The New York herald., 1862-03-10

TIE IRoN.CLAD GUNBOAr MONITOR, on KRlooooN
BATTERY.
This nns war vessel has been described at length In
this Journal but every body will naturally desire 70
know something about her. We win refresh the public
memory with another brief description. Tho Monitor s
also known the Ericsson Battery and was built upon
now and highly successful design has been proved In
her light with the Msrrimac This gunboat is long,
wide and fat -botomed vessel, with vertical sides and
pointed ends, requiring but very shallow depth Of
water to oat IN though heavily loaded with an impreg
nable armor on her sides, and bombproof deck, on
which ID placed shotproof revolving turret, that will
contain two very heavy guns. She Is 80 low in the
water afford target for an enemy and everything
and everybody is below tho line, with the excep-
tion Of the persons working the who protected
By the shotproof turret To give the upper portion Of
the vessel the proper powers Of locomotion there
pended beneath another one Of less strength. suf
cently and sloping at the sides, that II the
enemy's balls should pass below the shotproof upper
vessel sides only be hit at such an angle that
no harm shall snsue and in Its length approaching the
bow only 40 far that Its yaking stem may receive the
shot fred from directly ahead In the way, and
the stern giving sufficient space permit the shot coming
from directly aft pass under the shotproof end with
out hitting the rudder which 10 abaft the propeller The
sides Of the vessel nrst formed Of plate ron half
an inch thick, outside Of which 10 attached solid
white oak twcntysix inches thick outside Of again
is rolled iron i've inches thick. The bomproof
deck is supported by heavy bracsd oak beams, upon
which IL laid plankng inches thick covered with
rolled plate iron one inch thick.
The turret consists Of rolled plate iron skeleton one
inch thick to which rvstted two thicknsssss Of
inch each Of relied iron plates. Outside Of this again
are six plates Of rolled iron. all rmsly botsd together
with nuts inside, 80 that plate 10 started oan bs
T1,nN Nort~ d-,Sh = kor
proof roof perforated with holes The ower part Of the
gun carriages consists Of solid wrought iron beams.
These are planned perfectly true and placed parallel
in the urrs both OF the guns pointing In the dirse
tion The ports through the side Of the tunnel only
large enough permit the muzze Of the gun 10 be thrust
through Inside Of them are wrought iron psndulums,
which close them against the enemy soon as the gun
recos She lie armed with two Of the largest DAhlgrsn
guns made to revovs By pair OF steam engines placed
beneath the deck.
The lower vessel 10 Of iron, onshaK inoh thick, and
made in the usual Sho carries her machinery
coal &c. AFT and forward the officers quarters, ammu
utiou and stores The two partitions OF the vessel are
separated by q wrought iron bukhead. The oniceru
quarters are very rooy and handsome, and are vent
,atsd and lighted by openings from the deck.
Her smachinsry consists sof two horizontal tubular
boilers containing 5000 square feet Of nrs surface and
two condensng engines q forty inch diameter
Of cylinders and twenty-five inch stroke OF piston The
rropesr nine feet In diameter and sixteen feet stroke
II has four blades.
For the better ventilation Of the vessel there are two
fan blowers drawing air down through bembproof
gratngs tho deck Though not exactly intended for
sea vessel shc proceed TO sea- TO any pon along
the coast without fears Of the least injury She car.
ries generally three months provisions and Is supplied
with oondsnsns apparatus for supplying fresh water
As an evidence Of the rapdity with which this vessel
has been completed may state that her keel laid
on the 25h Of October 1861 and steam first applied
on the slst Of December the year. shswas launch
Cd on the 30th Of January last