Daily national Republican. (Washington City [D.C.]) 1870-1872, 1870-02-19

In all. She has one pair Of main engines,
having a nominal power Of eleven hundred
horses. Their real power Ia $3.50 horses.
She is probably the swiftest war vessel 10
the world, allowing for the amount and bur.
den OF armor. The highest rate Of speed Is
a slight excess over fourteen knots; half
speed, eleven knots. The diameter OF the
cylinders lie ten feet; stroke, four feet, mum
ber Of revolutions per minute, thirty. The
engines are provided with surface con.
densers, containing 1894 tubes, or about
twenty miles Of tubing, and also with the
ordinary Jet condenseTs, either OF which can
be used. The condcusers furnish about Q, 700
gallons Of fresh water per day. A small,
self-acting valve engine ls used 10 aid In
starting the main engines. There are eight
main boilers, consuming 223 tons OF coal per
day when the engines are run at full speed.
The entire storage capacity Is only $40 tons,
so that the engines can never be used at full
speed on O voyage, and the main reliance
for motive power Is therefore the wind. The
boilers are situated 10 the ceptre Of the ship,
directly beneath the turrets. The engine
room Is an, but Is well protected by heavy
Iron gratiugs, which are run under the
hatches. The drain engine, which Ia used
to pump out the compartments, is situated
on the berth deck, Immediately over the
maiu engines. Among the smaller engines
arc two donkeys and a pair Of blast engines
for the furnaces, .....,..
The propeller Of this mighty engine Of
war Ia OF the Griffith pattern, 90 feet aud 4
Inches In diameter. Il Is provided with
shifting blades, by means OF which the pitch
may DO altered from % feet TO &c feet. The
immersion Of the top blade Is Q feet, aud In
s'ead Of being iifted out or water when not
IN use, 1t is provided with q coupling attach
ment, and Is allowed TO revolYe free Of the
engine as the ship moves With the wind.
By means Of this detachment a speed Of
from one to two knots per hour Is gained
when the ship Is moving at seven to eight
knots an hour.
The officers OF the United States steamer
Plymouth, which accompanied the Monarch
across the Atlantic, were loud in their
praises Of tho manner In which this ''levia.
than Of the deep" minded her helm, In the
toughest weather the vessel steered like a
pleasure boat. II size is a warrant OF good,
then there can be no wonder at their ex-
pressions OF pleasure, for the ruddor Of the
vessel is truly mammoth Institution. It
Is a balanced or equipoise rudder, and lie IS
feet In length by IL feet aud 4 inches In
breadth. Without the aid of steam six men
would be required TO manage II. The steer
Ing apparatus Is situated on the berth deck
and on the starboard side OF the battery
compartment. When the vessel is 10 light
Ing trim 1t Is quite below the water line.
The manner in which small steam engine
Is employed to aid In controlling tho rudder
Is peculiarly ingenious. The man who d.
reefs the rudder stands at an ordinary helm,
and the little engine beside him, by a skill.
fully devised connection, assists In turning
1t In either direction whenever he receives
an order from the pilot tower 10 alter It's DO.
sltlon. These orders are transmitted by
means OF revolving disk, with the COM
mands stamped upon Its lateral surface,
which Is put In motion BY the officer on the
lookout above.
The turrets are two In number, aud are
among the prominent points of interest on
the vessel. They arc situated close to each
other, amidships, with the boiler funnel be.
tween them. They are 20 feet in diameter
over all, and 90 feet inside. They rest upon
the main deck, aud are mounted on rollers,
instead Of being supported on a central
pivot, as In our monitors. The circular bed
on which tho turret reyolvcs Is Of the same
diameter as the turrct, and its upper surface
Is planned to an exact level. The turret rests
on 30 iron rollers, 10 inches In diameter and
inches wide, connected with rods which
converge at tho centre. Tho turret Is cen.
