Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1859-09-29

Awing the respective traits of character which
dh disasters cef out The pilot, Mr. Atkin-
4, was, of course, on the bridge, abaft the
sne Of the explosion, and under the shower
dglass aud splinters. Pulling his hat over
llhead to shield himself, he stood fast in his
lfe, remafking, That's none Of my business;
going to steer the ship as long asshe is
sP.' Another hard d.headed old fellow was
ldny floor on part OF the wheelhouse. lie
W saving of plank at the time of the dis.
aar, and, without tlking his knee Off the
titer, he looked up till the shower Of projec.
Ii had fallen, and then quietly resumed his
sahg as if nothing had happened. One gem
tlenn nervously took his friends apart one by
on and whispered that the ships side was
bdn out, and we should sink within fifteen
mites. Another white and trembling with
teri long after the immediate danger had
pasd, assured all who came near him, Ia bro.
kenpcents, that he never felt moro composed
IN 4 life. One of the newspaper reporters
Delq himself TO the extreme stern of the ship
continuity expecting that the other nine boil
ers nst necessarily 60 off in their turn, like
treini mines. One person, approach ng an
preped 10 meet my God" Very few were
loud I'd profane, as have sometimes seen peo-
pie irhe very jaws of death.
]
the d4ster; let us now observe the particu-
lars ofhe heater or chimney casing; its situa-
ton lnhe ship, and the c'usos and effects Of
! the eXpsiOn A round funnel or chimney of
hall IND boiler plate, 40 feet high and feet
IN diarAter. carries the gases from the two
forward (oiers up through all decks of the
ship, onat its top is surmounted by an ,ther
section dthe same size, but of thinner iron,
p the pnnel that is seen above the ship)
Arolud ~ outside of the lower funnel, rising
rom the blers to the main deck 10 another
cylinder ohalf-inch boiler plate, 80 feet high
and feet diameter, an aunular space of 6
inches, of durse, being left all around between
these two ylnders. This annular space is
simply an Enlargement of the feod-pipe which
leads from tie pump into the boiler 1t should
be Kept 9nstantly full Of water, which would
thus be padally heated by the hot gases pass.
lng up TIN chimney. The object of the ar
rangements first to cconomise fuel by using
waste heagor warming the feed, and second
TO keep theeabins and woodwork cooler and
saler than hey would be kept by the naked
chimney. IIe heat of water at the pressure Of
steam in thepoilcr would be hardly 800 degrees
however mRh fire might pass through the
chlmney,-bN without the intetpusition of wa.
tera the bareiron might get red hot and set
the wood'woH on fire at some distance Off
The water pip from the pump leads into this
heater, or iunHl-casing, or water-iACket as il
Is varously calId, near the bottom, but the
pipe from it to tie boiler is inserted at the very
Top, so that ii the water fails to fill the heater
none VIII come into the boiler either, and at the
boiler this absence otwater can be detected -
On the top o! the heater is cock from which
a pipe, say of Id incacs diameter, leads up
20 or 30 feet into the air above deck where il
bends and runs down again to the bottom OF
the heater near the boilers, In the ton of this
pipe, just where it bends, ls small hole which
is the only safety valve of Me heater. There
is nothing over this hole, -thehydrostatic prcs
sure Of the column of water, G0or 20 feet higl
being equivalent to the pressure h the boilers
II the pressure in the heater is too high, eithei
steam or water comes out of this hole till tn,
ext.a strain is reno 3cd. Now the inside shel
of this heater i e., the funnel leading from
the boilers to the main deck collapsed OF shu
together like u burst bladder, while the out
side shell pulled apart lengthwise within som
ten feet of the boiler, the lower part being muc
shattered, while the upper part, cylinder som
thirty feet long, shot upward through thrG
floors into the air and fell upon the main decl
Such was tho construction Of the heater All
the manner Of its explosion.
The cause is pretty certainly known, br
two or three causes existed, any one of whic
might have blown itup, without doubt, q
some time. An attempt was first made b
one or two persons to show that it was II ruI
turo and not an explosion, q rupture being
simple opening caused by over-pressure, onl
to an extent sufficient to relieve the pressur,
as is always the case under hydrostatic straii
But an explosion indicates either that ne
power was brought into play by giving ver
to the steam, or else that terrific power IA
| bnVpn1 m In gtnuI
ly generated. Both these results are easil
, traced, and the first seems to bHve occurre
! in this instance. 1t was at least an explosion
because the plate was crushed and ripped int
fragments. The internal shell Of the heatt
was not sdycd to the outer shell at any poin
had il been the pressure generated betwee
them would have had to pull apart endwi,
all the stay holts connecting the two shell
As il WAS the inside shell being a continue,
r arch alone resisted the pressure by its cor
8 pressiye strain. Had this shell been perfect
| round, to collapse 1t would have required Il
!, pressing of the tibres of the iron into eat
f other, but il is varied measurably from n pc
a feet circle in its whole diameter of eighteC
a feet, the arch principle was gone, and all th
4 was required 10 collapse it was not 10 CO.
!. Dense hut simply to bend the sheet Of iro
e Without this shell had been made perfect
r round by turning or in some other way, as
L was not, and as such parts Of boiler-woi
Q never are, pressure not much above that
= the boiler itself would have collapsed it,
G Supposing then, very naturally, that Il
!, weakest part went first, /. e.. that the insiC
Z, shell Srst collapsed, why did not this end Il
It matter since the pressure was thereby r
o moved} 1t lid end that matter, but IL broug
It another fopce into play which completed Il
,f explosion. All the water in the hoater-son
o tons-beng at the heat Of steam at say fil
,. pounds when the pressure Of fifty pounds W
removed would flash of into steam of low
q, pressure, but of immense volume, the resu
E, being equivalent to u terrhoally high pre-
II sure. So lhe collapse having occurred, q
IS new power probably completed the closing
ls of the inner pipe, which of course increas
le the surface upon which the steam could a
Sc upward, to piston seven feet in diamet,
IL instead Of ring six inches wide and twent
Sc one feet round. Then the new steam doubtle
~ burst out or tore apart, and lifted the Outsi
d shell sending il into the air. Thus smi
le over-pressuro may have led to the explosic
s 70 II appears upon inquiry, that one fee
ol pump was out of order, and that the 9th
. had 10 supply both boilers So IL was dett
VI mined not 10 use the heater which requir
u, more labor Of the pump, but TO send the wat
y directly ilto boiler by a separate pipe
!" that purpose provided. When this was dor
y the heater became boiler, and since no &C
~ water wa, passing through 1t its temperatu
n became yBry high and steam was rapidly g
90 Grated. doubtless the fires were still mC
,e urged to make steam, because the feed "
rJ cold instead Of warm, hence an extra heat "
be applied to the fatal vessel which was alrea
u generating death and destruction. But
he arc told that there was safety-yalyc uI