The Sun.
London, England, 1861-09-21 00:00:00

TRIAL TRIP OF IHE WARRIOR.

The Warrior made her first real seagoing trip on
Thursday last, in a voyage from Greenhithe to
Portsmouth. As far as can be judged during such
a short run, over water as smooth as glass, this
trial more than realised all the expectations that
have been formed of this splendid vessel. It was
in fact almost monotonous, from the quiet unvary-
ing success with which everything connected with
the ship and engines worked from first to last. She
answered her helm like a yacht, was most astonish-
ingly free from vibration or movement, even going
at speed, seemed light and buoyant to the gentle
swell she met with here and there, and, above all,
even in her unfavourable condition as to a foul
bottom and the launching cleats being on, made
her way through the water faster than the average
of quick seagoing mail steamers. It only wanted
a stiff breeze and heavy beam sea in the Channel
to make the trial perfect, but neither of these
was she fortunate enough to meet. Before the
middle of next month, however, she will be out of
her dry dock at Portsmouth—at least, completely
ready for sea—when it is stated she is to take 'a
cruise in search of bad weather. At such a time
of the year her search for a storm is not likely
to be a long one, and if it is possible to predicate
anything from what she has already done, and from
what may be expected from her size and power, she
will pass through the last and worst of all her
ordeals as triumphantly as the rest.
Daring the time she has been moored at Green-
hithe a great deal of work has been accomplished.
All, or nearly all her internal fittings and arrange.
ments have been finished; her stores, guns, and
powder got on board, and her seagoing equip-
ment thoroughly completed. The iron tower
on her deck has been finished, but, unfortu
nately, in such a rough and unworkmanlike style
that it literally almost spoils the look of the
vessel from the deck. This portion of the iron work
was fitted by the dockyard authorities at Woolwich,
and its appearance in close proximity to the
beautifully finished plates of the Thames Iron
Company naturally enough provoked comparisons
in the highest degree unfavourable to the skill of
the former. It is to be hoped that this is no crite-
rion of what we may expect to see in the Achilles,
which they have been so long and are still so con-
stantly threatening to begin building at Chatham.
It was not publicly known that the Warrior
was to make her first trip on Thursday,
and no one who saw the state of the ship
on Wednesday could have believed that it was
possible to get her to sea on the following day.
Her departure, however, was imperatively neces
sary, as, if she failed to take advantage of the spring
tides of Thursday, there was no chance of getting
into dock at Portsmouth for another fortnight at the
least. But that the public might be incredulous at
the Admiralty being accused of any oversight, we
should be inclined to say that it was a decided
blunder to build ships of the Warrior class, having
only one dock large enough to repair them in, and
even that only accessible once in each two weeks.
The Warrior slipped from her moorings at Green-
hithe soon after noon on Thursday. Only Sir
Frederick and Lady Grey, Admiral Elliot, Mr.
Penn, the maker of the engines, Captain Ford and
Mr. Rolt, the contractors for the ship, with a few
of the dockyard officials, were on board. There
was no stir, no public excitement, no boats on the
river to see the departure. So quietly was every-
thing managed that it was hard for those on board
to know exactly when she did get under weigh,
and the first public exclamation was given by the
seamen riggers end workpeople on the hulk along-
side, who gave three tremendous cheers as the great
vessel slowly and heavily moved down the stream.
In an instant the crew of the Warrior swarmed
into the rigging and returned the compliment in
such a way as only English sailors can, and with
this faint show of ceremonial the first voyage of
the first and finest of our iron frigates was com-
menced. The Warrior was in charge of Mr. Barnes,
one of the most experienced of the Government
river pilots, and in the crowded state of the river
it required all his skill, care, and knowledge of the
stream to save 1-is own charge from injury while
avoiding injury to others. The Warrior averaged
a depth of 25 feet 11 inches—namely, 25 feet 9
inches forward and 26 feet 3 inches aft. With a
ship of such depth, length, and weight the most
unremitting vigilance was necessary.
