The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-03-07
ing capacity against moderate head wind and
over smooth sea.

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over . smooth sea.
AEsOP's TORTOISE ECLIPsED
CoRREsP0NDENT-How does this rate Of speed
compare with that OF the vessels OF other navies
Fleet Engineer RoBIE-It is notifying truth
that, acting in concert these vessels OF our navy
would not De capabls OF making one-half the speed
under steam which is regarded as absolutely
necessary for the war vessels OF every other
nation. such a grave and startling defect Is
enough to condemn them at once for naval pur-
poses
CAN NEITHER FIGHT NOR RETREAT.
CoRREsPONDENT-Aow is this incapacity most
apparenti
Fleet Engineer RoBE-Principally In the fact
that they can neither Overtake an inferior nor es-
cape from a superior enemy IN case OF necessity.
The condition OF the great majority OF our wooden
vessels fitted with this auxiliary steam power,
when opposed to the swift war steamers Of mod
ern times. Is very little better than that Of the
Congress and Cumberland when attacked by the
ram Merrimac in Hampton Roads.
IRON-CLADS MUST BE FAST.
CoRREsPoNDENT-You regard speed as OF more
Importance than iron platingf
Fleet Engineer ROBIE-f you Will allow me to
qualify my answer shall say, emphstically, yes
decided change in the construction OF our wooden
ships would be necessary Unless irOn-clads are OF
the monitor pattern the approved guns OF the
present time can throw shot thr ough the heaviest
plating that can be used. Niteen-inch guns can
be made to throw shot through the sides OF any
broadslde iron-clad that can be foated. The weak
features OF our vessels, aside rom inadequate
steam power and the vast amount OF useless rig
gng with which they are encountered, are-frst,
the utter absence OF guns which can be trained to
fire either directly ahead or astern.
IN FOLLOWING AN ENEMY
it should be possible to fire the heaviest guns at
her without changing direction or losing time by
slowing down. The construction of the propeller
well in the stern tor hosting screw also does
away with all possibility of using heavy guns that
could be fired directly astern, and it is an element
OF weakness, as the screw depends on its remain
ing uninjured for its support. The engines ana
boilers in our vessels here also require nearly
TWICE THE QUANTITY OF COAL
to develop an indicated horse power which would
be necessary to produce the same effect II they
possessed the improved machinery which is now
being so generally adopted in merchant steamers
and also in the Tennessee and new vessels build
ing Tor our navy. The Wabash now burns
forty tons Of coal per day to do work
which new machinery would do with twenty tons.
Then would have our naval vessels so constructed
that they could be effectively used as rams when.
ever an opportunity offered and with speed OF
at least sixteen knots per hour under steam alone,
sail power reduced so as to offer the least possible
resistance when steam Is used but two masts In
any ship, and those to be made of iron or steel,
hollow for ventilation and telescope; a few heavy
guns OF the greatest attalnable range, so placed
that at least one OF them could be trained to fire
directly ahead and another directly astern. am
even without any iron plating, than those now
possessed by any foreign Power There is very
much more which could be said on this subject, but
! think that have sketched out the chief faults Of
our present slow wooden navy.