Star.
London, England, 1811-10-09 00:00:00

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LIFE BOATS.

As every advance made in the improvement of life
boat, must be in the highest degree interectitig -to an
Engli h Public, the follny% kg short account ofan ex-
pesiarent tried on Monday last, oa tke Thames, imme-
diately below. Blackfriars-bridge, may be acceptable '
'The particular Modes of applying, in tEis caw, the
life•beat Teinciple, are the ieventinns of Capt. CART.
evtuetir; Baslack Master at Nnttingkam ; and so far
attach Edme to the knowledge of the writer, they are
• very considerable iniproVemelits on the ingenious
ideas of other persons, inasmich. as Captain CART-
' 1124112r1T has nate proved the applicability et the prin.*
ciple to of dreary ships' boats at pleasure, without un-
fitting xiiern for the commoe uses of a ship; and in
manner to ordinary shore-boats, used by fisher.,
men or etheri.—The boat en which the experiment
• • Weis made is a six-oar cutter belonging teethe Cabal Va.
East Indiaman, commanded by Capt. Buten, whose
humane attention to the best means of preserving the
lives of such as may fall overboar,l in a gale, or may
otherwise need the aid of a lifeboat, merits high
praise. Ac a precaution against the boat's upsetting
in any sea; she had '2O plater of iron ballast, four
• inches broad, and one inch thick, placed externally
on each side of her keel, to which, throughout its.
whole length, they were attached ; each plate and its
oppssite, with the keel between them, being secured
with two bolts at each end, keyed with copper pins;
the whole Or any part removeable at pleasure.
• • The internal buoyancy was communicated by a
pair of hozes, of about eight inches diameter, extend-
ing from stem to stern, within board, under the
thwarts, close to the boat's side, and held there by
lanyards, which lanyards, andsthe thwarts both pre.;
vent tile hazes rising,,in case the boat fills with water,
either by shipping a sea, or receiving ea.}, injury in her
, bottom ; besides which, the, lanyards cause the hozes
to accommodate themselves to the curvitude of the
. boat's side. Another pair of hozes were placed from
stern to stern under the former, close to the boat's
side, confined as before by lanyards, and it is obvious
• • that in these modes the hozes may be more or fewer.
according to circumstances and experience.
The hozes were painted, to prevent the entrance
of water, as well as for a security against vermin,
and filled with ox.bladders blown up, but so much so,
as to prevent a moderate compression, for the better
package within the hazes. Each bladder was herme-
tically closed at the mouth with a plug, and varnished
for being air-tight. As a farther security against in-
stets, the bladders themselves were painted.
It is obvious that such boxes, uniting the greatest
lightness with flexibility, are applied to the purposes
of buoyancy with the greatest ease and expedition ;
and are as readily removed whenever the boat may
he wanted for the ordinary service of the ship. In
case of any injury being accidentally done to any par-
ticular pact of a hoze, whereby there is an escape of
air, and even the entrance of water ; such inconveni-
ence will only be partial, and easily remedied.
Besides this internal buoyancy, the boat was pro-
vided with external buoyancy else, consisting of a
toyealle hollow projection surrounding the boat fiom
stem to stern, along a water-line, so much below the
oars as not to interfere with their action. This pro-
ction the inventor calls a trio:kw:it ; it is very light,
be
formed of half-inch fir, and fortified within by
half-inch partitions, only eight or nine inches asunder;
which operate as fenders on striking against a ship's
* side. Into every chamber, between partition and par-
tition, is tightly squeezed a blown-up tot bladder ;
having a cover of ,canvas painted, as a security
against insects, all remaining cavities being filled with
cork- shavings.
This trunk-wale, composed of . five parts or joints,
on each side of the boat, is by the simplicity, and the
strength of its faetenings, placed or displaced in a very
few minutes ; and when fixed, makes as it were a part
of the boat herself.
' Another hoze (such as already described) attached
at its fore and to the stern by a rope, occupied the'
angle between the boat's side and the bottcm of the
trunk wale, being drawn tight alo;ig in that situation
by a second rope, which fastened its after end to the
Stern ; thus secured by these two rapes only, and kept
steady in its position by the Trunk Wale, it not only
communicated all its buoyancy with full effect, but,
by filling the angle 2,brivedrentionid, prevented any
violent shtick cif a wave against the bottom of the
Trunk \Vile. It is removeable in half a minute.
It must Le obvious to every seaman.; how very
greatly such an external apparatus mast support a
boat in sailing, against more pressure-of wind than
leer masts could sustain. It is equally obvious, that
in proportion as external buoyancy is thus Obtained,
that which is internal may be dispensecfvvith—leavine
the more space within for men and their provisions, in
cases when (by the foundering or burning of a ship at
se. ) it may be necessary to make a voyagein the boat;
• s The power of the Trunk Wale, and the haze be-
neath it; were first tried by putting the boat under;
sail, but the hozes interrupting- the 4urrent bf venter:
in its passage to therudder; which was only of an ot-
ainary breadth—the boat did not answer her helm
freely. She via; therefore krongist alongsidP of a coal
barge, and
theeternal. bozesrernoved. - The bciat
then put off again, and was found to sail and work
smile better than before ; shewing,.thet by some little
attention to what seamirt'call heriree, she might Le
easily made to answer betln;ol completely, as soon
as there should be time for making the few alterations
thecessary. ,
When the boat came x Id time alongside the coal-
theplug being taken out, the boat settled in the
water until her buoyancy took effect ; when it ap-
peased that with tweittrihree then on board, all stand.
ors on Ike tkwarts, and 8 cnivt*: of iron (fully equivalent
eleent‘y-treo mien' sitting on the boat's bottom with
their heads and shs,itilders only aboie the surface of
'the watts) the'thwarts, when the boat was on an even
•keel, were at least one inch above water.
Now the Proper crew of this boat consisted only of
4srve2 men nerd it.W•as judged not practicable to stow
in her more. than 4wents.i hree men more, making a
..it tal of thirty. limn. It those seven, composing the
e.sew;ha4 been sitting on the t4warts, with their legs in
7tl.* water, and the twenty three had been sitting in tl•-;
,b4.i.t's bottom, snipobing water is the boat, the buoy-
, rt cy for keeping the thwarts an iiich above water,
es eid not p 3 gave been so
.nfnch by a very large pro-
p les VAS 11l actual use aitcr the external hozes
wt.* itkep sway ; fotlifsit the men aid the iron

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