller will cause a greater pressure on the rudder, and thus it is possible for steamships propelled by a screw to use a small rudder, and by cutting away the deadwood of the ship just forward of the rudder, the latter is less interfered with by the hull, and the steering qualities are improved. We quoted just now the expert opinions that better speed is obtained when the screws are outward turning rather than inward. The outward-turning screws also give superior steering results in the case when the screws are placed near the hull, though when the propellers are well out, this is not so noticeable. If one desires to have a ship which shall turn quickly this characteristic is obtained by cutting away the deadwood aft, and also the ship’s forefoot. An extreme instance of this is found in the case of a centre-board sailing craft, which, as anyone who has handled her knows full well, will turn round with a remarkable and surprising celerity.
There are two types of rudders fitted to steamships. These consist of the ordinary kind when the rudder is hung at its forward edge, and the balanced type which has part of its area forward of its axis. An example of the former will be found in the case of the White Star _Laurentic_, while the _Mauretania_ and _Lusitania_ each has a balanced rudder. Since it is necessary to the rudder that to obtain steerage effect there must be the motion of the ship through the water, or a flow of water past the rudder, so that an excess of pressure may be obtained on one side of the latter, it is possible for the steamship to possess steerage way actually before she has obtained motion; for the propeller race brings this about in an effective manner. The advent of the twin-screw system was responsible for a material increase in the turning possibilities of the ship, an advantage which was much appreciated when already the steamship had attained such enormous dimensions in regard to length. Thus, for example, supposing a twin-screw steamship wishes to turn quickly to port, she can do this by starboarding her helm, putting her port engines astern, and her starboard engines ahead. The advantage of the balanced type of rudder just mentioned is that it is easier to put over than the ordinary type, but it demands that the deadwood of the stern should be considerably cut away.
It is only comparatively recently that the full importance which it deserves has been granted to the naval architectural experimental tank, but these interesting objects are now becoming more numerous, and yielding most valuable data on which to work. Fifty years ago naval architecture in Great Britain was certainly not on a scientific basis, and it was to France that we had to look for the leadership in these matters. But ever since the founding of the Institution of Naval Architects, and such men as Scott Russell, Sir Edward Reed and others led the way, scientific shipbuilding began to advance in this country. The results are evident in the shipbuilding history of our Royal Navy, as well as in the excellence of our splendid merchant fleets. In elucidating the many problems connected with ship architecture the experimental tank is now taking even a more prominent place than hitherto, and the recent opening of the National Experimental Tank at Bushey, where research will be carried on continuously without interference from commercial considerations, is deserving of the warmest congratulations. One of the most important tanks in the world is that owned by Messrs. John Brown and Co., Ltd., at their Clydebank works. Indeed, it may be said that no feature of this important yard is more deserving of interest. The tank is 400 feet long and 20 feet wide, with a depth of 8 to 9 feet. At the end of the tank, where the models are worked, are dry and wet docks for trimming these little ships, which are sometimes as large as 20 feet long. The latter are made of wax, carefully moulded, and their weight is automatically registered. There is an over-head rail for removing the models from one place to another, while the carriage from which the model is towed through the water runs on rails fixed on each side of the concrete walls of the tank, and is driven by electricity. At about the centre of the main tank building there is an observation room which is used for photographic purposes. Messrs. John Brown and Co. themselves have admitted that it is owing to the valuable experiments obtained in this tank that they have been able to design ships producing the best results, whilst also exhibiting the maximum economy.
Mathematical theories and formulæ have contributed much to the development of the steamship, but there is a point reached when these are of no avail for the reason that when new problems arise that cannot be solved by former experiences and existing data, a more practical method of obtaining information must be found. It is here that the tank comes in to solve the difficulties at hand both as to the hulls of the ships themselves and the character of the propellers which are to send them through the water. Had the experimental tank been encouraged at an earlier date, no doubt certain of the errors which characterised some of the ships of the sea might have been avoided. It is not enough to build a steamship of enduring strength, and to give her the best engines of the time; it is also essential that she be designed in such a manner that her propellers forge her ahead with the minimum of resistance.
Germany and America, no less than Great Britain, are now busying themselves with the employment of the naval experimental tank, and obtain thereby so many valuable data as to make such institutions indispensable if advance in the science of naval architecture is to be something more than ephemeral. The Norddeutscher Lloyd Company had such a tank built in 1900 on the model of the one belonging to the Royal Italian Navy at Spezia, and some description may not be without interest. The tank is contained in a building 170 metres long and 8 metres wide. On either side of the tank is a strong set of rails on which the towing carriage runs, and the building contains workshops wherein the models are constructed. The experiments are not complicated, for after the displacement of the projected ship has been decided on, several models of such a displacement are made from drawings by means of an ingenious machine. These models are made out of paraffin wax, and about 4 or 5 metres long. (A metre, it should be remembered, is the equivalent of 1·094 English yards.)
Presently, after they have been finished off, the models are towed through the tank, and their resistance is measured by a dynamometer, the automatic drum simultaneously measuring the course and time. It should be mentioned that it is after the models have been formed in sifted clay that they are cast in wax as a hollow shell, the core being made of battens, strong canvas being also employed. After the model has been subjected to the cutting machine, it is planed and scraped by hand to remove the excrescences of paraffin. The advantage which the experiments made in tanks give lies in the fact that one can thereby ascertain the resistance which the model will encounter through the water, and consequently the amount of effective horse-power that she will require. Granted that an owner desires to have built a steamship of a certain displacement, it follows that that amount of displacement is capable of being embodied in numerous different shapes; and it is part of the work of the experimental tank to determine the most suitable ratios of length, breadth and draught which shall produce the ideal ship for the purpose desired. Indeed, it may be said that it is only by means of the experiments made in tanks that any safe and reliable method can be afforded for attaining the desired end.
The model is made according to scale with a displacement proportionate to that of the steamship to be built, and the correct amount of immersion is given to the model by adding ballast in the shape of small linen bags containing shot. In order to obtain the measurements of the model’s resistance in the water, it is placed under the carriage which bears the measuring instruments for indicating both the resistance of the model, and the thrusting and twisting stresses of the model screws. It should be explained that the carriage is moved by motors which derive their current from accumulators, and it is possible, by regulating the accumulators, to obtain over 400 different speeds. The advantage of this in studying the wave formation which the models set up is of the highest importance. To be able to ascertain how much resistance the model sets up at lesser and higher speeds is a great gain, and in no respect is this information more valuable than when experiments are being made with a view to high-speed torpedo boats; but as this kind of craft does not come within our present scope, we must pass on.
