The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1853-01-10
From the Ne,c York Herald.

From the Ne,c York Herald.
The Caloric Ship Ericsson.
Sacces4d Trial Tfip-General Description of the
Ship--Another Great Commercial Enterprise.
In the great commercial and shipping circles Of
the world nothing has excited interest of late
Ericsson, by which steam motive power is to
be supplanted by calorc, or heated air; and no.
thing but the successful application of the actual
test could remove the skepticism with which, gen.
orally, the project has been viewed. This test has,
however, at length been furnished, and now ali
doubts OF the practicabiity and importance of the
invention are dispelled. The ship Ericsson con
structed on the new principle, made her trial trip
on Tuesday morning down the bay of New York,
and from the complete triumph with which the
experiment was attended, there need now be no
hesitation in acknowledging caIoric as great
natural element adapted to locomo;ion, destined
to work complete revolution in navigation, and
to confer an inestimable benefit on mankind.
The Ericsson was put under caloric early on
Tuesday morning, and started from williamsburg
between and 10 O'Clock. Ats h. So m. she passed
the flagstaff ON Governors Island, and at 10 h. 36
m. and 80 seconds she was abreast Fort Diamond,
thus making distance of seuen and three eighhs miles
in thirty four minutes and thirty seconds. From
thence she proceeded down the bay, rounded to
below Spithead buoy at II b. 81 M, and there an
chored in consequence of snow squall. She re-
| turned on Wednesday, and anchored off the Bat
| terry at O'Clock in the afternoon. The distance
| between the stated points on Governors Island
and Fort diamond Delng accurately known DY trl-
angulation to be seven miles six hundred and sixty
yards, the speed attained stated about four
teen miles an hour. The consumption of fuel is as
certained to be only sac English tons per tiUenty four
hours, snping, as compared tDih steamships Of more
than eighty per cent As the chip draws Is feet 10
inches even keel, this performance at first
trial has astonished all concerned in the enter
| prize.
The great idea which had for more than twenty
years been ripening in the brain of the inventor,
/ but which from the incredulity and opposition he
| encountered amony men OF capital in his own ma
| tive country, in England, and in America, he had
been unable to realize, has thus been substantiated
| as real entity. 1t was fortunate for Captain
| Ericsson and for the world that one of our own
| enterprising merchants John b. Kitching, esq ),
who appreciated and relied his talent and genius,
determined at all risks to enable him to make the
experiment on a scale worthy of the magnitude of
the issue. For this purpose the latter furnished
half of the capital necessary for the enterprise and
disposed among his acquaintance of the remainder
of the stock. By this means, and regardless Of
Expense, the clipper ship whose first performance
We have recorded built at the yard of Perrine,
Patterson & Stack and fitted up with enginery on
the caloric principle under the immediate direction
| and supervision of Captain Ericsson The vessel
measures 200 feet in length of Deck and 40 feet in
breadth of beam; her depth of hold is 81 feet and
her burden 1900 TONS Like the Arabia, of the
Cunard line, she has but two masts, and like
| our swiftest clippers, she is extremely sharp in
the PROV. She has no hgure-head. Her stern
presents the device of two figures, allegoricai
representations of the United States and Great
Britain placing wreath around the brow Of
the inventor. She had been originally named
the Caloric, but in compliment to the genius
who planned her, her name was changed to
the Ericsson. This was considered by Captain
Ericsson high tribute to himself but the latter
ing device which was placed upon the stern with
out his knowledge overwhelmed him with emotion
and we told that when be first saw it he wept
like child. The Ericsson presents very hand.
some and unique appearance. from the four white
tunnels which rise some ten twelve feet over
the promenade deck, and which somewhat resem-
bic Ionic pillars without the capital. They are
| thirty inches in diameter, and are supported by
octagon pedestals, also white. Two Of these CO.
lumns, or pipes, carry off the air from the engine
and the other two serve as chimneys Around
tEelr tops they are ornamented with gilt rings
and mouldines. These gilt ornaments are now,
after ten days firing, perfectly bright. Entering
and clear deck for two hundred feet on each side
of the deck. house attract the eve. The berth !,
deck likewise presents unbroken line with
state rooms along the. entire ship, and passages
between the fore and aft saloons on both sides
As a model of naval architecture, there is not
vessel in our splendid merchant marine that can
compete with the Ericsson for graceful proportions
and symmetry of build. All who have seen her
beautiful ship and in their opinion of her superior
sailing qualities independent of any aid from her
machinery.
For obvious reasons. those interested in the
jealousy to prevent any knowledge of the CON
struction of her machinery, &C., from getting
abroad To guard against this, portions of it were
made ma at various places-New York, Philadelphia,
West Point, &c.-from plans and specifications
furnished by the inventor. So perfect and true
were his calculations, that every piece of the ma
chinery thus made fitted in with the utmost exact.
ltude SO that, to give the language of one of the
persons engaged in it, sheet of tissue pa per could
uot be put in between the joints This circum.
stance IN ITSELF speaks well for the great engineer
ing skill OF Its constructor The same Jealous eau
ton was observed in permitting strangers on
board. The exclusion of all outsiders has been
very rigidly enforced, so that the hundreds whose
curiosity brought them to visit her were forced to
content themselves with distant inspection Thus,
up 10 the present time, no correct description of
her mas appeared In type; and we therefore feel
confident that that which we now present to our
readers In relation to this remarkable vessel
will be read with an interest proportionate to the
invention, of which the Ericsson is the first embo
diment.
Let the reader, therefore, accompany us as we
are chaperoned throughout the ship by her gallant
and polite commander, Capt. A. B. Lowber, to
has been well confded.
Let me first show you ays our guide, the freight
deck, and then we will ascend and examine her
in detail. To the freight deck, therefore, we de-
scended, and were pointed out ts capacity extend
ing as 1t does some $50 feet. 1t is entirely free
from obstruction of every kind excepting onIv
space along the middle, which contains the cylin
ders, enclosed within strong bulkheads None of
Its room ID to be devoted, as in steamers to the
carrying OF coal, which is slowed away in anff
cient quantity each side of the engine. It ia cal
culated thus to carry 400 tons of teas or other
light merchandise; or, if engaged in the Australia
or California trade, it is well adapted for accom-
modatlng some four or five hundred passengers.
Venuiator on new principle, and connected
with the machinery, extends to this d, OK About
mldshlps there ls sort of square enclosure which
we learned, communicated only with the main
deck, and which has been fitted up for the female
servants OF cabin passengers. This is a great i'm
provement on the present plan, which makes little
or no provision for this class of travellers W.
found this room neatly and comforta bly furnished,
with twelve or fourteen berths, and convenience
for bandboxes and the various ct ceteras of wait.
ing women. -
From the freight deck we ascend by wide stair.
way to the main deck. This is occupied fir om stem
to stern by sixty state rooms; those in the # cabin
htted up with two berths each, and those in The
forward cabin with three. Weinspected the Iatter
portion first, and were struck with the eIegance
and taste with which it was fitted m W. uers
Immediately reminded of the motto. which we
saw In conspicuous position on the board
Everything in it's place, and place for every.
thlng-and we felt the conviction that this maxim
was not lost sight ofin the construction and tting
up of the ship. The state rooms communicates di,
rect with the saloon by gothic arched door. which
opens on every two rooms They are richly Garnet
ed and are lighted by day withdeck and side Ights
and by night with three sided lamp SO fitted in the