The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-10-16 00:00:00

USE AND ABUSE OF THE MAGNETIC BEAR-
INGS OF VAUXEIALL CHIMNEY, AND THE
UTILITY OF THE " DUMB CARD " ON SHIP-
BOARD.

40, Tower-buildings East, Liverpool,

October 13, 1856

THOMAS C.HIIRT, ESQ., SECIETARY TO THE UNDERWRITERS,

ASSOCIATION

Dear Sir,—l am directed by the Liverpool Compass
Committee to send you some remarks on the use and
abuse of the magnetic bearings of the Vauxhall chimney
which have been painted upon the dock walls, with a
.view to their publication for the information of under-
writers, shipowners, and others. In addition, employing
these bearings, as at first pr3posed to, for testing the
accuracy of compasses which have been compensated in
dock, and for ascertaining the amount of existing corn,
pass errors, a tendency has been observed to use them
for the magnetic adjustment of ships' compasses in the river,
a purpose never intended by the Committee, and which,
though quite possible under favourable circumstances,
should, as a general practice, be discouraged. It may
be thought if a captain is expected to adjust his
compasses at sea, that a professional compass adjuster
should be able to do the same in the river with the
additional facilities all'ow'ed by the dock marks.
Abstractly, such adjustment is very simple ; but in
practice difficulties supervene to make the attempt, to
say the least, undesirable, if not hazardous, as will be
seen by the following considerations : --

To render

ion of a ship's magnetism

to consider

a as resolved into two directions

at right angles to

an attn!etion fez:

and-aft

and another towards the sid

across the ship,

e- - compensate the last, the ship is held as steadily as
possible in the direction of the magnetic meridian while
the necessary magnets are placed across the deck. To
compensate the fore-and-aft attraction, the ship must be
kept.for a short time with her head magnetic east or
west, to allow the fOre-and_aft magnets to be placed in
position. Now, to do this across the tide of the Mersey,
while in tow of a steam tug, is very difficult, as well as
attended with great risk of collision with the ships
which crowd the river. Again, it may happen that, at
the sime the ship is leaving dock to proceed at once to
sea, the shimmy to which the bearings refer in ty be
concealed by fog, or that delays in getting clear of the
dock may consume the short time allotted for river
adjustment, and then the ship must either be hurried to
sea in an unsatisfactory condition, or be obliged to anchor
in the river with a loss to those concerned, instead of the
anicipated saving of time and expense.
Reference to the circulars issued by the Compass Cotn_
mittee will show that its members never contemplated
the adjustment of ships' compasses in the river, and
they take an early opportunity of warning shipowners
against wishing it, except under very special circum-
stances, Compass adjustment should be attended to in
dock, care being taken to select for it such docks as
will allow a favourable position for the shore compass;
or better still, one of the docks prepared for the process
should be employed, and then the chance of error froni
local attraction on shore will be prevented, as here no
shore compass is necessary.
The proper uses of the magnetic bearings of Vauxhall
chimney are, to test the accuracy of dock adjustment by
a few observations made in the river—to ascertain if the
deviations given in the tables are correct or not—to afforci
shipmasters in general facilities for testing the quality of
their compasses, and the existence of any local attraction
from the presence of iron in the fittings of the ship or in
her cargo—to enable the captains of iron ships, on their
return to port, to decide whether new adjustment be
necessary, and to assist them to obtain for themselves,
with great ease and accuracy, new deviation tables.
tThheeis)ee
aarrien
gtsh eimportanto as
en(di t ,
ani to
legitimate i
culls etsli
the Compass
asli which
Committee desire to confine them.
Another subject connwed with these bearings to
which attention is invited, is the utility on shipboard of
a portable, gimballed, duinh-card, fitted with a lubber_
line and sight-vanes. When properly made, the dumb-
card is in many respec:s superior to the Azimuth
compass. . Unfortunately, comparatively few ships are
supplied with either, and in very many the only compass
in use—the steering compass—is so placed below the
bulwarks, or concealed by the binnacle, that it is next to
impossible to take bearings with them within half a
point of the truth ; and to such the newly-painted
magnetic bearings can be of little service. But the
dumb-card aptly meets the difficulty, and enables any one
in the river to obtain the true bearing of the ship's head
almost instantaneously, and with surprising facility and
correctness; and that whether the ship be at anchor,
swinging with the tide, or moving ever so rapidly through
the water.

In short, the Compass Committee esteems this instru-
ment so highly as to he of opinion that its use, in port,
will. double the value of the magnetic bearings which
have been painted on the dock walls at their suggestion,
and, at sea, that it will be found more accurate and useful
than the Azimuth compass itself.—Believe me, dear sir,
your very obedient servant, W. W. RUNDELL, S.