We may turn now from some of the more technical problems incurred by the steamship to a consideration of some of those which are of a more practical nature. It is just because the ship has in modern times taken on a dual character--become something else besides a sea-craft--that the possibilities of any accident occurring to her have increased tremendously. It is obvious that so long as you retain simplicity, there is not much chance offered for accident; but as soon as you begin to make the ship a mass of complications, then instantly there arise on every side facilities for mishap of some sort or another. Fractured shafts are happily of rare occurrence, but when they happen at all they are naturally far worse for the single-screw ship than the vessel having two or more propellers. When a connecting rod or piston-rod breaks the matter is serious, for it is not advisable to attempt repairing the same at sea, since unless the thing is done quite effectively, there is danger of the rod giving way again, and if the piston were to be disconnected suddenly from the crank, it would smash the engine. The first time that a tail-shaft was ever repaired at sea was in October of 1900, when the chief engineer of the s.s. _Athena_ successfully brought about so interesting an achievement, and a similar feat was performed about five years later on the s.s. _Milton_, so that the ship was able to steam at the rate of a hundred miles per day.
But a far more difficult and rarer task was that of the chief engineer of the s.s. _Matoppo_, who for the first time on record actually renewed the blades of the propeller at sea. This would be no mean performance in the case of fair weather, but, as it happened, there was a high sea running at the time, and the work was rendered both difficult and dangerous. One of the most tiresome accidents occurs when the steamship loses her rudder, or it becomes so much damaged as to be unserviceable. In the case of a twin-screw ship, as we have already intimated, the consequences are not necessarily serious, and ships have succeeded in making long passages steering by means of their two propellers. But in the case of a single-screw ship the carrying away of the rudder is of greater consequence, and it becomes necessary to rig up a jury rudder as well as possible. This consists in towing astern a spar which is attached to either quarter of the ship by means of hawsers.
An interesting experience is related by Commander W. H. Owen, R.N.R., who at the time of the following incident was in command of a screw steamer of about 1,200 tons. When about 600 miles south-west of the Lizard, his ship had the misfortune to carry away her rudder. A jury rudder was rigged up in the usual way by fashioning a big steering oar out of the heaviest derrick which the ship possessed, bolting together iron plates at the outside end, and weighted below so as to keep the blade vertical. From the end steel hawsers were led in through outriggers to the steam winch. This all took time, and it was a day and a quarter before the arrangement was fixed up. When it was finally put into place, it only lasted a few minutes, for the first scend of the ship smashed the whole thing. Other means had, therefore, to be employed, and the ship was eventually steered into Falmouth, where temporary repairs were effected, the vessel then proceeding to Southampton, where a new rudder was made. Commander Owen adds that he considers the best possible arrangement, if such an accident should occur, to be as follows:--A heavy spar should be lashed to as much chain cable as the spar can sustain while yet keeping afloat, the bights of cable being allowed to hang down in lengths of about two fathoms, thus forming practically a solid sheet of iron, the bights of the cable being lashed close together by smaller chain. The contrivance is then towed astern of the ship from the quarters, sufficient scope being given to allow the spar to clear the counter as the vessel pitches or scends, the controlling being effected by means of steel hawsers attached to the other end of the spar, and led through outriggers to a steam winch.
Another kind of disaster which may overcome the steamship is that of fire. Owing to the frequency of this species of calamity, the committee of Lloyd’s some seven years ago instituted a special inquiry into the matter, and after examining no fewer than 627 cases of fire on ships, it was found that as many as 403 had occurred while the ship was in port; thus only about one-third of the instances happened while the ship was at sea. In most cases there was no evidence to show the cause of these fires, but since it was ascertained that many of the outbreaks occurred while the ship was discharging or loading cargo, it was thought that a closer supervision over the use of lights and a more stringent prevention of smoking in the holds would give more satisfactory results.
The use of water and steam as fire extinguishers is frequently abortive, and causes unnecessary damage to the cargo; but nowadays there are scientific appliances which are much more effective for extinguishing outbreaks that may occur on board ship, and these are recommended for use at the ports and docks. In 1906, the New Zealand Government appointed a Royal Commission to inquire into the causes of fires occurring on ships which carry such commodities as wool, flax and tow. Besides recommending that every ship engaged in the carrying trade of this nature should be fitted with a chemical fire-extinguishing system, the Commission reported that the cause of fire in the case of flax and tow would seem to have been usually other than that of spontaneous combustion, but the very nature of these articles makes them especially liable to fire from extraneous causes. With regard to wool, however, there was evidence for supposing that spontaneous combustion does take place.
A steamship problem of an entirely different nature is that which concerns the commissariat department. In the olden days, when travellers were accustomed to remember that they were voyaging on a ship, matters were fairly simple and straightforward; but now that the ship has become a floating hotel, and the passenger expects to live quite as well as, if not more luxuriously than, on shore, the problem of being able not merely to feed two or three thousand people for a week or longer, without being able to touch port, but to supply most of the dainties which are only found in the best equipped land restaurant has assumed large dimensions. The days when salted meat was the staple sustenance of the sea traveller have long since gone, and to-day even the steerage passengers are catered for in a manner that is at least humane, even if it is scarcely luxurious. All this has been brought about by the influence of more comfortable living ashore, as well as by the keen competition between the rival steamship companies to hold out alluring incentives to the potential passenger. The work in connection with the culinary department has grown so enormously as to necessitate the employment of mechanical contrivances wherever possible. Thus, for instance, on some of the Atlantic liners the coffee-mills instead of being turned by hand, are driven by steam-engines and electromotors. Ingenious boiling apparatuses for eggs; machines for cutting meat, for mincing, whipping cream, straining, dish-washing and drying without the need of using towels, making bread, filtering water and many other purposes are employed, and the perfection of these minor machines is scarcely less admirable than that of the engines whose sole service consists in propelling the ship across the ocean. Some of the Norddeutscher Lloyd steamships have recently availed themselves of a new invention for carrying live fresh-water fish, so that they may come fresh to the table. This innovation was first made on board the _Kaiser Wilhelm II._ The fish-tanks are placed on the awning deck, where ocean passengers are able to have the singular experience of catching alive at sea such fresh-water fish as trout, carp, pike and tench.