tered on an Iron pivot, but Is mainly held In
place by the massive framework OF the up
per deck, which enclrcles IL little below the
middle portion. The floor IA about three
feet and half above the main deck, aud on
each side OF the un.carrlages are entrances
through which the guuners come and 90,
and pass up the ammunition; around the
base there are no encumbrances whatever,
and In this wide, open space the operation
Of working the turrets eau be carried on
with great celebrity. On tho side OF the tur-
rets protecting the guns the armor plates
arc 10 Inches, on a wood backing OF eight
inches, with skin plating of two thick
nesses OF seven-elghths Inch iron, each
stiffened by seyen-inch horizontal frames,
With an iron lining three.elghthS OF an Inch
IN thickness. The heavy plating extends
1nly few feet on each side Of tho port
holes, and on the opposite side OF the turret
lrmor Is not more than half the thickness.
In addition to the armoT-platlug Of the sides
there are inside screens OF iron plating to
further protect the machinery of the tur-
rats. Across the top there Ia light wooden
no other protection being neces-
sary on account Of the height above the
water.
Around the outside of the portion Of the
turret In the rear of the guns there iS a
wooden platform, upon which the person al
recting the movements Of the turret stands.
There are pair Of engines for each turret,
situated directly beneath them, on the berth
deck. The time required for a revolution Ia
thirty seconds.
To aid in the sighting OF tho guns there Is
q very Ingenious arrangement on the lnte-
rlor Of the turret, by which square mirror
In heavy brass frame Is uufolded from a
side 10 the framework overhead, aud is pro-
jected through an aperture, where 1t may be
from below so as TO enable the
gunners to perceive the position of objects
outside. Another smaller stationary mirror
10 fixed In the opposite side OF the aperture,
10 that reflections of the state OF affairs out.
Tide are cast In two directions.
The armament OF the Monarch consists of
zine guns, or perhaps more properly, seven
guns, as two of them are 12.pounder deck
lowltzers, OF the Armstrong broech-loadlpg
pattern, stationed at the stern, on the upper
leck. The bow battery consists of two lis
Ionnder rifed "chasers," rs they are called.
This part OF the upper deck Is well protected, |
md the port holes for these guns are re. |
essed, so as to allow them TO FIRE at an an. |
70 or sta'ght ahead and they can even be
red at an angle OF three degrees across tho
oWline. With their muZzles protrudlng
icy give tho bow terribly savage look.
hese guns have an elevation OF Is degrees
nd a range Of 200 yards.
Tho bow gun 10 a six aud one half ton
lu cRlibTe, seven inches. II works on a
lde and has range OF 10 degrees from the
no OF the ships keel. Bot these guns are
/ the tuTrets-two In each. These mon
ers weigh each about twenty-five tons. Al
le breeeh they are AZ feet IN diameter,
he size Of the bore Is l2 inches, with 8.l8
lch riding.
The shot used are conlcal chilled shot,
'elghlng elk hundred pounds, two hundred
ounds heavier than those thrown by the
lteen-inch guns on our monitors. Shells
the same size as the solid shot, aud CON
aiming thirty three pounds OF powder, can
lso be used, and a quantity Is provided.
he range Of these guns is tremendous, aud
lr exceeds that Of any other ordnance now
! use. On account Of their immense size
he vent Is placed for convenience on the
de Of the breach instead OF on the top, as
customary with other ordnance. Both
nus eau be fred at once by means Of a
ord and spring attached to tho cartridge.
he full charge Of powder Is seventy.
ounds, but the guns are usually fred with
xty or less. None OF the four have been
red more than forty or ffly times. Tho
achinery for running out the guns Is ad.
irable. Cranks are applied TO splndles on
% outer edge OF the base OF the turret, and
c worked to great advantage by the men
ION the lower deck, Nine men Is tho
Iota for each gun. The guns have an
ovation Of sixteen degrees aud q depres-
m Of geyan dppFeeat lint nv meana nF a |