The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-08-21

disguise OF name Will naruly 90 tnem inucn
good at the elections
Our NAVAL STEAMERs-THE SAN JAcINro
DIsABLED-The inadequacy of the steam fri
gates attached to the United States navy to
the requirements, has been toe cause OF great
deal OF trouble, expense aud annoy ance to tue
government during the past ten years. From
the year 1913 up to the present time, the Navy
Department has been engaged in q series OF ex-
perimebts in steamers; and of the twenty-si
vessels Of this class which have been built or
elsered Tor naval purposes, but two-the Mis-
.is.ippi and the Powhatan-have been sati sfac-
t. ~ and successful. We have now to add auo-
The San Jacinto is one of the new steamers,
and the was recently fitted for cruise in the
Baltic to protect American interests in that quar-
ter. She sailed from Philadelphia on this cruise
on the 18th inst, and on the 10Th she put into
the port of Boston disabled. The accident was
Her bed-plate is broken, and her machinery
must I'll be taken out. This will require several
months time, and the Baltic cruise must be
given up The San Jacinto is propeller, and
Is worked with two "square " engines, with in
clined cylinders and vertical air pumps. These
engines are very irregular in their action
their friction is great; they are constantly
liable to fracture and difficult to keep in order
or repair. Such was the testimony of the
Chief Engineer of the United Stases Navy,
placed on record in 1853. The propeller has
been twice altered =; the engine was disabled on
the first trip. The greatest speed ever obtained
by this vessel was nine miles an hour.
The San Jacinto was built at Brooklyn, and
launched in June, 1850. She is bark rugged
and her armament consists of two eight-inch
pivot guns, and four eIght-inch broadside guns
The first cost of the San Jacintos machinery
was over two hundred thousand dollars; but we
really could not say how much money has been
spent on it since. We have been thus particu-
Isr in the case IF the San Jacinto because the
same story, with an alteration of dates, will
answer for nearly every steamer in the United
States navy. Our naval constructors do not
seem to have discovered the secret of building
steam vessels to car, y ornaments, ana it is time
that the contracts were given to others more
able in practice and moie proficient in their
ideas. Our rayy is not SO large that we eau
sticrd, il these trobous times, TO lay up a first
ciuss steam frigate during two or three
m,nths, ard We should have ships upon which
sonie reliance can be placed. The accident to
the San Jacinto is an unfortunate affair, we
shall be told but carelessness had more to do
with the matter than accident. Government
was told a year ago by its engineer in-chief,
that the San Jac'ntos cgines were constantly
liable to fracture. And yet she was ordered to
the Baltic as specimen of American naval
architecture. and to watch over American inte-
rests in that lel'iger Mt region.
All these matters are important just now,
partly because we my be plunged iuto war at
short notice, hut chiefly because six new steam
'rigstes ae 20 b. built Immediately. We hope
that the people will get something for the three
millions which will be spent on these vessels,
and that they will be creditable to the SER
vice.