The ventilation of a steamship also presents a problem that is not always capable of easy solution. Indeed, ship-ventilation presents difficulties that do not arise in the case of shore-buildings, and this is to an extent due to the fact that there is only a limited space available for the ventilating apparatus. Mechanical fans are much employed for both the stokehold and the quarters of the passengers, being driven by electric motors. The efficient ventilation of the store-rooms, which contain nowadays such quantities of perishable foods, is also effected by this means. On cattle-ships, especially in hot climates; in giving air to the holds of grain ships, and, in fact, on the steamship generally, a thoroughly capable ventilating arrangement has long since been found to be a necessity rather than a luxury. But there is a difficulty with regard to the ventilators themselves on board ship. If they are left open for the air, it is also possible for some fool or criminal to throw down a lighted match or cigarette-end, and so ignite dangerous vapour that may be below deck. After the disastrous fire on the liner _Sardinia_ when off Malta, in 1909, the Board of Trade inquiry made clear the cause of the catastrophe, namely that inflammable matter had succeeded in reaching the cargo space where chemical action had generated dangerous vapours. There was only one way in which fire could have reached this dormant danger, and that was by means of the ventilators. The reader will probably recollect that the ship was carrying Moorish pilgrims at the time, and that they had been cooking food at one of their braziers, and some believe that a hot cinder was blown down a ventilator and so arrived in the hold, with the result that is now common knowledge. The possibility of such a thing occurring again, however, is now obviated by a patent weather-proof ventilator, which is so constructed that access to the holds cannot be reached by anything else than air. Neither rain nor sea can get down, still less any inflammable matter.
Thus, one by one, problems arise to thwart the hand of man, but only to be overcome by the latter through patience and the knowledge which comes after much thought and actual experience. Not merely in seaworthiness, nor in the matter of speed, has the steamship reached what even the most blasé must call the limit, but the same enterprising spirit which has brought this about has also provided that comfort is also of an importance that demands the most detailed attention. Whether in return for all this care and trouble the passenger is proportionately grateful is another question altogether.
INDEX
_Aaron Manby_, the, 132
_A. L. Shotwell_, the, 260
Abell, Prof. W. S., 311
Aberdeen Line, 216
_Acadia_, the, 107
_Admiral de Ruyter_, the, 237
Admiralty, the, mail service and, 105, 110, 114; use of bulkheads and, 156; and mail service, 224; and mails to Channel Islands, 227
_Adriatic_, the, 179, 206–7, 208, 303
African Steamship Co., 216
_Alamo_, the, 307
_Alexandra_, the, 277
Allan Line: introduction of turbine into Atlantic service, 190; foundation of, 216
Allen, John, method of propelling boats by, 27; and lifeboats, 254
America, early steamboats of, 44; steam navigation in, 60, 63; development of steam engine in, 88; river steamers of, 258; lake steamers of, 264
American Line, 165, 173, 220
_Amerika_, the, 207
Anchor Line, 216, 220
_Anglia_, the, 222
_Arabic_, the, 179
_Araguaya_, the, 292
Archimedes, steam power and, 19
_Archimedes_, the, 120–1, 123, 124
_Argyle_, the, 84
_Arizona_, the, 155, 156
Armstrong, Mitchell & Co., 243
_Asturias_, the, 229
_Atalanta_, the, 228
_Athena_, the, 323
Atlantic, steamships on, 91, 96; the _Sirius_, 96–7; the _Great Western_, 97; early fares, 100; Liverpool-New York route, 101; the _Royal William_, 101–2; the _British Queen_, 102; inauguration of mail service, 105–7; the _Britannia_, 107–9; Collins Line, 118; the _Robert F. Stockton_, 119; _Scotia’s_ record, 129; Inman Line competition, 148; Cunard competition, 149; records of _City of Paris_, _Russia_, and _City of Brussels_, 149; White Star competition, 154–5; _Britannic’s_ record, 155; _City of Berlin’s_ record, 155; Guion Line competition, 155; _Servia’s_ record, 157; records of _Umbria_ and _Etruria_, 159; competition of ’eighties, 165; _Majestic’s_ and _Teutonic’s_ records, 169; _Lucania’s_ and _Campania’s_ records, 171; German competition, 173, 179, 180; _Kaiser Wilhelm II.’s_ record, 180; Allan Line and turbines, 190; records of _Mauretania_ and _Lusitania_, 204; Royal Line, 217
Atlantic Transport Line, 220
Atmospheric engine, invention by Papin of, 22
_Auguste Victoria_, the, 295
_Austral_, the, 162
Australia, inauguration of steam service to, 116
Australian Royal Mail Steam Navigation Co., 131
“Awning-deck” type, 286
Ayre, A. L.: “British Shipbuilding,” 313
Baird, Charles, 86
“Balanced” rudders, 318
Ballast, questions of, 315
Ballin, Herr, 212
_Balmoral Castle_, the, 219
_Baltic_, the, 167, 193, 194, 207
Barlow, Joel, association with Fulton, 49
Beam engine, 36; development and adaptation, 87; of American river boats, 262
Bell, Henry, and Symington, 55; experiments with paddles: the _Comet_, 78
_Ben-my-Chree_, the, 230
_Berlin_, the, 209, 289, 292, 302
Bernoulli, Daniel, 33
_Bessemer_, the, 225
Bibby Line, 215
Bilge-keels, of _Campania_ and _Lucania_, 171; of _Mauretania_ and _Lusitania_, 200
_Blackcock_, the, 235–6, 237
Boiler, evolution of, 133; distilled water and, 136, 167; “Scotch” type, 151
