New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-02-21
NEW ORLEANS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 1871.
BOILER INSPECTION.

Jones' of the steamer Dexter, in which |
there are some statements not entirely cor
rect, and the more surprising, emanating, |
as they do from a person who ought to be |
better informed on such matters. These |
misstatements are calculated to mislead the |
public, and for this reason l desire to cor |
rect them.
If the captain had taken the pains to have |
consulted the reports made to the govern !
ment since the close of the war, he would |
not have made the statement he did in re-
lation to the number of steamers now en-
ployed on the Mississippi and its tributaries.
He would have discovered that there are
more steamers, and a greater amount OF
tonnage now than ever before, and that the
loss Of life during single year from the
cause noticed THAT Of explosions), with one
exception, that of the year 1865, much less
The following statement, compiled from au-
thentic sourcess will prove this:
1859. 1861. 1870.
Number of steamers in ,,
spected. ............... LII. o'' ',iVS
A"s"nt snrtte,i Of tonnage IN. n.s 9m sSsa5 suz7,
Number of lives lost -
Captain Jones says he is satisfied with
the manufacture and metal generally EN-
ployed in the engine and boilers should
like for hln and others to examine
specimen of iron, which have Ill my pos
session, taken from u set of boilers recently
exploded (those of the Judge Wheeler),
which. believe, would change his opinion
in this respect. The captain says the law
of Congress is good. and that the inspectors
faithfully perform their duties. The law OF
Con gress is very defective, and inspectors dls-
charge their duties in very imperfect man
ner, not from any fanlt of theirs, however,
but from detects in the law which limits and
crcumscribes the means necessary to
faithful performance of these duties. II IN
spect;ous were made with the same regard
to truthfulness and flllness as Il private
party would inspect if they were about to
nurchaSe. there would be less cause for COM
ulaint. That this is not done is not the fault
of inspectors so much as Il Is the means
placed in their hands. Look at this port.
for instance. There are one hundred and
tifty steamers to inspect and keep under Il
constant surveillance, and as many more
wbic,, ourlt to be visited and thoroughly eX-
amirad every time they come into port; and
all this to be accomplished by two persons.
ANY one who is at all acquainted with
this subject knows how utterly impossible
it is for two persons TO properly perform TINS
| amount OF labor. The bill Just passed the
| House OF Representatives, and now before
! the Senate for concurrence. VIII remedy thlS
evil bv increasing the Inspectors at TINS ana
otler ports.
| As to the quality OF the iron now used. it
| j. n,tant with all boiler makers that 1t has
! greatly ,!eteriorated of late years, and that
| .C. H. No. l. means mostly anything.
! can snow CAPTAIN Jones specimen marked
&c. II. No. t. which is nothing but com
mon puddled iron. and that charcoal and
h,mmeriny were as far from being employed
| in lis manufacture as that OF any other re-
| .in;,o process The bill above referred to
ATTEMPTS 10 reform this evil also. by making
| il the interest of manufacturers 10 make
none but the very best quality OF iron.
PRAY. captain. will you inform the pubic
| wherein r. he construction o. the Western
river cylindrical boiler differs from what
if wa. before the war, and if the sheets OF
iron are any shorter or narrower now than
| then, or VIII erein there is any excess OF hre.
surface. ami rivet lines The form of the
boiler used ON the Western river high-pres-
sure steamers Is the strongest possible TO
conceive. and l know of no way OF adding
to it's strength, but by increasing the 9uailty
of the IRON out of which ii is made. What
the captain means by return to the
simple and safe plan of the original river
| boiler. and the present ocean boiler, Is not
| easy to understand. lie certainly would
not advocate the present form OF the ocean
boiler for our high-prfssure river boats. uil,
less he would change their whole mode ana
style of construction: nor can he reduce the
| boiler power without compromising the
| speed to an extent not to be entertained ior
a moment in this fast age.
The remarks upon the practical Workings
| of a battery ut boilers are. in the man. cor
rect and have no doubt serious evils have
resulted in the manner proposed. NO go"h
engineer will trust to water gauges however
correct they may be; they are only con
sdered as helps to assure HIM VI the situa-
t;on of the water in his boiler. tnot the pres
sure. as the captain says. when he could
not try the gauge cocks. and would nor,
even if the water gauges were not before
him. A state or condition, OF the tcmpera-
t,,re of the water in a battery OF boilers
NAV be such, and often 49, as to induce Il
how from one of the boilers before the
pressure ut which the valve is set Is reache
For instance, if there should be one hun
dred pounds pressure in one OF the boilers
OF a battery. allowed maximum pressure
of one hundred and thirty pounds, and but
seventy five in the remainder, the water
would be forced out OF the one with the one
hundred. until an equilibrium is established,
or serious results ensue, but the safety valve
would remain intact as 1t Is net
at the maximum pressure. Inc
last tests the gauge cocks and the
safety-valves," the Captain says never
fail to) deceive the engineer No, he
would never fail to be deceited were he to
rely either upon water gauges, gauge-cocks
or safety valves to ascertain the pressure
in his boiler. The safety-valve oan only
detect the excess Of maximum and not the
pressure below that point, and the water
yauges and gaugc-cocks the situation OF the
water whether high OF low.
Iagrce with the captain in his estimation
of tho gas and electricity theories of ex
. plosions. and believe the PRONUNCIATION OF
these theories has been the cause of vast
amount of injury, by directing attention
away from the true cause of these disasters
If there is any foundation in these theories
whatever. | should be in favor OF legislating
all steam boilers out OF existence at once
as the only sure way of preventing these
calamites; for how can we tell when We
are safe, or when the boiler IS not generating
this gas, or being charged with electricity
do not believe that it will be necessary
nor advisable for the government to enter
into an investigation of the correctness O.
the captains idea, for fail to see that ne
has presented anything new on what Il
know and acknowledged by all. and II this
is the result of his twenty odd years o
study in this direction, no wonder he meet
with injurious and unjust prejudice, as h'
calls it. The present attempt to enlightel