The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-11-06
THE PROGRESS or NAVAL ARCHITECTURE.


Our Reporter Among tho Models-The Con.
structor Of the America Outd0ne by Him.
self.
few days ago one Of our reporters visited the
model shop Of Mr. George Steers, the architect OF
the yacht America, in order to see new model of
ship of $500 TONS with which he undertakes TO beat
the world On enteriag, the first object that struck
the reporters eye was tho beautiful model Of the
America na glass case, prepared for exhibition at
the Crystal Palace. On looking around he saw the
models every description Of craft from the little row
boat up to the clipper ship and ocean steamer each
of those forms surprising the other in beauty and
excellence; and 1t curious to trace the progress Of
the art from the del of the Manhattan to that of the
America or to that Of the still more perfect model of
the ship about to be built. Before describing the
latter let us begin at the beginning, and take re-
Prospect of the advance made in naval construc-
ton for the last twenty years, as illustrated u the
history OF the constructor of the America
George Steers was born in this country about thir-
ty.three years ago. His father was shpbuilder, and
one day, after he had finished small river boat the
youth, who was then fourteen years of age said to the
old man, THAT boat is entirely too bluff in the bows
She ought to have been made sharper. Will you
let me make the next model" The father consented
and young George in q few months afterwards con-
structed model for little boat that beat every
thing afoat of her kind, though before she was
tried every body condemned her and the principle
on which she wa, constructed. His father and he
from that day forth built boats superior in speed to
all Others In 1887 he got the premium from the
American Institute at Castle Garden for row boat
called the John @. Stevens for being the lightest,
the strongest and the fastest exhibited. 1t was 80
feet long, feet 10 inches BEAM and IL inches deep.
And though smooth-wrought it was only 14O lbs.
weight, and yet was perfectly tight Georges father
died, and he was compelled to go as an ordinary
hand into one of the shipyards of the other
builders; but soon so distinguished himself by hs
ability, that when he was only seventeen years Of
age he was placed over number of men to superin.
tend their work.
His first model Of anything larger than rowboat
was of The yacht Manhattan, fourteen years ago--a
little schooner, only t~entyseven tons burthen. Fol-
lowing out the idea Of the improvement he had dis
covered III the construction Of small boats he made
the bows after the same fashion, and much sharp
er than those Of any sailing craft then built that
the wise men and the scientific Of the day pro-
nounced Der dangerous novelty, and said she
would not sail at all. AS for the shpbuilders, they
condemned her unanimously. But she beat every
thing Of that time, and she is now running in the
Gulf of Mexico, where not long since she rode out
. gale in which large ship went down. Yet on
looking at this model and comparing it with that Of
the America, what vast difference appears between
them. Her bows are comparatively blum. The
America i, not only very much sharper, bus raked
or cut away underneath the bows to say nothing Of
several other improvements.
In 1912 Mr.. Steers built the pilot boat Hackstaf,
100 tons buIthen for the Jersey pilots, waking up
the New York pilots, for she beat every boat they
had.
Since that time he built the Mary Taylor pilot
hnQf fv.piv fnpo hfoh hoof -
her size the Moses a. Grinnel, also very fast; and
the George Steers, the latter being eighty-six
tons, and able to Outsail any pilot boat
al; aoat The Mary Taylor which is very like
size, was predicted by some Of our greatest ship
builders to be unseaworthy, alleging that she would
plunge her stem into the water. The very contrary
turned out to b. the fact, and she is not only the
fastest but the most seaworsby craft of her size.
Among the yachts he built during the past summer
are the L'Esperance, the Ray, and the Haze-ths
latter, beautiful schooner Of los tons, built for Dun
ssy o CO. Of This
longing her with the crack yacht Olata, of that
city, declined the match on the ground that he was
lot the owner of the boat and could not get her to
run. Mr. Duncan, we understand Is ready to match
the Haze against any schooner Of the in the
world.
The America is larger than any of these being ITO
tons; her model seems indeed perfection. Though
rugged as schooner, (Which is the best rig for the
sea and the most comfortable, but not good the
sloop or cutter rig fer racing near Shore aud for
lying close to the windD she beat the fastest cutters
in the world and, as for the schooners they were
nowhere" And she accomplished this feat with
fifteen per cent less canvass than they had The
advantage of the cutter rig, with its immense main
sail, is obvious for running on the wind" or for
light breezes 1t is true that afterwards the America
was technically beaten by two yachts; but under
what circumstances? After she had beaten them
well all through the race as long as there was q
breeze, towards the end the yachts were all be-
o1pned ,nfoo <1nI
vass carried the day, and her two competitors oated
slowly by her, one each side taking the wind out
OF her sails just at the very goal. Had she been
rigged al q cutter there would be very different
story to TELL and as it was it was quite evident to all
that she could run away from them with breeze,
and that is the only test of tho sailing qualities Of
vessel II there is little or no wind the verest tub
will go as fast as the finest model ever built, and
faster, too If she has only more SAIL But when there
breeze and the hull Is forced rapidly through the
water the resistance increases in the ratio Of the
speed, and then it is that the best model tells, not
only in superior celebrity but in ease. wellbuilt
bul. does not require much sail. On the contrary,
badly built vessel is strained and torn to pieces by
the necessity of crowdiDg sail on her to make her
Co. In the stest breeze the America can be steered
with two fingers Yet so firm is her hold in the wa
ter and such is her stability and seaworthiness that
gale might carry away her sails and masts before
II could make her heel in breeze Nothing that
sails OF her size andrig, or in fact Of any rig,
In 1914 Mr.. Steers built the schooner st. Mary,
for the government $50 tonsshe was the fastest they
had. She carried the battering apparatus for Vera
Cruz. The schooner Tennessee, $50 tons, built
by Edward Williams, last fall, was modelled by Mr..
Steers; she has proved one OF the fastest in the
world. She made the passage from Rio to Philadel
pbia in twenty-five days.
Last summer Mr.. Steers built the Pride Of the Sea,
q schooner, $50 tons for Charles & q. Fox & Co., for
Australia. It calculated that she will beat anything
Of her capacity and tonnage but that remains to be
tried. Last spring he built three msated schooner.
rugged propeller, named Veguero, $50 tons. She went
to Cuba, and was the admiration Of everybody. She
was supposed to be intended for SLAYER at the time
from her beautiful proportions and fast sailing quail
ties but this was mistake. Last spring, too, Mr..
Steers built another steamer larger proportions-a
floating palace, for Lake Erie 1t was the Queen Of
the West She Is $50 feet long, forty two feet BEAM
and fourteen feet six inches deep. She is built on
the same beautiful principle as his sailing vessels,
and she beats everything on the lakes. Mr.. Bslkuap
has declared that she travels easier than any other
steamer he ever put an engine into.
We perceive that the Golden Age, modelled by