Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1861-02-28
ALTERING NAVAL VESSELS.

1t seems that Stevens unfinished floating bat
terry, at Hoboken, about which so many news
paper paragraphs have been published, has
been the means of effecting a great revolution
in the principal navcs of the world. The Lon
don Quarterly Review says that the experiments
made by Mr. Stevens at the expense of the Uni
ted States government, in 1915. first demon
Straled that wrought iron plate six inches thick
form perfect shield against the force of can
non balls that Mr. Stevens communicated this
fact freely to the engineers of England and
France during his visit to Europe: that this
knowledge led to the construction of iron pla-
ted floating batteries, the manifest usefulness
of which during the Crimean war, lJfompted
the Emperor Louis Napoleon to build the fleet
of iron plated vessels which is now in process
of construction in France. 1t is well known
that this movement of France is being followed
hy both England and Russia and thus the three
leading naval powers Of the world are provi-
ding themselves with fleets of iron plated shii s..
But our government having furnished the
knowledge which had led to this great revolu-
ton in the co. structiOn of naval vessels, Is
plodding along, some ten years behind the
times, and is Just about to eXpend more than
three millions of dollars in changing our old
sailing ships into steam propcerS. 1t is to be
presumed that the commissioners who exam
ined this question ascertained all the facts bear
ing upon the subject which were known at the
time of making their report but at that time
the brilliant success of La Gioire, the pioneer
of the new French fleet had not been demon
stratcd, and the extensive experiments now be-
ing made in England and France are develop
| ing knowledge of the subject so rapidly that it
may be well for Congress to reconsider the mat
ter before proceeding further with the contem-
plated change in our navy.
In the first place, it is pretty well settled
that iron ships are better than wooden ones for
/ the ordinary sailing rig; and they unqueStion-
ably possess peculiar advantages if they are to
be driven by screw propellers. 1t Is almost
impossible to make Il wooden ship with fine
run, such as a propeller requires which shall,
at the same time, be strong enough to bear the
strain exerted by the screw. If we are to have
even unpated screw ships, had we not better
construct new ones of iron?
But a whole fleet of unpated vessels are en-
tirelv at the mercy of one of the new iron pla-
ted ships A very few OF the terribly destIuc-
tive shells now in use will destroy any vesse
that has no protection against them. BY mean,
of rifed cannon, elongated shells can be thrown
which will explode at the instant of contact
and one of these, bursting on the side of ship
makes Il hole as big as door. Some of these
missiles are filed with a burning fluid which Is
set on fire and scattered in every direction by
the explosion. But perhaps the most destruet
i've of all instruments ofwariare is the ''carsass,
which is shell filed with molten iron. On
striking ship, the red hot liquid runs dowr
between the timbers, setting the ship on fire SC
extensively as almost to preclude the possibilit!
of putting it out.
The statement may be startling, but it il
made by high naval authority and entirely cred
iabe, that ship of war proyi ed with thest
shells and with suitable guns for firing them
you'd, in one minute, effect the destruction o
any wooden vessel aioat. Two hostile woodel
ships thus armed, meeting upon the ocean
would inevitably burn each other up,
1t is proved by numerous experiments tha
plate of iron one inch in thickness is per
feet protection against lhese shells, but as
few discharges of solid shot will break such
plate to pieces with great damage to the shil
and crew, it is of 10 value in actual warfare
and the only means of enabling a ship to sus
tain combined fire of shells and solid shot, i
to cover her with plates of wrought iron fou
and one half inches thick, which are proc
against both.
The experiments of England have showI
that if wooden vessels, covered with thck lrol
plates, are exposed to rapid fire ol Shot