The Sun.
London, England, 1860-01-11 00:00:00

TILE GREAT EASTERN.

The following report has been addressed to the
shareholders by the builder of the Great Ship, Mr.
J. Scott Russell :

As one of the originators of the design of the
great ship, and as the builder of the ship, I find it
an imperative duty to lay before you, as the owners,
a short report on the present state of our property.
1. It has been proved conclasively by tthheatltahtee
trials, and contrary to general expectation,
as a small
great ship is as handy and manageable
vessel.
This is no light gain—for it was constantly put
forward, as one of her disadvantages, that there
were not two harbours in the world she could enter.
It is now proved that there is no port, where any
ship of equal draft of water could safely navigate,
that the great ship could not enter. Here, then,
is one fact, now established, by experience, in
contradiction to one of many hostile predictions.
This fact proves that the means adopted in
her original design—to make the ship steer
well—have been entirely successful. Now look at
the real effect of these facts on the value of the pro-
perty. She can now be safely chartered to sail from
Southampton, Weymouth, Milford Haven, Holy-
head, Liverpool, Kingstown, Cork, or Galway. She
can be navigated up the Hooghly—if not to Cal-
cutta, at least to Diamond Harbour. Sydney and
Melbourne are open to her in Australia, and Port-
land in Canada ; and New York might be safely ap-
proached as near as by other vessels of the same
draft of water. The great ship, therefore, is neither
an exception nor a monster, but is able to thread
safely the entrance of any harbour where she is
likely to find work to be done.
2. It has been conclusively proved, by the late
trials, that the sea-going qualities of the great ship
are good, and that her properties as a piece of naval
architecture are what I, who designed her, intended.
It was said that, from her great height out of the
water, she would be crank, and lie over on her side
as the Perseverance did • experience has shown
that she stands up admirably, and that under sail
she has little inclination. Others said she would
have the opposite defect, and would be so stiff as
not to yield at all to a heavy sea. By this defect the
sea, they said, would strike her like a rock, and do
her great damage. Now, the contrary of this has
also been proved, and she has a gentle easy rolling
motion, with scarcely any pitching, but just enough
of both to prevent her having anything to fear from
the shock of the sea.
3. It has been proved that the great strength of
her mechanical construction had not been overstated
by her designers. If any trial on land could conclu-
sively have proved this, the great strains she un-
derwent at launching, without change of shape, did
so. But experience of the ship, under the strain of
the engines when under way and working up to
more than 7,000-horse power iu the sea, has shown
that the vibration, which in vessels of high speed is
so common an indication of weakness, exists in her
to a smaller extent than in any other ship ever
built. She has therefore been proved to be, even
for her great site, the strongest vessel in the world.
This is a most important fact to bear in mind
in estimating the value of your property, and it
most materially affects the question of insurance.
4. In regard to safety. The peculiar structure
given to her, consisting of longitudinal strengthen-
ing, and an unusual number of longitudinal and
tranverse bulkheads, by which she is divided into
many water-tight compartments, has stood the
severest test. The efficiency of these compartments
was tried before the vessel left the Thames. A
portion of the vessel was entirely filled with water
up to the level of the deck. 120 feet of her length
were for some days inundated as completely as if
that portion of the vessel had been torn open by
running on a rock During this period the remain-
der of the ship was perfectly dry. Even the sad
accident of the explosion of a heater, so deeply
lamented from its injury to life, did nevertheless
prove the efficacy of this peculiar structure of the
ship in securing the general safety ; for the whole
of the damage was confined to the compartment
where it originated.
5. In regard to speed. The facts which have
been ascertained are, that in the first trials, made
under the disadvantages attending every novelty,
the vessel attained a speed of I 4; knots, or about
17 statute miles an hour. It is right you should
be informed that 14 knots was the original speed
assigned to the vessel by Mr. Brunel, in the early
reports to the directors of the original company.
There is, therefore, no good reason for disappoint-
ment on this head. It must be admitted that there
were many people who hoped for more, but they
had no right to expect it, for the vessel has an ex-
tremely small proportion of power for its size. The
object of this small power was great economy of
fuel on a long voyage. Taking into account the
great size of tlia ship, and the comparatively small
amount of horse-power intentionally given to her,