Booth Line, 216
“Boss” of screw shaft, 210
Boulton and Watt, 35, 43, 59, 60, 75, 84, 88, 89, 94, 95
Boulton, Matthew, association with Watt, 35
Bourne, William, “devises” for propelling boats, 15
_Bovic_, the, 220
“Box” boiler, 133
Branca, Giovanni, discovery of principle of turbine by, 20, 184
Bridge deck, evolution of, 162, 283; in tugs, 235, 237
_Britannia_, the, 107, 108–9, 298
_Britannia_, the (P. & O.), 163
_Britannic_, the, 153, 154
British and Foreign Steam Navigation Co., 227
British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Co., 107
British East India Co., 216
_British Queen_, the, 97, 102, 103
British Queen Steam Navigation Co., 97
“British shipbuilding,” by A. L. Ayre, 313
Brown, John, & Co., 319
Brunel: the _Great Western_, 97; the _Great Britain_, 123; the _Victoria_, 131; _Great Eastern_, 139
“Bucket” dredger, 239
Building of ships, 282, _et seq._
Bulkheads, of _Scotia_, 129, 130; of _Great Eastern_, 143; of _Arizona_, 155; Admiralty and, 155–6; of _New York_ and _Philadelphia_, 166; of _George Washington_, 208; of _Laurentic_, 210; of oil-tankers, 244; of _Commonwealth_, 263
Bulwarks, disappearance of, 152
_Buenos Ayrean_, the, 150
Burns, George, 106
Bushey, national experimental tank at, 319
Byrne, St. Clair, 270
Cables, submarine, laying of, 242–3
Caird & Co., 218
_Calais-Douvres_, the, 225, 226
_Caledonia_, the, 84, 107
Caligula’s galleys, 194, 297
_Cambria_, the, 222, 225
_Campania_, the, 159, 170, 171, 172, 174, 175, 177
Camper and Nicholson, 278
Canadian Northern Railway Co., ships of, 217
Canadian Pacific Railway, ships of, 220
_Candia_, the, 134, 135, 136
Cantilever-framed ships, 249
_Car of Neptune_, the, 76
Cargo, dangerous, 243, 246
_Carmania_, the, 187, 191, 192
_Caronia_, the, 191, 192, 306
_Carthaginian_, the, 307
_Castalia_, the, 225, 226
Castle Mail Packets Co., 216
_Cedric_, the, 178, 179, 289
_Celtic_, the, 147, 178, 289
_Cevic_, the, 220
Channel Islands, boat services to, 227
_Charlotte Dundas_, the, 46–8, 55, 78, 301
Chester and Holyhead Railway Co., ships of, 222
_China_, the, 150, 294
“Chronological History of the Origin and Development of Steam Navigation,” by Admiral Preble, 30
Churchyard, Mr., and mail contract, 224
City Line, 216
_City of Berlin_, the, 155
_City of Brussels_, the, 149, 154
_City of Cleveland_, the, 264
City of Dublin Steam Packet Co., 101, 124
_City of Edinburgh_, the, 93
_City of Glasgow_, the, 147
_City of Manchester_, the, 147
_City of New York_, the, 165
_City of Paris_ (1), the, 148, 149, 152, 153, 176
_City of Paris_ (2), the (Inman), 165, 168, 178
_City of Philadelphia_, the, 148
_City of Rome_, the, 165, 236
_Clarence_, the, 267
_Clermont_, the, 48, 60, 63; engines of, 69; original drawings for, 69; first trials of, 69; trip on Hudson, 70; at Hudson-Fulton celebrations, 70; alteration of, 73; disappearance of, 76; engines of, 88; steering methods of, 89; boilers of, 133, 137, 238, 261, 301
Clydebank Works, 319
_Clyde_, the, 110
“Clyde Passenger Steamer: Its Rise and Progress during the Nineteenth Century,” by Capt. J. Williamson, 78
Coal consumption, tests for, 293
“Coffin-brigs,” 105
Collier, improvements on, 250
Collins Line, 118, 173, 216
_Columbia_, the, 107
_Comet_, the (1), 48; building, 78; engines, 79; commercial failure, 80; wreck of, 82; boiler of, 133
_Comet_, the, (2), 82
_Commonwealth_, the, 261, 262
Compagnie Transatlantique, 212
Compound engine, principle of, 117
Condenser, invention of, 135; surface, 136, 167; of _Great Eastern_, 141
Continental routes, 223
_Copenhagen_, the, 229
_Cornelia_, the, 269
Cranes used in shipbuilding, 289
Cross-channel service, institution of, 82, 84, 221, _et seq._
Cunard Company: foundation of, 106; early ships of, 107; monopoly of Atlantic, 118; adoption of iron, and screw propellers, 128, 145; Atlantic competition, 149, 156, 170, 178; use of steel, 156; use of turbines, 191; agreement with Government as to _Mauretania_ and _Lusitania_, 196; new ships, 212; Mediterranean service, 220
Cunard, Samuel, and _Royal William_, 105; association with Robert Napier, 106; tender for steam carriage for mails, 106; British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Co., 107; correspondence with Ross and Primrose, 108
De Caus, Solomon, 7, 9, 20
Decks, evolution of, 149, 152; “turtle,” 153, 158, 168, 172; “bridge,” 162; of _Lucania_, 172; of _Oceanic_, 177; of _Carmania_, 191; of _George Washington_, 208; of _Balmoral Castle_, 219; of turretships, 246; of American river boats, 259; of lake steamers, 264; of yachts, 272; types of, 283–287; construction of in liners, 290
Deck-cargo, dangers of, 315
Deck tonnage, 312
Decoration in modern liner, 302
De Garray, Blasco, early experiments of, 14
De Jouffroy, Marquis, as first inventor of steamship, 8; experiments with Watt engine, 33, 40; second steamboat of, 41, 55
De Laval, Dr. Gustav, invention of turbine, 184
Denny, William, 81
Desblanc, Fulton and, 56; experiments by, 59
_Deutschland_, the, 198, 207, 213
Dickens, Charles, on Atlantic passage, 298–9, 300
“Displacement,” definition of, 146
Donaldson Line, 216
Dover-Calais route, first steamer on, 223
Dredgers, variety of, 239
Dredging of harbours, 211–2
_Dromedary_, the, 239, 261
Dublin Steam Packet Co., 221
Dundonald, Earl of, 133
Eastern Navigation Co., 139
_Eclipse_, the, 259, 260
_Edinburgh Castle_, the, 219
_Edmund Moran_, the, 237
_Elbe_, the, 174
Elder & Co., John, 160, 274
Electric light, first use of on liners, 155
Electricity, modern service of, 305
