Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1856-04-08
THE STEAMSHIP LEvIATHAN.

TIE STEAMSHIP LEYIAT1AN.
This is the age of great steamers; The Per-
sia is modern wonder, and yet she IS diminu-
tive in proportion, when compared with the LIE
yithan. The Mistress of the Sea-. some ofthe
London journals call her Is built entirely of iron
in the shape of plates, securely fastened togeth=
er with riyets.
up to within few feet of the taffrail. She has
also double decks. BY this means great bouy-
aucy and strength is impaired to the vessel, as
the space between the decks and sides is filled
with air. She is built in eight compartments all
air and water tight Her registered tonnage is
%, 900 tons with capacity for coal in addition of
from 12, 600 to $4,000 tons. Her draft of water
when. loaded will be IS feet, and when unloadcd
10 feet. Her average speed is computed at IS
knots or miles per hour. Shewill be propelled
by gigantic screw % feet in diameter, four pad
dies and by sails = Her number ofmasts. will be
seven, three of which viii be crossed with yards,
and square-rigged, as in lne-of=battlc ship, and
the other masts will have fore and aft sails. Her
number of boilers will be ten; five on each side,
and each having ten furnaces. She will carry,
in addition to sufficient complement of small
boats, no less than eight small screw-steamers,
each 10 feet in length, four on each side of the
vessel.
These steamers will land and embark both pas
sengers and cargo. The passengers bcrths are
placed on both sides the entire length of the ship
The number ofdecks is four, and theheight of
the principal saloonS which are in the centre, is
10 feet. The number of passengers she will be
able to carry is 600 first class, 300 second class,
and 10, 900 troops with field equipments Her
length is $50 feet her breadth of beam SO feet,
depth from deck to keel IS feet; aggregate length
orsaloon 400 feet. Her commander will be Capt
Harrison, with crew of, in al, including sea-
men, engineers, stokers, &C., from $50 to 900
men, consequently, with all on board, she will
comprise within herself population of large
town, or even city, say Is, 200 persons Nearly
1000 men are employed in her construction
The contract price for her building is 9320, 900.
There are then the expenses of her engines and
the fittings, victualling, &c. Thcmere expense
oflaunching hcrinto the water, when completed,
will be no less than 100000, as hydraulic power
will have to be used for the purpose, and the
machinery employed will be ofpcculiar construc-
ton. She will enter the water broadside on.
The principal dimensions of the ship, her ca
paCity and power may be usefully repeated in
the mere details as follows:-Length, $50 feet;
breadth, 83 feet; depth from deck to keel OIL
feet; aggregate length of principal saloons, 400
feet; height ofdo., Is feet; number of decks 4;
tonnage, 5000 tons; carries of Goals and cargo
| $4,000 tons; nominal horses power, screw, l.
600 horses; do. paddles, 1000 horses; cylinders
of screw engines, 4; diameter ofcylindcr in inch
cs, 81 length of stroke, feet; cylinders OF pad
die engines, feet; diameter oficylinder in inch
cs. 74 length of stroke, II feet inchcs draft of
water Qoaded) % feet; do. eight Is feet carries
of first class passengers, G00 do. sccond-class do
], 800; do. troops with field equipments, 10000;
ship, 1000 tons.
Her deck is to be flush except for cabin en-
frances and similar purposes so that prone
made more than twice the length of the Great
Britain's deck will be available for the passcn-
gers.
The floor of the ship is perfectly fat, the keel
being turned inward and rivctted to Fthe inner
ships keel These several skins are joined to
each other by longitudinal webs or girdcrs, form
ed Of plate aud angie iron. There are II of these
webs on each side fthc ship, which run the en-
tire length of the vessel, and they are placed at
such distances rs to extend upward, at Intervals
! of about 3 feet from the keel to the main deck,
and they are again closed up in length varying
| from 90 to 60 feet Thus tlle'outer and inner
ships are Joined together by means of a great
number of watcr-tight webs or cells of cxtraor-
dinaay strength, giving the vessel rigidity such
as has never been communicated to ship before.
The main deck is treated in the same manner for
width of 30 feet on each side, and iron girders,
bind one side to the other so that the entire YES
sci becomes, as it were, beam of the strength
and the whole fabric may be dcnominatcd web
of woven iron, the rivets forming the Hastings
and the webbed OF honey comb cells becoming
an indissolube structure. The compartments be-
tween the outer and inner skin will hold 900
tons of water ballast, should it be required. The
web plates are of inch iron, and the outer and
inner skins arc of thrcc-quarter inch iron.
The vessel will have 90 ports on the lower
deck, each 5 feet square, to receive railway wag
ons. She has also GO ports on each side, 2 feet
inches square for ventilation, and an abundance
of dead lights. Shclower ports arc 10 feet above
the water when the ship is loaded.
Ono great difficulty which the Lcviathan will
/ labor nnf1nr will he the feyy great commercial
cient depth of water to enable her to pass on in
safety. According to a recently published state
mont, she cannot come within eighteen miles of
New York-and would then have to discharge
her cargo at an insignificant place, by the agcn-
cy of lighters. The only northern port she can
float her when laden, in safety, issaid to bePort-
land, Me.