The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1866-11-08

"A New WATER PRoPELLER.-The London
Times OF Oct. 2lst., contains a full description
OF curiosity in naval architecture which that
journal thinks is destined to astonish other ma
tons as completely as the Chinese were aston
ished at first seeing ships under steam. The
Watereiteh is a small gun-boat the motive pow
er of which, i t is hydraulic propulsion, The
Times says: sInJli yaa III sui sLu51 iifs i..i
This last. new plan of making ship sea-
worthy consists in scuttling her. To get a
swift, efficient gunboat of the very latest pat
tern, we now take awell-built craft and bore
number of small holes in her bottom, then fill
her with o awater-wheel, and 50 send her to sea.
*ipa si94 - The Wdteraoitch, with all her
novelty, is still literally steamer She has
engines of 1601s horsepower, which turn a
huge water-wheel IA IL feet in diameter, and
weighing eight tons The water required for
her work is admitted through holes in the bot
tom Of a. yessefto q long iron box, somewhat
analogous to the "welf of a Thames punt in
which gudgeon'are kept alive. Then the Wheel
put in motion by the steam-engine, sucks in
this water and discharges it with immense
force through what We may call the water-guns
outside the ship The advocates ofithe system
say thatit yields greater power in proportion
to the fuel consumed than the old screw or pad
die system; that spewer is wasted; that the
vessel, which is what the Americans call q
"double-ender,' can be driven either backward
or forWard at pleasure, wftAout any stopping or
reversing of the engines and that, in fact the
ofhcer IN command on deck can change the
ships course as well as modify her speed
instantaneeusly, without communicat-
ing with the engine room at all
A still more singular advantage is claimed
for this extraordinary design. Supposing that
the Wdte17ottch, or any similar vessel when in
action should be struck by shot, and have
her side torn open, the incident instead of pro-
ducing any harm, would be Immediately turn
ed to good account, for the Captain would sim
ply shut oil from the regular reservoir, and
work his ship with the supply conveniently
ADMITTED through the shot-hole Indeed one
Of the objections urged against the plan is that
the holes admitting the water to the proper wa
fer-box might get choked up or stopped in
shallow water, in which case an enemy's shot,
or torpedo would be a godsend, and enable
the vessel to get under water again at once.
} The Times expects that this idea will bring
the English 2well abreast of the Americans in
marine novelties" and thinks that "neither the .
Miantononoh nor the cigar ship can beat the
Wdter,oitch, with her prodigious waterwheel,
her heavy guns her iron-clad sides aud her
propelling jets."lai ha1lsl aat 7ste. -..|Il
aGl s. logf Nos 10 be Kicked. ~
q About twenty years ago, Abram Doolittle
was transplanted from Harvard University TO
one of the Southern States, for the purpose of
assuming the editorial control of a violent par
ty paper, where no one ever labored with ad-
vantage for the party simply because an infinite
quantity of pistols and multiplicity of bowie
knives prevented the advocacy of certain prin-
ciples and fettered the freedom of speech in a
style perhaps not so elegant as ef1icacious. Doc
little was Connections exotic. He was high
,ly educated, impetuous, brave, yet-with the
characteristic, cunning of his race-careful of
his own interest. He took hold of the paper
with determination to make it 'serviceable
to the cause, and serviceable he did make it,
1tt,zN x<x.sx.< 49,