Off Gravesend the river was so blocked with
craft that there seemed to be only a choice of
two evils—either to get the Warrior aground, or to
run over some of the ships in her way. At one
time the latter seemed inevitable, and nothing but
the instantaneous manner in which the Warrior
answered the least movement of her helm, and the
care which Captain Cochrane took to see that the
pilot's orders were carried out upon the word,
averted the unpleasant chances. After passing
Gravesend the river soon grew clear of shipping
the two tugs which had accompanied to assist in
case of accident turned back, and the Warrior, fol-
lowed by the Admiralty yacht Vivid, was left to
her own resources. Up to this time the engines had
been moving easily at 34 and 36 revolutions, work-
ing with a noiseless force and regularity, that, con-
sidering they were then moving almost for the first
time, filled every one acquainted with the ordinary
eccentricities of steam machinery on these occasions
with surprise. The revolutions were, therefore,
now that the way was open, increased from 36 to
40; but beyond this they were not allowed to go
at that time, as the ship was fast passing from fresh
to salt water, during the first hour of which tr ansi•
give
tion the boilers generally prime fiercely, and
the engineers much trouble. Contrary, however,
to what is nearly always the case, the boilers of
the Warrior did not prime at all to speak of, and
the whole run the engi es may be said to

have been left entirely to themselves. Off Sheer:
ness Admiral Johnstone came out in the Wildfire
to see the ship en route to her destination, and the
Warrior saluted his flag with 15 guns from her
tremendous battery of 68-pounders. Much inte-
rest was evinced by those on board to observe the
effect of the concussion of these heavy ordnance on
the great ship, and, above all, to see what founda-
tion there was for the rumour that her narrow ports
would keep in smoke enough to almost suffocate
the men on the main deck. The result,
as usual, quite upset the predictions of the
alarmists. The shock of each gun was sharp
and sudden, but less than half of what is felt on
the same occasions in wooden ships, no matter
what their size. Of smoke on the main deck there
was really scarcely any ; the small ports kept it
out instead of in, and when the salute was over
the main deck was almost entirely free, while the
spar deck was wrapped in a dense cloud. While
upon the subject of her guns we may state that the
Warrior has as yet only two 100-pounder and four
40-pounder Armstrongs on her upper deck, with
two 25-pounder Armstrongs for field-pieces and
boat guns. The whole of her main-deck guns, 36
in number, are all solid 68-pounders of 95cwt.:each.
There is no other vessel in the world with such a
terrific battery. Eight or ten of these midship guns
on each side may probably hereafter be changed for
100-pounder Armstrongs, but a certain proportion
of 68tpounders will always be kept, partly to throw
shells filled with molten iron, and partly because
there is a most decided opinion in the navy that for
close range they are even better than the Arm-
strong itself. After passing Sheerness the pilot
proposed to anchor for the night, es there was not
water enough to take the vessel with safety over the
flats. Captain Cochrane, however, was not to be
balked by all the flats in Europe. He knew that
it was absolutely necessary the vessel should be at
Portsmouth the following day, and suggested the
passage through the Swin, outside the Goodwins,
by that channel the pilot was desired to take the
ship. The course was accordingly kept along the
Harwich side of the river, and, a light breeze spring-
ing up, the trysails and courses were set, not so
much with a view of aiding the speed of the ship as
to increas the draught up the funnels. The engines
then gradually increased their speed from 40 to 48
revolutions, the steam, which had been kept as low
as 151 b., was got up to 201 b., and with this, at
three-fourths speed, the Warrior bowled through a
sea like glass at a rate of rather over 13 knots or
14 and a-half miles an hour. When the foul con-
dition of the ship's bottom is considered, that
the launching cleats were still fastened to her, and
that the engines were only giving 48 instead of 58
revolutions, this rate of speed. surpassed the most
sanguine hopes. From this trial, incomplete as it
was, it is now judged almost certain that her speed
at the measured mile will be 14 and a-half knots, or
not less than 16 statute miles an hour. The engines
work really wonderfully. Their vast bnt simple
proportions—their union of strength with lightness
and even almost elegance of form—the tremendous
concentration of force within the closest compass
and in the smallest number of parts, and, above
all, the perfect finish of the workmanship,
make it impossible to survey these great
machines without feelings of astonishment
and almost of awe. Nominally yielding
an aggregate force of 1,250 horses, their indicated
power is probably little, if at all, short of 6,000
horses. Each cylinder is 9ft. 4in. in diameter, and
they require for their joint service the evaporation
of 16,250 gallons, or 2,600 cubic feet, of water per
hour. If the reader bears in mind that every cubic
foot of water yields 1,000 cuhic feet of steam, he
will cease to be surprised when we say that the
main steam-pipe is 2ft. Bin. across, and that a
big man could not only pass down it and either of its
branches into the cylinders, but thence through the
passages of the slide valves into the condensers
themselves. In these latter he would find himself in
a two-roomed space 15ft. long by 12ft. broad and
9ft. high, each compartment supplied with a 9-ft.