_Elizabeth_, the, 86
Ellerman Line, 216
_Emperor of Russia_, the, 86
_Empire_, the, 261
_Empress_, the, 226
_Empress of Britain_, the, 220
English Channel, first steamer crossing, 82
_Enterprise_, the, 94
_Eothen_, the, 269
Ericsson, John, screw propeller of, 119
_Etruria_, the, 158–9, 161, 165, 212, 235
_Europa_, the, 212–3
Experimental tank, naval architectural, 318; national at Bushey, 319; at Clydebank Works, 319; Norddeutscher Lloyd, 320; Italian, 320
_Express_, the, 225
_Fairy_, H.M.S., 210
_Falcon_, the, 94
Fall River Line, the, 262, 304
Falmouth as mail port, 111
_Faraday_, the, 243
Field, Joshua, 101
Fire, methods of extinguishing, 304; causes of, 325; extinguishers, 325
_Fire Fly_ (1812), 76
_Fire King_, the, 268
_Fire Queens_, the, 268
Fishguard, dredging at, 239
Fish-tanks on liners, 326
Fitch, John, association with Rumsey, 44; first steamboat, 44–5; dispute with Fulton, 46
Flush-decked steamship, 137, 283
Fly-wheel, invention by Watt, 38
_Forth_, the, 111
_Francis B. Ogden_, the, 119
_Francis Smith_, the, 120, 123
_Franconia_, the, 212
Fulton, Robert, centenary, 7; and Desblanc, 8; and Rumsey, 44; _versus_ Fitch, 46; birth: visit to France: “plunging-boat”: association with Livingston, 48–9; experiments in Paris, 49; loss of first boat, 52; second boat, 54; the _Clermont_, 60; building of _Clermont_, 63; experiments on paddle-resistance, 65; construction of _Clermont_, 69; first voyage of _Clermont_, 70; betrothal, 71; death, 76; Bell’s association with, 78; schemes for India and Russia, 85; experiments with model, 120, 259, 261
Galloway, Elijah, 101
_Gamecock_, the, 235
General Steam Navigation Co., founding of, 93, 216, 223, 224
_George Washington_, the, 208, 213, 289, 301
_Georgic_, the, 219
German ship-building, growth of, 173
_Germanic_, the, 154
Girard, Capt. G. B., 235
Glass, use of for sidelights, 153
_Glowworm_, the, 268
“Grasshopper” engine, 79
_Great Britain_, the, 123, 124, 135, 138
_Great Eastern_, the, building of, 138; launch of, 140; engines of, 141; speed of, 142; construction of, 143; comparison with modern ships, 144, 157, 173, 176, 179, 180, 192, 196, 242, 288
Great Eastern Railway, boats of, 229
Great Lake steamers, 264
_Great Western_, the, 97, 99, 100, 102, 103, 105, 106, 123, 138, 148
Great Western Railway, steamers of, 98, 123; Channel service of, 228; passenger tender, 238
Griffiths, Robert, 210
“Guards” of American paddle-boats, 261, 264
Guericke, Otto von, discovery of vacuum, 20
Guest, Montague: “History of Royal Yacht Squadron,” 267
Guion Line, 155, 156, 212
Hall, Samuel, 136
Hamburg-American Line, 207, 212
Harbour-deck of turret-ship, 246; of trunk-deck steamer, 248
Harbours, depth of, 211; dredging of, 239
Harland, Sir Edward, 152, 168
Harland and Wolff, 151, 207, 209, 211, 212, 217, 289, 294, 295
Harrison Line, 216
Harwich-Hook of Holland route, 229
_Helen McGregor_, the, 128
Helm, developments of, 90
Hero (130 B.C.), application of steam power by, 19
_Hesperian_, the, 307
_Hibernia_, the, 222
_Himalaya_, the, 134
_Hindostan_, the, 114
“History of American Steam Navigation,” by J. H. Morrison, 44
“Hogging,” 98, 102
_Hohenzollern_, the, 279
Holt Line, 220
Holyhead as port, 221
Holyhead-Kingstown service, 222
Horse-power, definition of, 39; in relation to speed, 67
Houlder Brothers, 216
Howden draught system, 209
Hudson, the, steamers of, 261
Hudson-Fulton celebrations, 69, 70
Hulls, Jonathan, inventions of, 29, _et seq._, 258
Ice-breakers, 250–1
India, first steamship voyage to, 94; first steamships to, 114
_Inez Clarke_, 258
_Inland_, the, 245, 248
Inman Line, iron steamers of, 147; Atlantic competition, 148, 165
Institution of Naval Architects, 319
“Intermediate” ships, 178, 220
_Ioland_, the, 280
Irish Channel, steam service across, 221, _et seq._
Iron, first use of in masts, 122; first steamboat of, 124; general use of, 145; advantages of, 146
Isle of Man Steam Packet Co., 230
Ismay, Mr. T. H., 151
_Ivernia_, the, 167, 178, 220
_James Watt_, the, 77, 93
_Jenny Lind_, the, 268
_John Bowes_, the, 242
Jones, Sir Alfred, 216
_Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse_, 174, 175, 177, 178, 179, 180, 198, 207, 302, 306
_Kaiser Wilhelm II._, the, 149, 162, 179, 180, 198, 207, 209, 306, 326
_Kentucky_, the, 107
_Kronprinzessin Victoria_, the, 236
_Lady Lansdowne_, the, 124
Laird, John, 124
Lane, Thomas, association with Fulton, 85
Launch, conduct of a, 290
_Laura_, the, 229
_Laurentic_, the, 209, 211, 318
“Leibnizens und Huygens Briefwechsel mit Papin,” by Dr. Ernst Gerland, 23
_Leinster_, the, 222
_Leviathan_, the, 240
_Liberty_, the, 280, 303
“Life of Robert Napier,” by James Napier, 78
Lifeboats, 254–6
Lifeboats, steam, application of Allen’s principles to, 28
_Lightning_, the, first mail steamer, 93
Liner, inauguration of, 104, _et seq._; transition state of, 145; luxuries of, 300–4; navigation safeguards of, 305; ventilation problems, 327; commissariat difficulties of, 325
“Link-motion gear,” 142
_Livadia_, the, 274, 276
Liverpool, first steamship in, 83; depth of water at, 239
Liverpool Screw Towing and Lighterage Co., 235
Livingston, Robert R., association with Fulton, 48–9, 60
Lloyd’s, committee of inquiry into fires, 324
Lobnitz & Co., Messrs., 239
_London_, the, 162
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway, boats of, 227
London, Chatham and Dover Railway, boats of, 223, 224, 226
London and North Western Railway Co., ships of, 222
London and South Western Railway, Channel service of, 228, 229