RE\TARKABLE SPEECH BY A RUSSIAN
MERCHANT.

Among the feasts at Moscow by which the late
coronation of the Czar was attended, was one given
by M. Basile Koklreff to tho deputations of
peasants and merchants, assembled from the prin-
cipal cities of Russia. M. Kokoreff was formerly a
peasant, but is now one of the wealthiest merchants
in Russia, and has made himself singularly popu-
lar throughout the empire by his profuse generosity
and enthusiastic, patriotism. The last occasion
upon which his name was brought prominently
before English readers was in connection with a
grand banquet given by him at Moscow to the
soldiers and sailors returning from the defence of
Sebastopol. At the late dinner to the merchants
he delivered a speech sufficiently remarkable to
repay translation.

It is not long since (he said) that at this very place,
Moscow, the heart of the Russian nationality, the Musco-
vites feted the welcomed and heroic defenders of Sebastopol.
We were then expecting peace,and were consoling ourselves
with the hope of soon profiting by its happy results. To-day
peace is no longer a hope, it is a reality ; and now again in
the same city of Moscow, we are celebrating, heart and soul,
the holy coronation of our beloved monarch, the author
of the peace and so many other blessings. Here also are
united the representatives of the whole nation, as well as
gentlemen, the delegates of our bourgeoisie.
Let
et efore, manifest in unison the sentiments
w4oehuti
us,h w
h.feel at the advent of these recent blessings.
y also,e
Our gracious sovereign has been pleased to order that
our children should henceforth frequent without any restric-
tion the University course. He has ordered the revision
of the relations between government and commerce ; and
the revision of the tariff, which cannot fail to quicken
our industry. All our relations with foreign nations are
rendered easier. His Majesty has also been pleased to
authorise the foundation of art Industrial Society, under
the direct patronage of the heir to the throne. Happy the
spteuodpyl
nagn andgrand a
means
tss future
satisfyingwhe nits h princesem r
aasptpl
yin
l ththem-
selvese betimes to the sacred duty of learning its wants and
midst of all these events, the " Society of Navigation and
of the Commerce of the South and of Russia," has been
established, the aim of which is to expedite our relations
with Europe, and to facilitate our exports and imports.
Russia has always been able to confess her faults as welt as
recognise her merits. Let us, therefore, frankly declare,
gentlemen, that, in point of commerc. end industry, we
are, in many respects, rather behind. Our merit at present
esnsists in the desire to improve ourselves by intelligent
practice. It is a fact that in the industrial life of a people,
certain and complete success is less easily obtained by the
theoretical precepts of books than by a continuous contact
with other peoples. By this contact we acquire expe-
rience, ideas, taste, and establish new relations which are
sure to be maintained, because they rest. upon common
interests—the only stable securities for treaties of peace.
In order to arrive at this end, the surest means is facility
and rapidity of communication with foreign nations. The
question of steam boats and railways is at present a
question of human interest, because it is by their means
that nations can be united in a community of interests and
in feelings of fraternity. In regard to commerce, there
exists amongst us the most contradictory opinions. Some
still speak of a Chinese wall; others of free trade. But,
be .certain, gentlemen, that such questions are never
resolved by extremes ; their true definition can only result
from an international exchange of ideas. When, by means
of steam, we shall be able to unite ourselves more closely
with foreign merchants, more expert than We are in point
of industry, and exchange with them our ideas, then we
shall arrive at the exact and true definition of the very
principles of commerce—a definition which is deeply
interesting to the whole of Europe. It wilt then happen
that we shall see here in Moscow, the centre of the
internal commerce of Russia, as well as in the other cities
and ports of the empire, representatives of the principal
commercial houses of Europe. We shall then be able to
learn every day here in Moscow, and at a fixed hour, the
progress of business in Paris, London, and other places,
and be able, when we are assembled as now, with the glass in
our hands, to learn by telegraph the health of our children,
who may be placed in foreign countries in Russian houses
of commerce. When I review in mind all the pregnant
consequences which must infallility result to nations from
their union, by means of commerce—a union based on
common interests—l cannot refrain from proposing to you,
gentlemen, to drink at once and unanimously the following
toast, "To European commerce, to foreign merchants, our
elder brethren in industry, and to my honourable col-
leagues the merchants of Russia."
The above was received by the company with
loud and repeated hurrahs." The personal
appearance of M. Kokoreff, while delivering this
speech—.his long beard and hair cut a la moujile,
and his warmth of manner—did not by any means
lessen the effect of his words.