pipe (the size of a large street main) for condensing
purposes, and with a 7-in. pipe for conveying the hot
water back again to the boilers. It is difficult for
the most lively imagination to realize the extent of
the chemical and mechanical agencies which aviin-
tended to operate within the limits and proportions
we have thus partially indicated. To set them in
motion 10 boilers are necessary, ranged five on either
side of the ship, each boiler fed by four furnaces-
-40 in all—with a stokehole or passage between more
than 12ft. wide, every boiler with a complement of
440 tubes, through which the flame passes, and
capable of containing, when filled to their working
level, 19 tons, or 4,256 gallons of water. Let us sup-
pose the 40 furnaces lighted, the 10 great boilers,
each 14ft. long by 10ft. 3in. broad, and 12ft. 4in.
high, all charged with water, and the steam rushing
down the main pipe, mad to escape from its iron
prison. It can only do so by forcing its way through
the slides, pushing to and fro the huge piston, and
dashing through the slide valve to be quenched in
the condenser; yet what a tremendous force is re-
quired to overcome even these obstacles ! The
weight of the piston and the parts connecting it
with the crank is no less than 13 tons, the stroke
4 feet, and the number of revolutions calculated
at 50 per minute. Here, then, is a weight of 13
tons moving backwards and forwards 100 times in
that brief interval, or, in fact, driven by the
steam power at the rate of more than 400 feet a
minute. Of course the principles of mechanism
are essentially the same as those by which the
smallest river steamer is propelled, but when -line
examines attentively the immense size and weight
of a ship constructed like the Warrior, and endea
yours to estimate the magnitude of the power re-
quired to drive her through the water at a speed of
14 knots, the difference in degree is something very
difficult to realise. If by any process she could be
weighed when all her stores, armaments, and
equipments are completed, she would outbalence
nearly 9,000 tons, or within a 1,00 tons of the
weight of the Great Eastern when launching. This
alone is a visinertice one would imagine sufficiently
great to overcome without a resisting medium like
water superadded.
It has been the constant study of our greatest
mechanical engineers to bring down marine engines
to the smallest possible proportions, and to finish
every detail in the most perfect manner, so as to
reduce to a minimum the tax on the steam power
required for mere engine-driving. In the man-of-
war they have to combine the solution of these pro-
blems with others equally puzzling, prominent
among which is that of placing the whole appara-
tus so far below the water-line as to be perfectly
inaccessible to shot. Hence, the concentration of
parts we find in the engines of the Warrior; hence
the enormous cylinders placed horizontally 7ft.