_Lucania_, the, 159, 170, 171, 172, 174, 175, 177, 212
_Lusitania_, the (Cunard), 8, 60, 103, 107, 138, 146, 173, 180, 192, 194–206, 212, 213, 239, 301, 318
_Lusitania_, the (Orient Line), 161
_Lyons_, the, 227
_Lysistrata_, the, 280
_Macedonia_, the, 218
MacIver, David, 106
_Magnetic_, the, 193
Mails, carriage of Continental, 224
Mail service to Channel Islands, 227, 228
Mail steamer, the first, 93
Mail steamers, first tender for, 105; early Cunard, 107; Royal Mail Steam Packet Co.’s first contract and ships, 110–11
_Majestic_, the, 149, 168, 178, 179, 194
_Maloja_, the, 218
_Malwa_, the, 218
Manby, Aaron, and first iron steamboat, 124, 132
_Mantua_, the, 218
Marconi system, installation on _Campania_ and _Lucania_, 171
_Marjory_, the, 84
_Marmora_, the, 218
Mathesius, steam power and, 19
_Matoppo_, the, 323
Matthews, Capt. B. E., 148
Maudslay, Joseph, 132; _Great Western_ engines, 100
_Mauretania_, the, 8, 60, 103, 107, 138, 144, 146, 151, 153, 173, 192, 193, 194, 206, 208, 211, 212, 213, 230, 236, 238, 239, 288, 299, 318
Mechanical propulsion of boats, early forms of, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 20, 22; Earl Stanhope’s scheme, 57; Elijah Ormsbee’s scheme, 57
_Medina_, the, 218
_Medway_, the, 242
_Megantic_, the, 209
“Memorials of James Watt,” by Williamson, 83
_Menai_, the, 223
_Menai_, the (S. Y.), 268
Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, 240, 241
Miller, Patrick, first paddle-boat by, 42; steamboats by, 43
_Milton_, the, 323
_Minnehaha_, the, 220
Mississippi, Fulton’s scheme for the, 76; steamboats of, 258, 259, 260
_Moldavia_, the, 218
_Monarch_, the, 242
_Mongolia_, the, 218
_Monitoria_, the, 247
Monkey forecastle, 283–4
_Mooltan_, the, 118, 218
_Morea_, the, 218
Morrison, J. H.: “History of American Steam Navigation,” 44
“Mould floor,” shipbuilders’, 287
_Munich_, the, 229
Murdoch, William, 132
Napier, Charles, application of paddle-wheels by, 14; and first iron steamboat, 124
Napier, David, experiments in resistance, 81; the _Rob Roy_, 81; and cross-channel packets, 220; and _Comet_, 79; condenser and, 136
Napier, James: “Life of Robert Napier,” 78
Napier, Robert, engines for _British Queen_, 102; and Samuel Cunard, 106, 107; and steam yachts, 267
_Natchez_, the, 259, 261
National Line, 151, 212
Naval Architects, Institution of, 319
Navigation, modern safeguards, 305
Nelson Line, 220
Newcomen, Thomas, steam engine of, 25–7; improvement of by Watt, 35, 135
New England Navigation Co., 262
Newhaven-Dieppe route, 227
_New York_, the, 165, 220
New York harbour, dredging of, 212; tugs of, 237
New Zealand Commission on causes of fire, 325
_Niagara II._, the, 311
Noah’s Ark, compared with _Baltic_, 193
Norddeutscher Lloyd, growth of, 174, 208, 209
North German Lloyd, 174, 216, 220
Northern Yacht Club, and steam yachts, 267
_Notre Dame des Dunes_, the, 253
_Novelty_, the, 121
_Ocean_, the (tug), 236
_Oceanic_, the (1), 138, 151–5, 168, 299, 300
_Oceanic_, the (2), 176, 179, 180, 215
Ohio, steamers of the, 258
Oil-lamps, first use of, 153
“Oil-tanker,” the, 243
_Olympic_, the, 207, 211
_Ophir_, the, 169
_Oregon_, the, 156
_Orient_, the, 161, 162
Orient Line, foundation of, 161
Ormsbee, Elijah, 57, 59
_Orontes_, the, 252
Oscillating engine, principle of, 132; of _Great Eastern_, 141; of _Leinster_, 222
“Overland” route, 115
Owen, Commander W. H., 323
_Pacific_, the, 133
Pacific Steam Navigation Co., establishment of, 113, 151, 161
Paddle-wheels, Roman use of, 13; on frigate _Galatea_, 14; early application of, 16–17; early forms of, 22; de Jouffroy’s, 41; Patrick Miller’s, 42; Symington’s, 43; Fitch’s, 45; of _Charlotte Dundas_, 47; Fulton’s, 49; Fulton’s experiments on resistance of, 65; of _Clermont_, 72–4; Bell’s experiments, 78; of _Comet_, 79; on early steamboats, 86; of _Prinzessin Charlotte_, 89; of _Savannah_, 91; “cycloidal” type of _Great Western_, 100; of _Britannia_, 109; of _Scotia_, 129, 130; in tugs, 239; of _Great Eastern_, 141; stern, 258; American “guard” system, 261; of _Commonwealth_, 263; first fitted to yacht, 268
Panama Canal, 114
Pancirolli, Guido: “History of Many Memorable Things Lost, &c.,” 16
Papin, Denis, 7, 9, 10; invention of steam engine, 21; first steamboat, 22; safety valve of, 23; correspondence with Leibnitz, 23–4
_Paragon_, the, 76
_Paris_, the, 166
Parsons, Hon. C. A., invention of turbine, 184
Parsons turbine for yachts, 274
_Peluse_, the, 239, 240
Peninsular and Oriental Co., establishment and first ships of, 114; “overland” route to India, 115; Australian service, 116; influence of Suez Canal on, 117; the _Mooltan_, 118, 161, 163; and Lund Line, 216; recent ships of, 218
Penn, John, 133
Périer, experiment with a Watt engine, 33, 40; association with Fulton, 50, 54, 56
_Persia_, the, 129, 147
_Philadelphia_, the, 165, 220, 295
_Phœbus_, the, 244
_Phœnix_, the, 76
Pirrie, Lord, 217
“Plunging-boat,” Fulton’s, 48
_Pool Zee_, the, 236
Popoff, Admiral, 276
Post Office mail packets, 224
Preble, Admiral, on Hulls’ experiments, 30; on American and English engines, 88
Prince Robert of Hesse, paddle-wheel boat of, 22
_Princess Mary_, the, 224
_Princess Maud_, the, 224
_Prinzessin Charlotte_, the, 89
_Priscilla_, the, 262
Propeller, problems connected with, 309–10; inward _v._ outward turning, 311; effect on steering, 317
_Providence_, the, 262
Pulitzer, Mr., 303
_Puritan_, the, 262
Quadruple-expansion engines, 166, 178
_Queen_, the, 230
Queen Victoria, yachts in honour of, 268
Randolph Elder & Co., 116
