Washington sentinel. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1855, 1854-03-21
SCREW OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES NAVY.

Tho great speed of some of the screw steam.
ships Of the English marine demands the par,
ticular attention of our government with refer
snce to the proposed six steam vessels for the
navy; the bill authorizing their construction
having already passed the Senate, and it is to
be hoped will soon be taken up and passed BY
the House Of Representatives.
Many of the large screw steamships Of the
royal navy beat the paddle.ships. The result Of
q recent trial is thus reported: "The screw pro
peller developes advantages of a character too
positive, as compared with the paddle-wheel,
to admit of the latter retaining any future
prominent position in the royal navy
The "Dukc Of Wellington 7, mounting one
hundred and thirty-one guns, with an engine
of seven hundred and eighty horse power, steams
with ease ten knots per hour. The aga
memnon,a mounting ninety-one guns, engine
FIVE hundred and fifty horsepower, averaged,
on recent trial trip, eleven knots Per hour.
The "Imperieuse," fifty guns, engine FIVE hun
dred and cighty-six horsepower, can steam
eleven knots with ease The two latter ships,
on recent trial trip, proved themselves fast
ships under canvass, without the aid of their
screw.
The fastest ship yet built is the magnificent
screw steamship "Himalaya," belonging to the
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation
Company. She is of three thousand FIVE hundred
and fifty tons register, equal to over four thou
sand tons burden. The engines, Of hundred
horsepower, are on the trunk principle, similar
to those of the "Agamemnon," "Imperieuse,"
and other vessels. The cylinders Of the en-
gines are of eighty-four inches diameter, with
q Observation-Disclosures stroke, and the revolu-
tons per minute are from fifty to sixty. The
screw is two-bladed one, on the old principle
of eighteen feet diameter, with twenty eight
feet pitch, and weighs nearly seven tons. The
vessel is full ship-rigged. The spardeck is
flush from stem to stern, and presents an un-
interrupted promenade of three hundred and
seventy FIVE feet, or one hundred and twenty
FIVE yards. During her recent voyage, or ra-
ther trial trip from England to Alexandria, in
Egypt on her outward passage, she performed
the run from Gibraltar to Malta, distance of
over one thousand miles, in seventy-four and a
half hours--the quickest run on record. From
Malta to Alexandria, distance of eight hun.
dred and thirty miles, she accomplished in
sixty-one hours, beating the quickest run ever
before made by seven and three.quarter hours.
During the outward voyage, she made nine
knots against strong gale Of wind and heavy
head sea.
The following is the report BY her captain OF
her return passage from Alexandria to South
ampton Sailed from Alexandria February
4, at FIVE, p. M; Malta, lat nine, p. m; Glib
ralter II, at one, a. m. After making one Of
tho quickest passages ever known to Malta, and
from thence to Alexandra, the " Himalaya,"
on her voyage from Malta to Southampton, ex-
perienced seventy hours of hard gales right
ahead, but ran the distance two thousand one
hundred and fifty miles, in eight and half
DAYS. Had she met with anything like moder-
ate weather, she would have got in on the even.
ing Of the l4th, day and a half earlier. She
beat the EuIins," fast addls-whsel steamer,