below the line at which any fire of an enemy could
reach them. The weight and size of the pistons
might seem at first sight incompatible with the
theory laid down, but the apparent lightness of
them is indispensable in order to make the tremen-
dous steam power fully available; and, in fact, all
the dimensions have been carefully regulated by
this paramount consideration. As, all other things
being equal, the man with the most capacious lungs
will win the race, so that the marine engine which
can utilise the largest volume of steam will be
the best and swiftest seahorse. Surveying the con-
densing apparatus, with its huge injection pipes,
these scientific principles become forcibly impressed
on the mind. The slides may be referred to as
illustrations of the finished workmanship which
characterises every portion of the machinery, and
which is essential to the general result. Their
surfaces are 6ft. by sft. 6 in., yet they are scraped
to a true surface with extraordinary care, in order
to reduce to a minimum the power exerted by the
action of the eccentric in pushing them to and fro,
The steam shaft is forged in one piece of malleable
iron 30► ft. long, and 20 inches in diameter, having
two cranks in its length cut out of the solid. It is
not quite so large as the shaft of the Great Eastern's
engines, but from the fact of its having two throws
or cranks in it was even more difficult to make. It
is a wonderful specimen of smith's work, and a
grand proof of what the steam hammer has enabled
us to accomplish in overcoming these mechanical
difficulties. The screw, 24ft. in diameter, made
entirely of gun metal, and weighing about 20 tons,
is 120 ft. from the engines, and is connected with
the main shaft by a succession of shafts each 26ft.

long by 18 inches in diameter. The screw alley
is 9ft. wide by 7ft. high, and at the stern there is
the usual well, fitted with the hoisting apparatus
for raising the screw to the deck. The bearings
on which the screw works are lined with lignurn
vitce, a very beautiful, economical, and simple ap-
plication, first discovered by Mr. Penn, and by
which the immense cost of repairs from the effect
of f► iction on the old brass bearings is reduced to a
nominal amount. Taken altogether, the machi-
nery required for propulsion will weigh 890 tons
—a great weight, certainly, though not so much.
when one remembers the power exerted by it. The
consumption of coals required for full steaming will
be at the rate of about 125 tons per 24 hours.
Not an incident occurred to mark the short
voyage of Thursday night, if we except the attempt
of a very venturesome bark to cross the Warrior's
bows, and which, but that the latter stopped and re-
versed her engine, would have resulted most disas-
trously for the small craft. Towards daylight on
Friday morning the weather grew very thick, with.
little squalls of rain, so that a wide offing was;
given to the land and a gun fired for a pilot, who,
as usual, came up from somewhere or other five
minutes after he was wanted. The Warrior then
stood in towards Spithead, and made a short turn
round the harbour to choose her berth, and saluted
the Admiral's flag with 15 guns. There was a
slight breeze blowing at the time, and the smoke
from this salute on the main deck was scarcely per-
ceptible, even to sight. At a little before 8 o'clock
the anchor was let go, and the Warrior thus accom-
plished her first voyage, of 220 miles (including all
her slow speed in the river, three-quarters speed at
sea, stoppages and delays in the offing), in rather
less than 20 hours, or at the average rate of 11
knots an hour. The arrival of this noble vessel
created much excitement at Portsmouth, and dur-
ing the morning hundreds of persons lined South-
sea beach, the Esplanade, and Victoria Piers and
the ramparts, to view the iron-clad frigate as she
lay alongside the Emerald frigate at Spithead. The
latter frigate, although one of our modern vessels,
appeared insignificant when contrasted with the
Warrior; indeed the difference between the two
ships of war almost as manifest in point of contrast
as between the Emerald and the Winchester,
one of the old class of vessels lately lying
at Spithead, Yesterday the Warrior was sig-
nalled to come into dock at 1 o'clock without dis-
charging powder. She will remain in dry dock at
Portsmouth for the next fortnight at least, and
then, as we have said, start on a cruise for rough
weather. By the time she has undergone this last
test the French will have seven iron ships afloat, if
not nine. They are not vessels like the Warrior,
however; in fact, little more than corvettes plated
with iron. We should be glad, nevertheless, to
have one or two more of our ironsides in commis-
sion, though the country may fairly be congratu-
lated on having the Warrior ready for sea, and not
less so on Capt. Cochrane being appointed to com-
mand her.