Reciprocating engine, Watt’s invention of “double action” for, 38; difficulties of, 209; of _Laurentic_, 210
Red Star Line, 150
Reed, Sir Edward, 319
Rennie & Sons, Messrs. J. T., 216
Repairs, curious, 294–6, 323
Resistance, Fulton’s experiments, 65; recent experiments, 66; varieties of, 67; D. Napier’s experiments in, 81; John Scott Russell and, 130–1; speed and, 176; experiments in, 321–2
_Richmond_, the, 76
_Robert G. Lee_, the, 261
_Robert F. Stockton_, the, 119, 124
_Rob Roy_, the, 81, 221, 223, 224
Rogers, Moses, 91
_Roode Zee_, the, 236
Ropner & Sons, Messrs., 248
Rotary engine, Watt’s, 37
Royal Commission on Tonnage, 313
_Royal Edward_, the, 217
_Royal George_, the, 217
Royal Line, 217, 220
Royal Mail Steam Packet Co., first contract for mails, 110; the _Teviot_ and _Clyde_, 110–11; _Forth_ and _Thames_, launch of, 111; removal to Southampton; extension to South America, 112; the _Trent_, 113
_Royal William_, the (American), 95, 103, 105, 221
_Royal William_, the (2) (1838), 101
Royal yachts, 277–8
Royal Yacht Squadron and steam yachts, 266–9
Rubie, John, 89
_Ruby_, the, engines of, 94
Rudder, balanced type of, 201; bow-, 231; of “bucket” dredgers, 240;
## action of, 317;
types of, 318; loss of, 323
Rumsey, James, method of propelling boats of, 28; experiments by, 44; association with Fulton and Fitch, 44, 254
Russia, introduction of steamships into, 85
_Russia_, the, 149, 150
Russell, Scott, on Hulls’ experiments, 31; and “resistance,” 130–1, 137; and _Great Eastern_, 139, 319
_St. Paul_, the, 220
_St. Petersburg_, the, 229
_St. Louis_, the, 220
Safety-valve, discovery by Papin of, 23
“Sagging,” 99, 102
_Sagitta_, the, 278
Sailing ship, limitations of, 5
Saloon, position of, 152; fittings of, 153; of modern liners, 300, 302
_Sardinia_, the, 327
_Savannah_, the, 91
Savery, Thomas, inventions of, 24–5; “horse-power” calculations of, 39
_Saxonia_, the, 178, 220
_Scot_, the, 295
“Scotch” boiler, 151
_Scotia_, the, 129
_Scotia_, the (Holyhead), 222
Screw, first use of by J. Stevens, 63
“Screw-port,” introduction of, 169; of _Mauretania_, 201
Screw propeller, development of, 119; Ericsson’s, 119; Francis Smith’s, 120; effect on ship-designing, 122; “slip” and “pitch” of, 122–3; “racing,” 129; of _Victoria_, 131; spur-gearing for shafts, 135; of _Great Eastern_, 142; twin-screws, 165; “overlapping” of twins, 169; of _Ophir_, 169; of _Campania_, 171; in relation to turbine, 190; of _Mauretania_, 201, 203; of _Laurentic_, 210; adaptation to lifeboats and fire-floats, 256; for yacht, 269
_Sea Serpent_, the, 268
_Servia_, the, 150, 156
Seventeenth century, scientific discoveries of, 20
“Shade-decker” type, 287
Shaft, fractured, 323
Ship architecture, problems of, 319
Side-lever engine, development of, 88; of _Britannia_, 109; improvements of, 127; of _Helen McGregor_, 128; of _Scotia_, 130; first applied to yachts, 268
_Silverlip_, the, 245
_Silvertown_, the, 243
_Sir Francis Drake_, the, 238
_Sirius_, the, 96, 97, 100, 101, 105, 193
_Slavonia_, the, 212
“Slip” of propeller, 122, 310
Smit & Co., Messrs. L., 236
Smith, Assheton, and steam yachts, 266–8
Smith, Francis, screw-propeller of, 120
Somerset, Edward (_see_ Worcester, Marquis of)
South America, establishment of Royal Mail service to, 112
South Eastern Railway, 223; boats of, 224
Southampton, as headquarters of Royal Mail Co., 112; -Havre route, 227; dredging at, 239
South of England Steam Navigation Co., 227
South Western Steam Packet Co., 228
“Spar-deck” type, 285
Speed, appreciation of, 181, 213
Sponsons, arrangement of, 261
Spur-gearing, 135
Stability, problems of, 315–6
Stanhope, Earl of, Fulton and, 56; experiments of, 57, 59
Steam power, problems concerning, 3; evolution of, 18; application of by Hero, Archimedes and Mathesius, 19; Solomon de Caus’ and Giovanni Branca’s discoveries, 20; Denis Papin’s invention, 21–4; Savery’s inventions, 24–5; Newcomen’s engine, 25–7; Jonathan Hulls’ tow-boats, 29; Watt’s engine, 34–8; Symington’s engine, 43; Fitch’s development in America, 44–5; improvements on _Charlotte Dundas_, 47; Fulton’s experiments, 49, _et seq._; the Stevens’s boats, 63; development in America, 76; “Grasshopper” type of engine, 79; side-beam engine, 88; American and English engines, 88; improvements in engines, 94; the compound engine, 116; oscillating engine, 132; vertical trunk engine, 134; condenser, 135, 136, 167; steering gear, 144; triple-expansion engines, 166–7; quadruple-expansion engines, 178; turbine engines, 184; beam engines of American river boats, 262; applied to yachts, 268
Steel, first ship of, 150; development of, 156; advantage of, 157
Steeple engines, 269
Steering gear, steam, of _Great Eastern_, 143; principle of, 144
Steering-wheel, development of, 89
_Stella_, the, 228
Stephenson, George, 221
Stern, height of, 153, 172, 201
Stern-wheel boats, invention by Robert Stevens of, 63, 258
Stettin Vulcan Co., 174
Stevens, John, stern-wheel steamer of, 63; proposal from Fulton to, 64; the _Phœnix_, 76, 118
Stevens, Robert, invention of tubular boilers by: first screw-steamer of, 63
Stone-Lloyd water-tight doors, 191
Strain, 98, 99, 126; minimised by length, 139; effect of iron and wood in, 146–7
Submarine signalling, 172; on Great Eastern boats, 229; methods of, 305
Subsidy, Cunard Co.’s first, 106; Royal Mail Steam Packet Co.’s first, 112; reduction of, 113; for _Mauretania_ and _Lusitania_, 198
“Suction” dredger, 239, 240
_Suevic_, the, 295
Suez Canal, 115, 116, 117; limitations imposed by, 215
“Sun-and-planet” gear, 37, 47
