The day book. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1857-1867, 1865-07-25

seas, prevailed; and his experience OF the
Atlantic weather, when in command of
her Majesty's ship Resistance, confirms
those statements, since he arrives at the
conclusion that, as there is every proba-
bility of the Great Eastern enoountering
strong head winds on her passage out,
she should proceed direct to Nswfound-
land and commence operations from that
place. He strengthens his argument by
remarking that there is prevailing cur
rent from the westward, accompanied by
awind from the same quarter, nine months
of the year, and a prevailing swell The
superiority of starting from west TO east
instead OF east to west consists in the
fact that she will have consumed coal,
stores, and water sufficient to tighten her
two feet From this Admiral Patey con-
tends that she will be more under
control running before westerly gale
than battling against it deeply laden, and
that the foul state of her bottom, with
the growth of mussels attached thereto,
will be Of less consequence in the man.
agement of the ship with fair wind and
following sea than in battling against
gale and sea ahead Whether the pre-
valence of westerly winds has had due
consideration or not, rests with the off.
Gals of the Company to explain but we
suspect it has never been left to the dis
cretion of Captain Anderson, who now
commands the Great Eastern for this trip,
to select from which side he shall com>
mence first 1t is known to every one
conversant with steaming over the Atlan>
tic, that the voyages from America to
England are made in shorter average
time than those from Europe, and the
reason is equally patent The westerly
winds lengthen the time in making the
outward passages, and diminish the
homeward. 1t is not too late to change
starting point, if deemed advisable. 1t
is only the question of the delay of alb ut
q week or so at most for if the Great
Eastern is put on at full steaming power,
she ought to make the run from Ireland
to Newfoundland in six days in fine
weather, and from her great speed and
momen tum she should not overrun this
by more than from twenty-four to forty
eight hours. If the change entalled a
loss of several weeks, at the most tavora-
BILE season of the year, it would be unwise
to defer the beginning till August; for,
thought that menth has been noted for it's
calms, it is likewise proverbial for strong
westerly breezes.
In selecting an officer of high attain.
| ments from the service of the British and
North American Royal Mail Company to
| take charge Of the Great Eastern it 10 PEE
sumed that the best advice has been had
aud that all contingencies have been duly
calculated. Our own experience of the
Great Eastern, is that she is the steadiest
ship that was ever built for working
against head wind. She never pitches
and what would stop or very much retard
an ordinary vessel has no appreciable eff
feet on the leviathan. Her weight and
momentum, in proportion 10 the seas that
m act her ahead, are different from that OF
any other vessel afloat She has sharp
bow and fine run forward. and as she is
not double the breadth ola ship one-fourth
Of her tonnage, she has nothing, compa-
ratively speaking, to dread from head
winds aud seas. She meets and parts
them, and it is only in very bad weather
that the water breaks aboard In SO far,
therefore, as regards winds there is
no vessel more suitable for contendino
against the elements than the Great Eas-
tern. 1t is quite another case whether,
because this ship is so steady when work
ing against head wiud and sea, she
she should be driven against them when,
by an alteration of plans, the chances are
that she might make the run with the
wind aft the greater porti IN or the whole
Of the voyage. But there is another side
to the nautical question. 1t should be
borne in mind that the electric cable will
be payed out astern, SO if that seas break
ahead it would be preferable to rolling
up astern The ship is to steam onwards
at the rate of six knots per hour; conse.
quently if there We're 10 be gale from
the eastward, in proceeding from Ireland,
with high SEA, the waves would break
against the cable, and possibly damage
the running part by friction against the
vessels stern II we were left to select
head or following wind in such MONS
ter ship as the Great Eastern, when Gu
gagged 10 laying Transatlantic subma-
rine cable, we should most decidedly
prefer the former. Tbs real danger to
The big ship is a side wind and beam
sea, but then there must also be strong
gale or hurricane. The rudder of the
Gtea, Easten must always be her weak
est point, for lis breadth exposes it to dam
age with the wind absam. or even on the