she realises a greater speed than any vessel hitherto
constructed.
6. In regard to the nature and speed of a voyage.
It ought to be kept in mind that the great ship
was not built for extreme speed on short voyages,
but for the express purpose of maintaining fair
speed, with great economy of transport, on a long
voyage of over 1:3,000 statute miles. For this use, and
this IliC alone, were all her contrivances of construc-
tion originally designed. In considering, therefore,
how to turn this propery to profitable account, you
should never lose sight of the fact that she is able
to do this voyage in one-third less time than it has
yet been done.
7. Cost of Transport.—l find, according to our
present experience, that the cost of running the
ship is £2 a mile, including every kind of expense.
The goods alone which she can carry, even at the
most moderate freights, will repay this cost, and
leave the entire passenger traffic as pure profit.
The freights she could earn by passengers are more
than double what she could earn by goods.
8. Remuneration from Passengers.—The com-
parative exemption of passengers by this ship from
sea-sickness, confined cabins, close air, and the other
usual inconveniences of a sea voyage, has been
proved by experience to be more complete than her
most sanguine promoters anticipated. The large
space afforded for air and exercise, the light, luxury,
and ventilation of the cabins, have never been
paralleled in any other ship. There can, therefore,
be no doubt that, on those great lines which passen-
gers frequent in large numbers, a strong preference
would be given to that ship which substitutes for
the sickness and misery of a long sea voyage all the
comfort and luxury of an hotel. Two thousand
passengers can be thus conveniently accommodated
at fares that would yield a net revenue of £4 a mile.
9. Summary of Results.—Such, then, are a few
of the sea-going qualities and money-earning
capabilities of our ship ; and you will thus see
that all the qualities and powers of the vessel ori-
ginally promised when she was designed have
been borne out by experience. She has proved handy
and manageable, so as to go into and out of any
harbour in this or other countries that affords suit-
able traffic. She has ample power to stand up in
a sea-way or storm, without such rigid stiffness as
to make the sea strike her with violence. She has
proved herself the strongest ship in the world. She
has proved that in danger, whether from external
violence or internal accident, her system of separa-
tion into compartments is so successful that
no damage to one part of her affects another. She
has realised the speed for which she was designed,
arid which is such as to enable her to reduce the
time of a voyage to Australia from 59 da3 s to 39
days. She can not only carry coals for the entire
passage to Australia, but find room besides for
5,000 tons of goods. Along ss ith this, she affords
ample accommodation for from 500 to 800 first-class
passengers, and might be fitted up for 1,000 addi-
tional berths, as first or second class, and 1,500
third class, if desirable. She has been proved to
afford comparative immunity from sea-sickness,
along with the comfort and luxury of a first-class
hotel ; thus rendering a passage across the sea in
every way more enjoyable than a long journey by
1 old.
Such are the proved advantages which our ship
presents, and yet we are told that our property is a
bad one, and must be laid aside as unseaworthy.
It has been stated that the ship is not now com-
pleted throughout her whole extent. Of course she
is not. She was not meant to be entirely completed
until after her return from America, when her per-
manent station and trade could be determined.
Originally she had
been passengers, or 107iodesigned to accommodate
her trial
; but for the pur-
pose of going to sea, on
rf
trip to America,
she wag only to be completed r 675 passengers.
Only two compartments of her length—one of 90
and another of 60 feet long—were completely fitted
iap for passengers. The rest of the sohi
intended. almost entirely unfitted, or 111:ernains, as
provisionally
Fitted onl v, for temporary purposes.
Before •I
conclude, let me say a few words about
myself. You have been taught to suppose that you
and I hawe opposite interests. D) not believe it.
My inter gists can never be separated from those of
the Grea f ,Ship. I am proud to have been her
builder. expect yet to earn great reputation by
her; any I am, like yourselves, a large share-
holder. lit is, therefore, my interest, even more
than your Is, that your property in the ship should
turn out valuable. It is true, you owe me money for
work dor le ; but we are not therefore enemies. I
want no

snore for my work than three honest and

able arbitrators, to whom you and I have both re-
ferred al e ,natter, shall say is due to me; let us both,
therefore ;„ set about turning our mutual property to
account, rf Jr our mutual good. As a fellow-share-
holder o f the ship, let me tell you that what is now
wanted if . the best possible management of the ship,
Steams b ipping property is not easily managed;