_Sunbeam_, the, 270
Sutcliffe, Mrs., on Fulton, 50, 61
Swan, Hunter and Wigham Richardson, 212
Symington, William, engine for Miller’s boat by, 43; the _Charlotte Dundas_, 46
_Talbot_, the, 221
Taylor, James, 42
Taylor, Naval Constructor D. W., experiments in resistance by, 67
Telegraph ships, 242–3
Telephone, use of on _Balmoral Castle_, 219; installation on liners of, 305
_Teutonic_, the, 168, 179
_Teviot_, the, 110
Thames, first steamship on the, 83
_Thames_, the, 84, 111
Thompson, George, & Co., 216
“Three-island” type, 283
_Titanic_, the, 207, 211, 289
Tonnage, of “turret-ships,” 247; measurements of, 312; Royal Commission on, 313; anomalies of, 313–4
“Tonnage-deck,” 312
_Tonquin_, the (ex _City of Paris_), 149
“Topgallant” forecastle, 284
Torricelli, Evangelista, discovery of weight of atmosphere, 20
Towing, feats of, 236–7
Train-ferries, 251
Tramp steamer, the, 250
Trawlers, steam, 252
_Trent_, the, Slidell and Mason incident, 113
_Triad_, the, 270, 278, 279
Trial trip, how carried out, 292, 293
Triple-expansion engines, principle of, 117, 166
“Trunk-deck” steamer, 248
Tubular boiler, 133
Tugs, variety of, 234; “Cock” type, 235; Dutch, 236; salvage, 237; New York Harbour, 237; as passenger tenders, 238; paddle-wheel, 239; as trawlers, 252
Turbine, Giovanni Branca and, 20; importance of, 183; invention of, 184; Parsons system of, 186; the _Carmania’s_, 187; faults of, 188; the _Vespasian_ experiment, 189; of _Virginian_ and _Victorian_, 190; of _Carmania_, 192; of _Mauretania_ and _Lusitania_, 197, 201; low-pressure of _Laurentic_, 210; on cross-channel boats, 226; on Great Eastern Railway Co.’s boats, 230; on Isle of Man boats, 230; reliability of, 230; on yachts, 274
_Turbinia_, the, 187
Turret-ships, 245; comparison with “whale-back,” 265
Turtle decks of _Oceanic_, 153; of _Umbria_, 158; of _Victoria_, 163; of _Majestic_, 168
Twain, Mark, on Mississippi steamers, 259, 260
Twin-screw, evolution of, 163; introduction of “overlapping,” 169; of the _Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse_, 175; of _Adriatic_, 207; influence of on steering capacity, 318
Twin-ships, 225
Types of steamships, 283–7
_Umbria_, the, 158–9, 161, 162, 163, 165, 212
Union-Castle Line, 216; ships of, 219
Union Line, 216
_Vanadis_, the, 280
Ventilation, methods of, 327
Veranda café of _Lusitania_, 301
Vertical trunk engine, 134
_Vespasian_, the, 189
_Victoria_, the, 131
_Victoria_, the (P. & O.), 163
_Victoria and Albert_, the, 277
_Victorian_, the, 190
_Vigilant_, the, 241
_Virginian_, the, 190, 191
Vulcan Yards, Hamburg, 212
_Waesland_ (ex _Russia_), 150
_Wakiva_, the, 280–1
_Waratah_, the, 182
Water-ballast, tanks of cantilever-framed ships, 249; for yachts, 274; tanks for, 315
Water-tight doors of _Oceanic_, 153; Stone-Lloyd system, 191
Watson, G. L., 270
Watt, James, 33; early engine of, 34; association with Boulton, 35; beam engine, 36; “sun-and-planet” gear, 37; rotary engine, 37; invention of fly-wheel, 38; “horse-power” calculations of, 39; anecdote of, 82; invention of condenser, 135, 136
Watt, James, & Co., 140
Watt, James, Junr., and steamships, 84
Wave-line theory, 131, 133
Waves, action of, 98
“Well-deck” type, 284–5
West Indies, inauguration of mail service to, 110
Weymouth and Channel Islands Steam Packet Co., 228
“Whale-back” steamer, 265
White, Sir William H., 197, 203
White Star Line, first steamships of, 151; Atlantic competition, 151–5, 168; “intermediate” ships of, 178; recent ships, 193–4, 206–7, 209, 211; sailing ships of, 215; freight and live-stock steamers, 219
Wigram and Green, 93
_William Facwett_, the, 114
Williams and Guion, 155, 212
Williamson, Capt. J.: “The Clyde Passenger Steamer: Its Rise and Progress during the Nineteenth Century,” 78
Williamson’s “Memorials of James Watt,” 83
Wilson, Thomas, & Sons, 216
Wireless telegraphy on _Campania_ and _Lucania_, 171; on P. & O. ships, 218; on cross-channel boats, 226; usefulness of, 229; on yachts, 271; on liners, 306; instances of utility of, 307–8
_Wittekind_, the, 295
Wood, John, & Co., and the _Comet_, 78
Worcester, Marquis of, 9, 10, 18, 20
Yacht, the steam, Royal Yacht Squadron and, 266–8; Northern Yacht Club and, 267; Robert Napier and, 267; development of, 269; the _Sunbeam_, 270; lines of, 270; decks of, 272; fittings of, 273; engines and ballast, 274; Royal, 277–8; the _Sagitta_, 278; the _Triad_, 278–9; noted yachts, 280–1
Ymuiden Tug Company, 237
_Zwarte Zee_, the, 236
PRINTED BY CASSELL & COMPANY, LIMITED, LA BELLE SAUVAGE, LONDON, E.C.
Transcriber’s Notes
Punctuation, hyphenation, and spelling were made consistent when a predominant preference was found in the original book; otherwise they were not changed.
Simple typographical errors were corrected; unbalanced quotation marks were remedied when the change was obvious, and otherwise left unbalanced.
Illustrations in this eBook have been positioned between paragraphs and outside quotations. In versions of this eBook that support hyperlinks, the page references in the List of Illustrations lead to the corresponding illustrations.
In the original book, a few credits referred to more than one illustration on the page. In this ebook, those credits have been duplicated so that each illustration has its own copy.
The index was not checked for proper alphabetization or correct page references.
Several incorrect page references to illustrations have been silently corrected.
Page 160: “to sail eastward” was printed that way; may be a typo for “westward”.