The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1859-10-11 00:00:00

PORTLAND.
TRIAL TRIP OF THE GREAT EASTERN.

PORTLAND ROADS, 12 noon, Oct. 8.

In the course of another hour or KO from this time the
Great Eastern will have omumenced her second trial trip
and be well on her way under easy steam for the Scilly
Islands. It has required no ordinary effort on the part
of the directors and contractor to get the vessel in a state
even to quit this harbour on a coasting voyage. For any-
thing approaching a sea cruise she is still unprepared,
and an immense amount of work has still to be done
before the Great Eastern can really try her strength and
speed with the huge waves of the Atlantic. That this
last named trial will take place, as at one time stated,
on the 20th of October is now utterly out of the question.
Throughout, I have always sail the voyage
to America
was certain not to take place in October at all. Irons
whet I new see, I think I mussy venture further and state
at once that it is more than probable the Great Eastern
will not leave England during this winter. This may,
and most likely will, disappoint and chill the enthusiasm
on the other side of the water, but American fervour
bears keeping for a long time, and perhaps the reception
of the 'Big Ship" will be all the more striking from the
facto( its arrival being delayed till the spring. At Holy.
head she will remain, it is supposed, till the end of the
pr,,seot month. What the next step will be is matter
for conjecture, though Southampton offers such facilities
for fitting inn the ship completely that it is alluo4 cer-
tain that that will be the port chosen for her winter
quarters.
On Thursday afternoon and yesterday morning the
steam uiachinery for assisting in working round the
capstan was tested by Mr. Scott Russell. The result
was not satisfactory, and after getting in one or two
fathoms of the cable the machinery cause to a dead
stand. The new tackle for ,teering (uot Mr. Lungley's
steering apparatus) was also tried, and with additional
purchase seemed at last to work well. This morning it
has been tested and re-tested to the utmost that can be
effected while the vessel is at her moorings. Two men
are able to get the helm over from hard-s-port to bard-
s-starboard in 28 seconds. What time it will take, or
how many MOO it will require when the screw is going
full speed and the vessel slipping through the water at
15 or 16 knots an hour, it is hard to say. The pro-
gramme of the trial trip is briefly as follows :—During
this afternoon and to-night the vessel under easy steam
will keep down Channel, though in sight of land till all
the machinery is in good working order. To-morrow
soon after 10 steam will be shut off from the paddle
engines, and for four hours the Great Eastern will be
driven by the screw o.ly. Dozing this tune the

pressure, vaculm, number of revolutions, and amount
of coal consumed will be carefully registered, with the
speed of the ship, both by hand and patent logs.
When as much is known as can be ascertained in a
few hours' run, steam will be abut off in the screw
engines, and the paddle will be tested for the
time in the came manner. Mr. Blake and Mr.
Lsi.gdon, of the firm of Bolton and Watt, go in sole
charge of the screw engines. Mr. Scott Russell and his
assistants are solely in charge of the paddles. The
former gentlemen are confident that they can easily oh-
, tain from 40 to 44 revolutions of the screw engines
while driving the ship alone. The latter is willing to
try going as near to the 14 revolutions of the paddles
as can be accomplished; 12 or 14 revolutions could
easily be obtained from the paddle engines while the
paddle wheels themselves are in their present condition,
as Mr. Scott Russell's assistants have reefed the Boats
no less than 21 feet. Every engineer will understand at
once what the effect of this will be. Reefing the floats
means putting the floats or boards on the wheels that
propel the vessel so much nearer to the centre of the
paddle wheel as virtually to reduce its diameter. By
reefing all the floats of the Great Eastern 21 feet, the
diameter of the wheel is now reduced from 53 to 48 feet.
At present only four of the Boats are in the water at the
same time, and these have so little immersion as to be
virtually useless in propelling the ship. Under these
circumstances 12 or even 14 revolutions may be got out
of the paddle engines easily, but tho gain in the speed
of the ship will be almost nil. It will, however, make a
most important difference as regards testing the
engines for speed and strength. Both engines are to
be tested to the very utmost at which they can be pushed
with safety, for the directors are determined if a break
down is to occur to have it, and remedy it before the
vessel goes to sea on her regular voyages. In the pre-
sent tnp it is quite possible that some portions of the
machinery may give under the rigid tests they will have
to pass through, but a break down now will go far to
render one impossible hereafter. If the piston and air-
pump rods of the paddle engines will bear 14 revolutions
a minute, even though the paddles are but slightly ini-
menied, they will stand anything. So also if the screw
engines now are able to bear 44 revolutions without heat-
ing, a little time of working will soon get them up to their
full speed of 53.
The number of visitors on board during the trial trip
lois been limited exclusively to those connected with the
vessel. Mr. Campbell and Mr. Bold—the chairman and
managing directors—are on board, with Captain Robert-
son, it. N., Sttrveyor-General of the Board of Trade, and
his assistants, Mr. Galloway and Mr. Carr. These gen.
Heinen came down with Captain Robertson specially to
examine and report upon the fitness of the vessel during
her trip from this port to Holyhead. Mr. Brereton and
Mr. Jacomb go round as the late Mr. Brimel's repre-
sentatives, with Professor Frond; Mr. Trotman is also
on board, with Mr. Talbot and Mr. Ogilive. Beyond
these none have been admitted.

TII6 MUTINY ON BOARD VIZ GRIAT EAST-
ERN."— At Judge's Chambers, on Tuesday, an
application was made in referance to the convictions
of seamen for rd'using to do certain work on Sunday
on board the Great Eastern. Mr. Justice Byles
granted writs of sertiorari and habeas corpus, so that
the whole question might be argued before the
Judges.

FATAL ACCIDENT. —An inquest WU held at the
Crown Inn, Chesil, before F. C. Steggall, Esq., coro-
ner, on the body of George Avery, a workman on the
Breakwater, who was killed on the previous Satur-
day. From the evidence it was shown that a crane
was being worked for raising stone on the work.;
the deceased and another man, named Richards, were
on it fixing a chain to a stone weighing about two
tons. It is customary when using the crane to place
a balance or counterpoise of iron on the opposite side
to the stone, for the purpose of keeping the crane in
position. It was the duty of Avery to see that the
bahuice was properly adjusted, and on being asked
by a vrituess, named James Hutchings, as to its safety
he said it was all right, and the operation of hoisting
the stone commenced. It was then seen that the other
extremity of the crane began to rise, and Hutch-
ings called out to the men to warn them of their
danger. Richards jumped off and escaped all harm,
but the crane struck the deceased so violently as to
fracture the back part of his scull, besides inflicting
other injuries. He was taken ashore and
under the care of Dr. Broderibb, but died shortly
after. A verdict of "Accidental death" was
returned.