Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1873-04-05

Inc ihladtlphil Lcdger OF this morn
ing, has an editorial article on the COM
/ paraiive valde of British and American
8 built ships, and after showing that The
difference IN cost in favor OF the former
has been reduced to but 10 or Is per
cent. declares that with only this much
d ference the American ship is the
chcai er on account Of tue superior
quality Of Is iron.
In view Of the grent interest in the
matter now, caused by the almost instaH-
.aueous wreclins Of The lddltic bv strik-
lng rock, the following facts from the
Le'ger 8 aiti,ls are OF the highest impor-
lance everywhere
A few weeks ago the steamer Whining
tan, Of Clyde's lire, built at Wilmington,
Del, Of American iron, ran with great
force upon a reef OF the Florida coast.
while ON her way FROM New York to Ha-
Nana with ful cargo. Seventy feet of the
length of the ship was or the reef, where
II pounded fOr twelve hours rv4eytima
the sea lifted the hull and let il fall. AT
to- some of the cargo was thrown over.
board, the ship thus ilghtened Was backed
oil, AID she went ON her way to Ha-
vans, where her condition was examined.
II was found that, while the heavy
pounding" she had gone through when
aground on the reef had dented and
bulgcd some Of her iron plates, not one
Of hfn igds JrOkeii, aud only one Of them
~ any degree cracked. A small patch was
a! that was Immediately required, when
she took in heavy cargo, carried il to
New York, and then came around to
cramps shlpyard TO have the dents taken
out Of her iron plates. This Is all that
hlppeaed to the American built ship,
whose plates, or al least tlat portion of
them -ubje2ttd TO the strain, airs of Penn
syIvanla made Iron. The plates were
simply bent out Of shape, and 70 slightly
damaged that they were reroiled cold and
put back again. The great teuacty of
the iron resisted that tremendous "ponnd-
lng" on the reef for more than half
day without breaking. It is this invalu-
able quality which tue owner Of Il Deia-
ware river built ship gets for his add
tional fifteen per ceut. Of cost.
Now, let us look NJ the other side of
me question Some time in January, the
BRUSH built iron steamship Potomac ran
into field Of ice, IN the " Horse Shoe. -
below the city, and theice cut righf ,bro,,oA
the iron plates of her bow, and wrdFed
itself fast in the open fracture. Thi,
suf1clently tells the story of the difference
between the cheap iron Of the British
built vessels and our home manufacture.
But there is more to tell, for the Delaware
river built iron steamer Gulf Stream. a
smaller vessel than the Potomac, plunged
through the same ice-deld that had cat
the bow OF the Potomac, and hauled the
fotomac out. A section of one of these
fractured British plates, taken from the
Potomac while undergoing repair, shows
that Il Is quite "short " and brittle. the
fracture having something of the appear
ance Of cast iron. Plates of that quality
are not worth so much by $40 a ton
as the Iron In cur Delaware river built
ships. But they are dear at any prlc..
II such inferior, brittle and CHEAP iron
were used In the ships built on the Della
ware, our ships would cost no more than
the chips built on the river CLYDE, The
four noble vessels of the Pennsylvania
line, now at cramp d Sons yard, are of
tue same strong, tenacious, flexible. and
almost unoreakable Pennsylvania iron.
OF which the plates of the Wilmlnvton
were made, which resisted The 6iteen
hours pounding" on the Florida reef
without break.